The infamous twins Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss have been told they must keep their $65 million from a previous settlement with Facebook and move forward.
The Winklevoss twins claim that Facebook did not fully and accurately disclose the value of Facebook and therefore should be entitled to much more. On Monday, however, a U.S. appeals court ruled that the settlement still stands. The Winklevosses became popular after the movie “The Social Network.”
The suit originated from the Winklevosses accusing Mark Zuckerberg, co-founder and CEO of Facebook, of stealing their idea for a social networking site. Zuckerberg and Facebook have always denied the accusations, but in 2008 they agreed to a $65 million settlement. The Winklevoss twins have recently tried to increase that settlement by stating that Facebook has practiced security fraud.
Chief Judge Alex Kozinki wrote in the ruling, “The Winklevosses are not the first parties bested by a competitor who then seek to gain through litigation what they were unable to achieve in the marketplace.” He continued, “and the courts might have obliged, had the Winklevosses not settled their dispute and signed a release of all claims against Facebook.”
The district and appeals court have both agreed to the ruling. So, perhaps this will be final attempt on the social network from the Winklevoss twins to secure any more shares.
Kozinski also wrote “For whatever reason, they (the Winklevoss twins) now want to back out. Like the district court, we see no basis for allowing them to do so. “At some point, litigation must come to an end. That point has now been reached.”
Obviously only the Winklevosses’ and Zuckerberg truly know what happened with the social network. Who do you think is right? Should the Winklevoss twins be entitled to more money/shares?
