DIGITAL > A Weinstein Will Invest in Exclusivity

Most popular Internet communities, like Facebook.com or MySpace.com, measure their success by their ability to attract new members. A notable exception to this rule is aSmallWorld.net, an exclusive online community that is about to get bigger.

The Weinstein Company, the production business started by Bob and Harvey Weinstein after they left Miramax, has invested in aSmallWorld, the company will announce today. The Weinsteins, whose multimedia portfolio includes Miramax Books and a magazine publishing company, Niche Media, head a team of investors including Robert W. Pittman, former chief operating officer of AOL Time Warner. The company declined to put a dollar figure on its investment, describing it only as "significant." The Weinstein Company was attracted to aSmallWorld by the community's social networking and advertising opportunities, Harvey Weinstein said in an interview. This is the company's first investment in an online venture.

ASmallWorld, a private company founded in 2004, has approximately 130,000 members, or about half the number who join MySpace each day. On its log-in page, it describes its members as "like-minded individuals" who share the "same circle of friends, interests and schedule."

Invitations are difficult to come by: only some members have the right to invite friends to join. According to Erik Wachtmeister, the site's founder and the son of a former Swedish ambassador to the United States, a panel considers 12 to 15 variables before permitting certain users to issue invitations.

"You don't want to let just anyone invite," Mr. Wachtmeister said. Asked what those variables were, he replied that it's a "secret sauce."

Mr. Wachtmeister said he had the initial idea for the community in 1998, having lived in 10 cities. While traveling, "you see the same people over and over, gravitating toward each other," he said.

Once admitted, members have access to "trusted and select information," the site says, like nightclub or restaurant recommendations from other members. Those who abuse the system by trying to network with celebrity members can quickly find themselves out of the club.

"We keep track of people's behavior and we actually do kick people out," Mr. Wachtmeister said. Although he declined to identify celebrity members, media reports have named Quentin Tarantino, Ivanka Trump and Naomi Campbell.

The Weinstein Company's investment may affect the community's size, if not its purpose and membership. According to Mr. Weinstein, his company will be expanding aSmallWorld, while maintaining its membership restrictions and its appeal to a "smaller, more select" audience. "I think we'll become very successful with one million people," he said, "but we have to find the right one million."