// STARTUP COMPARISON
Dr. Consulta vs Social Point
Dr. Consulta failed in 2020 due to Unit Economics. Social Point failed in 2017 due to Acquisition Gone Wrong. Different causes, different sectors, different eras — but the same simulation outcome.
| METRIC | 🔥 Dr. Consulta | 🔥 Social Point |
|---|---|---|
| Sector | Healthtech | Gaming |
| Country | Brazil | Spain |
| Founded | 2011 | 2008 |
| Died | 2020 | 2017 |
| Raised | $75M | Bootstrapped |
| Peak | $250M valuation (2019) | $250M acquisition |
| Primary Cause | Unit Economics | Acquisition Gone Wrong |
// WHY EACH FAILED
🔥 Dr. Consulta
Unit Economics
Dr. Consulta opened 70+ clinics across São Paulo offering $20 consultations to underserved Brazilians — a compelling social mission. But physical healthcare clinics require CapEx of $400K+ per location, doctor salaries in a tight labor market, and 18-month payback periods. The company reached 3M consultations by 2019 but each clinic needed $800K annual revenue to break even. Average revenue per clinic was $600K. SoftBank withdrew its planned $200M investment in late 2019 as unit economics failed to improve. Filed for bankruptcy in 2020.
// LESSON
Social mission and unit economics are not the same thing. You can build a genuinely needed healthcare service and still fail if each location requires $800K revenue to break even and only generates $600K. Purpose does not override math.
Social mission and unit economics are not the same thing. You can build a genuinely needed healthcare service and still fail if each location requires $800K revenue to break even and only generates $600K. Purpose does not override math.
🔥 Social Point
Acquisition Gone Wrong
Social Point built Dragon City and Monster Legends, reaching 100M monthly active users. Take-Two Interactive acquired them for $250M in 2017. Post-acquisition integration clashes, loss of autonomy, and departure of founding team led to creative stagnation. By 2020 both flagship games had declined significantly and the studio identity was absorbed into the parent company.
// LESSON
A mobile gaming acquisition that removes the founding team removes the only asset that created the value. Earnout structures and creative autonomy clauses are not optional — they are the acquisition.
A mobile gaming acquisition that removes the founding team removes the only asset that created the value. Earnout structures and creative autonomy clauses are not optional — they are the acquisition.
// EXPLORE FURTHER