spin-off

Intermediate 💼 Corporate / Business

Definition

That unexpected bonus feature nobody asked for that somehow became more popular than the original—like when a supporting character gets their own show and steals the thunder. In business, it's when a company splits off a division into its own entity, and in tech, it's when research leads to something wildly different than planned. The accidental gold rush of corporate strategy.

Example Usage

PayPal was originally a spin-off of X.com's payment technology and became worth billions.

Source: Common business terminology, Merriam-Webster

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