Hm . Facebook started with college networks and pokes but they got removed as it grew

Youtube started with piracy and pranks but it got contentID over time

The poke feature is still there, just hidden away. If you do find it, using it will send a poke notification to someone bringing them to the page where they can then poke others.

Sorry, should have been clearer: I meant for-profit physical villages ("company towns") turning into real cities.

London comes to mind.