This is something I latched on to too; does scaling imply stability and business fitness? Otherwise scaling is not the correct word in this context - thin yet brittle hypergrowth that over-extends the emotions and focus of employees and the correct use of economic resources.

Perhaps they learned the highly valuable mistakes that can make the second time easier?

To be fair, LivingSocial's problem wasn't "growing too quickly". Their problem was that their business model evaporated as consumer trends changed.

Building a solid business model is important, but so too is scaling it. At least these guys learnt half of the recipe.