5/28/13

5/28/13

Good morning, All,

Yahoo’s back and Marissa Mayer seems for all intents and purposes to be on a buying spree. Last week it was Tumblr and now they’ve thrown their hat in the ring to acquire Hulu. They supposedly bought Tumblr to attract a younger audience, and it is highly unlikely that they took the time to view this infographic before they dropped $1.1 billion to close the deal. Yeah, right. At last week’s CM Summit, Yahoo CMO Kathy Savitt reminded us of something that we had forgotten: that it was Yahoo that first made the web a daily habit. All of those websites out there and there was no way to find them, unless you knew the URL. Yahoo was a game changer. When they went public, they went on a buying spree and tried to be all things to all people: broadcast.com, geocities, to name two. They missed out on eBay and tried to build their own. Remember Yahoo auctions? Didn’t think so. They cast too wide a net too early on and it was unmanageable. The field was wide open and enter Google (which Yahoo passed on, just for the record). As for Yahoo’s acquisitions, closed and pending, let’s not forget that besides search, Yahoo is and always was a content company. Content and search were always Yahoo’s core competencies, and they seem to be returning to those roots that first made them successful. This time, with an eye to the future: native advertising (Ok, we know that contextual advertising has been around for a while and that only the name has been changed to deceive the clueless, much as the cloud is networked computing by any other name: gotta love the marketing department, and see what a little strategic marketing can do? A ‘new’ category is born.’ Take heed). But Mayer needs to give Tumblr time to continue to build their audience, and focus on long-term goals rather than short-term mandates.

Google started on a different path: Remember ‘Don’t Be Evil?’ (Google’s Broken Promise: The End of “Don’t Be Evil”) That went down the same rabbit hole as did their privacy policy, monitoring your every keystroke while you’re on any and every google product, all in the name of giving you a better online experience, and never mind that they’re facing yet another anti-trust probe over their display ads. Speaking of the old days, head’s up, Google: push technologies didn’t work.

It seems to us that the Yahoo Renaissance is not unlike the Apple comeback, with the return of Steve Jobs and a return to the company’s core competency – innovation. Google seems to be taking the path of Yahoo I: being all things to all people, rather than stick to that core competency that led them to practically wipe Yahoo off the map, initially. We’d still argue that relevancy trumps brute force. It’s fine to pivot and change and evolve and grow. As long as you retain that passion that set you on your path, and remember that differentiator that drew those eyeballs to you in the first place. As for Yahoo and Google: time will tell. Onward and forward.

 Housekeeping:

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Deadlines:

NEW   Upstart: Accelerator for women-led tech startups, deadline May 31st. We’re looking for bold ideas, and founders who are ready to go big or go home. The top four teams selected for the inaugural cohort will receive the 4 Ms: mentors, milestones, money and Memphis. We’re looking for teams led by women, but may have men as co-founders, too.

Digital Catalyst Fund Summer Boot Camp, starts in June; companies are accepted on a rolling basis. No technical cofounder required and you’ll spend the summer in Bucharest – the Paris of Eastern Europe!  Apply here. Applications are now being accepted for Digital Catalyst Fund’s 10-week Summer Boot Camp. This one-of-its-kind accelerator is seeking entrepreneurs with early stage ideas that can impact the new media/digital marketing space. Accepted entrepreneurs will be provided with up to $20,000 cash and cash equivalent services, as well as $30,000 in technical development resources. You’ll be living (in a converted mansion; chef included) and working with our technical teams in Bucharest, Romania. We’ll also provide mentors and a Demo Day, back here in NYC. For the informational webinar happening this week, go herehttps://angel.co/digital-catalyst-fund Also for more information, there is a story on them in AlleyWatch.

NEW   Free office space at eBay, deadline June3rd. Friends of eBay aims to support the next wave of NYC tech by offering free office space to early stage startups and the chance to work alongside some of the best minds in the field. Each wave will last for 6 months, the next beginning July 1st 2013.

New York Venture Summit: Apply to present/early bird registration ends June 5.  The 13th annual New York Venture Summit, presented by youngStartup Ventures, is the premier industry gathering connecting venture capitalists, corporate VCs, angel investors, technology transfer professionals, senior executives of early stage and emerging growth companies, university researchers, incubators and premier service providers. Whether you are an investor seeking access to new early stage deals, or a CEO or Founder of a new venture looking for funding, visibility and growth, New York Venture Summit is one event you won’t want to miss. To be considered for one of the Top Innovator slots, please e-mail iwant2present@youngstartup.com for an application.

Code For America Accelerator, deadline May 31st. The four month program focuses on civic startups, providing them the network and training needed to grow their businesses. Every month, the startup teams are brought together in CfA’s San Francisco offices for an intensive week-long curriculum led by industry experts, coupled with networking events with investors. Throughout the program, the startups have access to hands-on mentorship, administrative support, and office space. Companies also receive the opportunity to meet government officials through our network and our annual CfA Summit, which draws civic technology leaders from around the country. $25k in cash, office space, mentors, demo day – you the know the drill.

LaunchHouse Accelerator Accepting Applications, Cleveland, Ohio, and all are welcome to apply. Deadline unknown. Program starts in August. For more information, see below under ‘I Can Help.’ To apply, go here. Also, just for your information, they do encourage people from anywwhere to apply – and even provide housing!

Fourth BigApps Competition, deadline June 7th. $150k in prizes, and there’s a NYC BigApps 2013 Expo and Hackathon Weekend at eBay’s New York offices the weekend of April 6th. More information about the BigApps competition is on the NYCBigApps website.
 
Blueprint Health Accelerator, deadline June 8th. They just had their demo day, and getting ready for the next session. The foundation of the program is a community of over 150 healthcare entrepreneurs, investors and industry executives that are committed to helping you build and grow your business. It’s the largest network of mentors with healthcare expertise of any accelerator, which can provide you with warm introductions and the strategic and tactile advice you need. Plus $20,000 in cash, over $50,000 in perks, office space at our SoHo office, and a community that is dedicated to seeing you succeed.

CROWDFUNDxNYC Challenge, deadline June 15th.  Grand prize is $25,000.
Grand Prize Winner will be selected from the 1st place winners in the three categories. Additional prizes/in-kind services available for all winners.
Categories:
SMALL BUSINESS: independently owned and operated for-profit company meeting the size requirements of the U.S. Small Business Association.
SOCIAL ENTERPRISE: for-profit, social mission driven organizations which apply market-based strategies to achieve a social purpose. See this definition of Social Enterprise on Crowdfunder.
TECHNOLOGY STARTUP: a company designed to search for a repeatable and scalable business model with high growth potential, generally in a phase of development and research for markets.

Matchpoint | East, June 30th. This is an exclusive opportunity for selected health technology entrepreneurs and large stakeholders to meet in designated 15-20 minute meetings. Meetings are arranged based on selected criteria by industry leaders and investors, leading to high-yield discussions with innovative companies! During these meetings, innovators have the opportunity to demo their innovations with potential partners and investors. Hundreds of applications are reviewed by our team and host companies to select companies to participate in exclusive round table discussions and demos. Traditionally, over 500+ applications are reviewed to identify 10-15 innovative companies per host sponsor. Apply here.

Take the H.E.L.M., deadline July 15th.  To encourage the continued growth of Lower Manhattan, Take the HELM will award four $250,000 cash grants and four $50,000 cash grants to companies seeking to open an office or expand in Lower Manhattan.

Global Apps To Empower, deadline July 26th. We invite you to think out of the box and create apps that inform, educate and empower women everywhere. Compete for $10,000 in prizes. Have your app pre-loaded onto thousands of devices for global distribution on the Ubislate series of tablet and at the BluWorld portal. Receive up to 20 tablets for user testing and app development. Receive global recognition from partners and sponsors including publication of your app deployment story.

MTA AppQuest, deadline August 20th.  Change the way 8.5 million people commute every day — create the transit app of the future. New/existing mobile apps running on any platform accepted.  For more information and to apply, go here.

For you edification this week:

Why Startups Need to Focus on ‘Why,’ Not ‘What.’ Startups might be able to acquire early adopters based on what they’re selling, but crossing the chasm requires selling mainstream on why.

10 Rules for a Great Startup Idea. (Infographic) This comes from our friend Adeo Ressi, founder of Founder Institute, who knows what he’s talking about…

All the Startup Advice You Read is Wrong. (But you should read some anyway)

Marc Ecko deciphers The Notorious B.I.G.’s “Ten Crack Commandments” Read on, or watch the video.

5 Pieces of Advice for Entrepreneurial MBAs. Some you know, some you don’t. It’s a short read.

These 12 technologies will drive our economic future. In our opinion, 3-D printing is being underestimated…

Elevator Pitch/Member News
Hint, hint: Feel free to tell us what you’re working on, or if you’ve been featured in the press…Share, and we will, too!

Father’s Day is coming and we’re giving you some lead time this time. Yes, we do have our healthy, unbelievably luxurious yet low calories, low fat and vegan bonniefoods.com truffles – bonus 25% more when you mention SOS when ordering and thank you! Full selection is here, and of course, you’re welcome to order cookies, too.

Heads up: Tonight at 8:15pm is Manhattanhenge, aka Manhattan Solstice, when the setting sun aligns with the east–west streets of the main street grid in Manhattan. Best cross streets for viewing are 14th, 34th, 42nd and 57th – at sunset, of course.

For your amusement this week: Nicolas Tesla Pitches to VCs. It’s priceless, and dead on. And just for fun: The 10 McFunniest Reactions to Burger King Twitter Hack. (Our personal favorite: dear burger king, u cannot have it ur way on twitter –mcdonalds)   That’s it from us this week. And now, as always, help is on the way…

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