9/13/11

9/13/11

Good morning, All,

First, our thanks to all who attended our last Terrace event last night. A special thank you to our volunteers and to the investors who took the time to come and talk to you all. We’ll be planning another Find A Cofounder and SOS 1-1 with an  Investor soon. In the meantime, don’t forget that you can www.doitinperson.eventbrite.com – and get a 50% discount with the code SOS. Hope to see you there!

During the days of web 1.0, content providers insisted that content was king. They seemed to be a voice in the wilderness, and the technology itself held sway. This week it was announced that Carol Bartz is out at Yahoo (Yahoo’s Board “F***ed Me Overhttp://yhoo.it/rs2HHr). Oh, and yes, Michael Arrington is out at AOL. Or so it stood , when last we left our hero (Entire staff of TechCrunch now threatening to commit mass suicide unless Michael Arrington gets his way, on everything, forever http://bit.ly/oLW5pC, and yes, that was him in the Unpaid Blogger tee onstage at Disrupt). It was also announced that Google bought Zagat to beef up its local content (Google Acquires Zagat To Flesh Out Local Reviews http://tcrn.ch/nEWuhg). What’s interesting in all of this is that what distinguished Yahoo at the onset and what drew eyeballs – yes, they were the only search engine out there at the time – but they offered content. Outstanding content, and maybe that’s why every now and then that old standby rumor emerges: the Yahoo/AOL merger talks. Back to our story: then Yahoo made a slew of expensive acquisitions, in every direction, which did very little to improve the brand (http://bit.ly/aZQMDC) Au contraire, Yahoo lost its focus. Google has also made acquisitions that they later killed, and with this year’s announcement from Larry Page that the company needs to focus on social (enter GOOG+), well, yes, we do remember dodgeball, one of the first mobile social services (which google purchased in 2005), which died off and founder Dennis Crowley went on to launch – oh, don’t even make me say it. Google needs to remember to focus, too, and with the Zagat purchase, it seems they’re may well be following in the path of the early Yahoo. For its own reasons, to be sure, lest we forget what drives GOOG profits. What strikes us is that we had it right the first time and we’re going to just come out and say it: Technology is awesome, entrepreneurs out there, but all dressed up and nowhere to go: content is – and always was – king. And Yahoo should refocus on what they’ve always done best. Onward and forward.

Deadlines!

CNNMoney presents Always Be Closing: An opportunity to strike a deal with CNNMoney. Deadline: September 16th
Calling all Entrepreneurs, Venture Capitalists, Idea makers: What’s Your Pitch for CNNMoney? Do you have a great idea about how CNNMoney could enhance its brand through your product? The startups with the best pitch could win the opportunity to present their pitch in person at the CNNMoney Startup Pitch Event: “Always Be Closing”. Pitches should target mobile/connected devices. Your product can leverage all or none of CNNMoney’s content, but your product should be feasible, creative, and innovative and it should enhance the CNNMoney brand. Finalists will be chosen to present their idea in front of a panel of Venture Capitalists and representatives from CNNMoney at an invitation only event on September 22nd, 2011 at the TIME-LIFE building. For more information and to enter: http://money.cnn.com/startupevent/ To RSVP for the event on September 22nd: https://websvp.com/startup_event/

Web 2.0 startup showcase – Deadline, midnight Friday, September 16th. Startup Showcase returns to New York this fall. Highlighting the startup ecosystem¹s creativity and variety, the Showcase gives you a chance to getin front of hundreds of potential users and a couple of high-profile investors. On Wednesday night, October 12, we¹re going to have 30 startups demoing in one large room. We’ll provide you with a small table and two passes to get into the show, and you’ll bring a laptop (or two) and a founder (or two). Expo attendees will have 60 minutes to see your demos. As they walk around, attendees will vote on their favorite demos. At the end of the hour, investors Joanne Wilson and Mo Koyfman will announce their top picks and the audience favorite. These three startups will each give a one-minute pitch to the audience and will have a short time onstage to get feedback from Joanne and Mo. For more information and to register: http://bit.ly/orTkVn

Hack for Good, deadline September 30, 2011; we’ll give you access to all available documentation). LetGive’s first annual “Hack-for-Good” (HFG) contest! LetGive has created an API that allows anyone to include a charitable giving component within their application. Applications built on our platform are transformed into powerful fundraising vehicles for Nonprofits and Charities. Prize: $1000 for the winning app. To register: http://www.letgive.com/hackforgood/

The Dare2Dream Challenge, hosted by Glee Star Iqbal Theba (Principal Figgins), deadline October 1st: The Challenge is a response to the high percentage of unemployment in the youth today – unemployment for youth hovers at 18%, double the national average. The challenge is an opportunity for students to share their dream job and win a trip to Hollywood, an ipad2 or even homework help.Students can enter and share their dream by video (2-5 minutes long) or by a Facebook post (up to 420 characters). For more information: http://bit.ly/q5IpCV

HackNY Student Hackathon, October 1-2. That’s all we know for now, but we’re sure there will be more information. Soon. One would hope: http://bit.ly/qXADxD

College students! Moverandchangers.com is all set to launch its third nationwide challenge to uncover the country’s next young entrepreneurs who want to make it big with their innovative ideas for a new business. The contest is open to 16-28 year old college students to develop and produce a compelling business proposal. Ideas must be original, feasible, scalable and practical. More information on the site, which features a video with Dennis Crowley, who, just for the record, wouldn’t qualify for the contest now, nor would he when he first started foursquare.  Deadline is October. Information is here: http://bit.ly/EvBLZ

Global Amazon Web Services Start-up Challenge is on! Deadline: October 2nd. This year, AWS will select 15 regional semi-finalists: 5 each from the Americas, Asia Pacific (including Japan), and EMEA (Europe, Middle East & Africa), respectively, who will each receive $2,500 in AWS credits. From these, they will select a minimum of 6 finalists to be awarded a package of $10,000 in AWS credits and a trip to Palo Alto, California, to attend the final round of judging. Then, after a day of meetings with the judges, they will announce one grand prize winner at a public event for start-ups and investors. The winner will receive a package that includes $50,000 in cash and $50,000 in AWS credits. To enter: http://aws.amazon.com/startupchallenge/
Y Combinator now accepting applications for Winter 2012. Deadline: October 10th. The ideal company would have two or three founders. We’ll consider those with four or five. We’re reluctant to accept one-person companies, though we have funded a couple. For those of you interested in applying now or finding out more about the process: http://bit.ly/nUYxNY
6th Annual New England Venture Summit  – Call for Top Innovators and an SOS discount! If you are a Startup seeking capital and/or partnerships, submit your plan for the opportunity to present at the premier venue connecting emerging growth companies with active Venture Capitalists, Angel Investors, Corporate VCs and Investment Firms. A select group of 50 Top Innovators from the technology, life sciences and Clean-tech sectors will be chosen to present their breakthrough investment opportunities to an exclusive audience of investors.The early deadline for presenting company applications is October 26th. E-mail iwant2present@youngstartup.com for more details and an application. To nominate a company please forward: company name, main contact at firm, contact details and why you think they should present to nominations@youngstartup.com. The event happens December 14th; 50% off if you register by November 9th: http://bit.ly/nCkYN6 For a further discount, the code is: sos.

The Appy Awards – enter once and you could win twice. Deadline March 21, 2012 but any entry you submit today may also be selected as our “Featured App of the Week“, scoring you some seriously instant gratification. And we doesn’t love that? For more information and to enter – any time – http://appyawards.net/

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For our British members this week:

Lean Startup Machine comes to London September 16th – 18th. http://bit.ly/qWpn6x Discount code: LDN25 for 25% off. As they say ‘Lean Startup Machine will change the way you view entrepreneurship forever — for the better.’ And if you go, say hello to SOS member Kelley Boyd, LSM organizer. Oops, we meant ‘organiser.’

Why UK startups should stop trying to be US startups. During a UK visit, Dave McClue (500startups) asked how UK startups could be more like US startups and therefore become global tech companies. The two are miles apart in every way and to succeed, UK tech companies must find the rich vein that defines the area that they are in that defines them as individuals. Didn’t hurt The Beatles, eh, Sir Paul: http://bit.ly/pfUuWw

For your edification this week:

Entrepreneurs talk back: Straight-up feedback and advice for VCs and angels. Entrepreneurs are always getting advice about how to pursue investors. So when do entrepreneurs get a chance to give tips to those all-powerful Keepers of the Checkbook? Good tips for one and all: http://bo.st/psIU8R

What’s the Deal with Daily Deals. This week, Groupon’s sales force hit the company with a class action law suit for not paying overtime. How hot are daily deal sites? Here’s some interesting info, complete with infographic, in case you’re thinking of venturing into that somewhat saturated space: http://on.mash.to/mW8gVM

And while we’re on the subject: Groupon a Case Study in How Not to Do IPO. As SOS member and our very good friend Therese Poletti writes in Marketwatch, “daily-deal pioneer Groupon Inc. appears to be hell-bent on becoming the poster child for business schools and budding entrepreneurs on how not to go public.” Here’s what you don’t do (besides tell everyone to f**k off and call your board members doofuses, and thank you again, Carol Bartz): http://yhoo.it/q1zsZN

And speaking of road shows, something we’ve never covered and does deserve attention: Really Ready to Raise Capital for Your Small Business? Top Ten Checklist for the Roadshow. In order of importance, no less – http://bit.ly/pPqL7y

Reciprocal Altruism: Why the Valley Works and Why Not to Screw Over People. When you get down to it, Silicon Valley is really a small place where everyone pretty much knows everyone and the key to survival: trust someone until they screw you over and then never trust that person again. Bottom line: don’t screw people over. Top line: make sure you can trust that person in the first place. But then, I’m a New Yorker: http://bit.ly/nm0Pql

How To Cold Email Me (or anyone else). Thomas Korte is on the Angelist and as he writes, “Being on Angellist @venturehacks.com, roughly tripled the amount of “pitch emails” that I usually get. It inspired me this post about how to contact me or anyone you don’t know and can’t get an introduction to.” It’s a keeper: http://bit.ly/csfBaV

6 Things the Film Industry Doesn’t Want You To Know About. Why do movies suck and why did Netflix suddenly jack up their prices? That’s Hollywood, baby, and they really don’t like you bloody tech people disrupting their distribution channels: http://bit.ly/o1Und2

We have two chuckles for you this week. In case you missed it, VCs may not sign no stinking NDAs, but on occasion, they do rap: http://bit.ly/qCaauW. And because it’s just too good: lockerz.com/s/136966779 That’s it from us, and now, as always, help is on the way…

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