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vcs
how to spend
A VC fund for Apple?
If Apple does indeed have $12 billion in cash and easy liquidity, then what to do? Purchase Yahoo? Or perhaps North Dakota? Business Week suggests that big-time acquisitions are passé, and that the smart play is to turn a portion of that money into venture capital. It's a neat idea, not so much because of actual return potential, but because it would give Apple a prestige arm that could be seen kindly raining cash on numerous little guys. Excellent PR, a good way to counterspin rumors, and if something productive comes out of it, so much the better. Spinning off VC operations is the new black, Valley-wise ... just ask Tim O'Reilly.
vcs
Tim O'Reilly's VC mission decloaks
Tim O'Reilly has finally come "out of the VC closet," as one reader notes, with the announcement of O'Reilly Alphatech Ventures. The owner of Web 2.0 plans for his VC arm to invest in "hackers" and "disruptors" and "bionic software" and "photon torpedoes" (note: only one of those is a lie). Current investments include a wifi widget toy, a wiki-style instructional platform, and software to enforce better spending habits. Investors in the O'Reilly venture itself include Omidyar Network and Explore Holdings (the latter, a.k.a. Jeff Bezos). But really, "Alphatech"? Sure, the world is hurting for names, but there's got to be something more original and less bland.[Photo: Dresden Future Forum]
vcs
The mob mentality of venture capital
Owen Thomas at Business 2.0 has an amusing riff describing how VCs are like Mafia families. The analogy is a little strained, since traditionally, you paid the mob for protection, rather than having them "invest" in you. (Mobsters notoriously prefer shorting securities, property, and limbs.) Still, it's a nice way to understand why companies take VC money when they don't necessarily need the cash itself — what they need is the relationship and "protection" from the VC investing in a competitor.
performing vcs
UPDATE: It appears Roelof Botha took all his clips private, sad to say.
Five love songs about Youtube
We're not sure what motivates venture capitalists to engage in such humiliating spectacle. Ours is not to reason why a group of folks with billions at their disposal must sing a cappella to party guests. Not sure who this magical duo is (help?), but the gig went down last November at the home of Sequoia's Pierre Lamond, as recorded by Roelof Botha. If the above isn't to your taste (despite bonus flash of Youtubers Chad Hurley and Steve Chen, consider "Blue Moon," "Forever & Ever Amen," "Mambo #5," or "So Happy Together."UPDATE: It appears Roelof Botha took all his clips private, sad to say.
vcs
How funding works: So startups are abandoning venture capital. Why?
An insightful article on "startups on a shoestring" in the New York Times covers the rise of companies running on angel investors, loans, or even credit cards. It's a switch from the more famous method of raising piles of venture capital from a firm. But what does that mean? It means startup founders get to keep more of their money and power. More »
mobitv
Loose Wires: MobiTV swims in giant vat of money
- MySpace blocks users from mentioning another competitor (something it did to sites like Buzznet and Stickam before); competitor gets pissed and launches angry ranty site. [CensorSpace]
- The dude who found himself accidentally given admin privileges, then gave himself 12 million comment invitations to hand out? Yeah, that was a Valleywag reader, and I'm proud of him. [Gawker]
- If you get YouTube on your mobile phone, please never get on the bus next to me. [AdAge]
- Bubble alert orange: Mobile video startup MobiTV takes another $30 million chunk of funding, bringing its total pot to a whopping $125 million over the past seven years. By now, the founders must be so diluted that the VCs are really running the company. [GigaOM]
- Charles River Ventures starts handing loans to startups. It's not just a kind way of saying "we don't want to actually invest in you" — CRV gets first dibs on these companies' actual venture funding rounds. [NY Times]
ask valleywag
How to get rich off dot-coms in six to eight weeks
A loyal reader-commenter, "That Chinese Broad," asks Valleywag: More »
peerflix
This startup is wasting over $10 million (A cautionary tale)
The New York Times goes crazy for Peerflix today in a particularly uninsightful article, in which the bartering site's CEO brags about taking $10 million from venture capitalists. More »
napster
Silicon chairs: Who's moving, leaving, and dropping in tech today
- Veteran venture capitalist Jack Gill joins daughter Jennifer Gill Roberts's venture firm, further abandoning his own firm now struggling after investing in bubble startups in 2000, just before that scene crashed. [VentureBeat]
- The Department of Homeland Security names tech lobbyist Greg Garcia as its cyber-security chief. His first act is to not return calls seeking comment — must be afraid someone's tapping the line. [Washington Post]
- Napster's looking for a buyer as its subscription rate drops. What happened to all those guaranteed accounts from colleges that signed up for Napster en masse? [New York Times]
- Whoa, why did Sun Microsystems's customer service advocate just whip out the door without an explanation? Make a guess in the comments (if you don't have an account, enter a new username/password). [ITworld]
brad feld
Feld folds: VC blogger Brad Feld goes silent
2004: Venture capitalist Brad Feld writes about one blog post per day at "Feld Thoughts."2005: Feld writes about a post and a half per day.
January to 6 September 2006: Feld writes two to three posts per day.
7 September 2006: In a story about former billion-dollar firm Mobius Venture Capital, the Wall Street Journal reports that Feld may quit his managing director position to start a new fund with other former Mobius senior members. Feld declines to comment.
7 September to 11 September: Feld posts nothing on his blog. More »
google
Loose Wires: Basically we like saying "Gooveau Riche"
- Brett Allsop, Co-Founder of YapTA, a self-described Web 3.0 Start-Up gives his take on the fundamental difference between Web 2.0 and Web 3.0: I have my own life and I want to go hiking and I want the Internet to do the work for me. Amen. So do we. So do we. [John Cook's Venture Blog]
- In an ideal recruiting universe, Simon Cowell would be your blog bitch. [Recruiting Online]
- This Just In: CEOs like Larry Ellison and Steve Jobs are Narcissistic Bastards. Gee, that comes as a shock to all of us. [Forbes]
- Take the Bill Gates life quiz. Our combined average: 2.5. Disclaimer: Results may be skewed by the presence of alcohol and nicotine. [Rediff News]
- Figures on Venture Capital Investment firms. Re: Money. Re: Important to Those Who Actually Make Some. [Silicon Beat]
- Yet another indicator of Gooveau Riche excess: Spending $25K+ on breastmilk. [SF Gate]
wifi
Blogger breakdown: How to get buzz
- The skeptic at Dead 2.0 asks Valley vets whether a blogger can become a media star. VC Paul Kedrosky says, "media businesses are generally crappy businesses, with rare obvious exceptions." [Dead 2.0]
- Om Malik notes that small towns can get municipal wifi too — especially when one router on Main Street can reach the town limits. [GigaOM]
- Tech biz writer Eric Sink explains how to market a product. Simple advice like "go for the niche" and "don't spam the top bloggers," which some marketers still need to be told. [Eric Sink]
- Clearing out your hard drive after the RIAA charges you for file-sharing, and you could automatically lose your case. [Internet Cases]
- Did you know that the startup sound in Windows Vista is a hot-button issue? Now that you do, has a small part of you died? [Scobleizer]
green tech
Why everyone wants to be green
The Mercury News ran yet another story this weekend about the "Green Revolution" — basically, the rise of high-profile Silicon Valley investments in clean-fuel technology. More »
vcs
If he had those can-opener sandals, he'd save face
Aw, venture capitalists are so CUTE! From their nerdy haircuts down to their wingtips, these guys are lovable dorks that spent business school wonking away in the library. Now, according to the Wall Street Journal, they're reliving those days of kissing up to the frat boys. Witness one VC stress about how he looked in front of all those cool young entrepreneurs: More »
digg
How to turn down a buyout: lessons from Digg, Facebook, and Chris Pirillo
In the booming Silicon Valley economy, everyone's looking to buy or be bought. But not all offers are equal. How do you politely turn down a lowball without burning your bridge? Let's take a look at three turn-downs — none of which were publicly reported. More »
om malik
