SoCal CTO

SEPTEMBER 20, 2011

One of the readers asked my opinion around sharing your startup concept: My first question has always been - how do you protect your idea while shopping around for feedback, partners, developers, etc.? Especially if the idea could be whipped-up by a few 24-year olds in a few weeks? Lots of thoughts here.

Startup 198

Startup IP Ideas Patents 198

SoCal CTO

FEBRUARY 25, 2009

Fantastic post by Christian Gammill - Startup Delta Force… From a competitive perspective (e.g. Now, given our current economic crisis and VC ‘challenges’, the barriers to funding have gone up significantly as well. How’s that for duality.

Startup 150

Startup SEM IP SEO 150

InfoChachkie

AUGUST 10, 2010

Intellectual Property (IP) is an ugly thing at a startup. However, to a Big Dumb Company (BDC), a startup’s IP is a thing of beauty. How can IP be worthless to a startup yet very worthwhile to a BDC? Because IP has intrinsic value, but only in the right hands. Three years is a lifetime at a startup.

IP 256

IP Patents Company Companies 256

InfoChachkie

FEBRUARY 20, 2012

Like Steve Jobs, Michael Dell and Larry Ellison, he is one of the few startup Founders who remained at the helm of their respective companies throughout their entire maturation process. Great Startup Ideas Come From Everywhere. "At One Of The Most Important Startup Skills. "The " [Tweet this quote].

Tips 275

Tips Startup IP Santa Barbara 275

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 28, 2014

I was reading Danielle Morrill’s blog post today on whether one’s “ Startup Burn Rate is Normal. I love how transparently Danielle lives her startup (& encourages other to join in) because it provides much needed transparency to other startups. Let’s set up a framework. Gross Burn vs. Net Burn.

Startup 383

Startup Company Companies .Net 383

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 4, 2017

A large portion of your competitive advantage and your potential value to investors is the size of your intellectual property portfolio. When someone says Intellectual Property (IP), most entrepreneurs think only of patents. In reality, patents are only one of at least eight items that should be in your IP portfolio.

Startup 69

Startup Patents IP Social Media 69

socalTECH

JUNE 9, 2014

Los Angeles-based Jukin Media (www.jukinmedia.com) thinks it has figured that out, and instead of trying to create viral videos, has been buying up the rights to those videos--before they really go viral--to create not just a one-hit, viral video wonder, but a sustainable business. Lee Essner: That''s one of the competitive edges we have.

Media 235

Media Content Startup IP 235

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 27, 2011

I find it amusing when a journalist writes an article about a prominent startup (either privately held or preparing for an IPO) and decries that, “They’re not even profitable!” Exec Summary: Most companies (98+%) in the world (even tech startups) should be very profit focused. What makes up revenue?

Startup 418

Startup Venture Capital Sales Technical Review 418

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 14, 2013

A large portion of your competitive advantage and your potential value to investors is the size of your intellectual property portfolio. When someone says Intellectual Property (IP), most entrepreneurs think only of patents. In reality, patents are only one of at least eight items that should be in your IP portfolio.

Startup 103

Startup Patents IP Social Media 103

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 11, 2011

What could you learn from looking at your competitors or other tech startups in a different way? Or you think their startup is a passing fad and yours is the real deal? I was at a dinner about a year ago with a few VCs and startup founders. The topic of FourSquare came up. I hear views like this all the time.

Startup 313

Startup Press Writing News 313

socalTECH

OCTOBER 19, 2018

Earlier this month, Los Angeles-based Catalog (www.catalog.cc), a startup developing artificial intelligence software to help independent visual artists scale their content production efforts, announced it raised $1.5M What were some of the things you thought about before deciding to set up your headquarters in LA?

Help 133

Help IP Content Google 133

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 8, 2016

But the idea that you could start a new studio today — with the hundreds of millions required just to launch one blockbuster hit — is absurd. It started with a series of books and is now a multi-billion dollar franchise with products, theme parks and games. How Would You Build a Movie Studio if You Started Today?

Startup 150

Startup IP Class Media 150

socalTECH

FEBRUARY 9, 2010

Startups Made Simple. www.pitchtheangels.com) Join Tech Coast Angels members and other start up investors at the 5th Annual Los Angeles Fast Pitch Competition. Fast Pitch Los Angeles is one of the best start up networking events of the year. SoCal IP Law Group LLP - IP Counselors For Technology Companies.

Southern California 113

Southern California Tech Coast Angels IP Orange County 113

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 14, 2018

I know that you can use an email system with this to track my open rate, whether I forwarded the email, the IP address where I read it, whether I was on a mobile device or a wired computer and you can tell who else read the document. I would likely open up your deck, read it again and begin contemplating your company again.

Funding 239

Funding Venture Capital IP Email 239

socalTECH

JANUARY 28, 2013

If you're FreedomPop , the Encino-based startup, you start by offering up free 4G wireless data access, and then expand to offer free, voice-over-IP services, along with home-based wireless Internet services. Currently, users pay up front for data packages, and there are inefficiencies in that market.

Startup 245

Startup IP Networking Encino 245

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 15, 2022

At our mid-year offsite our partnership at Upfront Ventures was discussing what the future of venture capital and the startup ecosystem looked like. When you look at how much median valuations were driven up in the past 5 years alone it’s bananas. Please follow him & welcome him to Upfront!! <== And reset they must.

Venture Capital 416

Venture Capital Marketing Technical Review Seed Funding 416

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 30, 2012

All too many startups are founded simply on the basis of a new and exciting technology invented by an industrious technologist. The right approach is to start by solving a problem causing real pain to a large number of customers willing to pay real money for a solution. Intellectual property (IP).

Startup 99

Startup Competition IP Patents 99

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 30, 2014

As I’ve written about recently, at Upfront Ventures we started talking a couple of years ago about wanting to fund stuff with more meaning. We hired IP specialists to review prior art. We grilled their IP attorneys. The more we dug the more confident we became (and so did every advisor we used). Were they ambitious?

Technical Review 418

Technical Review Software Review CTO Hire IP 418

Tech Zulu Event

MARCH 3, 2015

I often write about the best strategies for startup fundraising or how to manage startup financing and optimize for growth. Equally important, is an area many startup founders don’t always prioritize: choosing the right service providers and understanding the value they can bring, especially to early-stage startups.

Startup 40

Startup Outsource Development IP Outsource 40

InfoChachkie

MAY 16, 2011

As an entrepreneur and startup investor, I have helped create companies which achieved two IPOs which collectively raised over $100 million, as well as two acquisitions which totaled $385 million. Public relations at a startup is a sales process. “Learn from the mistakes of others. 3) Attempt To License An Idea. 7) Hire A Consultant.

Startup 242

Startup Outsource Development Outsource Sales 242

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 9, 2010

All too many startups are founded simply on the basis of a new and exciting technology invented by an industrious technologist. The right approach is to start by solving a problem causing real pain to a large number of customers willing to pay real money for a solution. Intellectual property (IP).

Startup 92

Startup Competition IP Patents 92

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 23, 2014

Every startup founder I know talks about the chaos of their business, which they usually attribute to that burst of growth that is required to get to positive cash flow. Don’t count on your IP to save you. Technology keeps improving at a rapid rate, so you fall behind in technology, driving costs up, and you become non-competitive.

Startup 100

Startup Slides Entrepreneur IP 100

Tech Zulu Event

DECEMBER 28, 2012

TechZulu caught up with Adam Fridman , founder MeetAdvisors and this is what he said. Adam Fridman, MSF from DePaul, 4 years investment banking and 10 years in business development consulting and start ups. They should come to him, and that’s how MeetAdvisors started.”. Which startups or entrepreneurs have signed up?

Entrepreneur 89

Entrepreneur Startup Paramount Social Media 89

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 25, 2010

Let me start with a story. We ended up agreeing a term sheet for $16.5 We had people hearing through the grapevine that we were about to raise money and new investors started calling us to get in on the deal. Guys, I accept that we could probably shop this around but we could also end up with nothing. I was resolute.

Venture Capital 301

Venture Capital Technical Review Startup Technical Advisors 301

socalTECH

NOVEMBER 19, 2018

San Diego-based uCast Global (www.ucastglobal.com), backed by Gary Winnick, is looking to tackle that entire area of content distribution, and is led by startup veteran Dr. Kanaan Jemili. We caught up with Kanaan to learn more about uCast Global. Weve also developed technology that allows them to get a really easy start.

Content 113

Content Startup Mobile Platform 113

Tech.Co

MAY 22, 2018

I’ve had many startup founders tell me that their startup literally has no competition,” said Frank Gruber, Cofounder of Tech.Co, Startup of the Year , and Established. “In What startup teams don’t realize is that having competition is good. In most cases, that’s not true. Prepare for Q&A.

Tips 70

Tips Help Slides Technical Review 70

socalTECH

JUNE 25, 2009

It seems that every week, a new, Voice-over-IP provider firm surfaces in the market, either providing PBX services, voicemail, or other similar services. What is your VoIP service all about, and how is this different from what seems to be lots of Voice over IP service providers? Cliff Rees: We're a software as a solutions company.

IP 165

IP Pasadena Angels Pasadena Los Angeles 165

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 5, 2011

I’m inspired by the enthusiasm of the young, emerging startup ecosystem that is here. As I gear up to give a keynote at the annual Seattle 2.0 awards dinner on Thursday night I started reflected on what it would take to “change the trajectory&# for Seattle or for any regional market, really.

Venture Capital 317

Venture Capital Technical Review Startup Press 317

InfoChachkie

MAY 19, 2011

Give up Branding. Serve up World-wide Distribution. Intellectual Property (IP) provisions should ensure that both parties maintain the IP rights that they respectively own at the outset of the relationship. A more complicated negotiating point involves IP that is created in the course of the parties’ collaboration.

Outsource Development 193

Outsource Development IP Technical Review Entrepreneur 193

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 3, 2011

A large portion of your competitive advantage and your potential value to investors is the size of your intellectual property portfolio. When someone says Intellectual Property (IP), most entrepreneurs think only of patents. In reality, patents are only one of at least eight items that should be in your IP portfolio.

Social Media 94

Social Media Media Patents IP 94

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 10, 2011

In my ongoing quest to get you good transcripts of the wonderful interviews we’ve done in the past, I present you with one amazing interview here with Tom McInerney – a friend, co-investor, former entrepreneur turned angel investor and “wizard of Oz&# behind the scenes at the uber hot startup Klout. 0:28:00) & (0:31:27).

Angel 302

Angel Startup Ideas .Net 302

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 18, 2013

I have started thinking about what the future might look like and I’ve started imagining what I call, “MMOV” or massive multiplayer online video. Maker’s talent started commenting on it and sharing it. In fact, that’s how Maker Studios got started in the first place. Why would it?

Startup 380

Startup Media Content Platform 380

socalTECH

JULY 9, 2012

What goes into the thought processes of companies when they're acquiring startups and other firms? Ixia is long past the startup phase, having over the years grown to become a major force in the network testing equipment, and as a publicly traded firm has been in acquisition mode recently. Vic Alston: We have got to to do both.

Acquisition 173

Acquisition IP Networking Marketing 173

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 23, 2012

Continuous innovation is required to survive in all businesses, beginning with a startup, and increasing in importance as your business matures. In a startup, that needs to be the founder or CEO, and that person has to be regularly and personally involved. Sustainable innovation is really the only sustainable competitive advantage.

Coach 98

Coach Ideas IP Sales 98

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 19, 2010

Every startup founder I know talks about the chaos of his business, which he usually attributes to that burst of growth that is required to get to positive cashflow. Don’t count on your IP to save you. Technology keeps improving at a rapid rate, so you fall behind in technology, driving costs up, and you become non-competitive.

Startup 57

Startup Slides Entrepreneur IP 57

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 15, 2013

Most startups I know that work in the Apple iOS ecosystem complain because Apple takes a 30% slice of their revenue and yet I often point out that 30% has for years been a common revenue share for one who provides “distribution.” It’s a made-up term and not even a good one at that. ” YouTube takes 45%.

Networking 366

Networking Media Content Custom 366

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 31, 2018

As a small business advisor, I always recommend that being “self-sustaining” requires taking frequent and aggressive measures to step out ahead of the pack, including yourself, before you start feeling the pain of change and new competitors around you. Competitors tend to focus on price and other variations to existing offerings.

Examples 99

Examples IP Acquisition Social Media 99