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Wednesday December 06, 2006
Light Reading finds 61 video hosting sites and wonders why
Phil Harvey, news editor at the always excellent Lightreading has compiled a list of 61 video hosting/sharing sites.
Phil asked me:
Can you lead me to some thoughts as to why there are so many Web video sharing companies being funded now?
I'm keeping a list of them and, frankly, I don't get it. My readers ask me and I haven't got a clue. But my readers are used to that.
Anyway, here's the latest list:
My reply:
Phil, at valuations such as that gained by YouTube, the VCs are willing to roll the dice and maybe win a similar deal. Remember, GOOG has competitors that have to compete along similar markets, and time to market is more important now than ever before. Buy it so that you don't have to build it. Yes, most of those funded will fail so that the VCs can get a small number of winners. Too bad for all the people toiling away in the future failures so that a few can win, but that's the VC way.
Great list! Thanks for putting it together.
-Tom
PS
Also, VCs move in herds, not in packs like wolves. Like herd animals they find safety in numbers :-)
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Reader Comments
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I LOVE Tripit!
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Doubtful: Historically AMD has had yield problems and Hector Ruiz did a great job in improving production. Either way, being in the fab business is challenging enough and AMD's ATI knows the fabless business model very well. Best to stick to designs than running fabs, IMHO. But Intel could put a stop to that.
I think Intel should be a bit lenient with AMD, it's good to have competition. But Intel has a take no prisoners attitude when it comes to competitors.
Luca on UPDATE: Intel Challenge to AMD Fab Spin Off
I am 99% sure it's 2. Usually IP licensing agreements are very specific about the identity of the licensee and what is allowed. I bet AMD can't do this without Intel's approval, which will come at a very steep price...
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Debbie here. Just to clarify, the software company that I help manage, Digital Anarchy, is the entity that lost all of its historical data. Over 1.5 years of press tracking, product revision info, vendor relationships. I brought this situation to Tom's attention because it is larger than just my company's issues. Former Stikipad customers (and folks who are confused if they ARE still customers) have found my complaints about Stikipad on my completely unadvertised personal blog and commented a
doubtful on Advanced Micro Devices Spins Off Chip Plants as a Foundry Joint Venture
Where are your getting the info on AMD low Yields?
from your sponsor Intel?
you could have said bug designs, but this happened equally to Intel!
why don't you mention that with this JV,
The intel only advantage: fab financing
is removed !
(I put monopolistic position aside waiting for multi world judgements on those practices.)
you should also mention that AMD process dev cost is shared with other major IC manufacturers like IBM Toshiba, STM, Frees
Shannon Whitley on When the Cloud Precipitates...Potential Problems with Online Services (and Stikipad)
Great topic, Tom.
Cloud Computing brings many benefits, but there will be additional risks as well. As more companies build their businesses in the cloud and utilize services (such as storage) from the likes of Amazon, Google, or Microsoft, an outage with any one company could bring down several hundred others. We should pushback and consider these risks.
As you mentioned, this pushback is healthy. We are moving forward with the technical details, but we also need to focus
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Great post Tom, adn agree. Here's similar sentiment today on CNET:http://news.cnet.com/8301-13953_3-10060141-80.html?tag=inside
Kevin Cimring on Steve Ballmer Warns Financial Crisis Will Impact Tech Sector
Hi Tom,
It's become widely recognised and reported now that the financial crisis is and will continue to impact the tech sector. In order to survive, new start-ups will need to define revenue models upfront and will no longer be able to rely on the old "web 2.0" approach of first launching and only then worrying about revenue strategies at a later stage. For those types of companies, VC funding will be scarce.
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Hi Tom,
I enjoyed your "Experiential" piece on Twitter, as this has been my exact experience. Initially I couldn't see what all the hype was about, but I succumbed to the wave of growing publicity and gave Twitter a try. Even then, I was a little circumspect but several weeks later and I am benefitting from Twitter immensely, in various ways. I have tried to explain Twitter to my colleagues, but they still look at me as if I'm crazy - like you say, you have to be "in it" to understand
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Thanks Tom, it was a rare opportunity to have the time to talk and ponder so many important topics. We look forward to hosting you at our place, for an under the hood look at PR at Horn Group.
Sabrina
Tom Foremski on Silicon Valley Heads for Germany as Governor Schwarzenegger Pushes for Cebit Trade Show Alliance
Thanks Florian, I did look up Rampenfest, it's pretty funny!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R2uZZzHfgOk
Florian on Silicon Valley Heads for Germany as Governor Schwarzenegger Pushes for Cebit Trade Show Alliance
Thanks Tom for this article.
I watched the video and laughed about the German accents. They reminded me of a video called rampenfest (google it :))
Cheers and greetings from Germany,
Florian
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Thanks for that video. It was great.
Matt on Worth Watching: Silicon Valley Turns Out for Steve Ballmer at Churchill Club
good stuff, thanks Tom.
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Maybe the SEC should ban shorting them along with the Yellow Pages too.
adrian Chan on The "Experiential Gap" . . . and the Growing Cosmos of Twitter Applications
Tom,
Sounds like it might be a case of "design to the rescue!" I've been expecting that one of the next waves of innovation will come in the form of design solutions to information/data problems. Visualizations, aggregation but with more compelling visual presentation layer (and thus better or at least more interesting interactions!).
The title of your piece had me thinking that the service finds doppelgangers -- twins of interest and like mind. Are they approaching that one
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Yes, we should be doing a lot more for our schools. Silicon Valley area schools should be shining showcases not basket cases. Get your tickets now!
Tom Foremski on Chris Anderson's PR Blacklist Backlash - The Long Tail of Bad PR
Branko: As as journalist for nearly 25 years I got used to the fact that not all PR people know what they are doing. And the fact that I get hundreds of pitches per day and many of them are of no use to me--is just part of the job. I screen them out without a second glance. I don't know why some journalists like Chris, get their underwear in a twist because someone pitched them an inappropriate pitch...
Andrew Pass on Silicon Valley Rocks! Charity Event for Local Schools
It's great to see people doing good for children and schools!!
Branko Collin on Chris Anderson's PR Blacklist Backlash - The Long Tail of Bad PR
"My view is that part of the problem [...]"
You mentioned earlier that there's a lot of money in PR. If that's true, then the real problem is that PR has become too successful. Which is why I don't understand these hissyfits you people throw here and at Anderson's blog. Is that part of the game of Harass the Journalist? Having some extra fun by pretending not to understand Anderson?
As for the new rift between journalists and flacks, ten years ago us journalists couldn'
Jeff on Fishwrap: Changing Media and PR . . . Plus a Great Pep Talk
Thanks for linking up to our blog! Keep up the great work and let me know of any ideas how we can cross promote...
Take care!
Wallen's on Silicon Valley and Wall Street: We're Not Immune - Here's Why
Very interesting read. Those factors should have effects at different time horizon. For example, pension funds investing less in VC funds will impact start-ups in a few years while angel wealth reduction impacts seed financing today.
There are two other factors to consider. First, lower valuation levels of public companies should indirectly affect valuation levels of start-ups' funding rounds. The second is more geared towards web start-ups: such a banking crisis could translate in s
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The the vultures are circling and the fat lady aint started singin' yet
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It was great to spend some quality time with you, Tom. Hope to catch up again the next time I am in town!
Julie Crabill on Shift Happens . . . A Visit With One of My Favorite PR Companies
Thanks for coming by, Tom, it was great to see you and hear your always insightful commentary on the media biz. Hopefully some of the things we talked about will happen - and hopefully some of the others won't. :-)
Beyondmusic on Silicon Valley and Wall Street: We're Not Immune - Here's Why
Very interesting read..
Tom Foremski on Silicon Valley and Wall Street: We're Not Immune - Here's Why
Greg: You make a fair point. Investing in startups can be incredibly profitable but only one in 20 succeed. And it all depends on which stage of investment. Angel investors hold the highest risks and can be wiped out by later stage financing.
And how will investors get their money out if the exits are closed? Granted, the exits won't be closed forever but the liquidity of markets is a key factor in continuing the cycles of investment.
Greg on Silicon Valley and Wall Street: We're Not Immune - Here's Why
Tom, you forget that a lot of people in SV have (or had) money invested in stocks and various WS funds. Not all of this money "vanished" together with the Lehman Bros of the world; some had been taken out and now can be "reinvested" in start-ups. Risky? Yes, but with the stock market being even riskier, what alternatives do you have, keeping your money in a bank account or T-bills and watching as inflation eats it all up?
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I don't know why Wells Fargo behaves in such a way. It used to be interested in providing banking services, now it seems so disconnected from its customers even when they are standing/sitting right in front of its representatives. I'm moving to a local credit union when I get the chance.
on Case Study: Wells Fargo's Effective Brand Management . . . Not!
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