BLOG STARTUPS, VENTURE AND THE TECH BUSINESS
Author Archive
December 22 2009
by Thanasis Delistathis
The changing landscape of internet TV
I have argued in a past blog entry that getting your TV through the internet is inevitable. The big question is “how will it unfold”? Who is likely to lead this revolution? In numerous blogs and articles, it appears likely that Apple is trying to play a role. Here is an article from today’s Wall ...
November 10 2009
by Thanasis Delistathis
5 things to know about creating a financial model for your business
When pitching your business to venture investors, sharing a well designed financial model is very important! Why? Because how a financial model is designed helps investors learn some things about you and your business: it provides insights into how you think about your business, helps clarify what are the main assumptions that drive it and ...
October 27 2009
by Thanasis Delistathis
Why is it hard to monetize ad-driven businesses? Answer: it’s not if you have the right people.
About a month ago, I was talking to Jeremy Liew of Lightspeed Ventures about the state of the advertising market. Many of our portfolio companies have a free, ad-supported business model. So the ability to get revenue is correlated to the ability to sell the advertising inventory at attractive rates. We both marveled at how ...
October 27 2009
by Thanasis Delistathis
YES on net neutrality!
The debate is raging on the merits and pitfalls of “net neutrality”. The lobbyists are working overtime. Both sides have employed semantics to try to appeal to the average citizen who may not be as versed on the nuances of policy in this area: according to supporters it’s about innovation; about according to critics it is ...
October 20 2009
by Thanasis Delistathis
Opportunity knocks: Yellow Pages move online
A number of industries are undergoing a kind of dislocation as the internet becomes a dominant medium for finding information and entertainment. One of those industries is the yellow pages industry. It is currently a $26BN global industry; $14BN in the US. The Kelsey Group projects that the portion of that market that is online ...
September 11 2009
by Thanasis Delistathis
In search of the next “Rocket Ship”
How long does it take promising young startups with large potential markets to scale to $50MM? Longer than you might think if you looked at the projections of the average startup that comes through our door. An article in the Wall Street Journal Blogs online discusses how long it took many well known public companies ...
July 14 2009
by Thanasis Delistathis
Are we going to get our TV through the internet? Change is coming.
The internet is growing our entertainment choices and when we access it. Many of the shows people watch on TV can now be found on the internet. So why do I have a bill over $100 from Comcast for TV service in order to only watch 4-5 channels 90% of the time. Many other people ...
July 8 2009
by Thanasis Delistathis
New technology is not going to bring healthcare costs down
We are all used to thinking that newer technology makes things more efficient. Computers have really increased productivity while reducing costs in a huge array of business systems. That logic is being used in Washington these days to justify how we can reduce costs while also expanding coverage in the raging debate of healthcare reform. ...
June 18 2009
by Thanasis Delistathis
Good time to start a business? History is on your side
While many facts and figures are all doom and gloom about the economy in general, it may be a good time to start a business if you have a good opportunity to make a difference. I saw a new study by the Kaufman Foundation (http://www.kauffman.org/newsroom/the-economic-future-just-happened.aspx) that found that “more than half of the companies on ...
May 14 2009
by Thanasis Delistathis
Tip No 3: Send the deck, not the business plan or the one-pager
We get dozens of proposals for investment every month. The time to screen those is limited so entrepreneurs need to make that easy.The first screen for VCs is: Is this a business that is a good fit for our fund and that I should pay attention to? Sending the business plan requires a larger investment ...
