BLOG STARTUPS, VENTURE AND THE TECH BUSINESS
January 30 2011
by Todd Hixon
The Hidden Truth About The Rich
Unless you are a media hermit, you have surely heard that: The distribution of wealth has become much more unequal in the last 20 years. Relatively few rich people control most of the world’s wealth, and this threatens to undermine democratic societies. “Rich” people means bankers, hedge fund managers, private equity managers, corporate CEOs, and ...
January 28 2011
by Scott Johnson
Mobile Clicks Are Garbage!
Most mobile advertisement banner clicks are accidental. The Harris group published a study yesterday saying this. Surprised? I’m not! Has anyone actually clicked a mobile banner on purpose? Really? I can’t imagine doing so – the experience is so bad. I think Shakespeare might have been thinking of mobile banner ads when he quipped “It is ...
January 24 2011
by John Backus
What’s your Rx for Health Care?
While we watch legislators attempt to repeal health care reform, I though it was about time I express my personal frustrations with the system, make some suggestions, and start a productive discussion about big opportunities for entrepreneurs. On Tuesday January 25, 2011 President Obama will give his State of the Union address and will no ...
January 21 2011
by John Backus
There’s a Slide For That!
The purpose of this blog post is to help entrepreneurs avoid looking “canned” when they pitch VCs. Every entrepreneur is passionate about their business, and a pitch to a VC is an important moment in the life of most startups. I hope that this post helps entrepreneurs see their pitches through our eyes – and ...
January 18 2011
by Todd Hixon
Honey Pots Wanted
We’ve made three investments in the business side of health care. We’re not a health care fund, not expert in treating disease or handicapping the odds of of new drug approval (except to say that they seem very poor). But we understand how new competitors using methods like eCommerce, software as a service, and new ...
January 18 2011
by Scott Johnson
Mobile Monetization 2.0
Mobile monetization 2.0 is going to happen in 2011. Marketing budgets against mobile are showing up in the hundreds of millions, some new monetization schemes (CPL and CPD) are paying good eCPMs, 4G is coming, and this is all really great news for entrepreneurs and mobile app publishers as everyone everywhere taps into mobile apps. ...
January 11 2011
by Todd Hixon
Watersheds: Real & Wannabe
This is part 2 of my observations from CES 2011. Year of the Tablet: Not Quite Yet The media proclaimed 2011 the year of the tablet, and obedient to their editors’ direction, reporters found many tablets on the floor, e.g., HuffPost: 11 New Tablets You’ve Probably Never Heard Of From CES 2011. In truth, the ...
January 10 2011
by Todd Hixon
Rule The Air
CES 2011 is over, I write with relief as I await the plane home. Observations follow; this is part 1 of 2. It’s So Big! Various reports put attendance at between 140,000 and 160,000, up from 120,000 in 2010. The display floor was so vast (36 acres) and crowded that it’s hard to find what ...
January 6 2011
by John Backus
Why NAV invested in HealthWarehouse – prescription drugs online
Sometimes an investment opportunity comes along which seems so compelling, so obvious, so right, even if it bends or breaks a few traditional venture capital rules. HealthWarehouse is one of those companies. HealthWarehouse is a public company. Call it an accidental public company – one that merged into a public shell in 2009. HEWA is ...
January 3 2011
by Scott Johnson
Thank You – Cloud!
These Microsoft cloud commercials are everywhere – showing people using the cloud to improve their lives. And I could be the source of one. This weekend I was reading email at home and suddenly my laptop froze. I tried to reboot in safe mode. Not happening. Looks like a disk failure. Virus induced? No way ...
