A Technology Review article suggests that the recent court cases make injunctions less likely, and make obvious inventions harder to patent, all of which makes life harder for patent trolls.
Monthly Archive for August, 2007
According to a TechJournalSouth article, when SBIR-backed companies try unsuccessfully to qualify for venture investment, it is because they have fallen short of VC expectation on one or more counts, including:
- Market not big enough
- Technology not venture-ready
- Team not venture-ready
The VC author provides some advice to SBIR-funded companies on how to get ready for VC investment.
The Portland Business Journal reported that the Portland Development Commission has rolled out a new loan program to provide loans of up to $50K for small businesses with 20 or fewer employees in the city’s targeted industries, including bioscience, creative services, distribution and logistics, footwear/apparel/equipment, high tech, metals and transportation equipment, specialty foods, and sustainability
Roughly 50 people converged on Les Fahey’s house last week to hear about the Keiretsu Forum, an angel investment group with chapters in multiple cities, including Seattle, the Bay area, the East Bay, San Diego, Boise, and more. They describe themselves as the largest North American angel investment network, with 500 accredited investors. If Portland 25 investors sign-up (and there were already several local members), we will have a Keiretsu chapter in Portland. And that could be a very good thing for the local funding scene.
From VC Circle: Don’t be surprised if Intel Capital starts investing in a solar energy company (!) or angling for a buyout
in India. The fact is you will be seeing such things very soon.
From a recent Forbes article: It has never been easier to start an Internet company. Create a Web
site, begin a "viral" marketing campaign to grow word-of-mouth and
acquire an audience, garner some ad revenues, generate venture capital
funding and sell out to a Web giant such as Yahoo! or Google.
Startup costs can be minimized by using standard technology and by
outsourcing corporate functions, such as advertising sales. The
business model, at least initially, is optional.
According to a recent San Jose Mercury News article, the landscape of the
brave new Web has changed radically, with start-ups sprouting daily and
clout shifting from VCs to entrepreneurs. The cost of launching a
business has plummeted, driven down by the advances in the "open
source" software movement, outsourcing and the potency of Web-based marketing.
The Portland Business Journal recently reported on the frustration many people have over the Oregon Investment Council. The Journal reports that the Council has $100M to invest, has invested $43.5M of it, and so far only 3 Oregon companies have been recipients.
In a CNET News article, consultant Steve Tobak quotes Bill Davidow in his argument that the problem comes down to: startups often fail because they develop technology instead of products.
A recent paper by Meapa suggests that to enchance economic development, the focus should be on innovation, not planning.
