Both Sides of the Table
SEPTEMBER 30, 2015
What Can You Do if a VC Pulls Their Term Sheet? I was asked to answer this exact question on Quora and I did so some time ago. The beauty of evergreen content is that it resurfaces all the time and it is as relevant today as it was years ago when I answered it. One of my favorite ways to resurface content is when I see people on Twitter put out a Tweet linking to an old post.
Berkonomics
SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
In my life as an early stage investor, I’ve been closely involved with so many businesses, there were bound to be numerous stories of failures, hopefully from which to learn lessons for all of us as we go forward. Several times in my investing life, as the final board member making the arrangements to dispose of remaining assets, I have literally been the one to turn out the lights, carry out the books and records to my car, and become the only remaining contact between the failed business and t
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socalTECH
SEPTEMBER 29, 2015
What is it to start up a company, and run it to the brink of shutdown�only to have it acquired and restarted immediately? That's the fascinating story behind Los Angeles-based Earbits (www.earbits.com), which offers up a mobile music streaming service focused on discovering both new and talent. We caught up with co-founder Joey Flores on the story behind the company's brush with death, and its recent acquisition by You42, which was announced last week.
InfoChachkie
SEPTEMBER 21, 2015
A version of this article previously appeared in Forbes. Even entrepreneurs that already sold on SaaS should stake note of new research from the SalientGroup : SaaS gets funded - Nearly 50% of SaaS-based startups are getting successfully funded—a rate of funding success no other sector can match. SaaS-based companies grow - The SaaS market is growing 3x faster than the software market (20% vs. 7%), and this rate is expected to continue through 2020.
Advertiser: Aggregage
Office leases are one of companies’ largest expenses, and if your whole team is working from home with no clear end in sight, you may be wondering what to do about your lease.
Eric Greenspan
SEPTEMBER 28, 2015
I’m a hugger. Not just a slight kiss on the face, awkward arm wrap, limp hugger, but a real hug where the other person for a moment feels safe and appreciated. It’s my routine. Some like it. Some don’t know how to handle it. It’s what works for me. I can’t small talk or fake hug. Greetings can be so warm and welcoming and sometimes, just plain awkward.
Startup Professionals Musings
SEPTEMBER 9, 2015
There is an old saying that good lawyers run away from risk, while good businessmen run towards risk. Entrepreneurs see “no risk” as meaning “no reward.” In reality, all risks are not the same. Many risks can be managed or calculated to improve growth or provide a competitive edge, while others, like skipping quality checks to save money, are recipes for failure.
Southern California Tech Central brings together the best content for technical professionals in Southern California from the widest variety of industry thought leaders.
Berkonomics
SEPTEMBER 3, 2015
We are pleased to host Basil Peters, perhaps the best known name in the world of early stage company exits. His groundbreaking book, “Early Exits” has become a textbook for angel groups and entrepreneurs throughout the world. His Strategic Exits Corporation provides M&A advisory services, and he is much in demand as a speaker at angel and entrepreneur events worldwide. – Dave.
socalTECH
SEPTEMBER 21, 2015
Venice, California-based Headspace , the developer of a mobile app that helps people meditate, has raised $34M in a funding round, the company disclosed over the last few days. The funding came from The Chernin Group, and also included Advancit Capital, Allen & Co., Breyer Capital, Broadway Video Ventures, Deerfield Management, Freelands Ventures, and William Morris Endeavor, along with celebrities Jessica Alba, Cash Warren, Jared Leto, and Ryan Seacrest.
InfoChachkie
SEPTEMBER 14, 2015
A version of this article previously appeared in Forbes. In the 1998 movie The Big Lebowski, Jeff Bridges’ character, The Dude, laments the destruction of his favorite rug by repeatedly stating, “That rug really tied the room together.” In homage to The Dude’s sentiment, tech startup Akanda Virtual Networking named its open source project The Rug because it “ties together” OpenStack networks by managing orchestration, routing and other key network services.
Eric Greenspan
SEPTEMBER 14, 2015
I often hear about balance, recharging, relaxing, and rest. These are wonderful things. When you’ve achieved your goals, please, do all of these things. Until then, work your ass off, constantly, and without anymore of this nonsense talk. As we age, we get tired earlier, we sleep less, we get sore, our eyes weaken and in general, it’s just harder to get the same amount of work done as we could when we were young.
Startup Professionals Musings
SEPTEMBER 20, 2015
Too many people, young and older, let their career and their lifestyle happen to them, rather than proactively making things happen based on their personal passions, skills, and interests. Others make decisions based on someone else’s interests, such as the father who wants his son to take over the family business, or dreams openly of having a doctor in the family.
Both Sides of the Table
SEPTEMBER 11, 2015
When most people think of John Shahidi two words come to mind. Bieber & Mayweather. Yes, that Bieber (67 million Twitter followers, 73 million on FB) & that Mayweather (6.4 million Twitter followers, 12 million on FB). The reason being – John Shahidi counts both as investors and friends. So. You’re probably thinking, “slick talking, super confident, tall, extroverted, arrogant, LA kinda dude.” You’d be dead wrong.
Berkonomics
SEPTEMBER 24, 2015
Dave’s note: Our guest author this week is John Huston, founder of the 300+ member Ohio TechAngel Funds and a past Chairman of both the Angel Capital Association and the Angel Resource Institute. . By John Huston. There are only two types of companies -those which have achieved positive cash flow and those which have not. (Earnings before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization, or EBITDA is the most commonly used definition of cash flow.).
socalTECH
SEPTEMBER 30, 2015
Los Angeles-based TenOnTen Ventures , the venture capital investor founded by David Waxman and Gil Elbaz, has found $13.18M in commitments for a new venture fund, from 21 different investors, according to a regulatory filing by the fund. Details on the new fund--which is still in the midst of fundraising--have not yet been announced by the investment firm.
InfoChachkie
SEPTEMBER 28, 2015
A version of this article previously appeared in Forbes. Who would have thought academic videos recorded at a state university would generate nearly 23 million views? Certainly not I when I took over the program three years ago. The speaker series, which is part of the UC Santa Barbara’s Technology Management Program , has attracted an impressive cadre of venture capitalists, entrepreneurs and philanthropists, including: Peter Levine (Partner, Andreessen Horowitz), Dan Engel (sold one of his com
Tech.Co
SEPTEMBER 25, 2015
From apps to hardware, to KickStarter successes and international startups, we’re inching closer to finding out who will take home the title of Startup of the Year competition at our annual Celebrate Conference in October. Among the dozens of participants that applied for the online competitions, only a few progressed into the semifinals. Climbing the ranks for our Los Angeles, CA region, Mobile Therapy was one of two semifinal winners.
Startup Professionals Musings
SEPTEMBER 14, 2015
A few years ago, before the Internet was pervasive, before everyone carried a smartphone and before do-it-yourself software tools were available for free, it was difficult to reach a critical mass of new customers without spending a million dollars on a website, custom software and television advertising. Now you can match a big company with worldwide reach for a few thousand dollars.
Both Sides of the Table
SEPTEMBER 10, 2015
My partner Greg Bettinelli is an avid sports fan who throughout his career has developed an expert understanding in online ticketing (at eBay has was a champion of the StubHub acquisition) and online marketing. Greg knows consumer businesses and customers, which has added tremendously to our team where I admittedly have more of a background in enterprise software, data and online video.
Berkonomics
SEPTEMBER 10, 2015
Dave’s note: For the second time, we invite Basil Peters, author of “Early Exits,” back as our guest – to provide more of his insight into the “when” to exit by selling your business. In future weeks, we’ll add the voices of other well-known professionals in the field of exits to my own, and try to give you a compendium of useful advice in the process. .
socalTECH
SEPTEMBER 15, 2015
Los Angeles-based Local ID , the startup which develops local store marketing technology for brick-and-mortar brands, released a long list of brand name clients this morning, including Jersey Mike's, Drybar, Pinkberry, Rubio's Coastal Grill and Pizza Studio. The startup--backed by Crosscut Ventures, Technicolor, TenOneTen, Baroda Ventures, Double M Partners, Tallwave, Wavemaker Partners and Queens Bridge Venture Partners--said its products are being used to create highly specific marketing campa
Tech Zulu Event
SEPTEMBER 18, 2015
Live streaming apps are a burgeoning trend in the social media sphere, and as their popularity continues to grow, it is essential that businesses leverage these apps in order to engage a rapidly growing consumer audience with controlled content at their disposal. The early embrace of live streaming allows businesses to position themselves as ahead of the trend in emerging technologies and provide their stakeholders with compelling content.
Tech.Co
SEPTEMBER 1, 2015
There’s just no getting around it: part of building any strong startup means cultivating a robust online presence that reaches directly to today’s tech savvy market. In that light, video advertisements are actually widely considered to be one of the most valuable digital marketing strategies that you can use to engage with that demographic.
Startup Professionals Musings
SEPTEMBER 4, 2015
A common request I hear from aspiring entrepreneurs is for an assessment of their latest idea. I don’t even try to assess things at the idea level, since I can’t read minds. I can assess execution plans, if you have any. Yet I believe that business success is more a function of the person than the idea or the plan, so the best idea is one that is a best fit for you, and only you can assess that.
Jason Nazar
SEPTEMBER 24, 2015
What should the core values for our company be? Being a HUGE comic buff, I took this as the opportunity to frame our mission and values within the metaphor of an epic adventure. So here is the list of our core values, based on 10 Lessons Startups Can Learn From Superheros. (substitute “Superheros” for “Your StartUp Company”).
Both Sides of the Table
SEPTEMBER 27, 2015
Something is rotten in tech startup land. Don’t call me a hater for saying so. It’s not that I’m anti innovation or a disbeliever in disruption or calling it a full-scale bubble or saying every darling startup is going to fail. None of those. Still. Somebody posted too many party fliers. The uninvited crowds have all turned up. The people here don’t respect your parents’ furniture, are throwing beer cans in your back yard and there’s a dude passed out face dow
socalTECH
SEPTEMBER 25, 2015
Los Angeles-based two-factor, phone authentication provider TeleSign has long worked in the shadows, helping to prevent fraudulent logins for a large chunk of the top, Internet and web services. However, for years, it hasn't been able to talk about the work it does with its technology. Now, however, it looks like another local company, Tinder , is helping TeleSign to get the word out about its success.
Tech Zulu Event
SEPTEMBER 10, 2015
Young entrepreneurs are modernizing senior care for the better and creating more reliable ways to support the aging generation. With Grandparents Day approaching on September 13th , we wanted to share a quick roundup of a few ways to improve the lives of our aging loved ones. Whether it be the issue of finding a trustworthy caregiver to take care of your grandparents or making it easier for seniors to live chat via webcam, we’re hoping the following services can inspire a story on the ty
Tech.Co
SEPTEMBER 3, 2015
From apps to hardware, to KickStarter successes and international startups, we’re inching closer to finding out who will take home the title of Startup of the Year at our annual Tech.Co Celebrate Conference in October. Among the participants that applied for the online competitions, only a progressed into the semi-finals. Climbing the ranks for our Western Region, Picking Duck was one of two semi-final winners.
Startup Professionals Musings
SEPTEMBER 25, 2015
Business dreams are fun, but they don’t change the world or make you any money if you can’t turn them into a reality. Many aspiring entrepreneurs are stuck in the idea stage, and only a few have the discipline and the insight to move on to the execution phase. There is no magic formula for building a good business, but I’ve seen enough successful ventures to pick out some common elements.
socalTECH
SEPTEMBER 24, 2015
Los Angeles-based Earbits , the streaming music service led by Joey Flores, which focuses on new artist discovery, has been acquired by Atlanta-based You42. Financial details of the acquisition were not disclosed. Earbits, which had been backed by Y Combinator, Charles River Ventures, and Matt Mullenweg, the founder of Wordpress, said that it is now planning to double its staff in the next year, after the last-minute save by You42.
socalTECH
SEPTEMBER 25, 2015
Santa Monica-based VideoAmp , a developer of programmatic video advertising software, said Friday that it has opened up offices in New York, Chicago, and Detroit, and also has hired a new VP to head up its eastern region sales. VideoAmp said the New York office will be led by Amy McGovern, who has been appointed VP of Strategic Sales, to head up the company's eastern region; McGovern was most recently Vice President of Digital Video Ad Sales at Fox Networks Group, and also had served at GroupM.
socalTECH
SEPTEMBER 21, 2015
Did you ever wish you could tell the story of your life as a comic strip? A new, San Diego startup, Lomics , said this morning that it has rolled out a mobile app which lets you capture yourself on camera, and create a comic--complete with speech and thought bubbles--where you can tell your own story. The startup said the app lets users shoot videos, which the app automatically frames and turns into live comics.
socalTECH
SEPTEMBER 9, 2015
Los Angeles-based dating app developer Tinder has launched a new feature for all of those users hungry for a hot date: a new "Super Like" option, which lets users "swipe up" to indicate "heightened level of interest" in another user. According to Tinder, the new feature will only allow a limited number of "Super Likes", with an indication to those users that someone has "Super Liked" them showing up on profiles.
socalTECH
SEPTEMBER 25, 2015
Los Angeles-based Ampsy , the social content sharing and aggregation software developer led by Jeremy Gocke, has linked into IBM's Watson technology, saying it is using the machine learning technology as part of a new analytics offering. Ampsy said the new analytics offering, AmpElite analytics, is aimed at helping live events stakeholders better understand social content sharing and fan sentiment.
socalTECH
SEPTEMBER 10, 2015
Los Angeles-based social aggregation tool developer Fliptu said today that it has rebranded the company as Ampsy , and also integrated its software with Hootsuite. The reasoning behind the rebranding was not given. As part of the announcement, Ampsy said that its product has been being used by musical artist Darius Rucker , who has been using Ampsy's product with Hootsuite during his performances.
socalTECH
SEPTEMBER 16, 2015
Amazon.com has expanded its one hour, instant delivery service, Amazon Prime Now , to Los Angeles and Orange County, saying Wednesday that it has begun offering customers in the area with the near-instant delivery of products from Amazon warehouses to Amazon Prime members. Amazon said it will make "thousands" of products from its catalog available for delivery from four new Prime Now hubs in Southern California.
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