VC Blog on Storage, Wireless/VoIP, Internet

LinkedIn Street Cred

I noticed a month ago or so that my LinkedIn connection total was a paltry double digit number, so I started inviting more people to Link-In.  Then, LinkedIn encouraged others who had direct or indirect contacts with me to invite me, so my user total grew from 80 something to 222.  But, the organic growth stalled.  And, 500 is the cutoff where the pros leave the amateurs behind.  Below 500, one's connection total is listed next to his name.  Above 500, you get branded "500+."  So, I sent invites to each of my Outlook contacts who were not already "connected" with me via LinkedIn, but who were LinkedIn members.  I figure that non-members would bristle at the spam, but most members would not.

And, over the last 30 minutes, my connection count has grown from 222 to 444 (a double).  And, only 2 people thus far have emailed me asking who the heck I am.  Probably another 10-12 had that thought, but didn't bother e-mail.  All in all, a pretty good hit rate.  Hopefully the momentum will carry me over 500 relatively soon.

Now, let's see if my 200 new links provide any value to my firm...

LinkedIn Spam

I just cleaned up my e-mail inbox on LinkedIn and was surprised by how many unsolicited LinkedIn invites I had from people whom I didn't know and who didn't know me.  Many were from recruiters spamming for more hooks into people.

Don't these people realize that LinkedIn stands for the exact opposite of what they are attempting?  LinkedIn is about extending the trust between friends to friends of friends in a seamless digital way.

Overcoming inertia: what would a new CEO do?

I read a dead tree interview recently with Richard Tedlow, the well regarded HBS historian who wrote a new book about Intel's Andy Grove.  He mentioned a critical event in the evolution of Intel and the microprocessor market in the USA.  In 1985, before grove was promoted to CEO, Intel was getting beaten in its core memory business.  The right answer was to get out of the memory business and focus on microprocessors, but this was difficult for Intel to see at the time due to the forces of inertia

"Andy proposed a thought experiment to his then boss, Intel CEO Gordon Moore.  'What would happen,' he asked, 'if the board kicked us out and brought in new management?'  Moore immediately deadpanned, 'They'd get us out of memories.'  Andy looked at him and said, 'why don't we walk through the door, come back, and do it ourselves.'

-Source: NewBusiness, Arthur Rock Center for Entrepreneurship, Spring 2007, Harvard Business School

It is a good lesson for those struggling to make tough choices.

Frank's back

http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/business/16695135.htm

Frank Quattrone is preparing his return to activity in Silicon Valley.  According to the Mercury News report, it appears that a new merchant bank is most likely, combining investment banking with private equity investing.  What does this mean?  It means the 99-1 rule is in effect, in which the top 1% of merchant bankers including Quattrone, can suck in talent and build valuable franchises as Evercore's Roger Altman and Greenhill's Bob Greenhill have done. 

Wireless Killed the PC Internet Star

On XM the other day, I heard the classic early 1980s song "Video Killed the Radio Star."  It got me thinking... what forms of communication and entertainment are dead or dying?  Now, radio clearly still exists, and new franchises can still be built in a dying medium (i.e., XM, Sirius, Howard Stern).  But, radio has been dying for 25 years, just as TV has been dying for 5.  What else is dying?  I would argue that the PC-based Internet is dying.  Yes, the PC-based Internet's flower currently in full bloom with explosive growth at Google, YouTube and MySpace.  But, will desktop and laptop computers still be relevant for consumers in 10 years?  Sure, they will still exist, as do mainframe computers and tape libraries.  But, if we can perform 90% of our critical consumer functions TODAY on a 1 pound wireless device, why will we need to lug laptops around?  I imagine each house will need a legacy computer for the kids to research and write term papers and such (things they will never work on the small form factor of wireless devices).  And businesses will still use PCs for Excel, ERP, etc.  But, 90% of what we consumers do today over computing devices is e-mail, photo sharing, getting snack sized news updates (sports, stocks, headlines, etc.), playing games and web surfing.  All of that can be capably done today over COMMODITY wireless handsets (like my cheapie Nokia).  We hardly even need the power of the Blackberry unless we are power-emailers.  We certainly don't need PCs.

PCs aren't going to die as fast as 8-track cassettes.  But, they are dying.  They are just too big and clumsy to serve the killer apps of 2006-2016.

Wireless is killing the PC Internet Star indeed.

By the way, remember the wireless web bubble expected in 1999 that never came?  Oh boy... is it coming, just watch.  The explosion of wireless data services coming down the pipe is amazing, and the usage is still early days, but is booming with YouTube like ferocity.  And the carriers are ready this time... and they are not willing to lay down to Google and become dumb pipes like the landline ISPs did.  Lots of money will be made and lost in wireless data bubble 2.0.