It’s the single most important VC conference outside Silicon Valley… and it’s happening right here in Reno October 20 & 21.
The 8th Annual Silver & Gold Venture Capital Conference will bring in a substantial base of actively investing angels and venture capitalists, including many Silicon Valley investors and presenting companies. Conducted by NCET, Nevada’s Center for Entrepreneurship and Technology, Golden Capital Network and the Sierra Angels, the two-day event will feature 30 - 50 angel investor and VC firms, 30-40 early-stage “presenting” companies, and some serious high-power networking. Learn more about how you can be involved by visiting www.ncet.org/venture-capital-conferences.
Save the Date:
When: October 20 & 21, 2008
Time: 8:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Location: Peppermill Convention Center, Reno, NV
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Hahaha! Apparently, I’m a really really picky guy: “It’s very few people—the techies—who want (service for an unapproved device),” Gillott said. “If you walk into an AT&T store and can’t find a phone you like, you’re really picky.”
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And the little boy is played by Renoite Cody LaPlante, 5, the son of family friends David and Jessica LaPlante.
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It’s been a big week for Twitter. With SXSW going on in Austin, the hardcore Twitter-addicts converged with Twitter’s founder to let the Twitter community track their every move from party-to-party. They’ve been the BUZZ of the social mediasphere all week. Chris Heuer even speculated on Twitter’s early demise because of the SXSW frenzy.
Twitter is addicting. And it can be annoying. Mashable’s post about the evolution of blogging — including Twitter — is brilliant. I’m kind of ambivalent. Love it. hate it.
So, have we reached rock bottom? I’m not sure how much more mundane it can get — asides from auto-blogging heart-rates and fatblogging. (Sorry Josh - we skinny French just don’t get it.)
My first Twitter was “Merry Christmas” on December 24th. Since then, I’ve Twittered on just about everything, although I’ve seem to Twitter a lot while skiing. Most people Twitter about work…I seem to Twitter less about work and more about play.
I do enjoy the ability to stay in contact with people latently. And I’ve met and become acquainted with a few folks thru it.
For the most part the content is fairly good. If you “friend” a really popular social media darling you should be prepared for a lot of “I just sneezed. Web 2.0 is cool.” posts. But if you keep it fairly tight to your friends, co-workers and family, you’ll get an mazing degree of insight in to what they are up to all day. That is unless you’re in to the Web 2.0 flagellation. I am so I don’t mind.
If I were a parent of a teen I’d really like to Twitter with them. What a great tool to follow them around. I fear that Twitter will be the social media equivalent of leg warmers by the time my kids are teens tho’. I wish there were more thought-leader/comedians that Twittered. Stuart Davis would be an awesome Twitter’. So would Bubbles.
Here’s some Twitters of mine from the last week:
- Eat pasta. Ski fasta. Logan, Cody & I eating lots’o pasta and watching some ski porn. Girls night out. Boys nite in. about 3 hours ago from txt
- Just realized our skis/boots are in the locker in Alpine and the ski race @ Diamond Peak starts @ 8:30a. Gonna be an early start… about 4 hours ago from txt
- “They drew first blood, not me.” “Nothing is over! Nothing!” - John J. Rambo about 11 hours ago from txt
- 11pm lastnite large/illegal roman candle lit front yard visible/audible 4 a mile. I’ve hunted t’ perps down . Game on. With prejudice! about 11 hours ago from txt
- Just bought 2 cases of Pabst Blue Ribbon and two bottles Hanger One. Anyone appreciate the irony in that?
05:46 PM March 15, 2007 from txt
- Just got a haircut. My hair grows unevenly now. Slow on top and in front. Fast in the back. My genetic mullet’tude is expressing itself. 11:39 AM March 15, 2007 from txt
- Turning all my gadgets off now. Wife hit limit on all beeping chirping toning thingy’s & threatened 2 hurt me and my gadgets beyond warranty 09:45 PM March 14, 2007 from txt
- Getting my “Pho” on @ Golden Flower. Some rice noodles and flank steak will do the trick. Extra extra extra extra hot Rooster sauce. 06:28 PM March 14, 2007 from txt
- Reasessing my ability to pull two consecutive all nighters –one in Vegas– & remain cheerful. 37 ain’t the new 27 in that regard…tired 04:21 PM March 14, 2007 from txt
- Just landed in Vegas and enjoying HSDPA video (weather.com - of course) on my cell waiting in line for a taxi to take me to the MGM. warm 09:25 PM March 13, 2007 from txt
- Friends don’t let friends twitter and drive… 07:13 PM March 13, 2007 from txt
- just took my new blog design live @ www.davidlaplante.com. Moved off TypePad over to WordPress. Thanks Josh and Scott for holding my hand! 04:17 PM March 13, 2007 from web
- R.I.P. The Stardust Hotel Casino | Las Vegas. (1958-2007) Home of Sinatra. & Frank Rosenthal: “The Stardust was the Bellagio of its day.” 09:32 AM March 13, 2007 from txt
- is wondering if there’s a twitter day/week digest to post to your blog like del.icio.us. can’t find one. working on new blog design 09:04 PM March 12, 2007 from web
- wondering how it got to be 6:30p!? Feels like 5:30p still Looking in to flights to Vegas… 06:34 PM March 12, 2007 from web
- Just got back to Skino NV fr/ Squallywood Skiercross. Gonna take the fixie for a Sunday afternoon spin ’round the hood. 04:13 PM March 11, 2007 from txt
- Fred Foto giving me a demo of his mobile content platform while he runs the txt2vote for the Honda SkiTour skiercross 12:51 PM March 11, 2007 from txt
- Is @ Plumpjacks havin breakfast w/ Swany. just ran in to Mike P. lookin’ glassy after the George Clinton show 10:52 AM March 11, 2007 from txt
- Is watching the ‘Wailers warmup at the Honda Ski Tour Basecamp in Squaw. Is headed to the Chammy for the Squawllywood party of 2007 06:05 PM March 10, 2007 from txt
- Observing Cody harass and heckle Shane McConkey…called him a knuckle dragger…while being interviewed live TV. Cody rocks. 04:16 PM March 10, 2007 from txt
- Is enjoying Squallywood’s finest spring apres ski party for the Honda Ski Tour at the Chammy w/ about 400 others 04:06 PM March 10, 2007 from txt
- Is @ High Camp @ Squaw eating Wildflour chocchip cookies with Jess and kids. 02:20 PM March 10, 2007 from txt
Watching Simon DuMont kill it in the Squaw SkiTour SuperPipe comp. Consecutive off-axis 900s 15-20ft off deck…insane 12:32 PM March 10, 2007 from txt
- digging out pair of ‘87 Nishizawas w/ Tyrollia 490’s 4 Shane McConkey 2 B.A.S.E. jump w/ in Europe. 490’s uniquely release w/ upward pull 08:40 PM March 09, 2007 from txt
- Is watching the rail jam listening to ‘roots and just ran in to a fellow Twelve Horse’r Jodie. Cool to run in to your team @ Squaw. 05:49 PM March 09, 2007 from txt
- Headed back to the Chammy for beers and somw Squawlitude 03:52 PM March 09, 2007 from txt
Technorati tags: twitter, twitter.com, social, media, blog, blogging, sms, texting, messaging
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Mobile marketing continues its rapid growth in to a mainstream marketing channel. In December, I attended 3rd Mobile Marketing Association’s Consumer Best Practices Forum in Denver. It’s amazing that in three short years this consumer best practices meeting, which originally was just a small get together in Vail, Colorado has mushroomed to over 200+ participants. All for a one‑day forum on the best practices for consumers, how marketers must conduct themselves, and how to maximize the mobile marketing channel with regard to consumer best practices on behalf of the marketers and the carriers and everyone in the global marketing food chain. This industry is not only alive, it is aggressive in its desire to not screw up this channel like fax, voice and email have with an old-school disregard for relevance and permission-based marketing.
You have to remember I’m comparing this to having grown up within the e‑mail marketing world where even in 1998 the dialogue around spam and best practices was virtually non-existent. Remember in 1998 when marketers were asking if e‑mail marketing would ever be a a valid channel?! And will businesses ever use it? And here we are today and e‑mail marketing is simultaneously hugely successful and yet that success has been tremendously trampled from a lack of best practices and self-regulation.
We marketers are coming up on 10 years to machinate the definition of spam…and there’s not a State legislature that’s not dealing with this today. We’ve got probably every state in the union this year introducing even more legislation on how to manage e‑mail and what marketers can and can’t do…mobile marketing still holds promise as a pristine environment.
Anyway…back to the MMA’s CBP Forum: Chaired by Verizon’s Dave Oberholzer, what was at first a small gathering of twelve people in 2005 has mushroomed in to over 200 participants this year…even drawing a dozen or so international participants.
The Mobile Marketing Association’s relevance worldwide is huge right now. There’s not a major brand that does not have some form of a mobile marketing initiative operating or about to be implemented.
While the temperatures in Denver were cold, the forum discussion was hot, especially around preventing the devaluation of the channel through aggressive (and perhaps by some views predatory) marketing promotions that are akin to the “1-900″ number marketing of the late 80’s/early90’s.
One of the hottest topics still is the logistical issues around shortcodes. I would have relished more of that discussion, however, at this meeting it was bittersweet as I announced my resignation from co-chairing the Common Short Code Working Group.
John DeFranco of Weiner and Flein gave an outstanding presentation on the FTC’s concerns with many of the mobile marketing promotions that are suspect in value. The so-called “ringtones and chat” subscription fees are most definitely on the FTC, CTIA the carriers and the MMA’s radar.
Top Five Issues for Mobile Marketing Promotions
- Misrepresentations and deceptive omissions and misstatements are illegal.
- Use the word ‘Free’ with caution
- Disclaimers must be clear and conspicuously disclosed
- Prominence
- Presentation
- Placement
- Proximity
- Remember 900 numbers gaffe
- Total cost is flat fee
- Per minute rate is tx
- Range of fees
- Cost of transfer
Technorati tags: mobile, mobile marketing, best practices, consumer, spam, marketing
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I write this sitting from a local casino convention center floor with the thumping beats of Huey Lewis & the News in the background…groovy.
While I’ve written many times how wonderful our EV-DO and EDGE connectivity is in the Reno and Tahoe destination, it’s only been in the last year that WiFi connectivity has been lit up aggressively. Visit even the smallest privately owned coffee shop/bar and you’re likely to find free WiFi. Places like Java Jungle, the Chocolate Bar, Deux Gros Nez, the Record Street Cafe, Walden’s, and of course every Starbucks on “Every Corner” offers T-Mobile HotSpots. Even Anchors Bar & Grill in Sparks has better WiFi than most.
So Wi-the-Fi can’t most of the convention centers at the casino gaming properties get it dialed in!? (Insert image of me throwing my cell phone against a wall and it bursting in to a 1,000 pieces to highlight the emotions that well up while contemplating that last statement.)
For the record, my best experiences have been at the Siena and Harrah’s. While pretty much every property touts WiFi of some sort, it’s pretty hard to find and reliably connect.
At right is a picture of my desktop as I sit and write this on the floor of one of our largest local hotel convention centers. Bleak. Barren. Devoid. Zip. Zero. Nada. Crazy.
Thanks Sprint for the EV-DO. You should sponsor me. I’m your biggest fan!
While I respect that our visitor demographic on the whole is not part of the “Always On” generation, northern California is our market and that place is lit up.
Perhaps it has in large part to do with local casino executive leadership? When’s the last time you saw a local gaming executive hanging out in Java Jungle or Starbucks for that matter banging away on a laptop?
Most casino executives in this region are self -admittedly “unconnected”. This doesn’t mean they’re “bad people”, it simply means their priorities are perhaps out-of-sync with the 20/30/40 something’s that are living out their business careers in Marriott, Hyatt and Hilton properties. The “unconnected” will never never prioritize WiFi until they get plugged in themselves.
So as we businesses leaders continue to move our office infrastructure to VOIP soft-phones and access to our business intelligence systems and functional processes management to online web applications, I can assure you I will not be the only frustrated business professional “stranded in the desert”. Help. Please.
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The news of today in mobile is that ESPN is cutting it’s Mobile ESPN MVNO (mobile virtual network operator) service. I’m sure this was a supervise to many, however, a long list of industry pundits have been on the Mobile ESPN deathwatch almost since its birth.
Many will drumbeat this as a “lost game”, however, I think that this was a merely a First Quarter fumble and ESPN is still poised to win the mobile and wireless sports content game.
(What I do know is that a lot of bloggers — including myself — will use this as an opportunity to write some really bad sports cliches in their posts <grin>!)
A notice to the Mobile ESPN Web site today states:
“Thank you for your support of Mobile ESPN. We have been proud to provide fans like you the best wireless sports content experience.
We have, however, decided to change the direction of Mobile ESPN. As of December 31, 2006, Mobile ESPN will cease its wireless service…
…good news is the Mobile ESPN content you have come to enjoy and expect will soon be available through the service of another nationwide wireless provider.”
Hmmm. So let’s look at some scenarios moving forward that explain today’s actions. Comment back what scenario you think is most likely, or add your own:
- Disney/ESPN thinking: Let’s cut all the branding, billing and MVNO overhead and pitch it back upstream to Sprint for an exclusive carrier-on-deck content deal.
- Disney/ESPN thinking: Let’s cut all the branding, billing and MVNO overhead and pitch it out to all the carriers for a long-term non-exclusive carrier-off-deck subscription fees and/or consumption “taxes”.
- Disney/ESPN/Apple thinking: Apple will have their “MVNO/i-phone” out in the next year…we’ll scuttle Disney’s MVNO and roll ESPN/Disney content in to an Apple MVNO exclusive. An iTunes/Disney/ESPN content conglomerate that only Elliot Spitzer could stop. After all, the only reason Dad will move the whole famdamily over to an Apple MVNO for the Disney iTunes is if there’s “something in it for me”. (Not that I would know <grin>!)
Anyway, one could easily get carried away with trying to “over-guess” this.
Bottom line is really simple: not enough subscribers. For this, however, there will be no simple answer. (Yes, one will be given, however, we know it ain’t always simple to explain away these things.)
Was Sprint the wrong partner? This is doubtful, they were clearly the best network for pushing the 3G video content.
Was the phone selection too expensive or not age-demographic appropriate? Again, not clear. The phones were great, however, amid the Motorola Razr tsunami and a Windows Mobile 5.0 launch, the initially expensive Sanyo was a brand and a price that sports fans may have found too much to digest to switch carriers for.
My guess is it simply came down to the paradigm shift and timing of the content distribution. Should ESPN be available for fees and subscriptions to all major US carriers? Hell yes. Just as ESPN content is not exclusively restricted to just cable operators and not available to DirectTV satellite providers. And from a paradigm shift, we’re still trying to piece together the social aspects of why MySpace — with a clearly inferior user-interface and kludgy functionality — blew the pants off of Friendster, Ryze, Tribe, Facebook, Xanga etc.
So does this spell disaster for the myriad of MVNO’s out there today? Yes and no. Disney may be up the same creek. They’re probably better off long-term focusing on making their content as “widely” distributed over as many carriers as possible than “exclusive” deals.
Cabela’s MVNO Would Work
I’ve been joking around for at least three years now that Cabela’s should startup an MVNO. My partners would be stoked just so I’d quit yammering about it. The social demographics of Cabela’s customers are compelling and they have the distribution channels nailed. I would soooo love to be sitting in a London coffee shop at some trade show talking on an Advantage Camo cell phone. The stares from the London business elite alone would be worth a 30% premium price for the phone.
The Salt Lake City Cabela’s store pulled in more visitors than the Mormon Temple in its first year. Cabela’s is an Internet commerce, direct-mail catalogue, retail success story like no other right now:
- Cabela’s is the nation’s largest direct marketer
- Cabela’s is the leading specialty retailer for
- hunting, fishing and camping (the nation’s pastime)
- (more folks do these activities than get ESPN on cable, that’s for sure)
Hunting, fishing and camping are social-oriented lifestyle brands that Cabela’s can easily capitalize on, more than content like Disney, ESPN, or the Outdoor Channel for that matter.
Reno has promised our collective first-born sons (well at least their college education funds in my case <grin>) to get Cabela’s to open a retail location here.
I can hope by the time it’s open here they’ve acquired the ESPN MVNO assets and are offering cell phones in Wetland, Advatage and Scent-Lok! If you’re from Cabela’s and are reading this…give me a call. I’ve got three years of thought in to this one!
Technorati : Apple, Cabela’s, Disney, ESPN, ESPNMVNO, MVNO, Nevada, Reno, SLC, Salt Lake City, Sprint, carriers, marketing, mobile, mobileESPN, subscribers, wireless
Del.icio.us : Apple, Cabela’s, Disney, ESPN, ESPNMVNO, MVNO, Nevada, Reno, SLC, Salt Lake City, Sprint, carriers, marketing, mobile, mobileESPN, subscribers, wireless
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So I’m sitting here on a flight to Atlanta and the baby boomer seated next to me has just spent 5 minutes – five futile minutes – lambasting me for buying a video iPod. I’m not sure why he felt so compelled to try and convince me that the iPod video screen is too small to be enjoyable.
So I had him hold up the iPod and compare it to the in-flight movie screen he’d been so entranced with watching for a perspetive comparison. I held up my cell phone for a perspective comparison as well and it became pretty clear that a 12 inch screen 10 feet away is much smaller than a 1.5” screen 12 inches from my nose.
It seems to me that viewing pleasure is about 90% content and 10% screen size. I repeat: People will watch compelling content on ANYTHING given circumstances where this is no other alternative. I’m sure someone will give me the math to break it down. Screen size really is irrelevant as compared to the content and the TRL (Time, Relevance & Location).
Content is still king. Always will be. Distribution is no longer the name of the game. I actually had my camera handy on this flight so I snapped a couple photos of my iPod with an in-flight screen in front of me. See for yourself. Final note: I’d rather watch South Park over CNN any day. Content is king, remember!?
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Gotta download and listen to Diggnation Episode #30 whereby we (Diggnation, Twelve Horses and the Reno-Tahoe destination) make Podcasting history. The first technology podcast to promote a vacation destination is in the iTunes can! Listen to the last 5 minutes…
What will be interesting here is the response rate…stay tuned!
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