Patrick Lor

Drama at DemoCamp!!

We have a saboteur - somebody out to destroy all the good things that DemoCampCalgary is trying to create. When the DemoCamp organizers showed up at Melrose on Tuesday night, the manager told us that someone had called to cancel the event booking. He told us that he didn't have anyone to staff the room we were booked in, and there was a construction crew in there as well. After much consternation, they managed to get us into the second level, which wasn't as ideal as the theatre on the lower level.

It was probably just a simple understanding, but wouldn't life be more exciting if we really did have a mole in the midst? However, rest assured that having lived through that experience once, we don't ever plan on letting it happen again. We'll be calling in to confirm our reservations from here on in!

So, apologies to everyone for a less than optimal experience. Then again, there were lots of smiles and some great discussions in the crowd - could it have anything to do with the beverages?

After a late start, the audience of 50 or so attendees saw 4 company presentations and one special project presentation. First, the companies:

• Mob4Hire: Paul Poutanen presented this crowdsourced platform for testing mobile applications. Participants from every region throughout the world are encouraged to register the model of their phone, their location, and their service provider. Developers of mobile applications can tap into the crowd and seek testing on specific phones in specific locales on specific carriers, or test their applications across the entire Mob4Hire network.


• Aviary: I presented Aviary, an outrageously cool set of online design applications. Think Photoshop, Illustrator and 14 other applications, all of them working within your browser - no downloads required. The system tracks every version that is saved, and allows sharing of source files - allowing the community to collaborate on design projects with ease. Drop me a line if you'd like a beta invite.

• Xtreme Technologies: Chris Becker presented the XLink, a cellular phone gateway that allows you to answer cellphone calls on your home phone. The device connects to your cellphone through bluetooth, and has an output jack that you plug your home phone system into. Calls to your cellphone will ring through to your home system whenever your cell is within bluetooth range of the XLink. It allows you to use all those unlimited evenings and weekends minutes while your cellphone is charging. If you'd like to try it out, go to their online store and type "barcamp" into the coupon code field for 20% off.
   
• Ph03nixNewMedia: Jon Lam presented "Curse of the Pharoah", a casual game which is currently hosted on Big Fish Games. It was an instant success, and Big Fish promptly ordered up two more titles.
   

Matt Beck, a student from the University of Calgary presented Alberta's entry in the Solar Decathlon. Along with students from MRC and SAIT, the team is the first-ever Western Canadian team to gain entry into this international competition. They must compete in 10 separate contests, from designing and building a solar home, to creating enough energy to power an electric vehicle for a day. The competition will be held in Washington, D.C. in the fall of 2009.

DemoCamp - May 13, Founders & Funders May 15

There are two great tech events happening next week - one that's open to all that are interested, and one that is invite only:

DemoCamp Calgary 9 (click here to register) is being held at Melrose Cafe and Bar on Tuesday, May 13th at 6:30. DemoCamp is for the community, by the community - so feel free to grab a friend and join us. Presenters get 10 minutes to demonstrate their wares, but no PowerPoint is allowed!! The audience will see 4 or 5 presentations and will get a few minutes to ask questions after each presentation. Then, we drink beer and discuss how we're going to change the world with our web 2.0 virtual reality / social networking /contextual advertising gaming platforms.

The DemoCamp Calgary community has been absolutely fantastic over the last year. We've had the opportunity to meet a variety of great entrepreneurs, companies, tech wizards and angels. Entrepreneurs have received some amazing advice, and angels have seen some great opportunities. We're looking forward to even greater things as the community moves into its second year.

Then, on Thursday, May 15th, STIRR Canada is holding a Founders and Funders Dinner with special guest Garrett Camp, co-founder of StumbleUpon. StumbleUpon was acquired by ebay for $75 million in 2007, and has recently hit 5 million users.

This is an invite only event, built by entrepreneurs, for entrepreneurs. After spending the last several years immersed in the community, I found that the biggest complaints about networking events was that they were either too large or had too many people that you wanted to avoid. To make things worse, the guest speaker usually sucked. 

So, the team at STIRR Canada faced those issues head-on: we restricted the invite list to entrepreneurs, angel investors and venture capitalists. So, if you're a part of a co-founding team that's developing more products than services, we're interested in hearing from you. If you're an angel or a VC that would love to contribute your smarts to Calgary's next great startup, we're also interested in hearing from you. We're just looking to facilitate the best business conversations ever. (inspiration: The Lobby) To top it all off, we'll bring in the "rock star" entrepreneurs that everyone is dying to meet.

We've limited the attendance to 50 people. Invites have been going out over the last few days, so if you haven't gotten one by Friday, contact us at info@stirr.ca and tell us why you belong on the list. And don't fret if this one isn't in the cards for you - we'll be holding more events throughout the year.

iStockphoto Revenues Hit $71.9 Million in 2007

Congrats to my former partner Bruce Livingstone and the rest of the team at iStockphoto for shooting out the lights. As Bruce mentioned on iStockphoto.com yesterday, the numbers are big across the board, including the amount paid to photographers. The scary thing is, there's still more room to grow. Did I mention we sold iStockphoto to Getty for $50 million 2 years ago? sigh . . .

 
For the first time ever, we're breaking our long-standing silence on the numbers and giving you a few facts and figures. There is one number that makes us most proud, and it's not the $71.9 million in revenue we generated last year (although that is really, really exciting). The amazing thing is that we paid out $20.9 million to contributors last year. That's one h*ck of a lot of money, and doesn't include the $110,000 we gave out on Punctum Day. We are now selling an image every 1.4 seconds through this industry changing marketplace. It even gives us pause every time we look at these stats.
 
That our revenue and payouts have eclipsed those of many traditional stock photography companies confirms that microstock is a viable and profitable business model for contributors and clients. We wanted to share the sheer scale of how viable and profitable we've all become together. The supercharged growth we had in 2007 was orchestrated by an astounding management team that helped make iStockphoto the envy of the industry. That same iStock/Getty team is sticking together and adding some new faces to help execute on all the new super-wicked stuff we have coming this year.
 

Got Funding?

Seems like April is a great month to talk about funding - here are a few events you should consider attending if you're in the market:

BVF: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly of Raising Money - April 2nd @ 7:30 am. A CCAT breakfast event featuring Marc Elrick, Randy Thompson, Shawn Abbot, and Terry Hughes.

VC Roundtable - April 22nd @ 3:30 pm. Rick Segal, Partner with JLA Ventures, takes your questions about VC financing.

If venture capital isn't in the cards for you just yet, check out these articles:

Startup Money Tricks #1 by Calgary Technologies' EIR Kelly Graves. The top ten reasons why you should look for alternative financing before venture money. Top reason: The more cash you bring in before you talk to angels and VCs, the more your company is worth.

Startup Money Tricks #2 by g9 Consulting President Nancy Bozek. An outline of the grant programs available to young tech startups.

Kelly and Nancy have done a great job of outlining the basics, and I'm looking forward to more articles in the series. Both Kelly and Nancy are in the business of helping tech startups grow, so I encourage you to reach out to them if alternative financing makes sense for your startup.

Rant: Hate is a Strong Word, but . . .

I just purchased a new Windoze PC for my wife, and setting it up was an all-night affair. In the years and years that it took to rewrite Vista, I'm wondering if anyone on the team stopped to think about the out-of-the-box experience. And as if Windows wasn't bad enough, you have to remove all the junk that the PC manufacturer loads onto the box. (Their goal was to make your experience with Windows less crappy, but the opposite actually happens). Then again, it was cheap like borscht and it runs Picasa . . .

Anyways, I'm hoping that someone from Microsoft reads this: The Brand Gap by Marty Neumeier

Lesbians and Mind Maps

Just a quick little weekend rant about letting Google run rampant on your site: I've been researching mind maps lately, and came across a startup blog which had reviewed a mind map product. (For courtesy's sake, I'm not revealing the name of the blog). The blog had also reviewed other sites, including a mashup maker and Yahoo! Search Builder, amongst others. Nothing to indicate that sexuality of any persuasion was of interest.

So naturally, Google placed ads on the blog for a lesbian dating site and mind mapping software.

With all the money and technology we put behind profiling web site visitors, I'm wondering how Google could be so wrong? This is reminiscent of "Tivo thinks I'm gay or Nazi" syndrome that happened years and years ago . . .

New Programs For Alberta Startups

If you're at a startup that's looking for funding and partnerships (what startup isn't?), you might take a look at the following programs:

IVAC Capacity Builder
Lew Turnquist and the rest of the IVAC team are looking to place $10,000,000 in a minimum of 10 companies, on a matching basis. The money is meant to help bridge companies to the point where they become VC fundable. The money is placed on a non-equity basis, and between 2-3x the principal is paid back on royalty agreement. There are a variety of other details and requirements, but interested parties should contact Lew (ping me if you don't have his contact info) or submit an application form. All the entrepreneurs I've talked to tell me that this is one of the most inexpensive forms of investment capital they've encountered.

There's talk of this program being expanded in the future, and I certainly think that bodes well for tech startups in Alberta.

Microsoft ISV Innovation Excellence Award
John Bristowe is seeking applications for Blue Sky, a program that seeks to award a Canadian developer of "a disruptive software application" access to some special Microsoft resources, including a customized engagement plan and some red carpet treatment at Microsoft HQ. This would be a good fit if you run at least part of your solution on Microsoft technology, and obviously, if you see Microsoft on your strategic roadmap. Apply online or contact John for more info (again, ping me if you don't have his contact info).

DemoCampEdmonton1: March 26

It looks like Cam Linke, Reg Cheramy and Mark Bennett have been successful in shepherding Edmonton's tech entrepreneur community towards the development of a BarCamp community. There's always been a rivalry between Calgary and Edmonton, but this is definitely something we should be cooperating on. BarCampCalgary has been providing some advice along the way, as has TorCamp's David Crow. Locally, I hear that TEC Edmonton has also been very supportive.

If you know someone who might be interested in attending, or a company that would benefit from presenting, please let them know about DemoCampEdmonton.

The Venture Gap

Fellow Canadian technology entrepreneur Albert Lai is quoted as saying "you'd have to be an idiot to start a company in Canada" in the latest issue of of Canadian Business. The article, entitled Venture Gap, highlights the frustrations that both founders and funders face in Canada. Here's a summary:

• The money raised by Canadian VC firms, declined to $1.2 billion from $1.64 billion, a downward trend that began in ’01.
• American funds accounted for 41% of the invested capital last year, the highest level to date.
• The CRA requires an overwhelming amount of paperwork that discourages foreign investment. “Canada is the only country in the world that does this,” a Deloitte employee says.
• Tax incentives work for the benefit of pension funds, but against VCs in Ontario, thus lowering the capital pool available to startups. Government-led VC investment funds are so small, they are "laughable".
• The average Canadian VC investment size last year was $5 million. Canadian VCs are too conservative, selling out investments early to minimize losses, but also capping gains.

Lai isn't anti-Canadian. In fact, he's a huge supporter of Canadian entrepreneurs, and gives back by helping with the Toronto BarCamp movement, and speaking at events across the country. But sometimes, you have to call a spade  - a spade. Well said, Albert.

Look Who's Teching

Unlimited Magazine's article on the tech scene in Alberta features short & sweet profiles on DemoCamp/BarCamp, Tynt, Epiar, Jet Stream Media, XSENSOR, Material Insight, Curve Dental, Ph03nix New Media, Games Cafe, Zigtag, Sidefinder, Paramagnus and a few individuals, including yours truly. Author Jesse Semko attended BarCampCalgary 1 in December, and has done a fantastic job with the story.