Competition in the Digital Age
There's nothing like $19 billion dollars to set the cat amongst the pigeons. And what's more for something most people even those tech savvy neither use and, in many cases, haven't heard of. Regular readers will be happy to learn that I have been watching this space for some time due to a long standing …
Continue reading "WhatsApp to Facebook? Strategic compatibility, that's What"
... Matt Yglesias in Slate. Now I should preface that I generally like Yglesias's writings which is why I read them but today something happened. The Wall Street Journal reported today that Snapchat turned down a $3 billion acquisition offer from Facebook. ... I say three cheers to Snapchat! The company's founders and investors may or …
Continue reading "Now for some jaw droppingly bad analysis …"
In Slate, Marianna Mazzucato argues that it is a myth that entrepreneurs drive innovation. I'll chalk that up to the Slate sub-editorial title writers because what the article is really saying is the 'independent' entrepreneurs do not drive innovation. Instead, in many classic situations the hand of the government was there and it is difficult …
The NYT published an article today on "Which start-up could be the next big thing?" Of course, who really knows. The NYT basically appears to be looking at "buzz." But what we would really want is some forecast of potential demand. This is where Google trends becomes useful. For instance, the NYT considers SnapChat and Whatsapp as two potential contenders. Both …
Continue reading "Predicting start-up success with Google trends"
Today was Venture Day for the Next 36. This is a program that takes 36 of Canada's finest undergraduate would-be entrepreneurs, puts them into teams, gives them starting capital and legal resources and teaches them business while they explore setting up their ventures. Today we got to take stock of where they had come in …
The short answer: No. First, some background. Greg Mankiw, who is one of the clearest economic writers there is, penned an essay "Defending the 1%." He wasn't looking to earn any friends but he was looking to frame the inequality debate. And on page one what do we read? Then, one day, this egalitarian utopia …
Continue reading "Is Steve Jobs a posterchild for the inequality debate?"
Filmed last month at TEDxUofT on entrepreneurial strategy. It reflects thinking about that topic that I have done with Fiona Murray and Scott Stern. Someone later suggested the title of the talk should have been "A Vision for Relief." Here are some links to some of the topics touched on: The Onion talks The National …
Five years ago, when watching Steve Jobs introduce the concept of apps on the iPhone, I had an idea. It was to build an app that would allow you to find the nearest public toilet with the push of a button. I actually investigated doing this in Australia. The full story is here but the …
Continue reading "Why are there no good toilet finding apps?"
As regular readers know, I taught a strategy class to the Next 36 would-be entrepreneurs. During that process they would present their own ventures as cases. One of those ventures was Kira. Their idea was to provide a platform whereby employers would set out a series of questions and job candidates would be required to …
Continue reading "Streamlining the interview process with online videos"
... but he isn't about to let on what it is yet. Here is what we know. First, it's sort of original. I have a specific business idea in mind. It has the potential to change the world in a fundamental way and yet it is little more than a combination of existing ideas that are …
Digitopoly 