Comments on: The Best of Times and the Worst of Times http://www.robhyndman.com/2005/12/08/the-best-of-times-and-the-worst-of-times/ any technology distinguishable from magic is not sufficiently advanced Sat, 22 Nov 2008 15:38:17 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6 By: mathewingram.com/work » Blog Archive » Hey Skype — can Yahoo play? http://www.robhyndman.com/2005/12/08/the-best-of-times-and-the-worst-of-times/#comment-782 mathewingram.com/work » Blog Archive » Hey Skype — can Yahoo play? Mon, 12 Dec 2005 02:18:15 +0000 http://www.robhyndman.com/2005/12/08/the-best-of-times-and-the-worst-of-times/#comment-782 [...] This may not be terribly creative, as some critics have noted, but that isn’t really the point. The point is to win market share, and the “first mover” doesn’t always have an advantage (Exhibit A: TiVo). As lawyer and tech blogger Rob Hyndman observed recently, getting displaced in such a way is even easier in a world where technology changes rapidly, is either cheap or even free, and users are constantly looking for the next greatest thing. Is that good or bad? That’s difficult to say. But it does seem to be the new reality. [...] [...] This may not be terribly creative, as some critics have noted, but that isn’t really the point. The point is to win market share, and the “first mover” doesn’t always have an advantage (Exhibit A: TiVo). As lawyer and tech blogger Rob Hyndman observed recently, getting displaced in such a way is even easier in a world where technology changes rapidly, is either cheap or even free, and users are constantly looking for the next greatest thing. Is that good or bad? That’s difficult to say. But it does seem to be the new reality. [...]

]]> By: Northern Telecom..and Tech http://www.robhyndman.com/2005/12/08/the-best-of-times-and-the-worst-of-times/#comment-772 Northern Telecom..and Tech Fri, 09 Dec 2005 17:29:58 +0000 http://www.robhyndman.com/2005/12/08/the-best-of-times-and-the-worst-of-times/#comment-772 <strong>Skype Isn't Dead but.......</strong> Last week, I got e-mail from eBay's Henry Gomez about his new job as Skype's North American general manager - along with an invitation to contact him if I had any questions. Naturally, I quickly took him up on the offer but didn't get a reply so I p... Skype Isn’t Dead but…….

Last week, I got e-mail from eBay’s Henry Gomez about his new job as Skype’s North American general manager - along with an invitation to contact him if I had any questions. Naturally, I quickly took him up on the offer but didn’t get a reply so I p…

]]> By: Patrick Mason http://www.robhyndman.com/2005/12/08/the-best-of-times-and-the-worst-of-times/#comment-766 Patrick Mason Thu, 08 Dec 2005 15:11:13 +0000 http://www.robhyndman.com/2005/12/08/the-best-of-times-and-the-worst-of-times/#comment-766 Yikes, you hit the nail on the head. Back in the fall of 2004, I worked with an angel investor who wanted to develop a portfolio of "on-line companies". Not coming from a technology background, he hired me to steward ideas from the drawing table (or his head) to the market. Outside looking in, he saw the market for small promising technology companies as shiny indeed. While we worked together for many months trying to find a path to market for several ideas, there was constant frustration on both sides. He thought I was overly pessimistic, and I thought he was looking at everything through rose coloured glasses. Aside from the specific "gotchas" that killed each idea, I was never able to put my feelings into a narrative for him that made sense. A story that would explain how I felt, and what was giving rise to my uneasiness about each project. You just did. - Thanks Yikes, you hit the nail on the head. Back in the fall of 2004, I worked with an angel investor who wanted to develop a portfolio of “on-line companies”. Not coming from a technology background, he hired me to steward ideas from the drawing table (or his head) to the market.

Outside looking in, he saw the market for small promising technology companies as shiny indeed. While we worked together for many months trying to find a path to market for several ideas, there was constant frustration on both sides. He thought I was overly pessimistic, and I thought he was looking at everything through rose coloured glasses.

Aside from the specific “gotchas” that killed each idea, I was never able to put my feelings into a narrative for him that made sense. A story that would explain how I felt, and what was giving rise to my uneasiness about each project.

You just did. - Thanks

]]> By: mathewingram.com/work http://www.robhyndman.com/2005/12/08/the-best-of-times-and-the-worst-of-times/#comment-765 mathewingram.com/work Thu, 08 Dec 2005 14:44:06 +0000 http://www.robhyndman.com/2005/12/08/the-best-of-times-and-the-worst-of-times/#comment-765 <strong>Is Skype losing it?...</strong> Even a few months later, the sheer size of the eBay-Skype deal still boggles the mind: $2.6-billion (U.S.) at a minimum, and as much as $4.1-billion if certain goals are met. All this for a company that hopes to have revenue of about $60-million this ... Is Skype losing it?…

Even a few months later, the sheer size of the eBay-Skype deal still boggles the mind: $2.6-billion (U.S.) at a minimum, and as much as $4.1-billion if certain goals are met. All this for a company that hopes to have revenue of about $60-million this …

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