It's not really about the product, it's about the person. That's what is getting funded. You can build a fart app, create a little drama around it and get 100k downloads.
I've heard Dalton speak twice. The first was at "WorkataStartup". I had never met him, or heard of him, but after hearing his pitch that day, I said to myself, "I'd almost be willing to sign up with PicPlz just to work along side Dalton". But, I have my own startup.
I heard Dalton speak at startup school, and what impressed me was his command over the financial and legal ramifications of music startups. I've come across a number of people doing music startups via Hackers and Founders, and I've never met anyone so well versed or educated about the business end of music, licensing, etc...
The, I met Dalton at this party at Andreesen Horowitz last month[1], and I made a point of talking with Dalton for 15-20 minutes. Once again came away quite impressed by the man. And, in the Q&A with Michael Ovitz[2], Dalton made one of the best points about the future of the music industry and media business that I've heard in a long time.
I think I have a halfway decent nose for founder talent. I run one of the largest startup/tech meetups in Silicon Valley[3], and I've seen a lot of founders come and go over the last 3 years. If I were a VC, I'd be tripping over myself to have Dalton take money from me. If it's not photo sharing, it will be something else, but either way, I'd lay money on Dalton having a good exit on one of his startups.
I've heard Dalton speak twice. The first was at "WorkataStartup". I had never met him, or heard of him, but after hearing his pitch that day, I said to myself, "I'd almost be willing to sign up with PicPlz just to work along side Dalton". But, I have my own startup.
I heard Dalton speak at startup school, and what impressed me was his command over the financial and legal ramifications of music startups. I've come across a number of people doing music startups via Hackers and Founders, and I've never met anyone so well versed or educated about the business end of music, licensing, etc...
The, I met Dalton at this party at Andreesen Horowitz last month[1], and I made a point of talking with Dalton for 15-20 minutes. Once again came away quite impressed by the man. And, in the Q&A with Michael Ovitz[2], Dalton made one of the best points about the future of the music industry and media business that I've heard in a long time.
I think I have a halfway decent nose for founder talent. I run one of the largest startup/tech meetups in Silicon Valley[3], and I've seen a lot of founders come and go over the last 3 years. If I were a VC, I'd be tripping over myself to have Dalton take money from me. If it's not photo sharing, it will be something else, but either way, I'd lay money on Dalton having a good exit on one of his startups.
ref:
[1] http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/10_46/b42030000...
[2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Ovitz
[3] http://www.hackersandfounders.com