Three types of startups demonstrated their products/services on Monday at the NY Tech Meetup: some that were interesting from a social and cultural perspective, some that were “safe” bets for investment, and others that were simply audaciously clever and technologically imaginative. There was even one company that made the audience feel uncomfortable. This one was sitesimon, whose tag line is “what people are looking at,” as the company shares your clickstream manually or automatically using its browser add-on. This basically means that users get to see every single page that their friends and family have been visiting. The site programmers are working on a solution to stop the sharing of inappropriate content.
Munchly, on the other hand, seemed to be a fairly safe bet. Its application allows customers to purchase concessions without waiting in line. While early unexpected obstacles encountered by the founders included having to scale down their technology so that 14-year-olds could use it, the company is already well on its way, having signed one major theater chain and a handful of stadiums. Munchly’s Greg Pelly called their market “an industry that’s behind the times,” and the NY Tech Meetup audience loved it – a few attendees even gave it a standing ovation.
Guguchu also seemed to be a winner. This is a powerful platform used by bands, band managers and labels to assist with outreach to fans, as it is a way for them to make more money through their own endeavors, without having to rely on iTunes, where songs go for as little as 99 cents. With their own slick band page, musicians can create albums, tracks and box sets and sell more music, shows and merchandise. Another demoing company that was fascinating from a cultural perspective was dump.fm, a chat room-oriented site built around graphics. Users can paste, upload or snap photos from a webcam then riff with each other and create dialogue through photos.
But the company that stood out was VYou, a conversational video app that allows users to send messages and get video responses — imagine YouTube as a live, personal conversation. While it’s intimate, it has the reach of broadcast. “It’s really freaking cool,” said Brandon Diamond, one of the group’s organizers. Part of VYou’s demo included messages and responses from Kevin Smith, the director. In one of his video responses to a question, Smith said nothing, but chose to pick his nose for several moments. Outrageous? Yes. But genius too.
“I don’t know if I’d invest in all the companies that showed their products tonight,” said Diamond. “But folks don’t come here for investment purposes; they come here to see magic happen.
Local Business? Join the Marketplace
Recent Comments