New RTE programme - entrepreneurs €25k prize fund

ArthurDent

RTE's 'The Fund'- Looking for Entrepreneurs with sharp ideas
http://www.tecnet.ie/news.php?category=News&id=560


Might be interesting to some of those here looking at going it alone

Figment

Interesting. But which idea to present...

DublinWriter

To be honest, 25K isn't a lot of wad for someone setting up on their own.

The prize should be closer to 100K.

Sure it's better than nothing, but it's a small reward for exposing your idea on this type of 'Pop Stars' type circus-show.

alleepally

I've two or three ideas buzzin' in my head at the moment but I wouldnt go on national TV to get my hands on money to set something up.

AndyWarhol

Oh my God. I've just spent the last two hours preparing my application and I realise you guys are soo right about telling everybody your idea on national TV!!! I've the envelope sitting in front of me and I'm thinking it's not worth it.

Actually the entrepreneur in me is thinking, I'll watch this programme and see if I can do any of the ideas better and steal for my own advantage! [evil laugh]

ButtermilkJack

I wouldn't worry about going on National TV and telling everyone your idea. I'm sure the programme is filmed over a period of months (after, say, all contestants research & progress their ideas further) and the winner is the person who's idea works best.

In other words, if RTE reckon your idea isn't good enough to succeed after months of trying, then chances are nobody's gonna steal it.

I'd enter if I had a unique idea. Becoming an entrepeneur by doing something already around is easy. It's developing the unique idea thats hard.

AndyWarhol

ButtermilkJack wrote:

I wouldn't worry about going on National TV and telling everyone your idea. I'm sure the programme is filmed over a period of months (after, say, all contestants research & progress their ideas further) and the winner is the person who's idea works best.

In other words, if RTE reckon your idea isn't good enough to succeed after months of trying, then chances are nobody's gonna steal it.

I'd enter if I had a unique idea. Becoming an entrepeneur by doing something already around is easy. It's developing the unique idea thats hard.

Eh, who exactly is sorting through the entries? (probably a team of vulture entrepreneurs who will spot ideas and act on them) There is no confidentiality assurances from the program maker, so what's the point in entering if you have a genuine idea?

Yes, the program is made over a couple of weeks, but if you get to the final stage, you've to pitch your idea on national TV against two other contestants before you get the €25k. All three ideas will probably be profitable, but there's no prize for second place except that the whole country will know about your idea too.

I guess, any serious entrepreneur ought to avoid this TV show like the plague.

finfacts

ButtermilkJack wrote:

I'd enter if I had a unique idea. Becoming an entrepeneur by doing something already around is easy. It's developing the unique idea thats hard.

It's both the idea and the execution that counts. Thomas Edison didn't invent the light bulb nor did Bill Gates invent the PC operating system ( see: Bill Gates becomes knight but who invented the PC operating system? ). Edison himself was apparently a poor businessman and his company was folded into what became General Electric in the 1890's.

Establishing a presence in the market before the big fish steal your idea, can be the hardest part of the journey. In recent months, Microsoft has paid $60m in an infringement of patent action (legalese for theft) and both Sony and Thoshiba have had large awards made against them, in similar cases.

Michael Hennigan

DublinWriter

finfacts wrote:

Edison himself was apparently a poor businessman and his company was folded into what became General Electric in the 1890's.

Can you name who first discovered/invented the following?:

Radio Waves
X-Rays
Remote Control Vehicles & Robotics
Vacuum Tubes
Fluroscent Lights

Well, you probably can't. They were *all* discovered by Tesla. If it wasn't for Tesla and his discovery of the AC power system, then the world would still be using Edison's DC power system requiring big generators every couple of miles in our power grids.

People always seem to think that Microsoft ripped off Apple with Windows, where as it was Apple who took Xerox's original idea for the mouse and GUI.

History rarely remembers the inventors, it mostly remembers the innovators (the ones who bring the original idea to the market).

AndyWarhol

DublinWriter wrote:

If it wasn't for Tesla and his discovery of the AC power system, then the world would still be using Edison's DC power system requiring big generators every couple of miles in our power grids.

DC power systems do not require big generators every couple of miles. The world uses DC power primarily to transfer energy over long distances and it is done at very high DC voltage because there is much less energy loss through transmission lines. DC enables us to have power stations miles away from the energy user. AC is hopeless for transferring power over long distances, but it is safer and conducive to use in rotating machines.

Mercy Katharine

you are dead right , the form for application asks to forward a copy of your business plan , 4 of 5 people getting hundreds of ideas with business plans !

rich getin richer at the decent peoples cost

the fund ? the con more like .....

remember - when thomas eddisson was questioned over having 2000 failed attempts at making a light bulb - he simply replied - i did not fail , just learned 2000 ways not to make a light bulb !

keep your ideas and business plans , the right investor will come , i know ive been there .

whiskeyman

Sounds like its BBCs Dragons Den meets The Apprentice.

Mercy Katharine

they dont call us rip off Ireland for nothing , rip you off in the pub , the shop , the hospital dentist , in life in general , now trying to rip off your mind . keep your ideas ....

Figment

To be honest, there is not a shortage of ideas, only people to build on them and time. I don't think VCs are short of good ideas and their interest is in investing money, letting someone else build the business then collecting their cheque at the end.

Mercy Katharine

a good poker player always keeps his cards to himself
i just think that handing a complete stranger your business plan for your idea and how to run it is completly mad ,
a personal meeting and a non disclosure document shoud be protocol .

i will be watching both the fund and press articles to see if there were any infringements .

Figment

I agree with the NDA. Do we know if they are not using one?

Mercy Katharine

i myself filled out the application form and gave a brief - appetieser , but where it said "attach business plan " i explained that it was confidential and could be produced upon request at a personal meeting , their loss / since then i recieved investment and am now on the road . a good business plan costs money , a good business with complete faith from its promoter should have the money spent on it , forget the frills - Business plan and a good one is essential .
ALWAYS use an NDA , it shows those you deal with that 1. you are serious with your dealings 2. investors will realise that information regarding them will also be kept in confidence .

jmcc

whiskeyman wrote:

Sounds like its BBCs Dragons Den meets The Apprentice.

Sounds more like a dog and pony show where gullible people are made to do weird things by people who are not entrepreneurs. No doubt the usual corporate types from Irish big businesses will be there to offer their "expertise" on what it takes to be an entrepreneur just like those "experts" in the business section of the Sunday Times each week.

A €25K is rather medicore for this kind of thing. €250K might be worth talking about.

Regards...jmcc

Figment

I believe the Irish Entrepreneur magazine is involved which is one of the more clued in publications in the country.

jmcc

Figment wrote:

I believe the Irish Entrepreneur magazine is involved which is one of the more clued in publications in the country.

Yep but there is a hell of a difference between being an entrepreneur and just writing about it. It is a good publication but the problem I have with magazines like this is that you learn more from a fsck-up than from a success. If you are lucky, you learn it from other people's fsck-ups. Most of the stuff I read in business mags promoting entrepreneurship are press releases and PR puff pieces.

But just what kind of time commitment would be involved for any entrepreneur and would it take resources, and more importantly, time away from the entrepreneur's core business operations?

From the programme's pitch, it seems that its target is people who want to be entrepreneurs rather than operational entrepreneurs. As was said earlier on the thread, ideas are easy but execution is hard. For the prospective entrepreneurs, without knowing who they were pitching to, or the backgrounds of the people involved, providing any information or business plans without an NDA would be foolish. Maybe I'm just cynical but I've seen too many business ideas and plans repackaged.

Regards...jmcc

Mercy Katharine

lets see what the program brings , as for the prize fund ? you are right - 250k would be more plausable - 25k seems like someone is out for a quick buck to get some ideas

Mercy Katharine

true , like i said , keep your ideas to yourself unless you have a pre arranged NDA .
its a dog eat dog world out there today , if you have an idea that could make a million - do you honestly think someone wouldnt try and pull the carpet from under your feet ?

democrates

It's a perfect opportunity for an entertainer to gain national exposure.

Now they're looking for a novel innovation, so I'd recommend my 'combobulating kindly ray generatrix'. This controls the audiences minds and impels them to throw money no matter the crapitude of the performation. I received the designs the other day (during the partial eclipse) in an email from the future, so it's the only one in existence at this point in spacetime according to mr bigglesworth, but I'm willing to part with it for ONE MILLION DOLLARS!

PS. Edisons DC transmission required wires as thick as your arm which heated up under load and when there was a short they melted all the way back to the genny, whereas Teslas AC transmission can do with skimpy wires that stay cool and wear shorts which melt at the point of contact (and/or at a fast fuse). Tesla = Genius, Edison = Homer's evil twin.

ianmc38

Wrong post. Damn multi-thread viewing.

AndyWarhol

Anyone else get a rejection letter today?

democrates

Yes, I got a rejection letter, they said porn was 'out of the question'.
Shows how much they know about a Fun Buck.

Mercy Katharine

o well , just means one must turn left , sometimes the Right way is not always the right way .....