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I wanted to bring an interesting perceptive to this discussion. Back in 1997 we had developed a software product called Aristotle, which was a large audio database with audio editing capabilities for individual consumers. It sold for about $299. We spent about six to nine months looking for funds (about $2-4mil) to help us launch the product and get it into distribution channels. Luckily for us we did not come to an agreement on how to structure the deal and the deal fell through. Ironically, that is what prompted us to look for ways to add Internet capabilities to Aristotle. That, in turn, highlighted the glaring problems in Windows when implementing real time databases. Which prompted us to re-think the whole approach to the database and the usefulness of Windows/Unix as a server platform. Now, over 10 years later, we have developed our own operating system with its own programming language, VOIP system, PBX, CRM, ERP and much more.

It is very interesting to see that the VC system worked for us and here is why:
1. Had we received the funds and started marketing Aristotle, at the most we would have built a company with $50-$100mil in sales over a 10-year period. But, we would have had to struggle with creating a new niche for our product during the Internet revolution when everyone was looking at the Internet as the source of innovation.
2. Without VC support we had no other choice but continue development in hopes of creating a better product. And this led us to the creation of an entirely new set of tools (namely an OS with a new unique programming language). Leveraging those tools, we created a platform that was in turn used to create the various systems that we currently sell as services. Amazingly, the lack of VC support early on allowed us to get to a point at which we look at Microsoft, IBM, Google and Amazon and feel happy that we are already past the stages in system development that they have not yet approached. Of course, I?m making these comments based on my belief that the era of Unix-like OSes is about to expire.

Up until a few years ago I was not very happy about our VC experience; I thought that it was not fair that we did not get the funding. Since then my opinion has changed. Currently we are looking to attack an established multi-billion dollar market with a product that is clearly in the lead. That realization came to me just over a year ago when Microsoft announced their plans for a ?Unified Communications? platform. It occurred to me that that was exactly what we had developed some time ago. Lately, everyone is into ?Cloud Computing? and there is doubt that it will be here to stay, but before it happens the old Unix architecture must be replaced.

Tim

Douglas Telecom, Inc.

posted 4 years, 6 months ago
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