SOPA and Quora

Posted by Dave Broadwin on January 15, 2012

SOPA is obviously a huge issue these days. Whether there is more panic than is merited is not clear to me. But this is not a post about SOPA; it is a post about Quora.

I was curious about what people were saying about SOPA, so I decided to check out the questions and answers in Quora. Now, I know there are a million things out there on SOPA and probably anyone interested would read about it elsewhere.

Having said that, the Quora activity seemed meager, to say the least. For example, 13 people are following the question What is the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA)? Looking at related questions, the numbers seem to go down from there.

My initial (and continuing) reaction to Quora is that it is a great way to cluster commentary and opinion around topics. I wonder though if it is not losing steam/market share. If this is the case, and I suspect that it is, there are probably several reasons for it.

One reason might be that Quora is not really all that easy to use. Like many techie things, it sometimes seems as though the technology stands between the user and the use. Here is a post from Semil Shah (on Quora)that touches on this issue. His first point: Make it easier for Quora users to ask questions, especially on the mobile app, goes to the heart of the matter. If Semil Shah has this reaction, imagine the experience of a less tech savvy user.

Like many things technological, ultimate success does not depend so much on capturing the fancy of Semil Shah, Michael Lopp and other members of the tech vanguard, but on massive adoption by people for whom the site is a means not an end.

One more thought about SOPA, old distribution and revenue models will not come roaring back into fashion because SOPA is passed. Hollywood’s content creators will still have to change their business models as technology and social networking continues to grow up.

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Dave Broadwin Partner

Dave heads the Emerging Enterprise Center. His practice focuses on representation of technology companies from start up to exit. Dave also handles venture financings, merger...

Prithvi Tanwar Associate

Prithvi Tanwar is an Associate in the firm’s Business Department. His practice focuses on advising emerging life science and technology companies as well as U.S....

Q1 venture activity levels and what will Q2 show?

It has been a long time since I wrote a blog post. In part, I just ran out of steam. In part, I have been running non-stop since May. Why? Because business has picked up in a major way. Since May the pace of financings and exits has picked up in a very noticeable way. So, here is a prediction, when I write the comparison of Q2 deals published by by Foley Hoag, Fenwick, it will show a major jump from the Q1 numbers.

Here is what my partner, Dave Pierson, had to say about Q1 activity, “The total number of New England Series A transactions dropped 46% from Q4 …. The total number of New Englsnd Series B and Later round transactions during Q1 decreased 21% from Q4…”

Fenwick had similar observations. Fenwick had this to say, “Venture capitalists invested $6.4 billion in 661 deals in the U.S. in 1Q11, compared to $7.6 billion in 735 deals reported in January 2011 for 4Q10, according to Dow Jones VentureSource (“VentureSource”). Although this represents a 16% decline in dollars and a 10% decline in deal volume from 4Q10, the 1Q11 results were generally flat with the average of $6.6 billion raised per quarter in 2010.”

All I can say is that either Foley Hoag is lucky or the venture world took off in Q2.

Here is the open question, given the turmoil in the public markets, will I have written plenty of new posts and be lamenting the amount of time available for such pursuits?

Without further adieu, below is the same table I produce each quarter. This is, of course, a table reflecting Q1 activity.

Term	Foley Hoag New England Series A	Foley Hoag New England Series B and Later	Fenwick Silicon Valley All Series
Cumulative Dividends	42%	52%	8%
Preference with Participation	42%	35%	43%
Redemption	85%	82%	20%
Pay to Play	15%	40%	5%

There is no surprise in these numbers. They have followed a consistent pattern from quarter to quarter for as long as I have been tracking them. Note the greater frequency of dividends and redemption provisions in New England deals. Having wondered about why there is not convergence on terms, given that so many of the leading venture firms do deals on both coasts and having asked a number of people in the business about it, I have come to the conclusion that it the divergence in these terms reflects a basic cultural bias. New England just has more of a lender mentality than the Valley.

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