What’s a software trade group to do in a dot-com world?
Reinvent itself, of course.
One month into his tenure as chief executive of the Software Council of Southern California, Mark Monaghan is trying to bring software-related dot-com companies into the fold of the nine-year-old association.
“The definition of a software company is broadening,” said Monaghan, who has a 20-year history in hardware and software. “The council is adjusting to the industry today without detracting from our original mission. We now need to come up with a rejuvenated image, which may include changing our name.”
The expansion has the potential to ruffle the feathers of old-school software companies that belong to the council, but the transition has been relatively painless thus far. Whether they like it or not, every traditional software developer is tied to the Internet explosion and has an evolving business plan to prove it.
Those dot-coms welcomed into the association could be considered a new breed of company, whether they are developers of software tools for the Internet or intrinsically dependent upon proprietary software such as Santa Monica-based Direct Stock Market Inc.
The software council is already seeing its repositioning pay off. Seventy percent of its newest members have come from the Internet niche, and this year’s board of directors is also tilted toward the intersection of the software industry and the Internet.
First on Monaghan’s agenda is a grassroots effort to get the word out about the council’s evolving nature. Next comes the drive to boost membership and become a more sophisticated repository of information on the local industry.
“Our goal is to be a major clearinghouse of information for the industry and to continue to provide our members an environment in which peers interact and really get something from it,” he said.
In addition to its popular VentureNet forum, the council intends to get several new initiatives up and running in the next 12 months, including programs involving formal mentoring and government advocacy. The board is also considering the creation of a foundation to provide scholarships to underprivileged students interested in studying software development.
With a number of tech associations operating in Southern California, how effective can so many groups be in a single area? Monaghan believes the answer lies in greater cooperation among the groups.
“There may be some egos involved, and everyone has a different slant on bringing their interests to the table, but we all share the goal of fostering the industry and investment,” he said. “There is common ground.”
Ticket to Ride
Tired of seeing third-party businesses such as America Online’s Moviefone profit from virtual ticket sales, a half dozen major theater chains are forming their own company to sell movie tickets over the Internet and telephone.
The as-yet-unnamed entity will get $30 million in seed capital from its founders Century Theatres, Cinemark Theatres, Edwards Theatres, General Cinema Theatres, Loews Cineplex Entertainment and Regal Cinemas which collectively represent more than 12,000 movie screens in North America and sold more than 600 million tickets last year. General Atlantic Partners and Accretive Technology Partners are also co-founders.
The new company will have exclusive rights to sell tickets via the Internet, telephone and wireless technology for the participating movie chains, likely displacing the existing agreements some have with outside sellers like Moviefone and MovieTickets.com.
The theaters hope to have the service up and running this summer.
News & Notes
Pasadena-based online search engine GoTo.com announced its acquisition of auction search service AuctionRover.com in an all-stock deal worth roughly $169 million. Auction search services, which let users find and track auctions for their desired goods at various online sites, are the latest popular twist in the thriving online auction scene
Caltech president and biology professor David Baltimore and UCLA professor of physiology Jared Diamond each received a 1999 National Medal of Science and Technology from President Clinton at the While House last week
L.A.-based eteamz, an Internet company dedicated to local sports teams, landed $4 million in its first round of funding. Rocket Ventures and iMinds Ventures were the investors
Santa Monica-based online entertainment company Reelplay.com has closed its second round of funding, which totaled $4.5 million. Frank Biondi’s Waterview Advisors and Softbank Venture Capital were among the investors.
Contributing Columnist Sara Fisher can be reached via e-mail at [email protected].
Site of the Week
www.GavelNet.com
More sophisticated than eBay and hipper than Sotheby’s, GavelNet.com wants to attract a new breed of distinguished collectors to its auction site.
In honor of the 72nd Annual Academy Awards, the company is selling classic Hollywood memorabilia culled mostly from L.A.-area art dealers but also from sources like a pack-rat former personal assistant to Lucille Ball. Notable among the 160-item collection is an edition of the novel “The Wizard of Oz” signed by the film’s leading actors.
Upcoming auctions include rare books and wines and have less of a pop-culture tone.
GavelNet boasts extensive security procedures and precautions, and has partnered with an independent insurance underwriter to protect dealers and buyers from unscrupulous characters and acts of God when it comes to the auctions.
