Each day, Inc.'s reporters scour the Web for the most important and interesting news to entrepreneurs. Here's what we found today:
Hats off to Ron Conway. Angel investor Ron Conway, whose prolific portfolio has included Google and PayPal, wrote a scathing e-mail to the super angels involved in what's now being referred to as "Angelgate," and, yes, TechCrunch got a hold of it. When Michael Arrington crashed a secret meeting of angels this week and later wrote that they could be conspiring to cap startup valuations, he mentioned that "a couple of the attendees are saying they were extremely uncomfortable with the direction the conversation was going." Apparently, a partner at Conway's investment firm, David Lee, was one of them. In the e-mail, Conway calls fellow investors "driven by self serving factors around ego satisfaction and 'making a buck.'" He goes on to basically kick ass and takes names ... or rather, drops names. He writes that some fellow investors' actions are "despicable" and specifically calls David McClure out for blogging about the ordeal and causing "embarrassment" for Silicon Valley. Conway also defends David Lee, saying he was "uncomfortable with both gatherings." Conway drives the point home, writing that he wants to disengage, with all the e-mail recipients. "Lets agree to disagree and not have to even engage in any idle chit chat or discussion of any sort….ever." Wow.
Ciao to unlimited data? Verizon recently announced that it expects to start charging wireless customers on the amount of Internet data they use. Robert Chang, writing for the The Wall Street Journal, notes that "the wireless industry has struggled to balance the increasing demand for data capacity with unlimited plans that limit how much revenue carriers can generate from their subscribers." In other words, corporations like Verizon are having a hard time squeezing pennies from the unlimited monthly data plans. The announcement follows Apple's decision to halt sales of unlimited data plans to new customers, and replace it with two service plans that have monthly caps. Customers who go over their limits are charged. But could Verizon be shooting itself in the foot by reducing smartphone Internet use, which could be potentially tapped for revenue streams itself?
Is Obama's small business program falling on deaf ears? The $30 billion in federal lending the president pledged yesterday was supposed to aid struggling small businesses with easier credit and other incentives to grow and hire new workers. But what if businesses don't want the money? Today the AP reports feedback from a number of small businesses and community bank that show reluctance to participate due to concerns about expansion and heightened scrutiny. "We have taken a strategic decision not to have our primary regulatory, the government, also be a partner in our bank," said William Chase Jr., CEO of Triumph Bank in Memphis. Many businesses have also frozen plans to expand since the recession in 2008, and don't intend to borrow until customers and revenues grow as well. Additional fears arise from the strings attached to TARP funding, when participating banks had to later cut dividends to shareholders and limit compensation. While the government has promised fewer regulations this time around, many still balk at the program's ability to change the rules at any time.
Five myths about Facebook. As The Social Network premieres in New York, and Facebook does damage control in Silicon Valley, David Kilpatrick, author of The Facebook Effect: The Inside Story of the Company That is Connecting the World writes in the Washington Post about common misconceptions. Before you get too excited, remember, these are myths, not secrets. Example: "Facebook keeps changing to help sell advertising." Sure, there are tweaks over the use and display of personal data, but it's more about staying nimble than pleasing advertisers, Kilpatrick writes.
Need a job? Just text it. Fast Company reports on Assured Labor, a MIT offspring company that connects low-income job-seekers with employers over mobile SMS. The employment service, created by Harvard and Sloan School of Management students, launched in Mexico this week. Check out what the company's founder and CEO has to say here.
U.S. seeing rising discrimination complaints from Muslim employees. Even before the dispute over the planned construction of an Islamic center in Lower Manhattan erupted, more and more Muslim workers were filing religious discrimination complaints with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, The New York Times reports. "Although Muslims make up less than 2 percent of the United States population," the Times writes, "they accounted for about one-quarter of the 3,386 religious discrimination claims filed with the E.E.O.C. last year." The Times says that Islamic groups expect the 2010 numbers to set a new record. Complaints range from verbal taunts from co-workers like "terrorist" and "Obama," to employers prohibiting Muslim women from wearing head scarves.
The classy way to handle rejection. On his blog, venture capitalist Fred Wilson has some advice for any young company dealing with the anger and frustration of being turned down by investors. Rather than sending an expletive-laced e-mail to the firm that turned you down, Wilson says it is better in the long run to handle the rejection with class. "You need to thank the investor for taking a look," he says. "You need to keep the relationship intact for the next time you want to raise money." Wilson admits that it isn't easy to maintain composure after being told no, but he says, "I always make myself feel better by saying to myself 'this deal is going to be huge and the best revenge will be when they are kicking themselves for saying no.'"
More from Inc. magazine:
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DeMint has not been shy about his vision.
Last week, he single-handedly threatened to stop all legislative activity
in the Senate as it worked to pass a flurry of legislation before
recessing ahead of the election. He has also criticized Democrats and
Republicans alike, chastising GOP leadership on occasion and bucking
them regularly to support more conservative, Tea Party-favored
candidates in Republican primaries. During the summer of 2009, DeMint
also famously said
that if Republicans could stop President Barack Obama from implementing
his proposal health insurance reform overhauls, it would be his
�Waterloo.�
For years, a few, select special interest groups on
the right and left have specialized in the conduit approach to political
fund-raising, including the conservative Club for Growth and the liberal groups ActBlue, MoveOn.org and EMILY�s List. Politicians using their leadership PACs for such activity are comparatively novel.
Individual donors must still abide by campaign contribution limits even
if they send money through conduit organizations, giving no more than
$2,400 per election to candidates.
But political committees aren�t as restricted in the amount of cash they may transfer from one individual.
For
example, DeMint�s leadership PAC directly donated the legal maximum of
$10,000 to Rubio�s Senate campaign in Florida -- money raised from
donors to his PAC who can give no more than $5,000 per year. But the
committee has also been able to bundle more than $240,600 to Rubio�s
campaign from a bevy of individual donors. And by acting as a conduit
organization, it can demonstrate additional clout.
So far this
election cycle, ActBlue has bundled more than $31.4 million. MoveOn.org
has bundled more than $9.2 million. EMILY�s List has bundled about $3.9
million, and the Club for Growth has bundled about $3.3 million.
In terms of all other groups reporting this activity, Hoyer�s
leadership PAC ranks next at $1.3 million, followed by DeMint�s $1.04
million. The only other federal lawmaker who so far this cycle has
reported at least six-figures worth of conduit contributions is Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.), with $168,800, coming via his Mountaineer PAC.
These bundles from Rockefeller�s PAC benefited just two lawmakers, West Virginia Democratic Reps. Nick Rahall, who is in a competitive re-election bid this year, and Alan Mollohan, who lost in a Democratic primary in May.
�Sen.
Rockefeller has supported Congressmen Mollohan and Rahall for years,
and he wanted to help them raise money,� Jamie Smith, Rockefeller�s
communication director told OpenSecrets Blog. �Mountaineer PAC
collected money at an event and forwarded it to the respective
campaigns. The contributions were reported according to FEC regulations
as conduit contributions.�
Hoyer�s conduit giving has been more
prolific. He�s reported bundling conduit contributions for more than 100
candidates this cycle. His top beneficiaries include the following
Democrats:
- Rep. Frank Kratovil (D-Md.): $56,500 and counting
- Rep. Scott Murphy (D-N.Y.): $36,750 and counting
- Rep. Debbie Halvorson (D-Ill.): $29,500 and counting
- Rep. Suzanne Kosmas (D-Fla.): $27,500 and counting
- Rep. Walt Minnick (D-Idaho): $26,100 and counting
part of his job as majority leader, Mr. Hoyer raises and contributes
money to Democratic candidates,� Katie Grant, a spokesperson for Hoyer,
told OpenSecrets Blog in a statement. Grant declined to elaborate further about his direct contributions or bundling of conduit contributions.
Hoyer has also reported transferring conduit contributions to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.
He�s also reported donating $1.08 million from his leadership PAC and
campaign committee to other Democrats -- ranking him the No. 3 lawmaker
in such direct contributions, according to an analysis by the Center for
Responsive Politics.
Other House leaders have also utilized this
more traditional approach in providing financial assistance to fellow
party faithful. But unlike bundling unlimited amounts of conduit
contributions, these direct contributions to campaigns cannot exceed
$5,000 per election.
House Minority Whip Eric Cantor
(R-Va.) ranks No. 1 with more than $1.2 million in contributions to
fellow Republicans from his leadership PAC and campaign committee
combined since January 2009. House Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-S.C.) ranks No. 2, with more than $1.1 million in such contributions.
Beyond Hoyer, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi
(D-Calif.) ranks No. 4, with $898,000 in contributions so far this
election cycle to fellow Democrats. And House Minority Leader John Boehner
(R-Ohio), who is poised to become speaker should Republicans wrest
control of the House from Democrats, ranks No. 5, with $862,000 in
contributions.
"The speaker works very hard to make sure that
members have the resources they need to get their message out to
voters," Jennifer Crider, a spokeswoman for Pelosi, told OpenSecrets Blog.
"The hope is that members have what they need to fight back against
shady outside groups who are coming in and misleading voters in their
districts."
"Rep. Clyburn believes it's important to elect
candidates who share his vision for the country and the need to keep
moving our country forward. An important part of that effort is raising
money for candidates, so they can run effective campaigns," Adam Hodge, a
spokesman for Clyburn, told OpenSecrets Blog. "Rep. Clyburn hopes that his efforts will help the Democrats maintain our majority this fall."
Spokespeople for Cantor and Boehner did not respond to multiple messages seeking comment for this story.
Here
is a table showing the top 20 lawmakers making the most contributions
to their political brethren from their leadership PACs and campaign
committees this election cycle:
robert shumake
Exclusive: I have some big <b>news</b>... | Ausiello | EW.com
You may need a hug after you read this. Or I may need one. Sources confirm to me exclusively that… I just made pretty much the most difficult decision of my ...
<b>News</b> and Publications - <b>News</b> Release
News and Publications - News Release. ... Academy in the news � News links � Ingenia � Photo Gallery. News Release. 08 July 2010. Academy elects 'unique national resource' to assist in economic recovery. Fifty three of the UK's leading ...
Movie <b>News</b> Quick Hits: 'The Hangover 2', 'Thor' Images, 'Avatar <b>...</b>
Don't pretend like you're too cool to spend $995 on officially licensed, 'Tron Legacy' light bike suits. [via Gizmodo] - Months ago 'The Hangover.
robert shumake
Exclusive: I have some big <b>news</b>... | Ausiello | EW.com
You may need a hug after you read this. Or I may need one. Sources confirm to me exclusively that… I just made pretty much the most difficult decision of my ...
<b>News</b> and Publications - <b>News</b> Release
News and Publications - News Release. ... Academy in the news � News links � Ingenia � Photo Gallery. News Release. 08 July 2010. Academy elects 'unique national resource' to assist in economic recovery. Fifty three of the UK's leading ...
Movie <b>News</b> Quick Hits: 'The Hangover 2', 'Thor' Images, 'Avatar <b>...</b>
Don't pretend like you're too cool to spend $995 on officially licensed, 'Tron Legacy' light bike suits. [via Gizmodo] - Months ago 'The Hangover.
robert shumake
Each day, Inc.'s reporters scour the Web for the most important and interesting news to entrepreneurs. Here's what we found today:
Hats off to Ron Conway. Angel investor Ron Conway, whose prolific portfolio has included Google and PayPal, wrote a scathing e-mail to the super angels involved in what's now being referred to as "Angelgate," and, yes, TechCrunch got a hold of it. When Michael Arrington crashed a secret meeting of angels this week and later wrote that they could be conspiring to cap startup valuations, he mentioned that "a couple of the attendees are saying they were extremely uncomfortable with the direction the conversation was going." Apparently, a partner at Conway's investment firm, David Lee, was one of them. In the e-mail, Conway calls fellow investors "driven by self serving factors around ego satisfaction and 'making a buck.'" He goes on to basically kick ass and takes names ... or rather, drops names. He writes that some fellow investors' actions are "despicable" and specifically calls David McClure out for blogging about the ordeal and causing "embarrassment" for Silicon Valley. Conway also defends David Lee, saying he was "uncomfortable with both gatherings." Conway drives the point home, writing that he wants to disengage, with all the e-mail recipients. "Lets agree to disagree and not have to even engage in any idle chit chat or discussion of any sort….ever." Wow.
Ciao to unlimited data? Verizon recently announced that it expects to start charging wireless customers on the amount of Internet data they use. Robert Chang, writing for the The Wall Street Journal, notes that "the wireless industry has struggled to balance the increasing demand for data capacity with unlimited plans that limit how much revenue carriers can generate from their subscribers." In other words, corporations like Verizon are having a hard time squeezing pennies from the unlimited monthly data plans. The announcement follows Apple's decision to halt sales of unlimited data plans to new customers, and replace it with two service plans that have monthly caps. Customers who go over their limits are charged. But could Verizon be shooting itself in the foot by reducing smartphone Internet use, which could be potentially tapped for revenue streams itself?
Is Obama's small business program falling on deaf ears? The $30 billion in federal lending the president pledged yesterday was supposed to aid struggling small businesses with easier credit and other incentives to grow and hire new workers. But what if businesses don't want the money? Today the AP reports feedback from a number of small businesses and community bank that show reluctance to participate due to concerns about expansion and heightened scrutiny. "We have taken a strategic decision not to have our primary regulatory, the government, also be a partner in our bank," said William Chase Jr., CEO of Triumph Bank in Memphis. Many businesses have also frozen plans to expand since the recession in 2008, and don't intend to borrow until customers and revenues grow as well. Additional fears arise from the strings attached to TARP funding, when participating banks had to later cut dividends to shareholders and limit compensation. While the government has promised fewer regulations this time around, many still balk at the program's ability to change the rules at any time.
Five myths about Facebook. As The Social Network premieres in New York, and Facebook does damage control in Silicon Valley, David Kilpatrick, author of The Facebook Effect: The Inside Story of the Company That is Connecting the World writes in the Washington Post about common misconceptions. Before you get too excited, remember, these are myths, not secrets. Example: "Facebook keeps changing to help sell advertising." Sure, there are tweaks over the use and display of personal data, but it's more about staying nimble than pleasing advertisers, Kilpatrick writes.
Need a job? Just text it. Fast Company reports on Assured Labor, a MIT offspring company that connects low-income job-seekers with employers over mobile SMS. The employment service, created by Harvard and Sloan School of Management students, launched in Mexico this week. Check out what the company's founder and CEO has to say here.
U.S. seeing rising discrimination complaints from Muslim employees. Even before the dispute over the planned construction of an Islamic center in Lower Manhattan erupted, more and more Muslim workers were filing religious discrimination complaints with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, The New York Times reports. "Although Muslims make up less than 2 percent of the United States population," the Times writes, "they accounted for about one-quarter of the 3,386 religious discrimination claims filed with the E.E.O.C. last year." The Times says that Islamic groups expect the 2010 numbers to set a new record. Complaints range from verbal taunts from co-workers like "terrorist" and "Obama," to employers prohibiting Muslim women from wearing head scarves.
The classy way to handle rejection. On his blog, venture capitalist Fred Wilson has some advice for any young company dealing with the anger and frustration of being turned down by investors. Rather than sending an expletive-laced e-mail to the firm that turned you down, Wilson says it is better in the long run to handle the rejection with class. "You need to thank the investor for taking a look," he says. "You need to keep the relationship intact for the next time you want to raise money." Wilson admits that it isn't easy to maintain composure after being told no, but he says, "I always make myself feel better by saying to myself 'this deal is going to be huge and the best revenge will be when they are kicking themselves for saying no.'"
More from Inc. magazine:
Get this delivered to your inbox.
Follow us on Twitter.
Follow us on Tumblr.
Like us on Facebook.
DeMint has not been shy about his vision.
Last week, he single-handedly threatened to stop all legislative activity
in the Senate as it worked to pass a flurry of legislation before
recessing ahead of the election. He has also criticized Democrats and
Republicans alike, chastising GOP leadership on occasion and bucking
them regularly to support more conservative, Tea Party-favored
candidates in Republican primaries. During the summer of 2009, DeMint
also famously said
that if Republicans could stop President Barack Obama from implementing
his proposal health insurance reform overhauls, it would be his
�Waterloo.�
For years, a few, select special interest groups on
the right and left have specialized in the conduit approach to political
fund-raising, including the conservative Club for Growth and the liberal groups ActBlue, MoveOn.org and EMILY�s List. Politicians using their leadership PACs for such activity are comparatively novel.
Individual donors must still abide by campaign contribution limits even
if they send money through conduit organizations, giving no more than
$2,400 per election to candidates.
But political committees aren�t as restricted in the amount of cash they may transfer from one individual.
For
example, DeMint�s leadership PAC directly donated the legal maximum of
$10,000 to Rubio�s Senate campaign in Florida -- money raised from
donors to his PAC who can give no more than $5,000 per year. But the
committee has also been able to bundle more than $240,600 to Rubio�s
campaign from a bevy of individual donors. And by acting as a conduit
organization, it can demonstrate additional clout.
So far this
election cycle, ActBlue has bundled more than $31.4 million. MoveOn.org
has bundled more than $9.2 million. EMILY�s List has bundled about $3.9
million, and the Club for Growth has bundled about $3.3 million.
In terms of all other groups reporting this activity, Hoyer�s
leadership PAC ranks next at $1.3 million, followed by DeMint�s $1.04
million. The only other federal lawmaker who so far this cycle has
reported at least six-figures worth of conduit contributions is Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.), with $168,800, coming via his Mountaineer PAC.
These bundles from Rockefeller�s PAC benefited just two lawmakers, West Virginia Democratic Reps. Nick Rahall, who is in a competitive re-election bid this year, and Alan Mollohan, who lost in a Democratic primary in May.
�Sen.
Rockefeller has supported Congressmen Mollohan and Rahall for years,
and he wanted to help them raise money,� Jamie Smith, Rockefeller�s
communication director told OpenSecrets Blog. �Mountaineer PAC
collected money at an event and forwarded it to the respective
campaigns. The contributions were reported according to FEC regulations
as conduit contributions.�
Hoyer�s conduit giving has been more
prolific. He�s reported bundling conduit contributions for more than 100
candidates this cycle. His top beneficiaries include the following
Democrats:
- Rep. Frank Kratovil (D-Md.): $56,500 and counting
- Rep. Scott Murphy (D-N.Y.): $36,750 and counting
- Rep. Debbie Halvorson (D-Ill.): $29,500 and counting
- Rep. Suzanne Kosmas (D-Fla.): $27,500 and counting
- Rep. Walt Minnick (D-Idaho): $26,100 and counting
part of his job as majority leader, Mr. Hoyer raises and contributes
money to Democratic candidates,� Katie Grant, a spokesperson for Hoyer,
told OpenSecrets Blog in a statement. Grant declined to elaborate further about his direct contributions or bundling of conduit contributions.
Hoyer has also reported transferring conduit contributions to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.
He�s also reported donating $1.08 million from his leadership PAC and
campaign committee to other Democrats -- ranking him the No. 3 lawmaker
in such direct contributions, according to an analysis by the Center for
Responsive Politics.
Other House leaders have also utilized this
more traditional approach in providing financial assistance to fellow
party faithful. But unlike bundling unlimited amounts of conduit
contributions, these direct contributions to campaigns cannot exceed
$5,000 per election.
House Minority Whip Eric Cantor
(R-Va.) ranks No. 1 with more than $1.2 million in contributions to
fellow Republicans from his leadership PAC and campaign committee
combined since January 2009. House Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-S.C.) ranks No. 2, with more than $1.1 million in such contributions.
Beyond Hoyer, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi
(D-Calif.) ranks No. 4, with $898,000 in contributions so far this
election cycle to fellow Democrats. And House Minority Leader John Boehner
(R-Ohio), who is poised to become speaker should Republicans wrest
control of the House from Democrats, ranks No. 5, with $862,000 in
contributions.
"The speaker works very hard to make sure that
members have the resources they need to get their message out to
voters," Jennifer Crider, a spokeswoman for Pelosi, told OpenSecrets Blog.
"The hope is that members have what they need to fight back against
shady outside groups who are coming in and misleading voters in their
districts."
"Rep. Clyburn believes it's important to elect
candidates who share his vision for the country and the need to keep
moving our country forward. An important part of that effort is raising
money for candidates, so they can run effective campaigns," Adam Hodge, a
spokesman for Clyburn, told OpenSecrets Blog. "Rep. Clyburn hopes that his efforts will help the Democrats maintain our majority this fall."
Spokespeople for Cantor and Boehner did not respond to multiple messages seeking comment for this story.
Here
is a table showing the top 20 lawmakers making the most contributions
to their political brethren from their leadership PACs and campaign
committees this election cycle:
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