If you are contemplating potential options for a Web 2.0 venture, you should read this. I have always felt the need for an online marketplace where one could buy/sell web applications, widgets, scripts, media players etc. There are hundreds of companies on the web that sell premade websites (or scripts) but they are typically fragmented and unorganised. How great it would be if somebody could create an ‘Ebay for webapps‘.
This morning I noticed this incoming link to Webyantra from a site called Sitepoint. The link is from the auction page of Sitepoint (which looks like a pretty solid developer oriented forum) and it features the “For sale auction notice for Tuhee.com“, a website that I had profiled on this blog sometime back (incidentally the auction’s min bid amt is 10K USD). Tuhee is an E-cards website from a tech company called Technizant (run by some Indians) in the Silicon Valley. When I profiled it, I had mentioned that the site was work-in-progress (it was tagged proof of concept); its creators were testing the waters before deciding on the future course of action. Tuhee is essentially a widget and not exactly a complete self serving application and widgets are hot property in the Web 2.0 world. Check out what their ad says “…We are engineers and have taken this idea from concept to code. Now we are looking to sell to a person or company who can take it to the next level. Note that the websites contain multiple components each of which can add value in a variety of applications…”
Web 2.0 is characterised by low barriers to entry and exit; hence its extremely likely that buy/sell/rent/outsource/acquisition decisions will be an integral part of this space. Just as a pointer, TechCrunch writes frequently about web startups on sale on Ebay (it refers to failed startups as the deadpool). There are also related places like Elance, Rent a Coder which have overlapping functionalities, but a dedicated marketplace may make more sense.
Somebody please correct me if such a marketplace already exist? The one example (similar in many respects) that I am aware of is the thriving trade in Flash widgets that has been around for 4-5 years. There is a mini marketplace on the web for Flash stuff with hundereds of creators, buyers & sellers; it has participation from whole companies, independent developers, ISVs etc.
Update: Tuhee has been put up for sale on eBay as well. Check out the auction page here. Key elements on sale OpenLaszlo AJAX code, mashups to Flickr, Yahoo Photos and Google Local and graphics content including Flash animations
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
Amit,
Yes there is indeed a market place,which is a service provided by Mashable.
http://market.mashable.com/
VentureBeat also has a similar service called Venture Board,’
http://www.venturebeat.com/ventureboard/
However the number of listings is not too large in these market places which I think in a way is good trend.
It means People are trying hard not to sell out even before launching (Pre-Beta –Stealth Mode whatever!! )
May be its better to die trying than just build some thing only with the intention to sell it…or rather give up half way through and try to make a quick buck….
And for all those who are talented enough to build such apps but not sure if he is Entrepreneur material….I know of companies being acquired just to get rock star developers on Team
Nice Blog you have here
Cheerz
Upendra Poranki
Hi Amit,
Interesting introspection 8 ).
If this was 2000, you probably would have already seen dozens of ‘ebay for webapps’ out there. But today, i think startups have accepted that it is as much about building a community around the product and getting it viral -as it banking on sustainable incomes. Fortunately or unfortunately for most startups , it means that a typical B2C product would be free but concentrate on the numbers game. And that’s the only reason why in the 2nd wave, we see focus on creating more ‘youtubes of webapps’ or rather ‘communities of x’ than ‘ebays of x’ right from the word go.
Keep Clicking,
Bhasker V Kode
stealth mode entrepreneur
Sweet comment.
I think you will link to our site..
Thank You