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Does a limo service as a startup idea sound cool to you? What about just another online file storage service when there are hundreds of others out there already

by volaski 11y ago

Does a limo service as a startup idea sound cool to you? What about just another online file storage service when there are hundreds of others out there already without any significant traction?

w1ntermute 11y ago
> Does a limo service as a startup idea sound cool to you? Do you think they didn't recognize the potential to move downmarket right from the beginning? Starting as a limo service was just a way to delay regulatory issues. Travis shot down Garrett's idea of owning the assets right at the beginning. > What about just another online file storage service when there are hundreds of others out there already without any significant traction? It definitely wasn't the presence of "hundreds" of competitors (at least not ones that didn't require sysadmin expertise) that people were criticizing at the time: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8863 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8863
- volaski 11y ago
  Your argument actually supports my argument. Yeah that's why the expression is "looks like a bad idea", not "it is a bad idea". It looks like a bad idea to others, but not to the founders because the founders obviously know (or believe) something that others don't. Otherwise, if the founders were working on something even they thought was a bad idea, that would be an idiot.
  - w1ntermute 11y ago
    No, you're missing the point. The idea was obvious to plenty of others (Box in the case of Dropbox, Lyft/Sidecar in the case of Uber). The difference for Uber was that they were able to raise an enormous amount of funding, then use it to subsidize their service to the hilt while expanding to as many locales as possible. It's still not clear that the business is sustainable: http://gawker.com/here-are-the-internal-documents-that-prove-uber-is-a-mo-1704234157 http://gawker.com/here-are-the-internal-documents-that-prove... In the case of Dropbox, they just eschewed profitability and instead pursued consumer traction, whereas Box pivoted to enterprise. And it's still not clear that Dropbox is a better company than Box, especially if Box can get its CAC under control. After all, most people are using Dropbox for free, which is one reason Box pivoted to enterprise: http://www.businessinsider.com/dropbox-ceo-drew-houston-growth-not-profitability-2015-6 http://www.businessinsider.com/dropbox-ceo-drew-houston-grow... The differentiating factor between the founding teams wasn't knowledge of some secret, but the social capital needed to raise the financial capital to run a lossmaking business for years on end.
eric_h 11y ago
> Does a limo service as a startup idea Does a mobile optimized, GPS optimized, delivery service startup idea sound good to you? Uber didn't solve the car service problem, they solved the getting you in a car right now problem. "No wireless. Less space than a Nomad. Lame." edit: further reading suggests my comment is more or less in line with the parent's point - call it a wash :)

by volaski 11y ago

Does a limo service as a startup idea sound cool to you? What about just another online file storage service when there are hundreds of others out there already without any significant traction?

w1ntermute 11y ago

> Does a limo service as a startup idea sound cool to you? Do you think they didn't recognize the potential to move downmarket right from the beginning? Starting as a limo service was just a way to delay regulatory issues. Travis shot down Garrett's idea of owning the assets right at the beginning. > What about just another online file storage service when there are hundreds of others out there already without any significant traction? It definitely wasn't the presence of "hundreds" of competitors (at least not ones that didn't require sysadmin expertise) that people were criticizing at the time: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8863 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8863

volaski 11y ago
Your argument actually supports my argument. Yeah that's why the expression is "looks like a bad idea", not "it is a bad idea". It looks like a bad idea to others, but not to the founders because the founders obviously know (or believe) something that others don't. Otherwise, if the founders were working on something even they thought was a bad idea, that would be an idiot.
- w1ntermute 11y ago
  No, you're missing the point. The idea was obvious to plenty of others (Box in the case of Dropbox, Lyft/Sidecar in the case of Uber). The difference for Uber was that they were able to raise an enormous amount of funding, then use it to subsidize their service to the hilt while expanding to as many locales as possible. It's still not clear that the business is sustainable: http://gawker.com/here-are-the-internal-documents-that-prove-uber-is-a-mo-1704234157 http://gawker.com/here-are-the-internal-documents-that-prove... In the case of Dropbox, they just eschewed profitability and instead pursued consumer traction, whereas Box pivoted to enterprise. And it's still not clear that Dropbox is a better company than Box, especially if Box can get its CAC under control. After all, most people are using Dropbox for free, which is one reason Box pivoted to enterprise: http://www.businessinsider.com/dropbox-ceo-drew-houston-growth-not-profitability-2015-6 http://www.businessinsider.com/dropbox-ceo-drew-houston-grow... The differentiating factor between the founding teams wasn't knowledge of some secret, but the social capital needed to raise the financial capital to run a lossmaking business for years on end.

eric_h 11y ago

> Does a limo service as a startup idea Does a mobile optimized, GPS optimized, delivery service startup idea sound good to you? Uber didn't solve the car service problem, they solved the getting you in a car right now problem. "No wireless. Less space than a Nomad. Lame." edit: further reading suggests my comment is more or less in line with the parent's point - call it a wash :)