I disagree, but I think I understand why they think that. The only exit for VCs is selling the company. Acquisitions seem to be based in large part on the numb

I disagree, but I think I understand why they think that. The only exit for VCs is selling the company. Acquisitions seem to be based in large part on the number of users. Since ad-supported models don't do well when there is less ad-spend and fewer conversions (like our current economy), donations may provide enough to keep the ship afloat. The thing is, I don't think anyone is trying to actually make money with a donation model; it is just trying to hang on until the sale. If we get rid of Sarbanes Oxley and VCs had a second exit possibility, I think we would see a companies actually trying to make money and not just make enough to keep the servers powered up.