You can find investors even out there (and others) - who at different points slip up and say they're just fishing for data (whether it is ideas or information r

You can find investors even out there (and others) - who at different points slip up and say they're just fishing for data (whether it is ideas or information relating to success of certain ideas). And do you really think every idea that people have is published and talked about immediately upon them having it? Many don't so they can line things up and have a competitive advantage. Like you said, execution is the most important part - though the idea still is valuable - and if someone else executes first on an idea then they can beat out the originator of the idea. An easy example: Facebook, Mark Z. who was hired by the brothers, who had the idea to be exclusive to only people with a Harvard email address - which in evidence / documentation he even stated he wanted to beat them to the punch (because "people don't need two of these platforms" - rough quote, I don't remember the exact words).