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Web 2.0 Summit: Richard MacManus of ReadWriteWebYesterday

By Alison McNeill

It’s not often we see Richard MacManus of ReadWriteWeb at Silicon Valley events, so when we spotted him at the Web 2.0 Summit we had to snag him for a quick interview before his flight back to New Zealand. ReadWriteWeb has been around for an eternity in blog years, since 2003, and continues to grow and evolve with new sections like Jobwire, which showcases new hires in the area - a very nice change of pace from the layoff trackers.

Check out our interview below as Richard tells us more about what’s new for them and his thoughts on some of the more interesting topics at the show.

SEC Files Insider Trading Charges Against Mark CubanNovember 17

by Brian Solis

Mark Cuban at TC50 2008

In a surprising move, The SEC filed and officially announced insider trading charges against Mark Cuban. The SEC contends that Cuban sold 600,000 shares of the stock in Mamma.com (now known as Copernic), an Internet search engine company, on the basis of material, non-public information concerning an impending stock offering.

According to Linda Chatman Thomsen, Director of the SEC’s Division of Enforcement, “Insider trading cases are a high priority for the Commission. This case demonstrates yet again that the Commission will aggressively pursue illegal insider trading whenever it occurs.”

Mark Cuban, however, responded to the allegations through his blog, “I wish I could say more, but I will have to leave it to this, and let the judicial process do its job.”

He continued in a formal statement, “I am disappointed that the Commission chose to bring this case based upon its Enforcement staff’s win-at-any-cost ambitions. The staff’s process was result-oriented, facts be damned. The government’s claims are false and they will be proven to be

The Web Empowers the Democratization of DemocracyNovember 15

by Brian Solis

Credit: Barack Obama on Flickr.

My latest post is live on TechCrunch, “Is Obama Ready To Be a Two-Way President.” It examines the transformation of people from mere voters into “customers” in order to create a true two-way era of politics, cut through party lines, and increase approval ratings across all offices. The New Web creates the foundation for people to participate in a crowd-sourced governance.

Highlights

Where there’s victory, there’s also opportunity…

Over 46% of American voters and 22 states sided with John McCain. Either way you look at it, it’s still a significant portion of America who didn’t believe #change or #hope were attributes of the Obama campaign. These voters believed their future lay with another candidate.

Politics aside, whether you’re a Democrat, Republican, Independent or member of the Green Party, we can not overlook the power of real world community relations combined with the reach and engagement of online social communities and networks.

Online tools such as Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter

Ignite New York Celebrates StartupsNovember 15

by Brian Solis

While the state of the U.S. economy has many gripped with fear, the spirit of tech entrepreneurs appears to be alive and well, and perhaps most notably, determined to excel regardless of the hurdles that may lie ahead.

On November 11th in New York, Microsoft Startup Zone partnered with The TechSet (Stephanie Agresta and yours truly) to host Ignite New York to debut the newly launched BizSpark initiative. BizSpark is a comprehensive program that is dedicated to helping startups grow and succeed by offering to caliber services, resources, platforms and software.

The event was hosted at One Little West 12, an elegant and beautiful ultra lounge in New York’s stylish Meat Packing District - next door to the Hotel Gansevoort, made popular by the Sex and the City Franchise.

Close to 400 people celebrated the spirit of entrepreneurialism that night, which made for an evening rich with valuable and productive conversations and networking.

New York is the first in a series of events. Austin, you’re next! See you on November 20th. R

Web 2.0 Summit: Ron Conway on Advice for StartupsNovember 14

By Alison McNeill

If you’ve got a startup in Silicon Valley, or anywhere for that matter, chances are that you’ve heard of Ron Conway. The so-called “Godfather of Silicon Valley” has made over 20 investments in Web 2.0 companies such as Twitter, Digg, PBWiki, Seesmic, the list goes on and on.

Recently, Ron has been very vocal about his advice for startups in the downward economy recommending to his companies that they conserve cash and cut costs, even renegotiate all expenses, including rent.

We grabbed Ron for a quick interview at the Web 2.0 Summit last week to hear for ourselves so listen up!