TechConnect: A Hit!
I think I can safely say that last night’s TechConnect was a great success. I personally want to thank you everyone who came and helped make it a success. In particular, the event would not have been possible without the support of Basel Kilany and Mohamad Khawaja of the QRCE, and the support of Jeeran.com.
The event was attended by startups old and new: Maktoob, Jeeran.com, Ikbis, Kindisoft, Albahith, Akhtaboot, Minerets, Ketab, easyinfo, and many more. There were consultants, bankers, investors and students, all there to discuss there companies, businesses and tech. Princess Sumaya made a surprise appearance as well. Ahmad Humeid has written about the event (here).
This is hopefully the beginning of things to come. Change is not borne overnight. And must be birthed, in Jordan and the Middle East. Over time, we’re going to begin seeing some incredible technology companies emerge and compete not only in Jordan or the region, but globally. And some have already started.
See you all at the next TechConnect!
TechConnect: The Middle East’s First Ever Tech. Meetup
Jordan is not widely recognized as being the center of technology innovation in the Middle East; it should be.
Jordan is home to some of the most well known technology companies in the region. Chances are that if there’s a technology company that is well known in the region it originated or was incubated in Jordan. But for a region as condensed as the ME and for country as small as Jordan there’s never been a meetup…till now.
It’s been a few years in the making but with the support of the QRCE, I’m very happy to announce that we’ll be launching TechConnect – The Middle East’s First Ever Tech. Meetup in Amman. Details can be seen on the flyer below. Thanks also to Jeeran for sponsoring the event.
The event is invite only, so if you’re interested in attending please send me an email.
The Question of Stability in the Developing World
Doing business in the developing world is not without its own unique set of challenges. Lack of proper roads, internet access, other essential infrastructure, are just some of the problems that entrepreneurs face. Yet entrepreneurs brave these uncertainties to capture a growing market that is no harder to find in America and Europe. As we all know the upside of increased risk, is increased return on investment – or that’s the way things are supposed to work anyway.
I recall when I was in university Bill Draper addressed a conference on investment in China and India. He commented that he thought that over 90% of all investment in India would be lost. If that happens there’ll be quite a few disgruntled LPs. While it is important to be cautiously optimistic of developing markets, it would be foolish to dismiss opportunities in the global South as throwing money away.
One thing that I’ve learned after having traveled to parts of the world where most people recoil in fear after hearing the name of the country, the region or the city, is that there are plentiful opportunities that are worthwhile and should be pursued. And despite the appearance of instability, the situations is always more stable than it may appear at first glance; and certainly more stable than the way it is shown in the press. Things are never as bleak as they seem. Ultimately, no matter what part of the world you may find yourself in, the language of economic empowerment is universal; it is the same for a financier on Wall St. or a child selling roasted corn on the streets of Karachi.
Dubai: The World’s First City to Have Free WiFi?
Having now become accustomed to free, reliable wifi in the Bay Area, it makes it very difficult while traveling abroad to not have such access. In the Middle East, in particular, finding wifi access is nearly impossible; and you can just about forget trying to get it for free.
While internet access is free in most hotels these days, this isn’t the case in Dubai. Not only is it not free, it’s fairly expensive.
For a city that prides itself as being the most modern and cosmopolitan in the region, it’d do well to invest in free wifi. In a city known for grand projects (world’s tallest building, world’s only 7-star hotel, floating cities), the world’s first city with free wifi would certainly draw positive attention. Perhaps, that’s just wishful thinking on my part. But for all the red tape that’s embroiled similar projects in the U.S. there’s none of that in Dubai.
In other news:
Akhtaboot.com get’s some coverage here. We covered them here.
Maktoob.com: “This is Only the Beginning”
Founded in 1998, as a free e-mail service in the Arabic language, Maktoob.com is now the juggernaut of consumer internet sites in the Middle East through its portal. The Company boasts that it is “the world’s largest Arab online community” – which is accurate.
The Maktoob.com portal is held by the aptly named Maktoob Group, which also owns the following internet properties: Bentehalal.com – a matrimonial site, Sport4ever.com – a sports oriented online community, Araby.com – “the first Arabic search engine”, Souq.com – an eBay for the Middle East, and CashU – a PayPal-esque site for the region.
Of all the startups in the region, Maktoob has certainly received more media attention that any else, both locally and abroad. In part this has to due to Maktoob’s age; it was one of the earliest internet sites catering to the Middle East and has seen its share of ups and downs in the global internet life cycle. Samih Toukan, CEO of Maktoob, still refers to this time as the beginning for Maktoob, which then begs the question where is the end?
Maktoob has been profitable for quite some time and given its age, it’s lived the average of two startups in Silicon Valley. It remains to be seen what the exit will be for Maktoob’s investors. IPO’ing is not really in the picture, either regionally or in Europe or America, so that leaves open the door to getting acquired and that’s about it. If and when Maktoob has a liquidity event will not only be good for Maktoon and its investors, but could be the first tech. startup success story in a region where if you have some extra money lying around you invest in real estate.
To date, Maktoob has been backed by EFG Hermes (~$2.5mm), Abraaj Capital ($5.2mm) and Tiger Global ($5.25mm).
I had a chance to chat with Samih Toukan, CEO of Maktoob. The conversation follows below:
Part 1: The Technology Environment in the Middle East
Part 1.mp3
Part 2: Running a Startup in Jordan
Part 2.mp3
QRCE: Creating a Culture of Entrepreneurship
Founded in 2003, The Queen Rania Center for Entrepreneurship based at the Princess Sumaya University for Technology exists to promote tech. based entrepreneurship in Jordan, in that regards it’s the only center of its kind in the country and perhaps within the region (with the notable exception of Israel). There is a nascent culture of tech. based entrepreneurship in Jordan and it needs all the help it can get.
The Center has four established programs: 1) the Technology Commercialization Program, which hopes to patent and license IP; 2) the Queen Rania National Entrepreneurship Competition, a business case competition for budding entrepreneurs throughout Jordan (the most visible of the four); 3) Connect Jordan, a networking organization; and 4) DART (Dream, Aim, Reach and Target), an entrepreneurship society for students. The Center is sponsored by the Jordan Telecom Group, The National Fund for Enterprise Support (Nafes), and Jordan Business.
Officially:
Established in 1991, the Princess Sumaya University for Technology (PSUT) is a specialized nonprofit ICT Jordanian university. In the year 2003, PSUT embarked on a vigorous development and expansion plan. An integral part of the plan was the establishment of an Entrepreneurship Center that would be located at the heart of Jordan’s scientific, academic and R&D corridor. The idea was to name the Center after a prominent Arab dignitary known for his/her distinguished role in supporting economic growth and entrepreneurship. Thus, work towards launching the Queen Rania Center for Entrepreneurship (QRCE) started in October 2004.
The center aims at national development and planned to be the regions’ corner stone for technology commercialization and entrepreneurship advancement. The QRCE targets university students, researchers, innovators, entrepreneurs and others. According to PSUT’s development plan, the next step will be the establishment of a business school to be linked to the center.
Working closely with local and international organizations; the QRCE will focus on issues such as: capacity building, consulting, counseling and developing the local “Entrepreneurial Personality & Spirit”. Furthermore, the QRCE will actively work on extending the intellectual wealth of Jordan while maintaining strong links with the business community in general.
Thus far, the Center has been known for its case competition which has helped launched: Faye3.com, which calls itself “the first Arabic Social Network in the world with an Arabic taste;” and Ketab Technologies, a developer of tech. focused education solutions (their first product is an electronic white-board). Both companies were winner of the case competition.
I had a chance to sit down with Basel Kilany, Acting Director, and Mohammad Khawaja, Project Manager, at the QRCE.
QRCE Podcast:
The QRCE.mp3
Web 2.0 Goes Global
VentureBeat provides an interesting analysis of a survey released Sept. 17, 2007 by Dow Jones VentureOne and Ernst & Young. (Press Release can be read here in PDF.)
SAN FRANCISCO (September 17, 2007)—It’s official: Web 2.0 has gone global. What was once an industry focused almost entirely in the San Francisco Bay area has expanded into new markets within the U.S. as well as in Europe and Israel, according to new data released today by Dow Jones VentureOne and Ernst & Young LLP. The global research showed that investors directed US$464.2 million into 101 deals worldwide in the first half of the year, the highest half- year total on record for the sector and more than a 7% increase in investments over the same period in 2006.
Essentially, while investments in Web 2.0 companies are up globally, they have declined in the U.S.
From VentureBeat:
Venture capitalists invested about six percent more into Web 2.0 companies in the first half of 2007, but the increase was attributable to more deals in Europe and Israel.
Notably, early investors in Web 2.0 slowed their pace. For example, Silicon Valley’s Benchmark Capital backed just three deals during the first half of the year, with only one in the Bay Area. In 2006, Benchmark was the sector’s top global investor, with 16 deals. It was a similar story with Omidyar Network, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and Storm Ventures, the survey found. The data comes from a survey by Dow Jones VentureOne and Ernst & Young.
Is the smart money leaving Web 2.0?
Not necessarily. Sequoia Capital and Draper Fisher Jurvetson, two respected firms, are the most active investors in Web 2.0 globally in 2007. However, both firms invest widely outside of the U.S. Maybe Web 2.0 is over in the U.S.?
In the U.S., investments in Web 2.0 were virtually unchanged from the first half of 2006, with 67 deals and $357 million invested.
Globally, investors pumped a record $646.2 million into 101 deals worldwide in the first half of the year. Within Europe, the United Kingdom posted the most activity, with a record seven deals accounting for $22 million invested. Belgium, Ireland and the Netherlands each saw their first Web 2.0 deal completed in the first six months of 2007, the survey found.
From 2002 to 2006, some 40 percent of Web 2.0 deals were located in the Bay Area. That figure dropped to just 20 percent during the first half. Even New England drew more money for Web 2.0 deals than Silicon Valley, according to the survey.
Finally, valuations of Web 2.0 companies have more doubled over the last year, meaning venture capitalists are having to invest more than double the amount to get the same ownership slice as they did last year.
