It's becoming more and more apparent to me that these guys want a big piece of the Web e-Commerce pie. The strategic partnerships they've formed, coupled with the board assembled specifically for IC3D seem to indicate a strong desire to be in the thick of "site creation," not just software sales. They've also shown that Internet gaming is just a small piece of their possible market.
I wouldn't be surprised to see a large content provider, e.g., Razorfish, Verso, US Web, as a "strategic partner" down the line. Likewise, I wouldn't be surprised to see a business model that employs site creation (for instance, an extremely interactive high-fashion site) in return for equity. A number of the large content providers are aggressively pursuing the same model after watching CMGI's success. They don't want to be just Web development firms, they want to use their expertise in return for a piece of the pie.
I'm throwing out quite a bit of speculation here, but I like the possibilities, nonetheless. Gary, do you have any insight as to the financial/model details of any of these partnerships. Likewise, do you have any knowledge that allows you to "confirm or deny."
JN |
