Following Australian Startups and Tech Trends

Background: I have undertaken this report to explore, learn and analyse the local online search and directories market to understand the developments that are taking place in this area. There are more than 18 players, from small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to large corporations trying to get some share of this market. The main focus of this report is on Sensis and its competitors and how it can reinvent itself in a rapidly changing local market. Note: This report can be downloaded as a PDF from here . Introduction: Australia’s online search and directories market is rapidly growing and to this date, there are 18 players in this market segment , worth $235 million as reported last year (2007). It is expected to reach $532 million by 2010. Sensis, (owned by Telstra) is a dominant player in the directories market and Google in search. The online search market only represents a portion of the much larger local online advertising market. The local online advertising marke

In our ongoing series of interviews where we are interviewing CEOs, Media Personalities, Philanthropists and VCs, today we bring our interview with Ross Hill, Founder of HatchThat . HatchThat is a blog that interviews entrepreneurs. Ross's other startup Yabble will also be launched sometime soon. Let us explore what Ross has to say about his startups and also about Entrepreneurship and Innovation in Australia. • Please tell us about yourself, your background and interests? I'm 20 and was accepted to RMIT 's Entrepreneurship program straight out of High School. I'm in the final year now, but have had a web design business for 6 years. I'm interested in social media and where that is going to take us in the future. More recently I have started developing my own websites including an entrepreneurial interviews blog at HatchThat.com , a CD cover search engine at CoverHunt.com , and the latest which hasn't been launched yet at Yabble.com.au . • What is the name of

What is the average monthly revenue of an early-stage startup? That's one question a lot of entrepreneurs ask about early-stage startups in a given market segment, especially while investigating the feasibility of a startup business. Early-stage startups generally face an uphill walk when it comes to solidifying their business model. For that purpose, we have launched the Startups Business Model Survey 2008 -- an open survey for all early-stage startups to participate in, and eventually learn more about the functional business models of other startups in a similar market segment catering to a similar audience. This global survey presents an open comparative analysis of the business model of early-stage (ideally up to 12 months old) startups. If you represent an Internet startup, then please take a moment to share some information regarding your own startup's business model, keeping your identity anonymous if you want. We hope that this survey-based analysis will help early-stag

Today we are showcasing another venture from Sydney, Australia, RAYV Founded by Anil Sabharwal, RAYV - a local business directory with recommendations , targeted towards Sydney customers, allows consumers to find, review, and talk about local businesses. It's a cross between a web-based social community an online business directory and a recommendation engine. We explored a bit further about RAYV from one of the founders - Anil Sabharwal. This is what he has to say in his interview with us: • Please tell us about yourself, your background and interests? I’ve always had a passion for technology. It started with hardware – computers, video game consoles, mobile phones – but as of late my real interest has been the digital space. There is so much information in the world today but it’s all useless if it can’t be filtered and delive red in a meaningful manner. To me, the Internet represents both our greatest opportunity and our biggest challenge – and this is what drives me day an

In our ongoing series of interviews where we are interviewing CEOs, Media Personalities, Philanthropists and VCs, today we bring our interview with Paul Budde, Managing Director of Paul Budde Communication (trading as BuddeComm). Budde Comm is a leading global independent telecommunications research and consultancy company, which includes 45 national and international researchers in 15 countries, and operates from Bucketty, in the Lower Hunter Valley, Australia. Paul is frequently interviewed on radio and television by current affairs and news programs, as well as by the leading national and international financial and business press. He is quoted in company prospectuses and his knowledge of the industry is a valuable resource at the governmental level. He specialises in the strategic planning of converging markets and industries with services such as triple-play business models, video media, nextgen networks and IP, digital media, smart grids and value-added networks. Let us explore

Today we showcase a story of a man who is a migrant, an entrepreneur and now a successful VC, helping a lot of Australian businesses to realise their dreams. Rick Anstey who is based in Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia is running a VC portfolio, under iQFunds umbrella. Let us explore a bit further how Rick is helping others and what he thinks about innovation coming out of Australia. This is what Rick has to say in his interview with me. • Please tell us about yourself, your background and interests? Rick Anstey- Started my career in I.T. (data processing at that time) in 1972, with a UK insurance company, doing the normal in-house training from operator, programmer and systems analyst. Got married in 1973 and immigrated to Australia in 1976 – difficult to get in – had to pay our own way and applied 3 times before success. Arrived in Sydney in 1976 with no money one child and my wife. Worked with TNT and then with Comalco before starting my first company in 1983. Naturalised Austr