It’s a small world after all
April 20, 2007 – 11:39 pmOne thing about working in online startups is to remember never burn bridges because you never who or when you will bump into someone from your past. It’s a small world after all.
I had a few such experiences this past week at the Topix party around Web 2.0 Expo (BTW - thumps up to Topix - great venue and guest list).
First I ran into Alison Macondary former GM of Wired News. Well a few years ago the company I was almost acquired Lycos including Wired News. It was fun to trade a few war stories about that deal which resulted in one Daum acquiring Lycos (ed. note - one of the major - huh? as in what are they thinking deals of the last couple of years).
Then I ran into Kurt Buechler currently SVP of Sales and BD for Aggregate Knowledge (as Loomia calls it - AK - they are a Loomia competitor). Kurt once upon a time was the head of BD for Windows Media back when I was at Loudeye. Kurt was a major partner of the company so I knew Kurt quite well as we were jointly trying to expand the digital music landscape.
Later Kurt “introduced” me to the CEO of AK - Paul Martino. Paul and I immediately recognized each other and then realized we had done a deal together back when he was at InterTrust many moons ago while I was at Loudeye. Needless to say Kurt, Paul and I wasted no time in trading all war stories. Even as competitors now, it is nice to see old faces in new places.
One Response to “It’s a small world after all”
Todd is an awesome dude. Smart, driven, innovative, and a really nice guy.
I have enjoyed working with him when I was at MS and will enjoy being in the same industry again.
I think that competitors help each other develop and better the segment for partner and consumers…the world becomes a better place as a result.
Kurt
By Kurt Buecheler on Apr 23, 2007