

Is AWS Startup Challenge Unfair to Bootstrappers? - stevepotter
http://blog.takeoffvideo.com/2010/11/22/is-aws-startup-challenge-unfair-to-bootstrappers/

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sparky
I feel for the guy, entrepreneurs are a competitive bunch and losing is never
easy to take, particularly when it can be interpreted as a shot against your
startup's idea. That said, this comes off as nearly unadulterated sour grapes.
Suggesting a second category with a smaller prize for bootstrapped or
otherwise small startups is a fine idea. Taking it to the next level and
saying that Amazon is being unfair by not doing so is a bit much.

Amazon is not a charity; they are indeed obligated to run any competitions in
a way that maximizes AMZN shareholder value. This means spotlighting and
helping out the startups that both use their services and have a high
likelihood of success in the marketplace. It isn't surprising that many of the
startups that have been validated by Amazon (by being selected for the semi-
finals) have also been validated by venture capitalists. Should Amazon also
provide laptops to all interested parties, so as not to exclude people without
them?

It looks like several others have echoed the OP's sentiments on the Amazon
announcement page, so maybe I'm off-base here. I just feel like everyone is
better off not getting bent out of shape about winning contests; they should
be seen as the lottery -- nice if you win them, no-op if you don't.

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chc
It seems to me that the challenge is agnostic to your source of funding, and
the actual complaint here is that the business world is not fair to
bootstrappers.

Similarly, I can't compete in the NFL, but I don't accuse them of being unfair
to small, scrawny dudes — I'm just not built to compete there, and I'm
unwilling to accept the trade-offs in my life that would be necessary to have
a chance.

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sudonim
My guess is: Bootstrappers are not the target audience, VC funded startups
are.

So, yes it's unfair to bootstrappers, but that's life.

How a challenge gets crafted has a significant impact on it's outcome, and
Amazon and the backers of the challenge probably have goals to identify
companies that don't quite match your profile.

It would be awesome if they had a prize tailored towards companies like yours,
but I don't think they are under any obligation to do so, and if it doesn't
directly or indirectly meet their business goals, I wouldn't advise them to.

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wrath
My company (gazaro.com) got accepted to the AWS Startup Challenge last year,
and although we did have a small amount of funding (non-VC), we were
essentially running a bootstrapped company at the time. We didn't win the
"challenge". We were probably at a disadvantage from the start because we were
against VC funded companies, but I think we did a very good job and I was
generally happy with how the event went. Our only gripe with the event was the
lack of media.

I'm unsure if Amazon changed their qualification threshold, but we certainly
didn't have and VC funding when we participated in the contest last year.

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allenp
"I couldn't help but wonder if the whole thing is an elitist outlet for VCs to
gain publicity for their latest investments."

I would guess the top competitors in this competition are more interested in
the free advertising/marketing opportunities than the cash/credit prizes. The
prize isn't the money, it is Amazon's endorsement.

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LabSlice
My business (LabSlice) was just announced as a semi-finalist. I didn't even
realize it was publicly announced until I clicked this link in the poster's
blog: [http://aws.typepad.com/aws/2010/11/aws-start-up-
challenge-20...](http://aws.typepad.com/aws/2010/11/aws-start-up-
challenge-2010-finalists.html).

I am just a data point, but it's worth mentioning that LabSlice has no VC
funding at all, and is truly a startup (ie. the website has only been online
for a month or so). So on the one hand I can attest to some success, even
without serious VC backing. On the other hand I will admit to surprise that
the AWS competition classifies a startup as a business with less than $10M in
revenues or $10M VC funding. Sure, they may technically be a startup, but they
are in a much different league to the guy in the basement.

In some ways it would be pragmatic to have a VC funded tier and a non-VC
funded tier. That's the only way to differentiate businesses to give a better
chance to the little guy. But in reality this is a competition that Amazon
funded out of their pocket and they can call whatever rules they see fit.

~~~
kirvyteo
Wow...I never knew about the part "as a business with less than $10M in
revenues or $10M VC funding". Now it sounds like the contest is only a PR
exercise. Not that it is surprising though.

~~~
LabSlice
"... that have not generated more than $10 million USD (approximately
7,584,950 EUR) in gross annual revenues and no more than $10 million USD
(approximately 7,584,950 EUR) in outside funding."

I didn't want my own words to be the only source for this claim, so above is a
cut'n'paste from the rulebook.

But still, LabSlice (and I believe one or two others) aren't near these
figures and did get some sort of nomination.

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stevepotter
I'm not bitter. I never expected to win. I am surprised Amazon even puts on a
contest with such lavish prizes.

AWS is a low cost way to start an app. They make bootstrapping possible.
Therefore, I feel they are doing themselves a disservice by not representing
these companies.

I merely wanted suggest a way to include small-timers like myself in this
contest. And I did it by being honest about how I felt at the time. Would
anyone have preferred otherwise?

BTW, since then I've been in touch with a great guy from AWS who thought my
points were valid. Very cool and unnecessary of him. Maybe next year we'll see
a "frugal" category. And maybe by then I'll have received funding and not be
eligible :)

Anyway thanks everyone who weighed in. I urge all of you to check us out at
www.takeoffvideo.com. You can reach me directly at stephenp@.

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gojomo
The world does not owe you a 'best effort' ribbon.

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DanielBMarkham
Related startup story.

I just spent two days in a long email conversation with Amazon.

I signed up for AWS 4 days before they started their freebie special, so once
I realized this, I begged and pleaded with them to help my startup by
grandfathering me in and letting me take advantage of the promotion.

All I got was form letters and BS.

I could have used another Amazon account, but I'm not going to cheat. I love
the AWS stack, but as far as I'm concerned the folks at Amazon may be keen on
PR, but they're no friends of startups, neither bootstrapped or otherwise, no
matter how many contests they run. I also feel like the AWS guys are a
completely different bunch than the rest of Amazon, who seem to care about
their customers a lot more. And while I love the stack, I'm not impressed with
the customer service at all. 99% of retailers will grandfather customers into
a promotion if they ordered within a few days of the promotion starting.

Assholes.

There. That bit of venting made me feel better. :)

Hope it had the same effect on the OP.

The point being that sometimes venting and sour grapes serve a useful purpose.

