Stealth Mode = Miss The Boat Mode
by Derek Kerton from the that-train-has-already-sailed dept
"Stealth Mode" is the name of a start-up strategy where the founding team develops their product and business in secret. The tactic is based on the fear that, if their idea were to get out, other companies would copy it, and the originators would face competitors. The use of Stealth Mode has swung in and out of fashion in Silicon Valley over the past decade, but was hottest during the tech bubble at the end of the last century. Back then, .com startups were so hot that investors would salivate over the latest stealthy startup, eager to throw some easy money at it. But whatever the fashion, with few exceptions, I think that running a startup in Stealth mode is short-sighted, arrogant, and counter-productive. Here's why:
- Founders who want to operate in stealth are usually of the opinion that their idea is soooo very unique, that to share it would be to divulge the crown jewels. There are two reasons that is naive:
- Your idea is almost certainly not unique. Someone else has had the same idea, and if it's any good, someone else is working on developing it.
- You are going to have to share your idea at some point in order to sell it, so your secrecy is short-lived at best.
Full article here http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20100819/14443610692.shtml
