Famous blogger Robert Scoble will be leaving his current job at PodTech in mid January, he says. He will likely be joining Fast Company to start Fast Company TV.
Scoble was with PodTech for just a year and a half. He was previously at Microsoft and acted as their unofficial spokesperson.
Scoble isn’t saying if he’ll continue to use the same format as his current show, ScobleShow, where he interviews entrepreneurs daily. Another big question is whether his sponsor, Seagate, will follow him to Fast Company. It’s rumored Seagate is paying a massive fee to sponsor the show.
This is another blow for PodTech, which has already lost its founding CEO and is nearly out of money. The company has run through $7.5 million in funding. They are rumored to be closing on another million or so in bridge financing. But they’re very, very close to the deadpool.
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Podtech - Another one bites the dust
How to cloning Mission Impossible 3?
valleywag.com/tech/robert-scoble/is-podtech-firing-its-most-important-employee-288511.php
Scoble denied it.
Scoble also denied it when they couldn’t get series B funding and they fired their reporters.
http://scobleizer.com/2007/07/.....t-podtech/
“Just for the record, I’m 100% committed to PodTech and the moves that John Furrier and the executive team is making and won’t reevaluate my career until Spring of 2008.”
Scoble is a LIAR. But he’s a rich liar with good connections so he’s still ok in my book, though I would never officially say so.
Interesting how having a popular blog on Technorati will open doors for a Blogger.
He will probably be seen as an individual commodity for getting PR and not affected by the ups and downs of any particular company he is working for at that time
I wonder who scoble would vote for, between Obama or Bloomberg? Me, I’d vote Bloomberg.
“I wonder who scoble would vote for, between Obama or Bloomberg?”
I bet Robert would interview a candidate, tell them he’s voting for them in the interview, then vote for somebody else or not vote! Probability rating HIGH.
@Chris:
“…won’t reevaluate my career until Spring of 2008.”
vs.
“Scoble is a LIAR”
is kind of a contradiction, don’t you think?
Actually, I take that comment back. I’m in “everybody told you so” mode, and I went too far.
No comment.
“is kind of a contradiction, don’t you think?”
No, it’s December of 2007 right now. Check your calendar.
A couple of months back, I came across a get together on Yahoo Events by podtech. The address listed was somewhere on sandhill road. A couple of us went out there but there was no one there. The people in that building where the address was hadn’t even heard of podtech. Blah! Was it a hoax? Were they _that_ disorganized? I emailed and called whatever contact info I could find about podtech - didn’t hear anything back. Bad!
This post just just showed up on the main screen at the “Television Reborn” session at LeWeb3, Paris.
I will be doing something else on January 15th, but still am not finalized on what that is. I will let everyone know on January 15th what I do.
I expected the move away from PodTech for the beginning of 2008 when he said that he wouldn’t reevaluate his career until Spring of 2008 - this sounded a lot like he just wanted for his contract duties to be fulfilled…
For PodTech, this is a big problem, as his show was the only useful thing. They should have stayed with what they were in the beginning: A podcast-creator for corporations. There’s money to be made in this market, with every single show.
I hope that if he joins Fast Company (which, considering his regular positive comments about Fast Company, is quite likely), he’ll change the ScobleShow-format to something with less output, but more quality. (2 shows a week, but professionally done in a studio, with not more than 30 minutes for the interview, plus an demo if applicable)
“i’m not sure yet what I’m going to be doing…there’s no deal yet”
Live from LeWeb where Mr Scoble is currently on stage
in Live from leweb3 : robert say the deal is not closed 2 options on the table (favorite one is fastcompany).
so not yet at the fastcompany
Proof, if needed (see URL above for image) - citizen journalism baby - here we come!
This deadpool notion is a pretty interesting, and brutal, “virtual reality”.. would wonder if this TC deadpool would one day overflow sometimes down the road, as there would be so many startups that won’t make it before the bubblelet bursts…
Robert says on stage here at LeWeb3 in Paris that Fast Company is one of two options he’s considering. But too me it sounded like he’s on his way to Fast Company.
Scoble seems like a nice guy, but the interviews and any of the video postings are boring as hell. If it goes to Fast Company, then hopefully someone there will give it some good direction/writing.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dead_pool
I wonder where the 7.5M went, then I remember stuff like this:
Scoble wanted to buy several $800 drobos because he was afraid his Mac drives would burn out storing video
http://scobleizer.com/2007/06/.....our-stuff/
He didn’t want to use NFS or mount a drive on their office ubuntu machine.
It seems like they always took the most expensive solution to any problem they had. Most of the stuff that costs valley company millions we do here for free. I’ll continue that when I’m in SF and we have a VC budget thanks to people we’re talking to now. You can be cheapskate on any budget. After about 1.5 years they should still have about 6 million of that 7.5. coach seats, ect…. SHOULD have. shakes head.
Seems like this might be the last straw for podtech.
Best of luck Robert, let us know what you are doing next when you can.
I dunno - i quite like the relaxed format of his videos just now.
I can see why some more formal sessions may be useful but i hope he continues to do some of the less formal videos.
=~ s/company/companies/;
As a former editor for Fast Company, all I can say is — _man_, I wish I had Scoble on the team while I was there. If it happens, could be exciting for all involved: Scoble, FC, and its readers. Neat stuff.
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dead_pool
Thanks.. seems a boring game..
Dude Chris .R:
Why are you so upset about this? Have you invested in Podtech, by any chance? Just curious.
@Krish,
Everybody has been saying this was going to happen for a year now and Robert kept denying it putting up a brave face. It’s like the Iraqi minister of information when he was saying everything was fine the day before they invaded Bagdad. It was like when Robert was saying Oragami was going to take over our lives, kick us in the ass, then shove the crap ridden shoe down our throats. Or the time he did a video on his “Google theory”.
The shoe finally dropped for long time observers.
awww Scoble! Best of luck to wherever you go
Scoble, is all crap. What is wrong with folks these days. Get a job - like in the old days. Us white folks have become too lazy and are sitting on our asses.
We are creating lawyers - they contribute nothing to the economy but elevate the level of mistrust in society.
smart move
I had the good Fortune of watching Scoble’s BUG Labs Podcast - very interesting + Scoble can think on his Feet! I had to laff reading that while away in London + Paris his Blogging would be “Light”!! The Dude is a Blogging Machine! + a Damn Good Read!
I remember Fast Company + Red Herring back in the good old DotCom BOOM daze when the Magazines were as Thick as the Vogue Wedding Style Issue!
well this days podtech sucks big time I think it is time they entered the deadpool when they started out I had high expectations from them but i still think this show rocks http://www.pbs.org/cringely/nerdtv/
I have no idea why there is such a big delay in season 2
he is just going to destroy another company!
Great post #31.
I think it is time for all you commenters to wake up and read between the lines. Hype only works for a short time (1-5 years max). In the end truth prevails. First we heard about Michael Arrington Edgeio ($5m loss), now Robert Scoble ($7.5 loss)
Do you commenters learn anything yet? These guys are two of the most popular bloggers on the Internet but the problem is always with the business model and the bottom line. The bottom line for any business is to provide values for its shareholder, generate profit and create something that add values to the society whether directly or indirectly. They both failed to do deliver with Edgeio and PodTech.
When Robert Scoble & Michael Arrington talk, the blogosphere listen to them now they cannot even translate their hypes into profitable business. In as much technology is good, we cannot just keep creating crappy web 2.0 with no values to anyone with the hope of making $billions some day.
To me, it is like a stock market, pump and dump or “hype and dump manipulation”. For every successful web 2.0 company, there are 8 failures. I hope you can all learn from the failures and not just from the hypes. Get real with yourself, do your own homework, read between the lines rather than follow their hypes. Think first about your business model can add value and generate profit. Anything other this is MUDA - look it up on Wikipedia
Man oh man… another hit for PodTech. That company is destined for failure…
Cheers,
Aidan
http://www.MappingTheWeb.com
@Kikimodo / 36, you speak the truth. An A-lister can put lipstick on a pig, but it’s still a pig.
On the other hand, the A-listers will be around to try to sell us more pigs in a poke, some future day …
Hi Guys,
i am not joining Fast Company! actually, i accepted a position at Fat-Camp to start Fat-Camp TV.
Best,
©2007 Robert Scoble
P.S: also, in my spare time i will be teaching gifted children at Mensa.
I wonder who scoble would vote for, between Obama or Bloomberg? Me, I’d vote Bloomberg.
Wow, podtech is toast! Fast Company TV has a nice ring to it, with the weight of the magazine, this could really take off.
“Hi Guys,
i am not joining Fast Company! actually, i accepted a position at Fat-Camp to start Fat-Camp TV.”
While I don’t think you should impersonate him, I do think this is interesting.
http://scobleizer.com/2007/02/.....ll-me-fat/
static.flickr.com/34/101850677_c347caa62d.jpg
In another post about social media in summer 2007 he also said he was going to the gym.
comedycentral.com/press/images/southpark/Cartman1.jpg
I’m not going to say there is a connection here, but….
“He says?” What’s the source or context? Said to whom, when, where?
ValleyWag, have you hijacked Arrington’s account?
I don’t follow Scoble that much but I have to say I’ve never been impressed by him. He just seems to spat buzz words and name drop, nothing more.
This is the guy who complained that the Amazon Kindle doesn’t have social networking…please.
“ValleyWag, have you hijacked Arrington’s account?”
They’re real life friends I think. They both have extensive flickr photo sets of each other.
It blows me away that they went through $7.5million so fast. What the hell was it spent on? This is truly sad…
and who cares?
I think it’s time for startup entrepreneurs to tell their own stories rather than letting hype machines speak for you. Techcrunch is great site but I think we all need to learn how to separate hypes from technology trends. Don’t waste your time and money on startup if you have no solid business model.
You can start with this book from Wharton business school:
http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.....cleid=1023
Or share your startup story at: http://www.startupNews.org
Sounds like a smart move to me.
As Homer Simpson would say: “I have NO idea who that is”. But from the sounds of it, he seems like the Nick Saban or any college football coach of the blogging world.
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/.....id=2718488