Ask HN: Re-inventing an acquired & closed Startup, Need Advice
3 comments
two questions you need to ask yourself:
1. did google kill the project for a lack of potential or did it just not fit into their larger picture?
2. are you bringing something to life (i.e. killer feature) that the other project didn't have?
just so you know sometimes a project can be too ahead of its time. sometimes someone can do a very similar a few years later and have a real hit: a good example would be that founder of zynga first did a social networking site like facebook (tribe.net) which failed: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Pincus#Career
1. did google kill the project for a lack of potential or did it just not fit into their larger picture?
2. are you bringing something to life (i.e. killer feature) that the other project didn't have?
just so you know sometimes a project can be too ahead of its time. sometimes someone can do a very similar a few years later and have a real hit: a good example would be that founder of zynga first did a social networking site like facebook (tribe.net) which failed: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Pincus#Career
We know that the market for the product is their as the startup has been acquired less than 6 months back, there are no popular replacements. And this has created a noticeable void.
i'm seeing this 3 days later, but it sounds like you have a clear path. although keep in mind that other people trying to do the same thing is a form of validation of concept on the flip side. good luck!
1. Google said that the tech would be used in future versions of chrome.
But I think that is not the case, since this product was a substitute for 'search' so they bought & shut it down.
2. Yes our execution is different and we do have a set of features which can be potential winners, but were not part of the product Google bought.
But I think that is not the case, since this product was a substitute for 'search' so they bought & shut it down.
2. Yes our execution is different and we do have a set of features which can be potential winners, but were not part of the product Google bought.
An answer from a guy '
Matthew Kane' at Quora - http://www.quora.com/Startups/Copying-an-acquired-closed-Sta...
"My advice would be to reach out to the team who had the startup which was acquired and get their feedback. They will be able to tell you if what you are doing is worth pursuing, if there is still a need in the market, if there are any legal/IP issues etc. I wouldn't waste anymore time on the project until you have spoken to them. They should be more than happy to help especially considering they already have exited their investment and are locked up at Google"
"My advice would be to reach out to the team who had the startup which was acquired and get their feedback. They will be able to tell you if what you are doing is worth pursuing, if there is still a need in the market, if there are any legal/IP issues etc. I wouldn't waste anymore time on the project until you have spoken to them. They should be more than happy to help especially considering they already have exited their investment and are locked up at Google"
Me & my co-founder are not co located, and are working. This weekend I am travelling to meet him and decide the future course. Thought of getting some advice from HN community first. Please advice if you would continue with development, or start looking for another problem to be solved(Idea).