Today VC firms have mostly returned to genuine technology ventures, and notably to companies developing software applications for corporate customers.
In January, AT&T announced an initiative to open its network to "applications service providers" -- companies that remotely manage software applications for corporate customers.
But the chief executive, Ben Verwaayen, is betting that services like customized applications for corporate clients and advising companies on their networks can generate profit growth.
But despite their popularity, voice portals had a hard time attracting enough sponsors to make a profit even before the dotcom crash.Today, TellMe builds voice applications for corporate clients, charging firms for every minute the application is used.
Executives close to the company said yesterday that the company's data unit, led by Kathleen B. Earley, intends to announce as soon as tomorrow that it will expand its operation that manages applications for corporate customers on AT&T's network.
Trying to tap into a new sector, the AT&T Corporation plans to announce today that it will invest $250 million in the next three years to expand its presence in the developing business of managing software applications for corporate customers.
[C4.] I.B.M.-Qwest Deal on Data Centers In a move to expand its ability to manage Web sites and software applications for corporate customers, I.B.M. intends to announce today that it has struck a multibillion-dollar deal with Qwest Communications International.
For instance, Accel Partners, a big Silicon Valley VC firm, is betting on Jboss, which creates computer applications for corporate clients using Linux, the main open-source software.That the code is free might make it seem difficult to see how any start-up company could make money from it.
It's hardly alone though, with Apple facing militant criticism from Chinese netizens over its iPhone presentation and Facebook finding its application for a corporate entity on the mainland being returned and rejected.
