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EyeJot - Video Messaging
By Rob | March 27, 2007
EyeJot is a Seattle based startup that provides an online video messaging platform. The appeal of Eyejot to users is that no software downloads are needed. The founders pitch it as video email, only better.
EyeJot allows you to upload your video, post it to a widget on your blog, or simply send it to other people as a message. The business model is the popular Freemium play. A free account gets you messages up to 60 seconds, and a $30 a year plan gets you up to 5 minutes of recording an no ads to deal with.
We don’t have enough information to give them an Outside the Valley score at this time. You can read more about the company here.
March 27th, 2007 at 3:11 pm
I would be interested to hear why they went with that particular business model. This is likely the most competitive space for internet companies and to come out of the gate with a restrictive subscription service seems dangerous. Don’t get me wrong, it’s nice to see an actual business model for a change, I just don’t think people will see past the “60 seconds or pay” limitation.
March 27th, 2007 at 3:29 pm
Adam,
I think it’s a tough call on the business model. The way I evaluate these things is in part by looking at the cost structure of the business. You know that a small percentage of your users will probably pay for your service. If that small percentage can cover your costs, I would be tempted to charge right out of the gate. If not, then you have to look at whether or not there are advantages from network effects. If there are, raise more money and give your stuff away for free until you reach a scale where monetizing a small percentage can give you positive cash flow. If there aren’t network effects, then it will be tough to charge for the service later, because it isn’t any more valuable then. In that case, I would probably target a trial period, like one year free. Just my opinion.
March 27th, 2007 at 7:48 pm
Adam, Rob - thanks for the conversation. And, it’s nice to be on this blog. We’re hoping that a bunch of features we’ve yet to announce will convince people that the small monthly fee is worthwhile. Heck, we think we’ll get some good lift with what we’ve got, but, we’re also aware that these features typically attract single digit conversions. We are, though, already seeing a viral effect with the platform. Users are intrigued at how easy it has been to author and send private video messages and pleased that their recipients don’t even need webcams to view them. However, that’s only one part of our business model. We haven’t talked about the other elements yet, but, basically, they involve white-label opportunities for our platform. My cofounders and I have some prior experience in this space and some real data we can use to model our plans. Rob’s points about covering costs with the premium service are dead-on target. We’ve done a lot of analysis of our costs and think that they can, in fact, be covered that way. I’d be happy to expand on these topics in private conversations. I can be reached through http://eyejot.com/users/davidg
March 27th, 2007 at 10:18 pm
David,
Thanks for your insight. I am glad to hear that your business strategy involves white-label opportunities. When I first read Rob’s post I immediately thought of the applications in this realm that would fit your product. I know VideoEgg has witnessed a lot of success with their strategic commercial relationships (Typepad, Hi5), and I think the same potential for this application exists. Best of luck!