@JohnDoe, Youtube startup capital = 1million USD which was raised to get the project going. Not sure about the others. Finance is the key, are you aware of how many patents Facebook "kids"hold? Check it out. Exactly my point, if we can build kenyan high tech companies and hold patents, the grand idea of the Tech Park and economic returns to ke will be large. The US/EU market is very different, there any successful product/solution is used by millions. In Africa, we are seriously handicapped, what is the internet penetration just in Kenya for one to successfully pull off a social media project? Nothing comparatively, the project will die within the first year.

On Thu, Jun 2, 2011 at 3:27 PM, John Doe <fivepings@gmail.com> wrote:

My point is, he didn't wait to form an organisation charged with coding a new OS,or a venture capitalist or regulation. He just started where he was with what he had...the rest as they say is history.

Passion and commerce are actually tied together for most succesful internet businesses....

Facebook; just a bunch of campus kids sharing social info (their passion)

Youtube; just a bunch of campus kids sharing videos (their passion)

Linux; Just a coder trying to get a more stable OS for his own purposes (gaming?).

These guys cared enough about something to try and fix it. The commerce aspect came later and they mostly had to hire the finance types to help them monetise something they were already doing.....