In an issue of Business 2.0 a few months ago about what types of businesses venture capitalists are looking to fund, Roger Lee of Battery Ventures answered that he is willing to provide $6 million to those who will develop an auction site that would facilitate product placements for movies.
Product placements in movies have become a big thing for big companies — e.g. Ray-Ban’s sales tripled with the release of Tommy Lee Jones and Will Smith’s Men in Black; James Bond’s Die Another Day featured products from various companies such as Samsonite luggage, Omega watches, a Phillips heart rate monitor, Bollinger champagne, Heineken beer, Sony security systems, and British Airways.
Well, apparently, someone has already thought of the idea. A startup company called NextMedium has come up with an online exchange for product placement in movies and TV shows. I just don’t know if Battery Ventures actually funded them, though a press release issued by the company in July 2006 said that they have raised a total of $9.5 million from various VCs such as Ascend Venture Group, Globespan Capital Partners, and Bessemer.
One thing is clear though: auctions or online exchanges offer a lot of opportunities for businesses.
eBay has become a giant now, but it is still not a perfect secondary market. Offer your products on eBay and oftentimes the bidding will not even approximate the valuation of your item. The success of your auction depends on the presence of the right buyers at the time you are offering your product.
Like this need for an online exchange for product placements, there will be other specialized needs that can be addressed via the auction format. Maybe not another gigantic marketplace like eBay, but more specialized and more niche auction sites.
If you are thinking of a million-dollar opportunity, think of other specialized needs that an online auction can facilitate.
