Remember back in 1998 when all we have to do is add an “e” or a “.com” behind any business model to raise a few million dollar in venture capital? Pets.com, fork.com, drugs.com, grocery.com, etoys.com, eDiamonds, etc etc . . . well, 7 years later with almost all things already “e-enabled”, VC’s are being inundated with the same old business plans again with the only difference being the appending of “@ the edge”. (kinda like adding “in bed” to all the fortune cookie inserts)

So now we get reviews @ the edge, classified @ the edge, e-tail @ the edge (pet @ the edge? groceries @ the edge?), payment @ the edge, auctions @ the edge, video distribution @ the edge , VOIP @ the edge . . . ok you get the point. . .

Don’t get me wrong, the .com trend was/is certainly a game changing event (Amazon, eBay) for many industry as well as creating many incredibly profitable small businesses (yes! selling pet supplies does work online ). “@ the edge” has just as much merit because the web is getting flatter (ie the tail is getting longer) and the walled gardened models has serious structural flaws. But as is everything, true innovation doesn’t come from following a macro-trend.

Everyone is already wise to the structural shift to the edge taking place. For every “@ the edge” idea, there are 30 teams, 10 business plans, and 5 VC/angel financed startups looking to enter the space. If your only competitive advantage is speed of execution, you are kinda screwed . . .