See TechCrunch for the details on PayPerPost’s announcement of its $3 million Series A round of financing by Inflexion Partners, Villiage Ventures and Draper Fisher Jurvetson. Michael Arrington and Rob Hof (Silicon Valley Bureau Chief at Business Week) took a few minutes today to talk to Ted Murphy (founder and CEO of PayPerPost) and Josh Stein (a Director at Draper Fisher Jurvetson) about the funding and the controversial nature of PayPerPost’s business. It’s a somewhat heated discussion, but we managed to keep things fairly civilized.
See our previous coverage of the company in our post “PayPerPost.com offers to sell your soul.” The company facilitates a marketplace where advertisers can pay bloggers to write about the company’s product. Disclosure of payment is optional.
Time: 53 Minutes
Size: 24.2 MB
[...] Rob Hof from BusinessWeek and I spoke to founder Ted Murphy and DFJ’s Josh Stein earlier today about the financing and the product in general. The conversation is available as a podcast at TalkCrunch, here. [...]
[...] You can listen to an Interview with the founder Ted Murphy and Draper’s Josh Stein on TalkCrunch podcast. [...]
[...] BusinessWeekのRob Hofと私はファウンダーのTed Murphy、DFJ（Draper Fisher Jurvetson）の Josh Stein と今日早くこの資金調達およびサービス全般に関して話し合った。その模様はTalkCrunchのポッドキャストで配信している。今晩発表されたRobの記事はここに。 [...]
[...] TalkCrunch did a pod cast with the CEO of PayPerPost of Ted Murphy in which there were some heated yet respectful exchanges. Most specifically I really do not like Michael Arrington and his whole holy-are-though position about ethical issues about non-discloser of being paid for posting. I was really surprised that this Podcast seemed to be a forum to discredit PPP and try to justify why it shouldn’t exist. [...]
[...] De hecho dicen tener ingresos mensuales por casi u$s100.000 y hay un buen podcast sobre el tema en TalkCrunch; pero si se venden los votos en Digg ya no se de que sorprenderme; aunque hay tantas formas buenas de hacer las cosas bien que esto es medio deprimente. [...]
[...] Rob Hof de Business Week et Michael Arrington se sont entretenus avec le fondateur Ted Murphy et Josh Stein à propos de cette opération de financement et du produit en général. La conversation est disponible en podcast sur TalkCruch. Le billet de Rob est ici [...]
[...] This is also a great podcast with Ted that is worth listening too. [...]
[...] Today’s Talkcrunch podcast addresses whether or not the concept is ethical. The pay per post concept has been hugely controversial, yet I don’t see a problem with it as long as the choice on what to write about and how to write it rests with me. [...]
Great podcast!
If you liked it, digg it here:
http://www.digg.com/tech_news/Episode_13_PayPerPost_Raises_3_million
PayPerPost: Splog or Blog Post Generator?…
PayPerPost, who recently announced $3 million of first round funding, is a web site that offers bloggers for writing blog posts about a specific product. PayPerPost allows a blog post board which enables marketers and advertisers to request a blog…
[...] I think advertisers can find better uses of their money than to pay a blogger to write a post about them. If you want to advertise on blogs, PLEASE write the post yourself and mark it as a sponsored post or get your logo on a prominent blog by paying for an ad placement. If you want to read more about this subject, Rob Hof of BusinessWeek covers the news here and there is also a podcast here! [...]
This was a very interesting podcast. The debate was well fought out for the most part even though it appeared that both sides failed to capitalize on some of the points that could have been debated and countered.
Hindsight is always a little more clear.
There is a segment of this podcast from about the 50 minute mark to the 52 minute mark approximately that was very enlightening. If you don’t listen to the entire podcast, make sure you don’t miss that segment.
I do write blog articles on occassion for PPP.
I look at it like a non-celebrity endorsement or like a product placement ad, like when an actor in a movie just happens to pull out a Motorola cell phone and use it in a way that the brand is noticeable. Those are usually paid spots, or product was provided etc.
Furthermore, there are many ‘freelance journalists’ that write product reviews for magazines and newspapers and many other news organizations that receive a fee for their service and do not disclose it within the articles.
Are these freelance writers going on the cover of the WSJ with these articles not likely, but they are out there in the mainstream. This just seems like the blog version.
I can understand TalkCrunch’s passion and idealism, I have similar passions but in other areas.
I think this is a great product for those that think they can benefit from it, but I agree with Mike that disclosure is necessary. But then again, I think that the whole blogging comunity hasn’t got a handle on disclosing they have a relationship even if the post or video or podcast is not actually paid for.
JMTC
Molly
[...] Now why didn’t I think of that. [...]
[...] But the greatest surprise came in the form of a TechCrunch blog. TechCrunch - the blog which had criticized PPP in every way possible is now eating up their words. Though their latest blog was neutral, containing podcast interviews with PPP CEO Ted Murphy. Ted Murphy, has said again that PPP is a form of blog advertising, setting out to innovate all concepts about blogging and stuff. TechCrunch says that Ted Murphy confirmed the first few months revenue at $100,000!!! [...]
[...] Doch das Geschäft lohnt sich scheinbar: “Some back of the envelope calculations based on numbers Ted disclosed in the podcast suggest that revenues after the first few months of operations have topped $100,000.” Not bad. Ameisen-Marketing scheint sich also zu lohnen. Vielleicht wandert der Markt ja bald in Länder mit niedrigen Löhnen und hoher Internetdurchdringung. [...]
[...] PayPerPost, which does blog advertising, just announced that is received $3 million of outside capital funding. That has renewed the talk about the controversy about is paying for a post an ethical thing to do. TalkCrunch did a full phone interview about this that you can listen to on the web. [...]
[...] I read (somewhere…) that PPP had raised some $3m in Series A funding from a group of VCs and that there was a TalkCrunch interview on the subject. So I had a listen and thought about it some more. [...]
I’m trying to download the show but it’s only getting a 125kb, 15 second long audio clip of the beginning of the show
You should excerpt and highlight minute 28 and minute 29.
Mike, that was kick ass.
[...] I just finished listening to TalkCrunch’s Episode 13: PayPerPost Raises $3 million podcast and actually have really come around about paying bloggers to write about companies. [...]
Destruction of the purity of bloggers, non-professional journalists - I think that already happened way before PPP came to the plate. The market will sort itself out. The little bloggers who make very little money blogging and who disclose or not are going to eventually go with the flow of the market. This is a great Podcast! I work with PayPerPost and believe they will succeed! It is true that they are young, but as was said, this is working whether it is liked or not.
[...] There is a podcast on the subject as well. [...]
[...] I just finished listening to the podcast on TalkCrunch (mp3 download) where Michael Arrington interviewed the founder and CEO of PayPerPost, Ted Murphy, Josh Stein a Director at Draper Fisher Jurvetson and Rob Hof Silicon Valley Bureau Chief at Business Week. It was one of the best podcasts I had heard so far. [...]
[...] Rob Hof from BusinessWeek and I spoke to founder Ted Murphy and DFJ’s Josh Stein earlier today about the financing and the product in general. The conversation is available as a podcast at TalkCrunch. Rob’s post on the news tonight is here. [...]
[...] On the other side of the coin, my respect for Mike Arrington continues to grow. He pulls no punches in his recent podcast interview with PayPerPost and their silver-tongued VC lawyer, who does most of the talking. Mike at least understands that his reputation is worth a bit more than $20, or even $250. [...]
I thought that PPP got bushwacked. Comparing them to “statutory rape”? Common. Off the high horse.
I advertise in traditonal media all the time and paid placement is part of the market. Ever hear of tha ‘advertorial’? It’s a real term where real magazines take money for real articles.
[...] If you want to know my opinion on PPP, see our previous posts and listen to our interview with the founder after their financing. PayPerPost Sphere It [...]
[...] PPPについて私の意見を知りたければ、われわれの以前の記事を読んで、資金調達した直後のファウンダーとのインタビューを聞いてほしい。 [...]
[...] I’m not going to go into the whole payperpost argument again. Not after seeing a naked guy in bed trash me on YouTube. If you want to know my opinion on PPP, see our previous posts and listen to our interview with the founder after their financing. [...]
[...] I’m not going to go into the whole payperpost argument again. Not after seeing a naked guy in bed trash me on YouTube. If you want to know my opinion on PPP, see our previous posts and listen to our interview with the founder after their financing. [...]
Please keep the full sound file up on the site for your 13th show.
[...] Our previous posts on PayPerPost are here, and a podcast interview with the founder and one of his venture capitalists is here. Also see our coverage of competitor ReviewMe. [...]
[...] Our previous posts on PayPerPost are here, and a podcast interview with the founder and one of his venture capitalists is here. Also see our coverage of competitor ReviewMe. [...]
[...] われわれのPayPerPostについての過去記事はここに。 ファウンダーとベンチャーキャピタリストの1人に対するインタビューのポッドキャストはここ、またPayPerPostのライバル、ReviewMeについての記事も参照。 [...]
[...] Our previous posts on PayPerPost are here, and a podcast interview with the founder and one of his venture capitalists is here. Also see our coverage of competitor ReviewMe. [...]
There is no question that PayPerPost’s business current practices are unethical and corupting.
But, in the end, market forces will dictate the business practices that PayPerPost will be forced to follow. And that is the most interesting aspect of PayPerPost. Wil the invisible hand of the market impose mandatory disclosure on recipients of payments for postings or will market forces allow PayPerPal’s smelly current business practices to persist and perhaps flourish? Time will tell. PayPerPost is an experiment that tests will make evident ethical constraints, if any exist, imposed by the webosphere.
Like Michael Arrington, I hope that PayPerPost is forced to require disclosure. I have my fingers crossed.