homeWelcome, sign in or click here to subscribe.login
     


 

 

Real Estate


print  email to a friend  reprints add to mydjc  

June 22, 2000

Ten Fast Facts

Fast Facts logo

Bidpath.com

WHO: A privately held Internet infrastructure company founded last year by Scott Laster.

WHAT: Provides hardware and software to help auctioneers conduct business on the Web.

WHERE: Bellevue.


Fast Fact #1: Auctions are a $200 billion industry.

Comment: When Scott Laster discovered that number in a research report, "I was floored," he recalls. When he learned how little the industry uses the Internet, he was inspired. "I jumped in with both feet," he says of his decision to form Bidpath.com.

Fast Fact #2: Laster calls Bidpath an "insect of the Internet."

Comment: Put down your fly swatter. Laster's point is that infrastructure companies like Bidpath will thrive no matter how the Internet evolves. "You know how they always say insects will survive nuclear war?" asks Laster. "We are those robust little creatures that will survive."

Fast Fact #3: Laster also calls Bidpath "a bridge."

Comment: At one end are "brick-and-mortar" auctioneers -- folks who help clients such as businesses and government agencies sell their surplus material, equipment and property. At the other are online auction sites. In between are the time and technology barriers to manually gathering auction information and putting it online. ["Auctioneers] don't have a stake in the new economy," says Laster. "That's why these companies are so freaked out."

Fast Fact #4: Bidpath's "content harvester" automates the collection of auction inventory.

Comment: PICS -- short for Portable Inventory Control System -- is the company's core technology. Part digital camera and part laptop computer, it enables appraisers to photograph, categorize and describe auction items -- which can number in the thousands. Laster says the patent-pending device is being produced in partnership with a well-known maker of digital cameras; however, he declined to disclose that company's identity.

Fast Fact #5: Information from PICS is uploaded to Bidpath's servers.

Comment: Bidpath then distributes the data to Internet auction sites that specialize in each of the various categories. Laster says auctioneers typically seek bidders from the local or regional market. However, by spreading the word via the Web, Bidpath reaches a wider audience and boosts the odds that auction items will fetch a fair-market bid. Laster says Bidpath won't necessarily replace traditional auctions, but it can help sell some items early and draw more bidders to the traditional sale.

Fast Fact #6: Auction merchandise also can be displayed and sold on the auctioneer's own Web site.

Comment: Bidpath's servers continue to host the data, but a link between the two allows easy access. Plus Bidpath manages any transactions. "We do all the heavy lifting," says Laster.

Fast Fact #7: Bidpath eventually will offer opportunities for online bidders and live bidders to go head-to-head in real time.

Comment: In fact, a Bidpath rival already offers that feature. However, Laster says it was more important for his company to focus on making it easy for auctioneers to put auction items on line. "They needed a platform first," he says. "You have to walk before you can run."

Fast Fact #8: There are 11,000 traditional auction companies in the U.S.

Comment: Laster doesn't expect the Internet to drive them under since their ability to sort and appraise items will remain as valuable as ever. However, their clients are pressuring them to use the Web to sweeten the bidding. Recently, a large city seeking an auctioneer mandated Internet use in its request for proposals. "That sent shock waves through the industry," says Laster.

Fast Fact #9: Bidpath is backed by a major venture capital firm.

Comment: Timberline Venture Capital is the Northwest affiliate of Draper Fisher Jurvetson, which Laster says is one of the largest venture capital funds in the world. Bidpath's road to profitability involves requiring auctioneers to list a minimum number of items and then charging them a listing fee plus a transaction fee on all items sold.

Fast Fact #10: Laster has founded four successful startups.

Comments: The last was Avid Inc., a logistical management company where he was CEO before resigning to found Bidnow.com. So far, Bidpath's clients are all beta customers. The company plans a formal launch sometime before the National Auctioneers Association Convention in July.



Previous columns:



Email or user name:
Password:
 
Forgot password? Click here.