We’re live blogging each session, adding to the summary of each company direct from the floor of TechCrunch 40. Click Refresh to view.

FlowPlay

FlowPlay is a virtual world community built around browser-based casual games. Users play casual games as their own created anime-like avatar, earning virtual goods for their character including clothing, refrigerators and other virtual store items. The site wants to provide the option to play casual games or interact with people in the virtual world (or both).

Animation virtual world product, anime style 2.5D visuals

strong privacy features to protect the kiddies

similar to Hobbo Hotel, Cyworld, Club Penguin, but with casual games emphasis.

Pitched a girls…well it appears to be, you can win dresses and stuff.

Unfortunately the time was used to show a demo video, not the best use of their time on stage. Will appeal to kids.

Metaplace

Areae’s Metaplace platform aims to revolutionize the virtual worlds space with a platform that will provide an open, easy-to-use interface which will allow users to create virtual worlds that can run anywhere. Metaplace-created virtual worlds will allow user to play games, socialize, create content and conduct commerce. Metaplace-created virtual worlds can be embedded into external sites, including Facebook, MySpace or a blog. Virtual worlds in the Metaplace network can be easily linked together.

Virtual world product, market still growing.

Virtual worlds are like AOL in 94, walled gardens etc, not a good thing according to them.

Has Facebook, MySpace widget, blog widgets, 30k embed.

Generic virtual world platform, can have Sim’s style games, shooters, even an Amazon store front.

Virtual world can also import XML: content, services etc can be imported.

Users can set up their own world from scratch, each world communicates with each other.

“virtual worlds for everyone”

Woome

WooMe brings speed dating online and extends it to let users meet new people live in speed sessions that are “fast, fun and free.” WooMe doesn’t require long forms or lengthy profile descriptions, users simply find a session that interests them and meet five people in five minutes. Users can also create their own session based on their interests and can invite people they want to get a know or friends.

Speed dating product.

Good presentation, talk to people quickly via webcam, both parties must agree to hookup

Zivity

Zivity offers a social networking platform focused on “sexy models and beautiful photography.” With a $10 subscription, members receive five votes that they can cast for models and photography they find appealing, with 80c out of every $1 vote cast being distributed to the model and photographer. There is no limit on the amount of money that a photographer or model can make; as long as a photo remains popular, models and photographers will share in ongoing royalties whilst retaining full ownership of the pictures.

Lots of warnings prior to this demo about it including porn…so far all we have is clothed model…false advertising perhaps?

User gen content makers aren’t making money, Zivity wants to change this…well at least for “sexy pics.”

Demo has PG rating…seriously, complete with the PG on the screen.

Ahhh…breasts. PG obviously different in the US to Australia

Kaltura

Kaltura is a collaborative Media startup that allows groups of users to do with video, audio, and animation what wiki platforms enable them to do with text. Think of it as YouTube meets Wikipedia. See our full post here.

Expert Panel: Caterina Fake likes Woome, Sarah Lacey hates it, says it’s not a stand alone company. Loic like Woome as well + likes Metaplace, says its trying to Second Life Facebook. Brad Garlinghouse likes the peoples choice Kaltura, hates Metaplace, says that the train has already left the platform, we already have Second Life.

Hammer likes Kaltura because he likes video, the creativity aspect is taking off.

Discussion about Zivity, Michael turns prudish and says there was too much nudity in the presentation. Sarah Lacey said the nudity was great and it was her favorite. Hammer thinks 16 year old girls will end up on the service, with a word demonstration..lots of laughter. Zivity says they are bound by laws about id, over 18 Hammer says haven’t they heard of fake id’s, gets a round of applause.  Loic suggests there should be a merged service between Zivity and Woome.

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We’re live blogging each session, adding to the summary of each company direct from the floor of TechCrunch 40. Click Refresh to view.

XRT3D

XTR3D develops software that lets users interact with computers and gaming consoles using 3D human motions. Their real-time software analyzes 3D human motions using only one simple web cam. It will allow users to play games and interact in virtual worlds using natural human motions instead of keyboards, mouses and joysticks. They refer to their technology as a “3D Human Machine Interface.”

BroadClip

BroadClip’sMediaCatcher for Facebook offers a way to search and listen to DRM-free music that is optimized to deliver music to portable media players such as iPods and cell phones. All users have to do is “clip” streaming music and they can transfer the recording to their portable media player in a legal way similar to other “time-shifting” technologies like TiVo, VCRs and tape recorders.

mEgo

mEgo lets users create personalized avatars that carry their online network aggregation profiles and can be integrated into users’ blogs, social networks, websites, and IM clients. The online profiles display user-picked content like profile details, videos, photos, feeds, and widgets.

Wixi

Wixi is a media focused social network where users interact with each other by privately watching, posting, and sharing content of all media types, including photos, audio, and video. The site offers a unique interface whereby media can be managed in the same way files are organized on a computer desktop, creating a true “drag and drop” and “click and play” experience.

BeFunky

BeFunky provides users with online tools for creating digital online representations of themselves for use on their blogs, websites, and social networks like MySpace. Their online tools Uvatar and Cartoonizer enable users to turn themselves into an avatar, cartoon, digital painting or comic.

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We’re live blogging each session, adding to the summary of each company direct from the floor of TechCrunch 40. Click Refresh to view.

Spottt (Adbrite)

Spottt (Adbrite) helps like-minded sites promote each other for free. Just put a Spottt on your site, blog, or MySpace profile. Every time you show someone else’s ad, they’ll show yours. Spottt was created by AdBrite, with the assistance of Tony Hsieh, co-founder of LinkExchange.

Simple model, 1:1 exchange model. Same as original link exchange program bought by Microsoft.

More useful than original program. Original co-founder of LinkExchange.com on board

Clickable

Clickable provides a service for creating and managing online advertising. Their technology provides campaign management tools and an intuitive interface to view and manage performance and direct spending across all major ad networks. In addition, advertisers are empowered to self-manage their ad buying to yield transformational results.

TC40 anouncements: Ex AOL CEO has join board, adding Adbrite on site, and released in beta.

advertising aggregation tool, slick interface. Manage campaigns on Yahoo, Adwords.

GotStatus

GotStatus is a community-driven systems management and monitoring tool that is aiming to become “Google Analytics for servers.” Users are able to place a snippet of javascript and start managing and monitoring the server side of their web applications in the same way Google Analytics does for their browser side. They will be able to track metrics on items like new accounts per day, database size, and Amazon S3 usage.

Intro is a comparison to Google Analytics, but states that Google only solves half the problem, no coverage of the server.

Another nice interface, provides server stats including email.

Multi-user platfrom, supports customers/ clients. Can customize results with dashboards, widgets.

“User Generated Monitoring”

PubMatic

PubMatic is a meta ad server that sits between online publishers and online ad networks like Google AdSense, Yahoo Publisher Network and Value Click. Their service helps small- and medium-sized publishers manage and maximize their advertising inventory by seamlessly communicating with multiple ad networks to help them find the optimal ad layout and the highest paying ad network. They also provide them with a central dashboard to track all their ad networks and ad configurations.

Pitch: we’re the first company presenting at TC40 that offers revenue opportunities for publishers.

Pubmatic works as the middle man.

Offers optimization tools as well, color choices, sizes.

In alpha testing until today, now in open beta

Sites using the service have seen 70-110% increase in revenue.

Data is pulled from other ad networks.

Also offers dashboard widgets.

Nice idea, I’ll be keen to try it.

ZocDoc

ZocDoc is an online service that lets consumers find, search and book dentist and doctor appointments. Their service is integrated into dentists’ and doctors’ appointment systems so that last minute cancellations can be filled by other patients. ZocDoc also provides consumers with information on specific dentists’ and doctors’ office including what insurance they take.

Intro: there is a problem with easily finding doctors.

Online way to find and book medical practitioners. Site has just gone live now.

Nifty feature: site shows available time slots.

Play acting on stage, guy trips over, role playing using ZocDoc, something different.

Doctor listing include bio details + user ratings…I can feel a law suit coming on in the next 12-18months…but nice to get reviews of doctors from the user view point.

Experts panel and spotty Wifi. grrrr.

Guy likes Spottt…because it’s the only model he understands.

Esther Dyson likes Clickable, heart is with ZocDoc

Crunch Network: CrunchGear drool over the sexiest new gadgets and hardware.

We’re live blogging each session, adding to the summary of each company direct from the floor of TechCrunch 40. Click Refresh to view.

Spottt (Adbrite)

Spottt (Adbrite) helps like-minded sites promote each other for free. Just put a Spottt on your site, blog, or MySpace profile. Every time you show someone else’s ad, they’ll show yours. Spottt was created by AdBrite, with the assistance of Tony Hsieh, co-founder of LinkExchange.

Simple model, 1:1 exchange model. Same as original link exchange program bought by Microsoft.

More useful than original program. Original co-founder of LinkExchange.com on board

Clickable

Clickable provides a service for creating and managing online advertising. Their technology provides campaign management tools and an intuitive interface to view and manage performance and direct spending across all major ad networks. In addition, advertisers are empowered to self-manage their ad buying to yield transformational results.

TC40 anouncements: Ex AOL CEO has join board, adding Adbrite on site, and released in beta.

advertising aggregation tool, slick interface. Manage campaigns on Yahoo, Adwords.

GotStatus

GotStatus is a community-driven systems management and monitoring tool that is aiming to become “Google Analytics for servers.” Users are able to place a snippet of javascript and start managing and monitoring the server side of their web applications in the same way Google Analytics does for their browser side. They will be able to track metrics on items like new accounts per day, database size, and Amazon S3 usage.

Intro is a comparison to Google Analytics, but states that Google only solves half the problem, no coverage of the server.

Another nice interface, provides server stats including email.

Multi-user platfrom, supports customers/ clients. Can customize results with dashboards, widgets.

“User Generated Monitoring”

PubMatic

PubMatic is a meta ad server that sits between online publishers and online ad networks like Google AdSense, Yahoo Publisher Network and Value Click. Their service helps small- and medium-sized publishers manage and maximize their advertising inventory by seamlessly communicating with multiple ad networks to help them find the optimal ad layout and the highest paying ad network. They also provide them with a central dashboard to track all their ad networks and ad configurations.

Pitch: we’re the first company presenting at TC40 that offers revenue opportunities for publishers.

Pubmatic works as the middle man.

Offers optimization tools as well, color choices, sizes.

In alpha testing until today, now in open beta

Sites using the service have seen 70-110% increase in revenue.

Data is pulled from other ad networks.

Also offers dashboard widgets.

Nice idea, I’ll be keen to try it.

ZocDoc

ZocDoc is an online service that lets consumers find, search and book dentist and doctor appointments. Their service is integrated into dentists’ and doctors’ appointment systems so that last minute cancellations can be filled by other patients. ZocDoc also provides consumers with information on specific dentists’ and doctors’ office including what insurance they take.

Intro: there is a problem with easily finding doctors.

Online way to find and book medical practitioners. Site has just gone live now.

Nifty feature: site shows available time slots.

Play acting on stage, guy trips over, role playing using ZocDoc, something different.

Doctor listing include bio details + user ratings…I can feel a law suit coming on in the next 12-18months…but nice to get reviews of doctors from the user view point.

Experts panel and spotty Wifi. grrrr.

Guy likes Spottt…because it’s the only model he understands.

Esther Dyson likes Clickable, heart is with ZocDoc

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We’re live blogging each session, adding to the summary of each company direct from the floor of TechCrunch 40. Click Refresh to view.

Xobni

Zobni products aim to improve the way users organize, search and navigate their email. Xobni creates an information profile for each person a user communicates with, and provides historical information that is relevant to what users are working on. Xobni displays contact information, threaded conversations, attachments, related people, email usage statistics, and information from the web.

Xobni creates a profile of all the interactions you have with your contacts. It appears to be a plugin for your email client - sits on the right-hand side of the client as you browse your email. Gives context to each message that you view; you can browse your messaging history with people, see their portrait, look at connected people (social networking), import calendar openings into email text, search your email by people and keywords. Xobni automatically extracts phone and email contacts from email messages.

You can also view upcoming appointments, to-do items, and a “stay in touch” area (a list of people who used to email you but haven’t in awhile - the “ex-girlfriend” feature).

Currently available for Microsoft Outlook, others soon.

Main points: view threaded conversations, find attachments, use email’s social network, and search email and people.

Several email accounts will be supported in 2008.

Orgoo

Orgoo offers a web based “personal communications cockpit” that is a one stop site for email accounts, IM accounts, video chat, video mail, SMS and voice. Orgoo is free, requires no downloads, and can be accessed from any web browser or mobile phone.

Starts by asking how many people have more than one email and IM account. In addition to these, we have chat, SMS, etc. Problem: no way to access and organize all these conversations in one location.

With Orgoo, you get all your email, IM, chat, and SMS more integrated into single location available through any web browser or mobile device.

App2you

App2you is a custom web application creator that lets users create web apps without doing database coding or designing. All the app creators have to do is sketch their pages from scratch or by choosing a template from app2you’s gallery and customize it. Once the pages have been outlined app2you creates a hosted, database-driven web app.

Mint

Mint is a personal finance application that lets users track and monitor their financial information in one place without the need of routine maintenance or accounting knowledge. Mint tracks bank, credit union and credit card transactions and alerts users to upcoming bills, low balances or unusual spending.

Kerpoof

Kerpoof is aiming to become a leading destination site for children through a suite of activities that are enriching as well as entertaining. On Kerpoof, kids can create art, stories, and animated movies using a simple 3D interface, and when done, can save it to their gallery, share it with others, and vote on their favorites.

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As the party goes on in downtown San Francisco, a quick wrap up of the first day of the TechCrunch 40 Conference. We live blogged the whole event, and added some great pictures as well. I’ll clean up the typos tomorrow…or the day after.

TechCrunch 40 Session 1: Search and Discovery.

The first session in front of a crowd of around 1,000 people, all wielding laptops and camera’s can be daunting, and despite the odd hiccup the first startups did a great job.

CastTV was our pick from the 5, however ultimately it’s up to the expert panel to decide the winners tomorrow.

Yahoo Presents Yahoo Teachers.

The title says it all, a clever product for school teachers. Check out our post for the demo video.

TechCrunch 40 Session 2: Mobile and Communications

A diverse session title for a diverse range of presentations. A much closer field in terms of picking the best presentation. I picked Cubic Telecom at the time and it’s a name that’s come up in conversations a lot since the session, even being mentioned by some as being a possible winner. Not all the experts on the panel were hot on the business model/ idea though…I can’t help but think that they don’t travel a lot.

TechCrunch 40 Keynote Speakers: Humble Beginnings

Marc Andreessen, David Filo and Chad Hurley. Royalty. There is no need to say much more.

TechCrunch 40 Session 3: Community & Collaboration

By far and away the standout startup session of the day. The presentations were smooth, entertaining, informative and most of all engaging. Flock was the big surprise for me: I expected to see more Firefox with plugins and saw something in the soon to be released 1.0 version that was completely different, unique and new. TripIt was just one of those useful ideas that made you wonder why someone hadn’t thought of that before. Story Blender took video mashups to the masses. The stand out performance in the most competitive field of the day was Music Shake. A couple of blokes from South Korea took the stage and delivered a great presentation. The product is unique, easy to use, and looks like a lot of fun. 95% of the people I’ve spoken to since the end of the day nominate Music Shake as their favorite startup. They enter day 2 as the short price favorite to take the $50,000 first place prize.

AOL Launches Blue String

Read the post for more. Nice to see the AOL team coming up with something new and unique. I had dinner with some of the AOL people, engaging folk, decent dev team who probably don’t get enough credit for the various products they are creating.

TechCrunch40 Session 4: Crowd Sourcing

Last session of the day and always a hard sell when talking to a crowd that had been sitting for the better part of 7 hours.

Cake Financial as the best presentation/ product for my liking, but as with Session 2 it was a fairly close field.

TechCrunch 40 Keynote Conversation: Mark Zuckerberg

First impression: Mark Zuckerberg is human, and normal…and engaging, and interesting, even if some of his responses were great corporate waffle in an attempt to avoid answering the question. No matter what you think about Facebook, Zuckerberg surely must be a champion of Generation Y, for very few have achieved so much at such a young age.

Well be back Tuesday with more live blogging here at TechCrunch. Check out the TechCrunch40 site for company info, video highlights, and the Tangler powered chat room.

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Our live blog of the Keynote Speakers: Humble Beginnings Sessions from TechCrunch40.

Sequoia’s Michael Moritz introduces the three guests: Marc Andreessen, David Filo and Chad Hurley.

An amazing lineup: for those old enough to remember Andreessen was the CTO and Co-founder of Netscape, more recently he co-founded while label social networking startup Ning. David Filo was a co-founder of Yahoo, the first great internet company of our age. Chad Hurley is CEO and Co-founder of YouTube…and that story doesn’t need repeating.

Chad Hurley is first. First business was selling trying to sell paintings as a kid..apparently not a huge market in Philly.

David Filo was at Stanford..he selected Stanford due to the connections and possibilites.

Marc was from Wisconsin, middle America. First business was a lemonade stand when he was kindergarten. Distribution method was wrong though, he set up 10 miles out of town Went to U. Illinois, had no idea about business…he lucked out by being able to come to Silicon Valley.

Back to David Filo. Question: what made you leave Standford with Jerry Yang. DF: when Yahoo started they weren’t thinking of it as a business. 6 months after they started they were still trying to come up with business ideas for new projects…they didn’t consider Yahoo as a business proposition.

DF had an early business relationship with Marc Andreessen and Netscape…Netscape provided data space when Yahoo was moving out of Stanford.

Back to Marc: question: did ppl know what Netscape would turn out to be. MA: it was a crazy idea, no one was doing this stuff in 94. 99% of ideas are crazy and fail as well, no one can say with any degree of confidence what will absolutely work.

Question: were there key things in the first 60 days of Netscape, MA: radical distribution model, the first with free for personal use.

Question to Chad Hurley: how long did it take to get YouTube up and running, CH: we sat down and thought out the problem, within a couple of months we had a working model. Within 12 months we’d closed funding to grow. Scaling was the hardest part, didn’t expect YouTube to grow like it di.

Q to David Filo: on growth, did it surprise you. DF: as said before we didn’t expect to make a business out of Yahoo, so yes it was surprising.

David Filo is asked what he does at Filo has he’s not seen at industry events that often. Broad laughter. DF says he covers data centers, growth etc..

Marc Andressen Q: what is it like being in top roles. MA: I’m not the CEO for a reason, I’m the chairman (laughter). MA talks about the stress and work involved with running a company. David Filo added that as soon as they realized that Yahoo was going to take off they hired a CEO. Chad Hurley takes running YouTube as being a challenge.

Q to Marc Andressen: what would he do differently, MA: things are different now (makes some jokes about Red Herring), advice is to not take too many people with you from company to company, it’s healthy bringing in new people.

Q to Chad Hurley: how did you cope with growth, CH: our first hosting company was setup to deal with us, so we had to go out and build our own data center, which was “scary.” Luckily YouTube never suffered from major outages, only scheduled downtime for maintenance, no longer required.

Q to Marck Andressen: how close have you gone to going under, MA: 60 days with LoudCloud, we were burning too much cash, the crash had happened.

Q to all 3: what’s your worst business decision. Chad Hurley: we would have hired more people, more quickly to deal with the growth. David Filo: we underestimated the opportunities and hence like YouTube we would have bought on more people at Yahoo in the early days, we also weren’t taking a proper long term view. Marc Andressen: we treated search money as free money, VC’s would give it to search companies who gave it to Netscape for traffic. With hindsight Netscape would have worked better as a content company as opposed to a service company.

Q: who do they admire outside of their own company. David Filo: Steve Jobs. Chad Hurley: Steve Jobs. Marc Andressen agree, Steve Jobs.

Q to all 3: what are your fondest memories. David Filo: it’s hard to pin down a particular time, I’ve enjoyed it all. Being able to shap the internet was exciting. Chad Hurley: when we started, it’s difficult to ever recreate that experience, a “special time” where YouTube didn’t know what would happen, or even how they’d pay the bills.

Thoroughly interesting sessions. Audience questions

q: tips for startups. Marc A: a founder should be CEO, don’t bring in CEO, professional CEO’s can dupe the company, second tip: beat off with a stick hiring to many people too soon, keeps burn rate down.

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