Tipping Point Partners

The Library of Congress, which has the power to define exceptions to an important copyright law, said on Monday that it was legal to bypass a phone’s controls on what software it will run to get “lawfully obtained” programs to work.

via www.nytimes.com

App developers, rejoice!  The Library of Congress has brought down the walls around Apple’s walled garden.  Developers can a) circumvent Apple’s copyright restrictions to deliver non-Apple-approved apps to the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch; and b) leverage the wireless connectivity provided by those devices.

Who knew the Library of Congress had such awesome power!   It’s news to me.  Follow this link to read the ruling – for the impatient, go immediately to bullets (2) and (3).

Why do we need more apps, with over 225,000 apps on the app store and 5 billion downloads by June 2010?  Judge for yourself: rejected apps range from the silly to the baffling.

Apple seemed bent on making itself the Mayberry of content.  Let porn, gambling and pureplay ads reside on the Internet.  Keep apps on the Apple platform squeaky clean and support Apple’s premium positioning.  Let Android be the place for everyone else’s apps.

Who will benefit?  Clear beneficiaries include:

• developers impatient with Apple’s review process
• advertisers seeking a more direct appeal to audiences
• content creators who want unfettered creativity
• entrepreneurs pushing the boundaries of what a the combination of high-speed wireless connection, GPS, gyroscope, touch screen and rich media can provide, and
• of course, porn, gambling and all the other naughty and nasty vices that are publicly condemned and privately enjoyed.

Any guess on how long it will take to get Adobe Flash on the platform?

Subtractions: We’ve had the bittersweet satisfaction of seeing valued members of our team graduate from Tipping Point to pursue new adventures and horizons.

Tia Ba started working for my family 7 years ago and for Tipping Point since the day we started the business in 2005.  Tia has now decided to change her perspective by moving 20 feet down the hall to a wonderful opportunity at Rapid Ratings, a Tipping Point portfolio company that Tia has helped nurture in the financial administration role for over a year.

Cookstr launched a great new feature.

We found that when users came directly to Cookstr from google search, they would typically come directly to a recipe page, and not realize Cookstr was a website with thousands more recipes.If you search for Spaghetti Bolognese in Google, (and made it to the 4th page of results…) you’d find a Sheila Lukins recipe. And you might click on it. But  if this recipe wasn’t exactly what you were looking for, you wouldn’t know that Cookstr also has a ragu bolognese by Lidia Bastianich, and you certainly