Monitor110 Whacks 30% of Staff, In Talks With Reuters

Henry Blodget | June 23, 2008 7:19 PM

monitor110.gifNew York-based Monitor110, a data- and information-gathering service funded by DFJ, DFJ Gotham, and Acadia, fired a third of its employees last week. As one insider described it, the company's new CEO, Brennan Carley, felt that Monitor's burn rate had gotten too far ahead of revenue. (Another way to put this, presumably, is that revenue was materializing more slowly than expected.)

Monitor is in talks with Reuters about a variety of possible deals, including a sale.

Monitor gathers information from the web and other sources and sells it to institutional investors. The company's competitors include Collective Intellect.

UPDATE: Carley shuttered the company July 15.

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54 Comments

Steve said:
Makes sense, I contacted them a few months ago to discuss their service and they never got back to me. I do like the idea though and ended up contacting Collective Intellect.

I think a large Wall St bank should pick them up and sell thier service as research in addition to what they offer. Reuters has a similar serivce already for brand, customer sentiment on consumer generated media and I think they already resold Ravenpack. This would be a nice addition.
stone said:
They're likely going out of business. Why bail them out?
IndustryInsider said:
Interesting. Roger Ehrenberg was able to get a lot of press for them about a year ago, but nothing ever really materialized. Sounds like the steak isn't matching the sizzle.

There has been significant capital invested in this space over the past few years, so it seems that there definitely is a need amongst professional investors. Firms like Connotate (part of Hudson Street), Instant Information (partnered with TheMarkets), and FirstRain (who scored a deal with Capital IQ recently) seem to be gaining some real business as a result. Collective Intellect looks like it is moving away from the investment space.


Steve said:
true, when I spoke to them, Collective Intellect was moving away from that space and into Brand Monitoring and Advertising Campaign Monitoring. A lot are now also looking at identifying influencers on the web and helping clients figure out how to influence them/reach out to them. I've seen a lot of different use cases for this since I began researching this stuff - pharma companies using this to influence doctors on their drugs in the pipeline, PR firms using this to tell thier clients what to say, etc.. Interesting stuff to say the least.

There's still a huge need for this solution in financials though. Our initial research showed a clear correlation between buzz, PR/News articles to stock price. The adage - buy on rumors / sell on news has never been more true.

JoeQuestion said:
does anyone have a clue what is the user base?
I heard the main application is a snail, can someone confirm.
xmen said:
What a clueless bunch. Makes me laugh to think of their years of bravado.
No vision, no product, no customers... it's over johnny!
xmen said:
The comments so far have been parroting the "hype" and marketing that Monitor 100 have been spewing for years.

These guys have no product! nothing about buzz/correlation/influence/branding NOTHING. This is a pile of poop.
Pace said:
I met with them a couple of years ago (about 2 years to be exact), this was during their alpha phase and at that time they told me they did have actual clients using the system and making real money due to the information provided by it (i.e. good feedback from users).

The application itself looked very crude, they seemed disorganized in their development efforts and in what they were trying to do at a high level; the goals were very lofty.

Roger seemed interested in what was going on but a bit disconnected; I think he just wanted to be involved to be involved but was otherwise very happy with his post-banking life. Jeff was playing basically the same role except without the financial expertise or connections; there was no-one handling the day-to-day operations effectively.
Boobies said:
I heard they were doing great until the second version of tower defense.
alphanaliste said:
This whole segment is totally ridiculous. The last thing I want as an analyst is a bunch of blogs, message board comments and local newspaper articles to wade through...

I have absolutely no problem using my Bloomberg, and dropping into Google news/blog search when I'm looking for more detail.
Nick (URL) said:
We already have many sources of information (web, email, analyst reports, etc). And we already have reasonably good ways of keeping up to date with breaking news about positions (mainly, Bloomberg). And we have adequate ways of searching for more detail on that news, as alphanaliste says, by going to Google. (Though I would argue that the search on Google News is not really business-grade -- eg. limited sorting capabilities.)

But what we lack are good tools for organizing the information we find, and for using it in other tasks. Here the needs of analysts and more junior research associates stand out, and are quite different to those of traders and portfolio managers. For example how do you repeat the same set of searches every day, and wade through 1000 articles/filings per week, and then make sure the next intern does the right thing as well? This is what my company, Atomic Intelligence, has been helping financial firms with for several years now.

Steve: There is a relationship between volume of news and stock volatility. The problem with sentiment detection is that it cannot be done with sufficient accuracy. Even on the simplest, most consistent forms of content, it can be challenging to get above 60-70% levels of precision.
dan said:
The application is slow as snail. What interface? what a clueless bunch, from top to bottom. It's over people.
Pierce said:
I feel sorry for my friend John who got whacked there....They used to brag about the success of the company, sadly it seems like they do not know how to implement their plans...I also heard there is a power struggle there...Hope you find a better life John...
Les Mirables said:
This isn't a suprise already. I have seen the product and it is slow. I think that Monitor did not take advantage of the hype. I also doubt that Reuters will be interested because the portal appears to be problematic. I guess cutting people is customary nowadays.

By the way, an insider revealed that Monitor 110 is months away from extinction. I hope the rumor is false. But it's hard to imagine Monitor having enough legs ot move forwad. What a sad state
marinnella express said:
I heard that Monitor110 has been outsourcing some of its work in Manila. If it fails, Monitor can just say that it is outsourcing gone bad. Bad I think it is more on mismanagement on the part of Monitor. They have the vision and the path. Unfortunately, plans will never materialize unless put into actions.

Products like what Monitor was developing is only good when hot. Too bad the product did not even reach the boiling point.

dan said:
Who designed monitor110's web site? And they call themselves cutting edge. there is a power stuggle there, no management exp. They are a ship that is throwing things overboard to stay afloat right not. hopeless
holypoop said:
I also heard they raised tens of millions of VC money and it all went to the new CEO and his band of cronies pockets. Then they cut 30% of the workforce to put even more money into their money grubing hands. Sad isnt it, the rich gets richer, friends of the rich get into the company and gets richer, while the workers get the shaft, in the pocket and in the a$$.
Just out of curiousity, does anyone know the ratio of managers to actual workers??
holypoop said:
Does anyone know why they called it Monitor110?? Is it because 109 out of 110 data is crap.
con said:
3 managers to 1 worker... people are still getting bonus.... what a bunch of crooks
con said:
3 managers to 1 worker... people are still getting bonus.... what a bunch of crooks
holypoop said:
CON: it cant be that you just happen to read my post and replied so quick. You monitoring this? I take it that you are an insider too!!!!
holypoop said:
Just found this on jobvent.com
http://www.jobvent.com/reviewDetail.php?ID=29741

me: just curious.. holypoop@ymail.com
dick almonds said:
Before this cut happened, I heard that some people were fired last year. It appears that Monitor 110 is heading nowhere. The rumored Reuters deal is nothing but crap. Monitor 110 is fabricating news just to salvage some value for the company. I think August and September will be crucial months. Or the company will already be inexistent by then.
dan said:
monitor110 is a lala land. they got people with no exp running the show. college grads managing the products. But cant blame them. blame it on management.
dan said:
monitor110 is a lala land. they got people with no exp running the show. college grads managing the products. But cant blame them. blame it on management.
holypoop said:
Now you see, another one confirming that the management is ruining the company is true. SAD.

DICK:
So either August and September would be padlock time??

Dan:
So Monitor110 is in limbo then?? Waiting to die?? Workers are probably still swabbing the deck of the titanic after it hit the bad product stick.
Mary said:
I heard that about 2 years ago, Monitor 110 and Collective Intellect is on the same level. Now, I really do believe CI is way way in front of Monitor 110... I wonder what happened to Monitor 110..Anyone care to explain?
holypoop said:
MARY:
Funny that you had mentioned CI. According to their blog today July 9, 2008, they just recently moved into a 10,000sf space which looked like it was previously occupied by "Sketchup" and they were purchased by google "good karma".

How much space is Monitor110 is sitting on, and are they growing?? or more like shrinking??
indulgencia said:
You know why Monitor110 is almost 6 feet below the ground? I have three good reasons for you.

First, some intelligent people from Monitor110 fired capable people in favor of employees who work for 2 hours a day but get paid in full

Second, there was no clear direction. The NY team is headed nowhere while the offshore team is not moving at all

Third, the people Monitor chose to lead the offshore team were too inexperienced. Having a degree from an Ivy League school is not a guarantee to success afterall

You may think that I am an insider. Unfortunately I am not. I am just proving the notion that you don't have to be an expert to know if a company is near extinction

joe blow said:
You're all wrong.

Most of the reason for the mess Monitor 110 is in should be placed at the feet of the CTO. He has a responsibility to asses the business goals and come up with a workable technology design. I hear the technology never came close to producing anything of value - after 4 years of trying!

The other CXOs at Monitor110 have no clue technically (and only half a clue business wise).

BTW, just to get an example of the cluelessness from the beginning. Here's how they came up with the totally unmemorable and unmarketable company name...

"110 is binary for the number 6. 6 as in 'six degrees of separation'. So we are going to find information that is relevant for you... blah blah blah".

They were actually proud of that explanation like it was so thoughtful, smart, and obvious! dumb asses.
hedgefundguy said:
Today, the web is really an untapped resource for the hedge fund manager. With a very skeptical target market that has access to tons of information already, there needs to be substance behind the flashy UI and PPT slides to be compelling. If you don't have a product that can solve a big need for me AND can show measurable impact on my performance from the get go, you are toast. Early adopters in the financial community are few and far between and we don't have a lot of patience.

Sounds like they were great at selling a vision, but did not understand how to solve the real problem for the investor. By making the big claims and setting false expectations, they created a huge marketing problem for themselves, not a technology problem if you ask me. As a result, their VCs did everyone else in their space a favor by funding buzz around information on the web and providing an easy bogie for comparison.

I was recently told to check out Monitor 110, so I am glad I found this post. I've seen a bunch of the other products in the space, like Infongen, Collective Intellect, and FirstRain. They all seem to be pretty good. FirstRain looks to be the most compelling for our needs, plus my firm gets Firstrain through our CapitalIQ.
dick almonds said:
Yo people:
As of 4PM today Monitor110 has officially shut their doors. Due to a bunch of arrogant butt wipes, they squandered all their money and now their 8 workers are screwed out of a pay check. The other 12 management personnel is enjoying their past big fat pay checks and bonuses.
Cest la vie Monitor110.

you sucked.
Mary said:
Wow Monitor110 is closed!!! I guess Monitor110 never had any chance, cause you can't have competition with a non-existant product.
holypoop said:
Are you sure that the Titanic had just sank?? I wonder who was at the front of the ship to be the last one down.
awwwwww said:
They are liquidating their assets. You could get their very expensive top of the line MAC laptop for pennies on the dollar, or IKEA furniture which they will pay you to take away.

If anyone wants bullsh*t, bad code, self absorbed administrators, low IQ'ed CIO:CEO, cheap filipino workforce, and many clueless ivy league hotshots, contact MONITOR110.COM

If you(VC) have money invested or outstanding, boy you are SOL. They might still be screening their calls though.

good ridaance monitor110.com
sadJoke said:
Monitor110 is close! lets have a meeting about it.
not sad enough said:
yeah, lets have a meeting in front of the building to discuss the resurrection of monitor110.com. oops silly me, i mean monitor111.com. now it is 7 degrees of separation from you and the data
hahaha
binary joke for those who dont get it
its sad said:
of course it is sad. there are no more job

is there a meeting in the morning anyway to confort each other and walk to the unemployment office together
lost pool said:
DAMM I LOST THE POOL. I WAS AIMING FOR SEPTEMBER
Leo (URL) said:
I knew it is inevitable.
Former M110
Pimp said:
Insider tip: One of their managers loves whores
not-not-licking-toads said:
wont't someone please think of the children!?!?
manboylove said:
I bet they didnt even know how to compile. and look how easy it is these days, monkeys can compile vpn clients.
Phd said:
monkeys might know how to compile but monitor's CTO will not know when he failed miserably, how embarrassing
hoes said:
Oh come on Pimp who doesnt love whores, i do

you give them too much credit manboylove(dirty nambla you), all they had to do was cut and paste blogs and called it their own

the CTO alienated his staff, wasting money on LAVISH things, making them work like it was some offshore sweatshop demanding unreasonable goals, and some of them quit and now the rest is on unemployment. he probably showed up at work wondering where everyone was, soooo delusional

the original two people must be pissed that they lost money and happy that it finally died in the hands of incompetent knuckle heads
duh said:
http://www.alleyinsider.com/2008/7/monitor-110-shuttered

what a nice way of saying "we squandered all the cash, while the lack of a product suffered, and thank you VC for furnishing my lifestyle" bub by, good bye, bub by.
lifeaftermonitor110 said:
i no that insiders r reading this.
I wasnt able to get contact info from some of u
so if u recognize the following frases, then u no who i am, or any other NON MANAGEMENT personnel, email me lifeaftermonitor110@yahoo.com

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just use a dummy account if u r not comfy.
i want 2 setup a little get 2gether without uncomfortable people around.
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keshaun (URL) said:
640-802 Monitor110 Whacks 30% of Staff, In Talks With Reuters shut up. I can't take it (anymore) .
clive (URL) said:
go for it. Don't take it the wrong way. 640-802 / 642-691 / 642-415 / 156-215.1 / 350-018 / 70-290

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