Sunday, October 19, 2003
The Rainmaker is back?
Earlier today, while reading the New York Times, I came across a name I have not read about in a long, long while now -- George Gilder -- yes, he of the infinite bandwidth and telecosm fame. I remember the time when everyone needed to read the Gilder Tech Report to be with it on the technology scene. After the dot-com and telecoms bust, it never occured to me to wonder what happened to the dot-com punditocracy. Well, Katie Hafner has the low-down on this partiular guru. And it doesnt look good, even if the man remains optimistic in the face of the improved performance of the tech sector.
People canceled their subscriptions by the tens of thousands; only the original newsletter survives today, with just 8,500 subscribers [ed: down from 110,000]. Since the tech bubble burst, all but five staff members have been laid off. A former business partner holds a lien on Mr. Gilder's house. And in a cruel twist of fate, Mr. Gilder, an outspoken critic of the nation's tax structure, finds himself at the mercy of the Internal Revenue Service, as he awaits the agency's final decision on the terms of his tax bill.
The one thing he did not foresee, he says, was the effect of what he calls "this incredible morass of regulations" affecting the telecommunications industry. "I knew the factors, but I kept believing technology would triumph over them." He said he still believes it will, eventually.
Let's hope he's right and that he gets back in business and all that. Perhaps he should be a tad less gung-ho about the future of technology this time around. It might save him (and a lot of people who take him seriously) a lot of money.
People canceled their subscriptions by the tens of thousands; only the original newsletter survives today, with just 8,500 subscribers [ed: down from 110,000]. Since the tech bubble burst, all but five staff members have been laid off. A former business partner holds a lien on Mr. Gilder's house. And in a cruel twist of fate, Mr. Gilder, an outspoken critic of the nation's tax structure, finds himself at the mercy of the Internal Revenue Service, as he awaits the agency's final decision on the terms of his tax bill.
The one thing he did not foresee, he says, was the effect of what he calls "this incredible morass of regulations" affecting the telecommunications industry. "I knew the factors, but I kept believing technology would triumph over them." He said he still believes it will, eventually.
Let's hope he's right and that he gets back in business and all that. Perhaps he should be a tad less gung-ho about the future of technology this time around. It might save him (and a lot of people who take him seriously) a lot of money.
