1. Clicktoy
2. Ecobuddies
3. Aegis Mobility
4. AppSocial
5. Mobify
6. Muutu
7. My Wedding Match
8. mingleverse
9. Moving Media
10. Wantsa

Visiting Silicon Valley VC Jeff Clavier announced the “Best in Show” and two runner-ups  :

• 2nd Runner up – My Wedding Match

• 1st Runner up – AppSocial for Tingle.com

• Best in Show – Ecobuddies Interactive Ltd.

“Best in Show” winner Ecobuddies will receive a thousand dollar cash award from New Media BC and a three month placement at the prestigious Plug and Play Tech Centre accelerator in Sunnyvale, California.

Read more: http://www.techvibes.com/blog/fusion-forum-best-in-show-announced#ixzz0WtwwPvSQ

7pm November 5, 2009
New Media BC is pleased to announce the top 20 companies selected from 37 digital media companies that attended the Fusion ’09 Entrepreneur Boot Camp held at the BC Showcase today. The following will present at the Fusion Venture Forum before 22 investors, including Google and other visiting VCs from Silicon Valley on November 12 at the UBC Robson Square Theatre:

PRESENTING COMPANIES

GAMES

1. Black Cherry

2. ClickToy

3. Ecobuddies Interactive

4. Old Skool Studios

5. Overinteractive

MOBILE

1. Aegis Mobility

2. AppSocial

3. Cell Map Inc

4. Mobify

5. Sound of Motion

WEB2.0/SOCIAL MEDIA

1. Arcalife

2. Muutu

3. My Wedding Match

4. Vibrant Software (Everystockphoto)

5. Wantsa

NEW PLATFORMS AND APPLICATIONS

1. Konductor Software

2. LayerBoom Systems

3. Mingleverse Labs

4. Moving Media Group

5. Unbounce Marketing

Organizers New Media BC are pleased to announce that with the support of the National Research Council Canada Industrial Research Assistance Program (NRC-IRAP) and Bootup Entrepreneurial Society, all entrepreneurs can participate at the Fusion Forum for no additional cost above the regular attendee price of $100. All companies attending the Fusion Entrepreneur Boot Camp held on November 5 as well as the twenty selected to pitch to top tier investors during the Fusion Venture Forum on November 12, will pay this same affordable rate as conference attendees.

“Our community has a history of producing some of the most notable digital media companies in the world,” says Maura Rodgers, Executive Director of Bootup Entrepreneurial Society. “We challenge our best entrepreneurs to step forward and show the international investors what our community is made of.”

The package includes full access to the event, including networking lunch and reception. Presenting companies will also have free access to “Entrepreneur Bootcamp” training sessions, presentation coaching, and a chance to pitch at the Forum on November 12th and potentially have one-on-one meetings with visiting investors from Silicon Valley.

“New Media BC is thrilled to have the support of NRC-IRAP and Bootup Entrepreneurial Society to provide such great value to BC and Canadian entrepreneurs.” said Rochelle Grayson, Interim President at New Media BC. “We have lined up first-class investors and industry experts, and we are looking forward to showcasing the best digital media talent and opportunities BC and Canada has to offer.”

The deadline for registrations has been extended to Friday, October 30th to allow entrepreneurs to take advantage of this special rate. Reimbursements will be made for companies who have already signed up at the full rate.

New Media BC also announced that Fusion’s “Best in Show” judges will be Tom Duterme, Corporate Development Manager at Google Inc., Saeed Amidi, CEO/President and Founder of Plug and Play Tech Center and Steve Hnatiuk, Founder and Partner at Yaletown Venture Partners. The “Best in Show” presenter will receive paid airfare to San Francisco and three month placement at the prestigious Plug and Play Tech Centre accelerator in Sunnyvale, California.

For more information: www.thefusionforum.com

New Media BC

New Media BC is the industry association representing BC’s 1,100+ digital media companies working in video games, animation, visual effects, interactive marketing & design, social media, Web 2.0 and eLearning. Based on consultation with our members, we provide professional development, business development, networking and advocacy services and promote worldwide recognition of BC’s Digital Media Industry.

The National Research Council Canada Industrial Research Assistance Program (NRC-IRAP)

NRC-IRAP is expanding the Canadian innovation system. We are the Government of Canada’s premier innovation and technology assistance program, supporting small and medium-sized enterprises in communities across Canada by providing financial, technological and networking assistance.

Bootup Entrepreneurial Society (BES)

Founded by a group of veteran entrepreneurs, the Bootup Entrepreneurial Society is a non-profit organization dedicated to expanding the entrepreneurial ecosystem in BC and building a solid infrastructure that is well honed to support digital media entrepreneurs. Through outcome driven educational workshops, access to experienced international mentors and rockin’ networking events, BES provides entrepreneurs with the resources and connections needed to start and grow their digital media businesses. www.bootup.ca

New Media BC’s overarching vision is:

To make BC the most recognized and admired center of digital media excellence in the world.

We know that Digital Media is thriving here and that our companies deserve the attention of the world. To make this happen and to be sustainable, we (Industry Associations) need to partner with Grassroots Organizations, Educational Institutions, the Government, Entrepreneurs and Industry and we ALL need to work together, step up, and support each other!

The Fusion Forum was created 3 years ago to provide a venture/investment forum specifically focused on Digital Media. And, based on our research, it is the only one of its kind. Fusion has always been a great opportunity to showcase and promote BC’s Digital Media Excellence. This year, New Media BC was challenged to expand the event and to bring in even more world-class investors and industry experts. Specifically, we were asked to recruit investors who had actively invested in early stage, digital media companies (which I would argue we have successfully delivered) and to provide an investment forum for any out-of-town speakers to connect with our local investment community to discuss the advantages in investing in Digital Media companies.

This has not been just a New Media BC effort! As I mentioned above, it has been a true team effort and we have received financial support from:

• Telefilm
• BC Innovation Council
• Vancouver Economic Development Commission
• Wavefront
• University of British Columbia Continuing Studies

And in-kind donations/reduced fees from:

• Business in Vancouver
• mod7
• The Social Agency
• BC Ministry of Small Business, Technology and Economic Development
• Techvibes
• Plug and Play Tech Center (California)

In addition, we have received support from a slew of local industry experts who are volunteering their time to teach at the Bootcamp and to sit on panels.

New Media BC is a non-profit organization and we understand these are difficult times for everyone. We would LOVE to do this event for free! However, we do need to cover our costs for Fusion, which include:

• a day for the Entrepreneur Bootcamp and Training
• an afternoon for the Dress Rehearsal and Presentation Coaching (for Presenting Companies)
• a day of Pitching Investors and Industry Experts
• a half day for Presenting Companies to have One-on-One Sessions with Investors/Industry Experts
• a half day of Investment Roundtables to facilitate knowledge transfer and new connections between our out-of-town speakers and our local investment community

Yes, we are asking Entrepreneurs AND Investors to pay to attend the events. This is largely because we have not received enough sponsorship to make it free for everyone.

So, where does that leave us? We have the attention of the world coming to see the Digital Media scene here in Vancouver. If $450, is too much to pay and/or you do not see the value, then Entrepreneurs have a few options:

• You can choose not to attend.
• You can let New Media BC know who’s missing from our sponsor list above and we’ll be more than happy to knock on their door!
• You can suggest other fundraising options that New Media BC perhaps has not explored.

As I said above, we would LOVE to provide a free forum for everyone to learn, showcase, market, and perhaps even find funding for their ventures. We simply need your help (and entrepreneurial ideas)!

I look forward to the heated debate that I know will follow!

Cheers,

Rochelle Grayson
Acting President & Board Member
New Media BC

P.S. Before I forget, I did want to comment on Jason Calacanis’ latest initiative encouraging Angel groups to not charge entrepreneurs for pitching. I do agree that charging outrageous fees is unfair. However, Fusion is not a monthly Angel Group meeting; it is an annual 4-day event and we are hosting speakers from abroad to participate. Unfortunately, there are significant costs to pull something like this together and as a non-profit, New Media BC simply needs to find ways to cover these costs.

Butterfield, a firm supporter of Vancouver’s Digital Media industry, was part of the original team that grew Flickr from a tiny Vancouver based operation to a worldwide phenomenon. He and his co-founder Caterina Fake sold Flickr to Yahoo reportedly for more than $30 million, barely a year after launching it in February2004. The original plan had been to create an online game that never quite took off. Flickr remains one of the most noted digital media success stories from this region.

Butterfield will open Fusion ’09, the only Venture Forum devoted to Digital Media in Western Canada, by sharing his success story with some 150-200 attendees, mostly Canadian founders with early to growth stage ventures. Twenty of Canada’s hottest digital media companies will present their latest ventures to top tier investors from North America, including heavyweights Google Ventures, Norwest Venture Partners and SoftTech VC. Deadline to register for Fusion’s Bootcamp and Conference has been extended to Oct 27, 2009 at www.thefusionforum.com.

“New Media BC is proud to be collaborating with Telefilm Canada and Plug and Play to present the only financing forum for digital media in Western Canada”, remarked Fusion ‘09’s Director, Christine Lim-Labossière. “The caliber of talent we see each year at Fusion continues to impress us, and I am confident we’ll find a deserving winner for this excellent prize”. The Plug and Play Tech Centre currently houses over 200 start ups and has collectively raised some US $750 million to date. Companies selected for this program are each assigned a relationship manager who will help them access the available resources, obtain introductions to contacts and to help them line up pitches to potential investors.

During the 3 months, rent is deferred and there are no charges for access to a multitude of resources including networking events, access to strategic and corporate partners (eg. Microsoft, Sun Microsystems, Cisco, Intel, Best Buy, Qualcomm, etc.), access to service partners (eg. Legal, Accounting, HR, Intellectual Property, etc.), mentorship and coaching (through Plug and Play management, Executives-in-Residence and other advisors) and regular pitching opportunities with angel investors and VCs.

Placement is limited for presenting companies at Fusion ‘09, so entrepreneurs are encouraged to apply early at http://thefusionforum.com/registration/. Early Bird registration rates end Oct 5th, 2009.For more information, contact fusion@newmediabc.com

The five Silicon Valley heavyweights will attend Fusion ‘09, the only Western Canadian venture forum dedicated to digital media, on November 12-13 at Robson Square. They will join the “by invitation only” investors from local firms including Steve Hnatiuk of Yaletown Venture Partners, Paul Lee of Vanedge Capital and Tanner Philp of Lions Capital, and 20 local early stage and growth stage entrepreneurs who will present their latest digital media ventures under the games, mobile, Web 2.0/social media and new platforms/applications categories at Fusion ‘09. The event includes a 2 day Entrepreneur Boot Camp(November 5 & 10), Pitch Conference(Nov 12), one-on-one meetings with local entrepreneurs and a private round table investor session(Nov 13). Online registrations from September 15 – October 20 at www.thefusionforum.com For Investor profiles visit the Investor profiles page. CHECK BACK FOR LATEST NEWS!