Cost Of An Internet Startup Has Plunged, So Go On, Get Busy
This is the best time to start an Internet company since the dot-com boom.Well, except it’s a lot more difficult now to get filthy rich on a moronic idea, which may take some of the wind out of your sails.
But other than that, something truly remarkable is going on. The cost of starting a Web-based company is plummeting. Some in the industry estimate that it costs one-tenth or less to start an Internet company today than it did just five years ago.
KC on June 17th, 2005 7:07 am
As one of the people doing this, I suspect this is due to three reasons:
1) Computers are cheaper than they’ve ever been for this much power. For $500 you can get something new that will suit most of your business needs without problem.
2) The eCommerce infrastructure (hosting, merchant account, etc) is dirt cheap. Hosting can cost your $10/month for a shared server and the complete merchant account will be <= $100/month.
3) Most of the software infrastructure (storefront, CRM, issue tracking, project management) is open source and you can do it yourself or you can pay someone a few hundred bucks to take care of all of it.
I’ve gotten clients *completely* setup with a customized/themed site, complete integration of their web apps, and basic user training for $1500. And that was far more than most people need.
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