Interestingly enough, the only UK entrant into the TechCrunch 50 final 50 list is a new company called The Swop. You can read more about it here but the skinny on it is that it’s about startups swopping services instead of paying for it. They got a hard time on stage at the conference (judges tended not to like the idea of barter) however I can see this very much as a recession-powered idea. Although there are obvious issues to address. Here’s COO Jonathan Morris to explain:
The Swop from Mike Butcher on Vimeo.
Great startup, loved the demo at TC50. Fantastic to see a UK entrant.
Would be interesting to see whether their barter gains more traction in Europe (less startups but more cash starved) or US (more startups less cash starved)
Swapping services between start-ups ?
In most cases sart-ups are under staffed.
Established companies can have service overcapacity.
Maybe Swop Shop should target established companies.
http://bit.ly/JheyL