December 1, 2000. Austin, TX—On
November 30, 13 teams from the McCombs School of Business at The University of
Texas at Austin competed in the opening rounds of the annual Texas Moot Corp® Business Plan Competition. The four teams selected as winners
will now compete in the finals on December 7, 2000 for a slot in the
international Competition.
“Nine of the 13 participating and
three out of the four finalists are ventures utilizing the Internet. However,
these ventures are very different from the dot-coms of a year ago; they are each
utilizing the Internet to create efficiencies and reduce costs as well as
providing additional valuable information. Our Moot Corp® companies
indicate the direction and strategy that I predict Internet-based companies will
follow in the next several years,” said, Dr. Gary Cadenhead, Moot Corp® Director.
Thirteen teams competed in three
divisions with the top teams from each division selected to compete in the
finals. Several of the competing teams presented actual operating companies with
real revenues. Many are close to turning their entrepreneurial dreams into
reality.
The Manticore Technology team
demonstrated their software solution for web traffic analysis. Virtual Traffic
Master allows the company to know not only how many hits they get but where the
visitors are coming from, when they arrive, how long they stay there, which
pages they visit and how they exit.
The WasteWise team pitched an
innovative web-based method of simplifying waste management that enables on-line
competitive bidding, creates new opportunities for waste recycling and
dramatically reduces paperwork and regulatory compliance burdens.The waste management industry is large and
growing.
InServIS showcased their integrated system for
increasing the efficiency of the arrest process for law enforcement agencies.
Their system rapidly decreases the time the arresting officers are involved in
completing paperwork so that the officers can spend more time ensuring the
safety of the public. InServIS president, Joe O’Leary, is a sheriff in Harris
County.
Halsa Pharmaceuticals has
discovered a material that, when injected into an obese patient by a physician,
will generate a rapid, safe and substantial loss of body fat. This week, Halsa
filed a patent application to protect its intellectual property. Once the safety
of the technology is proven, the market for Halsa's product will be
enormous.
A panel of local venture
capitalists and business leaders assumed the role of interested investors and
questioned the entrepreneurs as if their own investment capital were at risk.
The judges function as an investment group seeking to reach consensus on the
business venture they would most likely fund.
One team will be selected in the
finals to receive a free year in the Austin Technology Incubator, a spot in the
prestigious International Moot Corp® Competition and $5,000 in prize
money plus a wealth of industry and venture capital contacts. This year,
additional prizes have been added to help turn these ideas into ventures.
The winning team will receive Advisory Board
Strategy and Assembly Services from TheBoard.com which assists companies in
building world-class boards of advisors and directors.The winning Internet team receives a Joint
Application Development Session and White Paper from EnFORM Technology, a
consulting firm providing strategic end-to-end digital solutions.
The public is invited to view
the finals on Thursday, December 7, 2000 in the Graduate School of Business, GSB
3.130 beginning at 4 PM.
The Texas Moot Corp®
Competition is hosted by the McCombs School of Business at The University of
Texas at Austin.The McCombs School of
Business at UT Austin has one of the most highly ranked entrepreneurship
programs in the country.
