ANN ARBOR – Here's a story you don't read everyday. An up-and-coming technology company has moved from Florida to Michigan. 9thXchange, an eBay-like company that sells digital files that could include music, audio and video, will relocate from Melbourne, Florida, to Ann Arbor.
CEO John Bonaccorso said three hurricanes in 2005 that hit Florida prompted some of his employees and their families to look for less hostile climates. Perhaps a bigger force that helped propel 9thXchange to Ann Arbor was the angel investors that pumped another $250,000 into the company. They wanted the corporate headquarters nearby so they could more easily participate in its management.
Bonaccorso was one of two companies Wednesday night presenting in front of the Great Lakes Angels, a group of high net worth individuals who look for promising technology investments like 9thXchange. The company is seeking another $250,000 to carry it over until it gets to a venture capital round.
9thXchange has created an eCommerce platform which lets creators of digital files – music, audio, video – to legally resell that content among members. Customers of 9thXchange are asked to fill out some basic information, and thus join the network. Special software code keeps anyone from pirating the files and pays the creator his or her rightful royalty.
Early customers include Disney, Sony, Major League Baseball, Radio Personalities, TV and entertainment collectovers.
The company has built a stable of more than twenty five developers and system architects in Florida, many of whom are moving to its new corporate headquarters in Ann Arbor, where few hurricanes dare to roam.
The company launched in September and hopes to generate $1.5 million in sales in 2007, and $400 million plus by 2011. If it succeeds, it could develop one of those critical technology success stories that Michigan so desperately needs to build a 21st century digital economy.
For more on 9thXchange, click on 9thXchange.Com
