REPOST: BEFORE ANYONE BUYS IN TO THE [SNIP] COMPANY YOU NEED TO READ THIS FIRST PLEASE:
Posted April 23rd, 2008 by Laurie
output
I'm sure that Steve Parent expects people to use a single standard before investing money, so he wouldn't mind applying the same questions to the new Revolution Broadcasting radio station venture.
http://www.dailypaul.com/node/40774 (now access denied)
Posted March 2nd, 2008 by SGP
FROM AN INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS OWNER I AM ASKING EVERYONE TO THINK THIS THROUGH BEFORE INVESTING YOUR MONEY!
He is asking for this money to be put into the account he sets up NOT A DR. PAUL official site keep that in mind when you are sending your money.
Nothing against Trevor however i can not support this at this time nor will invest in it and here are just a few reasons why.
First what is the business plan and platform of this venture
1: He has no expertise in media.
2: The blimp program was a nightmare ie : No phone number to call, No staff to talk too, probelms with the donation site, etc....
3: We were all share holders in a way on the blimp project and he did not listen to many of us nor did he or his staff even respond to many of our requests for answers.
4: 5 million for what exactly? What does the shares of stock secure? Who will be on the board? What are the salaries of the employees and board members? Will the stocks pay dividends? Will this be a sub chapter S or a C corp or an LLC?
5: Who and how will be recruiting reporters for this media outlet?
Where will the head office be located?
How will the by-laws read?
What control do the share holders as far as votes?
What assurance do we have as investors that the company will not be sold without shareholder approval.
How will news reports be confirmed and by who?
The entire platform he is presenting answers no questions.
These are just what i came up with off the top of my head because i have not seen a business plan.
Dr. Steve Parent
Bookmark/Search this post with:
Partial Answer
We are a non profit radio company at this point for all of our hosts work for free however if we get the listening base and can attract advertisers we will move from a user supporter network to a free network for users and will be forced to become for profit for the market will have to decide.
I have attorneys that will give me my legal advice ...
As for now myself and (name removed) have put our own money into this station and we are not even expecting to even recoup our investement and we are donating our time and effort to try and make a difference.
Our network is to provide honest news to the people and let them make sound decisions based on facts not propaganda and we are doing this because we care about our country.
(from a post on another forum)
Was just going to post that Steve Parent post from RPF!
(Can you close your bolding?)
Great minds think alike-
Somehow, "non profit radio company" does not sound like the IRS definition of a Not-for-Profit organization. It sounds like "spending more money than is coming in" (like our government, banks, consumers, ...).
Years ago, to write off business expenses there needed to be a profit in 2 out of 7 years or it was defined as a hobby and the expenses could not be written off on Schedule E(?).
So that statement does not even answer the question as to the type of business entity.
In fact, that entire first paragraph sounds like a "pie in the sky" dream, not a business plan that specifies what steps need to be taken to move from "user supported" (with $85? in donations) to a free network supported by advertising based on an unspecified listener base.
Oh um...
... How embarrassing... my bold was open this whole time *blushes* I don't know how to close it, sadly, as that post can't be edited since it was replied to?
I realized you wouldn't be able to edit
just as I hit Post Comment!
I know that there seems to be a way that other people can close bold or italics, but when I tried a couple of things on a prior occasion, my attempts didn't work.
In general, "tags" for bolding are XbY to start and X/bY to end, for italics use XiY and X/iY. X=< and Y=> (b=bold and i=italic)
No one seems interested in Steve Parent's business operations with this thread or with Chip-In (3 contributors for $41 with a total of $85?), so don't worry about it:)
Business questions about Revolution Broadcasting
These are the business questions I have about Revolution Broadcasting:
1. It seems as though Steve Parent is the sole spokesperson. Is it "his" radio station?
2. Given the well-documented management issues with the Blimp (whatever happened to Part 2 with *evidence*?) and Ron Paul Racing, what is the ownership structure for RB? C Corp., S Corp., LLC, partnership, other? Seat of the pants?
3. In case of disputes over content, guests, etc., "where does the buck stop"?
4. What country is the home of the business?
5. Is the business registered in the US?
6. What sources of revenue will exist?
7. Who is in charge of any funds received as revenue or contributions?
8. Who is in charge of paying bills for studio rental, advertising, guests, ...?
9. On what basis will broadcasters be paid and under what circumstances?
10. Who will be responsible for income statements and filing reports with the appropriate state/federal authorities? If there is no corporate entity, are broadcasters liable for any nonpayment penalties?
11. Who determines the accuracy of the news content?
12. What bias is inherent in the selection of news to be covered?
Good Questions...
...although to be fair the vast majority cannot really be posted here. I hope he's not that irresponsible with some of that information! Other questions, however, would include:
13. Who owns the domain and intellectual property associated with the website?
14. Who is going to pay any tax liabilities?
15. Why is a for-profit asking for donations, instead of contributions?
16. What are the fundraising goals for the month, or is the sky the limit? In other words, what is the bare minimum to make sure this station is up for another month or two?
17. Are there sponsors or initial investors whose input might give even the appearance of an agenda?
These things are usually put forth at least in a business plan or some sort of statement, if in fact it is a venture soliciting outside support in this fashion. I hope they get their paperwork straight before they raise a certain amount of money. After that, the individual whose name is on that bank account into which the PayPal is draining... well let's just say they're going to be liable for a LOT. Unless, of course, the whole thing is based out of Canada. I have no idea what their laws are like.
Blimp numbers publicly posted in article?
Actually, Melissa, the questions came up due to my recollections of the many issues that were publicly posted on Nolan Chart about the Blimp LLC management problems.
That included public payouts, who was in control of the checking account, concerns about that control, etc.
Regarding sources of revenue, would it be advertising (links or paid promotions) or "contributions"?
If I were a broadcaster from one of the other radio stations, like yours, how long would I work for free to keep my "name out there" before starting my own station or affiliating with another station with a track record?
If there is not a corporate boundary, I would be concerned with whether or not I could end up a defendant in any legal or financial action.
For that matter, is it for profit or a *hobby* by IRS rules?
As was already posted, even the website is violating chip-in rules. (The fact that chip-in amounts are so low seems to indicate that people are concerned about how their money will be used.)
Obviously, the SPAM postings on DP and RPF (vs. a link in a signature) should cause Steve Parent to be banned on both sites.
You did notice that there is yet *another* (daily) SPAM thread for today's guest speaker, right?
Yes
Some of the numbers should easily be public. I noticed the other thread as well. I also notice the sudden, spontaneous surge of people telling us none of this matters on other threads.
Hopefully someone will read this one, and realize there's a dispassionate list of valid concerns one should have before one donates money to ANY cause.
Are the volunteer broadcasters even asking?
I would hate to be working for free, only to find that someone else was using all of the incoming cash from whatever source.
Personally, I would be even more concerned if I were affiliating myself with Steve Parent, given his dubious "reputation" online per even the two forums I monitor, DP and RPF.
I certainly can't imagine having to *report* to him as "boss"!