[mildtrepidation]

People love to say this, but it just isn't true. Ideas can be very valuable, particularly when they come from a well-informed perspective in an untapped niche/market.

Of course an idea isn't useful without execution, but without the idea, you have nothing to execute.

[mixmax]

Here's the question I always ask when the idea vs. execution debate comes up: Can you give me one single example of someone having sold an idea for a sizeable amount of money?

I haven't heard any good answers yet.

[yaddayadda]

"Can you give me one single example of someone having sold an idea for a sizeable amount of money?" - No, but...

My grandfather had an idea about how to improving HVAC systems (he was in the business). He discussed it with his assistant - someone he considered a friend and protege. The kid went and patented the idea (my grandfather was opposed to patents and thought all knowledge and ideas should be free), started his own company, and became my grandfather's chief competitor in the area. My grandfather died a short time later (a few days after my birth, so I've only heard about this second-hand from my grandmother, who served as the bookkeeper, my mother, and my father, who served as the subsequent assistant).

My father worked for a small company that approached a large company (large enough that I can guarantee any American has at least heard of said company) about an idea. NDA's were signed before discussing any details. The big company kept saying that they were trying to get enough details to determine whether to buy out my dad's company or simply pay a flat fee for the idea. For over a year they pumped my dad's company for details, all while working the idea covertly. My dad's company continued to pursue the idea and actually did take their version to market. The way my dad's company found out that big company had stolen the idea was when employees started seeing big company's version of the product on store shelves. 30 years later and I still see the big company's product on a regular basis, my dad's company went out of business (spent too much on development and then were beat to the national market by big company).

In both cases, if the idea hadn't been shared, it couldn't have been acted on in bad faith and the actual idea-generators would have had a chance to market or complete their implementations.

[arbuge]

Actually there are many examples. It's basically what VCs and investors have been doing since the dawn of time, giving out money to entrepreneurs with no revenue yet, just ideas. Personal experience here besides general observation.

Nowadays investors are demanding more visible traction before investing in the web space, but that didn't always apply, and still doesn't apply to spaces like semiconductors, biotech, etc.

[mbesto]

Better yet - if ideas themselves had value, there would be a marketplace for them.

Note - There currently is no marketplace for ideas that I know of.

[roryokane]

Sure there is – hiring an advising consultant. You ask him for advice on improving your accounting, or improving teamwork, or analyzing a certain market. Then the consultant examines the situation and tells you his ideas and his advice for implementing them.

You can’t buy individual ideas because it is hard to distinguish between good and bad ideas to buy without hearing the idea itself (which would make the idea unnecessary to buy). The best method for deciding what idea to buy is who thought of it and what their qualifications are. And if you are going to buy ideas based on who makes them, you might as well just hire the person themself (as an employee or a consultant) – it would be more efficient, and the law makes those kind of relationships the most convenient.

[c0w]

> There currently is no marketplace for ideas that I know of.

Have you heard of Venture Capital?

[mbesto]

Actually, I have. Venture Capital is financial capital used to fuel early stage or high risk business startups.