Wireless Electricity Update

iContact co-founder and my partner Aaron Houghton has posted a great update on the state of the commercialization of wireless electricity on his blog TechInnoVenture.

He and I have been keeping each other updated on what we hear about wireless electricity–the ability to transfer electric power from one place to another without wires. It’s possible and it’s happenning today.

On August 21, Intel demonstrated their ability to transmit electricity wirelessly over a distance of approximately one foot to power a lightbulb. This Intel R&D was based of prior research at MIT by Marin Soljacic. Profossor Soljacic has dubbed wireless electricity, “Witricity.”

The near-term market opportunities revolve around low-wattage charging of electronic devices like phones, DVD players, and GPS units. But a visionary world of a “house without wires” and “neighborhoods without wires” can be imagined.

Aaron notes, “I envision a go-to-market solution here where 15-20 feet is considered good enough for the first round of devices because it accommodates the size of a standard private office, cubicle, or room of a residential house. Since all of these are already hard-wired from an external source to the outlet the big advantage here in the short term is from the wall outlet to the end device: the cell phone, laptop computer, monitor, projector, digital camera, etc. I think the first company that moves in this space will establish a brand name with builders who will install the wireless electricity sending devices into each room they build alongside traditional plug-in devices. These relationships will then later be leveraged as a product with the required efficiency at longer distances and through more obstacles (walls being the important ones to consider) becomes available and they go into production as the infrastructure that moves power from an external source to every outlet or end device within a building. I haven’t done the math but my gut (Steven Colbert reference) tells me the first opportunity is at least a $50 billion annual market with the latter being 3-5x that annually. Then of course the opportunity that remains is for long distance regional power distribution through the air.”

While our focus is email marketing software for SMBs, it’s always fun to talk with Aaron about what future technologies could bring ranging from wireless electricity to fusion power. As Thomas Friedman says, the ET (energy technology) revolution is upon us.

Well I’m off to read more about the effects of Lehman’s possible collapse and Merrill’s purchase by BOA. Remember, as Buffet always says, “Be fearful when others are greedy, and greedy when others are fearful.” Tomorrow may very well be the best U.S. equities buying opportunity we see in our lifetimes.

iContact Wins CEDs Growth Company of the Year

Last night iContact was honored by the Council for Entrepreneurial Development as the 2008 Technology Growth Company of the Year at Bay 7 at American Tobacco Campus.

Aaron and I accepted the award on behalf of the iContact team. You can watch a video of the award announcement.