Hi guys, you have probably heard about me trying to develop a customised control panel, right? Well, it appears that I am a little short of funds to start the project, so I am trying to source for partners for this venture.

I realised that it would be rather hard to gain any trust for this because I haven't been on this forum for long, and neither do I have a hosting business running as of yet. But I hope that something can be arranged. I can keep potential investors up to date with daily reports on the development progress, and if there are any other forms of assurance that you need, we can always work things out.

I am looking for an investment of around US$5,000 - a one-time investment, and also the complete development of a product info and support page similar to that of Plesk. The site should be developed such that it is easy to update.

In exchange, I will give you a lifetime licence to use this control panel on 5 servers in total, and discounts for subsequent servers. Terms are negotiable of course.

And if you are wondering what is so great about this control panel, I've listed the features below. It can send out automated invoices, set both soft and hard transfer limits, you can arrange to place banner ads on the control panel for end users - just to name a few features. It is basically a combination of Plesk, Ubersmith and Cpanel.

Here are the features:
Functional Modules
Following is the module-wise break-up of the project:
Server Administration
-----------------------------
Clients
- create / view / delete / edit / deactivate / activate / search
- send automatic invoice
- Setup bandwidth limitation
- Creation of template packages

Domain
- create / view / delete / edit / deactivate / activate / search

Server
- System
- IP aliasing / System Time / Statistics
- Reboot / Shutdown
- Services
_ Mail
- Configure quota / max letters / blockers / relay mode control
- DNS
- add / delete / type /
- CGI support

- Control Panel
- Logo Setup
- Sessions
- Certificate
- buy / view / request / self signed
- Preferences
- Add Services
- Domain registration
- Certificate purchasing
- Admin Information
- Edit
- Change Password
- Reports
- Per day signup etc
- Daily / weekly / monthly / yearly
- User manual / Help
- Backup recovery


Client
--------
- Registration
- Pre-designed account creation
- Online payment
- Paypal integration
- On line credit card processing (ex integrating authorize.net)
- Login / Logout
- FTP / Mail account creation and management
- File manager


Serious investors only! Please PM me as soon as possible on this so we can get down to business!

INMO this thread should have been in Related Offers & Requests forum. :)

Agreed, and it has been moved (in case anyone is confused by the last post).

Heck, I've just got news - some of the features I've asked for have been approved. Look below:
1) Affiliate program (integrated)
2) Real-time credit processing and verification.
3) Can enable resellers.
4) Help desk (integrated)
5) Paypal integration.
6) Multiple server management from a SINGLE POINT!!
7) Can set both hard and soft limits for end users (eg. lets user of package A go beyond 2GB of transfer, up to a max of 5GB, and the software will AUTOMATICALLY bill him for the extra usage)

I think these few features are going to be AMAZING! But I really need a partner for this. Can someone PLEASE PM me on investing in this...

Hi Avium,

I don't understand very well your offer, you start from scrtach a new control panel
that I am a little short of funds to start the project,
you don't have the money to do it and you will payback an investor with the right to pay $1.000 per licence per server.

Did you have a better deal to offer??? :D :D :D

Well, like I said earlier on, if you are serious, PM me and we can always work out some terms.

PS: I plan to rent out this control panel for a monthly fee, so I guess that offer was pretty good...

Originally posted by avium
I am looking for an investment of around US$5,000 - a one-time investment,

In exchange, I will give you a lifetime licence to use this control panel on 5 servers in total, and discounts for subsequent servers.
Avium, IMHO an investor isn't going to be interested in a 5 server license (and discounts?) in exchange for investing in this project. They typically want a share of the future profits, if any.

This seems to be like investing in your new company Goodyear and you offering investors free tires for two cars and discounts on other tires.

...or I'm just missing something here... :confused:

This isn't investing, this is pre-purchasing a 5 server cp license for a cp that doesn't exist yet, for $5,000.

Well, I've no idea how successful will this become... As for a cut of the profits, believe me - a lot of it will go towards future development and training of support staff, so there wouldn't be much at the start.

And you are right on one thing though - I would have to offer better terms... I don't really know - what do you suggest?

I am really, REALLY keen to get down to work on this cp, but like I said, I need a partner for this... :(

Okay, wait - let me do a check. Say, how much would you guys pay for such a control panel if it were on a monthly basis?

If I were to offer a one-time fee, it would make it hard for me to maintain support staff.

This is a close to 100% automated software, so I think it can go for a little more than Cpanel does.

It is basically a Plesk + Cpanel + Ubersmith + Ensim + automation in many other aspects.

Come on guys - let's see what you are willing to offer so I can decide if I should just go ahead with sourcing for a partner...

Thanks!

How much would I pay for this? if it was a recurring fee, no more than what cpanel charges... remember, i've got to pay it EVERY month unless I stop hosting sites, move panels or make my own.... if it was a one time fee I'd pay a good deal per server license.

however, in the programing biz we have a saying, its not done til its done. as you obviously know, a project like this takes lots of time and although you've got a nice feature spec list, you don't have a script, no script = no money. investors like to see something, especially in the modern economy so if you dont have atleast part of the code done, and a lot of very detailed docs, your chances of getting a small or big investor are almost none. THere was a time when having an idea got you money, now people want that idea to be in existance and a clear profit line drawn.

Originally posted by avium
Hi guys, you have probably heard about me trying to develop a customised control panel, right? Well, it appears that I am a little short of funds to start the project, so I am trying to source for partners for this venture.Uh, pardon me for being skeptical, but...(according to your profile) you're a student, 18 years old, and probably living with your parents. Many people in your position have started much bigger projects on a shoestring budget and have been successful. Besides, nobody is going to hand over any money without a detailed business plan! :)

There's a growing market in developing these applications, which is good considering the current options. But, if you're just getting started on this project which is likely to take a while, i'd gamble on the idea that you're going to be overrun by larger, more financially backed companies.

Ambitious, none the less.

why do you need $5000 if you are developing it? What are your costs?? Writing code is free...

Writting code is very free but living while you write it is not. Most people find it hard to work and write a full program although I do it so I can't say its not possible.

If someone lends you the $5k, then you are going to owe him/her an arm and a leg. No one will want $5k back, they will want that plus interest and probably a % of your company.

What you should try and do is code everything yourself, without any venture capital, then sell your product. Since you didn't give up equity position in yoru company, you will get 100% of profits.

Try to come out with some better terms. ;)

In attracting investors, you need to come up with something like budget planning, the amount expected to be gained from the project which is the net present value of future cash flows, profit margin, expected expenses, etc. Have you come up with your budgetary planning ? You need to come up with something that would convince people to invest.

Also, offering 5 licenses in return for 5K is not called an investment. It's more on a transaction basis. Try to come up with some offers on the shares in your company (equity). Ratio on profit sharing, special deals like ability to sell the control panels at no cost. You are asking for investors to invest you should offer attractive terms, not in return for licenses. What use would they have for 5 licenses ?

You may want to include details as to how it would be carried out and estimated time of completion, time where revenue will start rolling in, etc .

Avium,

If you are writing a program, what is the investment for? Do you have to purchase raw materials, r&d, or are going to hire someone to write it and pay them or are you going to use the money to pay yourself? What exactly is the investment going to be used for?

I don't even understand what you are getting at. If you are going to write a control panel and if you know there is a market for it, then you just write it - what are the expenses for that? I am not sure where the investor comes in. At least you are implying that you need the money to write the program and it is not for any other purposes such as marketing. None of your terms make any sense.

Good Luck!

Avium,
I think before you dive into this project, ask yourself the question: Is developing a new control panel really your passon? In my point of view, you are better off just buying established players' products such as plesk/h-sphere... I appreciate your passion(I am a programmer myself I have been trying to pull something big out too). But you have to look at it from an economic point of view, that you don't have the funding, and worse yet, software development are very risky(consider how long it took plesk and ensim to come up with their new version). I know this because I am a programmer myself.
You have a couple of choices, whichever one is the best for you will be yours to decide. You can try to find investor/VC for your projects, but you must change your investment offer and make a better business plan.
You could also contribute to an open source panel, such as webcp from can-host.com. This is the best way if you have the passion but not the funding.
Yet another choice would be that you could just buy existing products, and when (hopfully) your hosting company grow large enough, than you can develop a panel with your own funding.
I urge you to consider all these options.

Peter

Hey guys, thanks for all the opinions, but I am still going ahead in getting it developed.

As for the question on what the investment is for - I am getting a team of programmers to write it for me - I'm not so technically-inclined myself... :stickout