Interview with David Altschul, Divshare Co-Founder

Divshare was awarded the first weekly spot for free advertising here on CenterNetworks. I thought it would be interesting to see what Divshare is all about and what's next. David Altschul, the co-founder of Divshare was kind enough to spend a few minutes with me. The timing was perfect (I had no idea!) in that they just released a new file-sharing plugin for WordPress. Check out our discussion below and it is easy to tell that David is very bright and has a solid plan for Divshare.

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Allen: Can you provide a brief background about yourself?
David Altschul: I'm David Altschul, and I'm the co-founder of DivShare.com and Creative Director of Diversion Web Publishing (the company behind DS). I've been designing and launching successful Web sites for years, and DivShare has quickly become my favorite – the one I feel can make the biggest difference in making people's lives just a little bit easier and more organized.

Allen: What is Divshare?
David: DivShare is a site that allows anyone to host, manage, and share an unlimited number of files that stay online forever, all for free. No registration is required, and the site has plenty of useful features, such as image galleries, streaming MP3s and an embedded flash player, file privacy options, an intuitive member dashboard, and a whole lot more.

Allen: Where did the name come from?
David: The name DivShare is a mash up of our company name (Diversion) and one of the main purposes of the site (sharing files).

Allen: Is there a team at Divshare? If so, what is the makeup?
David: DS is produced by Diversion Web Publishing, headed by developer extraordinaire Rob Howard (the other co-founder of DS) and myself.

Allen: Who is using the service? Is it geek-only or mainstream?
David: We've gotten an amazing response from both the tech savvy and mainstream crowds, and even from those that usually only get on the Internet to check their email and do minimal web surfing. I think the site's simplistic, yet highly functional approach has really resonated with people.

Allen: Do you monetize Divshare? If so, how?
David: DS is monetized entirely by Google AdSense, with minimal, non-intrusive advertising throughout the site. Most people don't even realize there are ads on the page, yet they continue to perform quite well.

Allen: Who are your competitors?
David: There's no doubt a lot of sites doing what we're doing, but we are constantly distinguishing ourselves from the crowd. Sites like YouSendIt, ImageShack.us, and Flickr are all similar to DS, yet none of them compare to our offerings or ease of use.

Allen: Why should I store files with you versus on my own server?
David: Why pay when you can get if for free? Imagine all your files well organized, easily sharable, elegantly displayed, all in one place, accessible from any computer in the world. The site is especially useful for the everyman who wants to backup his or her files and share them with his friends, family, and co-workers with a few clicks, but doesn't want to pay for it or deal with severely limited or otherwise obnoxious sites. Our co-branding options and recently released WordPress plug-in also make it ideal and easier than ever for bloggers to host pictures, videos, podcasts, and other types of files without worrying about dealing with a hosting provider.

Allen: When Mashable announced your launch, they noted that files not viewed in 30 days are deleted, is this still the case?
David: That was our original policy, which lasted only a few days until we realized that it was ludicrous. There's no reason why your files should have an expiration date or mandatory "one view per 14 days" to stay online like a lot of other sites demand. All files stay online forever, and you'll never be forced to pay to use the service.

Allen: Is Divshare funded? Can you share any info on the funding?
David: We're currently self-funded.

Allen: What's coming in the next 6-9 months for Divshare?
David: DivShare is evolving so rapidly, that what's coming in the next 6-9 weeks, let alone the next couple months is going to redefine the way people share files. We'll continue to pioneer online file storage, while introducing new stuff into the site like social networking, premium services, and some other really cool stuff I can't talk about just yet.

Allen: Where do you see the file storage sector going this year? Do you see free or paid services gaining ground?
David: I think 2007 is the year that the mainstream starts to embrace online file storage. And when putting files online, they don't just want to be able to easily access and manage them, but they want to be able to easily share them as well. I believe that both free and paid services will continue to grow rapidly in the next year. While the average person doesn't want to pay for this type of service, businesses that need to send especially large files (around a gig and over) will be willing to pay a nominal fee to do so quickly.

Allen: What do you believe are the most important things that a startup must have to be successful?
David: As cliché as it is, passion is an absolute must. I've been a part of several startups, and there's no question that the ones that really succeed are the ones that have people behind the scenes that truly care about the product and use it themselves. Along the same lines, ambition to change things for the better is up there too. There needs to be motivating factors besides the money.

Allen: What is the greatest business lesson you have learned in your career?
David: Don't half ass it. That's a general, recurring theme, but I definitely think it has had a major impact on the way I work. The old saying that if it's worth doing, it's worth doing well, is one of the most important things I've learned in my life.

Allen: What advice do you have for someone who wants to start a business?
David: Do your research, set some goals, figure out an angle, and stock up on Red Bull. You have to be ready to put your heart into your business. If you aren't ready to do that, you've already lost.

Allen: Which new RSS feeds are you reading these days?
David: While my RSS list is larger than I'm willing to admit, I'm a big fan of sites like Lifehacker, Techmeme, Fark, and Digg. The geek inside me needs to know the second Apple offers a new product, or how to remove chewing gum from my shoe with a common household item.