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Feb 11, 2009 2:19 pm US/Central
Mark Cuban Wants You For His Stimulus Plan
DALLAS (CBS 11 / TXA 21) ―
Isiah Ross of Mesquite arrived early to Tuesday night's Dallas Mavericks game at the American Airlines Center, hoping for a few seconds with team owner Mark Cuban before the Mavs squared off against the Sacramento Kings.
Ross has never met Cuban, but the aspiring entrepreneur has an idea that he is dying to share. "I came prepared," Ross explained to CBS 11 News. "If I was to get five or two minutes of his time, just to show him it's one of those things you don't have to pitch."
Now, people like Ross do not have to wait outside the AAC to grab Cuban's attention. They can just log on to his blog (
click here) and pitch their business ideas in the comment section.
The Dallas Mavericks owner calls it his own 'stimulus plan' to help jump start the economy. "It's just an idea that came to my head," Cuban told CBS 11 News. "Maybe there are some ideas out there that can create some jobs, and all it takes is a little push and a little bit of help."
Cuban is encouraging any and all comers to post legitimate business ideas on his blog. If he sees an idea that he likes, he just might fund it.
So, what's the catch?
Cuban has also listed 13 rules that many will find to be challenging. For instance, the third rule states that a project must break even within 60 days. The fourth rule requires that the project be profitable within 90 days. And Cuban warns that more rules could be added as submissions are made.
However, Cuban does say that he will read through every single idea that is submitted. "It's already eaten up a whole lot of time," he said, "but, you know, sleep is way overrated."
Cuban has tried something like this before. In 2004, he hosted a short-lived reality television program on ABC called "The Benefactor," where contestants competed for $1 million of his money.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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