As the crop of startups continues to grow, particularly in digital media, consulting and financial advisory firm Deloitte is working do more than just introduce innovators to potential investors. So Deloitte has been co-sponsoring the Digital Media Center (DMC) group to bring together New York startups from the digital media arena and venture capitalists. And in January Deloitte acquired Seattle-based mobile ad agency Übermind and created Deloitte Digital, a move that enhances the firm’s ability to serve the digital technology market,from startups to more established companies.
Craig Wigginton, Deloitte’s northeast technology and telecommunications practice leader-based in New York, spoke to Xconomy about the firm’s efforts to work with the startup community and the thriving media industry as a whole.
Xconomy: What has been Deloitte’s strategy for engaging with the innovation ecosystem?
Craig Wigginton: New York City is hot right now. I wouldn’t even say it is just the [venture capital] space, because we’ve had some focus on that for a while. It’s becoming the heart, or at least the east ventricle, of the digital media market ecosystem. Whether it’s within technology, media, and the telecommunications space, or across the industry, convergence is the DNA for getting this going. Some of it’s natural. New York City has been a venture capital hotbed for a number of years. Legacy-wise it’s been the media capital of the world. It makes sense that it’s also the digital media capital. We are clearly seeing some of that traction right now. We launched the DMC, which is one avenue to leverage that space.
X: Have you worked with other groups to engage the startup community?
CW: We’ve been involved with Digital DUMBO [a group out to raise awareness of Brooklyn’s startup scene] for a while now. The innovative energy that is in that community and the New York startup market overall is just phenomenal and contagious. We’re interacting with these guys, getting others involved, building connections internally, but also fostering the innovative ecosystem by plugging in the
