Cyber sing-along sites are betting that everyone loves a talent show.
Technology changes, but popular taste doesn’t. Everyone loves a talent show, which is why audiences tuned into the Major Bowes Amateur Hour radio show in the ’30s and why they’re watching “American Idol” today. Now a crop of entrepreneurs want to move the talent show from the small screen to the computer screen.
The Internet already serves as an unruly gong show: Would-be stars can put their performances up on sites such as YouTube or GarageBand.com and hope that someone, somewhere notices. In a few cases, that’s even panned out, bringing a tiny bit of fame, and very little money, to the new cyber-celebrities.
But startups KSolo, Bix and SingShot — which opened the doors to its virtual Karaoke club Monday — aim to create sites where performances are evaluated and the cream rises to the top.
