Breaking the Code
Sometimes, even the experts can make missteps when it comes to implementing technology solutions. In 2006, when Neil Nelson and Iziah Reid launched BrokenCurve (www.brokencurve.com), they had no idea that technology would change their business strategy—for the better. Initially, Nelson, 30, who holds degrees from Morris Brown College and Georgia Institute of Technology, and Reid, the company’s chief technology officer, a 30-year-old New York native, launched BrokenCurve to develop software that would deliver media content such as videos, music, and film, targeted at the African diaspora via Internet Protocol (IP) to TV set-top boxes. That was the plan, at least. The two poured roughly $150,000 of personal funds into the Atlanta-based startup—then floundered for nine months.