Mother's Day Video

Expertise

• Experienced creator and inventor of innovative, early technology solutions for fast growth businesses

• Specializing in Alternative Payments on the Net, consumer facing, branded, Multi-channel retailers and Web2.0 companies

• Specific expertise in starting, forming, finding strategic partners, forming management teams, and creating value for unique, disruptive technology companies

• Ten years on private company boards in the US (primarily with companies I founded)

Resume

about mark

• Founder and CEO, UrTurn.com, LLC

UrTurn has evolved from what began as primarily a social-networking site into so much more. urTurn, a social media company, offers you the unique opportunity for rewards (Sendo is primary inventor for Patent-Pending Technology) where users on social networking sites like Facebook and MySpace earn Uros for activity they already do, the program on Facebook is called Urturn Rewards. Sendo developed a new and exciting Uros Rewards System, not unlike air-miles or hotel membership points, whereby you can earn Uros for your activity on social networks. The more content you generate, more connections you make, the more Uros you earn. Sendo realized the need to turn Uros into Cash, thus creating the Uro Exchange, whereby Members of urTurn can go to www.urturn.com to buy/sell and redeem Uros for cash and cool prizes. Sendo developed the electronic marketplace concept, brought on the necessary strategic partners and raised enough funding to launch.

• co-founder of A3 Technologies, Ann Arbor, MI and it's wholly owned subsidiary based in London, UK called, PrepaidSolutions.com which designed, created and launched the world’s first pre-paid online gambling gift card through partypoker.com.

• resurrected Internetmoney.com and co-founded IMX-Solutions.com. Sold equity interest in 2005.

• primary author on the patent Number 6,970,852 Sendo, et al. applied April 1998, issued November 29, 2005. The Patent: “methods and apparatus for conducting secure, online monetary transactions.”

• primary author of a patent-pending system for Kidscash.com titled, “system and method enabling children to shop online.”

• 7 years in the Investment brokerage business with Merrill Lynch; Pierce, Fenner and Smith; Drexel Burnham Lambert; and Shearson Lehman Brothers

• Merrill Lynch – spent 2 ½ years earning recognition for ranking in top quintile as a financial consultant building an asset base of money under management from zero to over $18 million within 22months. Won numerous trips, prizes, awards, left to seek more recognition with Drexel, as my feeling of importance rocketed uncontrollably due to too much success too soon.

• Drexel Burnham Lambert – one of the youngest first vice presidents hired in at age 24, spent just 9 months at Drexel, after having an impeccable reputation at Merrill, was fired from Drexel for “failing to follow firm policy”. Earned in excess of $250,000.

• Shearson Lehman – Won numerous prizes, contests, earning in excess of $350,00o. The itch to make millions not hundreds of thousands was too much, left Shearson to day-trade for my own personal account.

• Day Trading Catastrophe - Within months, although starting off with a significant 6 figure trading gain, took out a second mortgage of $280,000 to finance increased trading volume. Within a few short (quite long months), lost all my money, and $3.1 million more. Caught myself shorting Microsoft stock, doubled down, down and down till one day, I couldn’t stomach the losses. Called the investment firms on a Monday or Tuesday to tell them I didn’t have the stock to deliver, at the time MSFT was trading around $114. Losses sustained, life over, SEC violations, a train-wreck that would haunt me for the rest of my life. BTW, within 5 days after buying back MSFT and booking the loss, stock precipitously fell around $24 per share to about $90, that, if I had waited those 4 or 5 days, the $3 million loss would have turned into a $1 million gain, who knew?

• Tower Financial – A mortgage company, first years profits exceeded $250k without any experience, the next year company went bankrupt.

• Patriot Systems – Developed one of the first Computerized Loan Origination systems together with EDS. Company was eventually turned into MortgageOnline, The Internet.

• Mortgageonline@msn.com –Developed the Country’s first mortgage online commerce site and launched when Microsoft bundled MSN with Windows 95. My little company’s icon on MSN Personal Finance Home Page sat next to Chase Direct and Schwab. Sold or settle to/with Microsoft as MSN ceded to AOL.

• Worldlotto.com – Spent a year developing the first world wide lottery and quit after too many unsettled US gambling laws remained and consumers’ inability to use credit cards to gambling to purchase lottery tickets. The notion of developing an alternative to Visa/MasterCard lead to Internetmoney.com.

• Internetmoney.com – Had vision early in 1998 to developed an alternative payment system with more security using a two-factor authentication system: Primary author for
United States Patent 6,970,852 Sendo , et al. November 29, 2005
Methods and apparatus for conducting secure, online monetary transactions

Internetmoney.com died (but had a second life, more to come) and I did too. More problems i incurred that i think centered less on my actions in running a company but more how i treated people. Another huge lession learned.

• Internetmoney.com resurrected – After completing a long term treatment center, mowing lawns for 6 months, and beginning a new life in recovery, I resurrected IMC with Mark Brode. Brought in other managers to run and operate; they changed IMC to http://www.imx-solutions.com. Since, all previous shareholders received shares in IMX and more than I think $2 million has been raised thus far, IMX has a shot. Sold equity interest early on to pay for past debts

• A3 Technologies, LLC – Together with Lorne Darnell and Alan Jordan, two prominent successful businessman here in Ann Arbor sought through my vision to bring pre-paid gift cards to Europe through http://www.a3tech.com riding the success of gift cards here in the US. We launched the first ever pre-paid Partypoker.com gift card in England through thousands of retailers in and around the greater London area. Sold equity interest to Lorne Darnell to found and run my own companies.

• Stealth Project 1 - Concurrently created the idea for tweens to buy things online without credit cards. Primary author for patent-pending title: System and Method Enabling children to Shop On-line. Provisional Patent Application Serial No. 60/816,269. Brought in Brian Ferrilla and Leslie Armour who now have the tasks of launching and operating solution for tweens. Had to sign off due to past legal issues but I believe it’s best as they both possess the expertise better than I in this particular domain.

• Stealth Project 2 – In the process of creating a niche social network community for like-minded business travellers. Idea came when in London heading back to room and in lobby of Thistle Hotel, Charing Cross, London, I was tired of ordering room service, eating alone, surfing net/tv, wondered how many people in hotel would like to share coffee/dinner/go running, etc.. Wondered further how we would communicate, answer, Web2.0!

• Stealth Project 3 – Wow, this project I started after chasing money, strategic partners, managers to run my companies necessary to counteract my past legal issues, and spending too much time on social networks contributing my time, my content, my energy without anything but entertainment as a result. Through some pretty savvy Intellectual Property, we hope to disrupt the current Business Model for Web2.0 User Generated Content Companies, more to follow.

In summary, I never thought my energy, passion and drive to change the world through creating ideas and companies would resurface. They have - and indeed have increased. The most difficult lessons turned out to provide the foundation for being a better, more honest man, father, and businessman.

Personal Details:

Racham Graduate School for Applied Economics, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI - MacroEconomist

B.A., Economics, University of Michigan; Economics/Finance


Contact: Mark.s6@comcast.net

New Frontier

OK, our first 5 days or so, urturn.com signed up just over 200 users. Our goal is to maintain a low profile (regional basis) until we work through the bugs and enhance our platform. It's amazing and surprising how well received the users are and how willing most people wish to help! Altruism exists and it's truly fantastic!

however, who said we would have to work 16 hour days? There is no way around it either. We had the Monster Energy Truck and some hotties passing out drinks and urTurn.com promo cards around campus, awesome. Many people have said how atonished they are what we've been able to accomplish in such a short period of time, with as little capital as burned! Am kinda proud that the team has perservered through the "boot strap" period, some money is finally coming in and execution must be flawless. Next goal, find the right talent to help EXECUTE!

Update

It's been several months since I published my first blog. 25 views thus far and no comments. hmmm.

Have been quite stressed launching my very first company without "controlling" partners. I think we have 7 developers of which 3 are PhD's in Computer Science from University of Michigan, way smarter people. We are 11 days away and an earth shattering amount of work must be completed by November 5th.

The idea of Yoga in 105 degrees makes me run, but the truth be told, Yoga and meetings (recovery) are the two primary factors keeping me sane.