Put this in the “I never thought I’d see the day…” category. StartupJournal reports that VC money is flowing back into Internet deals according a survey by National Venture Capital Association, PricewaterhouseCoopers and Thomson Venture Economics.
In the first quarter, venture investments in Net-related startups rose 36% to $753.8 million from a year earlier….The jump in spending followed a 30% hike in the fourth quarter and a 17% rise in the third quarter.
While the magnitude of the spending doesn’t yet compare with the Internet bubble, VCs say they are increasingly convinced big money can be made on the Net. They also claim to be seeing better thought out businesses with substantial revenue and none of the speculative ideas sketched on napkins that attracted money during the spending heyday five years ago.