Tumblroth

I spent this morning at the unveiling of the Android phone, the first phone to run Google’ s new operating system. I had some time to kill before the event and sat at a coffee shop reading all the news about Wall Street’s meltdown and the $700 billion plan that must be approved if we want our precious earth to keep turning. Or something like that.

Anyway, digesting all of that and then going to the T-Mobile event (T-Mobile being the first carrier to launch an Android phone) was surreal. All business seems to be shutting down, according to the Hank Paulson, Jim Cramer, and other assorted Wall Street types. And yet it was business as usual in the world of tech and telecom. I talked to the CEO of mobile phone maker HTC after the event about how the meltdown effected him. Now, granted, he’s based in Taiwan. But still, he has large U.S. operations and $5 billion in revenues. You’d think he’d at least be worried about debt financing or what this would to do a future secondary offering, or something. He said he wasn’t worried at all. “HTC is a conservative company,” was his answer.

No one else seemed worried, either. It was as if the whole tech world was insulated by what’s going on. Is that possible? Or have ripples just not reached Silicon Valley yet? And when they do, what will be the effect?
Obviously the first signs of problems will be if consumers stop spending on things, such as $179 smart phones. But what happens when/if VC firms find their avenues of exit shut off? Or if an extended slump in stock prices keeps options underwater for employees at the large tech companies?