UPDATED: Contest ends this Friday, October 2nd, at noon PST.  Second and Third place contestants will receive a 50% discount!

Dealmaker has been putting together conferences and roundtables in LA of consistently high quality for the past two years.  These are the folks that put on the Startonomics conference this past February at UCLA, which was a great primer for web entrepreneurs and provides a level of networking and education that is needed in SoCal.  Well, Dealmaker has recently announced a new workshop that goes beyond an introductory level to something hands-on and actionable.  The workshop is one day, but split into two simultaneous tracks so that you can choose what is most important to you.  The conference details are listed below.

Since SoCal Tech Group is all about empowering entrepreneurs in the LA area, we’d like to give away ONE ticket to this fantastic event to a deserving entrepreneur (a $200 value!).  The IP law firm KPPB has generously donated a ticket to us, and we want to give it to the entrepreneur who wants to learn from the best.  In order to win, you must do the following:

1. Join our LinkedIn group if you haven’t already.
2. Send us an email, and tell us about:
3. Your background
4. Your startup (or startup aspirations!).  This must be your first startup in order to win.
5. What you want to learn from this event

The winner will be chosen by the SoCal Tech Group based on who has the most compelling email.  Winners will be contacted before the event by email.  Big thanks to KPPB to being a part of this event and donating the ticket.  Charles Hollaran from KPPB will be present, as will I, so please hunt us down and say hi!

Here’s the details:

When: October 6, 2009 1-6pm
Where: Microsoft in Downtown LA (map here)
Pricing and Details: See Dealmaker

Opening Keynote: Funding Facts from A-Z

Speaker: Dan Gould, VP Technology, Fox Interactive Media & Founder of Newroo

Romancing the Deal: Getting to “I do” And Getting What You Want
Only fools rush in to venture money, and for good reason – underestimate the bargaining power of your target investor, and you may just end up with a broken heart. Before you jump in, you need to understand the strategies and tactics of negotiating a funding round and it starts with the first date.

· Room 1 (VC Perspective): Mark Suster, Partner, GRP Partners

· Room 2 (Founder and Legal Perspective): Charles Halloran, KPPB & Seth Sternberg, CEO, meebo

Determining Need vs. Greed
We’ve all heard the horror stories of taking too much funding and diluting your value. This session will help you determine how much financing you actually need, explore alternative financing options every entrepreneur should consider, understand the investor’s math, and protect your (ass)ets along the way.

· Room 1 (VC and Legal Perspective): Neal Hansch, Rustic Canyon Partners & Scott Alderton, Stubbs Alderton & Markiles

· Room 2 (Founder and Legal Perspective): Charles Halloran, KPPB & Dan Gould, VP Tech, Fox Interactive Media

Equity Structure
Equity structure is one of the most important and most misunderstood factors of starting a company. How should you divide equity among employees, and even more importantly, how can your equity structure affect your legal rights, venture outlook and exit?

· Room 1 (VC and Perspective): Dave McClure, Founders Fund

· Room 2 (Founder and Legal Perspective): Dan Burnham, Strategic Law Partners & John Suh, CEO, Legal Zoom

Team, Board, & Advisor Compensation
How can you determine the right combination and levels of compensation plans for your team, board and advisers? What are the legal landmines and loopholes you should know about? We’ll help you understand the ins and outs of incentive plans and choose the right mix for your start-up.

· Room 1 (VC and Legal Perspective): Charles Halloran, KPPB & Kent Goldman, Principal, First Round Capital

· Room 2 (Founder Perspective): Jeff Tinsley, CEO, Mylife

Term Sheet Negotiation
Think you’ve mastered the term sheet? Think again. In this session you’ll get to walk through an actual term sheet with a VC,  entrepreneur, and lawyer to find the quick sand and learn how to get around it.

· Room 1 (VC Perspective): Richard Wolpert,Partner, The Mailroom Fund & Christian Scognamillo, Stubbs Alderton & Markiles

· Room 2 (Founder & Legal Perspective): Dan Burnham, Strategic Law Partners & Frank Addante, CEO, Rubicon Project

Working with Investors, Advisors & your Board: What to Watch Out For
In the beginning, everything is happy-go-lucky…until something goes wrong. Now that you have investors, you have more responsibilities and managing this relation is much like a marriage - learn what’s expected by investors and advisors - and in turn what you can and should expect from them.

· Room 1 (VC & Legal Perspective): Dan Burnham, Strategic Law Partners & William Quigley, Partner, Clearstone Ventures

· Room 2 (Founder & Legal Perspective): Jason Nazar, CEO, DocStoc