Jason Calacanis , CEO of Santa Monica-based Mahalo.com and co-producer of the TechCrunch50 conference--not known for pulling his punches--publicly targeted angel group The Keiretsu Forum today for their presentation fees. According to Calacanis, he's on a campaign to "destroy" the angel group, saying that the group has been taking advantage of startup companies by charging them $4,000 to $6,000 to present to angel investors. The effort highlights and ongoing debate between angel groups who do not charge entrepreneurs to present, and angel groups--and commercial ventures--who regularly charge a steep fee for presentations.

According to the Boulder County Business Report , the Denver chapter of the Keiretsu Forum will shut down by year end. "From Tags: Angel Investin From a high of 35 investor members, we're now down to about ten active participants," Chapter President Steve Murchie was quoted. "A A group that size isn't financially sustainable using our membership model, nor is it likely to drive investment volume at a pace that is fair to entrepreneurs." ...Tags:

Jason Calacanis , CEO of Santa Monica-based Internet search site Mahalo , has signed on several angels for his new angel group, the Open Angel Forum - Los Angeles . Calacanis--who started the group as an outgrowth of his crusade against pay-to-pitch angel groups like The Keiretsu Forum--said in his blog today that he has signed up Matt Coffin , Sky Dayton , and Bill Woodward as members of his group. Coffin is the founder of LowerMyBills, Dayton is the founder of Earthlink, and Woodward is a venture capitalist at Anthem Venture Partners. Calacanis

Jason Calacanis, the CEO of Santa Monica-based Mahalo , is continuing his crusade against angel groups and others who charge startups to pitch their groups, saying that he's now calling on groups to stop charging fees, and post what fees they were charging to entrepreneurs on their web sites. Calacanis--who launched his campaign earlier this week, targeting angel group the Keiretsu Forum --has now expanded his list of target angel groups to not only Keiretsu, but also Westlake Village-based Maverick Angels , PrivateEquityForums.com , Los Angeles-based iHollywoodForum's Tech Supper

A personal campaign by Santa Monica-based Mahalo.com 's CEO, Jason Calacanis, to put pressure on for-profit angel investment firms to stop charging entrepreneurs to pitch, has ramped up, as Calacanis said Tuesday that he has been informed that Keiretsu Forum is filing a lawsuit against him. Keiretsu Forum was the initial target of the effort by Calacanis to stop the practice of charging entrepreneurs to talk with investors. No details on the lawsuit have been released by either of the parties. Calacanis has been on a crusade since last week, to expose the fees charged

Was he rooting for McCain/Palin when he named his angel group Maverick? If I had this interview to do over, I'd ask, but we do cover all things related to angel investing in Southern California, especially its newest angel group, the Maverick Angels . Westlake Village, to be more specific, which once hosted a Keiretsu Forum chapter. Is Maverick Keiretsu reincarnated? Just how are they unique?

Was he rooting for McCain/Palin when he named his angel group Maverick? If I had this interview to do over, I'd ask, but we do cover all things related to angel investing in Southern California, especially its newest angel group, the Maverick Angels . Westlake Village, to be more specific, which once hosted a Keiretsu Forum chapter. Is Maverick Keiretsu reincarnated? Just how are they unique?

Is Keiretsu Forum preparing to file suit against Jason Calcanis? It started last week when Mahalo founder Jason Calcanis fired a shot across the bow of angel groups, like Keiretsu and Maverick Angels, that charge entrepreneurs fees to present. We're talking big fees, too: $3500 for Maverick, $7500 for Keiretsu. FROM TORONTO Are these angel groups losing site of their purpose, that being to get early stage deals funded?

Los Angeles, CA 90049 Keiretsu Forum Tech Coast Angels Jeff Cohn, Tech Coast Angels Howdy Campers! Digital Family Reunion is bringing all of the LA Tech/Business/Media scene together next month, for a nice holiday party at the Skirball Center! It should be a blast having so many great LA communities together, sharing their thoughts and having some great holiday fun!

Jason does not mince words when he’s got a cause, and he’s got a new one: taking down the Keiretsu Forum , an angel group which–unlike most–charges fairly steep fees to startups looking to present to investors. Other groups here like the Tech Coast Angels and the Pasadena Angels, do not charge, and members of the groups there tell me they don’t look very highly upon others charging fees to startups. One thing is for sure: Jason Calacanis keeps things from getting boring in the high tech world. Jason– calling it a jihad –asked