] For a number of startups, government transparency isn't just a political talking point - it's a lucrative business opportunity.
] Their public-interest pitch is that the antiquated technology governments use to collect and store information makes it difficult for them to manage their own budgets and adequately plan for the future.
] The business angle is that governments are great, long-lasting customers, and there's a lot of money to be made by helping them organize their data.
] Marc Andreessen agrees with both arguments, but the latter one is probably why he's joining the board of OpenGov, a data-focused civic tech startup that makes a cloud-based software toolkit to help public servants sort out their data.
] In a phone interview, Andreessen started with the civic interest case for why governments should be using the services of companies like OpenGov or Socrata.
"In most cities and places, this stuff doesn't exist or it's inaccessible. It's transparency for people who run government, and for citizens whose tax dollars are being spent," Andreessen said.
] "Government doesn't have competition. They're not going to go out of business because they have a monopoly, unless you show transparency and give people comparisons."