London or Berlin: Where would you locate a new advertising start-up?

Let's see why Berlin would be a better idea. http://www.dw.de/program/startups-berlin/s-31814 here you will find some documented experience of a journalist team following the Berlin start up  http://getvamos.tumblr.com/ (the free social events app that could well be the hottest topic in the Berlin startup scene right now, making its waves internationally, too.) for 6 months evidenting their progress and success. # Berlin is “a magnet for worldwide entrepreneurs and investors”, like  Alexander Ljung and Edial Dekker of Gidsy. Berlin even “feels like a  startup itself”. Berlin is certainly trying hard to beat its drum  lately, what with the arrival of a Pier 38-like tech hub ‘The Factory’.  Geographically, its location is interesting – it’s more peripheral than  Paris or London, but it does have better access to the Russian and  Eastern European markets, which are less mature than the Western  European markets. Berlin has a healthy mix of early stage and late stage startups, but  the report does ask whether Berlin will be able to live up to its hype,  since it produceces 88% less startups than Silicon Valley.. Office space is cheap in Berlin. LONDON “The most successful startup ecosystem in Europe, producing the  largest output of startups in the European Union by far, but its output  is still 63 % lower than Silicon Valley”. “The only comparable hub to SV. It offers a wide range of support networks, capital infrastructure and diverse talent.” London is the female tech entrepreneur capital of Europe. It has the highest proportion of female tech entrepreneurs in Europe (although it’s still only 9 percent. Risks: Funding gap, probably caused by a lack of super angels and micro  VC’s (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venture_capital) .  London entrepreneurs are more risk averse than SV counterparts,  and are more likely to be consulting next to their activity as  entrepreneurs.  London entrepreneurs are “slow in adopting mobile”. ----- Francesco Baschieri, an Italian entrepreneur asserted that moving his operations to Berlin allowed him to find more  skilled developers and engineers more quickly, and he says he was also  attracted to the city’s large and growing pool of startup founders and  technology experts. Berlin is in the middle of maturing as a startup hub. That means: more  PR firms, more investments firms, more bankers, more lawyers, http://thenextweb.com/insider/2013/01/23/f-ounders-in-big-jumpers-hy-berlin-shows-the-tech-community-a-good-time-in-the-german-capital/,  more headhunters, and even more Mac computers in coffee shops city-wide  than used to be the case – and also more distractions. Furtehr Pro's:  the city’s globally central location, the fact that it’s an affordable  place to live and work (though costs are rising), access to skilled  technical staff and, increasingly, capital and senior-level executives  (though competition for both is increasing), but also Berlin’s general  expat friendliness and active creative, art, culture and nightlife  scenes. Those who proclaim Berlin is all hype and no substance often point to  startups like Gidsy, EyeEm, Amen, Xyo, ezeep and 6Wunderkinder. Or check out companies like SoundCloud, Wooga, Delivery Hero, Zalando (yes,  Rocket Internet’s flagship e-commerce business), madvertise, eDarling  and ResearchGate. Cons: While both cities are exciting, young and innovative, they are  entrepreneurial leaders for different reasons. Berlin has low rental  prices, low housing costs, lower salaries, a high quality labor force,  great engineers and it's a fun and creative place. It would probably  lead Europe's startup scene if it weren't for some key drawbacks when  compared to London. Apart from the language barrier (a difficult one for  non-natives!), Berlin has two big negatives: poor access to funding and  a tax/labor framework that fails to recognize the uniqueness of start  ups. Berlin's start-up scene, of course, has long been a magnet for  foreigners. Not only does the city provide cheap rents and a large pool  of young IT experts, but German language expertise is not a  prerequisite. According to the German Economy Ministry, five new  start-ups are founded in the city every day and the high-tech scene is  the fastest growing economic sector in the country. Many of those  companies are founded by foreigners. Start ups in 2012, Berlin: http://thenextweb.com/insider/2012/10/31/berlin-startup-office-photos/ We're  happy to help with further Berlin-specific questions! We are an  on-demand personal assistant service with English and German speaking  assistants located in Berlin. Visit us at: http://bit.ly/16zlwiB Source: http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/italians-flock-to-berlin-to-join-flourishing-start-up-scene-a-903908.html http://www.sfgate.com/technology/article/Why-Berlin-s-startup-scene-is-growing-4226122.php http://www.whiteboardmag.com/european-startup-hubs-compared-tel-aviv-london-paris-moscow-berlin/ http://www.zdnet.com/the-war-of-the-european-tech-hubs-is-berlin-really-stealing-londons-thunder-7000019611/