'... Justin clearly proves you don't need an original idea to get buzz, sponsors, and funding ...'

Very true. I think the commercial worlds just seen a glimpse of Stephensons gargoyles [0] and blinked at the possibilities.

Reference

[0] Neil Stephenson, 'Snow Crash contained Gargoyles that where constantly wired for sound, images and other sensors selling the information to the highest bidder.'

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snow_Crash