Need your opinion: Would anyone be interested in this?

I own a web applications development company that builds a lot of the usual corporate software, like content management systems, customer relationship managers, and so on. As businesses have struggled over the last few years, we've definitely felt the impact. There are fewer large projects out there and winning them is more competitive than ever.

I've been considering several plans to radically change the way our company does business and have settled on the following two, so I'd like some feedback from those of you out there who either run your own small business or are an executive in a medium-sized business. No Fortune 500 folks needed at this point.

The first idea on which I'm very keen would be to build version 1.0 applications for free in exchange for a percentage of the profits and guaranteed future paid work on version 2.0 and beyond. Essentially, our company would become an angel investor that gets a concept out of the garage and into the marketplace. The 1.0 versions would use a rapid application framework and methodology we've developed so the product gets to market quickly, gaining feedback, revenue, and the attention of other investors. The features in version 1.0 applications would be determined by our company's potential return on investment, as well as an analysis of what minimum functionality makes the application usable and marketable. My company would accept a limited number of these projects on a rolling basis and vett all potential candidates through market research, competition, etc.

The second idea is based on an application we built for a prominent NYC art gallery several years ago. The client wanted to find new artists while also generating a new revenue stream. The application allowed them to host themed art and photographic competitions. Budding artists paid a fee on a sliding scale from $8 to $79 to enter one to up to 20 images representative of their work. A panel of judges that included well-known, established artists, gallery curators, magazine editors, and others in the industry selected the winner. The prizes always involved a cash component ranging from $5,000 to $25,000 as well as a showing at the gallery. Often, the prize package had other bonuses, like a photo spread in a magazine or three months residency in a loft where the artist could work to produce pieces for a show. I can tell you from first-hand experience that this application and concept completely blew up (in a good way) and that the competitions generate income well into the six figures each and very month. I believe this concept can be tailored to the technology market by allowing anyone with an idea, regardless of technical expertise or business experience, to submit his or her idea and possibly win a package that includes the technical, marketing, legal, and business resources to bring a version 1.0 of the concept to market. Under this model, we would only conduct a few competitions a year, and the winner would be selected by an outside panel of judges with strong business and technology experience.

Just for clarification, either of these ideas may include distributable software, cloud-based applications, mobile apps, or any or all of the above.

So, your thoughts?