Category: StartUps

04
Oct

Introducing SMS 2.0

3jam SMS 2.0 USAChanging a global market worth 60 billion USD – “SMS 2.0” might be right application to rock the market.

Via Diana and Rocco from PavingWays.

Last week 3jam and Virgin Mobile announced their partnership. That’s really amazing news! Virgin Mobile is promoting that deal heavily, e.g. on their homepage and via messages to subscribers.

What is 3jam?
In 2005 Andy Jagoe and Enlai Chu started developing a new way of text messaging communication. Let’s name it SMS 2.0. It improves the basic text messaging by allowing friends and family to stay connected with group communication. The 3jam service is free, only SMS charges may apply. But the cool thing is that each text message you send or receive through 3jam is counted as 1 standard text message, even when your message may be received by multiple recipients in the 3jam conversation.

How does the 3jam service via Virgin Mobile works?
The Virgin Mobile customers have first to sign up on the menu of Virgin Mobile’s WAP deck or at www.3jam.com/virgin.Then they can start sending SMS to any number of friends simultaneously. The receipients of the SMS can reply to all at once.

How big is the market for SMS?
For this year Informa analysts suggest the value of global SMS traffic at 60 Billion USD; Gartner forcasts 1.8 Trillion USD by 2010.

In the US we already talked to some carriers and most of them are pretty interested in partnerships with service developers, since they can help them to attract more customers and also increase their ARPU.

Currently, 3jam is building a global service for transiting, billing and clearing multi-party SMS messages. They are also working on some new features.

25
Jul

Do you already know the chinese Second Life?

My collegue Daniel in Beijing did a great interview with Hui Xu, the founder of HiPiHi.
HiPiHi is a 3D Virtual World similar to Second Life with focus of chinese users.

Here is the interview – see also our China Blog.

hui-xu.jpgCScout recently China paid a visit to the office of HiPiHi in Beijing’s Haidian District, for an interview with Hui Xu. Hui, founder and CEO of HiPiHi, was the general manager of MyWeb China, and was nominated as one of the “Top Ten China Internet Heroes” in 1999. Hui was also the chairman and CEO of JingQi XiShu Co. Ltd, which became one of the most successful e-commerce sites in 2000. Together with Xinhua Liu, he co-founded HiPiHi in 2005.

Interview

Can you briefly introduce HiPiHi?
“We founded HiPiHi nearly two years ago, and the site is currently in beta testing mode with about 10,000 users – about 15 percent are from overseas. Our public test will happen in August, and the full commercial launch will hopefully be sometime in the autumn. HiPiHi is currently the only Chinese virtual world, and probably only the second company worldwide after Second Life (SL) to offer a totally interactive, immersive and open-ended experience for users to create, inhabit and govern a new world of their own design.”

Why did you start HiPiHi? Is the Chinese market ready and who are your target audience?
Continue Reading..

11
Jul

Playing around with Gizmoz

Check out www.gizmoz.com – Eyal, the founder did a great job and started the new version of the Gizmoz Service a few weeks ago. It is great…

29
Jun

Mogulus – iPhone Launch TV

Mogulus demonstrates what can be done with their technology with the iPhone Launch TV. Interesting short clips until 9AM EST when the coverage should be live and multicam. I like it and there were 15 simultaneous viewers when I tried a minute ago.

-> Note: I took out the player. Because it started automatically all the time.

Via Loic.

27
Jun

Make Climate Change history

Climate Counts

A new project is empowering the consumer to prefer or reject certain products which are environmental friendly or not. On the platform Climate Counts you can share your thoughts about companies and discus it with other eco-friendly people. So everybody can start doing something for our environment.

Climate Counts is a collaborative effort to bring consumers and companies together in the fight against global climate change. We are a nonprofit organization funded by Stonyfield Farm, Inc., the world’s leading organic yogurt company and America’s first manufacturer to offset 100 percent of its CO2 emissions from its facility energy use; and launched in collaboration with Clean Air-Cool Planet, a leading non-profit organization dedicated to finding and promoting solutions to global warming.

Everyone’s talking about global warming, but what can you personally do about it? Companies and the things you buy from them have a huge impact on climate change. When you make climate-conscious choices, you’re sending a message to companies that climate change matters to you.

Some companies understand their impact on global warming and want to reduce it. But other companies aren’t even talking about it, and they should be.

Without urgent action from business, stopping climate change may be next to impossible.

Link: http://www.climatecounts.org/

26
Jun

Automatic Generated TV Show

News at Seven is an automatic generated TV Show broadcasted online.

Have a look at this great format and imagine what will happen in a couple of years. An automated News Show is also a great idea for Google News and even for TV Stations around the world. This might change the future of TV dramatically.
Do we still need human TV-Presenters at all?

News at Seven is an automatic system that crafts daily news shows. It finds the news you are interested in; edits it; finds relevant images, videos, and external opinions; and then presents it all using a virtual news team working in a virtual studio. News at Seven is a uniquely compelling experience that can present traditional news–augmented with supplemental images, videos, and opinions from the blogosphere—all without human intervention.

Link: http://www.newsatseven.com/

25
Jun

A Twitter Clone for sale in Germany

On eBay you can now buy your own startup at the moment. The Website “dokudo.de” is a web 2.0 service similiar to twitter.com or jaiku.com.
Dokudo Logo
The current bid is over 15.000,- Euro – we will see where the price is heading.
See the eBay auction.

You are bidding on a project like no other on eBay. This is not the usual crap or licence you see on eBay everyday. You recieve a unique web 2.0 project built up from the ground that is really exceptional.

03
Apr

Invitations to Joost

I have five invitations to become a beta-tester at Joost. If you want to be invited just send me an eMail:
monty (at) monty (dot) de

01
Apr

Joost Commercial

I like how the team of Joost is explaining their technology and idea via a very simple commercial.

Have a Look:

21
Mar

Testing “Future of TV” – Joost

Joost Logo
Today I started to test a new TV Service – “Future of TV” – called “Joost“.
The initial project was known as “The Venice Project” and was now formed into a new company. The StartUp is founded by the Skype and Kazaa Founders Janus Friis and Niklas Zennström.

Thank you Martin, for inviting me as a “Beta Tester”.
Joost™

For more information about “Joost” I recommend the current Wired Article: “Why Joost is good for TV”.

14
Jun

Upcoming HotSpot: China’s Silicon Valley

Is China building up its own Silicon Valley?
Will this new HotSpot also pull in new talent?

Via Silicon Beat:

Silicon Valley and China continue to be the magnets for talent.

Though if you are Chinese-born, China is becoming the sexier draw.

China Silicon Valley

News that China venture capital firm Northern Light Partners raised $88 million for its first fund, according to Venturewire (sub required), caught our eye because of all the entrepreneurs who once worked here in Silicon Valley but who are heading to China to work for the firm as venture capitalists.

But look at the names:

Founding managing partners Yang Ke and Feng Deng previously co-founded Internet security firm NetScreen Technologies, a local Silicon Valley success story (sold to Juniper for big bucks). Other members of the investment team include Datong Chen, founder of OmniVision and Spreadtrum Communications, both Silicon Valley (Sunnyvale) companies, and finally Victor Tsao, co-founder of Linksys, which was bought by Cisco (Tsao recently left the San Jose company). Is there anyone staying behind in Silicon Valley these days? [Update: We’ve just heard from Cisco, and they say the VentureWire story may have overplayed Tsao’s involvement. He is merely a limited partner in Northern Light, and working for Cisco in China! Update II: Northern Light has also weighed in, “Our inaugural fund’s committed capital is $120 million, not $88 million. The posting by venturewire probably only reflected their search of regulatory filings for our most recent institutional closing. Victor Tsao is a special Limited Partner, and at this point in time, Northern Light does not involve him in anything that could be a conflict for his current responsibilities at Cisco.”]

13
Jun

Time for Entrepreneurs!


The recent Business 2.0 Cover is talking about the new potentials for entrepreneurs and how to create a lasting start-up.

BW Cover

For entrepreneurs, now is the time
New technologies are creating new business opportunities, and radically reducing costs for startups. Still, success is as difficult as ever. (more)

Phase one: Establish a company
In order to get started you’ve got to test your idea, build a founding team, get a business plan together and pick a company name that will take you to the top. Here’s what to keep in mind. (more)

Phase two: Prototype the product
Finally the rubber meets the road, as you stake out your intellectual property and assemble the demo that will help you sell your idea. (more)

Phase three: Develop the beta product
Now is the time to start installing your staff — hire the best you can afford. They’ll help you perfect your company’s product and begin the beta testing process. (more)

Phase four: Launch the product
Now that the testing is done and the product has been refined, you need to find paying customers. So stop fiddling and start selling! (more)

Searching for angel investors
Here is what every aspiring business-owner should look for in early-stage backers. Remember, it’s not just money you want; you also want brainpower, connections, and experience. (more)

What a VC wants to see in you
You too can woo even the fussiest venture capitalists. Be sure you’re pitching to the right partner — and expect them to present you with a deal sheet that has some tough terms. (more)

Download the PDF
See “How to Build a Bulletproof Startup” exactly as it appeared in the June, 2006 issue of Business 2.0 Magazine.

20
Apr

Web 2.0 Companies

Today I found a list of Web 2.0 Companies on John’s Blog. There is a lot going on out there….

Web 2.0 Companies

Here is a list I recently got of all the web 2.0 companies out there. Multiply the total by 10 to consider all the ones not included in the list. Who says there is no hype? There are some Web 2.0 Venture Funds in there at the end 🙂

Any comments on your favorite ones, or ones to watch closely are much appreciated.

Continue Reading..

06
Feb

Google and Skype join new wifi-venture – FON

Martin - FON

Today I read at Marcel’s Blog that FON received 18 Million Euro in Venture Capital in their first investment round.

Gratulations to Martin Varsavsky who founded the new wifi-venture FON. He was also speaking at the Digital Lifestyle Day 2006 in Munich. We really think this will be a hot business modell for the next years.

Here is the official News from FT.com:

Google and Skype join new wi-fi venture

By Chris Nuttall in San Francisco
Financial Times
Updated: 5:40 a.m. ET Feb. 6, 2006

Google, internet voice-call company Skype and leading venture capitalists have invested in a new user-run network of wi-fi hotspots, which they hope will become the biggest in the world by the end of the year.

Google, Skype, Index Ventures and Sequoia Capital will announce on Monday $21.7m (€18m) in first-round funding for Madrid-based Fon to build on its growing global band of “foneros”.

Foneros are users of the service and known as either “Bill”, “Linus” or “Alien”. Bill members – after Bill Gates – download secure software from Fon that turns their home wi-fi network into a hotspot anyone within its range can use to connect to the internet for a fee.

Linus members – after Linus Torvalds, creator of the free Linux software – allow their hotspots and bandwidth to be shared for free and can use any other members’ without charge.

Aliens pay to connect to the Fon network and do not share their own networks. Fon and Bills will share the revenues earned from Aliens and other Bills.

The service went live in November and has registered 3,000 users in 53 countries in two months. Fon says it is growing faster than T-Mobile, the biggest network, with 24,000 hotspots established over four years, and expects to exceed this as word spreads.

“We think this is very disruptive technology and it’s going to be global, very much like Skype,” said Danny Rimer of Index Ventures. “It’s another example of an incredibly innovative company coming out of Europe.”

Internet service providers may object to their subscribers reselling the bandwidth being provided to them but Fon says some have already signed up as partners and can earn a share of Alien revenues from the venture.

The company was founded by Martin Varsavsky, who previously formed Ya.com and Jazztel, respectively the second-largest internet and publicly traded telecoms companies in Spain.

22
Nov

Tagging the real world.

Tag Semapedia

Habe nun einen Semapedia Tag auf dem Viktualienmarkt in München platziert.

Mit einem Fotohandy und einer kleinen Application von Semapedia kann man die Barcode abfotografieren und kommt direkt auf die mobile Website.
In diesem Fall auf die Wikipedia Seite zum Thema Viktualienmarkt.

Hier sind alle Fotos zu finden.

Die CScout Trendberatung ist Partner von Semapedia.