Mobile Monday Dublin Notes
Back from Dublin and the Mobile Monday talks on Location Based Services and Social Networking. I was speaking last, on Wubud, and the team over on Voice. An Opinion has written up thoughts all three companies presenting. Here’s how Wubud came over…
Wubud was last up. Ewan seemed to have an impossible task: give a talk about wubud while expressly and specifically saying absolutely nothing of any detail about wubud. Tricky that! :-) Anyway - that’s what he did. We know wubud is a mobile social network, and that the jump-off point for contacts is your phone’s address book (something you’ll know we agree with violently here if you’ve seen our earlier posts about the social phone book). So I’m guessing they’re in the zone of Zyb (mobile client), Aka-aki, Belysio in terms of their “coupling” to the phone’s address book. Hot space, and they would want to keep a close eye on the set of new social phones on the way or already out there. Hard to tell - as the stealth cloak is firmly over the details right now. However, they do have funding from Bebo, albeit a modest amount by all accounts, so perhaps they have an “in” there that could help them really ramp adoption out of the blocks. We’ll have to wait and see.
My quick notes on the other companies after the jump.
Mobile Monday Dublin – Nov 17th 2008
Two topics today, location based services (unique to mobile) and social networking
Locle
From where are we, to a buddy finder on your mobile. No previous LBS experience. Conclusion after research was that it should be easy to build a buddy finder.
Exploit mobile’s killer app, location. key social trigger of proximity… who and what is around me.
Revenue from high CPM location based advertising, premium services.
Why is it not here yet? Operator reluctance; GPS is poor in built up areas, high battery drain and low penetration; Cell-ID on many phones but hard to access; Bluetooth has limited range; Wifi limited range or geographic database.
Locle uses a new Buddyfinder application, to see who and what is around you, integrates external social networks; does not reuire GPS or Operator LBS. Status is toggled in ‘Locle Mini’ application (www.locle.com http://m.locle.com/)
[At this point the app, in screenshot mode, is shown for (1) iPhone (2) PC web browser (3) SE/Java].
There is a white label solution for operator portals
[Demo of S60- thin client, t reports the CellID,and then calls up a wap page of Locle info].
Just Routes
Running for one year after to friends were driven wild by Dublin public transport. Currently 7500 timetabled routes in system. Dublin stats, proving the market of too many cars on roads, and why are people are still using the car? Because they have little public transport knowledge. Which is where JustRoutes comes in.
95% of Dublin transport is ‘mapped.’ With start and end locations, you’ll be navigated to nearest bus stop, then placed on right bus, and then from the final stop to your destination.
[screenshot demo of http://mob.justroutes.com/].
Businiess plan is two ways. (1) Location Based Advertising along the rooute and (2) Corporate version embedded in a website – destination is locked in.
ompetitors, none in Ireland, but international you have TFL, Goggle Transit. We see Jsutroutes in smaller cities working as a complement.
RateMyArea
(misssed intro)
Making a wikipedia of places. Opens with desktop web browser. What and Where questions are prominent. Login experience.
Parks, playgrounds, taxi ranks, areas. Capturing photos as much as possible. Talk of context (visual with images, spatial distance, star ratings and review from other users. Has a freecall button to the business, send details to the handset (encouraging mobile use).
Not all phones are equal. This is focus on GPS. Screen size is a premium. Started with iPhone, hit with same questions (runs as a web app).
All boils down to trust, we wan people to trust the service. More info from you means more we can provide to you. Users have profiles of their home area and some public info. We’d like everyone on the iphone, focus on that, with an upcoming interest in Android devices.
Wubud
Err, this is where I was speaking. It went rather well.
November 18, 2008; Mobile Computing, Web 2.0 (News);
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There is a new Geo Post Coding System for Ireland - already proven on Garmin SatNav’s - available for anyone anywhere in Ireland at http://www.irishpostcodes.ie and also shortly at http://www.getmethere.ie