Newer posts are loading.
You are at the newest post.
Click here to check if anything new just came in.
Click here to check if anything new just came in.
February 23 2012
Walkie-Talkie App Voxer Popular With Investors, Too, Raising $15M to $20M At Up To $300M Valuation
3_participants_web
There's been a few walkie-talkie mobile apps that have come out on iOS and Android over the last year or two, but it wasn't until last fall that when one of them had a breakout moment. Voxer suddenly hit it big with young black people in Cleveland and a few other big cities last November. Since then, it has spread to the world, topping app store and gaining a wide range of users -- including venture capitalists on Sand Hill Road here in Silicon Valley. By which I mean, lots of VCs are both using it, and looking at investing in it. Voxer has spent the last couple months working on closing an angel round that it had left open, according to industry sources, while also working on its first venture funding. It's raising $15 million to $20 million at a pre-money valuation of $150 million, says one person. Another counters, saying that the valuation is going to be at least double that.
3_participants_web
There's been a few walkie-talkie mobile apps that have come out on iOS and Android over the last year or two, but it wasn't until last fall that when one of them had a breakout moment. Voxer suddenly hit it big with young black people in Cleveland and a few other big cities last November. Since then, it has spread to the world, topping app store and gaining a wide range of users -- including venture capitalists on Sand Hill Road here in Silicon Valley. By which I mean, lots of VCs are both using it, and looking at investing in it. Voxer has spent the last couple months working on closing an angel round that it had left open, according to industry sources, while also working on its first venture funding. It's raising $15 million to $20 million at a pre-money valuation of $150 million, says one person. Another counters, saying that the valuation is going to be at least double that.
InstaMatch Turns Instagram Into A Game
instamatch
Tiny Hearts, the Toronto-based studio behind Pocket Zoo, a top 50 iOS app (and one of my kid's personal favorites), has just released a new title that turns Instagram into a game. The new app is called InstaMatch, and it's a modernized take on the classic memory matching game. In InstaMatch, instead of using images of duplicate items, the photos users match up come from Instagram.
instamatch
Tiny Hearts, the Toronto-based studio behind Pocket Zoo, a top 50 iOS app (and one of my kid's personal favorites), has just released a new title that turns Instagram into a game. The new app is called InstaMatch, and it's a modernized take on the classic memory matching game. In InstaMatch, instead of using images of duplicate items, the photos users match up come from Instagram.
comScore: Japan, An Early Mover In Mobile, Trails The U.S., Others In Smartphones
20120201_01
Smartphone users are, country by country, starting to gradually outnumber those who are using feature phones, and at the same time, consumers have passed a different kind of penetration: a majority are now using mobile devices to do a lot more than just make phone calls. A lengthy annual report out from comScore today, surveying mobile usage across Canada, France, Germany Italy, Japan, Spain, the U.S. and U.K., found that mobile media usage has passed the 50 percent mark, meaning that more than half of us are accessing the web, apps and content downloads on our smartphones. But it's not always the case that more smartphones always equals more media usage. In fact, the highest usage of mobile media comes from the country with the lowest smartphone penetration.
20120201_01
Smartphone users are, country by country, starting to gradually outnumber those who are using feature phones, and at the same time, consumers have passed a different kind of penetration: a majority are now using mobile devices to do a lot more than just make phone calls. A lengthy annual report out from comScore today, surveying mobile usage across Canada, France, Germany Italy, Japan, Spain, the U.S. and U.K., found that mobile media usage has passed the 50 percent mark, meaning that more than half of us are accessing the web, apps and content downloads on our smartphones. But it's not always the case that more smartphones always equals more media usage. In fact, the highest usage of mobile media comes from the country with the lowest smartphone penetration.
Pseudonymous Mobile Messaging App Vibe Acquired By Betaworks
vibe
Back during the heyday of #OccupyWallStreet in New York City (before winter dispersed most of the protestors there), an iPhone app called Vibe became popular among that community. It allows people to post messages, photos, and videos within a geo-fenced radius—everything from a "whisper" (visible only to people within 165 feet) to a "bellow" (visible worldwide). The messages can be set to expire and users can post with a pseudonym or link the app to their Twitter account. Vibe is the creation of Hazem Sayed, and his two-person startup was acquired by betaworks last December. Betaworks never announced the deal, but I've been able to confirm it. Sayed and at least one other person who worked on Vibe now work at betaworks. The deal was likely in the low six figures, with betaworks now owning a majority of Vibe.
vibe
Back during the heyday of #OccupyWallStreet in New York City (before winter dispersed most of the protestors there), an iPhone app called Vibe became popular among that community. It allows people to post messages, photos, and videos within a geo-fenced radius—everything from a "whisper" (visible only to people within 165 feet) to a "bellow" (visible worldwide). The messages can be set to expire and users can post with a pseudonym or link the app to their Twitter account. Vibe is the creation of Hazem Sayed, and his two-person startup was acquired by betaworks last December. Betaworks never announced the deal, but I've been able to confirm it. Sayed and at least one other person who worked on Vibe now work at betaworks. The deal was likely in the low six figures, with betaworks now owning a majority of Vibe.
Android Overtakes iOS In App Downloads In UK, Germany, Russia. U.S. To Follow Next Month
androidmarketshot
With Android accounting for the majority of smartphones worldwide at the moment, it's finally also starting to become the most dominant player in apps, too. Figures out today from analytics firm Xyologic note that Android now accounts for the majority of downloads in the UK, Germany and Russia, and predicts that the U.S. will be the next to go Google in either March or April. This is a sea change from months past, when Apple -- the early mover in apps -- has always dominated in app download activity, despite the fact that it has been trailing other platforms in terms of users.
androidmarketshot
With Android accounting for the majority of smartphones worldwide at the moment, it's finally also starting to become the most dominant player in apps, too. Figures out today from analytics firm Xyologic note that Android now accounts for the majority of downloads in the UK, Germany and Russia, and predicts that the U.S. will be the next to go Google in either March or April. This is a sea change from months past, when Apple -- the early mover in apps -- has always dominated in app download activity, despite the fact that it has been trailing other platforms in terms of users.
Twilio Client iOS SDK Puts VoIP In Any App, Turning iPads Into Call Centers
Twilio iOS SDK iPad Logo
Cheap international calls, mobile gaming with simultaneous voice chat, distributed call centers. Developers can create these and more with Twilio's voice client iOS SDK that launches publicly today. The software development kit allows any iOS app to send and receive voice calls over 3G or Wi-Fi for a fraction of the price of traditional calling. I was actually briefed by Twilio over an iOS conference call app powered by the SDK (very cool), but the real fun begins when developers start surprising us with VoIP apps too crazy or disruptive to predict.
Twilio iOS SDK iPad Logo
Cheap international calls, mobile gaming with simultaneous voice chat, distributed call centers. Developers can create these and more with Twilio's voice client iOS SDK that launches publicly today. The software development kit allows any iOS app to send and receive voice calls over 3G or Wi-Fi for a fraction of the price of traditional calling. I was actually briefed by Twilio over an iOS conference call app powered by the SDK (very cool), but the real fun begins when developers start surprising us with VoIP apps too crazy or disruptive to predict.
Grindr For Equality Needs You! Help Make The World A Gayer (Happier) Place
grindr
Grindr is awesome. So awesome it won a Crunchie this year for best location app, and so awesome that I often wish Blendr (Grindr's gender-open counterpart) wasn't just full of dudes. But the app that's basically a gay man's portal to happy times now boasts over 3 million users, which means that we've got an army on our hands ladies and gentlemen. This is huge for the LGBT community as Grindr has announced that it will use its location-based app to fuel a social movement called "Grindr for Equality". This will allow Grindr to notify and mobilize the LGBT community in specific geographic areas en masse.
grindr
Grindr is awesome. So awesome it won a Crunchie this year for best location app, and so awesome that I often wish Blendr (Grindr's gender-open counterpart) wasn't just full of dudes. But the app that's basically a gay man's portal to happy times now boasts over 3 million users, which means that we've got an army on our hands ladies and gentlemen. This is huge for the LGBT community as Grindr has announced that it will use its location-based app to fuel a social movement called "Grindr for Equality". This will allow Grindr to notify and mobilize the LGBT community in specific geographic areas en masse.
Mobile Payments Company GoPago Nabs Investment From JPMorgan Chase
gopago
It's something of a universal truth: standing in line sucks. The folks at GoPago know it and apparently so do the people at JPMorgan Chase, because the financial firm has just pumped an undisclosed amount of money into the Mountain View company in exchange for some of GoPago's Series A Preferred Stock. I don't blame you if you haven't heard of GoPago (more on that later), but think of it as a purchasing accelerator. Rather than have to wait in line while some putz agonizes over the exact mustard-to-mayonnaise ratio on his sandwich, GoPago users can store their credit card’s payment information in the GoPago smartphone app and place their orders remotely.
gopago
It's something of a universal truth: standing in line sucks. The folks at GoPago know it and apparently so do the people at JPMorgan Chase, because the financial firm has just pumped an undisclosed amount of money into the Mountain View company in exchange for some of GoPago's Series A Preferred Stock. I don't blame you if you haven't heard of GoPago (more on that later), but think of it as a purchasing accelerator. Rather than have to wait in line while some putz agonizes over the exact mustard-to-mayonnaise ratio on his sandwich, GoPago users can store their credit card’s payment information in the GoPago smartphone app and place their orders remotely.
Cloud Security: DataLocker Lets You Encrypt Your Sensitive Dropbox Files For Free
Screen shot 2012-02-22 at 8.39.09 PM
We're all becoming increasingly reliant on consumer cloud services, as cloud storage providers like Dropbox make it easy to share and store files, folders, images, sync between platforms, and more. They make our lives easier, but because they store an enormous amount of potentially sensitive data, there are some inherent risks. While Dropbox is for personal use, it and services like it are increasingly being used by businesses -- another example of the ongoing consumerization of enterprise and IT. That's why virtualization provider AppSense has created DataLocker, a set of mobile and desktop apps for iOS, Windows and Mac that enable users to encrypt sensitive information in their Dropbox accounts for free -- without giving up the convenience of cross-platform syncing.
Screen shot 2012-02-22 at 8.39.09 PM
We're all becoming increasingly reliant on consumer cloud services, as cloud storage providers like Dropbox make it easy to share and store files, folders, images, sync between platforms, and more. They make our lives easier, but because they store an enormous amount of potentially sensitive data, there are some inherent risks. While Dropbox is for personal use, it and services like it are increasingly being used by businesses -- another example of the ongoing consumerization of enterprise and IT. That's why virtualization provider AppSense has created DataLocker, a set of mobile and desktop apps for iOS, Windows and Mac that enable users to encrypt sensitive information in their Dropbox accounts for free -- without giving up the convenience of cross-platform syncing.
San Francisco Launches The 2012 Innovation Portfolio, From Open Taxi Data To Beta Tests In City Hall
San-Francisco-1
San Francisco may not have intended to be become the startup mecca that it is today, but now the city government is working hard to make itself as friendly as possible to tech entrepreneurs. Makes sense, considering that there are 1,539 tech companies and 30,000 tech jobs in the city now -- a number that's been growing fast as older industries like high finance continue to suffer through the recession. What that means is this. Mayor Ed Lee, who came to power last year with heavy support from the local tech scene, is announcing a new initiative today at the TechFellows awards ceremony, that has some intriguing ideas for making the city itself more relevant to the booming industry within it.
San-Francisco-1
San Francisco may not have intended to be become the startup mecca that it is today, but now the city government is working hard to make itself as friendly as possible to tech entrepreneurs. Makes sense, considering that there are 1,539 tech companies and 30,000 tech jobs in the city now -- a number that's been growing fast as older industries like high finance continue to suffer through the recession. What that means is this. Mayor Ed Lee, who came to power last year with heavy support from the local tech scene, is announcing a new initiative today at the TechFellows awards ceremony, that has some intriguing ideas for making the city itself more relevant to the booming industry within it.
February 22 2012
#1 FB Dating App Zoosk’s New Model: Seducing Couples With Advice and Date Discounts
Zoosk Nerd Couple
Every time a dating site succeeds in making a match, it loses two users. To offset churn, Zoosk tells me that tomorrow it's announcing a new business model that complements subscriptions with date discounts, expert relationship advice, gift ideas, holiday reminders and online scrapbooks. The products could convince users to pay even after they've found their sweethearts. If users fall in love with the new revenue streams, the whole dating industry could start courting happy couples.
Zoosk Nerd Couple
Every time a dating site succeeds in making a match, it loses two users. To offset churn, Zoosk tells me that tomorrow it's announcing a new business model that complements subscriptions with date discounts, expert relationship advice, gift ideas, holiday reminders and online scrapbooks. The products could convince users to pay even after they've found their sweethearts. If users fall in love with the new revenue streams, the whole dating industry could start courting happy couples.
February 10 2012
StartX Demo Day: A Direct Link Between Silicon Valley And Top Stanford Student Entrepreneurs
Screen Shot 2012-02-10 at 1.18.30 PM
On the surface, the StartX Demo Day last night could have looked like any other accelerator pushing its latest class of startups. Nine groups got on stage and fired off presentations about how they were working on something cool, and why they deserved funding. But it wasn't the rash of lightweight consumer applications you often see at other demo days. These were Stanford students, particularly technical graduate students, who have been nerding out on solving real problems for years in their labs and dorm rooms, and who are now in the middle of commercializing their hard work. Big-name investors from around Silicon Valley unsurprisingly showed up to check them out.
Screen Shot 2012-02-10 at 1.18.30 PM
On the surface, the StartX Demo Day last night could have looked like any other accelerator pushing its latest class of startups. Nine groups got on stage and fired off presentations about how they were working on something cool, and why they deserved funding. But it wasn't the rash of lightweight consumer applications you often see at other demo days. These were Stanford students, particularly technical graduate students, who have been nerding out on solving real problems for years in their labs and dorm rooms, and who are now in the middle of commercializing their hard work. Big-name investors from around Silicon Valley unsurprisingly showed up to check them out.
The Government Wants To Build An App Store For Real-Life Jack Bauers
259285-480-400
The US Department of Defense Explosive Ordinance Disposal unit is look for a few good coders to help build apps and an entire app store for bomb technicians and soldiers involved in ordnance handling. This is when sliding to unlock could mean the difference between life or death. The request for proposals is as dull as dirt (you can read it hear) but the requirements are clear: they're looking for apps that will replace paper pocket guides and references used by the folks that blow up the big badda booms.
259285-480-400
The US Department of Defense Explosive Ordinance Disposal unit is look for a few good coders to help build apps and an entire app store for bomb technicians and soldiers involved in ordnance handling. This is when sliding to unlock could mean the difference between life or death. The request for proposals is as dull as dirt (you can read it hear) but the requirements are clear: they're looking for apps that will replace paper pocket guides and references used by the folks that blow up the big badda booms.
New Android App Lets You Flashback To The Arcades Of Yesteryear
cpsemu3
The arcade scene here in the United States is but a fraction of what it was back in its heyday, but that doesn't mean that the love for those classic games has just evaporated. Capcom's CPS2 arcade board has attained legend status in certain retro gaming circles because of its catalog of instant classics, and a developer named Cpasjuste has just given those games a new lease on life with a new CPS2 emulator for Android.
cpsemu3
The arcade scene here in the United States is but a fraction of what it was back in its heyday, but that doesn't mean that the love for those classic games has just evaporated. Capcom's CPS2 arcade board has attained legend status in certain retro gaming circles because of its catalog of instant classics, and a developer named Cpasjuste has just given those games a new lease on life with a new CPS2 emulator for Android.
OpenLabel Exits Stealth, Raises $80K To Turn Barcodes Into Public Labels
openlabel-scan
OpenLabel, a startup that wants to augment everyday products' barcodes with crowd-sourced information that helps you decide whether to buy, has raised $80,000 in seed funding in a round led by Peter Kirwan, also an investor in IFTTT. Also participating in the round were Tim Drees and Doug Taylor. According to OpenLabel co-founder Scott Kennedy, this $80K is just the first part of a larger $300,000 seed round, which the company expects to close prior to the April launch of the mobile application.
openlabel-scan
OpenLabel, a startup that wants to augment everyday products' barcodes with crowd-sourced information that helps you decide whether to buy, has raised $80,000 in seed funding in a round led by Peter Kirwan, also an investor in IFTTT. Also participating in the round were Tim Drees and Doug Taylor. According to OpenLabel co-founder Scott Kennedy, this $80K is just the first part of a larger $300,000 seed round, which the company expects to close prior to the April launch of the mobile application.
February 09 2012
Click And Mortar: Zynga Signs Deal With Hasbro For Real-World Toys and Games
home-graphic2
Mobile app developer Rovio has famously turned its Angry Birds game into a popular toy franchise, but most other new-fangled gaming companies haven't spent much energy going this route. But now social gaming leader Zynga is, per a big licensing deal with Hasbro.
home-graphic2
Mobile app developer Rovio has famously turned its Angry Birds game into a popular toy franchise, but most other new-fangled gaming companies haven't spent much energy going this route. But now social gaming leader Zynga is, per a big licensing deal with Hasbro.
Glancee: A Nice-Guy Ambient Social Location App For Normal People
slide1
Some of us can't be bothered to check in, but still want to find interesting people nearby. The challenge for developers is how to do this in a way that is both useful and not creepy. Glancee, available for both iOS and Android, gets closer to solving these problems than most I've seen. The app lets you sign in with Facebook, then it shows you people within 100 yards, or one, two, or ten miles who have things in common. In some ways this sounds similar another app I recently covered, Highlight -- but there are key differences, that will make each app appeal to different sets of users.
slide1
Some of us can't be bothered to check in, but still want to find interesting people nearby. The challenge for developers is how to do this in a way that is both useful and not creepy. Glancee, available for both iOS and Android, gets closer to solving these problems than most I've seen. The app lets you sign in with Facebook, then it shows you people within 100 yards, or one, two, or ten miles who have things in common. In some ways this sounds similar another app I recently covered, Highlight -- but there are key differences, that will make each app appeal to different sets of users.
Stealthy Startup timeRAZOR Raises $3.4M Pre-Launch, Partners With Major Household Brands
timerazor-logo
Got FOMO? (That's "fear of missing out" for those of you who don't do slang.) There will soon be an app for that, or so says the $3.4 million in angel funding the stealthy D.C.-area startup called timeRAZOR has raised. In its pre-launch state, the curious company is already lining up brand partnerships with big names like Marriott and L'Oreal in preparation for its March debut. But what the heck is a timeRAZOR?
timerazor-logo
Got FOMO? (That's "fear of missing out" for those of you who don't do slang.) There will soon be an app for that, or so says the $3.4 million in angel funding the stealthy D.C.-area startup called timeRAZOR has raised. In its pre-launch state, the curious company is already lining up brand partnerships with big names like Marriott and L'Oreal in preparation for its March debut. But what the heck is a timeRAZOR?
Founder Collective Makes A $4 Million Bet On Paddle8′s Online Marketplace For Fine Art
Picture 2
When it comes to a marketplace for fine art, a space which seems to intrinsically resist digital services, technology really hasn't had quite the same disruptive influence it has in so many others. Startups like Zazzle and Art.com have taken steps to make art commercial and broadly accessible, with some cool technology to boot, but automation and democratization haven't really penetrated the upper crust world of fine art in any significant way, for understandable reasons. Democratic luxury sounds like an oxymoron, or phony marketing.
Picture 2
When it comes to a marketplace for fine art, a space which seems to intrinsically resist digital services, technology really hasn't had quite the same disruptive influence it has in so many others. Startups like Zazzle and Art.com have taken steps to make art commercial and broadly accessible, with some cool technology to boot, but automation and democratization haven't really penetrated the upper crust world of fine art in any significant way, for understandable reasons. Democratic luxury sounds like an oxymoron, or phony marketing.
DeNA Has Big Quarter, Acquiree Ngmoco:( Has Layoffs
Screen Shot 2012-02-08 at 5.10.02 PM
Japanese mobile gaming giant DeNA bought mobile app developer Ngmoco last year for $400 million. Since then, the company has acquired a range of other outfits and worked to tie the San Francisco startup in with everything else it does. In general, things seem to be going well. The conglomerate just posted a strong third quarter, with net sales up 16%, which in turn boosted the stock price by more than 8% for a valuation of $4.8 billion. However, net income declined versus the same period the previous year, from $106 million to $79.2 million.
Screen Shot 2012-02-08 at 5.10.02 PM
Japanese mobile gaming giant DeNA bought mobile app developer Ngmoco last year for $400 million. Since then, the company has acquired a range of other outfits and worked to tie the San Francisco startup in with everything else it does. In general, things seem to be going well. The conglomerate just posted a strong third quarter, with net sales up 16%, which in turn boosted the stock price by more than 8% for a valuation of $4.8 billion. However, net income declined versus the same period the previous year, from $106 million to $79.2 million.
Older posts are this way
If this message doesn't go away, click anywhere on the page to continue loading posts.
Could not load more posts
Maybe Soup is currently being updated? I'll try again automatically in a few seconds...
Maybe Soup is currently being updated? I'll try again automatically in a few seconds...
Just a second, loading more posts...
You've reached the end.
