Union Square Ventures - Latest Comments in The Mobile Challenge

Re: The Mobile Challenge

Rich Mendis — Fri, 13 May 2011 11:01:23 -0000

I agree with Peter. True native mobile apps, not just add-ons to existing solutions, for the enterprise will be a significant opportunity. You have to rethink UI interaction paradigms, augment user entered data with device capabilities such as location, photos, etc.. and mobile enable processes that are suited for smartphones/tablets.

Best,
-Rich

Re: The Mobile Challenge

fredwilson — Sun, 13 Feb 2011 08:08:22 -0000

totally agree with this

push is huge

Re: The Mobile Challenge

albert — Sun, 13 Feb 2011 08:04:01 -0000

Push notifications are definitely an important aspect of a native mobile experience.

Re: The Mobile Challenge

votetocracy — Sun, 13 Feb 2011 07:50:49 -0000

One other thing that I'd add to this list of opportunities is the instantaneous nature of push notification. Yes they are available on computers and such. However, people are now consuming information in smaller bits particularly on their smart phones. So they push aspect is key. Services that benefit immediate action (Like Votetocracy) should leverage the immediate nature of push notifications.

Re: The Mobile Challenge

albert — Sat, 05 Feb 2011 10:05:19 -0000

Interesting -- will check it out.

Re: The Mobile Challenge

Erich Wood — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 22:54:12 -0000

Thanks for the post and insight. I think all that you say here is correct. But I would add another feature about mobile devices that distinguishes them from networked computers: push notification. True, you can get an IM on a computer, but the computer is not always with you. Push notifications have a way of pulling users into an app.

Last year I developed and released an app that uses location services, the camera, push notification, and (coming soon) audio and video features of the iPhone. It is what we call part game, part social network. We use push notification to pull people into the app to participate in a jagimo round, which has a time limit. Our users seem to be getting addicted :) Check it out: http://jagimo.com

And in fact, when my friend and I first thought of Jagimo, the we were sitting there trying to think of what a cool app would be. But then I decided to think about what the phone can do first, and what we can make that takes advantage of those features. That led to the idea of the old "telephone" game, which led to a "hot potato" idea, which eventually became Jagimo.

So, in my opinion, you've got it right. Cheers from Brooklyn!

Re: The Mobile Challenge

dirs — Wed, 16 Jun 2010 23:15:10 -0000

Thanks for sharing the vision of you. you do that type of post to diss when 11 months later it can still be used as a business plan?

Re: The Mobile Challenge

Kendall Thiessen — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 11:31:10 -0000

I very much agree with the idea that the iPhone store isn't a financial windfall for developers. But I think the debate over whether iPhone apps make money is misguided. The $1.99 app sale isn't going to drive many business models unless you are producing a large number of apps (or a farting app). So articles that focus on how much money apps made via the store misses the point that it is the interactions AFTER the app has been downloaded that really generate the value. The application (whether iPhone or some other smartphone) is a branded, one-click vehicle for enabling access to one or more valuable web-based services.

I am personally also very interested in healthcare monitoring. I concur with Joe that dumb monitoring devices that can speak to your phone can be powerful. Whether it be the Nike approach in the shoe or blood pressure monitoring etc. The phone is the one networked device that is pretty much on you at all times. In that sense, it is the ideal companion since it would also avoid the need for carrying yet another full-featured monitoring device....

Re: The Mobile Challenge

Kendall Thiessen — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 11:16:40 -0000

The company I am working with has built a very nice payment application on the iPhone---the application is called Mobio--one that may also ultimately also as a general purpose identity management application. http://itunes.apple.com/us/...

For us the key at the beginning was making payments mobile and one-click so we use 2d barcodes to enable a camera to take a pic/scan and initiate a payment using the merchant and product information in the codes. The amoiunt could be pre-populated or could be entered by the user.

The user then just clicks "pay" and the process is complete using the previously registered payment info and notification is then sent to the merchant (by phone, email, or other electronic notification) verifying that the payment has been processed. We already have a number of restaurants in Vancouver, BC using the application right now and it is working great. Back-end integration is our next step.

Example application that we think is cool--imagine going to the aquarium and making a donation to save the whales while you are sitting there staring at these beautiful creatures. This sort of just in time, just in place personalized donation is far more powerful than a generic donation to the aquarium. We are experimenting with Habitat for Humanity as well with the barcodes on the back of tshirts worn by the volunteers. Want to make a donation to this family or to this specific effort? Just scan and click without worrying about who has access to your financial data.

Obviously many interesting variations exist for leveraging geolocation to create incentives, run contests, etc. Imagine a verifiable, payment-driven Foursquare where we know who you are, where you were and what you bought. We have lots of other enhancements/ideas but of course we have to keep a few secrets....

Still very nascent application at this stage but needless to say we are pretty excited about the potential.

Re: The Mobile Challenge

victormundi — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 08:44:13 -0000

We will!

Re: The Mobile Challenge

albert — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 08:43:12 -0000

That would be a good time to ping us.

Re: The Mobile Challenge

victormundi — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 08:42:15 -0000

We already have, but it's turned off now because we are focussing on improving our current version with our Dutch-only beta user group (so, to prevent misunderstandings because of possible language problems). Our platform will open up for public at the end of January, and I think we'll be enabling the English and Spanish versions at the beginning of March!

Thanks for your interest.

Cheers,
Jeroen

Re: The Mobile Challenge

albert — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 08:32:25 -0000

When will you have an English version?

Re: The Mobile Challenge

victormundi — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 20:28:07 -0000

Thanks for the clear and insightful article, real useful points!

We are currently finishing on the closed beta of our business platform for everyone that is or wants be a freelancer. This worldwide network combines working together and doing business with the automation of your personal business administration. With VictorMundi.com you always have your business at hand everywhere you go.

Also, thanks to (1) location-based suggestions, you are able to see which of your customers and/or suppliers are located near your current position, so you know who to pay a visit to be working as efficiently as possible. Furthermore, freelancers from within your network that also use VictorMundi.com can be located by you through (2) the proximity function. This enables you to meet up with your colleagues whenever you - by faith or luck - happen to be at the same place at the same time - an enrichment for your business networking life!

I'm curious to your opinion on the mobile application mentioned above... Our small team is very enthusiastic about it, and so are our beta users!

Cheers,
Jeroen

Re: The Mobile Challenge

albert — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 18:05:54 -0000

Glad to hear that that the discussion is helpful to an entrepreneur - that's one of the reasons for us to write these posts!

Re: The Mobile Challenge

Jeff Johnson — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 16:59:43 -0000

This Convo is a bit over my head, but I have been working on a Mobile Fitness Web App since 2006. I'm not a developer but I came up with the concept for use on the iPod. When Apple wouldn't let me use the iPod I had to come up with another solution and that was a web app. We have recently went Closed Beta with ongoing development. Our plan is to incorporate external devices to be used with the app (i.e. Heart rate, pedometer). This discussion has given me some confidence in my business plan. Thanks everyone!

Re: The Mobile Challenge

albert — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 15:42:02 -0000

Won't be there -- good luck with the preso!

Re: The Mobile Challenge

Ronan — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 09:59:08 -0000

Albert, I saw you invested in FourSquare. Nice.

I'll be presenting Locle Platform at GigaOM's Mobilize 09 in San Francisco this Thurs if you're there:
http://events.gigaom.com/mo...

Re: The Mobile Challenge

Sebastian Wain — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 09:37:56 -0000

I think the 'trick' is to have an application to automatically merge some few photos into one. I've used my iPhone camera (2mp) with success taking 3 pictures of our whiteboard.

Re: The Mobile Challenge

fredwilson — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 09:05:24 -0000

I've done this with my blackberry's camera. It doesn't work too well

Re: The Mobile Challenge

Sebastian Wain — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 23:54:06 -0000

I forgot 11!

11. Need to quickly scan the office's whiteboard and convert its diagrams plus ocr. Obviously going further than evernote. Ala Xerox Parc et al research.

Re: The Mobile Challenge

ShanaC — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 14:05:39 -0000

Students preregister and do add/drop- it would need to be there before the course started. And be a feel good item for administration, not the students, who have totally different needs. It is one of the reasons why the Kindle Textbook utterly failed in test markets.
Really didn't suit student needs at all, because they didn't take a look at the fact that students want ultra portable but very shareable textbooks for studying around. With highlighting and quizzes.
Admin tents to be very rigid and have these applications that are bizarre and come from very politicized vendors that allow them to join other consortium,s of schools, etc. Just Bizarre. And Badly done. It is so Bizarre that I actually once got recommended by career to use Indeed because their own out of state listings were so badly disorganized that they didn't know how they fully worked.
:-)

Re: The Mobile Challenge

fredwilson — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 03:27:29 -0000

Those are some good ones. Thanks for sharing them with us

Re: The Mobile Challenge

ShanaC — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 02:39:59 -0000

Very exciting and very nerve wrecking. It reminds me of why I want to learn to Tango. Just biometrics are not enough. We ritualize touch on the front end to make ourselves feel secure. Can your work handle those lovely nuances of human behavior that make life so exciting.

Re: The Mobile Challenge

fredwilson — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 02:36:50 -0000

Great comment. Lots to chew on in it