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  • Interview with Robert Lang of TechTour Web & Mobility Summit

    The European Tech Tour Association launched the first vertical Summit in 2006 (Semiconductor Summit) in a series of vertical events that will gather the best emerging European companies in a given industry sector.

    This initiative sprouted from the need to identify and showcase European technology start-ups in a vertical industry segment to professionals investing or working within this industry. The concept is to structure a best of best startup track along side an innovative industry specific initiative.

    Based on the words from the website, it appears that the growth of the TechTour has been both expected, but the rate at which it’s grown has been surprising. The concept of being able to highlight some of the most innovating, ground breaking ideas in the industry on various topics has worked well for the last four years and has no signs of going weak.

    The Event Itself

    TechTour is nonprofit organization that puts on many events and they either have a country focus or they are industry focus, but both welcome investors, startups, and innovators to come together. Each of them repeat themselves every 3 or 4 years providing a cycle between each event and summit.

    Robert Lang

    More specifically, the Web & Mobility Summit, which takes place on November 18-19, 2009. It is during these events that we pull together a committee from the industry, venture capitalists, and business angels.

    As companies are encouraged to apply, they are responsible for reviewing all the companies in order to determine which will ultimately present. Not all companies will apply. Some companies have enough money to grow their business, so don’t feel the need to present before venture capitalists.

    After selection is completed, the committee will have approximately 200 companies in the database and from there will break down to 25-30 companies that will ultimately be invited to present at the summit. In attendance will be approximately 100 to 150 delegates mainly from the investor side and private equity industry. Some are just looking for innovation and what’s happening in a specific sector.

    “All the CEO’s will have 20 minutes to present their company and in turn the delegates will walkway with a USB stick of the presentations. The pre-selection process involves one screener and one reviewer, so in the end each company has been looked at twice by a qualified group of people,” says Robert Lang, President of the TechTour Web & Mobility Summit.

    This tight screening ensures the highest quality and most thorough review of all companies presenting. Each CEO has roughly 30 min. time to present and a summarized version is provided in a nice binder. It’s also available on a USB stick that screeners will be able to carry wherever they go. Naturally you still get to meet everyone and carry great conversation.

    Selection of Topics

    Summits have a “topic” or industry focus – the geographic Tech Tours are based on a range of industries from the region.

    “As you go from country to country you get different topics, different verticals, and there’s a lot of interest in all sorts of topics,” says Robert.

    In some cases, without a specific focus on a sector, the event becomes too broad and risks not being appealing for someone in the US for example. But if a vertical is selected for example, Clean Technology, then chances are you’ll draw many more people from all over to hear what’s happening in that specific industry.

    When asked how long it had been since a Web & Mobility Summit, Robert says, “The last mobility summit was in 2007, but now we’re doing it again.”

    The Takeaway

    When it comes to participation, Robert comments that man ask the question, “why should I apply?” If you were a company that had a chance to present before 100 VC’s, it acts as a strong introduction for the company, especially if you’ve been pre-screened and preselected. The companies that apply would be looking for expansion capital, startup capital, or go beyond seed money.

    There are other companies that do not make it past the selection committee. Still, these companies will get exposure just from the selection committee alone. So while some companies may not have been a good candidate for the event, the screeners will remember particular companies and keep an eye on them or they themselves might provide capital if they feel the company is strong enough.

    With regards to the kinds of deals this companies can make, Robert Lang says, “Lots can happen behind the scenes from those that didn’t make it but still seem a viable opportunity.”

    In the end, Robert says that every company involved should hopefully takeaway the opportunity for an investor to be interested enough to help the company break through.

    Partner Assistance

    Because it’s a nonprofit, each event lives off delegate fees and their sponsors. Since it’s moving around to many countries, VC’s are regular supporters who will do at least one tech tour a year. There are many other sponsors who become partners by offering meeting rooms and other amenities that help make it a success. Mostly it’s companies looking for innovation that help sponsor these events.

    “There’s quite a mixture of partners, but the identification of being with the TechTour is becoming substantial on it’s own and there are benefits to be had by participating,” Robert says confidently when asked about the direct benefits to the partners.

    The VP and President of the events are selected differently every year as the tour moves providing experience and an opportunity to be a part of this event. It also attracts new faces based on those individuals personal networks and the reach of the conference can grow exponentially.

    Robert Lang is happy to have sponsors and states, “If we didn’t have sponsors we could not run the event.”

    2009 Expectations

    Robert notes that in this time of crisis, he’s looking forward to seeing well trained, well disciplined companies who have not gotten any funding for a while that are going to be more fine tuned and well developed. Many are looking forward to the dinner in the Olympic museum over looking Lake Geneva. It’s important to note that the combo of doing great business and dealings mixed with fine dining and mingling at a great venue is a sure fire way to keep the interest.

    “If events are not interesting people leave and aren’t inspired to be there, but this event is sure to keep people motivated and engaged,” Robert Lang comments.

    To get more information on how you can be a part of this event, either as an investor or as a presenter, or even if you’re just looking forward to attending, be sure to visit the site for more information.

  • Web & Mobility Summit – Debate the Hot Issues and Network with VCs, Business Angels and Europe’s Top 25 Start-ups

    ADVERTORIAL

    The top three hot issues being debated on the web and mobility scene today are:

    • The European venture capital funding model under revision – how will that effect web and mobility start ups?
    • Constantly evolving media channels.
    • Advertising revenues and payment for content.

    The second Web and Mobility Summit, (Montreux, 18-19 November) will attack those issues with a series of panels and keynotes, while the 25 top European web and mobility start-ups will be there to present to VCs and business angels. A hand-picked delegation of industry leaders, service providers and academics will also attend.

    Register now!

    The 25 selected Start-ups, to be announced at the Summit itself, will come from some of the strongholds of the European scene, such as mobile social networks, mobile publishing, adserving and gaming, as well as Ecommerce, E-business, payment and billing.

    The Start-Up Selection Process

    Companies based or incubated in Europe, Israel and Russia are eligible to participate in the Summit. They submit a full company profile and their latest business plan as well as a draft presentation. Each submission is then reviewed by two members of the selection committee, comprised of 20 senior-level business leaders from various backgrounds including venture capital, technology, research and economic promotion.

    Summit President

    The Web & Mobility Summit President (also CEO of Result), Robert Lang commented, “Europe has been a powerhouse of ideas and concepts for a very long time, but many ideas have been slowed down by small home markets or lack of entrepreneurial spirit. In the field of mobility particularly, there are still many hidden gems in Europe who work in one market and are just waiting to be released worldwide.”

    Summit Organisers

    European Tech Tour     (ETT), is an independent, not-for-profit organisation which recognises that continued prosperity in Europe lies in its ability to transform today’s innovative projects into tomorrow’s global technology leaders. Its goal is to promote European entrepreneurship and provide a platform for entrepreneurs and investors to meet, ideally leading to funding or facilitation of high technology companies looking to expand internationally.

    The Association organizes four country specific tours per year to identify the best emerging companies in a geographical region, as well as two vertical industry events to capture the most innovative European companies in a specific industry segment, such as Semiconductor, Cleantech, Medtech and Web & Mobility.

  • Internet On The Go: Interview with Deb Hall, Managing Director at Web2Mobile

    Web2Mobile is a company that specializes in making your content mobile ready for ease of use for your customers on the go.

    In the last 12 months we seen a lot change in the mobile market with a huge transition of users putting their mobile devices ahead of their laptops and desktop computers.

    Web2Mobile works with companies to strategize efforts to make the transition as easy as possible for both the company and the users will access that content.

    When asked whether companies understand the need to transition to mobile technology, Deb Hall states, “there is confusion on the term mobile marketing and what it entails and the opportunities it can offer.” To ease some of the misunderstanding, Web2Mobile specializes in creating a suite of tools that help to erase that confusion and make the client feel comfortable changing the format of their content.

    The tools created by Web2Mobile apparently make it easier for marketers or publishers to upload their content into Web2Mobile’s self serve system and convert it, making it mobile friendly. Being a service oriented business, it looks to reduce the costs based on consultants helping companies make the change and puts the power of the transition into the hands of the client themselves.

    “We’ve all seen content not formatted for mobility, such as bad email newsletters, unformatted websites, and this content just does not transition to the world of mobility,” says Deb Hall when asked about companies that think they can do it on their own. She made it a point to stress that there is a definite need to understand the difference between the normal web and the mobile browsers and that development for the two is very different.

    Deb Hall

    Deb notes that even on a personal level, using mobile devices create a difference in behavior in how we use and read content and how we interact with our devices. No longer are we worried about being at a desktop, nor do we have to worry about the life of a battery on a laptop. In the last ten months she notes that this transition has become more apparent as the iPhone, specifically, has immersed itself into the general populace.

    She also notes that “the mobile browsing space has increased as much as 400% month to month,” make it apparent that companies want to make it easy for the end user to use the devices and access their content. With the increase in wifi tethering, the ability to access content anywhere, and making the technology tools easily accessible to just about anyone, it’s not surprising to see such high numbers of adopters.

    Is the Western World Ready?

    There is a distinct difference in how the West uses mobile technology compared to our counterparts in the Far East. Our Eastern counterparts are using mobile technology for entertainment, streaming TV, music, maps, directions, and just about every basic need possible. The advancement of technology in mobility is leaps and bounds ahead of the West.

    In response to our conversation Deb Hall states that when “[she] worked for Yahoo mobile she noticed distinct differences in how both side of the globe use technology. There are behaviors that are distinct to each country. Pricing models are different and that drives the behavior.” She notes an example on how fast mobile technology picked up in the UK and how it was based on the nominal fee for use compared to Western pricing.

    There is no doubt that the West is slowly catching up with our overseas counterparts, but there is still a long way to go. Web2Mobile is doing it’s part to help companies understand just how important mobile technology can be to their business and eventually their overall bottom line.

    Key Points

    At what point does a company consider going mobile? It’s a matter of strategy, and companies like Web2Mobile look to help companies develop that strategy. When Deb hears the word strategy she thinks about how they are going into battle. The goal is to get their clients in front of as many people as possible.

    “How do we know we’re implementing the right strategy? It’s very important to determine the key objective, is it sales, awareness, or creating a good user experience? It’s all about prioritising,” Deb Hall says regarding the key points that must be identified.

    In all the studies done on mobile users it’s been determined that mobile users are more than likely to act on a call to action. The key then becomes how to make the call to action easy to find. It’s vital for companies to make their sites, emails, and advertisement mobile ready and easy to use.

    Tracking Metrics

    A key factor for a company is to know how much interaction is being done with their new mobile strategy. Metrics give good insights on the success of the campaign, and having access to those metrics can determine the direction.

    “One of the first questions we get when we work with new client is which platform they should be on. Should I be on an iPhone or Blackberry,” says Deb about the confusion of entering the mobile space.

    An inside tip that Deb shares with us is that most companies can evaluate what is happening on your current website and from there determine what devices are accessing your content. Based on those metrics you can better plan your mobile strategy based on those percentages of iPhone vs Blackberry vs any other mobile device.

    An example Deb gave was their involvement with the Masters Tournament. Based on the metrics they analyzed they were able to serve up distinct content to users on various platforms. This makes the content unique to each user experience and helps to build that relationship between the company and their end user.

    Web2Mobile is very excited with the involvement in FITC and hopes to interact with marketers, developers, and agencies and introduce them to their suite of tools. They look to share with all attendees what they are doing and hope that more companies understand the importance of making their content accessible via mobile devices, especially companies serious about extending their brand online.

  • Skydeck Syncs Mobiles' Calls, Contacts, and Voicemails With Web Browers


    Skydeck has launched a feature-packed beta that syncs what takes place on cell phones to a web page.

    The mobile startup’s offering lists all contacts, received calls, missed calls, voicemails and text messages.

    So much so that the company is calling the new Skydeck "your cell phone, online".

    Previously, Skydeck’s beta used mobile phone bills to display real social network based on numbers called the most.

    Now users can listen to voicemails from their browsers or read a transcribed version of each voicemail (via SpinVox).

    The online service also allows users to search all voicemails and text messages.

    Replies to messages can be sent from a browser, with all the calls appearing to come from the user’s cell phone number.

    It functions best on Blackberry and Android phones with full support for Windows Mobile coming soon, but most of the features work on nearly any handset.

    Currently only available in the US, the service costs from USD $9.95 a month, with calls through a PC costing USD $0.03 a minute, plus USD $0.20 for each transcribed voicemail.

    For USD $29.95 a month users get unlimited PC phone calls and transcriptions.

  • Yahoo Widget Engine Gets HDTV Makers' Backing


    Yahoo has agreed deals with a host of big-name HDTV makers, including Samsung, LG, Sony and Vizio, that will result in their sets supporting Yahoo’s online service.

    The alliances put Yahoo firmly at the forefront of the drive towards the convergence of the Internet and TV.

    The new TVs will be available from as early as the spring and will support widgets – small Internet applications – that operate alongside broadcast TV content.

    After making the announcement at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Yahoo said the applications can be used for a variety of Web activities.

    These include YouTube, MySpace, tracking stocks and sports teams, buying and selling on eBay, messaging friends using Twitter, or using Flickr.

    The widgets give viewers more interaction with the programs they’re watching.

    There will also be applications based on Yahoo-branded services such as Yahoo Finance.

    Yahoo will use the technology as a means to to sell advertising.

    The technology also allows outsiders to write TV applications for the platform.

  • Web Sites Must Adapt For Mobile Access


    The rising popularity of smartphones and their increasing use to access the internet means web sites must be prepared for effective handheld viewing.

    With the launch of new phones from the likes of Apple, RIM and now HTC, with Google’s Android-based G1, that trend is set to accelerate.

    Chuck Sacco, CEO of mobile marketing experts PhindMe.net, said the G1 represented another step toward complete Web access for people on the go.

    “What we’ve seen with the BlackBerry and the iPhone is a shift away from cell phones to smart phones and the G1 is going to further spur that shift,” he said.

    “With Google’s Android technology also available to other cell phone manufacturers who want to develop smart phones, we anticipate a spike in the number of people using handhelds for the kind of online information they used to access while tethered to the home or office computer.”

    Sacco said most businesses had yet to investigate whether their Web site was accessible to handheld users.

    But an M:Metrics survey showed that 85 per cent of iPhone users accessed the Web for information and were 10 times more likely to search the mobile Web than cell phone owners.

    Jon Cooper, CMO of PhindMe.net, said companies spentd a lot of resources on intricate Web sites that simply didn’t translate to the small screen.

    He said that with the market transitioning toward smart phones, businesses were missing an important opportunity if they didn’t create streamlined versions of their sites that were both accessible to handheld phones and provided information that people on-the-go actually need.

    “Someone looking for lunch isn’t going to care about the history of your restaurant –they need timely information such as where you are and how to get there, what’s on your menu and what’s on special,” he said.

    “You should make that information accessible on their phone to maximize your marketing opportunities.”

  • Survey shows viewers shifting towards web but preference is still for television screen


    Over a third of all US broadband users have watched at least one TV show on the Internet, according to a study conducted on behalf of the Cable & Telecommunications Association for Marketing (CTAM).
    But the research found that while broadband users are increasingly turning to the web for their video content fix, 94 per cent still prefer to do their viewing on a television screen.
    For cable and satellite networks concerned about the growing threat of online TV shows and movies, the survey provided some comfort.
    Of those who watched online shows, 82 per cent did so because they had missed a specific programme on TV.
    Based on this, the report points out the “critical importance of strong marketing for the initial TV showing”.
    That said, technical limitations that make viewing web video onto TV difficult are not likely to remain so for long.
    The research comes as ByD:sign announce they are launching the first LCD HDTV with DivX Certification for the Japan market. (See Separate article hdtv.biz-news.com/news/2008/06/30/0017)
    With guaranteed DivX video playback, users will be able watch content from the PC on the television while maintaining superior video quality.
    Video On Demand also continues to have a growing presence, with availability in approximately 28 million US homes and over half (54%) of these households ordering On Demand movies or programs.

  • Hispanics in the US more likely to buy HDTV in next 12 months than non-Hispanics


    Twenty-eight per cent of Hispanics questioned in a US survey say they will buy a large-screen television or HDTV in the next 12 months.
    They also say that TV advertising is the medium that mostly influenced their decision, according to research by Vertis Communications.
    This compares to just 23 per cent of non-Hispanics planning to purchase a large-screen or HDTV in the next 12 months.
    The study – Customer Focus® OPINIONES – also showed that Hispanics found inserts and circulars to be the second most influential form of advertising.
    Internet marketing was the third-most selected medium.
    Scott Marden, director of marketing research for Vertis Communications, said the data proved that multi-channel campaigns were marketers’ best options for swaying Hispanic consumers.
    “Hispanics are increasingly becoming more reliant on the Internet and other forms of technologically advanced marketing—including cell phone and e-mail campaigns—to gather information on products prior to making buying decisions,” he said.
    “While this portends a greater focus on online media, it is crucial for marketers to consider a multi-channel effort when motivating Hispanic consumers to make purchase decisions.
    “Television and direct mail should be cornerstones, along with Web advertising, of any multicultural marketing plan.”