Open Tech Calendar

MoMoEdi: The Power of Conversation, or Entrepreneurial opportunities in Mobile Messaging

When creating mobile services, or the use of mobile as a channel to their customers for existing digital services, the main choices folks currently consider is between a mobile site or a native app or the various shades of grey in between.

Mobile devices were originally, and still are to a considerable degree, designed to support conversation and messaging; whether it be around voice, simple text messages, or richer media such as IM etc. This can often be a much more convenient and natural way to engage with a mobile user.

We will explore the opportunities this opens up, the challenges it presents, and why you should include messaging in your thinking when designing mobile services.

The use of messaging on mobile isn’t new - it is more that it has been forgotten about during the app revolution. Geoff Ballinger from deltaDNA spent many happy years rolling out SMS and MMS services in the 2000s and will remind us that these basic mechanisms still have a place in our toolbox alongside the newer and sexier alternatives.

Over the last few years there have been a huge expansion in richer messaging mechanisms on and around mobile. David Low and Richard Keen from Skyscanner will tell us about how they have successfully started to exploit these, initially through focussed partnerships with particular providers, and how they are now starting to draw these learnings into their core travel search products as their users adapt.

One key problem with chat as an interface is that it's unconstrained. It is easy to confuse a bot, and also easy for a bot to annoy a user. Daniel Winterstein from SoDash will consider understanding and sincerity vs automation, and look forward to the more sophisticated AIs and bots we may need. He'll also be demoing his new bot product: Orla, the social-media robot intern for SMEs.

As usual we will finish with an open discussion session followed by a networking reception with wine.

https://groups.google.com/d/msg/momoedinburgh/lIFUZECW5WA/aj5k0pfoCAAJ

http://www.business-school.ed.ac.uk/event/eclub-momoedi-the-power-of-conversation-or-entrepreneurial-opportunities-in-mobile-messaging

Mon 12th Dec 2016 6:30pm (Europe/London)

Mon 12th Dec 2016 8:30pm (Europe/London)

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Mobile Monday Edinburgh: Entrepreneurial Opportunities and Challenges in mHealth and Wearables

While out at MWC in Barcelona this year I attended a session at 4YFN entitled "The future of Health is Wearables & vice versa” where we were treated to an inspiring discussion around the possibilities for making huge advances in healthcare using wearables and mobile technology in general, but also emphasising the difficulties posed by the entrenched business models in that sector.

The topic seemed an ideal candidate for MoMoEdi’s next "Entrepreneurial Opportunities” event to explore all the special ups and downs provided by working in this particular space and engaging with the public sector etc, and be inspired about the opportunities for mobile and wearable businesses in healthcare, but educated about the challenges. Once again we are delighted to be hosted by the Entrepreneurship Club at the Business School.

We are delighted to have Christopher McCann from snap40 and Dave Romilly from Waracle giving their distinctive viewpoints based on their direct experience of working in the healthcare sector.

https://groups.google.com/d/msg/momoedinburgh/PrU02a_691Y/GFJ1mhdbAQAJ

http://www.business-school.ed.ac.uk/event/entrepreneurial-opportunities-and-challenges-in-mhealth-and-wearables

Mon 18th Jul 2016 6:30pm (Europe/London)

Mon 18th Jul 2016 8:30pm (Europe/London)

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Opportunities for Monetising Mobile Sites, Apps, and Services

We are delighted to be hosted by the Entrepreneurship Club at the Business School as the mobile part of their 10th anniversary series of events.

Mobile provides myriad opportunities for new, original, and compelling products ranging from games and entertainment, through communication and sharing, to things that simply make our daily lives easier and safer. Also the mass market has never been more willing to adopt these new products on scale.

The hard bit is often not the product itself, but how best to build a sustainable business around it, in short how to monetise. The best product in the world won’t get off the ground if there is no way for it to make money.

Many apps in particular still monetise their users directly, either via up front payment, or in-app payment to unlock features or similar. Mario Viviani from Amazon will talk about Amazon devices, distribution opportunities and services designed to help developers reach new customers and monetize, including the recently announced Amazon Underground program, which provides a new approach to monetization. The Amazon Appstore allows developers to distribute and sell their Android and HTML5 web apps to millions of customers in 236 countries and territories, and now has over 400,000 apps globally.

For a number of years advertising has been touted as being the cure-all for monetising on mobile, but more recently it has become clear that it is very hard to do effectively. Isaac Roseboom is Head of Insight at deltaDNA and has spent a lot of time analysing the do’s and don’ts of using advertising in games in particular, and will cover some of the lessons learned.

While related, for services in the right sector affiliate sales can potentially provide a more effective and reliable stream of revenue than simple advertising, and locally Skyscanner are the obvious example of a company built round that. Their Developer Advocate, David Low, will talk about where and how the affiliate model can work, and the monetisation tools they provide in the travel sector.

As usual we will finish with an open discussion session followed by a networking reception with wine.

https://groups.google.com/d/msg/momoedinburgh/0XJYjWzMJ4w/73e3q4znAgAJ

http://www.business-school.ed.ac.uk/about/events/561ba01126382cd7180c646a/e-club-10:-opportuni

Mon 23rd Nov 2015 6:30pm (Europe/London)

Mon 23rd Nov 2015 8:30pm (Europe/London)

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In our March event I presented a somewhat negative, glass half empty, view of IoT and the hype and confusion surrounding it. I am still not entirely convinced any two people actually mean the same thing when they say IoT ...

There is of course a positive, glass half full, side to IoT and Wearables, with a plethora of novel devices and capabilities capable of being put into the world around us or around our person. This is opening up a huge range of new possibilities which the creative entrepreneur can take advantage of. Our view of what is “normal” in the world is on the move again and that always creates opportunities!

To explore this we are delighted to have three speakers who are very much active in the space to share their views, experiences and challenges of working in the IoT and Wearables space.

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Entrepreneurial Opportunities in IoT and Wearables

https://groups.google.com/d/msg/momoedinburgh/zqJWNOxhffc/PrVE1Dr9U1IJ

http://www.business-school.ed.ac.uk/about/events/551e8cea26382c6576828218/entrepreneurial-opportunities-in-iot-and-wearables

Mon 4th May 2015 6:30pm (Europe/London)

Mon 4th May 2015 9:00pm (Europe/London)

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At the beginning of March around 80000 people involved with the mobile industry in some way or other will gather in Barcelona for the unmissable week of mayhem which is Mobile World Congress.

There will be a huge range of activities ranging from the official conference programme, miles of exhibition space, and innumerable unofficial and fringe events all over the city. They will cover everything from suited operators and radio manufacturers muttering quietly about 5G standards and test labs at one end, all the way through the big media and corporates trying to work out what mobile means for them this week, devices and gadgets galore, hipster startup CEOs with the latest buzz and hype about apps, IOT and wearables; and on through to use of mobile for social change in the 3rd world and much much more.

This Studio Session in partnership with our friends at Kotikan and Interactive Scotland is all about bringing back some of the “Buzz from Barcelona”.

This is a free event but places are limited so pre-registration is required via eventbrite.

Twitter hashtag #MoMoEdi

This event is kindly supported by Kotikan and deltaDNA.

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MoMoEdi: MWC Studio Session with Interactive Scotland and Kotikan

At the beginning of March around 80000 people involved with the mobile industry in some way or other will gather in Barcelona for the unmissable week of mayhem which is Mobile World Congress.

There will be a huge range of activities ranging from the official conference programme, miles of exhibition space, and innumerable unofficial and fringe events all over the city. They will cover everything from suited operators and radio manufacturers muttering quietly about 5G standards and test labs at one end, all the way through the big media and corporates trying to work out what mobile means for them this week, devices and gadgets galore, hipster startup CEOs with the latest buzz and hype about apps, IOT and wearables; and on through to use of mobile for social change in the 3rd world and much much more.

This Studio Session in partnership with our friends at Kotikan and Interactive Scotland is all about bringing back some of the “Buzz from Barcelona”.

Twitter hashtag #MoMoEdi

This event is kindly supported by Kotikan and deltaDNA.

https://groups.google.com/d/msg/momoedinburgh/hQ_anDILUgY/Qpo_hlmP2EkJ

http://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/momoedi-mwc-studio-session-with-interactive-scotland-and-kotikan-tickets-15699399326

Mon 16th Mar 2015 6:30pm (Europe/London)

Mon 16th Mar 2015 9:30pm (Europe/London)

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MoMoEdi on Mobile World Congress - Save the date

A round up of all things interesting at MWC.

More info coming soon.

Mon 16th Mar 2015 6:00pm (Europe/London)

Mon 16th Mar 2015 10:00pm (Europe/London)

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The Enterprise App Opportunity

One of the big changes on the mobile scene over the last few years is a huge surge in the use of mobile by perhaps less tech-focussed companies and organisations. This presents a huge opportunity both for all those organisations who can now benefit from embracing mobile technology, and for mobile developers who, looking beyond the consumer app store, can both help them understand what is possible and to go on and build it.

We will hear about this from two gents who have been doing precisely this for a number of years and who can share examples of work that they have done with clients within the Travel & Tourism, Utilities, Financial Services and Education sectors across the UK, Europe and beyond:

* Ross Tuffee of DOGFI.SH Mobile (http://dogfi.sh/).
* Matt Lanham of Gecko Labs (http://www.geckolabs.co.uk/).

Twitter hashtag #MoMoEdi

This event is kindly supported by the Skyscanner and deltaDNA.

https://groups.google.com/d/msg/momoedinburgh/SFi2jdo1kYU/4BxCeAj6gWsJ

http://momoedijan15.eventbrite.co.uk

Mon 26th Jan 2015 6:30pm (Europe/London)

Mon 26th Jan 2015 9:00pm (Europe/London)

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22nd September MoMoEdi: Practical Mobile Web

The apps vs web debate has meandered on for a number of years now, complicated of course by the various hybrid app frameworks we heard about in the June event.

There are are clearly many potential benefits from deploying a service using a mobile web app or site, but there are also practical challenges, and one of the largest is simply how long it takes a modern web page to load over the mobile network.

To help us understand how to deal with practical challenges like this our speakers will be:

* Michael Ewins of iWin: "5 steps toward faster web sites and html5 games"
* Richard Lennox of Skyscanner: "Mobile web at Skyscanner"

I am delighted that Skyscanner have agreed to host this event in the events space in their headquarters at Quartermile One.

We will kick off at 6.30pm and please do arrive promptly since it may not be possible gain access if you are late.

Twitter hashtag #MoMoEdi

This event is kindly supported by the Skyscanner and deltaDNA.

https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/momoedinburgh

http://momoedisep14.eventbrite.co.uk

Mon 22nd Sep 2014 6:30pm (Europe/London)

Mon 22nd Sep 2014 9:00pm (Europe/London)

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Minimum Viable apP frameworks

Mobile is a necessity for most digital startups and in many cases it is at the core of their proposition. Unfortunately mobile usually means an app, and potentially multiple apps on different platforms, and apps are an expensive luxury on a startup budget.

For the typical “lean” startup (whether formally “lean” or just accepting the truism that the final product is in most cases not precisely the one they first thought of) sinking £20k into building a mobile app which is likely to need to be repeatedly reworked if not scrapped and replaced is a huge barrier.

Fortunately over the years a number of cross platform and/or rapid development mobile frameworks have come onto the market, e.g. Titanium, PhoneGap, Unity3D, Xamarin, MoSync and Livecode amongst many many others. They allow apps to be rapidly prototyped and delivered for far less investment than previously. This is due to a combination of the use of more mainstream development technologies, and the abstraction away of the often rather perverse and challenging details of the specific mobile platforms.

Of course this isn’t a panacea. The same abstraction involves compromise and makes some use-cases much harder or even impossible to achieve. It is critical for the team to understand where the limits are relative to the intended scope of their app when deciding to use one of these frameworks.

To help understand these issues we will hear from a number of startups who are successfully using this approach to build their apps, as well our local cross platform development framework provider.

The speakers will be:

* Geoff Ballinger of deltaDNA will briefly introduce the topic and give an overview of the major frameworks.

* Billy Jones of Appointedd will tell us how they have used Appcelerator Titanium to create a mobile interface to their small business services platform.

* Jamie Sutherland of Mallzee will tell us how they have used Phonegap to produce their personal shopper mobile app.

* Neil Polwart of Novarum DX will tell us how they have used Xamarin to develop their mobile reader solution which includes sophisticated and challenging image processing on device.

* Kevin Miller (RunRev) will tell us about Edinburgh’s very own cross platform framework LiveCode, and how it can be used to rapidly create mobile apps on iOS and Android using a very accessible natural language syntax.

As usual we will finish with an open discussion session followed by a networking reception with wine. We are delighted to be hosted by the Entrepreneurship Club (http://www.business-school.ed.ac.uk/eclub) again, and will kick off in LT2 at the Business School, 29 Buccleuch Place, at 6.30pm sharp.

This is a free event but places are limited so pre-registration is required.

https://groups.google.com/d/msg/momoedinburgh/OpJBFP_8810/nO07ouES_j4J

Mon 9th Jun 2014 6:30pm (Europe/London)

Mon 9th Jun 2014 8:30pm (Europe/London)

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This month we are delighted to have Mark Robinson, CEO and co-founder of Games Analytics (http://www.gamesanalytics.com/), who will us to help us understand our players/users and thus create great mobile game/app experiences.

His talk will cover how analytics can really help developers and publishers create great gaming experiences in mobile games. Player feedback now takes a vital part in the development and ongoing management of successful games. The recognition that players have different competencies and playing styles means that personalization of the game environment will maximise retention and revenues.

In addition, as a supporting act, Ross Wilson of Kotikan (http://kotikan.com/) will share a short photo diary of the impressions they took away from their first visit to the mayhem that is Mobile World Congress in Barcelona the week before which promises to be a lot of fun!

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Analytics for Mobile Games and Applications, and MWC14 Impressions

This month we are delighted to have Mark Robinson, CEO and Co-founder of Games Analytics (http://www.gamesanalytics.com/), who will us to help us understand our players/users and thus create great mobile game/app experiences.

His talk will cover how analytics can really help developers and publishers create great gaming experiences in mobile games. Player feedback now takes a vital part in the development and ongoing management of successful games. The recognition that players have different competencies and playing styles means that personalization of the game environment will maximise retention and revenues.

In addition, as a supporting act, Ross Wilson of Kotikan (http://kotikan.com/) will share a short photo diary of the impressions they took away from their first visit to the mayhem that is Mobile World Congress in Barcelona the week before which promises to be a lot of fun!

https://groups.google.com/d/msg/momoedinburgh/BsSPctVPzjM/wbbVGLk8w6kJ

Mon 3rd Mar 2014 6:30pm (Europe/London)

Mon 3rd Mar 2014 9:00pm (Europe/London)

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Mobile as an Entrepreneurial Opportunity

https://groups.google.com/forum/?fromgroups#!topic/momoedinburgh/Jy-2yCHRI-Q

Mon 20th Jan 2014 6:30pm (Europe/London)

Mon 20th Jan 2014 7:30pm (Europe/London)

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11th November MoMoEdi: Beyond progressive-enhancement, Bryan Rieger, Yiibu

After a gap of nearly two years I am delighted to announce MoMoEdi's next event which is being run in collaboration for Informatics Mobile Apps Group.

The time is 2020. The inflection point has long passed. Most web traffic is now coming from some manner of portable device. And if Google Chairman Eric Schmidt (and many others’) predictions have come true, we will have truly reached time where “…[technology] will just be seamless. It will just be there. The web will be everything, and it will be nothing. It will be like electricity.”

This presentation challenges us to think about the role of the web going forward. What steps must we take to build a world where interactions with the web are truly “seamless”? What would a seamless web even look like? How can we ensure the web remains strong amidst all the new technologies that are on the way.

Bryan is a designer and reluctant developer with a past mired in theatre and animation. With over 15 years experience designing and developing software, Bryan's work has spanned many platforms including print, broadcast, web and mobile. Prior to founding Yiibu, Bryan led R&D at a startup in the broadband entertainment space and worked on early interactive multimedia prototypes for handheld entertainment consoles and devices. Bryan now divides his time between his own research, prototyping, and working internationally on mobile projects for clients such Nokia, Intel, Phillips, Vodafone, and Microsoft.

Mon 11th Nov 2013 6:30pm (Europe/London)

Mon 11th Nov 2013 9:00pm (Europe/London)

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