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To kick off the launch, PowerInbox signed up ten partners who used the API to build email apps across multiple verticals including video, shopping, games and more.
As a refresher, PowerInbox is service that runs on top of email (Gmail, Hotmail, Yahoo mail or Outlook), augmenting the messages sent to you by various services, like Facebook or Twitter, for example. | Startups |
With PowerInbox installed via a browser extension (or Outlook add-in), those emails become interactive. In other words, you don’t have to click through on a link in an email to take a specific action, you can do it right from within the email itself.
From your Twitter emails, you can follow, message and @reply users. From Facebook emails you can like and reply to posts. | Startups |
You can also add people to Google+ circles or see how long you have left to grab the newest Groupon.
With today’s API launch (beta), companies can add their own interactive elements to the emails they send out, including e-commerce functions, videos, photos, real-time updates within the email’s body, and more.
Ten companies have teamed up with PowerInbox, and are announcing their own interactive emails. | Startups |
These include:
PowerInbox is also debuting support for Outlook today (2003, 2007, 2010), as well as browser extensions for Safari and Internet Explorer. Previously, it only supported Chrome, Firefox and Rockmelt.
While it may not be as exiting as a Facebook IPO, email is still the most used application for many people. | Startups |
“We spend more than 1.5 trillion minutes in email a year,” says PowerInbox CEO Matt Thazhmon. “This is an incredible amount of time and we wanted to make sure it was time well spent.”
Despite email’s ubiquity, it hasn’t turned into a platform. “Email hasn’t really changed in the last 20 years,” Thazhmon says. | Startups |
“I have no doubt that in the future we will all be able to shop, play games, watch movies etc, right in our email.”
Early metrics from the service’s first users show that making emails more interactive can have an effect. | Startups |
Roughly 30% of users have followed someone on Twitter, tweeted, DM’d or liked something on Facebook via the platform.
Going forward, the company will focus on API improvements, adding more partners, and, in the near-term, on maintenance, tutorials, and launching hackathons and contests.
PowerInbox raised an additional $800,000 in funding in October, bringing its total funding to $1.9 million, with both VC and angel backers.
The toolkit, API and documentation will be live this morning at Powerinbox.com/learnmore.. | Startups |
Anti-consumer legislation SOPA and PIPA might be all but dead, but there isn’t time to rest. There is a seemingly never-ending flow of proposed legislation, statutes and bills queued up, ready to bust down doors and storm living rooms. One of the latest involves the forced transition from analog to digital cable — something I wrote about back in 2008. | Startups |
If the FCC caves to massive lobbying from the cable companies, the days of unencrypted cable stations in the US will be numbered. Cable subscribers would be required to have a cable box (which will likely cost money) or CableCard-compatible box to receive even local network stations.
Boxee just recently started taking an active role in this fight. | Startups |
The Boxee Box has always been uniquely positioned as a legitimate cable alternative, but it wasn’t until Boxee Live TV launched last month that the company has gone against cable companies face-to-face. | Startups |
But if this proposal passes, it will stifle products not only from Boxee, but also products from El Gato, Silicon Dust and others — and let’s not forget about the likely millions of cable TVs currently enjoying living a box-less life.
Right now most cable providers are required by a 1996 FCC rule to provide a basic set of unencrypted stations. | Startups |
These are most often just local broadcast stations also available through an OTA tuner (think ABC, PBS, and a random religious station). Under the current rules, cable companies are not allowed to encrypt these stations, therefore allowing them to work with any TV, tuner, or as the FCC calls them, navigation devices like the Boxee Live TV. | Startups |
As cable providers started transitioning to a more efficient digital signal, these channels remained, able to work with older TVs most often found in guest bedrooms, garages and the like. But soon even those stations might go dark. | Startups |
This process started several years back when Cablevision became the first provider to petition the FCC for a waiver (pdf alert) allowing the provider to completely ditch analog channels in some markets. The FCC granted the request, which caused several other providers to file similar petitions.
But this isn’t as nefarious as it sounds. Analog cable systems are notoriously inefficient. | Startups |
Cablevision went on to launch the US’s first residential 100mbps service way back in 2009. This was partly possible because the company freed space by using an all-digital TV transmission. At the time Verizon’s FiOS topped out at 50mbps, and as former TechCrunch writer Nicholas Deleon found out, the service lived up to its expectations. Plus it was only $100 a month. | Startups |
In 2009.
Comcast pointed out in 2009 that the provider can fit 10-15 digital stations or 2-3 HD stations onto a single analog transmission. Per AllVid’s press release citing Comcast’s Comments on the FCC’s docket number 11-169, Comcast went on to respond to the FCC in November 2011 that the digital transition goal set by Congress was achieved. | Startups |
So if the leak was fixed, why completely shut off the water now?
The National Cable & Telecommunications Association argues it’s time to move forward. Digital boxes allows cable companies to remotely troubleshoot problems therefore reducing the amount of trucks needed to respond to service calls. You know, it’s better for the Earth. | Startups |
Each time a cable truck is saved from rolling out to a subscriber’s house, Al Gore plants a tree — or something like that.
The NCTA goes on to state in its comments to the FCC that 77% of cable subscribers are already on a digital service, more on the larger providers: it’s 90% for Comcast, 95% for Cablevision, and 74% for TWC. | Startups |
The trade association insists that it’s time for the FCC to drop outdated rules and allow for a level playing field. Netflix has more subscribers than any cable provider, it states. As “the marketplace is robustly competitive and video services are being delivered over a range of different platforms to a wide array of different devices” a level playing field is warranted. | Startups |
Yes, the National Cable & Telecommunications Association says cable providers need the FCC’s to help stop people from cutting the cord.
Comcast started implementing a mostly digital line-up in my area in 2008. I was furious. I was going to lose service on several TVs. | Startups |
Now, my TV in my garage and office sit unused (first world problem, I know) because I’m not going to pay the $3 a month for additional boxes. The march to 100% digital will raise rates and alienate millions, I said. | Startups |
Now, Comcast and others are marching up the FCC stairs again, fueled by nearly endless lobbying money.
Boxee points out in their blog post that cable companies spent more the $50 million on lobbying. That’s $50 million, that rather than improving their service, was spent on courting the FCC and legislators into redefining consumer friendly statutes. Boxee doesn’t have that kind of cash. | Startups |
They instead received an audience with the FCC Chairman and staff and presented their argument that modifying the existing rules will slow innovation, harm start-ups and hurt consumers by raising rates. But moreover, the move to an all-digital service can be achieved in different means.
The CEA agrees. | Startups |
The Consumer Electronic Association indicated that the proposed ruling should not be enacted by itself. There are other, more pressing matters that the FCC must address alongside this issue. Granting cable providers a sweeping ruling does not solve the underlining issues of lack of competition, “downloadable security”, and allowing the private sector to enact their solutions (AllVid). | Startups |
“If [the FCC] is going to continue with fixes that are only “interim,” it should proceed, as well, with a true solution,” says the CEA at the end of its comments on the matter.
The AllVid Tech Company Alliance, a group of industry leaders founded to advance the FCC’s proposed AllVid standard, also oppose the ruling. | Startups |
The alliance states that the FCC should continue issuing waivers on a case-by-case basis. Anything less would stifle competition and force more consumers to rely on “proprietary leased devices.”
Boxee is winning. Consumers are winning. Cable companies are starting to feel the heat from people tired of paying for hundreds of stations but only watching a few. | Startups |
Cable companies need to do what ever they can to lock consumers in, but they’re driving them away at a faster rate. Prices constantly rise without any noticeable improvement in service.
Consumers deserve choices. Sure, they have a choice whether to subscribe to a given cable company, but they should also have a choice to use 3rd party hardware and boxes. | Startups |
In 1996 Congress entrusted the FCC with the task to adopt regulations that would ensure commercial availability of navigation devices such as set top boxes. As Boxee, the CEA, and AllVid point out in their FCC comments, caving to the cable companies would be in direct violation of these instructions.The FCC is supposed to look out for the lowly consumer, not the mighty cable company. | Startups |
Hopefully they’ll keep this in mind as Comcast and others wine and dine Washington DC.. | Startups |
Just a week after winning Best Tablet Application at the Crunchies, Fotopedia is launching its latest iPad and iPhone app. The app lives up to its title Women of the World, showcasing photos of women in more than 75 countries. | Mobile |
It was developed in partnership with the World Bank.
All of Fotopedia’s apps employ a similar design, creating a beautiful, color-rich interface for browsing high-quality photos from around the world. | Mobile |
This isn’t the first time Fotopedia has partnered with an international organization — its first app, Heritage, was developed with UNESCO and displays photos from UNESCO World Heritage sites.
In this case, founder Jean-Marie Hullot (an Apple veteran who was also the CTO at Steve Jobs’ company NeXT) said the goal was to promote gender equality, in particular the World Bank’s Think Equal campaign, while packaging the information in a compelling way. | Mobile |
To do that, Hullot settled on the photographs of Olivier Martel, which are paired with text about the situation of women in different countries (written by Fotopedia with data from the World Bank and elsewhere), as well as more general information from Wikipedia.
The Women of the World app also reflects Fotopedia’s new direction. | Mobile |
Its initial apps were essentially photo libraries with enormous amounts of content. Now, it’s taking a more magazine-style approach — the photo library is still there, but each week the app highlights different pieces of content. That’s led to a dramatic increase in engagement, Hullot says — Fotopedia now says it’s seeing 200,000 visits a day, up 400 percent from the previous quarter. | Mobile |
(The company says its apps have been downloaded 7.8 million times.) Hullot says he’s also moving toward an advertising-supported, free model, although some of the older apps still cost money.
You can download Women of the World here.. | Mobile |
Mobile advertising took off in 2011, as tablets went mainstream and it seemed as if half of the world woke out of a daze to find they were holding some sort of Apple device. Meanwhile, advertisers and developers are increasingly relying on mobile and in-app advertising to boost revenues as consumers become more comfortable with being served ads while on the go. | Gaming |
The mobile app community needs to monetize via ads, which is why San Francisco-based startup, Chartboost, launched a direct-deals advertising marketplace for mobile gaming in May of last year. For those unfamiliar, Chartboost’s mission is to enable mobile app developers to use cross-promotion to increase the size of their user base (and in turn, revenues). | Gaming |
Created by former Tapulous employees (Tapulous was acquired by Disney in 2010), Maria Alegre and Sean Fannan, the marketplace differs from traditional mobile ad networks in that game publishers have the ability to construct direct deals amongst themselves, allowing them to bypass the hefty price of revenue-shares with ad networks. | Gaming |
As Sarah wrote last month, Chartboost offers a freemium model, meaning that “the ad-server technology is free when used for direct deals or internal cross-promotion, but the opt-in ad network offers revenue sharing with publishers.”
Chartboost’s play has represented big potential for mobile game app developers, filling a serious need with its direct deals marketplace model (by providing an alternative to mediating deals through ad networks with technology and an SDK), enabling developers to easily fill unused spots with ads when the need arises. | Gaming |
Not to mention the most disruptive part: It’s free and claims to give developers a 50 percent boost in revenues.
This has led to fast growth for the young startup, as its network already spans more than one thousand iOS and Android apps, leading Chartboost to begin rolling out its network in Asia last month, with plans to pursue further international expansion in both Europe and Latin America over the course of the year. | Gaming |
Since its launch in May of last year, just nine months ago, the startup announced yesterday that it has served up more than one billion impressions. According to the Chartboost team, the marketplace’s traffic has seen a jump in traffic over the last few months, contributing the bulk of its one billion impressions. | Gaming |
The company is off to a promising start, signing a deal with TinyCo in November, bringing its marketplace to Android in December, and has forged partnerships with Nexon, Com2US, and Devsisters. | Gaming |
Gaming has become a global market, and Chartboost is well-served by expanding its reach into hot, developing markets, allowing its developers to buy and sell traffic on an international playing field (in localized versions of the marketplace), while cutting user acquisition expenses. | Gaming |
That being said, it’s a competitive and bustling gaming ad market out there, with some big, well-established players in the international gaming space looking to gobble up more marketshare. With bright prospects, it will be interesting to see if it becomes an acquisition target. | Gaming |
Chartboost raised $2 million in Series A financing in October from Translink Capital, SKTVC and XG Venture, though the team said it was already profitable in August.
For more on Chartboost’s direct-deals mobile ad marketplace, check ’em out at home here.
. | Gaming |
Blip.tv is going through some changes, with founder Mike Hudack gone and a search for a new CEO still ongoing. But the company raised a $6 million C round from its two main investors in December, and now just added to that with another $6 million credit facility from Silicon Valley Bank. There is also a new logo, and the company is now called just Blip. | Startups |
So how is the indie Web video distribution service doing? “We essentially doubled revenue in 2011,” reports COO Steve Brookstein. He tells me that revenues in 2011 were $10 million, and the company expects to nearly double again this year, although profitability is still being pushed off until 2013. But the new cash should tide it over until then. | Startups |
With 54 employees, Blip is a decent-sized startup with a long history on the New York scene. Originally, it appealed to independent Web video producers as an upload-once, distribute everywhere platform. | Startups |
Last year it started to try to become more of a destination site promoting its biggest stars, some of with whom it signed distribution deals.
Blip claims 13 million monthly unique viewers across its network of embedded players,and about 70 million “monetizable” views (videos it can sell ads against). | Startups |
Brookstein says the CEO search is going well, and Blip is working on redesigning its dashboard for Web video producers to give them better analytics. But it really all comes down to serving the best Web video producers. “We will work with top producers to build audience and give them additional financial incentives,” he hints, without revealing any more details.. | Startups |
TastemakerX, an about-to-launch startup that will help music fans get credit for discovering the next big thing, has raised $1.8 million in Series A funding.
The company plans to launch its mobile app in early March, at South by Southwest — which seems perfect, given the event’s strong representation from both the music and tech worlds. | Mobile |
Co-founder and CEO Marc Ruxin describes TastemakerX as “fantasy sports for music lovers,” a service where users can share their favorite music with their friends and where gaming elements encourage people to discover new musicians first.
It’s not the first company trying to give fans points for discovering new artists. | Mobile |
For example, there’s also RockStar Motel, which bills itself as a site where fans can play the promotional role of record labels, earning a higher ranking as they create more fans for a certain artist. Asked via email about the comparison, Ruxin wrote:
The company says Ruxin and his co-founder Sandro Pugliese both started their careers in the A&R department at EMI records in the early 1990s. | Mobile |
Since then, Ruxin has worked at a number of ad agencies, while Pugliese co-founded several startups
Investors include Guggenheim Partners, Baseline Ventures, True Ventures, Tekton Ventures, and AOL Ventures (which, like TechCrunch, is part of AOL), as well as angels Andrew Anker, Mich Mathews, Paul Bricault, Ted Rheingold, Michael Kassan, and Mike McGinley. | Mobile |
TastemakerX’s advisors include John Battelle, Marc Geiger, and Ian Rogers.. | Mobile |
You have to love the accelerated development cycle that spins so fast in the tech industry’s echo chamber. Just as most Americans are starting to get comfortable with this whole “social revolution,” the tech industry has already exhausted every inch of “Social” (and social networking) to the degree that most are now tired of hearing about social. | Startups |
Case-in-point: A startup launching today, called Uniiverse, begins its pitch with this simple message, “Uniiverse is not a social network.” I advised co-founders Craig Follett, Ben Raffi and Adam Meghji to put that bit in caplocks going forward.
That’s part of the reason Uniiverse is resistant to being lumped in with social networks, as the Canadian startup is building an online platform that focuses on bringing value to our offline lives. | Startups |
Uniiverse is brushing aside status updates and virtual friends, tagging itself as a “platform for collaborative living.” While that may sound equivocal, Uniiverse’s mission is to become a service that allows anyone to share any kind of real-life activity or service — for free. It’s a move aimed at the “sharing economy,” a better, utopian future where we share and share alike. | Startups |
(But not only the social media kind of sharing.)
Users can specify what they’re offering, the price they charge for that service (though of course it could be free), and when that event or service is taking place. Users can then instantly discover, book, and pay for the listing. | Startups |
Follett says that the platform’s mission is essentially to turn anyone into an entrepreneur, while at the same time, facilitating offline meetups, interactions, and hopefully encouraging people to live smarter, happier lives. | Startups |
Uniiverse wants to get people out of their eat/sleep/work grinds, out of their virtual worlds, virtual games, and out into that harsh, harsh sunlight.
Silicon Valley and the tech industry is all about big data, but Uniiverse co-CEO Ben Raffi rhetorically asks if that’s really making our lives more social? The more data online and mobile applications and services collect about our habits, interests, schedules, etc., the more personalized they become, making our lives easier, more serendipitous and so on. | Startups |
So the prevailing psychology goes. | Startups |
Of course, the more data our apps and platforms accrue, the more they know about us, the more our interest, health, and social graphs follow us around online, the potential for our digital privacies to go out the window skyrockets.
Hence, Uniiverse wants to offer the requisite social layer on top of its platform, while remaining determined to look forward to the next step, as Follett says that the next decade will be all about the engagement layer, or that which facilitates an easy connection for people’s real-life interactions.
Of course, the biggest issue here, one encountered by craigslisters is trust between users. | Startups |
Somewhat ironically (in light of what I’ve just said), Uniiverse needs some of our data to build this trust. In other words, the platform shows social proximity (like mutual friends, previous interactions), ratings, reviews, and participation across a number of verticals. | Startups |
If someone is looking to rent your drill, for example, you’ll want to be able to get a sense of who they are by seeing what they’ve hosted on the Uniiverse platform — cooking classes with great reviews, or perhaps they go running with one of your close friends every week.
Uniiverse is also an online store front for collaboration for people looking to share their time, interests, belongings, space, and skills. | Startups |
As a marketplace, Follett says that the intention is to disrupt traditional classified sites like craigslist — in the sense that you probably aren’t likely to search for a babysitter on the site — and unify the fragmented sharing economy represented by services like Airbnb, Skillshare, Zimrides, and so on. | Startups |
“There’s currently no transport of trust across verticals and categories,” the CEO says, “and, as a result, the value of the sharing economy really isn’t fully tapped yet.”
Users are thus encouraged to rate and review each other’s shared experiences in order to add an extra layer of trustworthiness in an attempt to facilitate that offline engagement. | Startups |
As such, Uniiverse is tapping into the sharing economy, which values access and experiences over ownership, a movement that could have a positive effect on the environment, finance, and community.
As to the startup’s business model: While it’s free for anyone to post a listing (if a user decides to charge $20 per ticket, they will receive $20 from each person, for example), Uniiverse adds a variable transaction fee to the listing’s price, which is charged to the buyer. | Startups |
Part of this transaction fee goes towards covering credit card processing costs to make the platform possible, Follett says, and part helps support the viability of the company. | Startups |
That being said, the CEO said that they are strongly encouraging free listings on the site.
To further support its lofty goal and still-nascent revenue models, Uniiverse is also announcing today that it has raised $750K in seed funding for its online p2p marketplace for offline services and activities. | Startups |
The startup will use the capital to beef up product development, design, and to offset the marketing costs it will incur as it scales.
Also check out PalLocale, a startup with similar ambitions.
For more on Uniiverse, check out Uniiverse at home here, or watch the video below:. | Startups |
People really like Instagram. Founder Kevin Systrom recently appeared in a Best Buy Super Bowl ad paying tribute to mobile innovators, a testament to how far its come with a team of six. (Over 15 million users-far.) While Instagram is awesome (just ask Alexia) and offers a great tool for simple, hipster-elegant photo sharing, the startup hasn’t extended its reach to include mobile video. Yet. | Mobile |
After watching this formula bring Instagram more than a little attention, a number of startups have entered the mobile video sharing space, all clambering to become known as the real “Instagram of video.” Of course, Systrom hinted at Disrupt Beijing that video may well be in the company’s future. It makes sense for them — when they’re ready and can do it comfortably at scale. | Mobile |
Obviously, with its sizable existing audience, that could spell trouble for the rest.
That being said, there are quite a few mobile video sharing startups that have a pretty good headstart. | Mobile |
Klip has raised $10 million in venture capital, Tout was the service to broadcast the retirement of the one-and-only Shaquille O’Neal (who is now an advisor to the company), and we hear Tout is also in the process of raising a big series B. | Mobile |
Then there’s Vix and Socialcam, which spun out of Justin.tv, found some good early traction, but is returning to Y Combinator to work on its strategy rather than go the typical VC route.
The competition has certainly been heating up in the mobile video space over the last year, but, even so, yet another — Viddy — thinks that it can stake a claim on the “Instagram of video” title. | Mobile |
(Though of course they want to throw “social” into that title.) For those not familiar, like it’s mobile video brethren (with some exceptions), Viddy enables users to shoot, “beautify,” and share 15-second video clips directly from their mobile devices.
The startup saw over 40 million app views in January, using celebrities and influencers to try to separate from the pack, allowing users to create custom premium Video FX layers and, in turn, giving artists, movie studios, etc. | Mobile |
a nifty way to promote their brand through mobile video. For example, Viddy partnered with Disney for the release of the new Muppets movie, and recently created its first “premium artist production pack” for T-Pain, which allows fans to create 15 second music videos with a video effects layer featuring T-Pain’s signature Steam Punk TV effect. | Mobile |
At the time, T-Pain explained his partnership with the startup as a way to connect with fans through yet another social channel: “Viddy lets me connect with my fans in a whole new way through mobile video. | Mobile |
15 Seconds at a time… I hope people download my new Pack, capture cool video clips and share with the world what they’re doing at 5 O’Clock in the morning.”
To further boost its growth (and development), Viddy today announced that it closed a $6 million round of Series A financing. | Mobile |
The round was lead by Battery Ventures, along with other existing investors like Greycroft Ventures, Qualcomm, Bessemer Ventures, and angels that include Sky Dayton (founder of Earthlink, Boingo and Business.com), Jarl Mohn (founder of E! Entertainment Television and Founding President of Liberty Digital) and Christina Brodbeck (YouTube’s first employee). | Mobile |
The round brings the startup’s total funding to $8.2 million, which Viddy plans to use to accelerate international expansion, and bring its service to more devices and platforms. | Mobile |
The startup’s free app is currently iPhone-only, but Android, iPad, Windows, and BlackBerry apps are in the works.
Now at 1 million users, Viddy’s key value proposition is that its video creation platform features custom video overlays and audio effects from users’ favorite musicians, movies, and celebrities. | Mobile |
These 15-second videos can then be shared automatically across social platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and YouTubes.
Of course, any mention of social photo/video sharing models would not be complete without mentioning Color, the startup that famously raised $41 million right out of the gate for its photo sharing app, spurring plenty of bubble-talk, which then proceeded to fail. | Mobile |
Schadenfreude ensued. The startup has since pivoted, relaunching to “reinvent the status update” by way of 30-second, muted video clips.
Color’s use case is different than that of Viddy, as it wants its updates to be thought of as visual status updates that walk the middle ground between videos and photos. | Mobile |
Again, not a new concept, and not particularly earth-shattering, although Color has plenty of backing and access to some new Facebook APIs that help its cause.
I haven’t had a lot of time to play around with these apps yet, but it’s clear that there’s a lot of demand for social, mobile video sharing, and we’re seeing different models go through the testing process. | Mobile |
It’s likely that not all of these companies will survive, and with Instagram potentially in the future mix, it’s difficult to say who’s going to come out on top. Viddy has plenty going for it, as do many of these startups, so it will be interesting to see which startup emerges as the leader.
What do you think, reader?
. | Mobile |
Yes, it’s another startup that wants to help businesses manage their presence on Facebook. | Startups |
Social Candy CEO Darin Kotalik admits that the’res no shortage of competition, but he’s hoping to differentiate his company by combining ease-of-use and breadth of features.
The company just announced that it’s expanding those features by allowing businesses to offer coupons through their Social Candy-created Facebook pages. | Startups |
That’s an obvious way for Social Candy customers to drive traffic from Facebook into their stores — and to track exactly how effective those efforts are. | Startups |
Coupons can be set up in 15 minutes or less, and can be automatically updated based on daily specials, Kotalik says.
Social Candy has already been testing the coupon feature, with Gigi’s Cupcakes, and the chain says it led to 83 downloaded coupons, 150 newsletter sign ups, and 244 new Facebook Likes in the first few weeks.
In addition to Gigi’s, Social Candy has other noteworthy customers, especially in the food and wine industry, including Bandit, Sutter Home, and Lambert Bridge wineries (Social Candy is headquartered in California’s wine country, specifically Healdsburg, so it probably has a hometown advantage.) It’s trying to expand into new industries, with customers like the Recording Academy, which gives out the Grammy Awards.
Coupons will be included as a basic feature in Social Candy’s social marketing platform, which it calls the Sweet Shoppe.. | Startups |
Photo startup Snapjoy launched a clever promotional scheme this afternoon to lure users over from Flickr. And it succeeded — perhaps too well.
The Y Combinator-backed company aims to be an online repository where users can store all their photos, with some sharing features too. | Startups |
That already made Snapjoy a competitor, of sorts, to older photo sites like (Yahoo-owned) Flickr and (Google-owned) Picasa, but the startup decided to make the competition more direct with a service called Flickraft, which promised to “rescue” photos from the “sinking ship” of Flickr by creating an easy way to transfer photos from Flickr to Snapjoy.
However, the feature was only available for a couple of hours before it was taken down. | Startups |
Now there’s just a form to enter your email address and get notified when the import feature returns. Here’s the explanation offered on the Flickraft page:
When I emailed Snapjoy, co-founder Michael Dwan offered a few more details:
I also emailed Yahoo for comment, and a Flickr PR person says they’re checking with the team. I’ll update once I hear back.
[image via TheNextWeb]. | Startups |
Silicon Valley investors have been going to Israel for decades to take advantage of its pool of hardcore tech entrepreneurs. But a new generation of consumer-focused companies has been emerging in the country over the last few years — and they’re facing a few challenges. | Startups |
One is that the local market is relatively small, which means that it can be harder for them to design and iterate products for mainstream users in large markets elsewhere. Another is that local venture funding has been skewing towards later-stage investments. | Startups |
Finally given the distance, access to potential partners and the Silicon Valley knowledge network can be difficult to reach.
UpWest Labs has a solution, which is is bringing new Israeli entrepreneurs to live in Silicon Valley. The setup in some ways looks like the many other incubator/accelerator programs that have sprouted up here and everywhere in the world. | Startups |
Founding teams live together in a house in Menlo Park for three months, work together out of an office in Palo Alto, and meet a set of mentors from around the area. | Startups |
In exchange for up to 8% equity, they receive a small amount of seed funding, usually in the $15,000 to $20,000 range.
But look under the surface and UpWest has some things going for it that suggests it could start producing especially strong batches of companies. | Startups |
The focus is on bringing in founders who already have some sort of product going, who can use their time in the Valley to build on what they have, establish new relationships and learn best practices that they can bring back to Israel.
This is distinct from many seed-stage programs, which more typically look for smart and ambitious people with lots of ideas. | Startups |
Subsets and Splits