ideegeo Group Limited

Telco mobile networks are toast without good content

It is always encouraging to make some progress forward in a new business, so it was pleasing to round off the week by signing an agreement with a development partner to work on our much anticipated iPhone application. What would be even more encouraging is if the telcos stimulated growth in the mobile application industry.

ideegeo is collaborating with coravy. Limited, an Apple approved iPhone developer. They will provide us with a stylish mobile interface and we will deliver the back end search functionality based on our underlying technology. It’s a win for both parties because we both get to extend our development skills and demonstrate capability. We’ll be sharing more about this as we achieve some milestones in the project. We have a mobile product pipeline planned, but should have version 1.0 available within a couple of months.

The telecommunications providers should be pleased that developers are thinking about next generation applications. With Telecom having taken years to make the decision to invest in WCDMA it was no surprise that it was found to be losing market share to Vodafone. Now that Telecom is planning to switch over to a 3G capable network by about November we will finally see some competition in the market place. The networking technology itself is moving ahead in leaps and bounds and as capacity ramps up prices must drop. More attractive pricing plus lots of cool apps should ensure that mobile computing will finally hit the mainstream in New Zealand and globally.

What is still unclear is why the telcos rarely talk to independent developers. It’s all very fine investing in mobile network infrastructure, but if there is no product who is going to use it? Telcos have traditionally not been successful at developing their own content offerings, whereas small niche developers have been. The telcos want to retain and grow their user base, so why not encourage mobile application development as an industry? Where are the telco sponsored developer forums, competitions for best mobile app and the investments into intrapreneurial spinoff ventures? Surely we can do a bit better than PacMan and mobile Bridezilla?

Finally everything came together!

The ideegeo Group just moved into a new office in the co-working space AltSpace in Wellington. Our preparations have lasted for some months and it is good to see that things are really starting now. We are currently refining our strategy and build some backend technologies which will help us to quickly go to the market with new products in the future. This is an exciting time and we are all happy to be part of it. And could it be any better than starting our business in a beautiful country like New Zealand? We don’t think so. The wilderness and untouched natural world is exactly the environment we love and need and which gives us the freedom to have fun and to be creative in what we do.

This blog might not have many updates in the beginning because - to be honest - we have more important things to do. But we are listening to you and will keep you informed on Twitter and Friendfeed in the meantime where you can follow us already. And don’t forget to become a fan of us on Facebook.

Have fun. We surely have!