TECHNOCOM’S LOCATION SERVICE ASSURANCE PLATFORM SERVING OVER 140 MILLION SUBSCRIBERS

TechnoCom Corporation said its location service assurance platform, LocationAssurance Manager (LAM), now protects wireless networks serving more than 140 million subscribers. TechnoCom delivers solutions to enable wireless location services that support E9-1-1 and location-based services including navigation, real-time traffic, and local search. LAM offers customers a performance management, maintenance, and reporting platform designed for wireless location networks and services. In addition to ongoing maintenance and troubleshooting, LAM is used for FCC-required location accuracy compliance testing and reporting. The platform can be used to analyze and report on location performance across user-defined viewpoints including geographic areas, time frames, service types, use cases, and mobile device types. LAM uses data from active autonomous test probes – LocationAssurance Devices (LAD) – in conjunction with subscriber-generated location data and wireless network information to analyze the location services platform. Founded in 1995 and privately held, TechnoCom’s (www.technocom-wireless.com) customers include Alltel Wireless, Cricket Communications, Openwave, Sprint Nextel, Telus, and Verizon Wireless. -Smarajit Dasgupta

MOBILEPEOPLE SHINES IN A DARK MARKET

Despite widespread fears of global recession and illiquidity, Danish-based mobilePeople announced that it received a US$ 8 million investment from Danish-based Via Venture Partners. The company says it will now be able to expand its international reach and affirm its leadership in global mobile search and advertising space. Via Venture Partners says it is a US$ 200 million fund invested in thirteen Nordic companies expected to grow rapidly within the next couple of years.

mobilePeople recently announced that it is enabling mobile search for a number of directory providers, including Yellow Pages Group, Yell, and Truvo.

Earlier this year, Local Matters reached a share purchase agreement to acquire mobilePeople for up to US$ 20 million, depending on mobilePeople's performance through 2009. This agreement was made in anticipation of Local Matters executing an IPO for up to US$ 46 million by July 1, 2008, and included a break-up fee to be paid if the IPO didn't occur, but gave Local Matters an option to fund mobilePeople, with a right of first refusal, instead. mobilePeople generated US$ 2.9 M in revenue and lost and equal amount in 2007, while Local Matters generated US$ 25.8 M and lost US$ 6.1 M in the same period. -Stuart Whitaker, Smarajit Dasgupta

NOKIA TO ACQUIRE OZ COMMUNICATIONS

Nokia has agreed to acquire OZ Communications. Montreal, Canada-headquartered OZ is a mobile messaging solution provider, delivering access to popular IM and email services on consumer mobile devices. The acquisition will allow Nokia to offer access to AOL, Gmail, ICQ, Windows Live Hotmail, Windows Live Messenger, and Yahoo!. With over 5.5 million monthly paid users, OZ's solutions have been deployed by mobile operators on a range of mobile device platforms. Nokia said it will continue to work closely with OZ's existing original equipment manufacturer (OEM) and mobile operator customers. "With OZ, Nokia is renewing its mission of Connecting People by enabling consumers to easily connect and communicate using their favorite Internet communities," said Niklas Savander, Head of Nokia Services & Software. "OZ's team and technology will help Nokia to address the fast growing consumer messaging market." OZ president and CEO Jim Knapik said, "OZ has been working closely with Nokia since 2003 – joining forces at this point is a natural extension of our partnership.” The acquisition is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to be completed in Q4 2008. After the closing, OZ will become part of Nokia's Services & Software operative unit. -Smarajit Dasgupta

LOOPT INTRODUCES SOCIAL NETWORKING ON IPHONE

Social mapping and communication service Loopt said its new "Loopt Mix" feature is in the 1.1 version of Loopt now available via the Apple App Store. This opt-in feature uses location-based services to enable iPhone users to find and meet new people nearby. With Loopt Mix, users can create a customized public profile, browse nearby profiles, and even search by shared interest and community membership. Messages are sent via email and do not reveal the user's full name, exact location, email address, or phone number. The user can turn off the feature, report abuse, or block other users at any time. Loopt Mix also enables online communities to facilitate real-world interaction among their members. Loopt's community launch partners include TechCrunch, imeem, Rock the Vote, and NRDC's It'sYourNature.org.

Users can add these brand badges to their profiles to find and connect with other like-minded community members. With the introduction of Loopt Mix, iPhone users can quickly search for interesting people around them and then easily contact them to meet up in person. Loopt is available free for use in the US from Apple's App Store on iPhone or at www.itunes.com/appstore. Silicon-Valley based Loopt is backed by Sequoia Capital and New Enterprise Associates. -Smarajit Dasgupta

GOODREC LAUNCHES ONLINE AND MOBILE RECOMMENDATIONS SERVICE

Recently launched mobile and online recommendation service Goodrec is available online, in the Apple iPhone App store, and on any mobile browser. With Goodrec, anyone can make quick and private recommendations for restaurants, nightlife, movies, books, and more online or from their mobile device. Users can also remember recommendations for the future with contextually aware one-click bookmarks. To assist in the recommendation process the service offers “Thumbs Up” / “Thumbs Down” options and other quick tips and intelligent suggestions based on personal taste and friends' recommendations. It also offers the ability to filter and sort based on personal preferences or to zoom into a neighborhood map and make recommendations from the map itself. The service allows users to invite friends via e-mail or SMS. San Francisco-based Goodrec was founded in 2007 and is backed by Jeff Clavier's SoftTech VC, Richard Wolpert's Chance Technologies, and Betaworks.

Our Take on the application: Positive: uses iPhone GPS to determine current location, thumbs and color-coded display makes it easier to use. Negative: Touch screen implementation is cumbersome; it is difficult to zoom in on map which displays many businesses; we didn't see anything about "private" about the recommendations; in a random test search for a pizza chain it pointed us to an outlet forty miles away from an outlet in our specified location. Neutral: requires username and password (necessary, of course, to match friends). -Stuart Whitaker, Smarajit Dasgupta

KGB TO EXPAND INTO US TEXT MARKET

Following their recently announced enhancements to their British SMS text service, kgb, formerly INFONXX, announced plans to launch a text-based information service in the US. Though details weren't immediately available and the service doesn't seem to be up yet, kgb says that their new FIND product, Text411, will be the most comprehensive human-powered information service capable of providing precise answers to virtually any question. kgb has a long history of working with carriers and says their service will give carriers the ability to take advantage of the popularity of text, though it is unclear how this will occur. kgb hopes that this service may allow them to double their annual volume, from one billion calls--or answers--to two billion.

kgb is a relative late comer to the "texting" space. The following is a brief survey of past, and current, information services delivered via text:

- 411sms (87411) delivers local listings, directions, alerts, text messages without revealing your number. No ads.

- 411-song (formerly 47171, now +1 [866] 411-song) identifies songs.

- 422, Inc. (422ME), now defunct.

- 4Info (44636) delivers information, ad driven.

- AskMe (27563) didn't work when we tried it, but their website suggests that it should provide info ranging from 411 lookups to Wikipedia search.

- Dodgeball (36343), now part of Google, is a social networking site that offers limited search service.

- Google (46645) offers extensive search service.

- UpSnap (2Snap) (27627) provides variety of free information ranging from 411 to weather.

- Yahoo! (92466) delivers category search.

- YellowPages.com (YP411) (97411) returns category information with link to yplocal.mobi information.

More information is expected shortly. -Stuart Whitaker

TELECOMMUNICATION SYSTEMS AWARDED PRESENCE INFORMATION PATENT

The US Patent and Trademark Office has issued patent number 7,426,380 for "Location Derived Presence Information" to TeleCommunication Systems Inc. (TCS). The invention enables presence information to be provided at the same time that location information is being requested of a wireless device. It is designed to reduce network messaging traffic and provide better network reliability by reducing the number of messages required within a mobile operator's network by using a single message to aggregate both presence and location information. Presence information is the status of the wireless user such as "available" or "unavailable" or "busy." Both location and presence services are message intensive within a mobile operator's network. The addition of presence information can enhance social networking applications such as friend or family locator services or location-based IM. Drew Morin, senior VP and CTO at TCS, said, "The combination of location and presence will be an important component as social networking applications such as MySpace and Facebook make the transition from the Internet to mobile applications." -Smarajit Dasgupta

TEXT2STORE IS NOW M-DIALOG

Mobile marketing platform Text2Store has re-branded itself as M-Dialog and has launched communication tools designed to enable businesses connect directly with their target market via cell phone and the web. M-Dialog will now allow partners full use and customization of their patent-pending messaging mobile platform, letting companies bring the technology in house and modify it according to their needs before implementation. M-Dialog has also released a Web2Mobile platform designed with Web 2.0 capabilities and location awareness technology allowing businesses to target customers based on interest, preference, and geographic location. “We’re bringing consumers closer and closer to businesses,” said M-Dialog president and CEO Ola Ayeni. “With our new company name and expanded portfolio of products, we provide a turnkey messaging solution encompassing both cell phone and the Internet. Plus, the use of mobile proximity awareness is such a powerful tool. It’s a CRM benefit that no other mobile marketing provider can offer.” Ayeni added that the company plans a host of special offers for both new and existing customers in support of the new advances. -Smarajit Dasgupta

3DVU RELEASES NAVI2GO NETHERLANDS

3D imagery-based navigation provider 3DVU has released the multi-language Navi2Go application in Netherlands for Windows Mobile, Symbian, and BlackBerry smartphones. Similar to previously released Navi2Go US, Navi2Go UK, and Navi2Go Germany, Navi2Go Netherlands is being sold by mobile operators and shops such as Mobile2Day, MobiHand, Motricity, PocketGear, Pocketland, Handango, ClickApps, Handster, etc. The patented mobile application offers high resolution aerial photography with full 3D landscape of the countries covered. It also features multi-language voice guidance and 3D route guidance over 3D virtual world. Navi2Go Netherlands includes newly released features including navigation preferences that let users select the Fastest Way, Easiest Way, Pedestrian mode, as well as an advanced search menu that helps them locate and navigate to POIs. Navi2Go expects to soon release its product with an added navigation mode providing 3D line-based map with 3D terrain elevation for users who want the choice to navigate between a map and photographs. "Navi2Go makes Holland look better than any other navigation device, including the native TomTom devices. For the first time, mobile users can benefit from an intuitive navigation of the entire Netherlands with full 3D photography," said 3DVU chairman and CEO Isaac Levanon. "Navi2Go is showing what the future connected PND will offer beyond traffic and Internet search." 3DVU France is scheduled to launch next month and the company plans to expand distribution, covering all of Austria, Czech Republic, Denmark, and the rest of Western Europe. 3DVU also plans to commercially release Navi2Go for iPhone, Linux, and JAVA devices shortly. -Smarajit Dasgupta

TELE ATLAS TO OFFER TOMTOM’S SPEED PROFILES DATABASE COVERING 25 COUNTRIES

Tele Atlas has gained access to TomTom NV’s speed profiles database, which will be made available to Tele Atlas customers later this year. Tele Atlas is a subsidiary of TomTom. The speed profiles database is derived from nearly half a trillion speed measurements that TomTom customers in 25 countries have been sharing with the company over the past two years. The database provides information about actual average speeds for every five minutes of the day on any day of the week on all of the roads in 23 European countries and 90% of the roads in the US. To achieve this, 18 million kilometers of roads had to be driven and measured on average more than 2,000 times at different times of the day and during different days of the week. Traditional systems use standardized estimates to calculate routes based on census data or legal speed limits, so routes are usually always the same regardless of the time, day, or situation. “These estimates ignore many things that influence how people should drive to their destinations, such as the frequencies of traffic lights, lunch breaks at large schools, speed bumps, stop signs and awkward railway crossings,” said Tele Atlas CEO Bill Henry. “Speed profiles actually contain this very specific and important local knowledge, enabling our customers to deliver unprecedented navigation quality – much better routes and much more accurate estimated times of arrival.” -Smarajit Dasgupta

WASHINGTON TRANSIT SLOWROLLS MOBILE SERVICE

Faced with significant budget issues, the Washington Metropolitan Transit Authority has put development of mobile transit service on the back burner. Their current mobile site, www.wmata.com/mobile, is written in XML which is not supported by iPhone. A Beta site not written in XML with limited capabilities exists at content.wmata.com/mobiilemp. -Stuart Whitaker

AOL MOBILE SEARCH INTRODUCES SMART BOX TECHNOLOGY FOR IPHONE

AOL Mobile Search has enabled auto-complete and related searches functionalities through the introduction of Smart Box technology into mobile search for the iPhone and iPod Touch, enabling quicker typing. When one starts typing in a query, items containing the words one has already typed start appearing. Smart Box also populates the list with related query suggestions. The technology has been designed to incorporate thousands of popular queries submitted by all AOL searchers. -Smarajit Dasgupta

WAVEMARKET’S VERIPLACE TO POWER AMBERWATCH MOBILE CROSS-CARRIER INITIATIVE

California-headquartered WaveMarket said its standards-based open location and privacy platform, Veriplace, will power the cross-carrier AmberWatch Mobile initiative. The AmberWatch Mobile service is an industry-wide initiative supported by Alltel, AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile USA, and Verizon Wireless. WaveMarket’s CEO Tasso Roumeliotis said, “Veriplace will protect the location information of users on the networks of all of our AmberWatch Mobile carrier partners.” Users of the AmberWatch Mobile initiative on each of these carriers will have their location information protected by Veriplace. Veriplace provides WAP, web, SMS, and mobile application developers access to a user’s location as long as the user grants access. Users are empowered with tools to protect their location data regardless of the technology used to locate them, while unlocking LBS opportunities for carriers and developers. -Smarajit Dasgupta