Is Kik Coming To China?

Is Kik coming to China? Since we’v seen a post on a Chinese tech blog looking for “founding partner” of Kik China business.

The post said that “Kik {China) will operate independently, while Kik Interactive will provide us with branding and technology. Kik China team was established last month with localized solution catering for Chinese market. Regarding product development, we have already localized Kik Android and iPhone apps while Symbian app is still under development. “

As we mentioned before, with the sensational success of Kik its Chinese counterparts sprang up, to name a few, Weixin (means micro message, by Tencent), MiLiao (by Xiaomi Tech), Feidou (by Kaixin001) and Youni (by Shanda). And there are many minor ones. Kik like services are fiercely competing against each other here. Most of them have incorporated some kind of “micro innovations”, like the doodling messaging in Miliao, or LBS elastic social network in Weixin. So as a late comer, Kik China (if that’s a real deal) is about to set foot on a  rough journey.

Apparently, Kik China team also has realized the cruel fact. In the post, they mentioned that China market is crowded with a dozen of Kik-like services with functions catering for local market, some of them are even backed by giant internet companies. While Kik failed to extend its glorious success after being blocked by RIM with slower pace in growing the user base. The only thing Kik Interactive can supplies us with, is its solid Push tech platform. “That’s why you need guts and balls to join us in such a competitive market.”

 

Related posts:

1. Chinese Kik-like Apps At A Glance
2. Why People Love Copying Kik+Talkbox
3. Introduction of Four Micro-video Services: Is an era of Micro-video coming?

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GooApple, Looks Exactly Like iPhone 4 But Runs Android 2.2

When I first see GooApple phone in the video, I thought it is an iPhone 4. I mean, there are a few iPhone clones here, but all of them, you can more or less tell the difference. But GooApple, looks just perfect.

Produced by the HongKong-based GooApple Tech Ltd., GooApple phone is now available on its official Taobao shop. Comes with ultra thin and stainless frame (115mm x 58.6mm x 9.3mm), 3.5″ TFT HVGA (LG) screen, Qualcomm MSM7227 CPU (600MHz), 2.2 megapixel camera, gravity/proximity/light sensor and electronic compass, 8GB storage, WCDMA 3G support and Android 2.2 tweeted just like iOS, GooApple phone’s price is set to rmb 1,499 (~$235) only.

Check the video below for its impressive performance. Do you think it could be one of the best sell Android phone, and better sale than Xiaomi phone?

Related posts:

1. Meizu M9, Looks As Good As iPhone 4, Out Before Christmas
2. China Unicom Is Promoting iPhone 3G
3. Betting on Android! Shanda Announced RMB20Millions Funds for Android Development

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Indonesia Digest: No deals from DetikDeal, Ideosource snags new portfolio, and more

Here are some interesting startup news from Indonesia, not only in its capital, Jakarta, but also other tech startup hubs such as Yogyakarta, Medan, Surabaya, and many more. These listed news are taken from our partner, DailySocial, a leading blog on Indonesia’s tech startup scene.

(1) DetikDeal as a daily deals (especially for group purchase) service supported by a giant online media, Detikcom, now does not offer daily deals anymore. Its last service is on last August 19th 2011.

(2) Ideosource, an investment fund set up by former Plasa.com exec Andi S Boediman, successfully snags a new portfolio and this time it’s an iOS developer company called Touchten.

(3) Crapto.com is a service that enables users to take photos using a webcam and then publish them into the Crapto site or to some social network like Facebook and Twitter. Users can give comments to their own or other users’ pictures.

(4) Google opened its second local office in South East Asia this year in Bangkok, Thailand. Previously, Google has opened a new regional office in Singapore and the first local office in Malaysia this year. Google reportedly will start operate its office in Indonesia before this year-end after a meeting at GEPI 2011 between Google executive chairman Eric Schmidt and the Indonesian Vice President.

(5) Department of Transportation, Communication, and Information officially released an Android app called mTransport DIY that deals with transportation information in Yogyakarta. This application is a collaboration between the Department and Gamatechno.

This has been brought to you by SGE and DailySocial. DailySocial is a blog that covers the Indonesian tech startup scene. They publish in both Indonesian and English.

Thank you to nordicfactory for the flag image.

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Announcing The Action Packed Appnomy Conference Agenda [Startup Stories, Demo And Debates]

Appnomy Conference is scheduled for tomorrow (Saturday/August 27th) and to those who have been asking us to share the Appnomy Conference details on Pluggd.in, here it goes.

First, the conference details:

» Date: August 27th, 2011 [Saturday/i.e. tomorrow].
» Venue: The Oxford PG & UG College, HSR LAYOUT CAMPUS, No.32, 19th Main, 17th ‘B’ Cross, Sector IV, HSR Layout, Bangalore 560 102 [map link].
» Direction: SMS “appnomy from <your place>” to 9008890088.:
» Ticketing: Pay Online OR Register to pay at the venue.
» Contact #: Kunal Kantsen (9241 00 9423) | Ashish (973 89 89 816)

Appnomy Route Map

Appnomy Conference Agenda

Timing	Agenda
8:30 – 9:00 AM	Registration
9:00-9:15 AM	Introduction to Appnomy Conference
9:15-10:00AM	Startup Story: Building an App Business [SourceBits]
10:00-10:45 AM	“ Learning from 19 Apps ,23 Million users.” – [SpiceLabs]
10:45-11:00AM	Tea/Coffee Break
11:00-11:30AM	“The Traps of Design for Mobile Experiences” – [Piotr Gajos]
11:30-12:15 PM	[AppTalk Panel] – “One App Business Vs. Business of Apps”. Moderated by S R Raja, the panelists include: - Shailendra Singh (Sequoia Capital) - V V Preetham (Quantama) - Rahul Khanna (Canaan Partners) - Lalit Bhise, Mobisy.
12:15-1:00 PM	txtWeb App2Fame 2011 Developer Challenge – Introduction & Prize Distribution.
1:00-1:45PM	Lunch
1:45– 2:15 PM	Global Ad Income from Apps and Games [A Presentation By Vserv Team]
2:15-2:20 PM	Demo (Introduction)
2:20-2:30 PM	Demo : App #1
2:30-2:40 PM	Demo : App #2
2:40 – 2:50 PM	Demo : App #3
2:50-3:00PM	Demo : App #4
3:00-3:45	Startup Story: Building a LBS Business [Onze]
3:45-4:00	txtWeb Demo
4:00-4:30PM	Tea/Coffee Break
4:30-4:40PM	Demo : App #5
4:40-4:55PM	Demo : App #6
4:50-5:00 PM	Demo : App #7
5:00PM-5:10PM	Demo : App #8
5:10PM-5:20PM	Demo :  App #9
5:20PM-5:30PM	Demo :  App #10

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See you at Appnomy Conference. Be there, if you want to learn the business of building apps.

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The Appnomy Conference: Mindblowing Content + Exciting App Demos » August 27th, Bangalore (details). Learn the art of building an 'APP Business'.

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» Announcing The Action Packed Appnomy Conference Agenda [Startup Stories, Demo And Debates] @Pluggd.in.

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iPART – saluting Steve – God’s greatest Techno JOB!

While the nation rightfully rallies around Anna Hazare and the Lokpal Bill, one global event that may have gone unnoticed is the resignation of Steve Jobs as CEO of Apple, for medical reasons.

Most of India will know Apple as the company that brought us iTunes, iPOD, iPAD and the iPhone – all these products of them bear Steve’s personal stamp of being a visionary, a perfectionist, a crafty businessman and above all a “consumer-first” thinker.

Jobs has proven that people pay for simplicity and value – right from the early days of the Macintosh, the re-engineering of the music industry with iTunes & the iPod, the reincarnation of the mobile phone with the iPhone and most recently the runaway success of the iPad. Nothing he introduced can fundamentally be seenas unique or first to market – yet everything he did had a touch of ‘aspirational polish’ that made a concept or a prototype feel like the finished product.

What will his departure mean to Apple? Will it be the end of innovation? Will Products be half-baked? Will new products be received with less excitement? Will The Google/Android brigade overwhelm the iOS community? Will Microsoft and Sony make a comeback?

Knowing Steve Jobs, and his obvious ailment, I have no doubt that he has planned his exit carefully and thoroughly. Sure the public perception will be one of disappointment and concern, but Apple Corporation now is a well-oiled 14,000employee, $50B+ revenue machine – and in the next three to five years, there will not be any negative impact.
Beyond that – well – that’s up to the new, well-groomed team to figure out and leave their stamp on the future of the company. In the fast-paced world we live in, five years is a lifetime and Apple will need to continue its innovative streak to stay ahead of the game. One must not rule out the possibility that it may grow even more furiously and ferociously with even more innovation unleashed!

For now, let’s salute Steve Jobs – congratulations sir on an awesome career. The Entrepreneur in all of us aspires to be you – your legacy will continue, not just at Apple!

[Sanjay Swamy is a Serial Entrepreneur & Angel Investor in technology – he is currently the Chairman of ZipDial and was previously the CEO of mChek and also worked as a Volunteer with the UID Authority of India.]

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The Appnomy Conference: Mindblowing Content + Exciting App Demos » August 27th, Bangalore (details). Learn the art of building an 'APP Business'.

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» iPART – saluting Steve – God’s greatest Techno JOB! @Pluggd.in.

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Exclusive: Via Launches Deals Service–Snapdeal Gets A Serious Competition

Via, a company that has redefined the (ticketing) distribution business has launched deals section.

If you are wondering what’s so big about it, well this comes from a company that understands the sales/distribution and pricing very well (has a huge network).

Currently, Via’s deal service offers :

- travel deals (http://www.via.com/bdo)

- deals for shoppers (http://deals.via.com/deals)

Via offers deals across categories like electronics, travel and lifestyle.

Though the site currently has deals for very few cities (mostly metros), they have listed more than 40 cities, creating a ‘sense of  ‘this is big’. But in reality, they have tagged ‘All India Deals’ like travels and are showing up these deals in every city.

Snapdeal Challenger?

Well, we know from some of the early talks that Via founder was interested in taking up stake in Snapdeal (though the deal didn’t happen). Only time will tell, how Via fares with this service, but given their experience in selling to offline world, I’d expect this to be a serious competition for Snapdeal (and others).

Domain?

I am yet to understand why would Via use a subdomain for a service that is quite disconnected from the main site? After all, Via (Flightraja) is not a consumer/destination site.

Aside, from what we know, the company bought via.com for a huge amount and spent 2 crores last year just on paper ads.

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An interesting development to watch out for.

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The Appnomy Conference: Mindblowing Content + Exciting App Demos » August 27th, Bangalore (details). Learn the art of building an 'APP Business'.

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» Exclusive: Via Launches Deals Service–Snapdeal Gets A Serious Competition @Pluggd.in.

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Of Anna, La Tomatina and Jobs Retirement – Marketers Dream Come True

No, it isn’t about “Buddha hoga tera baap – 2” starring Anna Hazare and Steve Jobs. The article also is not gonna boast about the characteristics of the two persons who have influenced lots of people around the world. Then, why is it so important to know about Anna’s movement and Jobs Retirement when am so busy minding my own business, yes literally business. Understanding the current state of affairs is extremely important for any Business. Especially, if planning to launch a marketing campaign even though you are neither a firm believer of Anna’s principles nor a fan of Apple products. How often do you get chance to connect with lakh’s of people with just a single advertisement or a campaign. It is very important for a marketer to read the mood of the people and more important is to connect with them.

To get a better slice of what am talking, look at the print ad’s of Amul India below.

One thing which both of these print ads have in common apart from being Anna-centric is that both the ads have brought a smile on my face. I instantly appreciated Amul for its presence of mind and also believe that a lot many would have felt the same.

Going by the current mood of the audience not only gives an instant recognition but also helps in reaching to a large number of audiences who already are influenced by a trending topic. The organizers of La Tomatina would love to second my opinion. Not only Zoya Akhthar is riding high on the success of ZNMD, I strongly feel that the event organizers of La Tomatina are also basking in the success of the film as they already have almost 23k people who are willing to attend the event.

Marketers should realize it is easier to influence an already influenced section of people than trying to aim at a completely new section of people.

As am happy with my learning’s of the day and playing angryanna (desi version of angry birds), am also actively looking for an Insurance company’s advertisement which cashes upon on Steve Jobs retirement. May be something like “Had only Jobs knew about our retirement plan, life would have been more exciting” or “Not only an Apple a day even our hassle-free retirement plan keeps the doctor away – Happy Retirement Mr. Steve Jobs” would excite me to take a closer look at the company.

What’s your opinion?

[Guest article by Srikanth Ch/Reproduced from his blog.]

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The Appnomy Conference: Mindblowing Content + Exciting App Demos » August 27th, Bangalore (details). Learn the art of building an 'APP Business'.

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» Of Anna, La Tomatina and Jobs Retirement – Marketers Dream Come True @Pluggd.in.

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Introducing Appnomy Conference Partners: txtWeb, Sequoia Capital [and more]

We are super excited about Appnomy Conference and look forward to bringing in app developers, geeks, angel investors etc. under one roof and talk about the ‘economy of apps’.

———————–

» Date: August 27th, 2011 [Saturday/i.e. tomorrow].
» Venue: The Oxford PG & UG College, HSR LAYOUT CAMPUS, No.32, 19th Main, 17th ‘B’ Cross, Sector IV, HSR Layout, Bangalore 560 102 [map link].
» Direction: SMS “appnomy from <your place>” to 9008890088.
» Ticketing: Pay Online OR Register to pay at the venue.

» Appnomy Conference Agenda.

———————–

Presenting our partners for the conference:

txtWeb

txtWeb is a SMS based platform for app developers.

txtWeb is a dynamic content publishing and service creation platform for making information and services available via SMS for FREE.

Think of it as a WWW for sms world, the technology which is present in 700 million+ subscribers. The txtWeb team announced App2Fame challenge this year and at Appnomy Conference, they will announce the winners.

• Total registrations for the contest from 27-May-2011 to 30-June-2011= 2448
• Number of apps deployed on txtWeb from 27-May-2011 to 30-June-2011= 1311
• Lively webinars conducted during the contest period- 3
• Total Prizes up for winning = Rs. 7, 40,000+

The Appnomy team is glad to be a part of their success story as the txtWeb announces the winners of its App2Fame contest at the conference.

Partners

Appnomy Partners

Sequoia Capital

Sequoia Capital in India has invested in more than fifty companies during the past decade catering to the founders, families and management who have selected us as their business partners. With offices in Bangalore, Mumbai and New Delhi, Sequoia Capital has a mixture of local experience and global ties that let us work with great entrepreneurs to help build market leading companies.

Vserv.Mobi

Vserv.mobi founded in Jan 2010, today is a leading Mobile Ads Market Place for Developers, Publishers and Advertisers. The Vserv Marketplace, built on superior technology has delivered over 500 campaigns till date.

Supported By

Mobikwik

Mobikwik.com is India’s premier mobile services store which offers online recharge, sms recharge, IVR recharge and java/android mobile applications. At mobikwik, you can compare prepaid plans, search offers, buy recharges (topups, offers), bonus/sms/gprs/3G packs and much more. Mobikwik’s e-wallet enables you to recharge any mobile anywhere without going through payment hassles.

AppsFunders

Appsfunder is crowd funding platform specially to support mobile apps. We connect developers with funders to realize innovative mobile apps for Apple iOS and Android.
Appsfunder run different programs and events to attract developers and Funders. 2days2fund is a flagship event of Appsfunder, where we screen different projects with the help of industry experts to give maximum benefit to the Funders.

MoMo Bangalore

Bangalore chapter of Mobile Monday started its activities in June 2006 and is the first Mobile Monday chapter in India.

Venue Partner

- Location Directions provided by Onze team and venue partner is The Oxford College.
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We look forward to having you at Appnomy Conference – come over and meet amazing entrepreneurs, app developers, geeks and investors.

Appnomy Venue

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The Appnomy Conference: Mindblowing Content + Exciting App Demos » August 27th, Bangalore (details). Learn the art of building an 'APP Business'.

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» Introducing Appnomy Conference Partners: txtWeb, Sequoia Capital [and more] @Pluggd.in.

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