February 27, 2005
And then there were three
I've hired another developer. A great dev that worked for me at my previous place of employment, left a few months ago to go to another startup. I've been trying to hire him since he left but the timing wasn't right. Well it looks like the timing worked out after all because he is looking to get back into the mobile spaceand has agreed to come work at Mobile Research. He starts in 2 weeks. I wish it were sooner.
Posted by David Adams at 04:48 PM | Comments (0)
February 26, 2005
Mobile is Really Starting to Get Interesting
Hong Kong company called Artificial Life has just announced a "Virtual Girlfriend" application for mobile phones called
V Girl. This is an interactive AI based girlfriend experience for subscribers with a 2.5, 2.75, 3G mobile phone. Pretty amazing.
News.com has a good story.
http://news.com.com/Images+Virtual+girlfriend+comes+to+life/2009-1039_3-5590539.html?tag=st.num
Posted by David Adams at 12:00 PM | Comments (0)
February 25, 2005
1-800-@#$-@#%&
We have been buying a lot of devices from Amazon.com this week. I accidentally selected "free shipping", which is not good when you are buying 18 phones. So I hit the finish button and it came back up and told me that the phones would be arriving in about 4 weeks. Turns out if you elect to go with the free shipping, they ship them all at once and that takes a while for a large order of phones. Unfortunately, the user experience for "undoing" a purchase on Amazon is not a good one. We tried for about a half an hour to make sense of their "cancel an order" page (which does not allow you to do much, especially cancel an order). Customer support? Sure , send an email. Not good when you want to cancel a BIG order and need to get the stuff sent ASAP. So after MUCH hunting and googling, I finally found the elusive customer support number that they don't post anywhere on their site.
Here it is. Write it down because you will probably need it in the future.
Amazon.com Customer Support
1-800-201-7575
Posted by David Adams at 04:15 PM | Comments (0)
February 22, 2005
According to Weather.com it feels like 42°
They turn the heat off (old remodeled wharehouse with radiators) at 5:00. That makes it tough to work late nights when it is only 45° here tonight and dropping. It has been really beautiful this week but cold. Well a quick trip to the closest Bartell's Drugs and I'm back to coding with my newly aquired portable oscillating ceramic Honeywell space heater under my desk.
Posted by David Adams at 08:19 PM | Comments (3)
February 20, 2005
My Kingdom for a Nokia 6620
The first service that Mobile Research is going to offer; the one we are crunching to get finished for launch by CTIA on March 14, requires a LOT of mobile phones for development. So Charles and I went out today to buy a bunch of phones. We are in a time crunch so the plan was to just start buying phones and find a better/cheaper model down the road after the launch.
So much for Plan A. We went to 3 Cingular stores and they wouldn't sell us the phones. Full price retail (as advertised) and the wouldn't sell them to us. We got several different reasons, but basically it comes down to the fact that they are not in the business of selling handsets; but airtime.
I understand that, but I am a subscriber and they won't sell me the great smartphone with killer graphics and nifty features for full price. How do they expect that they are ever going to get any revenue from the higher end services and applications if they'll only sell you a new phone if you've waited a year since your last one?
On to Plan B ...
Posted by David Adams at 05:43 AM | Comments (0)
February 19, 2005
Three Things
When I decided to start a mobile wireless company, I had three basic requirements for the business model that had to be met.
1. It had be challenging, creative and fun. I'd been working at a company that had a ton of potential but wasn't doing anything very challenging.
2. Global market. Of course any idea I was going to have would be in mobile, but I wanted to make sure that the addressable market for thhe products/services was International if not potentially global. There is just so much going on outside of the U.S. in mobile I wanted to make sure I had a chance to be a part of it.
3. I didn't want to rely on carriers for revenue. The carriers can not be in the revenue stream anywhere. The last two mobile companies I've worked for, we were beholden to wireless carriers for our channel. That situation was frustrating and as the mobile markets heat up it is going to get maddening for content and application providers who need deck placement.
With mobile development tools and service company I've been able to do all of these things. I'm very excited about where the mobile industry is going and the opportunities that are coming with the increased speed of the market and the networks.
Posted by David Adams at 04:32 AM | Comments (0)
February 18, 2005
Mmmmm Frosting
So I had the front windows frosted. Now we can move servers into the space without fear of someone throwing a cement block through one of the windows.
Posted by David Adams at 05:25 PM | Comments (0)
February 17, 2005
Paint Fumes
Before they leased the space to me, the landlords painted the space and the floors. We have to have the windows open about half the time because of the fumes. It's about 40' in Seattle today so Charles and I are all bundled up. Hey, we're cold but at least we can breath.
They also used an old hotel door (auction house sticker still on it) for the bathroom. So when I shut it, I locked us out of the bathroom completely, because hotel doors are never unlocked from the outside. Doh! I guess I'll have to spend some time this weekend drilling the pins. Coincedentally, the door is from the University Plaza Hotel, which was torn down a year ago, and used to be across the street from my first company back in 1993-95. I know this because the checkout time card is still on the back of the door. It has the room number and the peep-hole too. When we get around to remodeling the office, the door is definitely going to get some attention.
Oh yeah, and it's Aqua colored.
Posted by David Adams at 10:50 AM | Comments (2)
First Employee - Charles
Mobile Research's first employee started today. Charles is a guy I worked with at my previous employer. For starters, Charles in going to be spending most of his time aquiring a LOT of mobile phones and setting up accounts.
Posted by David Adams at 09:03 AM | Comments (0)
February 16, 2005
Costco no es bueno
So I haven't had a costco account for a while. It's probably been 3 years since my account expired. I used to (until recently) considered Costco part of the entrepreneur's resource trifecta (the other two being Ikea and eBay). In the past I have always been able to get good prices on some great office supplies as Costco. We bought all the chairs for my second company at costco. They were really nice grey Hon chairs and were only $99 each (of course that was like 1996).
So I drove down to my local Costco (which is the by chance the first ever Costco) and plunked down my $48 for account renewal thinking I would be leaving with some chairs and other office supplies.
Here is the only office chair they had :
yucko!! what a disappointment. Oh well, the membership is still good for bulk beer and gasoline.
Posted by David Adams at 09:26 AM | Comments (1)
February 15, 2005
Office Space
I think I mentioned last week that I had signed a lease on some new office space. Well, I got the keys today and have started moving some stuff in. Here are some quick pics. It's a lot of space. 3710 sq. ft.. Big plans require lots of room. We are going to build out offices when we get back from CTIA, therefore all the tools etc. in the pictures.
Also, you might notice my car in the picture. Parking downtown Seattle is a pain, and expensive. This space has a roll-up door, so I have in-office parking.
Posted by David Adams at 10:28 AM | Comments (0)
February 14, 2005
Countdown
Today marks the one month point until the launch of the first product.
I've decided that the benefits of launching the product during the CTIA Wireless 2005 show in New Orleans in March outweigh the difficulties of trying to get it done by then.
The next 29 days should be a real thrash. I've got my first employee starting on Thursday so that will help, but it is still going to be an interesting month.
In the next 29 days, I have to:
Move into a new office space
Finish the product application
Test the product
Buy a whole ton of mobile phones
Create a corporate website
Start a new employee
Set up a data center
Write the press materials
...Plus all the day-to-day operations
Beats working for someone else =)
Posted by David Adams at 10:52 AM | Comments (0)
February 12, 2005
More QR Codes
This should give you an idea of just how ubiquitous QR Codes have become in Japan. Not only do people have their URL and vCard QR Code printed on their business cards, they also buy personalised QR Code stamps and attach them to their phones so they can stamp their QR Codes.
http://www.qrcode-stamp.com/
The site is in Japanese, but you can get the general idea.
Posted by David Adams at 02:06 PM | Comments (2)
QR Codes & Semacode
The QR Code (Quick Response codes) demo that Ai Munakata gave at Seattle Mobile on thursday was pretty compelling. A QR Code is a 2 dimensional bar code that stores information that a mobile phone can read with its camera. QR codes can actually contain enough data to store a small image, but usually store vCard info or a URL for a mobile website. QR Codes basically solve the carrier deck real-estate problem. Anyone can publish vCard information and/or a URL anywhere and anyone with a QR Code enabled phone can read it or jump right to the site by reading the code with their camera phone. QR Codes have become ubiquitous in Japan in the last year. Ai mentioned that you see them on advertisements in the Tokyo subway. I did some research and went down to the bookstore in Uwajamya (a Japanese mega-market in Seattle) and picked up what appeared to be teen magazines (I can't read Kanji) and sure enough they were all over the add pages.
Semacode www.semacode.comis a western version of the same thing. I played around with the semacode reader on a Nokia 3650 back in May of 2004 but was not that impressed with it. It was kind of slow, and required you to take a picture of the barcode. From what I understand now though the engine is much faster and works better.
The whole barcode thing is a chicken and egg problem. It took off in Japan but only after the technology had been embedded in phones for more than a year. Will it take off in the US? I bet it will. Whether QR Code, Semacode or something else. It just solves so many problems.
http://www.mobileresearch.net QR Code
Posted by David Adams at 01:52 PM | Comments (0)
February 11, 2005
"Things are going to start happening to me now!"
Qwest showed up and installed my phone lines today. I was pretty lucky with the numbers. I got an old Seattle prefix (282) and the numbers for the voice hunt group and the FAX are sequential. I also got a 1-800 number that is one prefix digit off from matching the main number.
The space is old and has a ton of old phone cables that I'm going to have to clear out. I had the telephone guy just drop the lines to the demark; I'm going to do all the line installation when we build out the space. Meanwhile, we'll just run some cables and duct tape em to the floor.
Posted by David Adams at 02:00 PM | Comments (0)
February 10, 2005
Business Cards
Now we're cooking with gasoline. I've been champing at the bit to get my cards printed for weeks.
I just picked them up; just in time for the Seattle Mobile meeting tonight.
I am of the school of belief that you really shouldn't go cheap on business cards. So I payed a designer to come up with a design, and we went back and forth on the design for a few weeks. I am very happy with the way they came out. We had a short run done at a local printer and bindery on a digital press. I'm glad we did the short run so I could see what the cards would look like. You really can't get the right effect until you see a card printed and cut to size. Incidentally I am not wild about the digital printing, so for the next batch we are going to go with an offset printer.
Posted by David Adams at 03:46 PM | Comments (0)
Seattle Mobile
I am the Chairman of a local Seattle users group for mobile wireless called Seattle Mobile. We meet on the second Thursday of each month so February's meeting is tonight. This months topic is "Global Opportunities in Mobile Wireless" and we have some great presenters for tonights meeting.
If you are in the PNW or are ever coming through on the 2nd Thur. , please try to make it to a meeting.
Seattle Mobile
Posted by David Adams at 08:42 AM | Comments (0)
February 08, 2005
Ohayo gozaimasu
My friend Ai Munakata is in town from Tokyo for a week doing work and seeing friends. I used to work with Ai at Dwango Wireless. She moved back to Tokyo about a year and a half ago to work at Dwango.co.jp (two different companies actually). She is now working for a company in Tokyo that helps Japanese technology companies move into the American Market. She introduced me to her associate Eiichi Shimizu who is helping a large Japanese company bring QR Code technology to the U.S.. I spent a few hours at Uptown Espresso with them getting an education on QR Codes and seeing some amazing demo's on their i-Mode phones.
This is really relevant to the Seattle Mobile topic this month so I've asked them to present Thursday night.
Ai
Posted by David Adams at 01:36 PM | Comments (0)
February 07, 2005
Milestones
Well, today is my 36th Birthday. I was born at the begining of the Nixon administration. Man that makes me feel old.
So I had a very busy day today. Thought I'd take the day off but I was slammed with meetings and errands all day. The biggest thing though, is that I signed on some new office space that I have been looking at. So that is a huge milestone for a startup. Now I have a place to keep all flotsam and jetsom that companies aquire. I'll post some pics of the new space as soon as I figure out how to get them off of my phone withough paying T-Mobile.
Posted by David Adams at 03:39 PM | Comments (0)
February 06, 2005
Mobile Research
The name of the startup is "Mobile Research".
Here is the new logo.
Created by my good friends at Fling Media.
The URL for the website is
http://www.mobileresearch.net but right now there is just a placeholder there until the launch in March.
Posted by David Adams at 03:27 PM | Comments (0)
February 04, 2005
The Big Idea
So the first question I get when I tell people I am starting a company is something along the lines of "What is the Big Idea?". So here is it :
"To help mobile application and content providers to develop their products cheaper, faster, and better."
The demand: As anyone who works in mobile wireless can tell you and anyone who gets into the industry finds out very quickly, There are a lot of roadblocks to developing and launching an application or mobile content chanel. Most of the roadblocks stem from the problem that in any given mobile market, there are numerous carriers, each with their own requirements and specifications as well as multiple device manufacturers and hundreds of different devices (handsets). Now multiply those numbers of carriers and handsets times the number of different programming languages, audio formats, network types, screen sizes/color depths, browsers, etc., and you start to get an idea of the scope of the problem. And it is all details.
So the focus of my company is to make tools and provide services to mobile application developers and content providers to help if not solve the problem of developing and deploying on multiple devices, on multiple carriers, in multiple mobile markets.
Sounds simple enough...
Posted by David Adams at 03:19 PM | Comments (4)
February 03, 2005
Virtual Office
Well, I've been working on the business plan since about October 2003, but really diligently since I left Dwango last August. I have been doing most of my coding on my dev box in my apartment, but most days I spend a lot of my time working at my office-away-from-home; Zeitgeist Coffee in historic Pioneer Square. They have great coffee, Top Pot Donuts (mmmmarghgghhg Top Pot Donuts!!!), great sandwiches, and FREE wifi.
Posted by David Adams at 02:23 PM | Comments (1)
February 02, 2005
Some Background
Some Background - I'll keep this pretty short. I got into the Internet pretty early (1992) and worked through the 90's in the Internet space. Had a software contracting company through the late 90's that focused mostly on server-side database drivenweb applications. Got into mobile wireless data when the first WAP enabled phone came out in 1999 (The NeoPoint on Sprint). Spent 2000 doing WAP and after a trip to Scandanavia in early 2001 got very interested in SMS and downloadable ringtones/images/vCards etc. (Thanks Jan!) In mid-2001 I started (with a partner) a company called Over-The-Air Wireless which provided monophonic ringtones to carriers and other partners. We built the company for 2 years and had 6 smaller carriers that we provided ringtones, screensavers, downloadable images (operator logos), along with billing, tracking, web interfaces, etc. We were copying the Scandanavian model. This was really early on for mobile data. We are talking about the Nokia 8290, etc. phones. Also, this is right after 9/11 and things were pretty slow in the U.S. for entrepreneurs.
We sold OTA Wireless in 2003 to Dwango Wireless, and I went to work as VP or Research and Development, later VP of Technology.
August 2004 I left Dwango and have been doing some consulting and working on the business plan for my next Big Idea.
Posted by David Adams at 12:08 PM | Comments (0)
February 01, 2005
MobileStartup.com
Welcome to MobileStartup.com . My name is David Adams and this is my attempt at journaling my experiences starting up a mobile software company. This is the start of my 4th company in 11 years and I thought it might be a good idea to get it down for posterity's sake. Also, in the past, my friends and family have always asked about how the company/work are going and it can be hard to relate the experience and what goes on in a startup to those who are outside of it. So this is an attempt to share some of what I go through as I try to build this company.
Also, since I aminvolved in the mobile wireless industry (and that is the focus of the company) I will probably be posting news/opinions about what is going on in mobile wireless.
Posted by David Adams at 10:34 AM | Comments (1)