Month: October 2014

Video consolidation pace is pretty staggering

~ michael_msft ~ Leave a comment

Looks like I spoke too soon – maybe another deal going down already – http://techcrunch.com/2014/10/20/sources-yahoo-in-talks-to-buy-video-ad-platform-brightroll-for-around-700m/

Some of you may or may not follow all the companies in the “video” space but since I am in the space I can’t stop watching. Lately though the pace of acquisitions has been hectic. Couple this with all the announcements these past few weeks about all the content guys getting into launching their own OTT services and you can see that their is a land grab going on. I won’t list all the players but yesterday I was having a meeting with Brightcove and talking to a senior Zencoder employee about the space and the consolidation. Zencoder was a yCombinator company that was bought by Brightcove so they kicked off some of this activity.

Liverail bought by Facebook – this was the other big ad player in the region so now we have Videoplaza being bought by Ooyala :: http://techcrunch.com/2014/10/20/ooyala-buys-euro-video-ad-startup-videoplaza-in-its-first-acquisition/ . Ooyala was just recently bought by Telstra.

Viki was bought by Rakuten which kicked off activity in this region.

Dramafever was just picked up by Softbank. Their big competitor Crunchyroll was picked up The Chernin Group.

The list goes on and on but the more this pace quickens the more I realize there are not that many independent players left to work with in the space which means the products we all use to build video based sites are shrinking pretty rapidly. This is partially the reason why at Spuul we try to roll a lot of our own kit – we never know anymore what product we are using if it will still be around.

Nutty times!

Google vs Apple

~ michael_msft ~ Leave a comment

Say what you will but this is the battle of our times. Why do I feel that way? Cause I still believe the mobile phone or let’s say the handheld computer that is always on, always connected to the Internet and happens to be in our pockets that is able to make and receive calls – is the biggest thing since sliced bread. It just is – bottom line.

There are still years to go for this global phenomenon to play out. Years.

That being said, even if you do not agree, it means that the biggest two companies in the world who control this ecosystem are Apple and Google.

You can click the Google or Apple categories on my blog to see what I have written before. I am not a fanboy. I am a realist. I started with Android and moved to Apple. As a startup wanting to dominate the world – I am fluent in managing teams shipping both Apple and Android apps. I won’t get into which app to build first or which platform is bigger or better – if you expect global domination then you have to ship Apple and Android apps. Period.

I won’t lie – there are reasons to like one platform over another but lately I have to admit that Google is pulling ahead. Not in hardware, software but in other places – sheer scale, better app store tools and in relationship building.

Knowing people is a big thing – it trumps developer docs, forums and conferences. I do my best to network and I think it’s important to reach out to folks you know when you need some help. Knowing people is a huge asset.

Do I know anyone in Apple for SEA region? No – only one developer contact who doesn’t respond to me much. Do I know anyone in Google SEA? Yes – many. Did I hunt them down? No – they hunted me down.

It started with someone from Adx and then grew into other connections from various departments and groups. Then it was over to some Android folks and then it is suddenly a meeting with four Android folks from around the region. Yes – they called me.

They updated me on the latest Android news, talked through some issues we had and gave us some guidance with our Google strategies. Was it groundbreaking or earth shattering? No – but is was helpful, meaningful and personal.

Does it make my team and I feel closer to Google? Yes. Do I feel even farther away from Apple as a result? Yes.

Apple seriously needs to step up their game. The OS’s are buggy, the developer support is weak and the App Store needs a redo.

Am I still a big fan! I am. But for the first time ever – I am starting to think Apple is spreading themselves way too thin.

Given their huge profit margins – I find this slightly appalling.

Silly Mozilla

~ michael_msft ~ 1 Comment

You can say what you want about proper standards but there is such a thing as a de-facto standard. That is what HLS has become. Like it or not it’s winning for now. It’s the best segmented streaming video file delivery method going. MPEG-DASH looks cool but is taking it’s sweet time to arrive.

Firefox continually not supporting HLS is a huge mistake for their browser, their TV initiatives and their mobile phone OS.

Just silly.

The Disney Accelerator

~ michael_msft ~ Leave a comment

image

On my last trip to LA I stopped by here to check it out and say hey to my friend Cody who runs it. Was a fantastic space with lots of cool equipment, meeting rooms and with the mentors being a bunch of seasoned Disney execs and their friends.

A serious recipe for success since the chosen startups gets access to Disney trademarked characters and lots of connections into all sorts of Disney products/experiences. Not to mention the whole tech stars angle.

The other thing I noticed is that many of the startups were not new startups but actually some that have been around but who have chosen to try the accelerator program as a way of branching out into a new region and product space.

Will be cool to see what comes of this model.

This team is killing it!

~ michael_msft ~ Leave a comment

You may not have heard of this team or know about all their apps they have built as a team or individually. I use dispatch, nextride and of course Spuul. Yes HC of clean shaven apps is the guy behind Spuul iOS. I need to check out clips.

This is a humble team folks but you know they are making it when they are having to explain how to prep for Apple promotions.

I stand by the statement – this is the best OS X and iOS team in Singapore – maybe Southeast Asia.

Love working with these folks.

http://blog.cleanshavenapps.com/app-store-promo-artwork-tips-and-sketch-template

Path Talk

~ michael_msft ~ Leave a comment

I keep using Path cause my parents are on it and it’s an easy place to share things. Because of this my brothers are also on it. So we all use it – but not heavily.

It’s funny how it is growing though, feature wise not users, and it reminds me a lot of my Koprol days and how we use to daydream about what we wanted Koprol to be when it grew up. It was always about the conversations around places. So it is interesting to see Path add the ability to talk to a place versus about a place. It sounds cool but it only works in the USA. I am sure it is useful but I still don’t see how it will make money, unless they charge for it, and how they will scale it – while still making money.

http://blog.path.com/post/98818902277/now-in-path-talk-message-people-and-places-in-one-app

Customer Service as a competitive advantage

~ michael_msft ~ Leave a comment

I think about this a lot. We actually use it when we talk about Spuul versus the others. We don’t have phone support – I think something we will try to add eventually but we are fairly maniacal about replying to emaail, tweets, fb and app store comments in play store. Looking at you Apple for sucking big by not adding this feature. It is a mindset but I think one that is very worthwhile. There are some great points in here about the angles to take – I love the lose every fight one. Great point. I need to remember that one. Anyways – good advice here and I urge every startup to think about this more than they do. I am appalled at the customer service of a lot of local services. The black hole issue I have experienced more than a few times.

http://sivers.org/cs