Yes, it has a cringe-worthy name. Yes it’s a closed development environment. Yes it’s $500 I don’t NEED to spend. Yes it is highly derivative of the iPhone. Yes it has a huge bezel. Yes it’s on AT&T’s shameful excuse for a network. And yes, I want–nay–must have one. I will now address each potential problem area point by point.

• The Name – It sucks. Who cares? I’m over it.
• Closed – Oh no! Whatever will I do? As much as some arbitrary app rejections might suck here and there, the App Store has set the standard for all other app stores. All my favorite apps that I can’t live without will be on the iPad. And the fact that the App Store is closed; the fact that Apple makes the hardware and the software, is the very reason why people love the Apple experience. Developers can cry all they want about its policies, but the App Store made buying a mobile app mainstream. Millions of customers that wouldn’t have existed otherwise  are now accustomed to paying for mobile content. You’re welcome, snotty developers.
• It’s $500 – OK, I already have a MacBook Pro, an iPhone 3GS, do I need an iPad? No, I desperately need an iPad. I just do. Tech is my life, it’s how I make my living.
• Just a Big iPhone - Yes! Exactly! That’s like saying that if you have a fifty pound pile of cash–a great thing, who would want a 100 pound pile of cash? Me who. That’s who.
• Huge Bezel – OK, I’ll admit, at first sight of the big bezel–especially after seeing those sexy barely-there-bezeled mock-ups–I was taken aback. But then I thought it through. Where else would you grip it? Would you hold it like a cocktail waitress holds her tray?
• AT&T – This is the only part that kills me. But for my needs, I’ll go WiFi only, and save on the $130 bucks and extra monthly subscription to yet another service. I’ll use it to surf the web at home, and use my iPhone when I’m out in the wild–who wants to lug around a tablet anyway? So by default this doesn’t matter to me at all (I know a total cop-out and AT&T’s SHITE 3G network should be a dealbreaker if you require 3G connectivity).

So yes, sign me up! I have already pledged my soul to the His holiness in the church of Jobs. Call me a sheep, a weak-willed fanboy, but when you are fiddling with your stylus, trying to get your sodding handset to work with that fragmented application, I’ll be joyfully multi-touching my way through the Internet, an ebook or one of the most compelling 140,000 apps ever made for a mobile platform.

Note: this was originally posted by Sparkster Michael Selvidge at Mobile Industry Review http://www.mobileindustryreview.com/2010/01/the_ipad_is_no…orm_to_buy_one.html

What tongues are wagging about now:

§ The good: 2.2% rise in consumer spending; consumer confidence surged 12 points. Americans feel brighter about the outlook and AP is writing about “Frugal Fatigue”. Sentiment is more positive from the anecdotal conversations we have had

§ The bad: US GDP declines 6.1%, Sun loses $201M in Q1; Interpublic posts $73m loss and 11% dip in revenue, Moto burns $1.3B in cash in Q1

§ The ugly: National freakout about Swine Flu – flights cancelled, gov’t monitoring passengers getting off int’l flights, national state emergency funds triggered

The rest:

• IAC in talks to buy Yahoo! Personals
• MSFT/Verizon planning iPhone competitor
• AOL spinoff
• Iphone Microtractions enabled within apps at 3.0 launch
• Disney and ABC content headed to Hulu decline 30% yet Apple is going to start creating its own.

VC:

• NVCA makes reco’s to address capital markets crisis, revive IPOs at Annual Meeting
• WPP reviews successors for Sir Martin Sorrell following earnings, where debt increased to $3.75b and cash flow decreased ~$500M
• LOT of new startups forming from the newly unemployed. In some circles “everyone whom I know that lost their finance job started an online venture.” PeopleSoft founder raises $75M from NEA/Greylock for Workday, SaaS HR and financial software

Press:

• Entrepreneur Mag’s Entrepreneur of the Year award submission due 6/15.
• CTIA Call for papers due in May

Parties and Events:

• May 7: Churchill Club CIO Update 2010
• May 11: MediaBistro party at 111 Minna Gallery: Raffling off a free ticket to their 6/3 MediaBistro Circus: Extraordinary Event (attending, will send notes)
• May 14: PaidContent Social Media Mixer
• May 20: Media 140: London’s first Microblogging and Twitter event. Lot of press attending.
• May 20: Churchill Club Top Ten Tech Trends
• June 10: Digital Download 90 sec Mobile App Shootout

Spark held an informal end of year tech panel today in London and it was great to hear from companies that are feeling positive despite (or because of) the current climate. Much of what you read these days is doom and gloom – layoffs, businesses shutting down, others having difficulty raising money – and while all of those things are happening, there are also companies hiring, growing, expanding into new geographies, and feeling bullish about 2009. So, in an attempt to get that side of the story told, we got together founders and execs from some of London’s most interesting tech companies.

Participating in today’s panel were: Cesar Mascaraque, the European MD of Ask.com, Matt Jones, founder of Dopplr, Frank Meehan, founder and CEO of INQ Mobile, Martin Stiksel, co-founder of Last.fm, and Richard Moross, co-founder and CEO of moo.com. Reshma Sohoni, CEO of Seedcamp, was the moderator.

Of companies on the panel, most, if not all, talked about plans for fairly aggressive growth in 2009. MOO will be expanding into the US and is currently hiring. Ask.com grew 25% this year and will be increasing its marketing spend next year (in Europe at least). Last.fm is focused on expanding in the US market. INQ Mobile has impeccable market-timing with a low-cost, social networking phone for the masses, and Dopplr is capitalizing on the trend of the internet becoming truly mobile, and helping people optimize their travel (at a time when people are concerned both about cost and their carbon footprint).

Another common theme of the day was focus – this word was probably mentioned 100 times. Everyone agreed that to be successful in a challenging climate, the single most important attribute for a company is focus. Martin, who started Last.fm in the last downturn, said the restricted economic environment really helped them because they had to focus on their core value proposition and not chase the many other things that might have been possible. Cesar from Ask.com said that they would continue to focus on their core customer, while much of their competition was worried about who was going to buy who and for how much. Richard from moo.com believes that this environment will be good for companies who can focus and execute because a lot of the noise will fall away, reducing distractions, eliminating some of the competition, and making it possible to hire amazing talent.

While things are certainly not as stable as many would like, what the people on today’s panel talked about more than anything was the opportunity this presented if you were in a position to take advantage of it. On that note, here are a few predictions for 2009:

Matt from Dopplr expects companies like Last.fm, Mint and Wasabi to do well – he calls these “personal informatics” companies. They measure, analyze and help you visualize your behavior. They can reflect your behavior back to you so you can make decisions and optimize what you’re doing. Like a personal dashboard – great when people are trying to cut the fat out of their lives and do more with less.

Cesar from Ask.com is planning to take advantage of the falling price of TV ads – he says they’ve fallen 25% already this year and thinks that will happen again. It’s a great opportunity for companies to get high profile advertising at a low cost.

Frank from INQ Mobile thinks that mobile advertising still has a way to go, mainly because the current interfaces don’t yet deliver relevancy to the customer and the trade off isn’t worth it.

Martin from Last.fm said that the online music industry is really still in its infancy and he expects consolidation in the market. He also pointed out that recessions can be good for music in general – developments like punk and raves both happened in recessions.

Reshma from Seedcamp said funding will continue to go to companies that can show that people are willing to pay for their services or products right away. It will be difficult for those who don’t have a proven business model that results in near-term revenue.

So with that dose of inspiration, here’s to finishing 2008 with a bang and starting off strong in 2009!

–Rachel

The iPhone craze is hitting an all time high today as the first iPhones are going to be available for purchase tonight at 6pm. Some Sparksters, myself included, have gotten ourselves wrapped up in this craze and plan to purchase a phone tonight. We’ve had a fun day here at Sparkpr taking shifts going over to the iPhone line and passing out water (It’s a hot day and we’re nice people!). Spirits and energy are high as people all around San Francisco eagerly waiting in line for the common love of technology. Plus, there’s lots to do – even a mini golf peep show!

According to my fellow Sparkster Jeff, by around 10am there were already about 125 people in line! The line continues to grow and seemed to be over 300 people by the time I dropped in at around 1pm. Many people walking by the line kept asking him “What’s this line for?!.” Meanwhile, he overheard a troupe of second graders on a field trip loudly exclaim, “Look at all the people waiting in line for the iPhone!” I was happy to hear that the future generation has been well educated!

How much is that iPhone worth to you? One guy that Jeff met in line is being paid $15 an hour because his mom’s boss asked him to wait in line for him. Not a bad day job for a 12 year old! Which leads me to wonder how many people are waiting in line to purchase phones for themselves—I’m sure there’s at least a handful of people waiting in line hoping to buy a device and then sell it for twice the price on eBay tomorrow.

Did you wait in line today? Or go by the line during lunch? What did you think? If you’re desperate to cut in line this evening, never fear, you can always use Craigslist to find your very own “professional waiter”

Check back next week for full report of my first weekend with my iPhone…

Happy Friday!

Lisa

Your phone rings. You receive a “new e-mail” notification. A new blog entry has just been posted and beckons you to read. The brief moment of euphoria that follows these occurrences is often overlooked, yet unmistakable; your heart quickens and blood rushes to extremities. You’re hooked!

The first novel written by Matt Richtel, a journalist for The New York Times, Hooked is a technological thriller that elucidates a new genre of addiction that has already engulfed millions in capitalist nations worldwide—the technology addict. Doubtlessly, if you are reading this blog you are indeed guilty of what Richtel describes in his book: aimlessly perusing through the internet, checking compulsively for a new e-mail or something of the like. This, Richtel argues, is all part of the addiction. These cravings we eventually satisfy, by means of technological and thus psychological and physiological response, only to have the stress arise once again.

In contemplating this hypothesis, we can only wonder “is this real?” along with a question that Richtel himself asks, “What can V.C. people do with this information in the non-fictional world?” Richtel proposes a startling possibility, but you must read to find out!

I myself had been separated from electronics for the duration of a near 6.5 hour flight from New York. There was no time for a technology fix between my arrival and Richtel’s book party, and my stress was compounding due to lack of exposure. Luckily, walking into the Hooked party proved to be the perfect cure. A 19-year-old intern straight off the plane, in the presence of Wall Street Journal and New York Times royalty was the prescription that replaced the drug. No one told me that the prescription was addictive too! Fortunately, I wasn’t the only one on sensory overload.

Richtel was a CPU at full capacity, buzzing from journalist to V.C., even making a stop for this meek intern! When Richtel learned that I had read his book, he was mock-ecstatic: “You and my family are the only ones who have read this book!” He then signed my book, “Welcome to the biz! Please forgive me in advance if I don’t answer your calls.” I wasn’t quite sure what to make of this, but as I spoke to more people at the party, they seemed to be giving me a similar message.

Back to the book:

I thought that the ending of the book was somewhat disjointed, and asked Richtel’s wife Meredith if she could tell me anything about it, Richtel busy with the big guys. Interestingly, there was a story behind it, and this had not been Richtel’s original ending. When Richtel submitted his book to friends, publishers and peers, it was suggested that he change the ending.

It isn’t difficult in this day in age to feel as if technology is the fuel that runs life. But who is to blame? As you take a break from modern technology and read Richtel’s book, step back and contemplate: Would it make you feel less anxious if the book was in pdf form?

Sarah