Ok...Mobile is Big, we know that, but increasingly it's hard to keep up with all the products and services being thrown into the mobile Mix. The latest, Google Buzz is just out and it purports to be a lot of things. Will it catch on? How is it different from all the other services out there about status? Facebook updates, Twitter, Friendfeed and even Google's own Latitude product (sadly not available in Ireland) not to mention Foursquare, Loopt, Locle and many, many others...

After watching the introductory video, I really can't see what the standout feature is going to be and to be honest, can't see the point. If people want to know what I'm doing right now - go to my Twitter, if they want to know more than that, read this blog. I'm not sure if this permanent "connectedness" through all these multiple channels is actually going anywhere, other to enhance carriers revenue, increase the amount of Ads google can serve, and play to the "look at me" tendencies of those with the attention span of a gnat...

Rant over...

 Always, always, when pitching to investor types, the question arises at some point "What's your USP?" (unique selling point). When asking this, they are looking for the key differentiator, the "thing" that sets you or your company apart, your "secret sauce", your "protectable intellectual property", the thing they put their money on. In Horse Racing, given that the ingredients are all the same (Horse+Breeding+Jockey+Trainer), the USP is a magical combination of all four.

In business it's usually simpler - the promoter and the idea - if the idea is patentable, and protectable and the market is there, then you're past the first post. If the promoter is experienced, and with a track record, you're even further along. If however, your business is a "service" business, in an emerging market, it's much harder to prove to investor types. Although some of the best business' in the world are "service" based - see Ryanair and McDonalds for example, investors still like patentable, tangible assetts. In the emerging creative service space that MobaNode occupies presently, the value or USP is hard to tie down as the barriers to entry are seen as "low". This gives us a constant dilemma, leading to much head wrangling and brainstorming, trying to justify our place in this market, trying to think of something complicated. However, in the end we managed to distill it down to just 4 words...

Great Content, Done Well

I'm happy with that - for now!

The Amhrán na bhFiann application that MobaNode developed (in conjunction with Gaelchultur) for the Nokia Ovi Store has been a great hit abroad it turns out. When looking at the download stats in advance of a presentation we were giving for the Nokia Ireland Developer Event it turns out the Ireland is sixth on the list when it comes to download locations and we are trumped by Turkey, Vietnam, UK, Indonesia and India! Since launch, nearly 25,000 downloads (as of last week - I'm sure more now) of Amhrán have been made as can be seen in our report screenshot below...

This fact, made for great PR copy and earned exposure in all sorts of places, including the Front Page of the Irish Times...

and coverage was also featured on Radio - 

Morning Ireland (What it says in the papers) - 

and no less a place than the Gerry Ryan Show too -

and fair play to Gerry, he actually got out name right!

The audio clip below was recorded just after winning the Elevate Award. Even though I say so myself, I sound remarkably together and composed for someone just having won and award - I should have practiced my "Oscar tears". Many people heard this on the Radio the morning after, but I missed it (that's another story) and have only just received the clip of it - hence its late posting now. Anyway, here it is now for posterity...

Following on swiftly from Google's purchase of Admob (as written previously on this Blog) for $750 Million the news is out that news that Apple is buying Quattro Wireless for $275 Million, commentators are saying the the combination of these two purchases has instantly pushed the mobile advertising industry passed the $1 billion mark in value. This fact is quite an accomplishment given that the total U.S. mobile advertising market was only worth $416 million in 2009. 

This is yet again a validation of the Mobile marketing space with these uber strong players involved. All smaller mobile advertising companies must be dusting down their suits and polishing their shoes waiting for Microsoft, Yahoo et al to come knocking, for as sure as night follows day, these guys will go sniffing too. All good news for all of us in the Mobile space - MobaNode contact details are here - please call, night or day, we don't mind ;-)