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We!hereby!certify!that!this!material,!which!we!submit!for!assessment!
on!the!programme!of!study!leading!to!the!award!of!M.Sc.!in!Electronic!Commerce!
is!entirely!our!own!work!and!has!not!been!taken!from!the!work!of!others!save!and!
to!the!extent!that!such!work!has!been!cited!and!acknowledged!within!the!text!of!
my!work.!I!also!certify!that!we!have!read,!understand!and!are!in!compliance!with!the!
DCU!Guidelines!on!Best!Practice!in!Research!Ethics.!
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Deirdre!Connolly,!Student!Number!!!!!!!11212127!
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Gráinne!Mary!Malone!Student!Number!!55149774!
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Emmanuelle!Perrier!Student!Number!11211441!
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Omar!Fachar!Student!Number!!11211427!
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Date!!19th!August!2012!
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We!would!like!to!express!our!sincere!thanks!to!our!Practicum!advisors!Dr.!Cathal!Gurrin!and!
Dr.!Regina!Connolly!who!kindly!advised!and!supported!our!work!during!the!Summer.!
We! also! wish! to! extend! our! thanks! to! Professor! Alan! Smeaton,! Mr.! Terry! O’Brien! and! Mr.!
Patrick!Mulcahy.!
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Special! thanks! to! all! our! families! and! friends! for! their! support! and! encouragement!
throughout!the!year.!
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Table&of&Contents&
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1! Table!of!Contents!................................................................................................................!4!
2! Definitions!.........................................................................................................................!10!
2.1! Geofence!....................................................................................................................!11!
2.2! Geonotes!....................................................................................................................!11!
2.3! Geotrigger!..................................................................................................................!11!
2.4! Platform!.....................................................................................................................!11!
2.5! Interface!.....................................................................................................................!11!
Exeutive&Summary&
3! Executive!Summary!..........................................................................................................!12!
3.1! Introduction!...............................................................................................................!13!
3.2! Product!and!Service!and!its!advantages!....................................................................!13!
3.3! Our!Vision!...................................................................................................................!14!
3.4! The!Market!.................................................................................................................!14!
3.5! Target!customer!.........................................................................................................!15!
3.6! Business!Strategy!.......................................................................................................!15!
3.7! Unique!Solution!.........................................................................................................!15!
3.8! First!to!Market!...........................................................................................................!15!
3.9! Company!!Team!.........................................................................................................!15!
3.10! Market!strategy!.......................................................................................................!16!
3.11! Financial!Projections!................................................................................................!16!
3.12! Funding!....................................................................................................................!16!
4! Genesis!.............................................................................................................................!17!
Market&Analysis&
5! Location!Based!Services!Global!Industry!Overview!..........................................................!19!
5.1! Global!Market!Analysis!..............................................................................................!19!
5.2! Target!Market!............................................................................................................!22!
5.3! Emerging!Trends!Influencing!Location!Growth!..........................................................!22!
5.4! Primary!Research!.......................................................................................................!26!
6! The!Global!App!Marketplace!............................................................................................!28!
6.1! The!global!marketplace!..............................................................................................!28!
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6.2! Top!Cutting!Edge!Mobile!app!Trends!for!2012!..........................................................!31!
7! API!market!........................................................................................................................!33!
7.1! Fragmentation!is!the!New!Reality!..............................................................................!33!
7.2! API!Explained!..............................................................................................................!34!
7.3! Why!are!APIs!useful?!.................................................................................................!34!
7.4! APIs!business!model!...................................................................................................!34!
7.5! API!Market!is!Accelerating!.........................................................................................!35!
7.6! RESTful!API!.................................................................................................................!36!
8! Competitive!Landscape!.....................................................................................................!39!
8.1! Direct!Competitor!......................................................................................................!39!
8.2! Indirect!competitors!..................................................................................................!39!
8.3! Differentiation!............................................................................................................!41!
8.4! Competitive!Advantage!..............................................................................................!41!
8.5! Benefits!to!Clients!......................................................................................................!41!
8.6! Segmentation!.............................................................................................................!42!
8.7! Porter’s!5!forces!.........................................................................................................!43!
9! Industry!Engagement!........................................................................................................!44!
10! Target!Customer!...............................................................................................................!45!
Use&Cases&
11! Use!Cases!..........................................................................................................................!49!
11.1! Marketing!and!Advertising!.......................................................................................!49!
11.2! Family!Safety!............................................................................................................!49!
11.3! Device!Tracking!in!Education!...................................................................................!50!
11.4! Enterprise!.................................................................................................................!50!
11.5! Agriculture!...............................................................................................................!50!
11.6! Medical!....................................................................................................................!51!
11.7! Event!Management!..................................................................................................!51!
11.8! Public!Sector!............................................................................................................!51!
11.9! Personnel!Safety!......................................................................................................!51!
11.10! Tourism!..................................................................................................................!52!
11.11! Social!and!Consumer!.............................................................................................!52!
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Business&Description&
12! Our!Vision!.........................................................................................................................!54!
13! Our!Product!......................................................................................................................!54!
13.1! How!it!works?!..........................................................................................................!54!
14! Value!Proposition!.............................................................................................................!55!
15! Business!Strategy!..............................................................................................................!56!
15.1! Vertical!integration!..................................................................................................!56!
16! Revenue!Model!.................................................................................................................!56!
17! Company!Set!Up!...............................................................................................................!57!
18! Funding!.............................................................................................................................!57!
19! Our!Management!Team!....................................................................................................!57!
20! Staffing!..............................................................................................................................!58!
21! Workspace!........................................................................................................................!59!
22! Legal!Requirements!for!Company!Formation!...................................................................!59!
23! Around!LaBS!Business!Phases!...........................................................................................!60!
23.1! Starting!Phase!..........................................................................................................!60!
23.2! Growing!phase!.........................................................................................................!61!
23.3! Maturity!phase!.........................................................................................................!62!
23.4! Declining!phase!........................................................................................................!63!
23.5! Re\positioning!phase!...............................................................................................!63!
Proof&Of&Concept&
24! Proof!of!Concept!...............................................................................................................!66!
24.1! Pet!market!overview!................................................................................................!66!
24.2! Additional!source!of!revenue!...................................................................................!66!
Marketing&Analysis&
25! Pricing!Strategy!.................................................................................................................!68!
26! Price!..................................................................................................................................!68!
27! Promotion!.........................................................................................................................!68!
28! Place!.................................................................................................................................!69!
28.1! Incubator!Hubs\!The!Digital!Hub!..............................................................................!69!
28.2! Dublin!Web!Summit!.................................................................................................!69!
28.3! Dublin!Beta!..............................................................................................................!69!
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28.4! Dublin!Business!Innovation!Centre!..........................................................................!70!
28.5! Sandbox!...................................................................................................................!70!
28.6! Enterprise!Europe!Network!.....................................................................................!71!
28.7! 3scale!.......................................................................................................................!71!
28.8! Programmable!Web!.................................................................................................!71!
28.9! Conferences!on!Location!.........................................................................................!72!
28.10! Search!Engine!Optimization!...................................................................................!72!
29! Strategic!Partnerships!.......................................................................................................!72!
30! People!...............................................................................................................................!73!
31! SWOT!Analysis!..................................................................................................................!74!
31.1! Strengths!..................................................................................................................!74!
31.2! Weaknesses!.............................................................................................................!76!
31.3! Opportunities!...........................................................................................................!76!
31.4! Threats!.....................................................................................................................!77!
Technical&Analysis&
32! System!Overview!..............................................................................................................!80!
32.1! Requirements!...........................................................................................................!80!
32.2! Our!approach!...........................................................................................................!85!
33! Our!solution!......................................................................................................................!87!
33.1! Global!System!architecture!......................................................................................!87!
33.2! The!API!server!..........................................................................................................!91!
33.3! The!management!web!application!........................................................................!103!
33.4! The!system!development!kit!..................................................................................!111!
33.5! The!proof!of!concept!.............................................................................................!114!
34! Around!LaBS!infrastructure!............................................................................................!119!
34.1! The!cloud!...............................................................................................................!119!
34.2! Amazon!Web!Service!.............................................................................................!120!
34.3! Deployment!of!Around!LaBS!platform!...................................................................!121!
35! Risk!assessment!..............................................................................................................!122!
35.1! Security!threats!......................................................................................................!122!
35.2! Privacy!policy!.........................................................................................................!122!
35.3! Business!continuity!and!disaster!recovery!.............................................................!124!
36! Technology!road!map!and!future!perspectives!..............................................................!124!
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Financial&Analysis&
37! Sales!expectation!............................................................................................................!126!
37.1! Assumptions!..........................................................................................................!126!
38! Cash!Flow!in!Euros!..........................................................................................................!128!
39! Profit!and!Loss!Account!in!Euros!....................................................................................!129!
40! The!Statement!of!Financial!Position!in!Euros!.................................................................!130!
41! Financial!breakdown!.......................................................................................................!130!
41.1! Currency!.................................................................................................................!130!
41.2! Funding!requirement!.............................................................................................!130!
41.3! Revenue!.................................................................................................................!131!
41.4! Costs!.......................................................................................................................!132!
41.5! Salaries!...................................................................................................................!133!
41.6! PRSI!........................................................................................................................!133!
41.7! Debtor/Creditor!.....................................................................................................!134!
41.8! Professional!fees!....................................................................................................!134!
41.9! Brand!development!...............................................................................................!134!
41.10! Chips!stock!...........................................................................................................!134!
41.11! Rent!&!Insurance!.................................................................................................!134!
41.12! Loan!repayment!/!Bank!interest!..........................................................................!134!
41.13! Office!equipment!.................................................................................................!134!
42! Funding!and!Grants!........................................................................................................!135!
42.1! Innovation!Voucher!...............................................................................................!135!
42.2! Priming!Grants!.......................................................................................................!136!
42.3! Business!Expansion!Grants!....................................................................................!136!
42.4! Feasibility!Grants!...................................................................................................!136!
42.5! SME!Loan\!Allied!Irish!Bank!....................................................................................!136!
42.6! First!Step!Microfinance!..........................................................................................!136!
Further&Considerations&
43! Risk!Analysis!....................................................................................................................!139!
43.1! Management!..........................................................................................................!139!
43.2! Technological!Risks!................................................................................................!140!
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43.3! Marketing!and!sales!risks!.......................................................................................!141!
43.4! Financial!risks!.........................................................................................................!141!
43.5! Legal!and!ethical!risks!............................................................................................!142!
43.6! Organisational!risks!................................................................................................!142!
44! Privacy!and!Data!Protection!...........................................................................................!143!
44.1! Notice!and!Transparency!.......................................................................................!143!
44.2! Meaningful!Consumer!Choice!................................................................................!143!
44.3! Data!Security!and!Minimisation!.............................................................................!143!
44.4! Technical!Solutions!................................................................................................!144!
44.5! Around!LaBS!Privacy!and!Data!Handling!Practices!................................................!145!
Interaction&With&The&Advisors&
45! Interaction!with!advisors!................................................................................................!148!
46! Reference!List!.................................................................................................................!150!
Appendix&
47! Appendix!.........................................................................................................................!159!
47.1! Phases!of!the!technical!development!....................................................................!159!
47.2! Further!trends!for!mobile!apps!..............................................................................!159!
48! App!market!research!......................................................................................................!161!
48.1! Pet!Locator!Apps!....................................................................................................!161!
48.2! Family!Finder!and!Pet!Locator!Mobile!App!Research!............................................!162!
48.3! Development!Companies!calls!\!feedbacks!............................................................!163!
48.4! Results!of!the!Pet!Survey!.......................................................................................!167!
49! Data!protection!and!Privacy!...........................................................................................!168!
49.1! The!Irish!Data!Protection!Acts!1988!and!2003:!......................................................!168!
49.2! PRIVACY!POLICY!for!Around!LaBS!..........................................................................!169!
50! Financial!statement!Quarter!...........................................................................................!170!
51! Financial!Breakdown!.......................................................................................................!177!
51.1! Amazon!costs!.........................................................................................................!177!
51.2! Chip!cost!details!.....................................................................................................!185!
52! Interaction!with!advisors!................................................................................................!185!
52.1! Minutes!from!our!meetings!...................................................................................!185!
52.2! Slides!......................................................................................................................!189!
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1 Table&of&figures&
Figure!1:!Pyramid!LBS!market!expectation!.............................................................................!20!
Figure!2:!Hype!Cycle!for!Strategic!Business!Capabilities!.........................................................!25!
Figure!3:!Evolution!of!app!demand!across!regions,!p.68!........................................................!28!
Figure!4:!Global!map!of!app!trade!routes,!p.73!......................................................................!30!
Figure!5:!API!business!models!.................................................................................................!35!
Figure!6:!API!growth!2005[2012!.............................................................................................!36!
Figure!9:!Porter's!5!forces!.......................................................................................................!43!
Figure!10:!Around!LaBS!location!tools!....................................................................................!54!
Figure!13:!Networking!via!Sandox!..........................................................................................!70!
Figure!17:!Socket!communication!approach!...........................................................................!83!
Figure!18:!Draft!of!Real!time!cloud!infrastructure!for!Around!LaBS!.......................................!85!
Figure!19:!Our!approach!.........................................................................................................!87!
Figure!20:!API[centric!application!...........................................................................................!88!
Figure!21:!MVC!model!.............................................................................................................!89!
Figure!22:!REST!principles!.......................................................................................................!90!
Figure!23!!Class!diagram!of!the!API!server!..............................................................................!93!
Figure!24:!API!server!infrastructure!........................................................................................!94!
Figure!25:!API!response!in!JSON!format!................................................................................!101!
Figure!26:!API!response!in!XML!format!.................................................................................!102!
Figure!27:!Management!platform!interface!.........................................................................!103!
Figure!28!:!Activity!diagram!of!an!application!creation!........................................................!104!
Figure!29:!Interface!sketchings!.............................................................................................!107!
Figure!30:!Final!design!as!implemented!................................................................................!107!
Figure!31!!Activity!life!cycle!...................................................................................................!115!
Figure!32!!Sequence!diagram!when!the!end!user!wants!to!obtain!the!last!position!of!the!pet
!..............................................................................................................................................!116!
Figure!33:!Around!LaBS!capital!investment!..........................................................................!131!
Figure!34:!Revenue!generated!by!the!platform!....................................................................!131!
Figure!35:!Revenue!generated!by!Around!Pets!.....................................................................!131!
Figure!36:!Hosting!Costs!.......................................................................................................!132!
Figure!37:!Three!monthly!subscription!costs!.........................................................................!133!
Figure!38:!Chip!cost!...............................................................................................................!133!
Figure!39:!Salaries!.................................................................................................................!133!
Figure!40:!PRSI!costs!.............................................................................................................!134!
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2
Definitions&
2.1 Geofence&
This!is!a!virtual!boundary!surrounding!a!physical!geographical!space.!!It!consists!of!a!set!of!
coordinates! that! define! an! area.! Geofences! can! be! established! and! maintained! by! GPS\
enabled!devices,!such!as!smartphones,!laptops,!handheld!GPS!devices!and!commercial!GPS!
devices!such!as!those!used!in!construction!or!trucking!(Zahradnik!n.d.).!
2.2 Geonotes&
This!is!a!location\based!note!that!can!be!left!for!a!user!and!a!message!will!be!sent!to!the!user!
when! that! location! is! reached.! Geonotes! are! based! on! geofencing;! detecting! if! a! mobile!
device!has!entered!or!exited!a!certain!geographical!radius!can!trigger!a!geonote.!(Geoloqi,!
Inc.!2012).!
2.3 Geotrigger&
The!action!of!“triggering”!the!geonotes!is!called!the!geotrigger.!
2.4 Platform&
Platform! is! a! place! to! launch! software! applications.! It! is! a! crucial! element! for! applications!
integration,!storage!and!interoperability.!It!is!invisible!for!the!application!end\users.!It!is!like!
your!plumbing!in!the!central!heating!system.!
2.5 Interface&&
An! interface! is! an! interaction! between! two! components.! For! example,! the! display! on! the!
phone!is!called!the!user\interface.!
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Executive)Summary!
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Executive&Summary&
3.1 Introduction&
The! explosive! growth! of! devices! like! smartphones! and! tablets! has! created! a! huge! demand!
for! mobile! applications.! ! Location\based! services! (LBS)! are! services! that! add! value! by!
exploiting! knowledge! of! a! mobile! device’s! location,! determined! by! GPS,! mobile! networks,!
Bluetooth!or!Wi\Fi.!LBS!enables!you!to!report!real!time!location!to!a!given!platform!and!use!
the! geographical! position! of! the! device! to! filter! the! large! amount! of! data! into! information!
that!is!most!relevant.!
Location!is!at!the!heart!of!the!mobile!value!proposition.!Knowledge!of!the!end!users!location!
is! used! to! deliver! relevant,! timely,! context! based! information,! such! as! traffic! and! weather!
updates,!nearby!convenience!services!(for!example!the!nearest!cash!point,!service!station),!
restaurant!reviews,!promotional!offers!and!discounts.!!
The!LBS!market!serves!a!range!of!B2B!and!B2C!customers.!These!are!some!of!the!potential!
use!cases!(see!also,!Use!Case!section!of!this!report)!
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Consumers!–!navigation,!friend!finder,!family!safety,!local!search!queries.!
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Medical!\!ambulance!and!emergency!response,!critical!equipment!tracking.!!
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Tourism!–!points!of!interest!such!as!museums,!hiking!trails,!historic!places.!
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Digital! advertising! and! marketing! agencies! –! promotional! information! loyalty!
coupons,!discounts,!store!locator.!
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Enterprise! –! Fleet! management,! logistics! and! distribution,! field! engineers,! mobile!
sales!and!service!personnel.!
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Public!sector!\!real\time!train!/bus!information,!traffic!congestion,!service!and!repair!
crews,!personal!safety!in!high!risk!environments.!
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Agencies,!embassies!or!city!planners!interested!in!location!analytics!
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Agriculture!–!livestock!tracking!
3.2 Product&and&Service&and&its&advantages&
We!propose!that!we!deliver!a!service!to!developers!that!makes!it!easy!to!integrate!real!time!
location! functionality! inside! a! mobile! app! or! web! application.! We! offer! multiple! location!
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services! from! a! single! platform! that! can! be! run! on! any! device,! with! any! carrier,! using! any!
language!or!location!technology.!It!is!a!‘one!stop!shop’!for!developers!who!want!to!integrate!
location!into!a!wide!variety!of!applications.!!We!offer!developers!a!complete!set!of!location!
tools!(geofencing,!geonotes,!geotriggering!and!tracking),!real\time!data!storage!and!analytics!
via! a! user! friendly,! intuitive! web! interface.! ! Our! solution! is! interoperable,! scalable,! cloud!
stored!and!vendor!independent.!
In! a! mobile! web! environment! that’s! becoming! increasingly! fragmented! with! different!
devices!and!operating!systems,!our!solution!can!be!used!in!both!native!app!and!mobile!web!
development!strategies.!!
The!benefit!to!app!developers!is!primarily!that!our!platform!will!take!the!complexity!out!of!
developing!location!integration!thereby!reducing!the!amount!of!time!spent!on!development.!
We! take! care! of! the! mechanics! of! location! services! allowing! developers! to! focus! on! their!
core!services.!It!will!enable!them!to!get!to!market!quickly!and!will!reduce!the!incidence!of!
location!related!errors!and!challenges.!
3.3 Our&Vision&
To!become!a!leader!in!European!based!location!services!and!location!analytics.!
3.4 The&Market&
According!to!Pyramid!research!the!global!location\based!services!market!is!expected!to!grow!
to! $10.3! billion! by! 2015,! up! from! $2.8bn! in! 2010.! The! market! for! next\generation! location!
has!barely!been!tapped.!Advertising!will!become!the!dominant!source!of!revenue!followed!
by!people!finder!applications.!
Berg! Insight! indicates! that! the! number! of! active! users! of! location\based! services! and! apps!
more!than!doubled!in!2011.!Approximtely!20!percent!of!mobile!subscribers!in!Europe!were!
frequent!users!of!location\based!services!in!2011.!!
Unlike!many!technologies,!LBS!are!popular!and!desirable!already.!The!market!requires!that!
developers! create! apps! that! capitalise! on! the! untapped! potential.! Location! is! one! of! the!
critical!enabling!technologies!that!shape!richer!context!aware!services.!As!new!applications!
aim! to! adapt! themselves! to! the! user’s! context,! new! platforms! will! be! required! that! can!
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collect,! distribute! and! exchange! contextual! information! across! location,! payments,!
commerce,!mobile!and!social!technologies!(Strobbe!2012).!This!is!the!space!that!we!plan!to!
operate! in,! a! platform! that! provides! a! layer! of! services! that! can! power! context! aware,!
location!based!applications.!
3.5 Target&customer&
Our!target!customer!therefore!is!not!the!app!consumer.!It!is!the!app!developer.!Unlike!the!
large\scale!software!applications!of!prior!generations!most!mobile!applications!are!produced!
by!individual!developers!or!small!companies.!
3.6 Business&Strategy&
Our! first! objective! is! to! gain! brand! recognition! and! uptake! within! the! app! developer!
community.! We! aim! to! provide! a! service! to! developers! where! location! awareness! adds!
significant! value! to! the! end! users.! The! revenue! model! we! propose! is! a! monthly! tiered!
subscription!plan!for!developers.!
3.7 Unique&Solution&
The! LBS! platform! is! a! unique! European\based! solution! designed! to! assist! developers! and!
companies! unlock! the! full! potential! of! real! time! LBS! and! easily! layer! geolocation! onto! any!
mobile! device! or! application! using! any! location! technology.! The! service! we! offer! ensures!
easy!integration!with!existing!platforms!and!systems.!
3.8 First&to&Market&
At!present!this!is!an!uncontested!space!in!Ireland!and!Europe.!There!is!one!direct!competitor!
that!we!are!aware!of,!Geoloqi!in!Portland,!USA.!!
3.9 Company&&Team&
Gráinne!Mary!Malone!–!Sales!and!Marketing!Manager!
Emmanuelle!Perrier!–!Business!and!Finance!Director!
Omar!Fachar!–!Lead!Developer!and!System!Administrator!
Deirdre!Connolly!–!Research!and!Development!Manager!
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3.10 Market&strategy&&
The!proposed!marketing!strategy!for!Around!LaBS!is!as!follows!
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Incubation!Centres!
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Web!summit!
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Dublin!Beta!
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Industry!related!conferences!and!events!
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Online!\!blogs,!discussion!forums,!developer!community!websites,!advertising,!SEO!
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3.11 Financial&Projections&
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2013&
Revenue&&
Funding&
Total&Costs&
Salaries&
Net&Profit&before&Tax&
2014&
2015&
118,992!
40,000!
474,664!
0!
882,!309!
0!
71,192&
186,098&
330,284&
36,000!
\23,431!
78,000!
32,664!
142,000!
126,804!
3.12 Funding&
The! four! members! of! the! management! team! will! commit! initial! funding! of! €5,000! each! to!
the!business!together!with!a!bank!loan!of!€20,000!bringing!the!total!funding!to!€40,000.!
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16!
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4
Genesis&
Location! Based! Services! (LBS)! applications! use! the! phone! position! to! promote! multiple!
varieties!of!services!to!the!user.!The!first!generation!of!LBS!principally!uses!position!to!push!
marketing! and! advertising! offers.! These! are! the! coupons! and! offers! that! we! are! already!
familiar!with.!However!the!usages!of!next!generation!location!services!will!be!broader.!They!
will!be!used!for!local,!personalized!and!opt!in!advertising;!for!securing!assets;!location!based!
gaming;!for!home!automation.!In!fact,!next!generation!LBS!will!not!be!intrusive!anymore!but!
will! really! make! the! user’s! life! easier.! The! user! will! be! in! control! of! location! enhancing!
services,! whereas! the! first! generation! was! based! on! Push! mechanisms.! One! of! the! best!
example!of!how!next!generation!LBS!can!simplify!the!life!is!the!pharmacist!use!case.!Imagine!
you! walk! on! the! street! to! the! pharmacy! to! refill! your! prescription.! As! you! approach! the!
store,!the!pharmacist!receives!a!message!indicating!that!you!will!arrive!in!5!minutes!and!that!
you!need!a!particular!prescription.!You!get!into!the!store!and!discover!that!your!prescription!
is!ready.!
Before! all! these! services! become! everyday! life,! some! challenges! still! need! to! be! solved.!
Building! LBS! applications! is! very! time! consuming! and! not! optimal.! Indeed,! the! location!
appears!to!be!just!a!feature!in!all!these!applications.!The!core!uses!are!in!security,!games,!
advertising!but!not!the!location!on!its!own.!Yet,!development!teams!must!be!trained!on!the!
integration! of! LBS.! They! need! to! know! how! to! manage! the! database,! how! to! handle! the!
battery! life,! how! to! trigger! geo\notes.! Learning! and! implementing! LBS! features! is! complex!
and!can!distract!developers!from!the!core!concept.!
Based!on!these!challenges,!the!idea!of!offering!a!cost\effective!and!efficient!solution!to!help!
developers!integrate!LBS!features!originated.!We!wanted!to!create!a!solution!that!takes!care!
of!all!the!location!handling!in!a!few!simple!lines!of!code,!freeing!up!developer’s!time!to!focus!
on!their!core!application.!This!is!how!the!concept!of!Around!LaBS!evolved.!
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Market'Analysis!
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5
Location&Based&Services&Global&Industry&Overview&
First! generation! location! is! about! navigation! and! simple! services! such! as!location\
aware!marketing.!!However,!it!is!expected!that!location\sensing!technologies!and!principles!
such!as!context!awareness!will!be!evolving!over!the!next!decade,!changing!the!landscape!as!
we!know!it!today.!Location!analytics!and!location!intelligence!in!government!and!enterprise!
is!already!underway!(Sasso,!2012,!Zimmermann!2012,!Vining!2011).!
5.1 Global&Market&Analysis&
In! the! past! two! years! the! global! location\based! services! market! has! experienced! strong!
growth.! According! to! Gartner! analyst! Annette! Zimmermann! (2011)! global! revenue! from!
location! based! services! for! consumers! will! reach! $13.5! billion! by! 2015.! Advertising! will!
become! the! dominant! source! of! revenue.! ! There! are! a! number! of! factors! driving! market!
growth,!including!the!availability!of!GPS\enabled!wireless!phones!and!smartphone!adoption.!
The!proliferation!of!mobile!devices!has!led!to!growth!in!mobile!app!consumption!which!in!
turn! impacts! the! demand! for! LBS.! ! Other! factors! include! ‘the! continued! growth! of! mobile!
advertising,! and! the! wider! coverage! and! higher! speeds! of! mobile! networks! along! with!
reductions!in!prices!for!services!and!the!growth!in!application!storefronts!that!offer!location\
aware!software,’!says!Zimmermann.!!
Pyramid! researchers! found! that! navigation! applications! are! the! largest! location! based!
service! revenue! generators! followed! by! people\finder! applications.! Child\finding! services,!
safety!and!security\related!services!are!gaining!traction,!particularly!in!the!US.!!
Location\based!advertising!is!the!market!segment!that!shows!the!highest!growth!potential!
particularly! as! the! advertising! ecosystem! matures.! The! different! components! of! mobile!
advertising!include!local!search,!display!and!messaging.!!It!is!expected!to!generate!more!than!
60%!of!total!location\based!services!revenue!in!2015,!with!local!search!providing!the!most!
significant!source!of!revenue!(Pyramid,!2011).!!
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19!
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Figure&1:&Pyramid&LBS&market&expectation&
Source:&Pyramid,&2011&
Berg!Insight!(2011)!estimates!that!the!number!of!active!users!of!location\based!services!and!
apps! more! than! doubled! in! 2011.! Approximately! 20%! of! mobile! subscribers! in! Europe! are!
frequent!users!of!LBS!while!in!North!America!an!estimated!one!third!of!all!users!now!access!
LBS!regularly.!!
5.1.1 Location&Based&Advertising&and&Brand&Awareness&–&Irish&Market&
The!IAB!which!is!the!Irish!trade!association!for!digital!advertising,!expects!that!smartphone!
ownership!will!overtake!desktop!ownership!in!Ireland!by!the!end!of!2012.!The!mobile!phone!
is!a!personal!device!that!is!always!on,!always!in!hand!and!functions!as!a!central!resource!for!
content,! purchasing! and! communication.! As! such! it! is! the! most! powerful! channel! for!
reaching! consumers! and! creating! brand! awareness.! According! to! Gartner,! the! audience!
reach!is!so!compelling!that!budgets!going!into!mobile!advertising!are!predicted!to!increase!
800%!over!the!next!four!years!in!Europe!(IAB,!2011)!!
The!explosive!growth!of!mobile!devices!has!created!a!huge!demand!for!mobile!applications!
as! the! new! route! to! discovery! and! brand! awareness.! According! to! IAB,! most! Irish! media!
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20!
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companies! are! developing! apps! and! mobile! optimised! sites! that! use! components! such! as!
sensors,!GPS,!location!awareness!and!social!components.!
Building!location!into!mobile!apps!is!key!because!it!provides!a!localized!call!to!action.!50%!of!
mobile!search!queries!have!local!intent.!IAB!suggests!that!70%!of!all!mobile!searches!convert!
within! one! hour.! Location! awareness! enables! brands! to! serve! location! specific! promotions!
and!information!when!and!where!consumers!need!it!most.!!
!
5.1.2 Regional&Differences&
There!are!important!regional!differences!in!location!developments!and!patterns!of!adoption,!
driven! largely! by! regulations! surrounding! emergency! calling! and! also! by! privacy! issues.!
Network!technology!also!has!an!impact!on!the!market!because!of!the!level!of!penetration!of!
GPS!(Pyramid!2011).!
In! the! US! mobile! phone! carriers! are! required! by! the! Federal! Communications! Commission!
(under!E911)!to!provide!accurate!positioning!facilities!so!that!emergency!calls!can!be!located!
in! the! event! of! a! 911! call.! ! According! to! Pyramid! research! analysts,! North! America,! is!
expected!to!remain!the!largest!region!for!location\based!services!through!2015.!Navigation!
services!are!the!highest.!Child\finder!services!are!enjoying!very!strong!growth,!and!there!is!
significant!innovation!around!location\based!advertising!and!payments!on!mobile!devices.!!
Asia\Pacific!is!the!second\largest!market!particularly!in!developed!regions!such!as!Japan!and!
South!Korea!with!very!high!GPS!penetration.!People!finding!and!advertising!location\based!
services!are!the!largest!components!in!the!Asia!Pacific!region.!
In! Europe! the! drive! has! come! from! consumer! demand! and! the! offerings! of! handset!
manufacturers!and!mobile!service!operators.!Growth!of!navigation!services!on!smartphones!
in!Europe!is!very!strong.!Child\location!services!however!have!limited!traction!in!the!region!
although!demand!is!expected!to!increase!(Pyramid!2011).!!
Emerging! markets! such! as! Africa! and! the! Middle! East! and! Latin! America! have! much! lower!
GPS! and! smartphone! penetration,! and! consequently! there! are! fewer! opportunities! for!
location\based!services.!
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5.2 Target&Market&
Our!target!market!is!the!Irish!and!UK!market!initially.!We!chose!this!because!we!believe!we!
have! first! mover! advantage! particularly! in! the! Irish! market.! At! this! time! there! is! no! other!
company! offering! multiple! location! services! from! a! single! interoperable! platform.! ! As! our!
product!develops!we!can!offer!our!services!to!the!European!market.!Research!suggests!there!
is!strong!growth!potential!there!(Pyramid!2011).!
5.3 Emerging&Trends&Influencing&Location&Growth&
5.3.1 Context&Aware&Computing&and&Social&User&Experience&
Trends! around! positioning! and! location! provide! high! benefit! to! users.! Google’s! recent!
announcement! about! project! glass! hints! at! the! future! of! augmented! reality.! Location! is! a!
core!component!of!AR!and!context!aware!computing.!
The! emerging! discipline! of! social! experience! design! is! becoming! a! new! imperative! that!
requires! an! advanced! level! of! personalization.! ! Rich! personalization! requires! integration! of!
contextual! data! —! including! location,! social! and! behavioral! data—! supported! by! analytics!
and!context\driven!rules!(Clark!2011,!Valdes!2011,!Jones!2012).!
Gartner!analysts!Cearley!and!Claunch!(2012)!identified!context!aware!computing!as!one!of!
the! top! strategic! technologies! for! 2012.! Some! analysts! describe! it! as! a! ‘game\changing!
opportunity’! to! provide! compelling,! seamless! user! experiences! (Finley! et! al! 2012,! Valdes!
2011).! User! experience! has! become! a! crucial! success! factor! that! involves! more! than!
hardware! and! software.! It! involves! how! users! interact! (voice,! touch,! gesture)! with! their!
devices! as! well! as! the! applications! (Augmented! Reality! and! LBS)! driving! this! interactivity!
(Nguyen!and!Milanesi!2012).!
Context! aware! computing! links! information! about! an! end! users! location,! activities,!
preferences! and! social! connections! to! anticipate! the! user’s! needs! and! serve! the! most!
relevant! personalized! information,! product! or! service.! Context! is! the! relevant! fact! about!
current! conditions! or! user! activities,! such! as! heavy! rain,! driving,! traffic! congestion,! looking!
for! parking,! in! the! supermarket,! watching! TV,! looking! at! camera! equipment! or! electronics!
!
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22!
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online!and!so!on.!The!more!context!elements!that!are!taken!into!account!the!richer!the!user!
experience!will!be.!!Through!2013!context!aware!applications!will!appear!in!targeted!areas!
such! as! location\based! services,! augmented! reality! and! mobile! commerce.! Location!
therefore!is!central!as!an!enabling!piece!of!much!more!complex!context!aware!applications.!!
Location!is!not!simply!a!service!like!maps!or!navigation!but!is!becoming!an!enabler!of!new!
product/user!experiences.!As!new!applications!and!services!aim!to!adapt!themselves!to!the!
user’s! context,! new! platforms! will! be! required! that! can! collect,! distribute! and! exchange!
contextual! information! across! location,! payments,! commerce,! mobile! and! social!
technologies!(Strobbe,!2012).!!
For! advertising! and! marketing! companies! context! translates! into! more! targeted! buying!
opportunities! and! more! relevant! brand! engagement.! Location! is! the! first! step! toward!
contextual!applications!that!are!proactive!and!personalized,!matching!services!to!customer!
or!indeed!employee!needs!at!a!specific!time!and!place.!The!long\term!vision!of!context!will!
involve!location,! knowledge! of! individual! needs,! gender,! age,! social! networks,! sensor!
information!and!other!clues!to!suggest!appropriate!offerings!to!users!(Jones,!2012).!!
5.3.2 Predictions&for&Context&Aware&Promotions&
Gartner!predicts!that!by!2015,!context\aware!promotions!will!comprise!10%!of!promotional!
activity! among! consumer! goods! manufacturers! in! developed! markets! (Ferrante! 2011).! A!
future!is!emerging!where!manufacturers!and!retailers!will!have!to!compete!for!business!in!
more!sophisticated!ways.!!One!such!scenario!is!real\time!offers!to!consumers!while!they!are!
in! the! shopping! process,! most! likely! through! a! mobile! device.! The! technologies! involved!
include!location\based!services,! offer! engines,! in\store! technologies! and! social! network!
analysis.!!
Gartner!analyst,!Will!Clark!(2011)!identified!the!following!Strategic!Planning!Assumptions!!
•
By!2012,!10%!of!consumers!in!Western!Europe!and!North!America!will!be!regularly!
opting!into!services!that!are!context\aware!of!items!of!interest!near!their!locations.!
•
By! 2015,! context\aware! technologies! will! affect! $96! billion! of! annual! consumer!
spending!worldwide.!
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•
By!2015,!context!will!be!as!influential!to!mobile!consumer!services!and!relationships!
as!search!engines!are!to!the!Web.!
•
By!2015,!20%!of!smartphone!users!worldwide!will!conduct!commerce!using!context\
enriched!services!on!a!weekly!basis.!
Why! are! these! planning! assumptions! significant! ?! Location! is! a! critical! enabling!
component!of!context!awareness.!
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5.3.3 Location&Intelligence&
While! the! most! effective! use! of! context! initially! is! likely! to! be! made! by! consumer! facing!
companies,!in!the!longer\term,!analysts!expect!it!to!become!a!standard!feature!of!employee\
facing!systems!also!(Jones!2012).!
Relevant! information! \! alerts,! reports! or! metrics! \! can! be! delivered! to! a! mobile!
device!based!on! it! is!location.! Information! can! be! enhanced! by! adding! details! about! other!
people!(for!example,!customers,!colleagues!and!service!staff)!who!are!also!in!the!vicinity.!So!
for!example,!a!service!technician!could!be!sent!an!alert!about!a!customer!service!call!close!to!
his!
or!
her!
current!location.!
If!
the!
back\office!
system!
is!
enabled!
to!
correlate!location!information!with!other!transactional!or!operational!data,!higher!customer!
value!and!satisfaction!can!be!achieved.!(Bitterer!and!Sood,!2011)!
Location!analysts!Zimmermann!and!Sasso!in!recent!Gartner!reports!(2012)!outline!a!number!
of! applications! of! location! intelligence! in! a! range! of! enterprise! and! service! sectors! such! as!
transportation,!retail,!fleet!management,!logistics!and!distribution,!emergency!response!and!
personal!safety!in!high!risk!environments,!(see!Use!Cases!section).!
Zimmermann!(2012)!and!Basso!2012!in!separate!studies!give!location!a!high!benefit!rating!
with!the!following!market!penetration!figures!:!!
•
Location!Intelligence!5%!\!20%!of!target!audience!(Zimmermann,!2012)!
•
Location!Aware!Applications!20%\!40%!of!target!audience!(!Basso,!2012)!
!
The!latest!Hype!Cycle!analysis!positions!location!intelligence!on!the!Slope!of!Enlightenment!
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Figure&2:&Hype&Cycle&for&Strategic&Business&Capabilities&
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What&does&all&this&tell&us&
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With&the&proliferation&of&location&aware&devices,&developers&have&a&huge&user&base&of&
potential&LBS&subscribers&to&tap&into.&Together&with&the&phenomenal&growth&in&mobile&
advertising,& consumer& demand,& location& smart& enterprise& systems& and& the& future& of&
context]aware&computing,&the&market&requires&that&developers&create&mobile&apps&that&
capitalise&on&this&potential.&&!
It& is& the& convergence& of& all& of& these& trends& that& presents& the& opportunity& to& offer& a&
single&interoperable&platform&that&takes&care&of&everything&to&do&with&location.!
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5.4 Primary&Research&
We!carried!out!primary!research!with!Irish!app!developers!and!digital!marketing!companies.!
We! designed! a! set! of! questions! to! gauge! the! interest! in! location! based! services! and! to!
ascertain!the!specific!features!required!and!the!potential!technical!challenges!involved.!We!
felt! this! was! the! best! approach! when! interacting! with! this! sector;! we! did! not! use! a! survey!
questionnaire!since!the!numbers!of!developers!we!could!realistically!engage!with!and!reach!
would!be!limited,!furthermore!we!felt!that!interviews!would!generate!more!feedback.!!
Overall!the!response!was!positive.!Although!the!location!industry!is!still!emerging!in!Ireland!
our! preliminary! research! suggests! that! there! is! a! keen! interest! in! a! location! platform! as! a!
service.!According!to!our!respondents:!!
•
Location!is!a!useful!additional!element!to!have!in!any!app.!!
•
An!API!is!always!useful!for!developers.!
•
There!is!a!strong!market!across!Europe!at!present.!!
•
Analytics!and!“drilled!down”!information!are!very!useful!to!have.!
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26!
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•
Location! based! services! are! provided! to! clients! according! to! their! particular!
requirements.!
•
Security!and!privacy!are!concerns,!client!reassurance!is!important.!
!
We! established! that! app! developers! are! using! location! in! approximately! 30%! of! the! apps!
they!currently!develop.!The!main!uses!are!in!advertising!and!marketing,!tourism,!hiking!and!
outdoor! navigation.! ! Developers! suggested! that! an! API! would! be! very! useful! for! more!
complex!location!handling!such!as:!!
•
Waking!up!an!app!to!send!alerts!to!a!user!
•
Augmented!reality!apps!
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Connecting!to!a!client!private!database!on!the!backend.!
•
Functionality!to!see!local!points!of!interest!
The! advice! of! one! developer! was! to! consider! a! Pull! rather! than! a! Push! market! as! push!
messaging!is!perceived!to!be!intrusive.!!
Specific! technical! questions! were! unable! to! be! answered! as! per! company! confidentiality!
procedures.!
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6
The&Global&App&Marketplace&
6.1 The&global&marketplace&
The! enormous! and! growing! mobile! app! popularity! has! played! out! globally.! According! to!
Xyologic!(cited!in!VisionMobile!2012,!p.66),!the!demand!for!apps!is!currently!driven!by!the!
US!with!1.2!billion!apps!downloaded!in!April!2012!alone.!China!follows!with!350!million!app!
downloads! that! month.! ! From! the! research! conducted! by! VisionMobile,! North! America!
topped! the! app! demand! as! 41%! of! developers! indicated! this! area! as! a! top\3! region! for!
downloads.! ! Europe! had! a! 31%! share! and! then! Asia! followed.! ! These! regional! demand!
patterns! are! linked! to! smartphone! penetration! and! app! literacy! with! countries! moving!
towards!increasing!smartphone!penetration.!As!users!familiarity!and!usage!of!smartphones!
increases,! so! does! app! literacy.! User! engagement! then! increases! with! more! apps!
downloaded!and!frequently!used.!Following!this,!app!demand!in!each!country!will!similarly!
increase.!The!leading!markets!for!apps,!measured!in!terms!of!downloads!per!user!are!the!US!
and! the! UK.! ! Markets! in! Germany! and! the! Netherlands! followed! from! this! as! per! the! next!
chart;!in!the!top!right\!the!quadrant!of!maturity!where!the!markets!display!the!highest!levels!
of!user!engagement!and!smartphone!penetration.!The!app!economy!was!initialised!in!these!
countries!and!they!have!driven!it!forward!for!the!last!three!years!(VisionMobile!2012,!p.66\
p.67).!
!
Figure&3:&Evolution&of&app&demand&across&regions,&p.68&
!
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28!
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In!the!lower!left,!the!quadrant!of!opportunity;!this!area!is!dominated!by!China,!India,!Russia!
and! Brazil! and! displays! lower! but! also! rapidly! increasing! levels! of! user! engagement! and!
smartphone! penetration.! The! addressable! size! of! these! markets! is! much! bigger! than! the!
majority!of!other!countries!and!therefore!the!app!demand!in!the!quadrant!of!opportunity,!in!
some!cases,!is!not!greater!than!that!of!the!countries!in!the!quadrant!of!maturity.!Countries!
in! the! quadrant! of! opportunity! are! starting! their! upwards! trajectory! in! the! app! demand!
curve!and!will!move!into!the!quadrant!of!maturity.!In!the!app!economy,!the!majority!of!new!
opportunities! will! be! discovered! along! the! path! these! countries! follow! in! the! direction! of!
maturity.!From!the!graph,!opportunity!will!grow!as!the!product!of!the!variables\!addressable!
market!(circle!size),!smartphone!penetration!and!user!engagement!levels.!There!is!enormous!
opportunity! for! developers! over! the! next! ten! years! as! smartphones! expand! past! a! billion!
users!in!2013!with!app!literacy!globally!on!the!increase!(VisionMobile!2012,!p.68).!!
According! to! VisionMobile! (2012,! p.68),! the! size! of! the! global! app! economy! will! be!
significantly! larger! when! China,! India,! Russia! and! Brazil! enter! the! maturity! quadrant.! The!
next!10!million!apps!are!predicted!to!come!from!the!opportunity!quadrant!and!the!demand!
for!localised!apps!rather!than!coming!from!the!current!leading!markets.!Another!important!
factor! to! consider! from! the! graph! on! the! previous! page! is! that! smartphone! penetration! is!
not!in!itself!a!good!predictor!of!app!demand!with!for!example,!UK!and!Spain!having!similar!
penetration!yet!having!a!significant!difference!in!app!demand!per!user.!The!reasons!for!this!
are! that! of! demographics,! with! users! in! developed! countries! responding! quicker! to! new!
technology!and!perhaps!having!more!disposable!income!and!time!to!buy!and!engage!with!
them.! Another! reason! is! that! of! infrastructure! with! affordable,! wireless! broadband! a! key!
factor!influencing!app!downloads.!App!literacy!is!a!further!reason!with!a!significant!number!
of!smartphone!users!rarely!using!applications!on!their!phones.!In!fact,!due!to!the!reduction!
in! the! price! of! smartphones,! they! have! slipped! into! consumer! segments! having! low! app!
literacy.! A! barrier! to! note! regarding! app! demand! and! usage! is! that! of! adapting! to! a! local!
culture!and!language.!On!average,!developers!publish!apps!in!two!languages.!
In! their! research,! VisionMobile! (2012)! found! that! the! majority! of! developers! would!
anticipate!most!of!their!downloads!coming!from!where!they!based!themselves!with!this!over!
70%!of!developers!in!North!America!and!in!Europe!anticipating!downloads!to!come!from!the!
!
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29!
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local!markets.!This!is!a!confirmation!that!local!developers!are!better!placed!to!address!local!
app!demand!rather!than!addressing!a!global!demand.!!
!
!
Figure&4:&Global&map&of&app&trade&routes,&p.73&
!
In!Asia!and!Latin!America!local!demand!is!much!lower!due!to!low!smartphone!penetration!
and!low!user!engagement.!North!America!dominates!unique!app!imports,!on!average!36%!of!
developers! globally! view! the! region! as! in! their! top! three! of! download! regions.! North!
American!developers!see!relatively!low!demand!from!the!other!regions,!Europe!is!their!main!
export!region,!just!a!little!ahead!of!Asia!(Ibid.).!
In! Europe,! there! is! strong! demand! for! apps! developed! there! although! a! significant!
percentage! of! European! developers! also! see! strong! demand! from! the! North! American!
regions.! 16%! of! developers! in! North! America! and! Europe! have! Asia! as! a! target! with! this!
region! becoming! an! important! part! of! the! app! economy! having! an! upwards! app! demand.!
Therefore,! North! American! and! European! developers! are! responding! via! publishing! in!
Chinese!and!Japanese.!In!Latin!America!and!Asia!a!high!proportion!of!developers!do!not!see!
!
!
30!
!
!
a!high!local!app!demand!so!therefore!they!are!mainly!involved!in!app!export!targeting!North!
America!and!Europe!instead;!app!demand,!and!paid!app!demand!is!higher!here.!!
!
What&does&all&this&tell&us&
!
•
North!America!has!the!highest!app!demand!
•
Europe!follows!and!then!Asia!
•
App!demand!in!each!country!grows!according!to:&
! rising!levels!of!smartphone!penetration!
! a!growing!user!engagement!!!
! The!total!addressable!market!of!smartphone!subscribers!in!the!country.&
!
This!market!research!is!from\!VisionMobile!2012,!pp.66\73.!
!
6.2 Top&Cutting&Edge&Mobile&app&Trends&for&2012&
The! most! important! mobile! applications! in! 2012! have! been! identified! by! Gartner;! they!
focused! on! high\end! devices! having! an! average! selling! price! over! $300.! Gartner! analysts!
identified! the! top! cutting\edge! trends! and! technologies! for! 2012.! They! have! said! that! the!
winning! mobile! apps! will! have! unique! features! catering! to! the! mobile! environment! rather!
than!acting!as!a!mobile!extension!of!their!online!peers.!
According!to!Shen!(n.d.),!a!research!director!at!Gartner,!“mobile!applications!will!be!a!highly!
competitive! marketplace! that! attracts! the! interest! of! many! stakeholders.”! “Increasingly,!
mobile!applications!will!define!the!user!experience!on!high\end!devices!and!device!vendors!
!
!
31!
!
!
that! proactively! integrate! innovative! apps! and! technologies! at! the! platform! layer! will! have!
the!competitive!edge.”!(Shen,!n.d.)!
Mobile! apps! will! generate! good! revenue;! $15.9! billion! is! predicted! in! expected! end\user!
spending!in!2012!and!they!will!drive!hardware!sales,!technology!innovation!and!advertising!
spending.! Gartner! expects! that! brand! companies! will! increasingly! move! their! marketing!
budget!to!the!sphere!of!the!mobile!channel!and!they!will!experiment!with!the!cutting\edge!
apps! in! order! to! capture! sales! and! marketing! opportunities.! Technology! and! service!
providers! along! with! companies! that! stay! up! to! date! of! the! latest! developments! have! the!
opportunity! to! make! their! products! stand! out! whilst! enhancing! brand! image! and! retaining!
user!loyalty!(Gartner,!Inc.!n.d.).!
6.2.1 Gartner&have&identified&location&as&the&top&trend&
One!of!the!main!enablers!delivering!services!to!users!based!on!their!context!is!location!and!
according!to!Gartner!the!total!user!base!of!consumer!location\based!service!is!expected!to!
reach! 1.4! billion! users! by! 2014.! Location\based! services! have! a! goal! of! delivering!
functionalities!and!features!in!tune!with!a!user’s!context,!accounting!for!the!location!of!the!
user,!their!personal!preference,!age,!gender,!intention,!profession!and!more.!These!services!
offer!a!more!intelligent!user!experience!than!the!basic!location!services!can!offer.!Gartner!
analysts!are!of!the!belief!that!context\aware!services!are!a!key!trend!for!mobile!apps!with!
location!being!a!key!enabler!of!this!(Ibid.).!
6.2.2 Further&location&related&trends&identified&by&Gartner&
Context'aware+Applications+
These! applications! provide! improved! user! experiences! utilising! information! about! a! user’s!
intentions,! interests,! history,! environment,! schedule,! activities,! connections,! priorities! and!
their!preferences!to!anticipate!needs!and!to!proactively!display!the!most!relevant!content,!
service! or! product! to! them.! Handset! manufacturers! and! mobile! carriers! should! provide!
expanded!location!services!including!mapping,!directory!assistance,!advertising!and!privacy!
controls.!
!
!
32!
!
!
Mobile+Social+Networking+
Of!the!19!consumer!mobile!app!categories!tracked!by!Gartner,!mobile!social!networking!is!
the! fastest! growing! category.! Social! network! platforms! are! gaining! increasing! amounts! of!
network! traffic;! they! are! developing! into! transit! hubs,! portals! and! cloud! storage! for!
increasing!volumes!of!messaging!and!e\mail!traffic,!photos,!videos,!commerce!and!games.!As!
the!mainstream!adoption!progresses,!the!global!social!websites!will!be!driven!to!providing!
services!in!partnership!with!third!parties!utilising!open!APIs.!They!are!likely!to!evolve!into!a!
role! as! infrastructure! providers! that! act! as! data! warehouses! that! provide! user! data! and!
provide!access!to!the!consumer!facing!brands.!!
Mobile+Commerce+
This! is! now! more! of! an! extension! of! e\commerce! in! a! smaller! form! and! having! a! more!
streamlined! experience.! However,! over! the! next! 2! years! Gartner! expects! uniquely! mobile!
functions!to!emerge,!for!example!being!able!to!check!in!to!a!shop!alerting!the!retailer!that!
you!have!arrived!or!being!able!to!add!items!to!a!shopping!cart!by!taking!a!photo!of!the!item!
or! the! bar! code! in! the! physical! shop.! Gartner! expects! that! in! the! future! mobile! commerce!
will! have! richer! capabilities! to! expand! from! native! apps! to! the! mobile! browser! as! HTML5!
starts!to!be!deployed,!although!this!is!predicted!to!happen!much!later.!
The!other!trends!are!detailed!in!the!appendix.!
7
API&market&
7.1 Fragmentation&is&the&New&Reality&
The!concept!of!"any!device,!any!service,!any!source"!is!the!new!business!reality,!which!poses!
huge!challenges!for!business!strategists!and!developers.!!Building!application!user!interfaces!
that!adapt!to!a!variety!of!devices!on!any!platform!requires!an!understanding!of!fragmented!
building! blocks! and! a! flexible! programming! structure! that! assembles! the! blocks! into!
optimized! content! for! each! device! (Clark! and! Cearley,! 2012).! ! Mobile! application! platform!
tools!such!as!API’s!are!emerging!to!make!it!easier!to!develop!cross\platform!solution!for!this!
fragmented!environment.!!
!
!
33!
!
!
7.2 API&Explained&
An! application\programming! interface! (API)! is! a! set! of! programming! instructions! and!
standards!for!accessing!a!Web\based!software!application!(Roos,!2012).!Interface!is!the!key!
word! in! API.! Through! an! API! one! software! program! can! tap! into! another's! functionality! to!
process! information,! pass! along! information,! and! extract! information.! In! brief,! it! allows!
applications!to!interact!with!each!other!and!exchange!data.!
A! company! releases! its! API! to! the! public! so! that! other! software! developers! can! design!
products! that! are! powered! by! its! service.! Amazon! for! example! released! its! API! so! that!
software! developers! could! easily! access! Amazon's! product! information! to! update! prices!
directly.!!
An! API! is! a! software! to! software! interface! that’s! invisible! (seamless)! to! the! user.! API’s! are!
used!behind!the!scenes!all!the!time!without!our!knowledge.!For!example!when!you!purchase!
items! online,! the! Web! site! uses! an! API! to! send! your! credit! card! information! to! a! remote!
application!that!verifies!whether!your!information!is!correct.!
7.3 Why&are&APIs&useful?&
APIs! help! organizations! integrate! with! suppliers! and! partners,! speed! execution! and! reach!
new!markets!(Sholler,!2012).!They!accelerate!app!development.!There!is!no!need!to!reinvent!
the!wheel!by!coding!from!scratch.!!
7.4 APIs&business&model&
Generating!revenue!from!API’s!generally!follows!four!models!as!we’ll!see!in!a!later!section.!
The!four!models!are:!
•
Free!
•
Developer!pays!
•
Developer!gets!paid!
•
Indirect.!!
!
!
34!
!
!
!
Figure&5:&API&business&models&&
(Musser,!2011)!
7.5 API&Market&is&Accelerating&
Public! APIs! are! currently! experiencing! record! growth! because! they! enable! developers! to!
create!and!release!apps!faster!(ProgrammableWeb.com).!
In! the! spirit! of! open! source! development! and! to! meet! the! demands! of! today’s! hyper!
connected,! fast! business! environments,! more! and! more! companies! are! making! their! API’s!
public.!!Open!and!public!however!does!not!necessarily!mean!free.!!!
According! to! Gartner! analyst! David! Newman! (2012),! open! API! strategy! is! a! marketing!
channel!that!generates!alternate!revenue!streams,!provides!access!to!new!communities!and!
improves!brand!recognition.!He!suggests!that!APIs,!are!today’s!most!industry\transforming,!
most! ROI\positive,! essential! enterprise! technology.! Gartner! research! estimates! 75%! of!
Fortune!500!companies!will!open!an!API!by!2014.!Enterprises!such!as!Tesco,!Facebook!and!
Best! Buy! Open! are! already! creating! new! opportunities! by! engaging! developers! to! tap! into!
new!sources!of!context!data!through!Web\based!APIs.!(Finley!et!al!2012)!!
!
!
35!
!
!
In! May! 2012,! one! company! alone,! Programmable! Web! announced! record! growth! in! listed!
APIs! as! indicated! in! the! chart! below.! ! 1000! APIs! were! added! to! their! directory! in! the! past!
three!months!alone.!!The!number!is!now!at!6936!(15!Aug,!2012)!
!
Figure&6:&API&growth&2005]2012&
7.6 RESTful&API&&
To!develop!our!platform!the!architecture!we!chose!is!REST.!Here!is!an!overview!of!why!we!
choose!to!build!a!RESTful!API.!
According!to!Gartner’s!report!on!Best!Practices!for!RESTful!APIs!(Gartner,!2012),!RESTful!APIs!
have!been!one!of!the!valuable!technologies!for!enabling!businesses!to!take!advantage!of!the!
Web.!RESTful!APIs!follows!the!principles!of!REST!(Representational!State!Transfer),!which!is!
the!architectural!style!that!forms!the!basis!of!the!Web.!In!the!technical!section!of!our!report,!
we! will! provide! more! information! about! the! REST! architecture! and! how! it! works.! RESTful!
APIs! can! create! simple! and! flexible! interfaces! that! can! support! a! variety! of! interactions.!
Flexibility! is! the! first! factor! of! the! popularity! of! RESTful! APIs! and! explains! why! they! are! so!
valuable.! Compared! to! other! APIs,! RESTful! APIs! are! really! easy! to! build.! RESTful! designs!
simplify!the!learning,!programing,!security!and!deployment.!
These!APIs!are!becoming!the!norm!for!Web\facing!integration!and!are!increasingly!used!in!
mobile!enablement.!The!creation!of!these!highly!Web\friendly!interfaces!–!coupled!with!the!
explosion!in!Web!and!mobile!applications!–!has!created!an!important!value!for!those!who!
!
!
36!
!
!
can!share!information!in!this!way.!Since!2007,!REST!architecture!is!used!in!major!websites!
such!as!Google,!Ebay!or!Amazon!and!85!%!of!Amazon!Webservices!use!is!based!on!REST!(Jeff!
Barr,!Amazon!Chief!Architecture!of!web!services).!Moreover,!the!following!figure!from!John!
Musser,!ProgrammableWeb!shows!that!73%!of!the!APIs!were!based!on!REST!last!year.!
!
(Musser!2011)!
What&does&all&this&tell&us&
!
•
There!is!no!need!to!reinvent!the!wheel!by!coding!from!scratch&
•
API! strategies! generate! alternate! revenue! streams! and! provide! access! to! new!
communities.&
•
APIs!are!needed!to!meet!the!demands!of!today’s!hyper!connected,!fast!business!
environments.&
•
Open!API!does!not!mean!that!they!are!free.&
•
There!are!numerous!business!models&
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
37!
!
!
Mobile!Devices!
!
Locavon!
Mobile!App!
Explosion!
GPS!Penetravon!
Technologies!
!
!
!
!
!
&
!
Demand!for!Location!Based!Services!
&
Platform!
!
!
API!Fast!
The!future!of!
Increasing!
Growing!
Context!
Consumer!
Market!
Awareness!
Expectation!
!
!
!
and!Demand!
Maturing!
Advertising!
EcoSystem!
Location!
Intelligence!
for!Location!
!
Figure&7:&Why&do&we&need&an&LBS&platform&overview&
!
!
38!
!
!
8
Competitive&Landscape&
8.1 Direct&Competitor&
The!key!competitors!in!the!location!services!market!are!profiled!below.!We!have!identified!
Geoloqi!as!the!company!most!comparable!to!Around!LaBS!in!terms!of!service!offerings.!
8.1.1 Geoloqi&LLC&&
Geoloqi!operate!in!the!US!market!since!February!2011,!and!their!solutions!to!date!appear!to!
be! aimed! primarily! at! the! US! market.! There! are! no! financial! records! or! market! share!
indications!available!at!this!time!because!they!are!a!relatively!new!start!up!founded!in!2011.!!
Products+and+services+
Geoloqi! offers! developers! and! enterprises! a! mobile! and! Web! platform! for! creating! and!
deploying!location\aware!applications.!They!provide!location\based!messaging,!geo\fencing,!
geo\triggering,! tracking,! storage! and! analytics! as! part! of! their! platform.! At! present! seven!
people!work!for!the!company,!including!founder!Amber!Case!and!co\founder!Aaron!Parecki!
(Geoloqi.com)!
The!Geoloqi!Titanium!module!enables!persistent/ambient!background!location!tracking!and!
battery! management.! It! also! provides! real\time! tracking,! location! and! dwell\time! visitor!
metrics! and! conversion! analytics.! They! offer! opt\in! and! opt\out! features! for! security! and!
privacy.!
Financial+health+
Geoloqi!partnered!with!Appcelerator,!Factual!and!Locaid!earlier!this!year!which!places!them!
in! a! very! strong! position! in! terms! of! financial! support! and! access! to! a! large! developer!
community.! ! They! received! $350,000! in! seed! funding! in! 2011! (Bloomberg! Businessweek,!
2012)!
8.2 Indirect&competitors&
8.2.1 Location&Labs&
Location!Labs!power!apps!for!mobile!carriers!in!the!US!offering!mobile!safety,!security!and!
platform!services.!Established!in!2011,!they!are!a!profitable!and!fast!growing!company!in!the!
mobile!security!space,!with!a!developer!base!of!4,600.!At!present!there!are!six!employees!
!
!
39!
!
!
with!plans!for!further!expansion.!They!have!more!than!ten!open!positions!on!their!company!
website!as!of!August!2012!(LocationLabs.com)!
Products+and+services+
They!offer!a!family!safety!platform,!allowing!parents!to!locate!family!members!from!their!PC!
or! mobile! phone.! ! Their! platform! performs! close! to! 1! million! locates! per! day,! and! powers!
products! such! as! AT&T! FamilyMap,! Sprint! Family! Locator,! T\Mobile! FamilyWhere! and!
BestBuy’s!Insignia!Little!Buddy.!Additionally!they!offer!geofencing,!storage!and!mobile!phone!
locator!services.!
Financial+health+
Location!Labs!has!raised!$26M!in!venture!financing!from!BlueRun!Ventures!(formerly!Nokia!
Venture! Partners),! QUALCOMM! Ventures,! Intel! Capital,! and! Mitsui! Ventures.! They! were!
listed! in! Inc.’s! 500/5000! list! of! America’s! Fastest! Growing! Private! Companies! in! both! 2010!
and!2011!(Crunchbase.com).!
While!they!have!market!share!in!the!US!they!do!not!offer!services!in!Europe!at!present.!
8.2.2 Actus&Mobile&Solutions&
Actus!Mobile!offers!location!related!products!and!services!in!Ireland!but!do!not!provide!an!
open!platform!for!developers.!
Products+and+services+
Actus! Mobile! is! an! Irish! company,! which! has!developed! a! mobile! application! platform! that!
supports!all!mobile! devices.! They! provide! products! and! services! to! the! retail,! transit,!
financial! services! and! healthcare! sectors.! They! have! developed! apps! for! location! based!
advertising!and!marketing,!indoor!and!outdoor!shopper!navigation!systems!and!directional!
search/augmented! reality.! Their! target! customers! are! shopping! centres! and! airports!
(Actusmobile.com)!
Their! two! main! products! are! Point! Inside,! an! indoor! navigation! tool! which! they! hold!
exclusive! license! for! in! Europe;! and! M:Cypher,! a! communications! platform! that! enables!
secure! transactions! on! a! mobile! device.! One! of! the! key! differentiating! factors! with! Actus!
Mobile!is!that!they!develop!the!apps!on!their!proprietary!mCypher!platform.!
!
!
40!
!
!
+Financial+health+
According!to!an!Irish!Times!article,!Actus!Mobile!Solutions!secured!an!initial!round!of!angel!
investment! of! over! €200,000! in! September! 2011.! At! that! time! they! had! plans! to! acquire! a!
number!of!high!profile!customers!and!hire!11!new!staff!to!support!their!expansion!(Collins!
2011).! They! subsequently! announced! mobile! app! deals! with! Dundrum! Town! Centre,!
Liverpool!Airport!and!Dubai!Airport.!!
8.3 Differentiation&
Our! differenciation! is! that! we! offer! multiple! location! services! from! a! single! interactive!
platform! that! developers! can! use! to! create! applications! for! any! device,! in! any! language,!
using!any!location!technology!and!it!is!carrier!independent.!It!is!a!cross\platform!solution;!in!
effect!it!is!a!“one!solution!that!fits!all”.!
8.4 Competitive&Advantage&
Our! advantage! lies! in! being! first! to! market! in! the! Irish/European! market! with! a! unique!
offering!in!the!region.!!Actus!mobile!do!not!offer!an!open!platform!to!developers,!they!build!
apps! in! house.! We! believe! we! can! reach! a! much! larger! audience! globally! by! providing! a!
platform!that!makes!it!easy!for!developers!to!integrate!location!features!inside!their!mobile!
app!or!web!applications.!
Furthermore!as!we!learn!more!about!the!location!market!we!can!offer!consultancy!services!
to!app!developers!on!location!integration!and!location!analytics.!
8.5 Benefits&to&Clients&
The!benefit!to!app!developers!is!primarily!that!our!platform!will!take!the!complexity!out!of!
developing!location!integration!thereby!reducing!the!amount!of!time!spent!on!development.!
Our!solution!takes!care!of!all!the!location!handling!in!a!few!simple!lines!of!code,!freeing!up!
developer’s!time!to!focus!on!their!core!application.!It!is!a!cost\effective!and!efficient!solution!
for!developers.!!
It!will!enable!them!to!get!to!market!quickly!and!will!reduce!the!incidence!of!location!related!
errors! and! challenges.! Furthermore! our! website! will! provide! a! forum! for! discussion! and!
exchange!of!ideas.!!
!
!
41!
!
!
!
8.6 Segmentation&of&the&European&LBS&market&
Multi\services!!
!
!
!
Apple&
Google&
Around&
LaBS&
!
!
!
!
Device!dependent!
Device!independent!
!
!
!
!
Mobile&
Location&
Carriers&
labs&
Single&
location&Apps&
Actus&
!
Mobile&
!
Single!service!
!
!
Figure&8:&Segmentation&of&the&European&LBS&market&
&
!
This!is!the!space!that!we!propose!to!operate!in.!This!is!an!uncontested!space!at!present!in!
the! device\independent/! multi! services! space.! We! expect! that! developers! servicing! SMEs,!
tourism,!B2C,!B2B!and!public!sector!services!would!be!interested!in!our!services.!!
!
!
42!
!
!
8.7 Porter’s&5&forces&
Barriers!to!
Entry!
Bargaining!
Power!of!
Suppliers!
Rivalry!
among!
Exisvng!
Compevtors!
Threat!of!
Subsvtutes!
!
Bargaining!
Power!of!
Buyers!
&
Figure&9:&Porter's&5&forces&
&
Porter’s!five!forces!is!a!holistic!way!of!looking!at!the!competitive!forces!in!the!market!and!
understanding! the! underlying! drivers! of! profitability! and! the! broader! extended! set! of!
competitors,!customers,!suppliers,!new!entrants!and!substitute!products.!
!
8.7.1 Competitive&Rivalry&
Our! industry! analysis! did! not! uncover! any! direct! competitors! in! Ireland! and! the! UK! or! in!
Europe!at!this!time,!giving!us!a!distinct!‘blue!ocean’!advantage.!While!there!are!many!large!
players! in! the! location! space! (Google,! Nokia,! Foursquare)! there! are! very! few! offering!
independent!services!to!developers!to!take!the!complexity!out!of!location!handling.!Geoloqi!
is!the!main!direct!competitor,!located!in!North!West!America.!
!
!
43!
!
!
8.7.2 Threat&of&New&Entrants&
Given! the! low! level! of! capital! investment! required! to! build! an! LBS! platform! the! economic!
barriers! to! entry! are! low.! ! ! However,! access! to! a! technological! hub! and! the! technical!
expertise! to! build! a! platform! that! supports! developers! are! potential! barriers! to! new!
entrants.!!
8.7.3 Bargaining&power&of&Consumers&and&Developers&(Buyers&and&Suppliers)&
The! bargaining! power! of! consumers,! the! end! users! in! the! mobile! app! space! is! high.!
Consumers! are! increasingly! price! aware! and! empowered! by! the! range! of! choice! available!
from!different!app!stores.!!Likewise!developers!are!free!to!integrate!location!features!into!
their!app!or!web!development!and!not!use!Around!LaBS!as!a!service!provider.!!
8.7.4 Threat&of&Substitute&Products&or&Services&
Location! based! services! is! still! an! innovative! technology,! widely! viewed! as! an! enabling!
technology!for!the!emerging!field!of!context!aware!computing.!It!is!difficult!to!predict!what!a!
substitute!product!or!service!would!look!like.!However,!larger!players!are!always!a!threat.!
8.7.5 Conclusion&
For! Around! LaBS! to! compete! in! the! location! space! we! need! to! focus! on! product!
differentiation! and! offer! services! and! support! which! developers! cannot! easily! access!
independently.! We! believe! our! differentiation! lies! in! the! fact! that! our! service! is! device,!
carrier,! platform! and! location! technology! independent.! This! offers! developers! a! cost!
effective! and! efficient! route! to! multiple! markets,! eliminating! the! need! to! re\write! location!
code!each!time.!
!
9
Industry&Engagement&
!
Our! first! potential! customer! is! BigTop! multimedia! company! based! in! Dublin!
(bigtopmultimedia.com).! They! build! mobile! apps! for! a! number! of! tourist! board! clients! in!
Ireland! and! Scotland.! For! example:! the! Visit! Dublin! App,! JoyceWays! App,! European! City!
Cards!app.!!As!part!of!their!business!process!improvement!strategy,!they!have!established!
!
!
44!
!
!
that!building!location!features!from!scratch!for!each!project!is!time!consuming.!Location!is!
only! one! feature! in! their! clients! digital! strategy.! ! They! prefer! to! focus! on! aspects! of! their!
projects!that!are!more!critical.!This!is!why!a!prebuilt!solution!that!they!could!easily!integrate!
inside!their!project!would!be!useful.!!
In! August! 2012,! we! presented! them! with! the! first! version! of! our! platform! and! our!
management!application.!They!expressed!an!interest!in!trying!it!as!soon!as!it’s!available!for!
BETA!testing.!!
!
10 Target&Customer&
Our!target!customer!is!that!of!app!developers!who!wish!to!easily!integrate!location!within!
their! application! solutions.! Developers! are! the! driving! force! of! innovation! in! this! new! and!
emerging! app! economy,! with! apps! being! the! last! connection! to! the! user.! Attracting!
developers!is!the!quickest!route!to!innovation!and!more!importantly,!this!means!attracting!
external!investment!to!finance!innovation!and!growth.!Developers!are!also!channels!to!help!
businesses! reach! and! sell! products! to! the! consumer.! For! example,! even! brick\and\mortar!
companies! such! as! UPS! and! BBC! are! also! opening! their! business! up! to! the! developer!
community! via! APIs.! Marketing! to! developers! is! an! emerging! and! new! scenario.! In! a!
marketplace! of! over! one! million! mobile! app! publishers! there! are! many! different! types! of!
developers! with! a! fast! expanding! ecosystem;! a! point! of! fact! that! is! often! ignored! by!
businesses.!Each!developer!has!different!requirements!and!in!order!to!target!this!complex!
marketplace!effectively,!a!segmentation!model!is!necessary.!The!traditional!method!is!that!
of! segmenting! based! on! career! stage! of! the! developer,! demographics,! technologies! or!
category!of!app.!However,!these!models!rarely!yield!actionable!results!and!therefore!“job\
based”!segmentation!is!recommended.!This!segmentation!model!is!considered!instrumental!
for! developers! to! understand! their! own! competitive! ecosystem.! For! our! company,! Around!
LaBS,! as! we! provide! a! platform! for! developers,! this! segmentation! model! will! assist! in! our!
understanding!of!the!various!characteristics!and!requirements!of!the!developer!community!
and!also!who!the!correct!developer!target!customer!is!and!the!tools!they!require!(Apigee,!
2010,!p.9).!The!segmentation!of!these!developers,!along!with!the!identification!of!promising!
!
!
45!
!
!
segments! and! targeting! these! requires! a! significant! effort.! However,! a! thorough!
understanding!of!these!segments!will!allow!Around!LaBS!achieve!a!higher!market!adoption.!
It! will! also! help! us! in! our! understanding! of! the! competition! and! enable! us! to! create! a!
sustainable! competitive! advantage! for! our! platform! and! services! that! are! aimed! at! these!
mobile!developers!(VisionMobile!2012,!pp.34\36,!p.40).!Developers!appreciate!tools!that!will!
help!them!speed!up!the!development!process;!any!tool!that!enables!this!is!welcome.!With!
the! limited! availability! of! APIs,! our! solution! will! encompass! these! requirements!
(VisionMobile!2012,!p.32).!
!
Developer& Type& && Work& Platform&Type!
Area/Example!
App&Type!
Motivations!
Decision& Criteria& for&
Platform&Selection!
Partners,&co]founders&or&
run&development&teams.&
Games&studios,&&startups,&
independent&software&
vendors&with&mobile&
experience&
Freelancers&making&apps&
in&parallel&to&contract&
development,&
entrepreneurs,&
employees&in&mobile&
development&
companies.&
iOS,!BlackBerry!
and!Android!
!
!
Games!and!
business/produ
ctivity!apps,!
utilities,!
education/refer
ence!apps!
Primarily!games!
and!utilities!
To!generate!
as!much!
revenue!as!
possible!with!
their!own!
apps!
For!gaining!
ancillary!
income!and!
to!gain!
experience!
selling!apps!
Large!installed!base,!
revenue!potential!
Students,&software&
engineers&doing&extra&
work,&unemployed&
developers&
Mobile&marketing&
agencies,&mobile&
outsourcing&shops&
Primarily!
Android,!low!
iOS!usage!
Any!type!
Fun!and!
recognition!
Strong!bias!
towards!
Android,!not!
fond!of!iOS!
No!dominant!
one!although!a!
preference!for!
mobile!web!
apps!
Marketing&Directors,&IT&
iOS!and!Android!
teams&in&B2C&companies.& preferred!to!
Low!cost!is!the!main!
reason!followed!by!
familiar!
development!
environment!and!
adequate!
documentation/sup
port!
The!size!of!the!
installed!base!
Branded!apps,! To!win!client!
business!tools,! projects!
enterprise!apps!
A!large!installed!
base!
Lifestyle,!
entertainment,!
A!large!installed!
base!and!the!depth!
Extension!of!
a!B2C!
!
!
46!
!
!
Fedex,&Coca&Cola&and&
Adidas&
deliver!
premium!
experiences,!
mobile!web!is!
common!on!all!
other!devices!
retail,!
transport,!
banking,!music!
and!fitness!apps!
product!to!
mobile!to!
gain!
customers!or!
create!a!new!
revenue!
source!
Internal&development&
All!types!due!to! News,!
To!reach!the!
teams&in&digital&media&
need!for!large!
magazines!and! maximum!
publishers.&
reach!
entertainment! number!of!
CNN,&Financial&Times&
apps!
mobile!and!
tablet!users!
possible!
Startups.&
iOS,!Android!
Entertainment,! Utilise!apps!
Instagram,&Waze,&Path&
transport,!retail! as!a!means!to!
launch!a!high!
profile!start!
up!
(VisionMobile!2012,!p.36\39)!
of!experience!
delivered!
Large!base!and!low!
cost!of!development!
Large!installed!base!
&
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
47!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
Use$cases!
!
!
!
!
48!
!
!
11 Use&Cases&
Basso! (2012)! suggests! that! the! market! for! location! aware! applications! is! maturing! in! all!
regions,! with! multiple! uses! for! enterprise,! the! public! sector! and! consumers.! ! As! mobile!
devices!and!location!awarenesss!become!more!ubiquituous!a!range!of!new!opportunities!are!
emerging.!!Visiongain!2011!suggests!that!with!the!introduction!of!4G!cellular!networks,!the!
LBS!landscape!is!poised!for!explosion.!These!are!some!of!the!existing!and!potential!uses!for!
location!based!services,!documented!by!industry!analysts.!
11.1 Marketing&and&Advertising&
The!retail!industry!uses!location!intelligence!to!provide!more!targeted!promotional!offers!to!
it’s!consumers!in!an!engaging!way,!to!increase!footfall!and!to!increase!customer!loyalty.!The!
check!in!feature!allows!shoppers!to!indicate!their!location!which!will!then!trigger!location\
specific! information,! promotions,! loyalty! coupons,! or! e\flyers! for! nearby! store! locations.!
Supermarkets,! clothing! retailers,! home! stores,! restaurants! could! provide! incentives! to!
consumers! for! checking! in! frequently! at! a! given! location! by! offering! rewards! or! ‘frequent!
customer’! status,! then! offer! a! coupon! after! a! customer! checks! into! a! store! 3! times.!
Additionally,! retailers! such! as! Tesco,! B&Q,! Domino’s! Pizza! could! issue! promotional! offers!
when!customers!are!close!to!a!store.!According!to!Zimmermann!(2012)!retailers!in!the!UK!
have! reported! significantly! higher! footfall! in! their! stores! and! higher! turnover! since! they!
started!such!initiatives.!!
11.2 Family&Safety&
A!family!safety!platform!enables!users!to!locate!almost!any!phone!in!real!time!offering!peace!
of!mind!to!millions!of!families!with!children!or!elderly!parents.!
Parents! can! set! up! scheduled! alerts,! for! example,! to! provide! an! update! when! their! child!
arrives!safely!at!a!friend’s!house!or!at!school.!With!geofencing,!boundaries!can!be!created!to!
notify!parents!when!a!child!leaves!a!designated!area.!!If!a!child!is!lost!or!the!phone!stolen!
you!can!retrieve!the!GPS!coordinates!of!the!location!of!the!device.!!
For! anyone! concerned! about! an! elderly! parent! living! alone,! you! can! track! realtime!
movement!(or!lack!of!movement)!and!set!up!an!automatic!alert!to!notify!you!that!they!have!
arrived!home!safely!after!an!appointment.!!!
!
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49!
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11.3 Device&Tracking&in&Education&
Similarly,!you!can!pinpoint!the!location!of!your!schoolchildren’s!iPad!in!the!event!that!it!is!
lost!or!stolen.!This!is!a!potential!use!case!for!location!based!apps!given!the!uptake!on!iPad!
usage! in! schools! in! Ireland.! One! company! alone! (Typtec.ie)! report! that! they! are!
implementing!iPads!in!13!schools!in!the!Dublin!area!starting!September!2012.!!
11.4 Enterprise&
Location!is!a!valuable!asset!that!can!help!businesses!achieve!greater!efficiency.!Basso!2012!
and!Zimmermann!2012!outline!the!following!use!cases!
•
Improve!workforce!management!\!send!timely!and!location\based!status!information!
to!employees!on!the!move,!for!example!sales!employees,!service!engineers,!
maintenance!personnel.!!
•
Logistics!and!goods!transportation!!
•
Fleet!management!
•
Courier!dispatch!and!routing!!
•
Supply!Chain!Management!–!stock!and!equipment!locator.!!
•
Insurance!push!messsaging!when!you!enter!a!certain!location!–!airports,!travel!
(volcanic!ash!cloud),!outdoor!recreation!(extreme!sports),!flooded!areas,!learner!
drivers!on!motorways.!
!
Location!platforms!in!the!enterprise!area!integrate!with!corporate!applications!such!as!ERP,!
sales! force! automation! and! HR! systems! thereby! supporting! and! improving! business!
processes.!!Cost!saving!benefits!and!increased!efficiency!can!be!achieved!by!deploying!these!
location\aware!solutions.!
!
11.5 Agriculture&
Keep! track! of! livestock! such! as! cattle! or! sheep.! MooFinder,! for! example! uses! satellite! to!
establish! the! location! of! animals.! ! Location! tracking! could! potentially! be! used! in! the! blood!
stock! industry! to! trace! race! horses.! The! Department! of! Agriculture! could! use! location! to!
monitor!the!movement!of!livestock!in!the!event!of!an!outbreak!of!disease.!
!
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50!
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11.6 Medical&
Keep!track!of!ambulance!units,!supplies,!or!devices!for!time!critical!operations.!!
Provide!traceability!of!high!value!equipment!consigned!to!hospitals,!such!as!surgical!camera!
systems,!instruments,!power!tools.!
11.7 Event&Management&
Event!organizers!can!provide!tools!to!their!clients!so!that!they!get!the!most!out!of!their!visit!
to!an!event,!such!as!sporting!events,!concerts,!festivals,!conferences!or!business!expos.!
11.8 Public&Sector&
Governments! are! using! location! services! to! combat! crime! and! terrorism,! for! law!
enforcement,! fraud! prevention,! emergency! services,! city! planning,! transport! and!
infrastructure.!!
The!use!of!navigation!and!live!traffic!are!basic!requirements!for!the!transportation!industry.!
Zimmermann! (2012)! notes! that! there! is! an! increasing! demand! for! wireless! surveillance! in!
Middle\Eastern! and! Central\Asian! countries! to! enable! lawful! interception! for! combating!
crime!and!terrorism.!!!
In! the! US! location! information! adds! value! to! government! operations! to! support! activities!
such! as! dispatch,! routing,! fleet! management,! transportation! and! field! force! management,!
such! as! field! personnel,! field! engineers,! maintenance! personnel! and! medical! personnel! on!
ambulances!(Vining,!2011,!Basso,!2012).!
Location!aware!services!include!messaging,!where!operational!efficiency!can!be!achieved!so!
that!the!nearest!road!crew!can!be!dispatched!to!take!care!of!an!oil!spillage!without!delay.!
11.9 Personnel&Safety&
In!hazardous!environments!such!as!mining!workers!are!equipped!with!devices!that!help!to!
track! their! movements.! If! no! movement! is! detected! for! a! certain! period,! employers! can!
respond!immediately.!
Environmental!agencies!can!monitor!lone!workers!or!workers!in!isolated!areas.!
!
!
51!
!
!
Organizations!can!monitor!people!and!send!location!based!safety!alerts!to!people!working!
or!travelling!in!hostile!or!high!risk!environments!where!personal!safety!or!disease!control!is!a!
concern.! Embassies,! multi\national! companies,! governments! and! insurance! companies! can!
benefit!from!this!type!of!service.!
11.10 Tourism&
Geolocalisation! is! used! to! market! travel! and! tourism! services! available! to! the! consumer!
based!on!location.!!Mobile!applications!can!push!information!according!to!the!location!and!
predefined!needs!of!the!traveler.!An!example!of!mainstream!use!is!to!find!accommodation,!
restaurants,! local! activities! and! then! make! a! booking.! Mobile! apps! allow! users! to! receive!
notifications! on! their! phone! when! they! pass! a! pre\determined! place! of! interest! such! as! a!
museum,!landmark!building!or!place!in!history.!!‘Check\ins’!allow!users!to!rate!and!review!
locations! in! real! time.! ! Airlines,! hotels,! travel! retailers,! car! rental! companies! and! tourism!
boards! are! introducing! location! into! their! apps! to! maximize! the! potential! reach! to!
consumers.!
Gamification!is!also!touted!as!the!next!big!thing!for!travel!(Euromonitor!2012).!Gamification!
refers! to! the! integration! of! gaming! dynamics! in! travel! industry! apps! used! to! encourage!
consumers!to!share!their!experiences,!photos!and!videos!to!help!generate!brand!awareness!
and!loyalty.!Dynamics!work!through!the!offer!of!points,!badges,!status!levels,!as!well!as!real!
trips!or!air!miles!(Euromonitor,!2012).!!
!
11.11 Social&and&Consumer&
Friend!finder!and!GeoNotes!are!popular!features!in!the!social!apps!category.!With!Geonotes,!
a!user!can!leave!himself!a!note!to!receive!when!he!gets!to!a!certain!location,!for!example,!a!
reminder!to!pick!up!clothes!next!time!he’s!passing!the!drycleaners.!A!user!can!also!send!a!
real\time! map! to! friends! or! clients,! to! let! them! know! when! he! or! she! will! arrive.! Other!
convenient! uses! for! the! consumer! include! traffic! flow,! realtime! information! on!
transportation!services!or!available!car!parking!space!with!location.!
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Business'Description!
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12 Our&Vision&
To!become!a!leader!in!European!based!location!services!and!location!analytics.!
13 Our&Product&
Around! LaBS! is! the! first! truly! scalable! on\demand! cloud\based! location! platform.! We! offer!
developers!a!complete!stack!of!location!tools!(tracking,!geofencing,!geonotes,!geotriggerig),!
real\time! data! storage! and! analytics.! Around! LaBS! platform! is! device,! language,! location!
technology!and!carrier!independent.!Our!platform!is!easy!to!use!and!provides!an!intuitive,!
efficient! and! smart! way! to! integrate! real\time! location! based! features! into! mobile!
applications.!!
!
Figure&10:&Around&LaBS&location&tools&
13.1 How&it&works?&
Developers! use! our! Software! Development! Kits! (SDK)! or! directly! our! API! to! add! real\time!
location!based!features!to!applications.!!
!
!
!
!
54!
!
Figure&11:&Around&LaBS&platform&
!
!
!
!
!
To! manage! the! applications,! create! and! store! location! based! data! developers! can! use! our!
web!client!or!directly!our!API.!Our!web!client!is!built!to!make!this!process!as!simple,!fast!and!
intuitive! as! possible.! All! modifications! are! processed! in! real\time! and! automatically! made!
available!to!users.!
!
!
!
Figure&12:&Around&LaBS&management&process
14 Value&Proposition&
We! make! it! easy! for! developers! to! integrate! location! functionality! inside! a! mobile! app! or!
web!application.!We!offer!multiple!location!services!from!one!platform!that!can!be!run!on!
any! device,! with! any! carrier,! using! any! language! or! location! technology.! It! is! a! ‘one! stop!
shop’!for!developers!who!want!to!integrate!location!into!a!wide!variety!of!applications.!!Our!
solution!is!scalable,!cloud!stored!and!vendor!independent.!!
Being! european! based! is! an! advantage! in! terms! of! european! data! protection! legislation.!!
Under!EU!regulation!the!transfer,!storage!and!processing!of!data!outside!the!EU!region!can!
lead!to!challenges!from!a!regulatory!standpoint.!This!makes!it!complicated!for!non\EU!based!
companies!to!offer!data!solutions!to!users!in!the!EU.!
!
!
55!
!
!
15 Business&Strategy&
Our! first! objective! is! to! gain! brand! recognition! and! uptake! within! the! app! developer!
community.!The!goal!is!to!build!our!company!name!and!gain!recognition!for!a!user!friendly!
platform!incorporating!a!fast,!reliable!and!efficient!service.!While!this!process!is!underway,!
we!intend!to!utilise!our!time!building!locator!apps!powered!by!our!platform.!
As!our!Practicum!lead!in!time!presently!is!limited!and!although!we!will!be!operational,!we!
anticipate! a! period! of! up! to! eighteen! months! after! completion! of! this! initial! project! to!
engage!in!further!in\depth!research!and!refinement!of!our!product!to!gain!more!knowledge!
of!our!marketplace!and!customer!requirements!in!this!new!and!emerging!location!services!
industry.!This!will!also!enable!us!to!refine!and!establish!the!most!effective!business!model.!
Presently,!there!are!numerous!models!in!operation!in!the!marketplace!(Musser!2011).!
15.1 Vertical&integration&
Therefore,! in! the! short! term,! our! strategy! will! encompass! vertical! integration! with! the!
development!of!apps!requiring!location!based!services;!this!will!be!another!revenue!stream!
for!the!company.!We!plan!to!launch!three!apps!per!year.!From!our!market!research!we!have!
discovered!that!some!locator!apps,!particularly!apps!for!locating,!for!example,!children,!pets!
or!the!elderly!are!charging!to!download.!Therefore,!at!this!juncture!of!our!Practicum!project,!
we! have! also! developed! a! proof! of! concept! –! a! pet! locator! app! –! Around! Pets.! This! will!
demonstrate!to!the!developer!community!how!easy!it!is!to!build!apps!and!integrate!location!
utilising!our!platform.!For!this!reason,!we!will!charge!for!the!use!of!our!platform!based!on!a!
tiered! subscription! plan,! starting! modestly! and! increasing! with! the! engagement! of! large!
organisations!generating!high!levels!of!service!requests!from!our!platform.!
16 Revenue&Model&
As!discussed!in!the!market!research,!there!are!a!many!business!models!in!operation!for!APIs.!
We!have!chosen!to!utilise!a!paid!tiered!subscription!model!for!the!use!of!our!platform.!This!
approach!will!enable!our!company!to!“entice”!developers!to!try!our!platform!and!therefore!
promote! our! brand! to! gain! recognition.! The! subscription! model! is! also! useful! to! generate!
recurring! revenues! and! investor! interest.! “Subscription! models! and! recurring! revenue! also!
tend!to!impress!investors”!(Dahl!2012).!
!
!
56!
!
!
In! an! article! by! Klein! (2012)! the! benefits! of! a! subscription! business! model! are! discussed;!
predictable! inventory! requirements,! reduced! customer! acquisition! costs! and! steady! cash!
flow.!In!2011,!Gartner!calculated!that!by!2015!more!than!40%!of!media!and!digital!products!
companies! globally! would! utilise! subscription! services! for! billing,! fulfilment! and! renewals.!
“Common! sense! dictates! that! the! best! candidates! for! subscriptions! are! companies! selling!
services!and!high\end!products!that!are!consumed!rapidly!and!are!not!costly!to!ship.”!(Klein!
2012)!
17 Company&Set&Up&
AroundLaBS! is! currently! unincorporated.! It! is! proposed! that! we! set! up! as! a! private! limited!
company! based! in! Dublin,! Ireland.! AroundLaBS! will! be! the! registered! trade! name.! For! the!
initial! company! set! up! and! registration! we! will! need! to! consult! with! a! solicitor.! ! On! an!
ongoing! basis! we! will! engage! an! Accounting/Tax! adviser! to! handle! all! of! our! accounting!
needs.!
18 Funding&
The! four! founding! shareholders! intend! !to! commit! initial! funding! of! €5,000! each! to! the!
business!in!return!for!100%!equity!in!the!company!split!on!an!equal!basis.!!The!funds!will!be!
needed!to!facilitate!company!formation!and!cash!flow!for!operating!and!marketing!costs!for!
the!first!number!of!months.!
We!intend!to!seek!a!loan!for!€20,000.!!In!theory,!Bank!of!Ireland!is!open!to!our!application!
for! a! Small! Business! loan.! We! also! intend! to! request! a! commercial! overdraft! facility! in! the!
event!that!the!working!capital!of!the!company!should!require!it.!
19 Our&Management&Team&
Gráinne&Mary&Malone&–&Sales&and&Marketing&Manager&
Gráinne! graduated! from! Dublin! City! University! in! 2011! with! an! honours! degree! in!
Information! Technology.! ! She! has! both! computing,! training! and! management! experience!
from! within! the! private! sector.! Gráinne! is! currently! completing! her! MSc! in! Electronic!
!
!
57!
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Commerce! (Business)! through! which! she! has! also! developed! a! valuable! digital! business!
management,!operational!and!a!practical!business!organisation!skill!set.!
Emmanuelle&Perrier&–&Business&and&Finance&
Emmanuelle! graduated! from! INSA! de! Lyon,! a! French! engineering! school,! in!
telecommunication.! She! is! a! current! student! in! the! Masters! of! Electronic! Commerce!
Technical! program! in! Dublin! City! University.! She! has! previously! contributed! to! the!
organisation! of! the! biggest! recruiting! fair! of! France.! She! has! experience! in! finance! and!
business!interaction.!
Omar&Fachar&–&Community&Manager&
Omar! is! currently! completing! his! Masters! in! Electronic! Commerce! Technical.! He! graduated!
from! INSA! de! Lyon! in! telecommunication.! Omar! speaks! more! than! 5! languages! and! has!
previously!created!websites!and!mobile!and!web!applications.!He!also!has!developed!team!
management!skills!during!his!student!years!when!he!has!often!been!project!leader.!!
Deirdre&Connolly&–&Research&and&Development&Manager&
Deirdre!graduated!from!University!College!Dublin!with!an!honours!degree!in!Social!Science.!
She!has!over!7!years!experience!in!business!innovation!while!she!worked!on!a!Peoplesoft!HR!
Systems! Implementation! project! for! Chase! Manhattan! Bank,! New! York.! ! On! returning! to!
Ireland!she!worked!for!a!number!of!years!with!Bank!of!America!Dublin!in!Human!Resources!
and! Compliance.! Deirdre! is! due! to! graduate! from! Dublin! City! University! with! a! Masters! in!
Electronic!Commerce!in!2012.!
20 Staffing&
We! intend! to! appoint! a! UK! based! sales! and! marketing! manager! from! quarter! 2! 2015.! We!
expect!that!from!2014,!we!will!need!to!appoint!one!infrastructure!support!associate!and!an!
additional! support! person! in! mid\2015.! ! In! the! interim! the! management! team! will! be!
responsible!for!the!day!to!day!operations!of!the!company!
!
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21 Workspace&
Initially! we! plan! to! set! up! a! shared! work! space! from! home.! This! will! be! the! registered!
address!of!the!company!and!can!be!changed!at!any!time!when!we!are!in!a!position!to!rent!
space.!!Commercial!rents!are!a!cost!we!cannot!commit!to!in!the!early!stages!and!require!a!
lease!agreement.!We!plan!to!rent!premises!in!2014.!!
22 Legal&Requirements&for&Company&Formation&
Our! company,! Around! LaBS! will! be! registered! as! a! private! limited! liability! company.! The!
documents! required! by! the! Companies! Registration! Office! (CRO)! in! Ireland! are! the!
memorandum!of!association!setting!out!the!conditions!upon!which!the!company!is!granted!
incorporation.!For!example,!stating!that!the!company!is!one!with!limited!liability!is!required.!
Also! needed! are! the! articles! of! association! which! set! out! the! rules! that! the! company!
proposes! to! regulate! its! affairs.! Form! A1! is! also! required! by! the! CRO;! this! form! provides!
information!such!as!our!company!name,!registered!office!and!the!activity!our!company!will!
engage!in.!An!online!new!company!registration!fee!of!€50!will!be!paid!to!the!CRO.!
We!have!checked!the!register!of!companies!to!ensure!our!company!name,!Around!LaBS!has!
not! been! previously! registered.& We! also! did! a! business! name! and! trade! mark! check.! Our!
business!name!will!be!therefore!registered!and!we!will!pay!a!fee!of!€20!(electronic!filing).&
Our!trademarks!will!be!registered!and!an!initial!application!fee!of!€70!and!a!registration!fee!
of!€177!will!be!paid.!
The!website!domain!name!will!be!registered;!the!fees!for!this!are!from!€12.95!for!one!year.!!!
(Companies!Registration!Office!n.d.)!
(Irish!Domains!Ltd!1999\2011)!
(Patents!Office!n.d.)!
!
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23 Around&LaBS&Business&Phases&&
These!are!four!stages!in!the!business!life!cycle!that!Around!LaBS!will!experience.!Each!stage!
has!its!own!challenges;!the!phases!are!different!and!we!believe!that!a!deep!understanding!of!
each! one! is! important! to! set! up! a! successful! business.! In! the! following,! each! stage! will!
initially! be! described! and! then! further! developed! in! relation! to! our! own! business,! Around!
LaBS.!
!
Sales!
!
Re]positioning&
!
Maturity&phase&
!
Expansion!
Investment!
!
Improvement!
!
!
Growing&phase&
!
Large!sales!
!
!
Starting&phase&
!
Platform!creation!!
!
Go!to!market!
!
Communication!
Merge!
Acquisition!
Partnership!!
Core!customers!
Brand!identity!
R&D!
phase&
Declining&phase&
Cost!cutting!
!Increased!
competition!
!
!
!
23.1 Starting&Phase&
Time!
Stage!one!is!the!starting!phase!of!the!business!where!the!business!plans!and!strategies!are!
defined.! Considerable! resources! are! deployed! for! product! creation! and! marketing.! ! In! this!
!
!
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stage! the! company! tries! to! establish! itself! in! the! market.! Investment! will! be! greater! than!
revenue.!!This!is!the!most!difficult!phase!with!the!highest!risks.!
During!this!stage,!Around!LaBS!will!develop!the!platform!and!the!applications!based!on!this!
platform.! This! will! be! a! learning! stage;! that! of! infrastructure! design! (we! will! have! an!
overview!of!how!developers!use!our!platform).!!
From!the!business!side,!through!research,!we!will!gain!a!deep!understanding!of!the!new!and!
emerging! location! services! industry.! This! will! enable! us! to! refine! and! establish! the! most!
effective!business!model!and!to!reduce!the!risks!related!to!this!phase.!Innovative!ideas!will!
be!encouraged!in!order!to!propose!the!best!product!possible.!This!is!also!the!phase!where!
we! need! to! prepare! the! market! for! the! arrival! of! our! product.! We! will! therefore! start! a!
communication!and!advertising!campaign!three!months!before!finalising!the!first!version!of!
Around!LaBS.!For!this,!we!intend!to!use!new!communication!channels!such!as!blogs,!social!
networks! and! specialised! websites! such! as! apigee,! meetup! and! programmableweb.! ! This!
marketing!will!be!accomplished!via!our!mobile!applications!starting!with!Around!Pets,!a!pet!
locator! application! that! will! be! launched! as! a! proof! of! concept.! We! will! also! be! present! at!
events! such! as! Dublin! Beta! (dublinbeta.com)! offering! networking! and! advertising!
opportunities.!!!
We!propose!to!base!ourselves!in!Dublin!to!enter!the!Irish!market!first.!!Upon!establishment!
here,!we!will!expand!to!other!major!European!countries.!
23.2 Growing&phase&
Once!the!business!emerges!from!the!starting!phase,!it!will!begin!to!find!core!customers!and!
establish!a!niche!in!the!market.!During!the!growing!phase,!the!focus!is!on!maintaining!core!
customers! and! on! establishing! brand! identity.! This! is! the! stage! where! customer! demands,!
sales!and!the!profit!margins!start!to!increase.!The!consequence!of!this!is!the!need!to!be!in!
charge! of! maintaining! the! platform! and! of! evolving! the! services! according! to! the! demand.!
Similar!products!from!competitors!could!be!developed!and!the!objective!of!the!business!is!to!
focus! on! its! competitive! advantages! (price! reduction,! value! added! features! or! other!
innovations).!
!
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At!this!stage,!Around!LaBS!intends!to!have!built!up!a!large!developer!customer!base.!!The!
business!model!will!be!decided!upon!and!implemented!with!the!business!now!viable.!!The!
main! objective! of! this! phase! is! to! retain! this! community! by! offering! a! more! ergonomic!
interface!and!a!better!user!experience.!!Therefore,!we!plan!to!update!our!platform!according!
to! customer! feedback.! The! new! version! will! be! more! powerful! and! adapted! to! customers’!
needs.!Most!of!the!revenue!generated!by!subscriptions!will!be!invested!in!the!development!
and!innovation!of!the!platform.!
!In! parallel,! Around! LaBS,! will! expand! to! other! European! markets,! in! priority! the! UK,!
Germany,!France!and!Sweden.!
Finally,!the!mobile!applications!will!be!available!in!all!major!European!countries!(UK,!France,!
Germany,! Spain)! and! the! marketing! campaign! will! be! accomplished! via! popular! national!
websites.!We!also!plan!to!translate!the!user!guide!into!French,!Spanish!and!German!in!order!
to!reach!the!European!developer!community!easily.!
23.3 Maturity&phase&
This!is!the!stage!where!the!product!reaches!maturity!in!the!market.!The!core!customers!and!
the! brand! identity! of! the! business! are! well! established.! Sales! growth! is! manageable! and!
profit!margins!are!stable.!!Advertising!and!communication!resources!are!less!important!now.!
However,!the!business!still!needs!to!be!focused!on!the!market;!changes!within!the!economy,!
competitors! or! in! the! requirements! of! customers! can! happen! quickly.! The! business! is! also!
focused!on!productivity!and!improvement!in!order!to!be!more!competitive.!Moreover,!the!
company! may! want! to! expand! into! other! ventures! or! other! products.! Depending! on! the!
choices! made! during! this! phase,! the! business! can! decline! or! be! re\positioned! in! the!
marketplace.!!
!
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During!the!maturity!phase,!Around!LaBS!will!have!an!established!market.!!One!of!the!biggest!
challenges!for!the!company!will!be!the!competition!from!the!large!IT!companies!that!could!
offer! a! similar! platform.! Also,! we! will! need! to! constantly! analyse! the! market! to! discover!
other! markets! and! other! niches! for! re\positioning! our! product.! If! we! encounter! another!
interesting!company!or!a!complementary!product,!we!would!consider!a!potential!merger!or!
an! acquisition.! Expansion! will! focus! on! exploration! of! new! markets! in! Eastern! Europe! and!
South!America.!
23.4 Declining&phase&
&
23.5 Re]positioning&phase&&
The!declining!stage!is!the!stage!where!the!
The!re\positioning!phase!is!where!the!company!
sales! and! the! profit! margins! start! to!
commences! a! new! period! of! growth! after! the!
decrease.!This!could!happen!as!a!result!of!
maturity! phase.! By! making! some! product!
the! changing! market,! an! unfavourable!
modifications,! the! company! is! able! to! maintain!
economy! or! the! arrival! of! a! powerful!
increasing! sales.! ! There! can! be! multiple!
competitor.! The! business! would! need! to!
modifications:!!
cut! costs! in! term! of! buying,! production,!
•
Acquisition,! partnership! with! ! other!
maintenance! and! employment.! At! this!
companies! that! can! increase! our! skill!
stage,!the!business!attempts!to!remain!in!
base!!
the! marketplace! for! the! possibility! of!
•
Restructuring!!!production!!
recovery.!
•
New!revenue!stream!
!
•
New!market!
!
!
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Proof%of%concept!
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24 Proof&of&Concept&
There! are! numerous! applications! of! location\based! services! in! the! B2C,! B2B! and! public!
sector!space!as!outlined!in!the!Use!Cases!section!of!this!report.!To!demonstrate!the!use!of!
location\based!applications!in!the!consumer!space,!the!utility!of!our!platform!and!to!add!an!
interim! source! of! revenue,! we! decided! to! develop! Around! Apps! as! a! segment! of! our!
company.! ! This! branch! will! focus! on! developing! new! location! apps.! For! our! first! app,! we!
decided!to!develop!a!Pet!Finder!app,!Around!Pets,!as!a!proof!of!concept.!!!
24.1 Pet&market&overview&
A!study!by!UCD!Centre!for!Veterinary!Epidemiology!and!Risk!Analysis!found!that!in!Ireland!
36%!of!households!own!one!or!more!dogs!with!10%!owning!one!or!more!cats!(Anvil!Ireland!
n.d.).! In! total! there! are! 1.3! million! pets! in! Ireland! (Anvil! Ireland! n.d.).! In! UK! 43%! of!
households!own!a!pet!with!14.5!million!pets!in!the!country.!Dogs!and!cats!are!the!animals!of!
choice,!numbering!7.3!and!7.2!million!respectively!(Total!Pet!Publishing!2011).!!In!Europe!55!
million! people! own! a! pet;! this! comprises! 47! million! cats! and! 41! million! dogs! (Society! for!
Companion! Animal! Studies! 2010).! In! US\! 62%! of! US! households! have! a! pet,! 72.9! million!
households!(American!Pet!Products!Association,!Inc.!1998\2012).!In!the!US!spending!on!pets!
has! increased! with! owners! spending! more! than! ever.! ! In! 2011! spending! on! pets! passed!
$50billion!(American!Pet!Products!Association,!Inc.!1998\2012).!
24.2 Additional&source&of&revenue&
Based! on! this! market! analysis! of! the! pet! care! industry,! we! believe! this! app,! Around! Pets,!
could!provide!an!interim!source!of!revenue!for!Around!LaBS!while!we!grow!our!client!base!
and!revenue!for!the!platform.!There!are!2!sources!of!revenue!from!the!Around!Pets!app:!
•
from!the!monthly!subscription!which!we!propose!at!€4.99/month!and!!
•
from!the!peripheral!item,!the!microchip!that’s!attached!to!the!pet!collar,!which!will!
retail! at! €49.99.! We! can! source! the! chip! for! approx! €40.00! giving! us! a! mark! up! of!
20%!or!€10.00.!
The!mobile!application!is!free.!
We!can!propose!a!pet!locator!service!for!a!low!price!because!we!do!not!have!to!deploy!the!
specific!infrastructure.!Everything!is!handled!by!our!platform!and!this!allows!us!to!realise!a!
profit.!
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Marketing*Analysis!
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25 Pricing&Strategy&
We!based!our!pricing!strategy!on:!
•
Our!estimated!infrastructure!costs!from!Amazon!
•
Review!of!our!competitor!price!plans!
26 Price&
Our!revenue!model!for!the!platform!is!based!on!a!tiered!subscription!plan!as!shown!below!
&
Users&
Basic!
Less!than!5!!
Small&
Less!than!100!
Medium&
Less!than!8,000!
Geonotes&
100/day!
50,000/day!
1!million/day!
Triggers&
100/day!
5,000/day!!
200,000/day!
Secured&
connection&
Prices&
No!
Yes!!
Yes!
Large&
Greater!than!
10,000!
More!than!1!
million!
More!than!
200,000!
Yes!
Free!
9.99!€/month!
99.99&€/month!
On!demand!
!
Our!revenue!model!for!the!pet!finder!app!is!based!on!an!initial!payment!for!the!chip!locator!
and!after!that!a!monthly!subscription!fee.!
Feature&
Chip&price&
Monthly&subscription&
Price&&
!49.99€!
4.99!€/month!
27 Promotion&
To! promote! Around! Pets,! we! offer! our! customers! the! first! monthly! subscription! free.!
Furthermore,! in! the! subscription! plan! for! the! platform! our! basic! level! is! free! which! will!
encourage!developers!to!try!our!solution.!
Around! LaBS! will! strive! to! develop! a! large! network! among! the! developer! community! to!
promote! and! build! awareness! of! our! platform! and! its! features.! There! are! a! number! of!
options! for! our! marketing! strategy.! We! aim! to! approach! this! task! both! online! and! offline.!
Online! via! our! website! we! will! have! a! developer! community! area! and! technical! discussion!
!
68!
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forum.! ! We! plan! to! further! interact! by! hosting! a! competition! or! a! hackathon! for! the! best!
location!app!idea.!We!will!also!build!brand!awareness!via!online!tools!such!as!a!whiteboard!
demo!video!on!YouTube!that!describes!our!platform!in!an!engaging!way.!As!two!members!
of!our!team!have!experience!running!Google!AdWords!campaigns,!we!plan!to!run!our!own!
campaigns!monthly.!!!
28 Place&
In!this!section!we!focus!on!the!places!where!we!will!promote!our!platform.!
28.1 Incubator&Hubs]&The&Digital&Hub&
This! centre! located! in! central! Dublin! is! a! vibrant! cluster! of! technology! and! digital! content!
enterprises.! The! hub! fosters! innovation,! creativity! and! technical! development! in! a!
supportive!and!entrepreneurial!environment.!Facilities!include!excellent!infrastructure!and!
support! for! technology! and! digital! media! companies! with! much! opportunity! to! network,!
collaborate! and! share! knowledge! and! learning.! The! digital! hub! has! been! described! as! “a!
hothouse! for! new! ideas,! energetic! entrepreneurs! and! technological! innovation.”! (Digital!
Hub! Development! Agency! n.d.)! This! centre! presents! networking! and! brand! development!
opportunities!for!Around!LaBS!to!explore.!!
28.2 Dublin&Web&Summit&
This!event!held!in!Dublin!in!October!is!another!valuable!promotional!opportunity!for!Around!
LaBS!to!attend!for!marketing!the!API!solution.!The!event!runs!over!two!days!and!features!
200!speakers!from!companies!such!as!Google,!Salesforce,!TechCrunch!and!much!more.!This!
conference! is! Europe’s! fastest! growing! technology! conference! with! much! opportunity! to!
network!with!developers,!entrepreneurs!and!designers.!For!start\ups!such!as!ours!there!is!
also! the! opportunity! to! pitch! and! exhibit! to! leading! international! investors.! (Web! Summit!
n.d.)!
28.3 Dublin&Beta&
Once! quarterly! in! Dublin! there! is! a! get! together! organised! by! Dublin! Beta! for! founders,!
investors,!visionaries,!designers,!media!professionals!and!other!interested!parties.!The!aim!
of!these!events!is!to!provide!an!opportunity!to!meet!other!like\minded!entrepreneurs!and!
companies! to! discuss! and! demo! ideas! and! solutions! in! a! friendly,! social,! supportive! and!
!
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productive! environment.! The! focus! is! on! Ireland’s! early! stage! start\up! companies! and! the!
technology! community.! ! This! event! would! provide! Around! LaBS! the! opportunity! to! demo!
our! platform! which! in! turn! would! provide! possibilities! of! attracting! interested! parties,!
gaining! feedback! and! interacting! with! potential! investors,! members! of! the! press! and!
bloggers.!(Beta!Ltd!2012)!
28.4 Dublin&Business&Innovation&Centre&
This!organisation!provides!support!to!entrepreneurs!through!the!start\up!stages!and!assists!
the! business! through! the! first! three! to! five! years! of! operation.! Strategic! business!
development,!project!evaluation!and!planning!assistance!are!some!of!the!services!provided.!
There! are! also! opportunities! to! investigate! potential! international! partnerships! and!
technology!transfers.!Business!expansion!assistance!is!also!possible.!85%!of!DBIC!clients!are!
still!in!business!after!five!years!(Dublin!Business!Innovation!Centre!n.d.).!
28.5 Sandbox&
This!organisation!has!recently!established!a!hub!in!Dublin.!Sandbox!is!a!growing!community!
of!600!young!leaders!spanning!48!different!countries.!Events!are!regularly!organised!across!
Europe,! US,! Africa! and! Asia.! The! idea! behind! sandbox! is! to! incubate! talent! in! the! type! of!
supportive!environment!where!meaningful!relationships!between!like\minded!peers!can!be!
built!and!learning!opportunities!are!available!(Sandbox!n.d.).!
!
Figure&13:&Networking&via&Sandox&
(Sandbox!n.d.)!
!
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28.6 Enterprise&Europe&Network&
This! network! enables! businesses! to! make! the! most! of! the! European! marketplace! and! via!
local! business! organisations,! the! Enterprise! Europe! Network! can! help! develop! a! business!
into!new!markets.!It!also!helps!a!company!to!locate!international!business!partners,!source!
new! technologies! or! can! provide! financial! advice.! Guidance! is! available! regarding! going!
international,!intellectual!property!or!EU!law!and!standards.!The!Enterprise!Europe!Network!
has! business! support! organisations! from! more! than! fifty! countries! (Enterprise! Europe!
Network!n.d.).!
28.7 3scale&
This! company! offers! another! powerful! route! to! connect! with! and! increase! our! developer!
customer!base.!Engaging!with!developers!when!launching!an!API!can!be!a!challenging!task!
and!is!often!underestimated.!There!are!already!60,000!developers!utilising!3scale’s!solutions!
and!therefore!establishing!a!connection!with!this!network!enables!a!wide!array!of!tools!to!
reach! the! target! audiences.! 3scale! offer! a! developer! ecosystem! to! promote! an! API! and!
engage! the! developer! community.! The! channels! available! via! 3scale! include! hack! events!
where!the!3scale!team!will!promote!an!API!at!the!relevant!developer!hack!events.!There!is!
also!the!3scale!newsletter!which!provides!another!useful!means!to!reach!developers!via!info!
shots!in!the!regular!news!releases.!3scale!regularly!engage!in!API!promotion!whereby!they!
give!away!prizes!for!usage.!Blog!posts!and!public!relations!functions!are!also!part!of!3scale’s!
remit;! targeted! press! releases! or! technical! blog! posts! can! be! deployed! to! assist! people! in!
their!understanding!and!use!of!a!specific!API!(3Scale!2012).!
28.8 Programmable&Web&
Programmable! web! is! a! database! of! API! resources! that! allows! you! to! list! your! API! so! that!
you!can!be!discovered!by!almost!7000!developers.!It!keeps!the!developer!community!up\to\
date!with!new!innovations!with!for!example!Web!2.0!APIs.!This!website!acts!as!a!resource,!
directory,! news! source,! reference! guide! and! a! hub! for! developers! to! engage! with.! Upon!
registration! with! Programmable! Web! it! is! possible! to! join! forum! discussions,! comment! on!
APIs! and! make! connections! with! thousands! of! others! including! entrepreneurs,! developers!
and!other!API!providers!(ProgrammableWeb!2012).!
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28.9 Conferences&on&Location&
It!is!important!for!Around!LaBS!to!attend!as!many!industry!conferences!as!possible.!This!will!
not!only!present!networking!and!promotional!opportunities!but!will!also!keep!our!team!up\
to\date! with! industry! related! developments! and! upcoming! market! trends.! For! example,! in!
Nottingham!this!September!there!will!be!a!location!conference!hosted!by!AGI!(Association!
for!Geographic!Information)!GeoCommunity,!which!is!the!largest!and!most!comprehensive!
independent! conference! held! in! the! UK! digital! mapping! and! geospatial! calendar.! This!
conference!will!provide!leadership!and!real!insight!into!current!geographic!information!and!
importantly,! location! based! issues.! There! will! be! a! wide! range! of! keynote! addresses! and!
conference! papers! along! with! training! and! the! opportunity! of! face\to\face! networking.!
Topics!of!discussion!during!the!event!include!UK!Location:!Users’!Perspective,!Augmenting!
Reality!with!GIS,!Location!Based!Linked!Data!and!Fishing!for!geospatial!information!across!
the! oceans! of! data! published! on! the! social! web! (Association! for! Geographic! Information!
2012).!
28.10 Search&Engine&Optimization&
There! are! a! number! of! best! practice! tips! to! optimize! your! website! so! that! customers! can!
find!you!in!organic!search!results.!These!include!internal!link!architecture,!building!inbound!
links!from!quality,!authoritative!sites!and!creating!accurate!meaningful!keywords!and!meta!
tag! descriptions.! User! experience! and! creating! quality,! fresh! content! such! as! industry!
analysis!and!reviews!is!also!crucial.!
29 Strategic&Partnerships&
Around! LaBS! will! focus! on! developing! relationships! with! strategic! partners! in! order! to!
accelerate!the!rate!of!adoption!of!our!product!and!service.!Through!these!strategic!partners!
Around! LaBS! will! gain! exposure! to! markets! where! partners! have! established! relationships!
and!therefore!be!in!a!position!to!expand!our!customer!base.!!This!is!any!company!who!has!a!
large! customer! database! of! developers,! for! instance! Appcelerator! in! the! UK.! Appcelerator!
offers!integrated!mobile!platform!products.!
In!addition!we!intend!to!establish!a!partnership!with!start\up!incubators.!The!main!objective!
of! incubator! centres! is! to! help! start\ups! launch! successfully! and! we! think! other! start\up!
companies!will!be!interested!in!our!service.!!
!
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!
!
Reciprocity:! We! offer! a! reduced! price! and! support! and! in! return! we! gain! access! to! a! user!
base.!
30 People&
Our!team!is!composed!of!four!members!already!described!in!the!executive!summary.!The!
different!marketing!tasks!are!split!among!the!management!team!as!follows.!
Gráinne!Mary!Malone!will!have!responsibility!for!sales!and!marketing!with!a!special!focus!on!!
promoting!and!supporting!Around!Apps.!For!promoting!the!Around!Pets!app,!she!will!go!to!
the!pet!expos!in!Ireland!and!UK!as!well!as!engaging!in!marketing!and!promotional!activities!
among! the! veterinary! practices! therein.! Her! objective! will! be! to! expand! the! application!
portfolio!according!to!customer!requirements.!
Deirdre! Connolly! will! be! focused! on! the! research! and! development! activities! for! Around!
LaBS.! Her! role! will! encompass! keeping! current! with! the! latest! technological! advances! and!
developments.! She! will! be! attending! all! the! relevant! industry! conferences,! events! and!
innovation!centres.!This!will!present!many!promotional!and!marketing!opportunities.!
Omar!Fachar!will!be!in!charge!of!the!developer!community.!His!role!will!be!to!engage!with!
the!developer!community!in!an!interactive!way.!He!will!manage!the!online!interaction!with!
them! by! building! content! for! blogs,! social! media! and! popular! websites! accessed! by! this!
community.!Additionally,!Omar!will!look!after!queries!or!support!issues.!
Emmanuelle! Perrier! manage! of! the! enterprise! customer! relationship.! She! will! be! engaging!
with!start!ups!and!enterprises!using!or!willing!to!use!our!platform.!She!will!also!take!care!of!
the!administration!and!bookkeeping!aspects!of!the!marketing!budgets.!
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31 SWOT&Analysis&
&
Weaknesses&
Strengths&
Device,!language,!carrier,!locavon!
technology!agnosvc!
Scalable!Cloud!Opvmized!Soluvon&
Business!Model!Challenges!
Discovery!and!reach!!
Difficulty!Predicvng!Plaworm!
usage!
Developer\friendly!plaworm!
European!Based!\!Dublin!as!a!Tech!
Hub!
Diverse!Skills!in!Technology!and!
Business!Innovavon!
Funding!
!
!
!
!
Dublin!as!a!technical!hub!
EU!Data!Protecvon!!
Threats&
Monevsavon!of!app!market!
Start!Up!Challenges!
Evolving!technologies!and!rapidly!
growing!marke!
Privacy&
LBS!industry!is!svll!emerging!
Demographics!
Possibility!of!Partnerships!!!
Dependency!on!cellular!data!
coverage!
No!direct!compevtor!in!Europe!
Large!companies!may!easily!enter!
the!market!
Opportunihes&
Figure&14:&SWOT&analysis&
!
31.1 Strengths&
31.1.1 Device,&language,&carrier,&location&technology&independent&
Our!platform!is!a!one!stop!solution!for!all!location!functionality!that!works!on!any!device,!
with! any! language! or! location! technology,! independent! of! the! network! carrier.! It! makes! it!
more!cost!effective!and!efficient!for!developers!to!use!our!solution!than!handling!location!
infrastructure!and!code!for!each!separate!application.!
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31.1.2 Scalable&cloud&optimized&solution&
With! Amazon! hosting,! we! can,! within! minutes! scale! up! or! down! our! platform! hosting! as!
required.!
31.1.3 Developer&friendly&platform&
We!offer!a!web!site!with!a!user!friendly!management!interface!to!make!it!easy!and!intuitive!
for!developers!to!interact!with!our!platform.!
!
31.1.4 European&Based&
Our!target!market!is!Ireland,!the!UK!and!Europe!in!the!longer!term.!Being!European!based!is!
an! advantage! geographically,! operationally! and! in! terms! of! proximity! to! our! clients! and!
staying!in!tune!with!market!trends!and!customer!needs.!The!multi\lingual!skills!of!two!of!our!
team!members!are!also!a!distinct!advantage!for!communicating!with!clients.!
31.1.5 Diverse&Skills&in&Technology&and&Business&Innovation&
The! management! team! possess! a! diverse! range! of! skills! and! experience! in!
telecommunications! technology,! business! innovation! projects! and! client! support.! We! are!
committed!to!delivering!quality!products!and!service!to!our!clients.!
!
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31.2 Weaknesses&
31.2.1 Business&Model&Challenges&
One!of!the!challenges!in!the!fast!changing!app!market!is!the!monetization!of!apps.!This!has!a!
direct! impact! on! our! business! model! as! developers! face! challenges! monetizing! and!
marketing!their!apps.!!
31.2.2 Discovery&and&reach&
Discovery!and!reach!is!a!challenge!for!Around!LaBS!as!a!start\up!company.!!It!takes!time!to!
establish!a!solid!client!base!and!build!reputation.!Developer!retention!and!loyalty!can!be!an!
on\going!challenge.!
31.2.3 Difficulty&Predicting&Platform&Usage&
As!it!is!an!open!platform,!it!is!difficult!to!anticipate!the!number!of!developers!that!will!use!
our!platform!and!the!volume!of!usage!that!their!applications!will!generate.!We!have!a!very!
limited!insight!into!the!scaling!issues!that!will!be!caused!by!new!platform!users.!
31.2.4 Funding&&
Securing!large!funding!through!a!bank!loan!is!not!a!certainty.!!
31.3 Opportunities&
31.3.1 Dublin&as&a&Technical&Hub&
Dublin!is!the!tech!capital!of!Europe!with!all!10!of!the!world!top!10!tech!companies!basing!
their!European!operations!here!(Sandbox\Networks.com).!This!provides!direct!access!to!our!
developer!audience.!!
31.3.2 EU&data&protection&
Under! EU! Data! Protection! legislation! the! automated! processing! of! personal! data! for! EU!
based!consumers!is!subject!to!EU!regulation.!It!cannot!be!transferred!outside!the!EU!region!
without!the!expressed!consent!of!the!user.!This!makes!it!complicated!for!non!EU!companies!
to! store! and! process! data! for! EU! users.! In! other! words! it! could! discourage! US! based!
companies! from! offering! their! services! to! EU! users,! making! it! easier! for! us! to! gain! market!
share!(Computerworlduk.com)!
!
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!
!
31.3.3 Evolving&Technologies&and&Rapidly&Growing&Market&
On! the! verge! of! 4G! cellular! technology,! the! LBS! landscape! is! poised! for! explosion!
(Visiongain,!2011).!As!next!generation!batteries!and!positioning!technologies!evolve!location!
services!will!become!more!widespread.!!
31.3.4 Demographics&&&
According!to!the!most!recent!census!from!the!Central!Statistics!Office!40%!of!the!population!
in!Ireland!is!under!the!age!of!30,!50%!under!the!age!of!35!(CSO,!2011).!These!are!the!digital!
natives!who!are!most!likely!to!embrace!and!expect!location!features!to!be!integrated!into!
every! mobile! interaction.! Tech! savvy! consumers! are! already! familiar! with! LBS! that! have!
become!a!convenient!and!interesting!component!to!social!networks.!
31.3.5 Possibility&of&Partnerships&
As!our!business,!expertise!and!user!base!grows!there!may!be!opportunities!to!partner!with!
app!development!companies!such!as!Appcelerator.!!
31.3.6 No&direct&competitor&in&Europe&
At! this! time! there! is! no! direct! competitor! in! Europe.! Our! main! competitor! offering! a!
comparable!service!is!Geoloqi,!based!in!Portland!Oregon.!
31.4 Threats&
31.4.1 Monetisation&of&app&market&
One! of! the! difficulties! in! the! global! app! market! is! the! costumer! expectation! that! apps! for!
free!or!under!€5.!!
31.4.2 Start]up&Challenges&
Our! business! will! rely! on! the! success! of! other! start\up! companies.! However,! their! lifetime!
and!success!are!uncertain.!
31.4.3 Privacy&
Location! services! raises! potential! issues! related! to! privacy! and! the! use! of! personal!
information.! While! we! will! make! every! effort! to! adhere! to! data! regulations! the! public!
perception!of!location!services!may!affect!adoption!in!Ireland!in!the!short!term.!!This!is!why!
it!is!important!to!encourage!‘Pull’!based!location!services!with!clear!user!opt!in!and!consent.!
!
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31.4.4 Location&Based&Services&industry&still&emerging&
•
Awareness!and!adoption!of!LBS!in!Ireland!is!not!yet!mainstream!
•
Dependency!on!cellular!data!coverage!
31.4.5 Large!companies!may!easily!enter!the!market.&
IBM,!Amazon,!or!Hewlett!Packard!are!the!main!concerns!as!they!build!cross\platform!
solutions.!
!
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!
&
Technical)Analysis!
!
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79!
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32 System&Overview&
32.1 Requirements&
Our! main! objective! is! to! make! available! to! developers! an! easy! way! to! integrate! real\time!
location! features! inside! mobile! applications.! Because! our! main! clients! are! developers,!
certain!aspects!needed!to!be!taken!into!account.!!
Developers! must! remain! free! when! using! our! platform! to! integrate! location! features.! No!
constraints! should! be! imposed.! The! functionalities! should! be! implementable! in! a! very!
flexible!manner.!
The!market!of!mobile!devices!is!fragmented.!Building!applications!that!adapt!to!a!variety!of!
devices!is!today’s!main!challenge!for!developers!(Gartner,!2012).!!Therefore,!our!platform!
should! address! this! fact! and! provide! an! effortless! cross! platform! solution.! ! We! need! to!
ensure!that!our!solution!is!technology,!device,!operating!system!(OS)!and!carrier!agnostic!
Moreover,!because!our!product!will!need!to!quickly!and!reliably!scale!in!response!to!hard\
to\predict!changes!in!demand,!we!must!build!an!easily!scalable!solution.!
Finally!the!solution!must!guarantee!security,!privacy!and!real\time.!
In!summary,!our!platform!needs!to!meet!the!following!requirements:!
•
Real!time!
•
Cross!platform:!Device,!location!technology!and!carrier!agnostic!
•
Simple!to!implement!
•
No!constraints!
•
Easily!scalable!
•
Security!and!privacy!
32.1.1 Real&time&
One!of!the!primary!requirements!of!our!solution!is!for!it!to!be!a!real\time!system.!The!real!
time!aspect!of!location!services!is!critical.!Location!tracking!is!all!about!real!time!location.!
Many!of!the!potential!uses!!of!our!platform!in!the!future!are!going!to!be!in!the!context!of!
!
80!
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people,!assets!or!animals!tracking!!or!in!the!field!of!social!discovery!and!reality!augmented!
games.!For!all!these!applications,!having!real!time!location!features!is!indispensable.!
To!meet!this!requirement,!and!present!our!client!with!a!reliable!real!time!service,!Around!!
LaBS! has! started! a! ! research! and! development! process! ! with! the! primary! objective! ! to!
establish!complete!specifications!for!Around!LaBS!real!time!architecture.!The!final!version!of!
Around!LaBS!platform!will!be!developed!according!to!these!requirements.!
Although!not!yet!completed,!this!process!already!helped!us!establish!and!understand!many!
of! the! issues! and! requirements! surrounding! real! time! web! services.! The! main! issues!
regarding!real!time!web!services!are!:!
•
Server\Client!interaction!
•
Concurrency!!
•
Scalability!
32.2 Client&interaction&
Three!main!approaches!exist!concerning!!server\client!interaction:!!
" Short!Polling:!This!approach!involves!using!!standard!HTTP!requests!by!clients!to!
regularly!check!the!availability!of!new!data.!The!usual!short!polling!process!follows!three!
steps:!
1. The!client!sends!a!request!to!the!server!containing!a!time!stamp!
corresponding!to!the!time!of!the!last!update!received.!
2. If!!newer!data!is!available!on!the!server!side,!it!is!pushed!to!the!client!.!If!not,!
nothing!is!sent.!
3. The!client!repeats!the!process!after!a!certain!period.!
To!achieve!real!time!performance!through!this!method,!the!period!between!two!requests!to!
the!server!must!be!less!than!a!second.!
!
!
81!
!
!
!
!
Figure&15:&Short&Polling&
!
" Long!Polling:!This!approach!also!involves!the!usage!of!standard!HTTP!requests.!The!client!
regularly!sends!a!request!to!the!server.!When!a!request!is!received,!the!server!holds!the!
connection!open!!a!certain!period.!If!!new!data!is!made!available!for!the!client!!during!
that!period,!it!is!pushed!to!him.!Otherwise,!the!connection!is!shut!down!when!the!
period!expires.!The!process!is!then!repeated!after!a!certain!waiting!time.!
Here!again,!to!achieve!real!\time!performance,!we!need!the!waiting!time!to!be!short.!
!
Figure&16:&Long&Polling&
!
!
!
!
82!
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" Socket!communication!approach:!This!approach!involves!the!use!!of!a!persistent!
connection!between!the!client!and!the!server.!This!persistent!connection!aims!to!create!
a!communication!channel!between!both!parties.!Once!the!connection!is!established,!
data!can!be!exchanged!with!real!\time!performances.!Web!sockets!and!Flash!sockets!are!
some!of!the!most!!popular!examples!of!this!approach.!
!
!
Figure&17:&Socket&communication&approach&
In! the! context! of! our! product,! additional! elements! must! be! taken! into! account! when!
electing!the!right!communication!method.!!As!mobile!devices!are!limited!in!terms!of!battery!
and!connection!reliability,!additional!research!and!testing!must!be!!conducted!first!before!
taking!a!decision.!However!we!find!in!the!socket!communication!approach!the!most!suitable!
one!(turning!on!and!off!a!connection!is!more!consuming!that!keeping!it!running)!
32.3 Concurrency&
Regarding!high!concurrency!management,!we!came!across!two!possible!approaches:!
" Multithreading:!several!threads!per!process!is!a!commonly!used!approach!in!software!
development!that!takes!advantage!of!parallelization!possibilities!to!improve!system!
performances.!!However!in!certain!configurations,!this!approach!has!some!limits.!In!the!
case!of!real\time!web!services,!this!approaches!presents!the!drawback!of!being!
input/output!blocking.!Indeed!it!appears!that!it!tops!out!around!!a!thousand!
simultaneous!connections.!
!
83!
!
!
" One!process=!one!thread:!this!approach!appears!to!be!more!suited!for!high!demands!
allowing!!reach!levels!of!hundreds!of!thousands!of!simultaneous!connections.!This!
approach!!is!not!input/!output!blocking!!
To! manage! the! communication! servers,! Apache! can! no! longer! be! used.! Many! alternatives!
exist!as:!Twisted,!Tornado,!node.js,!gevent,!etc.!
32.4 Scalability&
Regarding!this!issue,!we!estimate!that!the!best!manner!of!handling!scalability!is!to!have!a!
front\end/back\end!approach:!
" A!front\end!to!handle!users!and!connections!
" A!back!end!to!handle!channels!!
To!correctly!answer!scalability!issues,!more!decisions!need!to!be!made!regarding!!
" data!storage:!Redis!Pub/Sub,!ZeroMQ!
" !message!brokers:!ActiveMQ,!RabbitMQ,!Amazon!SQS!
32.5 Architecture&on&top&of&amazon’s&cloud&
To! meet! our! requirements! in! terms! of! concurrency! and! scalability,! the! potential! cloud!
infrastructure! ! upon! which! we! will! deploy! our! platform! will! probably! look! ! similar! to! the!
following:!
" Amazon!elastic!load!balancers!to!balance!the!traffic!between!the!different!instances.!
" Several!instances!implementing!Nginx!and!Twisted.!
" !Finally!a!Redis!data!management!system!on!the!back\end.!
N.B:!For!more!details!on!the!cloud!and!Amazon!Web!Services!please!refer!to!section!35.!!
!
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Figure&18:&Draft&of&Real&time&cloud&infrastructure&for&Around&LaBS&
32.6 Important:&
!
In!the!context!of!the!Practicum,!the!developed!solution!is!not!destined!to!run!as!real\time!
service.! All! the! technology! choices! and! architecture! design! were! made! to! speed! up! the!
development! process! and! meet! the! project! deadlines.! As! an! example,! we! used! PHP! and!
Python!in!the!server!side!only!for!practical!reasons!and!!only!for!the!objective!of!producing!a!
functioning!prototype!of!an!API!server.!
!
32.7 Our&approach&
Based! on! the! analysis! of! each! requirement! we! assigned! to! our! product,! it! appears! that!
building!a!web&based&and&cloud&stored&platform!accessible!via!an&open&API!is!the!solution!
that! best! fits.! Indeed,! because! of! the! variety! of! interactions! expected,! and! because!
developers! don’t! like! constraints! and! we! want! our! solution! to! be! cross! platform,! we!
estimate!that!an!API!is!the!best!way!of!delivering!our!service.!
To! complete! our! stack! of! services! and! offer! a! real! “one! stop! shop”! for! location!
functionalities,!we!will!also!build!a!web&application!to!ease!the!management!and!analytics!
visualisation!for!developers.!!
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Furthermore,! we! plan! to! use! libraries! concepts! to! complement! our! offering! and! make!
available!to!developers!a&software&development&kit!(SDK),!for!each!mobile!OS,!integrating!
all! the! platform! functionalities! and! API! calls.! This! SDK! will! also! integrate! our! design!
principles!for!a!smarter,!easier!and!less!consuming!integration!of!location!features.!!
Finally,! as! a! proof! of! concept,! we! will! develop! a! simple! pet! tracking! mobile& application!
demonstrating!how!easy!it!is!to!integrate!location!functionalities!using!our!solution.!
32.7.1 How&it&works&
Developers! who! want! to! integrate! location! features! inside! their! applications! must! first!
register!to!our!platform!via!our!website.!During!this!process!they!are!asked!to!select!a!login!
and!a!password.!Once!this!process!is!completed,!developers!can!access!their!Around!LaBS!
profile.!This!is!only!performed!once.!
Around! LaBS! allow! developers! to! record! and! manage! location,! create! and! manage! places,!
geofences! and! geotriggers.! ! In! addition,! tools! for! users! and! applications! management! are!
provided.! To! access! all! these! functionalities,! we! made! 3! access! channels! available! to!
developers:!!
•
An!API:!publicly!available!and!fully!documented!on!our!website.!It!consists!of!a!set!of!
Hypertext! Transfer! Protocol! (HTTP)! request! messages! describing! all! available!
interactions,! along! with! the! definition! of! possible! parameters! and! the! structure! of!
response!messages.!The!implemented!location!functionalities!will!use!this!same!API.!
•
A! web! application:! This! web! application! is! exclusively! a! management! application!
designed! for! developers.! It! is! directly! available! from! our! website! and! requires!
developers!to!log!in.!This!application!is!a!visual!interface!for!developers!to!manage!
their! applications,! users! and! all! implemented! location! functionalities.! Summarising!
dashboards,!analytics,!existing!places,!existing!geofences,!triggers!and!geonotes!are!
all!available!and!manageable!in!a!user\friendly!user!interface.!
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86!
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•
An! SKD:! the! software! development! kit! provides! developers! the! API! libraries! and!
developer!tools!necessary!to!build,!test,!and!debug!their!application.!As!part!of!our!
services,! we! will! make! available! our! own! modified! versions! of! the! iPhone,! Android!
and! Window! SDKs.! These! SDKs! are! the! simplest! and! fastest! way! to! get! started!
integrating!location!features!into!your!applications.!
!
Figure&19:&Our&approach&
33 Our&solution&
33.1 Global&System&architecture&
33.1.1 API&centric&approach&
An! ‘API! centric’! application! approach! is! an! architecture! where! most! of! the! application!
functionalities!are!executed!through!API!calls.!In!our!case,!all!components!will!be!developed!
following!this!approach.!The!management!platform!will!access!the!platform!functionalities!
in!the!same!manner!as!a!mobile!device!would:!via!an!API!call.!
One! of! the! main! advantages! of! an! ‘API! centric’! application! is! that! it! helps! building! cross!
platform!solutions.!Indeed,!any!device!capable!of!executing!the!API!calls!can!interact!with!
the!platform.!By!following!this!approach!in!our!platform!design,!we!are!able!to!easily!turn!
into! an! advantage! the! fragmented! landscape! of! mediums! used! by! LBS! users.! This! would!
inevitably!lead!to!more!usage!of!our!platform.!
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Android!
OSX!
iOS!
API\centric!
Applicavon!
Linux!
Windows!
Browser!
BlackBerry!
Windows!
mobile!
!
Figure&20:&API]centric&application&
!
33.1.2 The&MVC&model&
In!addition!to!the!API!centric!approach,!we!also!followed!the!Model\View\Controller!(MVC)!
methodology! for! the! different! components! of! the! platform.! The! core! concept! of! the! MVC!
model! is! the! total! separation! of! data,! of! their! management! and! their! representation.! The!
user!interface!can!be!easily!modified!without!modifying!classes!that!handle!data.!As!a!result,!
the!code!is!totally!reusable.!
Controller!
A! controller! deals! with! client’s! request;! usually! accessed! through! a! URL!
“app_root/NameofController/request”,!its!first!task!is!to!validate!the!user!request!(function!
exist,! right! number! of! arguments! etc.).! ! Then,! it! invokes! whatever! resource! is! needed! to!
answer!the!request.!When!the!request!is!answered,!the!output!is!returned!to!the!controller.!
The!controller!is!then!responsible!of!invoking!the!correct!view!and!passing!the!output!to!it.!!
View!
!
88!
!
!
A!view!corresponds!to!the!user!interface.!It!is!responsible!for!the!output!representation.!For!
this!reason,!a!view!is!principally!made!of!HTML,!CSS!and!PHP.!!
Model!
A!model!usually!contains!most!of!the!business!logic.!It!is!responsible!for!processing!the!user!
request!and!generating!the!output.!A!model!is!optional,!however,!in!most!cases!there!is!one!
model!for!one!database.!
!
!
Figure&21:&MVC&model&
The!MVC!model!will!be!applied!to!the!three!components!of!our!platform:!The!API!front\end!
server,!the!back\end!API!centric!application!and!management!web!application.!
33.1.3 REST&
Building! an! API! server! can! be! performed! in! several! manners.! There! are! no! standard!
architecture!specifications!when!building!an!API.!We!decided!to!build!our!platform!based!on!
the!REST!architecture.!
REST! is! the! acronym! for! Representational! State! Transfer! and! is! a! type! of! architecture!
inspired!by!the!web.!It!describes!how!web!standards!(HTTP,!URIS)!are!supposed!to!be!used!
in!order!to!benefit!from!the!Web’s!architecture.!The!architecture!REST!is!often!opposed!to!
the! SOAP! (Simple! Object! Access! Protocol)! architecture! based! on! RPC! (Remote! Procedure!
Calls).! The! idea! is! that,! rather! than! using! complex! mechanisms! such! as! SOAP! to! connect!
between!machines,!simple!HTTP!is!used!to!make!calls!between!machines.!
!
89!
!
!
REST!principles!were!defined!in!Roy!Fielding’s!thesis!Architectural!Styles!and!the!Design!of!
Network[based!Software!Architectures!in!2000.!The!main!principles!are:!
•
Everything!that!REST!services!provide!is!a&resource.!
•
A! resource! can! be! affected! by! 4! basic! operations! designed! by! CRUD! for! Create,!
Retrieve,!Update!and!Delete.!REST!services!are!based!on!HTTP&methods!to!perform!
these!operations:!POST,!GET,!PUT!and!DELETE.!!
•
Every! resource! has! its! own! URI& (Uniform! Resource! Identifier),! i.e.! a! unique! id.!
However,!a!resource!can!be!represented!in!different!ways!and!each!representation!
has! its! own! URL! with! which! clients! interact! via! HTTP! methods.! This! is! the! core!
concept!of!REST!architecture!and!can!be!summarised!in!the!following!graph.!
GET!
Representavon!A!
URL!
POST!
URI!
Resource!
PUT!
Representavon!B!
URL!
DELETE!
!
Figure&22:&REST&principles&
!
•
A!resource!can!be!represented!in!XML,!XHTML,!JSON,!CSV!formats.!
•
Every!resource!should!be!addressable.!
•
REST!services!are!stateless.!Every!request!that!is!sent!to!the!server!must!contain!all!
the!information!necessary!to!service!the!request.!No!client!context!can!be!stored!on!
the! server! between! requests.! This! constraint! makes! servers! more! reliable! and!
minimise!the!use!of!system!resources.!
A! REST! service! should! follow! these! principles! in! order! to! reach! the! key! goals! of! REST!
architecture,! which! includes! simplicity,! human! readable! results! and! high! performances.!
!
90!
!
!
Indeed,!REST!services!have!lightweight!requests!and!responses,!an!easier!response!parsing!
and!save!bandwidth.!
Methods+
REST! services! are! based! on! HTTP& methods:! POST,! GET,! PUT! and! DELETE.! Each! function! of!
our!REST!API!server!must!declare!the!HTTP!request!type!it!expects.!For!example,!an!“update!
location”! function! expecting! to! be! triggered! by! a! POST! request,! must! declare! so! in! its!
implementation.! As! a! consequence! of! this,! the! only! API! calls! accepted! for! the! method!
“update!location”!are!those!passed!through!POST!requests.!
The! four! HTTP! methods! are! described! in! the! following.! The! appropriate! selection! of! the!
request!type!must!take!into!consideration!the!characteristics!of!each!type.!!
•
GET:! This! method! is! used! when! users! enter! an! URL! or! click! on! a! link.! It’s! aim! is! to!
bring!information!related!to!one!or!multiple!REST!resources.!Arguments!are!passed!
in!the!URL!(header!of!the!GET!request).!
•
POST:! The! POST! method! is! used! when! user! submits! most! of! the! forms.! It! can!
updates! and/or! modifies! an! existing! REST! resource.! Arguments! are! passed! in! the!
body!of!the!POST!request.!
•
PUT:!It!is!used!to!create!a!new!resource.!However!this!method!is!not!supported!by!
all!browsers!and!is!less!used!than!the!others.!!
•
DELETE:! The! delete! method! is! used! to! delete! a! REST! resource.! This! method! is! also!
not!supported!by!all!browsers.!
!
33.2 The&API&server&
!
33.2.1 What’s&an&API&
The!main!purpose!of!APIs!is!to!let!different!software!communicate!and!interact!with!each!
other.! An! API! essentially! defines! the! operations,! a! set! of! rules! via! a! set! of! routines,! data!
structures,! object! classes! and/or! protocols! that! are! available! to! interact! with! another!
system.! An! API! is! usually! related! to! a! software! library.! Indeed,! these! libraries! are! the!
concrete!implementation!of!the!set!of!rules!described!by!the!API.!!
!
91!
!
!
33.2.2 Description&
The!API!server!is!made!of!two!principal!components:!
•!
A!front\end!API!call!interceptor!that!catches!API!calls!and!validates!them!
•!
A!back\end!API!centric!web!app!responsible!for!processing!the!API!calls!
Both!components!will!be!hosted!on!the!cloud.!More!details!about!the!hosting!infrastructure!
will!be!given!in!a!further!section.!
33.2.3 Approach&
The! two! main! API! components! have! different! roles.! While! the! API! centric! application!
mission! is! to! execute! the! platform! functionalities,! the! front\end! API! call! interceptor! is! in!
charge!of:!
•
Accepting!API!calls!with!any!number!of!parameters.!
•
Extracting!the!Controller!and!Action!from!those!API!calls.!
•
Making!the!necessary!verifications!to!ensure!that!the!Controllers!and!Actions!exist.!
•
Executing!the!API!calls.!!
•
Catching!errors,!if!any.!
•
Sending!back!the!results!to!the!callers.!
Class+diagram+
The! following! class! diagram! presents! a! snapshot! of! the! different! classes! of! our! API! server!
with!the!possible!action!for!each!one,!as!well!as!their!corresponding!HTTP!method.!!
!
92!
!
!
!
Figure&23&&Class&diagram&of&the&API&server&
&
&
33.2.4 Implementation&
PHP!
PHP:!Hypertext!Pre\processor!is!an!HTML\embedded!server\side!scripting!language.!It!is!free!
software!released!under!the!PHP!license.!PHP!scripts!can!be!deployed!on!most!web!servers,!
many!operating! systems!and!platforms.! Much! of! its! syntax! is! borrowed! from! C,! Java! and!
Perl.! The! goal! of! this! language! was! originally! to! allow! the! quick! generation! of! dynamic!
webpages! but! now! focuses! mainly! on! server\side! scripting.! ! PHP! does! not! need! to! be!
compiled!and!was!created!as!an!interpreter!language.!
PHP!has!also!attracted!the!development!of!many!frameworks!that!provide!building!blocks!
and!a!design!structure.!The!most!well\known!frameworks!are:!Zend!Framework,!CakePHP,!
Symfony!and!CodeIgniter.!
!
93!
!
!
In! our! case! we! used! the! CodeIgniter! framework! to! speed! up! the! development! process.!!
CodeIgniter!is!a!light!framework;!its!core!has!only!the!essential!functions!making!it!faster.!It!
requires!nearly!zero!configurations!and!is!easy!to!handle.!Moreover!the!numerous!available!
libraries! and! helpers! and! the! well\detailed! documentation! turned! out! to! be! very! helpful!
during!the!implementation!process.!
&
The! API! server! was! implemented! following! the! REST! architecture! and! the! MVC! model.! To!
ease!and!accelerate!the!development!process!in!the!context!of!the!practicum,!we!used!the!
CodeIgniter!framework!and!some!open!public!libraries.!
The! codeIgniter! framework! comes! with! a! set! of! libraries! and! helpers! that! make! the!
development! process! more! straightforward.! Moreover,! many! advanced! features! such! as!
security! and! media! handling! are! already! built! in! and! directly! made! available! through!
function!calls.!Finally,!the!community!of!the!codeIgniter!framework!users!is!numerous!and!
dynamic.! Thus,! many! open! resources! and! an! efficient! assistance! are! available! over! the!
Internet.!
To! build! our! RESTful! API! centric! application,! we! decided! to! use! one! of! the! most! popular!
open! resources! available! for! the! CodeIgniter! framework:! The! REST! controller! by! Phil!
Sturgeon!(Sturgeon,!2009).!This!library!was!specially!designed!to!facilitate!the!development!
of!REST!controllers.!
!
Figure&24:&API&server&infrastructure!
!
94!
!
!
!
The+front'end+API+calls+
The! front\end! API! server! was! implemented! as! a! simple! “controller”! (a! php! file)! that! first!
intercepts!all!API!calls!with!any!number!of!parameters.!Then,!it!extracts!all!the!parameters!
and!identifies!the!requested!controllers!and!action:!
Class!AroundLabs_api!extends!REST_controller!
{!
<...>!
//Try!and!Catch!section!to!handle!errors!
try!{!
//get! all! of! the! parameters! in! the! POST/GET/PUT/DELETE! request! |! example!
with!GET!
if!($_SERVER['REQUEST_METHOD']!==!'GET’)!{!!!
$params!=!$this\>get();!!!
//! get! the! controller! and! format! it! correctly! so! the! first! letter! is! always!
capitalized.! The! get()! method! made! available! by! the! REST_Controller! library!
automatically! fetches! each! component! of! the! url! and! returns! an! associative!
array!
!!$controller=!strtolower($params['controller']);!
//get!the!action!and!format!it!to!match!our!files!syntax!
!$resource!=!strtolower($params['resource'])!
!
!
95!
!
!
Then,! the! API! server! makes! the! necessary! verifications! to! ensure! that! the! controllers! and!
actions!exist:!
!!
!!!//check!if!the!controller!exists.!If!not,!throw!an!exception!
!!!if(file_exists("$controllers_root_path/{$controller}.php")!)!!
!!!{!
!include_once!"$controllers_root_path/{$controller}.php";!
!!!}!!
else!{throw!new!Exception('invalid!controller');!
!!!}!
//create!a!new!instance!of!the!controller,!and!pass!it!the!parameters!from!the!
request!
!!!$controller!=!$this]>controllers]>$controller($params);!
!!!!!
!!!//check!if!the!resource!exists!in!the!controller.!!
!!!if(!method_exists($controller,!$resource)!===!false!)!{!
!!!!!!throw!new!Exception('!invalid!resource);!
!!!}!
<...>!
!
Once!the!verifications!are!done,!the!API!calls!interceptor!executes!the!valid!API!calls,!catches!
the!errors!and!sends!back!the!results!to!the!callers!in!the!appropriate!format.!
96!
!
!
!
!
The+back'end+‘API+centric’+application+
!
The! Back\end! API! centric! application! is! built! following! the! MVC! and! REST! models.! To!
implement!it,!we!used!the!codeIgniter!framework!and!the!REST_Controller!library.!!
The! Back\end! API! centric! application! is! a! compound! of! controllers! and! models! (set! of!
resources!and!possible!interactions!\\REST).!Because!the!API!will!exclusively!interact!with!IT!
systems!(web!applications,!mobile!applications!and!other!type!of!systems),!there!is!no!need!
for!user!interfaces!and!therefore!for!Views.!!
The!API!calls!received!by!the!API!server!are!organised!as!follows:!
URL:!api.website.com/1.0/resource/interaction/param_name/param_data!
optional:!/format/json!!
In! REST,! URL’s! are! built! similarly! to! those! of! classic! MVC! applications! with! controllers! and!
method,! but! you! will! notice! in! the! above! URL! that! the! controller! is! named! “resource”.!
Indeed! REST! is! all! about! interacting! with! resources.! Resources! are! essentially! referred! to!
using!nouns!within!the!application.!!
To!implement!geolocation,!geotracking,!geofencing,!geotriggering!and!geonotes!within!our!
platform!we!adopted!the!following!organisation:!
•
Five!controllers:!one!for!each!feature.!Each!controller!is!a!resource!available!to!interact!
with.!
•
Five! models:! one! for! each! controller,! they! contain! all! the! logic! of! possible! interactions!
with!the!resources.!
Each! class! controller! extends! the! REST_controller.! The! resources! are! declared! as! follows:!
“resource_http\method\expected”.! By! doing! so,! we! specify! what! type! of! http! request! is!
used! to! request! an! interaction! with! the! resource.! As! previously! described,! the! four! HTTP!
methods! are! GET,! POST,! PUT! and! DELETE.! However,! PUT! and! DELETE! methods,! are! not!
!
97!
!
!
<?php defined('BASEPATH') OR exit('No direct script access
allowed');
include APPPATH.'libraries/REST_Controller.php';
class Place extends REST_Controller {
function creation_post() {
//Creating a place by giving its coordinate
}
function update_post() {
//Update the parameters related to a particular place
}
supported!by!all!browsers.!In!order!to!create!a!universal!API,!we!chose!not!to!use!these!two!
methods.!
Here!is!the!structure!of!the!place!controller:!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
98!
!
!
!
function update_post() {
$this->load->database();
!
$this->load->model('place_model');
!
$PID = $this->post('PID');
!
$Latitude = $this->post('Latitude');
$Longitude = $this->post('Longitude');
!
$Name= $this->post('Name');
$INFO=$this->post('INFO');}
CodeIgniter! has! its! own! style! of! fetching! parameters! in! each! method.! To! obtain! the!
parameter!in!a!post!method!the!code!to!write!is:!$this]>input]>post(‘parameter’).!This!will!
access! the! $_POST! variable! named! ‘parameter’.! As! part! of! the! many! features! prebuilt! in!
CodeIgniter,! this! fetching! function! already! integrates! security! measures.! Indeed! this!
function!implements!a!cross\site!scripting!(XSS)!protection.!In!the!same!manner,!the!code:!
$this]>input]>get(‘parameter’)!will!return!the!get!parameter!present!in!the!URL!in!the!form!!
api.domain.com/1.0/place/list/parameter/1.!
In! the! following! example,! the! method! update_post! belongs! to! the! Place! resource! and!
describes!how!the!Place!can!be!updated!via!a!get!request.!!First!it!loads!the!database!and!
the! corresponding! model! and! then! it! retrieves! the! place! ID! from! the! request! using!
codeIgniter’s!input!retrieving!logic.!The!function!then!invokes!the!model!and!passes!it!the!
needed!parameter.!Finally!the!response!is!returned!to!the!caller.!
!!&
&
!
& &
&
&
&
!
!
!
99!
!
!
!
!
Database!interactions!are!also!simplified!by!the!codeIgniter!framework.!Once!the!database!
configuration!file!is!set,!database!queries!are!easy!to!implement.!As!an!example!here!is!how!
one!request!is!performed:!
!
!
!
protected $table ='places';
!
!
!
!
!
public function history($PID) {
$last = $this->db->select('*')
->where('PID', (int) $PID)
->from($this->AroundLabs_table)
->order_by('date', 'desc')
!
!
!
The! default! output! format! of! our! platform! is! JSON.! JSON! stands! for! “Short! for! JavaScript!
Object!Notation”,!according!to!Webopedia!JSON!is!a!“lightweight!data\interchange!format!
that! is! easy! for! humans! to! read! and! write,! and! for! machines! to! parse! and! generate”!
(Webopedia,! 2012).! JSON! is! a! text! format! that! is! language! independent.! JSON! notation!
contains!these!basic!elements:!but!we!can!add!at!the!end!of!the!URL!a!format!parameter!to!
specify!if!we!want!the!output!in!XML,!JSON!or!HTML.!
!
100!
!
!
!
Figure&25:&API&response&in&JSON&format&
JSON! is! not! the! only! format! supported;! our! REST! API! can! output! responses! in! all! the!
additional!following!formats:!
•
!
xml!:!almost!all!programming!language!can!read!XML!
101!
!
!
!
Figure&26:&API&response&in&XML&format&
•
CSV!–!It!can!be!opened!with!spreadsheet!programs!
•
HTML!–!It!consists!of!a!simple!HTML!table!
•
PHP!–!A!representation!of!PHP!code!that!can!be!evaluated!
•
Serialize!–!Serialized!data!that!can!be!unserialized!in!PHP!
!
By! giving! both! the! API! developer! and! the! client! application! the! choice! of! data! formats! to!
use,! the! API! is! opened! up! to! a! much! wider! audience! and! can! be! used! with! more!
programming!languages!and!systems.!!
!
102!
!
!
Adding!the!format!to!the!URL!is!not!technically!the!most!RESTful!way!of!changing!the!API!
response!format,!it!allows!easy!browser!testing!and!lets!developers!without!cURL!perform!
simple!GET!requests!on!the!API.!A!more!RESTful!way!of!doing!the!same!is!to!send!a!Content\
type! HTTP! header! to! the! REST! controller! using! cURL.! This! will! be! explained! later! in! the!
management!web!application!description.!
33.3 The&management&web&application&
!
Figure&27:&Management&platform&interface&
33.3.1 Approach&
The!management!web!application!objective!is!to!provide!developers!with!a!visual,!easy!to!
use!interface!to!create,!modify!and!manage!the!location!aspects!of!their!applications.!Thus,!
it! must! take! into! consideration! design! and! ergonomic! principles! to! provide! the! best! and!
effortless!experience!of!building!location!functionalities.!
Activity+Diagram+
The! management! web! application! is! available! for! all! developers! that! subscribe! to! our!
platform.!Once!in!the!website,!they!need!to!log!in!first!to!start!using!the!application.!Once!
this! step! is! completed,! they! are! faced! with! a! dashboard! page,! summarising! all! previous!
!
103!
!
!
actions!if!existing.!If!no,!the!dashboard!page!will!appear!as!a!summary!of!all!possible!actions.!
To!start!using!the!application,!the!user!will!need!to!create!an!“application”.!Then,!the!user!
can!start!building!his!application’s!‘location!profile’!!
•
Places!
•
Geofences!
•
Geotriggers!
•
Geonotes!
•
Etc.!
The! following! activity! diagram! describes! the! process! of! creating! a! first! application! profile!
using!the!management!web!application.!!
!
Figure&28&:&Activity&diagram&of&an&application&creation&
33.3.2 Design&
In! the! following! section,! we! describe! the! Web! design! process! we! followed! when!
implementing!the!management!web!application.!
!
!
104!
!
!
Usability+
•
Layout!
When! considering! the! layout! for! our! management! platform! we! looked! at! a! few! different!
variations.!From!a!purely!graphic!perspective,!we!have!chosen!to!follow!a!clean!approach.!
The! layout! should! not! differ! radically! from! the! other! existing! web! services! for! developers.!
We! wanted! users! to! feel! comfortable! with! the! layout! of! the! management! application!
interface!from!the!start,!and!for!them!to!feel!as!if!they!had!always!used!it.!An!unorthodox!
layout! would! not! have! been! beneficial! for! us.! In! the! end,! we! were! very! happy! with! the!
layout!we!chose!as!it!gives!a!structured,!natural!and!intuitive!feel.!
In!any!case,!to!offer!developers!an!optimised!working!environment,!we!decided!to!limit!the!
number!of!pages!reloading.!To!achieve!that,!we!will!use!the!potential!of!HTML5,!AJAX!and!
JQuery.!
Consistency+
It!was!important!that!we!keep!a!feel!of!consistency!throughout!the!application!and!make!it!
easy!for!the!developers!to!navigate.!The!application!had!to!have!a!predictable!look!and!feel,!
coherently!combining!all!the!elements!together.!We!achieved!this!by!using!a!minimal,!clear!
colour! scheme! and! by! position! the! same! header,! footer! and! body! structure! across! all! the!
application.!!
The!dark!header!and!footer!containing!the!logo!and!navigation!bar!and!also!the!social!media!
links,!are!constant!throughout!all!the!pages!allowing!easy!navigation!and!also!access!to!any!
of!our!social!media!platforms!at!any!time!!
The! body! of! the! application! is! constantly! running! on! the! same! block.! All! the! application!
navigation!is!happening!inside!that!block.!!!
Once!all!the!pages!were!assembled,!they!were!tested!on!different!browsers,!Firefox,!Google!
Chrome!and!Internet!Explorer,!along!with!mobile!devices!to!ensure!there!was!consistency!
and!any!changes!required!were!implemented.!
•
!
Grouping&!
105!
!
!
Grouping! is! important! to! maintain! a! flow! for! the! user! while! working! on! the! management!
application.!For!example,!all!the!application!related!content!is!displayed!in!the!central!block!
of!the!body.!All!account!management!functionalities!are!available!in!the!header.!All!social!
media!interaction!is!accessible!from!the!same!area!in!the!footer.!!
•
The&colours&!
The! colours! used! throughout! the! website! for! the! header! and! footer,! logo! and! text! were!
given! special! consideration.! These! colours! would! set! the! tone! of! the! website! and! create!
mood;!too!many!colours!would!be!too!busy!and!distract!the!user!from!his!main!professional!
objective.!The!colours!had!to!be!modern,!professional!and!tie!in!with!the!fonts!and!style!of!
the!application.!
•
Fonts&!
When! choosing! our! fonts! for! the! website,! we! had! a! few! clear! objectives.! Firstly,! from! a!
design! perspective,! we! wanted! the! font! to! be! modern,! clean! and! easy! to! read.! Serif! fonts!
were!not!suitable!as!they!are!more!difficult!to!read!on!screens.!
Next!we!looked!at!the!issue!of!usability!and!availability!on!different!machines!and!browsers.!!
We!used!Google!Web!Fonts!to!choose!a!font!that!would!be!freely!available!on!the!internet.!
We!chose!Arimo,!a!clean!sans!serif!font!designed!by!Steve!Matteson.!It!has!many!appealing!
features!and!is!metrically!compatible!with!“Arial”.!It!has!a!lot!of!the!Helvetica!characteristics!
we!were!looking!for,!noticeable!in!the!structure!of!the!“a”!and!“k”!character!
Preparation+
Before! starting! the! implementation,! we! sketched! some! possible! designs! and! submitted!
them!for!reviewing!to!two!user!interface!experts!known!to!us.!Their!comments!and!advice!
have!all!been!taken!on!board!when!implementing!the!final!design.!
33.3.3 Design&implemented&for&the&management&web&application&
The!design!finally!implemented!for!the!Web!application!is!the!following:!!!!!
!
106!
!
!
!!!!
!!!!!!!!!
!
Figure&29:&Interface&sketchings&
!
Figure&30:&Final&design&as&implemented&
!
!
107!
!
!
&
33.3.4 Implementation&
To! implement! this! application,! we! followed! the! same! development! process! as! previously:!
MVC! model,! REST,! and! API! centric! approach,! the! CodeIgniter! framework! and! some! open!
public!libraries.!One!of!these!libraries!is!the!REST!client!library!by!Phil!Sturgeon!(Sturgeon,!
2009).!This!library!was!specially!designed!to!facilitate!the!development!of!REST!clients.!
The! programing! languages! we! used! during! the! management! application! development!
process!are:!
" PHP&
As! for! the! API,! building! the! web! application! requires! the! usage! of! the! PHP! programming!
language.!
" HTML/CSS&
HTML! stands! for! HyperText! Markup! Language! and! is! the! main! language! for! displaying!
webpages.! HTML! is! not! a! programming! language! since! it! is! just! a! way! of! adding! some!
content.! The! way! of! displaying! HTML! content! is! to! use! HTML! elements! composed! of:! two!
tags!(one!at!the!beginning,!one!at!the!end),!some!attributes!(like!a!reference!for!example)!
and!the!content!(what!is!going!to!be!displayed!on!the!document).!CSS!stands!for!Cascading!
Style!Sheets!and!manages!the!appearance!of!the!content.!!
To!realise!our!web!site!we!used!the!fifth!version!of!HTML.!This!version!focuses!on!being!a!
single!language!that!can!be!used!in!different!platform!(websites,!mobile!applications).!It!also!
introduces!new!elements!and!attributes!useful!for!actual!website!usages.!!
" JavaScript&
JavaScript!is!historically!the!first!scripting!programming!language!used!to!create!interactive!
web!pages.!It!is!an!object\oriented!language!incorporated!in!HTML.!In!general,!it!improves!
the!HTML!scripts!by!executing!commands!on!the!browser!level!(client!side).!This!means!that!
the! scripts! are! executed! from! the! user! browsers! rather! than! directly! on! the! server.!
Concretely,! JavaScript! enables! to! animate! texts! and! images,! react! to! mouse! events,! check!
data!locally!(client!side),!make!calculations,!change!HTML!elements,!detect!user’s!browser,!
manage!cookies,!etc.!
!
108!
!
!
JavaScript! does! not! need! a! compiler.! It! is! directly! written! in! HTML! file,! which! avoids!
slowdown!when!loading!web!pages.!
" AJAX&
AJAX! stands! for! Asynchronous! JavaScript! and! XML! and! represents! a! group! of! techniques!
that!includes!the!use!of!the!following!elements:!
•
Standards\based!presentation!using!XHTML!and!CSS!
•
Dynamic!display!and!interaction!using!the!Document!Object!Model!
•
Data!interchange!and!manipulation!using!XML!and!XSLT!
•
Asynchronous!data!retrieval!using!XMLHttpRequest!
•
!JavaScript!binding!everything!together!
AJAX!application!fits!with!the!term!Web!Application!as!they!will!be!running!on!your!browser!
and! makes! you! feel! like! the! application! is! running! on! your! own! computer.! However!
comparing! to! a! traditional! HTML\based! web! application! they! will! be! much! lighter! and!
minimize!the!traffic!and!workload!both!on!the!client!and!the!server!side.!!
Interacting+with+the+RESTful+API+
To!interact!with!a!RESTful!service,!several!methods!exist.!!
" file_get_contents()&
Using!the!simple!PHP!function!file_get_contents(),!we!can!perform!basic!GET!requests.!This!
is! the! most! basic! method.! However,! it! is! limited! to! GET! requests! and! was! not! designed!
taking!into!account!REST!architecture!and!its!possibilities.!
Example:!
$response!=!json_decode(!
file_get_contents('http://api.aroudlabs.com/1.0/place/list/format/json')!!);!!!
!!!
Another!limitation!of!this!method!is!its!limitation!in!terms!of!security!concepts.!Only!basic!
HTTP!authentication!is!possible.!It!is!preferable!to!use!HTTP!Digest!authentication!or!Oauth.!
Besides,! the! only! way! to! set! extra! HTTP! headers! is! to! set! them! manually! using! the! PHP!
!
109!
!
!
function! stream_context_create(),! which! can! be! very! complicated! for! developers! who! are!
new! to! the! internal! workings! of! HTTP! requests.! Another! disadvantage! is! that! you! only!
receive!the!body!of!the!HTTP!response!in!its!raw!format,!which!means!you!need!to!handle!
conversion!from!every!single!request.!
" cURL&
cURL! is! a! project! providing! a! library! and! ! a! command\line! tool! for! transferring! data! using!
various! protocols.! It! is! available! in! more! than! 40! programing! languages.! cURL! is! the! most!
flexible! way! to! interact! with! a! RESTful! API! as! it! was! designed! for! exactly! this! type! of!
interaction.!We!can!easily!set!HTTP!headers,!HTTP!parameters!and!many!other!parameters.!
With!the!CodeIgniter!CURL!library!a!post!request!to!the!API!would!look!like!this:!
function!ci_curl($new_name,!$new_email)!!!
!{!!!
$this\>load\>library('curl');!!!
$this\>curl!>create('http://api.aroudlabs.com/1.0/place/create');!!!
$this\>curl\>post(array(!!!
"Name":"Example!Place",!
!!!
"Latitude":"35.5030098153887",!
!!!
"Longitude":"\142.624693737529",!
!!!!!
"Info":"Place!description",!
));!!!
$result!=!json_decode($this\>curl\>execute());!!!
if(isset($result\>status)!&&!$result\>status!==!'success')!!!
{!!echo!'Place!has!been!created.’;!!}!!!!!
else!!!
!
110!
!
!
{!!echo!'An!error!occured';!!}!!!
!!}!!!
&
33.4 The&system&development&kit&
33.4.1 Design&
The+battery+draining+issue+
Based! on! our! reading! of! Energy[Accuracy! Trade[off! for! Continuous! Mobile! Device! Location!
Mobile! (K.! Lin! et! Al,! 2010),! it! is! still! difficult! to! build! mobile! applications! that! require!
continuous!location!access!because!using!the!location!is!energy\consuming.!
The! first! thing! that! stands! out! when! analysing! the! battery! consumption! of! the! location!
process! is! how! much! the! satellite! method! (which! is! one! of! the! best! accurate! methods)! is!
battery!consuming.!To!obtain!a!GPS!position,!the!mobile!needs!to!pick!up!signals!from!GPS!
satellites.! This! process! requires! powering! the! antenna! with! a! significant! power! level! to! be!
able!to!pick!up!those!signals.!Unfortunately!this!powering!process!is!too!battery!consuming!
for!the!current!mobile!batteries.!In!2008!a!study!(S.!Gaonkar!et!al,!2008)!shows!that!when!
GPS! is! continuously! activated,! the! Nokia! N95! battery! life! is! less! than! 7! hours.! Recent! test!
performed! by! many! specialised! magazines! has! shown! similar! results! even! with! the! more!
recent! smartphones.! Location! systems! using! Wi\Fi! are! better! in! term! of! battery!
consumption! although! the! difference! is! not! that! significant.! The! GSM! method! is! still! the!
least!battery!consuming!location!methodology.!However!it!is!also!the!least!accurate!one.!!
Because!these!three!technologies!all!have!their!own!advantages,!it!falls!to!the!application!
developer!to!make!the!best!decision!while!using!them!inside!mobile!application!to!limit!the!
energy!consumption.!
To!prevent!the!case!where!mobile!owners!are!forced!to!turn!off!the!GPS!or!the!Wifi!to!save!
the! battery! consumption,! thereby! limiting! the! application! functionalities,! developers! need!
to!deeply!understand!how!location!system!works.!They!need!to!be!able!to!determine!which!
location!methods!are!the!best!and!for!what!situations.!According!to!recommendations!for!
developers!in!Microsoft!website!(Microsoft,!2011),!one!of!the!best!things!to!do!is!to!avoid!
!
111!
!
!
turning!on!the!GPS!when!it!is!not!needed.!However!that!leads!to!another!issue.!How!do!we!
know!when!to!turn!on!the!GPS?!
One! answer! is! given! in! the! paper! Impact! of! sensor[enhanced! mobility! prediction! on! the!
design!of!energy[efficient!localization!(C.\W.!You!et!al.!2008).!They!suggest!that!the!use!of!a!
sensor! like! an! accelerometer! can! significantly! improve! the! battery! life! of! a! mobile! phone.!
Indeed,!the!accelerometer!is!used!to!sense!if!the!person!is!moving!or!not!and!then!when!to!
turn! on! the! GPS.! The! accelerometer! is! only! used! to! know! if! there! is! a! move! or! not,! as! a!
binary!sensor.!If!there!is!a!move!during!more!than!10!seconds!that!means!the!user!is!moving!
from! the! initial! place! and! the! GPS! can! be! turned! on.! Nowadays,! all! smartphones! have! an!
accelerometer! that! consume! less! than! the! GPS,! so! this! technique! can! be! broadly! used.!
Nonetheless,! this! technique! has! some! limitations.! When! using! public! transports,! mobile!
users!are!stationary!yet!they!may!need!to!use!location\based!features.!!
Another! element! that! may! help! developers! optimising! usage! of! geo\location! technologies!
would!be!to!know!if!the!person!is!outdoors!or!indoors.!There!is!no!need!to!try!to!activate!
the!GPS!when!the!user!is!inside!a!building.!!According!to!(J.!Paek!et!al.!2010),!an!efficient!
way! to! know! if! the! user! is! indoors! is! to! use! the! received! signal! strength! (RSS)! from! the!
current! cell\ID.! When! updating! the! user’s! position! via! the! cell\ID! method,! the! system! will!
record! the! RSS! information,! check! in! the! RSS! table! for! the! GPS! availability! probability! and!
determine!if!it!is!time!to!turn!on!the!GPS.!
In! their! research! work! summarised! in! Improving! Energy! Efficiency! of! Location! Sensing! on!
Smartphones! (Z.! Zhuan! et! al.! 2010)! Z.! Zhuan! and! his! colleagues! give! additional!
recommendations!
•
Evaluate!the!precision!need!of!a!location!request.!Activating!the!GPS!is!determined!
according! to! the! level! of! precision! the! application! or! the! context! requires.! For!
example,! the! precision! level! will! be! different! for! an! application! that! displays! the!
nearest! restaurant! in! the! city! centre! (there! are! lots! of! restaurant! so! we! need! to!
know! exactly! where! the! user! is)! or! in! rural! area! (the! nearest! restaurant! can! be! at!
5km!so!a!good!precision!is!not!required).!If!a!high!precision!is!not!required,!the!GPS!
will!not!be!used.!
!
112!
!
!
•
Make! the! different! applications! cooperate! between! each! other.! The! lack! of!
coordination!causes!a!redundant!location!process!and!thus!a!waste!of!energy.!
The!4!design!principles!related!above!need!to!be!implemented!by!each!mobile!developer.!As!
part! of! our! solution! we! plan! to! integrate! these! principles! in! our! SDK! and! make! them!
available! for! developers! using! our! services.! Researchers! from! (Z.! Zhuan! et! al.! 2010)! have!
applied! these! design! principles! and! have! improved! the! battery! life! up! to! 75%! without!
altering!the!precision!quality.!
Libraries+
A!library!can!be!defined!as!a!set!of!functions!organized!into!classes!that!developers!can!call.!!
These!functions!are!precompiled!and!accumulated!in!an!LIB!file.!They!will!be!used!for!the!
program! only! if! needed.! Contrary! to! a! framework,! this! is! the! code! that! calls! the! functions!
and!not!the!reverse.!!
Libraries!and!programs!that!use!a!set!of!them!are!linked!together!by!a!linker.!This!process!of!
linking!may!be!done!when!an!executable!file!is!created,!or!whenever!the!program!is!used!
at!run!time.!When!the!linking!is!done!during!the!creation!of!an!executable!or!another!object!
file,!it!is!known!as!static!linking.!Whereas!when!the!linking!is!done!while!a!program!is!being!
loaded! or! executed,! it! is! known! as! dynamic! linking.! The! linker! does! the! minimum;! the!
majority!of!the!linking!work!is!performed!during!the!load!time!and!the!execution.!!
33.4.2 Implementation&
We!plan!to!unleash!our!SDK!in!the!coming!weeks.!
The!implementation!consists!of!taking!and!modifying!the!already!existent!SDKs.!Indeed,!an!
SDK! is! made! of! libraries! and! settings! files! that! help! developers! build! their! applications.! As!
part! of! our! custom! SDK,! we! will! implement! smarter! and! less! consuming! basic! location!
functionalities.!A!tracking!function!will!be!designed!considering!the!above!design!principles!
for! battery! life! saving.! This! function! will! complement! the! already! existing!
“requestLocationUpdates”! function,! by! adding! parameters,! methods! and! directly! our! API!
calls.! These! functions! will! take! into! account! the! accelerometer! results,! will! detect! if! other!
applications!are!using!location!and!if!the!user!is!indoors!or!outdoors.!Finally,!new!libraries!
like!the!geo\note!one!will!also!be!integrated.!!
!
113!
!
!
33.5 The&proof&of&concept&
To! demonstrate! how! easy! it! is! to! build! an! application! upon! our! platform,! we! created! an!
Android!application.!!
33.5.1 Design&
Java+
Java! is! a! programming! language! object\oriented! open! source! under! GPL.! It! was! originally!
developed!by!James!Gosling!at!Sun!Microsystems.!According!to!the!oracle!white!paper!on!
Java!(J.!Gosling,!H.!McGilton,!1996),!the!main!characteristics!of!this!programming!language!
are:!
•
Object&oriented:!This!is!the!main!characteristic!of!Java.!This!design!focuses!on!the!
object!to!build!rather!than!on!the!tools!to!build!this!object.!It!eases!the!definition!of!
interfaces!and!is!needed!by!complex,!network\based!programing!systems.!
•
Simple:!Learning!Java!should!be!done!without!an!intensive!training.!Java!is!designed!
closely!to!the!object\oriented!programming!language!C++!in!order!to!ease!the!
learning!phase!and!to!be!seen!as!a!“familiar”!language!by!developers.!With!Java,!
developers!do!not!need!to!be!concerned!with!complicated!tasks!that!exist!in!C++!
such!as!the!allocation!and!freeing!of!memory.!
•
Robust:!One!of!the!aims!of!Java!language!is!to!build!reliable!software.!By!doing!early!
checking!for!errors!and!by!not!allowing!the!use!of!implicit!declarations,!Java!
language!eliminates!important!sources!of!problems.!Java!also!disables!overwriting!
memory!as!well!as!the!use!of!pointers!and!thus!avoids!a!lot!of!security!issues!related!
to!these!methods.!
•
Portable&/Architectural&neutral:!A!software!building!with!Java!needs!to!be!executed!
everywhere!on!the!network.!To!perform!this,!the!code!is!compiled!into!“bytecodes”,!
an!architecture\neutral!format.!These!“bytecodes”!can!run!on!any!platform.!
Architectural!neutral!is!one!part!of!the!portable!characteristic.!Besides,!java!is!
portable!because!the!program!remains!the!same!whatever!the!hardware!and!
software!are.!Java!system!itself!is!also!portable!(Compiler!written!in!Java).!This!
portable!characteristic!is!known!under!the!name!of!“Java!virtual!machine”,!an!
abstract!machine!for!which!java!compilers!can!produce!codes.!
!
114!
!
!
•
Multithreaded:!Java!programming!language!is!able!to!build!applications!with!
multiple!processes.!!Designing!multithreads!applications!is!not!easy!with!the!C++!
language;!however!Java!implements!synchronised!primitives!that!make!it!easy!to!
design.!Java!is!also!designed!to!be!“thread!safe”!and!provides!libraries!to!avoid!
conflict!between!multiple!threads.!
We!use!Java!programming!language!to!build!an!Android!application.!When!building!an!app,!
the!Java!code!will!be!divided!into!different!parts.!Each!module!will!be!represented!by!a!class!
and! each! "screen"! or! "view"! will! be! represented! by! an! activity.! An! activity! can! be! divided!
into!2!things:!the!layout,!what!the!user!can!see!on!the!screen!and!the!action,!what!he!can!
do! on! the! screen.! An! activity! has! different! states! that! are! represented! on! the! following!
diagram!available!on!the!developer.android.com!website.!
!
Figure&31&&Activity&life&cycle&
!
115!
!
!
!
The! onCreate! method! is! where! the! activity! is! initialised.! Usually,! this! is! where! the!
corresponding!layout!is!called.!The!activity!begins!to!be!seen!from!the!onStart!method.!The!
onResume!method!means!that!the!activity!is!in!front!of!all!other!activities!i.e.!in!foreground!
and!that!the!user!is!interacting!with!it.!An!activity!can!easily!go!from!the!onResume!state!to!
the! onPause! state! for! example! if! the! phone! goes! to! sleep,! or! if! a! result! is! delivered.! The!
onStop! method! is! called! when! another! activity! obstructs! the! activity.! There! is! no! possible!
control!on!the!activity.!This!can!happen!when!the!user!launches!a!new!activity.!The!activity!
can!go!onRestart!if!the!user!comes!back!to!it!or!can!be!destroyed!by!the!system!if!it!needs!
memory.!
Sequence+diagrams+
The! following! diagram! will! give! an! example! of! the! planned! interactions! between! the!
application!end\user!and!the!RESTful!API.!Other!Interactions!are!possible!as:!
•
Getting!the!pet’s!history!of!positions.!
•
Receiving!triggers!when!the!pets!leaves!a!specified!geofence.!
•
Etc.!
!
!
Figure&32&&Sequence&diagram&when&the&end&user&wants&to&obtain&the&last&position&of&the&pet&
!
116!
!
!
33.5.2 Implementation&
Our!Android!application!consists!of!showing!the!pet!positions!on!a!map.!We!use!the!Google!
map!API!to!display!the!positions.!
The!objective!of!our!proof!of!concept!is!to!communicate!with!the!API!server!and!to!return!
the! results! to! the! user.! The! application! makes! the! call! to! our! RESTful! API! using! a! HTTP!
request!and!waits!for!the!reply.!!However,!there!is!an!issue!to!consider:!if!the!request!takes!
10! seconds,! the! user! interface! will! be! locked! up! for! this! amount! of! time.! These! particular!
tasks! are! called! long\running! I/O! and! need! to! be! carefully! handled.! The! solution! is! to!
implement!the!Android!AsyncTask!class!that!will!make!the!request.!AsyncTask!comes!with!3!
main!methods:!!
•
onPreExecute! is! called! on! the! user! interface! thread! immediately! after! the! task! is!
executed.!This!step!is!normally!used!to!setup!the!task.!
•
doInBackground!is!the!method!that!is!called!on!the!background!thread!just!after!the!
onPreExecute!method.!It!is!in!this!method!that!the!long!task!will!be!executed.!The!
result!of!this!method!is!returned!and!given!to!the!last!method.!
•
onPostExecute! method! is! called! after! the! background! computation! finishes.! It! gets!
the!results!and!can!compute!them.!
Here!is!a!sample!of!code!to!call!the!RESTfulAPI!:!
class!LongRunningGetIO!extends!AsyncTask!<Void,!Void,!String>!{!
protected!String!getASCIIContentFromEntity(HttpEntity!entity)!throws!IllegalStateException,!IOException!{!
!
!InputStream!in!=!entity.getContent();!
!
!StringBuffer!out!=!new!StringBuffer();!
!
!int!n!=!1;!
!
!while!(n>0)!{!
!
!
byte[]!b!=!new!byte[4096];!
!
!
n!=!!in.read(b);!
!
!
if!(n>0)!out.append(new!String(b,!0,!n));!
!
!}!
!
117!
!
!
!
!return!out.toString();!
!
}!
!
@Override!
!
protected!String!doInBackground(Void...!params)!{!
!
!HttpClient!httpClient!=!new!DefaultHttpClient();!
!
!HttpContext!localContext!=!new!BasicHttpContext();!
HttpGet!httpGet!=!new!HttpGet(!!"http://192.168.1.10/codeIgniter/location/history/UID/1");!
!
!String!text!=!null;!
!
!try!{!
!
!
HttpResponse!response!=!httpClient.execute(httpGet,localContext);!
!
!
HttpEntity!entity!=!response.getEntity();!
!
!
text!=!getASCIIContentFromEntity(entity);!
!
!}!catch!(Exception!e)!{!
!
!
!
!}!
!
!return!text;}!
!
protected!void!onPostExecute(String!results)!{!
!
!if!(results!=null)!{!
!
!
try!{!
!
!
!
!
!
}!catch!(JSONException!e)!{!
!
!
!
!
!
}!
!
!}!
}!
!
!
return!e.getLocalizedMessage();!
sampleJsonParser(results);!
e.printStackTrace();!
118!
!
!
Here! we! ask! to! have! the! results! in! the! Json! format.! We! need! to! parse! them! in! order! to!
extract!their!components!and!display!the!positions!on!a!map.!
As!shown,!building!a!pet!locator!app!is!not!a!complex!process!thanks!to!the!platform.!In!the!
near!future,!with!our!SDK’s!this!process!will!be!even!easier.!
34 Around&LaBS&infrastructure&
34.1 The&cloud&
34.1.1 Why&the&cloud?&
As! a! new! company,! Around! LaBS! faces! multiple! challenges! in! terms! of! infrastructure.!
Because!of!its!open!platform,!we!cannot!be!certain!about!demand,!which!makes!it!difficult!
to! commit! to! hardware! purchase! until! we! have! a! clearer! idea! of! usage! and! performance!
patterns.!!!
Besides,!Around!LaBS!will!need!to!quickly!and!reliably!scale!in!response!to!hard\to\predict!
changes! in! demand! caused! by! new! applications! and! developers! using! our! platform.!
Furthermore,!we!have!very!limited!insight!into!the!scaling!issues!that!these!changes!bring!to!
the!platform;!in!contrast!to!the!relatively!predictable!demand!growth!for!our!own!products.!
For!all!these!reasons,!Around!LaBS!decided!to!embrace!the!cloud!from!day!one!rather!than!
funding! its! own! in\house! solution! to! meet! its! infrastructure! requirements.! This! choice! will!
bring!to!us!many!immediate!benefits:!
•
Flexibility!
•
Scalability!
•
Cost!effectiveness!
34.1.2 Cloud&offering&
Today,!there!are!three!main!services!that!cloud!computing!offers:!
•
Infrastructure! as! a! Service! (IaaS):! IaaS! providers! offer! the! computer! hardware! as! a!
service! (virtual! servers! in! cluster! or! grid,! storage,! network,! system! software,! etc.).! The!
main!IaaS!providers!are!Amazon!and!RackSpace.!
!
119!
!
!
•
Platform! as! a! Service! (PaaS):! PaaS! providers! offer! an! integrated! environment! for!
development,! testing! and! deployment.! Users! of! PaaS! do! not! need! to! consider! the!
operating!systems,!the!hardware!and!networking!maintenance.!Google!app!engines!and!
Microsoft!cloud!azure!are!some!of!the!main!providers!of!PaaS.!
•
Software! as! a! Service! (SaaS):! This! is! the! most! popular! type! of! cloud! offering.! SaaS!
providers!offer!similar!services!to!those!we!encounter!in!installed!softwares.!The!main!
difference! is! that! SaaS! functionalities! are! delivered! through! the! Internet.! SalesForce,!
Gmail!and!Google!Docs!are!popular!SaaS.!
34.2 Amazon&Web&Service&
To!suit!our!first!year!launch!demand!and!scale!back!thereafter,!Around!LaBS!chose!Amazon!
Web! Services! (AWS)! as! the! cloud! service! provider! to! meet! all! of! its! compute! and! storage!
requirements.!!
34.2.1 Why&Amazon?&
Because! we! are! based! in! Ireland,! we! are! subject! to! European! Union(EU)! privacy! laws.! To!
comply!with!these!laws,!we!needed!to!ensure!that!all!of!our!customer!data!is!stored!in!the!
EU.! Amazon! is! one! of! the! few! established! Infrastructure! as! a! Service! (IaaS)! providers! that!
enables! us! to! choose! EU\based! server! locations.! Additionally,! Amazon.com! runs! on! the!
same! AWS! infrastructure! which! gives! instant! credibility! to! the! platform! and! gives! us!
confidence!that!it!will!meet!our!needs!both!now!and!as!we!grow.!
34.2.2 Amazon&EC2&
Amazon!EC2!is!one!of!the!main!components!of!Amazon’s!cloud!services.!It!allows!users!to!
deploy! scalable! application! on! top! of! on\demand! infrastructure.! Amazon! EC2! is! an! IaaS!
cloud!service.!!
Amazon!EC2!resources!are!called!«!instances!».!These!instances!are!virtual!machines!(VM),!
each!one!of!them!providing!a!certain!amount!of!dedicated!compute!capacity.!Amazon!offers!
its! client! the! possibility! to! select! the! operating! system! of! the! virtual! machine,! its! location!
(US,!South!America,!Asia!or!Ireland).!Amazon!EC2!«!instances!are!classified!in!three!groups!:!
Standard,!High!CPU!and!High!Memory.!In!each!category,!there!are!«!instances!»!of!various!
size!CPU,!Memory!and!Input!and!Output!capabilities.!
In!amazon!EC2,!three!types!of!purchases!are!possible:!!
!
120!
!
!
•
On! demand:! ! users! pay! for! compute! capacity! as! per! their! usage.! Users! can! at! any!
moment!increase!or!decrease!their!compute!capacity.!!
•
Reservation:! users! reserve! a! compute! capacity! (“instance”)! by! making! a! one\time!
upfront! payment.! With! a! reserved! “instance”! cost! the! price! per! hour! of! usage! is!
lower.!!Reservation!can!be!made!for!one!or!three!years.!
•
Spot:! this! purchase! type! allows! users! to! “bid! on! unused! Amazon! EC2! capacity! and!
run!those!instances!for!as!long!as!their!bid!exceeds!the!current!Spot!Price.!The!Spot!
Price!changes!periodically!based!on!supply!and!demand,!and!customers!whose!bids!
exceeds! the! Spot! price! gain! access! to! the! available! Spot! Instances”! (Amazon! Web!
Services,!2012).!
34.2.3 Our&strategy&
As! previously! explained,! Around! LaBS! cannot! be! certain! of! the! demand! it! will! generate.!
Therefore,!purchasing!on\demand!instances!seems!to!be!the!most!reasonable!choice.!Once!
we!have!more!insight!into!our!customer’s!usage!and!we!know!how!our!solution!performs!on!
top!of!Amazon’s!infrastructure!we!will!update!our!cloud!strategy.!
Concerning! our! proof! of! concept,! Around! Pets,! it! will! be! deployed! on! a! reserved! instance!
since!we!have!already!predicted!its!growth!and!usage!for!the!next!3!years.!More!details!on!
the!elected!instances!are!available!in!the!Appendix.!!!
!
34.3 Deployment&of&Around&LaBS&platform&
34.3.1 Preparation&during&the&development&process&
To! successfully! deploy! our! application! on! top! of! Amazon! cloud! services! and! ensure! it! is!
running!effectively,!we!can!use!the!AWS!SDK.!However,!in!our!case,!in!order!to!speed!up!the!
implementation!phase!for!which!we!had!very!limited!time,!we!chose!to!ignore!this!SDK!in!
the!first!version!of!our!product.!Nonetheless,!we!plan!to!migrate!our!solution!to!the!AWS!
SDK!during!the!next!revision.!
AWS!SDK!for!PHP!provides!a!library,!code!samples!and!documentation!allowing!to!build!PHP!
applications!that!run!effectively!and!that!are!scalable!on!AWS!cloud!service.!
!
121!
!
!
AWS+Deployment+process+
To!deploy!our!solution!on!Amazon!Web!service!we!will!need!to!follow!these!steps:!
1) Using! the! AWS! Management! Console,! we! need! to! request! an! instance! based! on! a!
specified!Amazon!machine!image!!(operating!system).!In!our!case,!we!will!use!a!Linux!
standard!distribution.!!
2) If!authorized,!an!instance!is!deployed.!!
3) Then! we! need! to! add! a! data! management! system.! Several! solution! are! made!
available!by!amazons.!Amazon!provides!specifically!designed!instances!for!relational!
database!management.!
4) We! will! then! need! to! import! our! database! configuration! and! system! files! to! the!
storage!system.!
5) Once!this!is!completed,!we!will!need!to!set!up!the!different!application!servers!and!
web!server!software.!!
6) Finally!we!launch!a!new!instance!of!our!solution!
We!will!also!set!up!a!testing!environment!to!monitor!our!application!and!learn!more!about!
the!Amazon!infrastructure.!
35 Risk&assessment&
35.1 Security&threats&
REST! web! Service! APIs! typically! suffer! from! the! same! attack! vectors! as! a! ! standard! web!
application.!Some!of!these!attacks!are:!
•
Code!injection!(SQL,!XPATH,!command…)!
•
Cross!site!scripting!(XSS)!
•
cross!site!request!forgery!(CSRF)!
•
DDOS!
•
Request!bursts!
•
Etc.!
These! security! threats! are! nowadays! well! known! by! most! web! service! developers! and! we!
are!already!using!defenses!mechanisms!as!input!validation,!input!sanitization,!whitelisting,!
etc.! To! implement! these! security! mechanisms! in! our! prototype,! we! used! the! security!
!
122!
!
!
libraries!provided!by!the!CodeIgniter!framework.!For!example,!all!inputs!retrieved!from!post!
requests!are!checked!for!XSS.!Similar!methods!are!available!to!protect!from!Code!injection.!!
In!the!other!hand,!REST!web!services!have!some!security!threats!as:!
Broken!authorization!and!identity!misuse:!To!mitigate!this!risk,!the!Open!Web!Application!
Security!Project!(OWASP)!advises!(OWASP,!2012):!!
“Proper!authentication!should!take!place,!and!the!token!for!authorization!should!be!sent!as!
a! cookie.! Furthermore,! no! Personally\Identifiable! Information! (such! as! bank\account!
number,!credit!card!number,!etc.)!should!be!used!as!a!parameter!to!request!an!entity”.!
The!cloud!also!introduces!some!security!threats.!The!main!one!for!services!as!ours!is!
Service! information! and! data! leakage.! Many! different! ways! of! compromising! data! exist:!
deletion,! modification,! non! authorized! accessed,! encoding! alteration! etc.! According! to! the!
Cloud!Security!Alliance!(The!Cloud!Security!Alliance,!2011),!the!risk!of!data!compromise!is!
higher! in! the! cloud! than! in! traditional! physically! owned! infrastructure! due! to! the! specific!
characteristics! of! the! cloud! infrastructure! and! to! the! large! number! of! interaction! that!
happen!within!it.!
To! mitigate! that! risk,! the! Cloud! Security! Alliance! (The! Cloud! Security! Alliance,! 2011)!
recommends!the!following:!
•
“Implement!a!strong!API!access!control”.!
•
“Encrypt!and!protect!integrity!of!data!in!transit”.!
•
“Analyze!data!protection!at!both!design!and!run!time”.!
•
“Implement! strong! key! generation,! storage! and! management,! and! destruction!
practices”.!
•
“Contractually!demand!providers!wipe!persistent!media!before!it!is!released!into!the!
pool”.!
•
“Contractually!specify!provider!backup!and!retention!strategies.”!
!
As! part! of! our! systems! and! solution! development! and! maintenance,! we! will! make! sure! to!
respect!all!these!recommendations!and!conduct!regular!security!assessments.!
!
123!
!
!
35.2 Privacy&policy&
The!privacy!policy!is!available!in!the!appendix!and!on!the!website.!!
35.3 Business&continuity&and&disaster&recovery&
Every!company!is!susceptible!to!interruptions.!The!potential!causes!are!multiple!and!can!be!
external!(environmental!disaster,!power!outage,!communication!failure,!IT!attack,!and!virus)!
or!internal!(human!error,!software!failure,!third\party!failure,!IT!attacks)!to!the!business.!The!
risks! and! damages! of! an! interruption! have! expanded! as! companies! rely! on! information!
technology.! We! think! it! is! an! important! part! to! take! into! account,! especially! because! our!
business!depends!on!IT!infrastructure!and!third\party!(Amazon,!Three!mobile).!Around!LaBS!
must!develop!an!update!business!continuity!plan!(BCP)!and!disaster!recovery!plan!(DRP)!in!
case!interruptions!happen.!Employees’!training!and!testing!phases!must!also!take!place.!The!
BCP!should!give!precise!role!to!every!employee.!Globally,!Around!LaBS!must!ensure!that!the!
user!information!and!valuable!information!are!backed!up!daily!and!needs!to!have!a!strong!
security!defence!against!attacks.!
36 Technology&road&map&and&future&perspectives&
Here!is!the!technology!roadmap!with!all!the!technical!delivery!from!June!2012!to!December!
2014.!
FINAL!VERSION!1.0!
VERSION!1.2:!+!SDKS! VERSION!1.4:!+! VERSION!1.6!:!+!
ANALYTICS!
ADDITIONAL!
BETA!VERSION!
(OPENED!FOR!
FEATURES!
TESTERS)!
VERSION!2.0!
!ALPHA!VERSION!
PROJECT!START!
1&Jun&
1&Sep&
1&Dec&
1&Mar&
1&Jun&
1&Sep&
1&Dec&
!
!
!
!
!
124!
!
!
!
!
!
&
!
!
!
!
!
Financial'Analysis!
&
!
&
125!
!
!
37 Sales&expectation&
This!part!will!describe!our!sales!expectation!in!one!best!case!and!one!worst!case!scenario,!
based!on!the!following!assumptions.!
37.1 Assumptions&
37.1.1 Around&LaBS&
• There! are! 1288! new! mobile! apps! each! day,! that! is! to! say! 470,120/year! (New! York!
Times,!2011).!!
•
Mobile!app!market!will!generate!$15.9!billion!this!year!(VisionMobile!2012).!!
•
Europe!had!a!31%!share!of!the!world!app!demand.!(VisionMobile!2012).!
•
Pyramid! research! (2011)! forecasts! the! LBS! app! market! will! grow! from! $5! billion! in!
2013!to!$8!billion!in!2015.!The!growth!is!around!160!%.!
Based! on! these! figures,! we! estimate! than! 21%! of! mobile! apps! are! LBS! apps.! We! aim! to!
target! Europe! and! we! assume! that! approximately! 20,000! of! LBS! apps! will! be! created! in!
Europe! in! 2013.! We! also! predict! that! it! will! have! 25,000! LBS! apps! created! in! 2014! and!
32,000!in!2015!based!on!the!160!%!growth.!!
We! only! consider! the! customers! that! are! going! to! pay! for! the! small! and! medium!
subscription!plan!(the!other!one!have!either!the!free!plan!or!the!custom!plan!that!we!do!not!
take!into!account!In!our!!finance!statement).!!
Best+case+
We!estimate!our!penetration!rate!at!2%!in!2015.!
Worst+case+
We!estimate!our!penetration!rate!at!1%!in!2015.!
The!following!table!summarises!our!best!and!worst!case!expectations.!
Number&of&developers& 2013&
2014&
2015&
Best&case&
200!
410!
640!
Worst&case&
90!
220!
320!
Average&
140&
315&
521&
As!can!be!seen!from!the!table!above,!the!numbers!of!customers!are!increasing!from!year!to!
year.! Although! we! will! strive! to! retain! as! many! customers! as! possible,! it! is! reasonable! to!
assume!that!we!will!not!have!100%!customer!retention.!
!
126!
!
!
37.1.2 Around&Pets&&
•
There!are!1.3!million!pets!in!Ireland!and!14.5!million!in!UK!(Irish!Times!2011)!(Total!
Pet!Publishing!2011).!
•
According!to!our!survey,!66%!of!pets’!owners!would!be!interested!in!a!pet!tracking!
device.!
•
People! are! spending! more! on! their! pets! (American! Pet! Products! Association,! Inc.!
1998\2012).!
•
2500!dogs!and!3000!cats!are!missing!per!week!in!the!UK!(Ezine!Articles,!2012),!which!
makes!286,000!missing!pets!every!year.!That!represents!2%!of!pets.!!
•
The!UK!official!website!National!Pet!Register!which!contains!a!lost!pet!database,!has!
an!average!800!new!lost!pets!per!month,!i.e.!9,600/year.!The!number!of!people!who!
register!their!pets!as!missing!on!this!website!is!3!%.!
Our!potential!market!is!800,000!customers!in!Ireland!and!9.5!million!in!UK.!We!assume!that!
owners!who!lost!their!pets!are!more!likely!to!purchase!our!pet!finder!app!than!the!others.!
We!would!have!286,000!potential!customers!in!UK!and!26,000!in!Ireland.!
Best+case+
Our! market! research! shows! that! 68%! people! are! willing! to! pay! more! than! 5€/month! to!
locate!their!pets.!Moreover,!the!UK!pets!register!may!not!have!a!lot!of!users!because!it!may!
not! be! an! effective! way! of! locating! the! pets.! We! thus! forecast! to! have! 2.5%! of! the! UK!
market!and!3%!of!the!Irish!market!in!2015.!!
Worst+case+
As! Around! Pets! is! not! our! core! product,! our! penetration! rate! would! not! be! high! and! we!
forecast!to!have!1%!of!the!UK!market!and!1.5%!of!the!Irish!market!in!2015.!
The!following!table!summarises!our!best!and!worst!case!expectations.!
Number&of&App&customers&
Best&case&
Worst&case&
Average&
!
2013&
1590!
845!
1000&
2014&
4810!
1690!
3000&
127!
2015&
7930!
3250!
6000&
!
!
38 Cash&Flow&in&Euros&
Cash!Flow!
2013&
2014&
2015&
Cash&Inflow&
Revenue&Generated&
Interest&Received&
Loans&Received&
Capital&Received&
Total&Net&Cash&Inflow&From&Operations&
&&
118,992!
0!
20,000!
20,000!
158,992&
&&
474,664!
0!
0!
0!
474,664&
&&
882,309!
0!
0!
0!
882,309&&
Cash&Out&Flows]&Payments&
Company&reg&
Website&reg&
Trademark&reg&
Hosting&(Amazon)&
Chip&suppliers&+&Three&
Mobile&phones&
Computers&
Office&utilities&
Rent&
Brand&development&(R&D)&
Salaries&&
PRSI&
Professional&Fees&
Loan&Repayments&
Tax&
Total&Net&Cash&Outflow&From&Operations&
&&
50!
13!
267!
12,067!
59,125!
1,906!
2,543!
1,534!
0!
15,000!
36,000!
3,870!
3,000!
7,048!
0!
142,424&
&&
0!
13!
0!
29,058!
157,040!
0!
0!
1,184!
12,000!
25,000!
78,000!
8,385!
1,000!
7,048!
3,784!
322,513&
&&
0!
13!
0!
36,584!
293,700!
0!
0!
1,184!
12,000!
25,000!
166,000!
17,845!
1,000!
7,048!
12,229!
572,604&
16,568&
16,568&
152,150&
168,719&
309,704&
478,423&
Period&inflow/(outflow)&
Cumulative&Inflow/(outflow)&
+
+
!
!
&
128!
!
!
Profit&and&Loss&Account&in&Euros&
&
2013&
2014&
2015&
Revenue&]&Platform&
small!plan!
medium!plan!
Total&platform&
&Revenue&]&Around&Pets&
Total&Revenue&
&&
11,994!
25,197!
37,191&
81,801&
118,992&
!!
42,578!
80,691!
123,270&
228,123&
474,664&
!!
71,724!
149,985!
221,709&
438,891&
882,309&
Costs]&Platform&
for!our!usage!
for!small!plan!
for!medium!plan!
Total&platform&(Amazon)&
Cost&of&Sales(chips&purchased)&
Cost&with&Three&mobile&
Total&Costs&
&&
(4,184)!
(980)!
(6,903)!
(12,067)&
(40,000)&
(19,125)&
(71,192)&
&&
(4,184)!
(3,408)!
(21,466)!
(29,058)&
(80,000)&
(77,040)&
(186,098)&
&&
(4,184)!
(4,305)!
(28,095)!
(36,584)&
(120,000)&
(173,700)&
(330,284)&
Gross&Profit&for&Platform&
Gross&Profit&Around&Pets&
Total&Gross&Profit&
25,124&
22,676&
47,800&
94,212&
71,083&
16,5295&
185,124&
145,191&
330,315&
Salaries&
PRSI&
Professional&Fees&
Company/Website&registration&
Brand&Development&
Office&equipment&
Rent&&&insurance&
Loan&repayment&&
Total&
36,000!
3,870!
3,000!
330!
15,000!
5,983!
0!
7,048!
71,231&
78,000!
8,385!
1,000!
13!
25,000!
1,184!
12,000!
7,048!
132,630&
142,000!
15,265!
1,000!
13!
25,000!
1,184!
12,000!
7,048!
203,510&
Operating&Profit&before&tax&
Cumulative&profit&before&tax&
(23,431)&
&&
32,664&
9,233&
126,804&
167,909&
Tax!!
Operating&Profit&after&tax&
Cumulative&profit&after&tax&
0!
(23,431)&
&(23,431)&
4,083!
28,581&
5,150&
15,850!
110,954&
139,535&
!
!
!
&
129!
!
!
The&Statement&of&Financial&Position&in&Euros&
Balance&Sheet&
2013&
2014&
2015&
Fixed&Assets&
Office!equipment!
Depreciation!!
Current&Assets&
Stock!(chip)!
Bank!
&&
Total&Assets&
!
5,983!
(1794)!
!!
4,000!
16,568!
!!
24,757&
!
1,184!
(355)!
!!
4,000!
168,719!
!!
173,548&
!
1,184!
(355)!
!!
4,000!
478,423!
!!
483,252&
Current&Liabilities&
Corporation!Tax!
Non]Current&Liabilities&
Loan!
&
Total&
!
0!
!!
20,000!
&
4,757&
!
3,784!
!!
20,000!
&
189,764&
!
12,229!
!!
20,000!
&
491,023&
!!
!
20,000!
(23,431)!
(3,431)&&
!!
!
20,000!
5,150!
25,150&&
!!
!
20,000!
139,535!
159,535&
&&
Capital&&&Reserves&
Share!Capital!
Profit!!Loss!A/C!
&Total&
!
(Mulcahy!2011/2012).!
(Atrill!and!McLaney!2011).!
39 Financial&breakdown&
39.1 Currency&
All!prices!within!the!financial!breakdown!are!in!Euros!(€).!
39.2 Funding&requirement&
Around! LaBS! will! need! an! initial! capital! investment! of! €40,000! at! the! start.! This! capital!
investment! will! allow! Around! LaBS! to! pay! the! first! fees! of! the! business! including! the!
platform! hosting! fees! and! the! chip! costs.! This! investment! will! come! from! the! four! initial!
members!and!a!bank!loan.!The!following!table!shows!how!the!money!will!be!divided.!
&
!
!
130!
!
!
Source&
4&members&
Bank&Loan&
Total&
Amount&
5,000!!x!4!=!20,000!!
20,000!
40,000!
Figure&33:&Around&LaBS&capital&investment&
39.3 Revenue&
Platform+
The!revenue!made!by!our!monthly!subscriptions!will!be!as!follows.&
Plan!
Small&plan&
(19.99€/month)&
Medium&plan&
(99.99€/month)&
Large&plan&(on&
demand)&
Total&
Expected&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&2013& Expected&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&2014& Expected&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&2015&
customers&&&
customers&&&
customers&&&
100!
11,994!
230!
42,578!
356!
71,724!
40!
25,197!
85!
80,691!
165!
/!
/!
/!
/!
/!
/!
&
37,191&
&
123,270&
&
221,709&
Figure&34:&Revenue&generated&by&the&platform&
We!do!not!take!into!account!the!revenue!generated!by!the!large!plan!since!the!prices!will!be!
on!demand!and!based!on!the!cost!of!hosting!the!necessary!infrastructure!by!Amazon.!
Around+Pets+
The!revenue!made!by!our!application!Around!Pets!will!be!based!on:!
•
The!sale!of!the!device!(chip)!:!€49.99!
•
A!monthly!subscription!:!€4.99/month!
In!total,!per!new!customer,!per!year!the!revenue!generated!by!Around!Pets!will!be:!(49.99!+!
4.99x11)!€104.88.!We!only!multiply!by!11!since!the!first!month!is!offered!free.!For!the!old!
customers,!the!revenue!generated!will!only!be!based!on!the!monthly!subscription:!(4.99!x!
12)!€60/year.!
&
Total&of&customers&
Total&(€)&
year&1&
1000!
81,801&
year&2&
3000!
228,123&
Figure&35:&Revenue&generated&by&Around&Pets&
!
149,985!
131!
year&3&
6000!
438,891&
!
!
39.4 Costs&
Amazon+Hosting+
We!will!host!our!platform!via!Amazon!Web!Services.!This!service!is!on!demand!and!can!be!
adjusted!whenever!we!need!to,!at!a!few!minutes’!notice!(e.g.!we!notice!that!the!amount!of!
users! is! increasing! and! that! we! need! more! resource).! To! calculate! the! cost,! we! based! the!
simulation!on:!
â!!!!!!!!!The!usage!of!our!applications!(starting!with!Around!Pets).!
â!!!!!!!!!The!usage!by!developers’!applications.!!
The!first!one!will!cost!us!€348/month,!that!is!to!say!(348.74*12)!€4,183!a!year.!
To!determine!the!cost!of!the!second!one,!we!differentiate!the!costs!according!to!the!plans!
developers!are!going!to!use.!!Based!on!our!assumption!in!terms!of!customers!for!each!plan,!
we!obtain!the!cost!associated!with!each!usage!for!each!year.!All!the!details!are!given!in!the!
appendix.!
The!following!table!summarises!the!costs!per!year!for!each!plan.!
Costs!
Our&application&
Small&plan&
Medium&plan&
Large&plan&(on&demand)&
Total&
2013&
4,184!
980!
6,903!
/!
12,067&
2014&
4,184!
3,408!
21,466!
/!
29,058&
2015&
4,184!
4,305!
28,095!
/!
36,584&
Figure&36:&Hosting&Costs&
!!
Subscription+with+Three+
In!order!to!allow!the!GPS!transmission!of!the!device,!we!need!a!subscription!with!a!mobile!
operator.!!This!GPS!transmission!will!not!carry!a!lot!of!data!and!we!estimate!that!per!month!
a! chip! will! require! less! than! 1! Giga! bytes.! ! Three! is! the! mobile! operator! that! provides! the!
cheapest!price:!€3/month.!The!subscription!will!thus!cost!us!€36/!year!/!new!customer.!
&
2013&
&Number&of&customers&
1000!
Number&of&New&customers& 1000!
!
132!
2014&
3000!
2000!
2015&
6000!
3000!
!
!
Total&Cost&(€)&
19,125&
77,040&
173,700&
Figure&37:&Three&monthly&subscription&costs&
Chip++
We!estimate!the!chip!cost!at!€40!with!the!value!added!tax!(including!VAT).!The!table!of!the!
chip!components!cost!is!detailed!in!the!appendix.!!
&
&Number&of&new&customers&
Total&Cost&(€)&
2013&
1000!
40,000&
2014&
2000!
80,000&
2015&
3000!
120,000&
Figure&38:&Chip&cost&
VAT+
The!Value!Added!taxed!is!included!in!our!costs.!However,!since!we!pay!VAT!to!our!supplier!
and! we! charge! VAT! to! our! customers,! there! is! no! overall! influence! and! the! VAT! does! not!
appear!on!the!financial!statements.!
39.5 Salaries&
The! aim! of! Around! LaBS! is! to! reach! the! Irish! and! UK! market.! We! will! need! two! technical!
support! people! that! will! handle! the! platform! and! answer! any! technical! issues.! Then,! we!
think! that! it! is! important! to! have! a! UK! based! employee! to! develop! a! presence! in! the! UK.!
Thus,!we!will!need!to!hire!an!UK!sales!manager!in!mid\2015.!We!estimate!his!salary!at!40k€!
a!year!
We!decided!not!to!pay!ourselves!during!the!first!4!months.!After!this!period,!each!of!us!will!
receive! €1000! /month! the! first! year! and! the! second! year,! and! €1500/month! the! 3rd! year.!!
The!following!table!summarises!the!different!salaries!until!2015.!
Salaries(€)&
UK&sales&manager&
Technical&support&
Technical&support&
Our&4&salaries&
Total&Cost&&
2013&
0!
0!
0!
36,000!
36,000&
2014&
0!
30,000!
0!
48,000!
78,000&
2015&
20,000!
35,000!
15,000!
72,000!
142,000&
Figure&39:&Salaries&
39.6 PRSI&
The!Employer! Pay\Related!Social!Insurance!rate!is!estimated!at!10.75%!on!all!the!salaries.!
This!table!summarise!the!PRSI!costs!for!each!year.!
!
133!
!
!
PRSI&costs&(€)&
PRSI&
2013&
3,870!
2014&
8,385!
2015&
15,265!
Figure&40:&PRSI&costs&
39.7 Debtor/Creditor&
As! the! monthly! subscriptions! are! paid! up\front! we! do! not! have! debtors! as! such.! Similarly,!
we!pay!our!costs!by!direct!debit!so!we!do!not!have!any!monies!outstanding!unlike!invoicing!
systems.!
39.8 Professional&fees&
Professional!fees!include!a!legal!advisor!and!an!accountant.!We!estimate!the!fees!at!€3,000!
for!both!the!first!year!and!€1,000!for!the!second!and!third!year.!!
39.9 Brand&development&
Brand!development!includes!advertising!fees!(flyers,!online!ads),!travel!and!accommodation!
costs.!We!estimate!the!cost!at!€15,000!for!the!first!year!and!€25,000!for!2014!and!2015.!!
39.10 Chips&stock&
At!the!end!of!each!year,!we!will!have!100!chips!in!stock!which!represents!€4,000.!
39.11 Rent&&&Insurance&
From! 2014! we! will! need! to! rent! office! space! in! Dublin.! ! Based! on! the! market! price,! we!
estimate!the!monthly!rent!at!€1,000!for!approximately!70sq!meter!in!the!city!centre.!These!
costs!include!insurance.!
Thus,!we!will!have!to!pay!(1000!x!12)!€12,000!in!2014!and!2015!for!office!space.!
39.12 Loan&repayment&/&Bank&interest&
As!we!mentioned!previously,!we!plan!to!secure!a!bank!loan!of!€20,000!from!Bank!of!Ireland!
at!an!interest!rate!of!5.74%.!In!this!scheme,!Bank!of!Ireland!offer!qualifying!small!businesses!
tailored!loans!from!€20,000!(Bank!of!Ireland!Group!2012).!!We!will!repay!the!loan!over!36!
months.! We! estimate! that! we! will! need! to! pay! (20000! x! 1! x5.74%! /! 60)! 587€/month! i.e.!
7048€/year.!
39.13 Office&equipment&
Office!equipment!is!detailed!in!the!following!table.!
!
134!
!
!
Office&equipment&prices&(€)&
&
&
Office&supplies&(paper,&ink)&
Furniture&
Internet&Access&
Laptop&
PC&
Printer&/&fax&HP&laser&jet&Pro&
Screens&
Android&Samsung&galaxy&S3&
Android&HTC&one&V&
Window&Nokia&Lumia&900&
iPhone&&4&
Total&phones&
Total&computers&
Total&office&utilities&
TOTAL&
2013&
Quantity!
!
1!
1!
12!
2!
1!
1!
2!
1!
1!
1!
1!
&
&
&
&
2014&
Unit!price!
Total!price! !
!
!
!
500!
500!
0!
0!
57!
684!
980!
1960!
415!
415!
350!
350!
84!
168!
559!
559!
269!
269!
449!
449!
629!
629!
&
1906&
&
2543&
&
1534&
&
5983&
2015&
!
!
500!
!
684!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
1184&
1184&
500!
!
684!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
1184&
1184&
!
40 Funding&and&Grants&&
As! bank! lending! is! not! a! certainty! in! the! current! climate,! we! may! need! to! consider! other!
funding! options.! In! Ireland! there! are! many! alternate! funding! opportunities! for! high!
technology! start\up! companies! such! as! Around! LaBS.! Enterprise! Ireland! supports! new!
innovative! and! developing! start\up! companies! both! in! an! advisory! capacity! and! financially!
(Enterprise! Ireland! n.d.).! Also,! the! Irish! government! have! in! place! a! 25%! tax! credit! for!
research!and!development!expenditure!which!can!be!set!against!the!corporation!tax!liability!
of! the! company! (Leyton! n.d.).! Below! are! other! potential! sources! of! funding! available! for!
Around!LaBS!to!explore.!
40.1 Innovation&Voucher&
This! funding! is! available! to! assist! the! company! to! engage! and! work! with! a! knowledge!
provider!or!a!registered!college!in!the!exploration!of!a!business!opportunity!or!a!technical!
problem.!The!value!of!the!voucher!is!€5,000!(Enterprise!Ireland!n.d.).!
!
135!
!
!
40.2 Priming&Grants&
These!grants!are!available!via!the!County!and!City!Enterprise!Boards!with!the!possibility!of!
gaining! priming! grant! within! the! first! eighteen! months! of! company! set! up.! The! maximum!
grant!that!would!be!paid!would!be!50%!of!the!investment!or!€150,000;!whichever!is!less.!
Grants!over!€80,000!are!an!exception!and!in!other!cases!the!maximum!paid!will!be!50%!of!
the! investment! or! €80,000;! whichever! is! less.! With! the! 50%! limit,! a! maximum! grant! of!
€15,000! for! each! full! time! job! created! will! apply! for! any! employment! support! granted!
(County!&!City!Enterprise!Boards!2011).!
40.3 Business&Expansion&Grants&
These! grants! are! also! available! via! the! County! and! City! Enterprise! Boards.! They! offer! the!
same! in! the! way! of! funding! as! the! priming! grants.! If! a! company! has! already! availed! of! a!
priming! grant! they! cannot! then! avail! of! a! business! expansion! grant! until! eighteen! months!
after! the! approval! or! the! drawdown! date! of! the! priming! grant;! whichever! one! is! the! later!
(County!&!City!Enterprise!Boards!2011).!
40.4 Feasibility&Grants&
The!maximum!payable!for!the!eastern!region!of!Ireland!via!the!County!and!City!Enterprise!
Boards!is!50%!of!the!investment!or!€20,000;!whichever!amount!is!less!(Ibid.).!
40.5 SME&Loan]&Allied&Irish&Bank&
This!type!of!loan!specifically!caters!for!the!requirements!of!business!start\ups!(under!three!
years! old)! and! businesses! in! the! early! stage! of! development.! Loans! of! up! to! €100,000! are!
available!at!a!competitive!interest!rate!of!4.4%!p.a.!variable.!The!loan!can!be!used!for!the!
set!up!or!expansion!of!the!business,!purchasing!assets!or!to!match!funds!required!in!order!
to!secure!a!grant!(Allied!Irish!Banks,!p.l.c.!1995).!
40.6 First&Step&Microfinance&
The! organisation! First\Step! was! founded! in! 1991! by! Norma! Smurfit! as! a! not! for! profit!
organisation!with!the!objective!to!provide!microfinance!loans,!i.e.!loans!of!less!than!€25,000!
to! start\ups! or! to! expanding! small! and! medium! enterprises.! Loans! are! targeted! at!
companies! having! difficulty! securing! finance! from! the! traditional! banking! sources.! The!
revolving!loan!funds!of!First\Step!are!supported!by!Enterprise!Ireland!through!the!EU!Seed!
!
136!
!
!
and!Venture!Capital!Fund,!the!Social!Finance!Foundation!and!by!Private!Sector!sponsorship!
(First\Step!Microfinance!n.d.).!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
137!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
Further'Considerations!
&
!
&
138!
!
!
41 Risk&Analysis&
41.1 Management&
Companies! who! process! sensitive! data! must! have! a! risk! management! policy.! The! CISA!
Review!Manual!2006!defines!risk!management!as!"the!process!of!identifying!vulnerabilities!
and! threats! to! the! information! resources! used! by! an! organization! in! achieving! business!
objectives,! and! deciding! what! countermeasures,! if! any,! to! take! in! reducing! risk! to! an!
acceptable!level,!based!on!the!value!of!the!information!resource!to!the!organization."!Risk!
management!process!consists!of:!
•!
Identifying!the!assets!
•!
Identifying!the!threats!and!vulnerabilities!!!
•!
Calculating!the!impacts!on!the!company!
•!
Planning!the!responses!
•!
Continuous!auditing!of!the!systems!
This!is!especially!true!when!the!business!is!new!and!the!creators!are!young!as!is!our!case.!
Therefore!identifying!the!key!risks!that!we!face!is!an!essential!phase!of!our!project.!It!allows!
us! to! gain! an! advanced! awareness! and! to! strive! to! minimise! them! as! much! as! possible! to!
enable!this!project!to!proceed!successfully.!
The!probability!level!is!estimated!from!0!(unlikely)!to!5!(very!likely),!with!seriousness!ranging!
from!0!(very!little)!to!5!(very!severe).!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
139!
!
!
41.2 Technological&Risks&
Risks&
Consequences&
Probability& Seriousness&
level&
Solution&
Short&
server& Unavailability! of! the!
breakdown& (& less& platform! and! the!
than&1hour)&
applications.! risk! of!
discontent!
and!
rejection! by! the!
developers!
Long& term& server& Loss!of!customers!
breakdown&
1!
2!
Warranty!recovery!
Backup!solutions!
0!
5!
Overloading&
Slow! services! ! and!
risks!of!crashing!
4!
4!
Hacking&
Alteration!
of!
information!
and!
data!users!integrity!
Incompatibility!or!
malfunction!!
2!
4!
Using! the! best! available!
technical! solutions! and!
subscriptions! with! the!
best!guarantees!
Optimising!the!database,!
increasing!
server!
capacity!
Keeping!
security!
elements!up!to!date!!!
3!
2!
Slow& platform& Higher! maintenance!
reactivity&
costs! and! user!
dissatisfaction!
Reliability&&
Users!dissatisfaction!
3!
2!
4!
2!
Complexity&
Rejection!
platform!
the!
1!
2!
Disaster&&
Unavailability! of! the!
service! and! of! the!
applications!
0!
5!
Software&bugs&
of!
&
!
!
140!
Intensive! and! regular!
testing! phase.! Fast!
reaction!for!corrections.!
Optimising!
the!
performance!
of!
computing!servers!
Regular! updates! of! the!
database!
and!
verification! of! their!
reliability!
Constantly! improve! the!
ergonomics! of! the!
platform!
Providing! a! user! guide!
and!
detailed!
documentation,!support!
Contingency!planning!
!
!
!
41.3 Marketing&and&sales&risks&
Risks&
Poor&visibility&
Increased&
Competition&
Low& adoption&
rate&
Poor& perception&
of&the&product&
Low&app&sales&
Consequences&
Probabilit
y&level&
Seriousness&
Low! volume! of!
customers!!
Low!revenue!
Poor! visibility,! loss!
of!customers!
4!
4!
Communication,!
partnerships!
5!
3!
Irregular!usage!
Low!revenue!
Low! volume!
customers!
Low!revenue!
Low!revenue!
4!
3!
2!
4!
3!
3!
Differentiation,!
having! the! best!
product!
Communication,!
partnerships!
Communication,!
providing! a! user!
guide!
On! going! review! of!
new!business!models!
of!
Solution&
!
41.4 Financial&risks&
Risks&
Consequences&
Probabilit
y&level&
Seriousness&
Solution&
Platform!
development! and!
maintenance!
impossible!
Poor& estimation& Financial!difficulties!
of&costs&
Design!delay!
1!
4!
Lower! development!
costs,! spreading! the!
costs!
2!
3!
Insufficient&
remuneration&
from&developers&
2!
2!
3!
3!
Finding!
additional!
funds,!
on\going!
funding! re\appraisal,!
reducing! funding! of!
phases!
Increasing!
subscriptions,!
researching!
other!
possibilities!
to!
generate!cash!flow!
Finding!
additional!
funding,!
reducing!
funding! of! the! launch!
phase!
Insufficient&
investment&fund&
Decrease!
profitability!
!
Starting&
phase& Delayed!profit!
too&lengthy&
!
in!
!
!
141!
!
!
41.5 Legal&and&ethical&risks&
Risks&
Consequences&
Emergence& of& Possibility!
of!
new& laws& on& breaking!the!law!
data&
users&
storage&
Theft&of&data&
Reputational!
damage,! financial!
loss!
Illegal&
Poor!
company!
application&
image!
based& on& our&
platform&
Probabilit
y&level&
Seriousness&
Solution&
1!
2!
Adapting!
platform!!
1!
3!
Increasing!
measures!
2!
1!
Deleting!
application!
the!
security!
the!
!
41.6 Organisational&risks&&
Risks&
Consequences&
Probabilit
y&level&
Seriousness&
Solution&
Reorganising!
the!
team,!
deploying! short\term!
goals!
Reorganising!
the!
team!
Clarity! and! problem!
solving!sessions!
Absenteeism,&
lateness&&
Delays,!conflicts,!
a!weaker!team!
1!
2!
Poor& management&
skills&
Miscommunicatio
n&
and&
poor&
internal&
management&&
Turnover& of& key&
personel&&
Errors!and!reduced!
work!quality!
Poor! atmosphere!
or!
staff!
conflict/tensions!
0!
2!
1!
1!
A! weaker! team,!
loss! of! knowledge!
and!skills!!
Poor&
time& Delays,!
stress,!
management&
shifting! the! entire!
project!
2!
3!
Cross\training!
2!
4!
Deploying! short\term!
and!clear!goals!
!
Focusing!on!each!separate!area!enabled!us!to!see!what!risks!we!could!possibly!encounter!
and! measure! their! importance.! Thus,! the! greatest! risks! are! within! sales! and! marketing!
(visibility,! not! reaching! customers! ...),! technical! risks! are! also! important! to! consider! and!
would!be!more!serious!with!greater!user!numbers.!
!
142!
!
!
42 Privacy&and&Data&Protection&
As! location! based! services! continue! to! grow! and! evolve,! there! is! a! requirement! to! pay!
appropriate! attention! to! the! concerns! that! users! may! have! regarding! privacy! (Wireless!
Telecommunications!Bureau!2012,!p.18).!Users!may!query!their!location!being!known!at!any!
specific! time! and! the! possibility! of! further! private! information! being! deduced! from! this.!
These! issues! are! unfortunately! part! of! the! landscape! of! location! based! services! at! the!
moment.! They! could! be! attributed! to! the! speed! of! appropriate! regulations! lagging!
somewhat! behind! this! new! and! emerging! industry.! It! is! in! everyone’s! interest! that!
adherence!to!privacy!laws!and!data!protection!regulation!is!considered!best!practice.!This!
will!build!confidence!and!further!use!of!this!new!location!technology!into!the!future.!
Around! LaBS! strive! to! gain! a! deeper! knowledge! of! any! potential! concerns! and! technical!
challenges! within! this! aspect! of! the! industry.! We! have! a! privacy! policy! to! stay! abreast! of!
security! and! privacy! issues! in! this! regard.! The! following! describes! options! for! privacy!
protection!within!location!based!services.!!
42.1 Notice&and&Transparency&
It! is! crucially! important! to! provide! transparent! notice! to! customers! in! relation! to! a!
company’s! privacy! practices.! The! entails! informing! customers! regarding! what! will! happen!
with!any!personal!information!collected!and!how!it!will!be!used.!This!information!needs!to!
be!set!out!clearly!and!concisely,!accurately!reflecting!the!privacy!practices!of!the!company!
(Wireless!Telecommunications!Bureau!2012,!p.19).!
42.2 Meaningful&Consumer&Choice&&
It!is!necessary!to!ensure!users!are!afforded!the!opportunity!to!exercise!meaningful!choice!in!
relation!to!the!collection!and!use!of!their!data.!This!entails!the!ability!of!the!user!to!state!
what!the!company!can!or!what!they!cannot!do!with!their!personal!information.!The!choices!
can!be!in!the!form!of!opt\in!where!the!data!cannot!be!used!without!advanced!consent!of!
the!customer!or!opt\out!where!the!default!permits!usage!in!a!particular!way!unless!a!user!
objects!to!that!(Wireless!Telecommunications!Bureau!2012,!p.23).!
42.3 Data&Security&and&Minimisation&
This! aspect! is! fundamental! to! any! company’s! privacy! architecture.! Previously,! security!
measures! expected! of! companies! are! proportional! to! the! sensitivity! of! the! data! and! as!
!
143!
!
!
location!data!can!be!considered!sensitive,!increased!security!measures!are!expected!of!the!
service! providers.! Data! minimisation! relates! to! the! company! only! retaining! data! for! the!
period!required!and!only!if!required!(Wireless!Telecommunications!Bureau!2012,!p.30).!
“The! intimate! nature! of! personal! devices! necessitates! creating! and! maintaining! trust!
between!users!and!their!providers.”!(Basiliere!and!Valdes!2011)!
As!discussed!by!CTIA!The!Wireless!Association!(2010)!in!their!guide!on!the!best!practices!for!
location! based! services,! there! are! two! fundamental! concepts! needed! to! remember;! user!
notification!and!user!consent.!
“First,! LBS! Providers! must! ensure! that! users! receive! meaningful! notice! about! how! location!
information!will!be!used,!disclosed!and!protected!so!that!users!can!make!informed!decisions!
whether! or! not! to! use! the! LBS! and! thus! will! have! control! over! their! location! information.!
Second,! LBS! Providers! must! ensure! that! users! consent! to! the! use! or! disclosure! of! location!
information,!and!LBS!Providers!bear!the!burden!of!demonstrating!such!consent.!Users!must!
have! the! right! to! revoke! consent! or! terminate! the! LBS! at! any! time.”! (CTIA! The! Wireless!
Association!2010)!
42.4 Technical&Solutions&
The!technical!options!for!the!provision!of!location!based!services!are!as!follows:!
42.4.1 Anonymisation&
This! techniques! aims! to! ensure! that! the! location! based! service! will! not! be! able! to! link!
specific!request!to!specific!users!with!the!underlying!principle!that!of!grouping!a!number!of!
requests!from!multiple!users!for!processing!by!the!location!based!service!provider!at!once!
(Shek!2010,!pp.23\24).!
42.4.2 Cryptographic&Techniques&
These!methods!such!as!encryption!and!secure!hashes!are!often!applied!to!hide!information!
with!these!techniques!being!applied!to!conceal!a!user’s!identity.!For!example!the!use!of!a!
secure!hash!instead!of!a!user!i.d!for!a!request!could!be!utilised.!Cryptographic!techniques!
are!suitable!for!both!identity!and!pseudo\name!driven!LBS!applications!(Shek!2010,!p.24).!
!
&
!
144!
!
!
42.4.3 Accuracy&Filtering&
This! technique! can! be! applied! to! any! type! of! location! based! service.! Depending! on! the!
technology! employed,! location! information! has! a! defined! accuracy.! While! a! high! accuracy!
technology! may! be! used,! the! applications! may! not! need! a! high! resolution! and! thereby! a!
client! application! can! reduce! the! accuracy! of! its! location! when! sending! requests! to! the!
location! based! service! providers,! which! reduces! the! accuracy! of! the! user’s! exact! location!
being! identified! by! the! provider.! Accuracy! filtering! can! be! accomplished! by! selecting! the!
appropriate! location! collection! technology! or! by! post\filtering! of! the! location! information!
(Shek!2010,!pp.24\25).!
42.5 Around&LaBS&Privacy&and&Data&Handling&Practices&
Our!privacy!policy!clearly!defines!from!the!outset!what!location!information!will!be!stored.!
Opt\in! and! opt\out! mechanisms! are! available! to! the! users! regarding! the! use,! access! and!
sharing! of! the! data! we! have! stored.! We! also! have! a! comprehensive! data! retention! policy.!
This!privacy!policy!can!be!viewed!online!at!www.AroundLaBS.com!and!in!the!appendix.!
42.5.1 Operating&measures&
Refer!to!the!technical!section!for!details!about!security!measures.!ISO!standards!have!also!
been!applied!throughout!development.!
42.5.2 Privacy&training&and&auditing&
Around!LaBS!will!engage!the!services!and!advice!of!a!legal!professional!for!consultations!as!
required! regarding! privacy! and! data! protection! matters.! This! will! ensure! that! we!
consistently!adhere!to!both!Irish!and!European!privacy!regulations!and!the!data!protection!
laws!in!operation.!!
We!will!also!engage!in!on!going!staff!training!and!auditing!of!our!operations!and!practices.!
In! this! manner! the! business! can! confidently! build! upon! our! professional! reputation! in! the!
provision! of! a! secure! location! platform! for! developers! and! employ! best! practice! in! our!
associated!consultancy!services.!
The!legal!framework!in!operation!in!Ireland!includes:!
•
Sale!of!Goods!and!Supply!of!Services!Act!1893!as!amended!by!the!Sale!of!Goods!Act!
1980\!the!SGSSA!
!
145!
!
!
•
Consumer!Protection!Act!2007!
•
Electronic!Commerce!Act!2000!
•
EC! (Protection! of! Consumers! in! Respect! of! Contracts! made! via! Distance!
Communication)! 2001,! amended! by! EC! (Protection! of! Consumers! in! Respect! of!
Contracts! made! by! means! of! Distance! Selling! (Amendment)! Regulations! 2010! –!
Distance!Selling!Regulaions!
•
European! Communities! (Directive! 2000/31/EC)! Regulations! 2003! –! eCommerce!
Regulations!
•
The!Data!Protection!Acts!1988!and!2003!(detailed!in!the!appendix)!
•
Communications!(Retention!of!Data)!Act!2011!
•
European! Communities! (Electronic! Communications! Networks! and! Services)! Data!
Privacy!and!Electronic!Communications)!Regulations!2011\!the!E\Privacy!Regulations!
•
Company!Law!Disclosure!Regulations!2007!
(Cunnane,!2012).&
&
!
&
146!
!
!
&
&
&
&
&
&
&
Interaction*with*advisors!
!
!
!
147!
!
!
43 Interaction&with&advisors&
The!interaction!with!the!advisors!was!a!really!important!part!in!the!process!and!the!results!
of!this!practicum.!With!their!advice!and!their!questions,!they!helped!us!to!make!progress,!to!
realise!where!the!difficulties!were!and!the!possible!solutions.!We!met!Dr.!Cathal!Gurrin!on!a!
weekly!basis.!For!each!meeting!with!him,!we!designed!3!overheads!to!summarise!the!work!
progress!both!from!the!technical!and!business!aspects.!These!slides!allowed!us!to!synthetize!
the!work,!the!progress!achieved!each!week!and!to!focus!on!what!we!needed!to!do.!Cathal!
helped!us!to!solve!some!technical!issues!and!to!keep!moving!forward!in!a!positive!way.!His!
ideas! and! suggestions! were! really! helpful.! We! also! meet! Dr.! Regina! Connolly! during! the!
summer.! She! asked! us! questions! about! our! business! model! and! value! proposition! and!
helped! us! to! discover! our! weaknesses! and! what! we! needed! to! work! on.! She! also! gave! us!
advice!for!the!upcoming!Team!Presentation.!
In!the!following,!we!will!highlight!the!main!interaction!with!our!advisors!during!the!summer.!
The!slides!and!the!minutes!written!for!every!meeting!are!available!in!the!Appendix.!!
During!our!first!meeting,!late!June,!we!were!focused!on!the!business!requirements!of!the!
Practicum.! Our! unique! selling! points! and! our! value! proposition! was! still! not! well! defined.!!
Regina!advised!us!that!it!would!be!really!important!to!have!a!non\technical!explanation!of!
the! product.! We! also! needed! to! determine! the! programing! languages! and! the! exact!
architecture!of!our!platform.!Important!decisions!were!taken!with!Cathal!about!the!storage!
of!our!platform!and!about!the!prototype!functionalities.!
Early!July,!our!market!research!was!on\going.!We!decided!to!target!application!development!
companies! and! advertising! companies! as! main! customers! without! forgetting! fleet,!
expensive!products,!tourism!and!the!medical!sector.!We!met!our!advisors!to!discuss!it!and!
after! this! meeting! we! decided! to! make! some! calls! to! these! companies.! We! anticipate!
generating!revenue!may!challenge!us.!!
Although!we!had!difficulties!engaging!with!the!developer!and!advertising!companies,!Cathal!
felt!it!was!o.k!if!the!Irish!and!UK!marketplace!has!a!slower!uptake.!He!advised!us!to!focus!on!
a!specific!use!case!!and!research!the!latest!trends!and!the!best!start\ups.!!
Mid\July! we! met! both! Dr.! Regina! Connolly! and! Dr.! Cathal! Gurrin.! Dr.! Connolly! focused! on!
the! business! aspects! and! she! advised! us! to! build! our! business! case.! This! is! extremely!
!
148!
!
!
important.!We!discussed!our!market!research!telephone!calls!with!her.!She!proposed!some!
areas!to!explore!such!as!the!tourism!sector,!Cathal!also!suggested!further!research.!!
The!20th!of!July!we!had!an!interview!with!a!developer!to!gain!some!feedback!regarding!our!
proposition.! Richard,! the! developer! suggested! that! we! provide! a! facility! for! people! to! sell!
their!data!layers!and!that!a!market!exists!for!accurate!validated!data.!!
3! days! later,! we! met! Dr.! Gurrin! and! presented! the! results! of! our! last! interview! with! the!
developer.!Cathal!advised!us!to!have!a!concrete!data!example!for!our!assessors.!!Accurate!
data!could!be!a!feature!with!the!platform!supporting!data!gathering.!Cathal!felt!the!“killer”!
app! was! making! progress.! Deirdre! and! Grainne! expressed! concerns! once! more! about! not!
making!money!but!Cathal!again!reassured!that!this!is!not!a!problem!in!the!1st!1\2!years.!The!
main!thing!is!to!get!users!using!the!solution.!We!will!let!others!build!apps!on!our!platform.!
Cathal! suggested! the! developer! could! sell! their! data! layer;! people! could! bid! for! data! with!
people! buying! data! and! choices! made! who! can! get! the! data.! Cathal! liked! the! idea! of!data!
monetisation! (non\personal! data).! He! said! there! would! be! 2! revenue! streams\! companies!
bidding!to!access!data!and!we!take!a!percentage!cut!+!companies!buying!aggregated!data!
across! populations\! no! limit! to! the! amount! of! times! that! data! can! be! “chopped! up”! or!
aggregated.! Cathal! felt! that! companies! would! be! very! interested! in! this! market! research!
data,!mobile!data.!!
At! our! meeting! of! the! 30th! ! of! July! with! Dr.! Cathal! Gurrin! we! explained! that! we! would! be!
meeting!Professor!Alan!Smeaton!for!a!“soundness”!check!from!the!business!point!of!view.!
Omar! explained! that! we! decided! not! to! build! a! “killer”! app! having! limited! time.! A! basic!
prototype!will!be!built!to!demonstrate!how!the!platform!works.!We!plan!to!offer!data!free!
to! developers! to! attract! them! to! marketing! and! advertising! and! then! charge.! Cathal!
suggested!to!charge!to!handle!the!data!and!build!into!a!freemium!model.!!Cathal!provided!
some!interview!guidance!for!us.!We!need!to!research!revenue!predictions.!Last!day!of!July,!
we!met!Professor!Alan!Smeaton!to!discuss!our!solution.!He!was!not!clear!about!the!idea!and!
concerned!about!the!data!selling!element.!This!highlighted!to!us!the!importance!of!a!non\
technical! description! and! to! clearly! state! that! we! will! handle! only! non\private! data! and!
define!this.!We!need!to!know!the!legalities!of!this!area.!
!
149!
!
!
Near!mid\August!we!met!Dr.!Cathal!Gurrin!for!the!final!meeting.!The!infrastructure!pricing!
strategy! was! confirmed! and! discussed.! The! level! of! detail! for! the! technical! report! was!
discussed! and! we! explained! to! Dr.! Gurrin! that! location! analytics! is! on! hold! after! meeting!
Prof.!Smeaton.!The!current!plan!is!to!develop!a!Pet!Finder!app!as!a!proof!of!concept!and!a!
potential! source! of! revenue! until! we! build! a! solid! user! base! for! our! main! product\! the!
platform.!
44 Reference&List&
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!
45 Appendix&
45.1 Phases&of&the&technical&development&
!
45.2 Further&trends&for&mobile&apps&
45.2.1 Enhanced&Functionalities&&
High\end! devices! have! greater! sensor! and! processing! ability! enabling! sophisticated!
applications!recognise!a!user’s!surroundings!and!specific!objects!of!interest.!More!apps!are!
predicted!to!come!to!the!market!with!enhanced!functionalities!by!2012.!The!users!will!rely!
on!the!camera!and!other!device!sensors!as!a!communication!tool!and!users!will!be!provided!
with! advanced! search! ability! and! an! immense! amount! of! productivity! and! entertainment!
functionality!(Gartner,!Inc.!n.d.).!
45.2.2 Mobile&E]Mail&Service&
Smartphones! have! started! to! drive! the! mainstream! adoption! of! mobile! e\mail! via!
technology! enhancements! that! enable! low! cost! mobile! extensions! to! the! existing! e\mail!
service.!According!to!Gartner,!it!is!expected!that!mobile!e\mail!users!globally!will!increase!
from!354million!in!2009!to!713!million!in!2014!and!this!will!account!for!10.6%!of!the!global!
user! base.! Technology! and! service! providers! should! consider! how! to! make! it! easier! for!
consumers!to!use!their!affiliated!mobile!e\mail!services!as!a!means!of!ensuring!a!long\term!
engagement!with!customers!(Ibid.).!
!
159!
!
!
45.2.3 Mobile&Video&&
Both! mobile! phones! having! larger! screens! and! media! tablets! offer! an! ideal! platform! for!
video! consumption.! With! careful! marketing! and! consumer! education,! Gartner! is! of! the!
opinion! that! content! providers! and! carriers! could! drive! mobile! video! usage! in! the! future.!
Mobile!carriers!should!form!partnerships!with!YouTube!and!other!video!providers!that!are!
popular! for! users! to! replicate! their! Internet! behaviour! via! their! mobile! phones.! Mobile!
device! manufacturers! should! integrate! 3D! and! HD! capabilities! into! high\end! devices! and!
bundle!content!as!either!pre\loaded!or!free!downloads!via!an!app!store!(Ibid.).!
45.2.4 Visual&Search&&&
This! is! usually! related! with! a! product! search! for! price! comparisons! or! checking! product!
information.! For! mobile! search! to! move! to! the! next! level,! the! app! would! let! users! take!
actions! that! are! based! on! the! result! for! example! buying! a! ticket! or! ordering.! Search!
providers! are! advised! by! Gartner! to! build! the! experience! around! mobile! to! let! users! have!
access! to! instant! results! and! take! actions! with! the! short! time! frames! that! users! have.!
Vendors! of! mobile! devices! should! partner! with! or! find! promising! search! providers! for! the!
integration! of! the! technology! at! the! platform! layer! in! order! to! offer! a! differentiated! user!
experience!(Gartner,!Inc.!n.d.).!
45.2.5 Near&Field&Communication&Payment&(NFC)&
Although! NFC! payment! solutions! will! be! present! in! high\end! mobile! phones! from! 2011,!
Gartner!doesn’t!believe!this!technology!will!become!mainstream!before!2015.!To!get!user!
acceptance,! the! payment! solution! providers! need! to! address! the! usability! and! ease! of!
implementation! for! customers! without! compromising! the! security.! User! awareness! also!
needs!to!be!increased!with!the!extension!of!service!coverage!and!addressing!the!usability!to!
appeal!to!the!end!users!(Ibid.).!
45.2.6 Healthcare&apps&
With! the! multitude! of! medical! uses! that! are! enabled! by! mobile! devices! and! the! pervasive!
impact!of!such!technology!on!the!quality!of!human!life,!mobile!phones!could!be!the!most!
important! technological! innovation! for! the! medical! sphere! since! the! X\ray! machine.! As!
increasing! numbers! of! medical! professionals! recognise! the! limitless! potential! of! these!
mobile! devices! there! is! likely! to! be! an! increase! in! app! development! and! adoption! in! the!
healthcare! sector.! For! example! this! could! be! mobile! apps! monitoring! and! assisting! with!
!
160!
!
!
dietary!and!lifestyle!changes!to!more!complex!apps.!In!the!next!few!years,!the!healthcare!
sector! is! expected! to! be! seriously! impacted! and! to! be! transformed! by! mobile! technology!
(appli!n.d.).!
45.2.7 Enterprise&apps&
Although!mobile!apps!have!been!mostly!focused!on!consumers,!there!is!a!rapidly!growing!
and!huge!market!for!enterprise!apps.!These!apps!are!specifically!created!for!business!needs!
and! can! provide! targeted,! mobile! solutions! for! a! range! of! business! processes! that! would!
otherwise!be!expensive!or!time!consuming.!Ranging!from!customised!CRM!systems!to!form!
automation,!data!collection!or!resource!planning!support,!enterprise!apps!are!predicted!to!
undergo!major!and!sustained!growth!throughout!2012!(appli!n.d.).!
46 App&market&research&
46.1 Pet&Locator&Apps&
!
App&Name!
!
App&Price!
!
Rating!
SpotLite&GPS&
Pet&Locator]&
iPhone&app&
Free!
4+!
Tagg&The&Pet&
Tracker]&
iPhone&&&
Android&app&
Free!
4+!
10000\50000!
installs!
for!
Android!
HeLP&Lost&and&
Adoptable&
Pets]&Android&
PocketFinder&
2]&iPhone&&&
Android&app&
Free!
Hound&Dog&
Tracker]&
Android&&
Free!
$5/€3.79!
!
Features!
Developed&
Using&a&
Platform?!
Country&of&
Origin!
GPS! locator!
$99.99!
+!
payment! plans!
–!eg.!$179.88!/!
year!
Yes,!they!
(Securus)!
developed!a!
M2M!
technology!
platform!
!
US!
!
US!
!
US!
!
!
GPS! Tracker!
$99.95! +! a!
monthly!
subscription!
$7.95/month!
4! star,! 100\ Ability!
to!
500!installs!
trigger! e\mail!
alerts!
3.5!stars!
$149.95! GPS!
500! \! 1!000! system!
+!
installs!
for! Monthly!
Android!
service!
$12.95/month!
None!
!
available!
Note\!References!for!the!above!data!are!in!the!Reference!List.!
!
161!
US!
!
!
46.2 Family&Finder&and&Pet&Locator&Mobile&App&Research&
App!Name!
Price!
Company!
Location!!
Functionality!
Installs!
Autism&Track&
Eu31.99!
HandHold!
Adaptive!LLC!
No!
Journaling! tool.!
Tracks!
interventions,!
behaviors!
symptoms,!
medications!taken!!
iOS!
ALZTrack&
Free!
No!
Journaling!Tool!
iOS!
AlzNav&
Free!
HandHold!
Adaptive!LLC!
Fraunhofer!
Portugal!AICOS!
Yes!
50\100!
Android!
PocketFinder&
$149.00!\189!for! Location! Based! Yes.!!
device.! monthly! Technologies!Inc!
Plan!$12.95!
Eu2.39!
Future!
Tap! Yes!
Germany!
Location!
Monitoring! and!
navigation!
Family!
safety.!
Locate!loved!ones.!
Vehicles,!pets!!
Worldwide!
location! finder.!!
search! points! of!
interest.!AR!
Where&to?&
Petlog&
Microchip!
Pet!finder!
implanted! in!
pet!
BiKN&
Free!
App.! In!
Motion! Yes!
Use! tags! on!
$99.99!
for! Software!
luggage,! camera,!
phone! case! plus!
kids,!pets,!keys!
2!tags!
Phone&Locator&
$4.99!month!
Family!
Safety! Yes.!
Cell! Locate!any!phone.!
Production!
phone!
Verizon,! T\mobile,!
Triangulatio
Sprint!and!AT&T.!!
n!
Phone& Locator& $3.99!
Mobiucare!
Yes!
Track! and! control!
Pro&
your!lost!or!stolen!
android!
Life& 360& Family& $4.99!month!
Life360!
Yes!
Keep! Track! of!
Locator&
!
family! members.!
What!
safety!
points!and!threats!
are!nearby!
Sprint&
Family& $5! p! month! to! Safely!
Yes!
Track!
family!
Locator&
locate!5!phones!
members! on! a!
map! using! GPS.!
Arrived!
safely!
notifications!
!
£10.00.! This! is! The!Kennel!Club!
not!an!app!
162!
iOS!
iOS!
–!
Award!
winning!
location!
finder!app!
This! is! not!
an!app!
!
500K!–!1M!
10K\50K!
Android!
1m\5m!
500K!–!1!M!
!
!
Family&Tracker&
&
Eu3.99!
!Fibercode!USA!
Yes!
GPS! tracking! app!
that! allows! you! to!
track!
family!
members!
and!
devices!
10K\50K!
R!Real!Time!
GPS!Trackereal!
Time!GPS!
Tracker!
Free!
+! Greenalp! GPS! No!
additional!
Tracker!
cost!
per!
month!
for!
locations!
2€/month/fri
end!
Live!
sharing!
location! with!
friends!
&!
family!!
100K!
\!
500K!
Android!
Time! GPS!
Tracker!
46.3 Development&Companies&calls&]&feedbacks&
46.3.1 Gràinne&
Mercury&Digital\!6854415!spoke!to!a!developer\!giving!me!his!own!personal!view,!speaking!
as!a!freelance!developer!not!company!view.!The!company!does!provide!LBS!based!on!client!
requirements! largely.! They! are! involved! in! Geocaching! (are! users! in! an! area).! He! sees! the!
future!in!road!mapping!in!Ireland,!stats.!Re.!streets,!towns,!clamping,!busy!streets,!analytics!
of!clamping!in!the!city.!He!gave!the!example!of!the!time!services!on!Dublin!Bus.!
Regarding!feedback!from!customers!re.!their!requirements\!Facebook!integration,!common!
need!for!analytics!where!a!user!engages!with!an!app\!profile!user!base.!I!asked!him!about!
LBS!re.!footfall!analytics!into!a!shop!in!a!shopping!centre\!would!they!see!potential!here?!–!
Not! at! specific! level.! Detecting! fine! information.! –! that’s! what’s! needed! for! example!
detecting! remote! location! (similarities! here\! specifics! regarding! what! the! company! has! in!
mind!he!could!not!divulge).!!
Privacy!concerns\!yes,!customers!have!concerns!whether!data!is!secure!and!that!it!will!not!
be! shared,! no! middle! man.! Privacy! and! security! is! straightforward! to! implement,! no! real!
issues!with!the!cloud,!reassurance!for!the!customer!is!necessary.!!
Length!of!time!to!develop!LBS\!for!a!basic!service!eg.!where!a!user!is!located!at!a!specific!
time\!one!week/half!a!week,!for!more!functionalities\!2\3!weeks.!
The! difficulties! developing! LBS\! obtaining! the! geo\co\ordinates! for! an! area\! data! mining!
takes!significant!time\!use!Google!maps!or!maybe!the!client!would!provide!this!information.!
!
163!
!
!
Regarding!our!idea\!API,!Location!Based!advertising\!LB!advertising!to!include!in!apps.!There!
is!a!huge!interest!for!mobile!apps,!web!apps.!I!mentioned!the!Facebook!scenario!and!Sean!
said! that! this! targets! Facebook! users! only! whereas! our! solution! could! engage! multiple!
clients.!He!was!positive!regarding!our!idea.!
Would!they!consider!using!our!solution?!To!include!the!API!in!their!apps!would!depend!on!
their!clients!and!their!needs.!
Regarding! the! framework\! He! could! not! give! me! this! information.! He! said! there! is! a! buzz!
about!platform!independent!applications!in!the!web!space\!web!applications.!
For!further!contacts\!web!start!up!groups,!start\up!boot!camps,!Dublin!web!summit.!
If!we!wanted!to!engage!further!–!through!a!company!consultation\!send!an!e\mail.!
!
Grafton&Media\!rang!to!speak!to!the!relevant!person\!in!a!Meeting!–!suggestion!is!to!e\mail!
him!at\!to!see!when!he!could!take!a!call\!
Puca\! too! busy! to! engage,! developers! don’t! usually! take! calls! anyway,! send! an! e\mail! and!
they!will!take!a!look!if!they!have!time…!
Fusio\–!spoke!to!a!developer,!involved!in!the!design!and!implementation!of!their!apps.!The!
company! develops! apps! for! private! companies,! they! developed! the! free! app! for!
entertainment.ie\!listing!available!to!show!the!nearest!cinema!showing!a!particular!movie.!
The! company! currently! doesn’t! provide! LBS! solutions,! they! provide! solutions! as! per! client!
needs! and! currently! location! based! advertising! is! not! a! required! service.! In! the! future,!
maybe!they!will!develop!1!or!2.!There!is!a!threat!from!larger!players.!Investment!for!them!
would!be!expensive.!!
Digino\! Relevant! person! not! available.! Suggested! I! send! on! the! questions! and! if! they! are!
available!it!would!be!Monday!before!I!hear!anything.!
Android&app&development&]&no!one!in!office.&
Adworld& ]& Best! person! to! speak! to! is! the! Editor\! next! week,! send! an! e\mail! with! the!
questions!!
!
164!
!
!
First&Advertising&]&Nobody!available!when!I!rang,!send!on!the!questions!and!she!will!try!to!
get!them!answered.&
No&replies&to&the&5&companies&e]mailed&with&questions.&
46.3.2 Deirdre&
Tapadoo,&Dermot&Daly,&App&Developer&Founder&July&4th&&
LBS&solutions:&&
Do!you!currently!provide!Location!based!solutions?!!
We!have!developed!apps!using!outdoor!maps.!!Use!LBS!in!approx!30%!of!apps!developed.!
Difficulties:&
Are!the!LBS!functions!hard!to!develop?!You!can!build!simple!apps!with!software!toolkits,!out!
of!the!box!solution.!!!
What!would!you!say!are!the!main!difficulties!you!face?!!Data!tends!to!be!inaccurate,!address!
data! for! example.! For! one! client! home! addresses! were! embedded! in! the! App! instead! of!
business!address.!!An!API!would!have!simplified!the!correction!process.!
Privacy! issues! with! this! one! case! because! home! address! was! targeted! instead! of! business!
address.!
What!would!you!like!in!a!product!such!as!ours?!What!would!make!your!life!easier?!
A!service!that!provides!an!API!to!change!addresses!if!they’re!incorrect.!!
Asked!about!Analytics:!Analytics!are!available!already.!
Framework:&
Do! you! use! a! specific! development! framework?! No,! just! the! native! ios! and! android! apps.!
They!rewrite!any!they!need!to.!!
!
Element&Software&Galway.&July&4th&Spoke&to&James&Harkin,&Director.&App&Development&.&
LBS&solutions:&&
!
165!
!
!
Do!you!currently!provide!Location!based!solutions?!To!some!extent,!it’s!more!popular!in!the!
States.!
What!does!your!LB!solution!currently!do?!What!are!the!main!functionalities?!Develop!apps!
mainly!for!tourism,!hiking!trails.!
What! are! customers! asking! you! to! do?! What! feedback! regarding! requirements! have! you!
received?!They!have!not!been!asked!to!develop!LB!apps!for!advertising/marketing.!
Difficulties:&
Has!it!taken!long!to!develop!your!LBS!solutions?!(%!of!overall!process)!
Are! the! LBS! functions! hard! to! develop?! The! ios! SDK! is! very! simple! to! use.! Register! a! zone!
and! that’s! it.! ! James! prefers! to! use! ios! because! there’s! less! variation! in! screen! size.! More!
regulated!but!also!more!simplified.!!
What!would!you!say!are!the!main!difficulties!you!face?!Where!an!app!wants!to!wake!up!and!
alert!the!user!it!can!be!complex.!
What!would!you!like!in!a!product!such!as!ours?!What!would!make!your!life!easier?!He!has!
no!need!at!present!but!suggested!that!a!good!use!would!be!in!augmented!reality.!It!requires!
advanced! programming! and! it’s! awkward! to! implement.! GPS! location,! Direction! and! 3D!
maps.! ! Libraries! are! available! but! calling! an! API! would! make! it! easier.! ! AR! use! cases! are!
limited!at!the!moment!but!likely!to!become!mainstream!in!the!future.!
What!additional!functions!do!you!have!to!implement!in!applications.!What!functions!would!
you!like!to!see!in!our!platform?!
Functionality! to! see! local! points! of! interest,! interface! with! private! database! that! sits! on!
server.!
Framework:&Do!you!use!a!specific!development!framework?!Google!App!engine&
Do!you!have!any!further!contacts!we!could!engage!with?!There!are!companies!but!couldn’t!
think!of!the!names.!!
!
166!
!
!
Bloom&Advertising,&Spoke&on&July&4th&&
LBS& solutions:& Do! you! currently! provide! Location! based! solutions?! ‘I! don’t! think! many!
people! know! about! them.! Technical! guys! say! it’s! wonderful! but! I! think! it! will! be! widely!
rejected.!Who!wants!to!receive!more!messaging!everytime!you!walk!past!shops.!Don’t!think!
so.!We!already!get!sms!and!email.!&
Puca! and! Return2sender! are! the! big! names! in! app! development.! They! will! tell! you! it’s!
amazing!but!ask!them!to!justify!it.’!
Digitize–&Digital&Media&Solutions&
Don’t!do!apps,!just!do!advertising!according!to!the!receptionist.!
Return&to&Sender&Mobile&Marketing,&spoke&on&July&4th&
Do!you!currently!provide!Location!based!solutions?!!Yes!
What!does!your!LB!solution!currently!do?!Use!a!hook!in!from!Google!maps!!
The!biggest!challenge!is!tracking!but!she!didn’t!want!to!go!into!any!more!detail.!She!asked!
me!to!forward!a!questionnaire!which!I!did!via!email,!but!I!did!not!get!a!reply.!She!was!to!
pass!it!on!to!the!technical!guys.!!
46.3.3 No&Response&
Cybercom! waiting! for! a! call! back,! iCan! ,! IDF! Marketing,! Smarttouch! Media! ! is! Invent! DCU,!
former!M.!e\Commerce!student.!
46.4 Results&of&the&Pet&Survey&
!
!
167!
!
!
!
!
47 Data&protection&and&Privacy&&
47.1 The&Irish&Data&Protection&Acts&1988&and&2003:&
1. Obtain!and!process!information!fairly!
2. Keep!it!only!for!one!or!more!specified,!explicit!and!lawful!purposes!
3. Use!and!disclose!it!only!in!ways!compatible!with!these!purposes!
4. Keep!it!safe!and!secure!
5. Keep!it!accurate,!complete!and!up\to\date!
6. Ensure!that!it!is!adequate,!relevant!and!not!excessive!
7. Retain!it!for!no!longer!than!is!necessary!for!the!purpose!or!purposes!
!
168!
!
!
8. Give!a!copy!of!his/her!personal!data!to!that!individual,!on!request!
(Cunnane,!2012).&
47.2 PRIVACY&POLICY&for&Around&LaBS&
At! Around! LaBS! we! are! committed! to! ensuring! and! protecting! your! privacy! whenever! you!
are!on!our!website!or!communicate!electronically!with!our!personnel.!!!
Our!Privacy!Policy!is!contained!below!and!provides!a!detailed!explanation!as!to!how!we!may!
use!your!personal!information!provided!to!us!or!any!data!we!collect!through!legal!means.!
Updates!of!our!Privacy!Policy!are!completed!frequently,!thus!you!should!review!this!Policy!
on!an!on\going!basis.!
47.2.1 The&Information&Around&LaBS&collects&
Around! LaBS! only! use! your! information! to! provide! services! and! improve! them! over! time.!
The!following!are!approved!methods!of!collection:!
Registration& Information:!When! you! register! for! our! service,! you! may! choose! to! provide!
certain! personally\identifiable! information! such! as! name,! email! address,! mobile! phone!
number…!
Location&Information:!When!you!use!our!services,!we!will!not!collect!location!information!
without! your! explicit! consent! to! do! so.! At! any! point! you! can! prevent! us! from! collecting!
location!information!if!you!wish.!
User&Communications:!When!you!send!geonotes!to!yourself!or!other!users,!we!may!retain!
those!communications!in!order!to!process!your!inquiries!and!improve!our!services.!
Cookies:!We! only! use! non! personally\identifiable! information! inside! cookies.! We! use!
cookies!to!uniquely!store!user!preferences!and!improve!the!user!experience.!!
47.2.2 Information&Sharing&and&Disclosure&
Around! LaBS! will! never! disclose! your! personally\identifiable! information! or! location!
information! to! other! companies! without! your! express! consent.! Your! location! data! is! only!
available! to! you! unless! you! choose! to! share! it! with! other! users! or! with! services! that! you!
have!expressly!chosen!and!authorized.!!
!
169!
!
!
Information! stored! and! collected! about! you! allows! us! to! improve! our! services! for! you.!!
Therefore,!we!may!disclose!your!information!for!the!following!purposes:!
Service& Providers:!Around! LaBS! may! disclose! aggregate,! anonymous! data! in! reports! to!
interested!third!parties!to!assist!in!providing!services!on!the!Around!LaBS!platform.!
Law:!Around!LaBS!may!release!personally!identifiable!information,!registration!information,!
or! location! information! if! required! to! do! so! by! law! or! in! good\faith! that! such! an! action! is!
necessary!to!comply!with!state!laws.!!
Protection:!Around! LaBS! reserves! the! right! to! disclose! personally! identifiable! information,!
registration!information!or!location!information!in!order!to!take!precautions!against!liability,!
protect!users!from!fraudulent,!abusive!or!unlawful!uses,!to!investigate!and!defend!ourselves!
against!any!third\party!claims!or!allegations,!or!to!protect!the!security!and!integrity!of!the!
Around!LaBS!Services.!
Business& Transfers:!If! Around! LaBS! is! acquired! or! merges! with! another! company,! user!
information! and/or! location! information! would! be! one! of! the! assets! that! is! transferred! or!
acquired!by!a!third!party.!
Non]Private& or& Non]Personal& Information:!Around! LaBS! may! share! or! disclose! your! non\
private,! aggregated,! or! otherwise! non\personal! information! such! as! the! cities! or!
neighborhoods! in! which! location! data! have! been! logged,! but! will! never! disclose! exact!
coordinates!without!your!permission.!
47.2.3 Information&storage&and&security&
Secured! servers! are! used! by! our! company! to! ensure! proper! data! storage.! ! Information! on!
transactions! is! kept! encrypted! for! safety! measures.! We! take! appropriate! and! industry\
standard! security! measures! to! protect! against! unauthorized! access! to! your! data.! These!
include!internal!reviews!of!our!systems,!industry\standard!SSL!encryption,!and!appropriate!
physical!security!measures!to!guard!against!unauthorized!access!to!physical!systems!where!
we!store!data.!
48 Financial&statement&Quarter&
!
!
170!
!
!
!
Cash+flow+2013+
2013&
Q1&
Cash&Inflow&
Revenue!Generated!
Interest!Received!
Loans!Received!
Capital!Received!
Total&Net&Cash&Inflow&From&Operations&
!!
Cash&Out&Flows]&Payments&
Company!reg!
Website!reg!
Trademark!reg!
Hosting!(Amazon)!
Chip!suppliers!+!Three!
Mobile!phones!
Computers!
Office!utilities!
Rent!
Brand!development!
Salaries!!
PRSI!
Professional!Fees!
Loan!Repayments!
Tax!
&&
Total&Net&Cash&Outflow&From&Operations&
!!
&&
Period&inflow/(outflow)&
Cumulative&Inflow/(outflow)&
+
!!
!!
Q3!
!
Q4&
!!
8,895!
24,035!
36,849!
49,212!
0!
0!
0!
0!
20,000!
0!
0!
0!
20,000! !!
!
!!
48,895&
24,035&
36,849&
49,212&
!!
!
!!
TOTAL&
&&
118,992&
0&
20,000&
20,000&
158,992&
&&
50!
13!
267!
1,046!
4,900!
982!
1,939!
1,498!
0!
1,500!
0!
0!
1,000!
1,762!
!0!
0!
0!
0!
50&
0!
0!
0!
13&
0!
0!
0!
267&
2,528!
3,391!
5,102!
12,067&
13,150!
19,075!
22,000!
59,125&
924!
0!
0!
1,906&
604!
0!
0!
2,543&
36! !
!!
1,534&
0!
0!
0!
0&
3,000!
5,000!
5,500!
15,000&
12,000!
12,000!
12,000!
36,000&
1,290!
1,290!
1,290!
3,870&
500!
500!
1,000!
3,000&
1,762!
1,762!
1,762!
7,048&
!0!
0!
0!
0&
!!
!!
!
!!
&&
14,957&
35,794&
43,018&
48,654& 142,424&
!!
!
!!
&&
33,938& (11,758)& (6,169)&
558&
16,568&
&&
22,179&
16,010&
16,568&
16,568&
+
+
+
+
!
Q2&
171!
!
!
+
Cash+flow+2014+
2014&
Q12&
Q23&
Q34&
Q45&
TOTAL&
Cash&Inflow&
Revenue&Generated&
Interest&Received&
Loans&Received&
Capital&Received&
Total&Net&Cash&Inflow&From&Operations&
!!
!!
!!
!!
84,319! 105,602! 129,257! 155,484!
0!
0!
0!
0!
0!
0!
0!
0!
0!
0!
0!
0!
84,319& 105,602& 129,257& 155,484&
&&
474,664&
0&
0&
0&
474,664&
Cash&Out&Flows]&Payments&
Company!reg!
Website!reg!
Trademark!reg!
Hosting!(Amazon)!
Chip!suppliers!+!Three!
Mobile!phones!
Computers!
Office!utilities!
Rent!
Brand!development!
Salaries!!
PRSI!
Professional!Fees!
Loan!Repayments!
Tax!
&&
Total&Net&Cash&Outflow&From&Operations&
!!
0!
13!
0!
5,636!
27,375!
0!
0!
250!
3,000!
5,800!
19,500!
2,096!
0!
1,762!
!!
!!
65,432&
!!
0!
0!
0!
6,681!
34,425!
0!
0!
250!
3,000!
6,000!
19,500!
2,096!
0!
1,762!
!!
!!
73,715&
!!
0!
0!
0!
7,807!
42,640!
0!
0!
300!
3,000!
6,400!
19,500!
2,096!
0!
1,762!
!!
!!
83,505&
!!
0!
0!
0!
8,933!
52,600!
0!
0!
384!
3,000!
6,800!
19,500!
2,096!
1,000!
1,762!
!!
!!
96,075&
&&
0&
13&
0&
29,058&
157,040&
0&
0&
1,184&
12,000&
25,000&
78,000&
8,385&
1,000&
7,048&
3,784&
&&
322,513&
&
Period&inflow/(outflow)&
&
18,887&
&
31,887&
&
45,751&
&
59,409&
&
152,150&
Cumulative&Inflow/(outflow)&
+
35,455&
67,342& 113,094& 172,503&
168,719&
+
!
+
172!
!
!
Cash+flow+2015+
2015&
Q1&
Q2&
Q3&
Q4&
TOTAL&
Cash&Inflow&
Revenue!Generated!
Interest!Received!
Loans!Received!
Capital!Received!
&&
Total&Net&Cash&Inflow&From&Operations&
&&
176,661!
0!
0!
0!
&&
176,661&
&&
202,136!
0!
0!
0!
&&
202,136&
&&
232,009!
0!
0!
0!
&&
232,009&
&&
271,500!
0!
0!
0!
&&
271,500&
&&
882,309&
0&
0&
0&
&&
882,309&
Cash&Out&Flows]&Payments&
Company!reg!
Website!reg!
Trademark!reg!
Hosting!(Amazon)!
Chip!suppliers!+!Three!
Mobile!phones!
Computers!
Office!utilities!
Rent!
Brand!development!
Salaries!!
PRSI!
Professional!Fees!
Loan!Repayments!
Tax!
&&
Total&Net&Cash&Outflow&From&Operations&
&&
0!
13!
0!
7,302!
60,320!
0!
0!
250!
3,000!
5,800!
32,750!
3,520!
0!
1,762!
!!
&&
114,717&
&&
0!
0!
0!
8,216!
69,380!
0!
0!
250!
3,000!
6,000!
32,750!
3,520!
0!
1,762!
!!
&&
124,879&
&&
0!
0!
0!
9,466!
78,000!
0!
0!
300!
3,000!
6,400!
50,250!
5,401!
0!
1,762!
!!
&&
154,580&
&&
0!
0!
0!
11,598!
86,000!
0!
0!
384!
3,000!
6,800!
50,250!
5,401!
1,000!
1,762!
!!
&&
166,197&
&&
0&
13&
0&
36,584&
293,700&
0&
0&
1,184&
12,000&
25,000&
166,000&
17,845&
1,000&
7,048&
12,229&
&&
572,604&
Period&inflow/(outflow)&
Cumulative&Inflow/(outflow)&
+
61,943&
230,663&
77,257&
307,920&
77,429&
385,349&
105,303&
490,653&
309,704&
478,423&
+
!
+
173!
!
!
Profit+and+Loss+Account+2013+
2013&
Q1&
Revenue&]&Platform&
Q2&
Q3&
Q4&
TOTAL&
!!
!!
!!
!!
&&
599!
1,799!
3,598!
5,997!
11,994&
medium!plan!
1,799!
4,499!
6,899!
11,998!
25,197&
Total&platform&
2,399&
6,298&
10,497&
17,995&
37,191&
&Revenue&Around&Pets&
6,496&
17,737&
26,351&
31,216&
81,801&
Total&Revenue&
8,895&
24,035&
36,849&
49,212&
118,992&
!!
!!
!!
!!
&&
for!our!usage!
(1,046)!
(1,046)!
(1,046)!
(1,046)!
(4,184)&
for!small!plan!
0!
(154)!
(309)!
(516)!
(980)&
for!medium!plan!
0!
(1,327)!
(2,035)!
(3,540)!
(6,903)&
Total&platform&
(1,046)&
(2,528)&
(3,391)&
(5,102)&
(12,067)&
Cost&of&Sales(chips&purchased)&
(4,000)!
(10,000)!
(13,000)!
(13,000)!
(40,000)&
(900)!
(3,150)!
(6,075)!
(9,000)!
(19,125)&
(5,946)&
(15,678)&
(22,466)&
(27,102)&
(71,192)&
Gross!Profit!for!Platform!
1,353&
3,770&
7,106&
12,893&
25,124&
Gross&Profit&Around&Pets&
1,596!
4,587!
7,275!
9,216!
22,676&
Total&Gross&Profit&
2,949&
8,357&
14,382&
22,110&
47,800&
Salaries&
0!
12,000!
12,000!
12,000!
36,000&
PRSI&
!!
1,290!
1,290!
1,290!
3,870&
1,000!
500!
500!
1,000!
3,000&
330!
0!
0!
0!
330&
Brand&Development&
1,500!
3,000!
5,000!
5,500!
15,000&
Office&equipment&
4,419!
1,564!
0!
0!
5,983&
Rent&&&insurance&
0!
0!
0!
0!
0&
Loan&repayment&&
1,762!
1,762!
1,762!
1,762!
7,048&
Total&
9,011!
20,116!
20,552!
21,552!
71,231&
(6,061)&
(11,758)&
(6,169)&
558&
(23,431)&
Cumulative&profit&before&tax&
!!
!!
!!
!!
(23,431)&&
Tax&&
!!
!!
!!
!!
0&
Operating&Profit&after&tax&
!!
!!
!!
!!
(23,431)&
Cumulative&profit&after&tax&
!!
!!
!!
!!
&(23,431)&
small!plan!
Costs&]&Platform&
Cost&with&Three&
Total&Costs&
Professional&Fees&
Company/Website&registration&
Operating&Profit&before&tax&
+
+
!
+
174!
!
!
Profit+and+Loss+Account+2014+
2014&
Q1&
Revenue&]&Platform&
Q2&
Q3&
Q4&
TOTAL&
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
7,496!
9,595!
11,694!
13,793!
42,578!
medium!plan!
14,998!
18,298!
21,897!
25,497!
80,691!
Total&platform&
22,494&
27,893&
33,591&
39,290&
123,270&
Revenue&Around&Pets&
39,330&
49,815&
62,073&
76,903&
228,123&
Total&Revenue&
84,319&
10,5602&
129,257&
155,484&
474,664&
!!
!!
!!
!!
&&
for!our!usage!
(1,046)!
(1,046)!
(1,046)!
(1,046)!
(4,184)&
for!small!plan!
(600!
(768)!
(936)!
(1,104)!
(3,408)&
for!medium!plan!
(3,990!
(4,867)!
(5,825)!
(6,783)!
(21,466)&
Total&platform&
(5,636&
(6,681)&
(7,807)&
(8,933)&
(29,058)&
Cost&of&Sales(chips&purchased)&
(15,000!
(18,000)!
(21,400)!
(25,600)!
(80,000)&
Cost&with&Three&
(12,375!
(1,6425)!
(21,240)!
(27,000)!
(77,040)&
(33,011)&
(41,106)&
(50,447)&
(61,533)&
(186,098)&
Gross&Profit&for&Platform&
16,858!
21,211!
25,784!
30,357!
94,212&
Gross&Profit&Around&Pets&
11,955!
15,390!
19,433!
24,303!
71,083&
Total&Gross&Profit&
28,813&
36,602&
45,218&
54,661&
16,5295&
Salaries&
19,500!
19,500!
19,500!
19,500!
78,000&
2,096!
2,096!
2,096!
2,096!
8,385&
0!
0!
0!
1,000!
1,000&
13!
0!
0!
0!
13&
5,800!
6,000!
6,400!
6,800!
25,000&
Office&equipment&
250!
250!
300!
384!
1,184&
Rent&&&insurance&
3,000!
3,000!
3,000!
3,000!
12,000&
Loan&repayment&&
1,762!
1,762!
1,762!
1,762!
7,048&
Total&
32,421&
32,608&
33,058&
34,542&
132,630&
Operating&Profit&before&tax&
(3,607)!
3,993!
12159!
20,118!
32,664&
Cumulative&profit&before&tax&
!!
!!
!!
!!
9,233&
Tax&&
!!
&&
&&
&&
4,083!
Operating&Profit&after&tax&
!!
!!
!!
!!
28,581&
Cumulative&profit&after&tax&
!!
!!
!!
!!
5,150&
small!plan!
Costs&]&Platform&
Total&Costs&
PRSI&
Professional&Fees&
Company/Website&registration&
Brand&Development&
+
+
!
+
175!
!
!
Profit+and+Loss+Account+2015+
2015&
Revenue&]&Platform&
Q1&
Q2&
Q3&
Q4&
TOTAL&
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
small!plan!
15,292!
16,491!
18,590!
21,349!
71,724!
medium!plan!
28,497!
32,996!
38,996!
49,495!
149,985!
Total&platform&
43,789&
49,488&
57,586&
70,844&
221,709&
Revenue&Around&Pets&
89,082&
10,3160&
116,836&
129,812&
438,891&
Total&Revenue&
176661&
202136&
232,009&
271,500&
882,309&
!!
!!
!!
!!
&&
for!our!usage!
(1,046)!
(1,046)!
(1,046)!
(1,046)!
(4,184)&
for!small!plan!
(918)!
(990)!
(1,116)!
(1,281)!
(4,305)&
for!medium!plan!
(5,338)!
(6,180)!
(7,304)!
(9,271)!
(28,095)&
Total&platform&
(7,302)!
(8,216)!
(9,466)!
(11,598)!
(36,584)&
Cost&of&Sales(chips&purchased)&
(27,200)!
(29,600)!
(31,200)!
(32,000)!
(120,000)&
Cost&with&Three&
(33,120)!
(39,780)!
(46,800)!
(54,000)!
(173,700)&
Total&Costs&
(67,622)&
(77,596)&
(87,466)&
(97,598)&
(330,284)&
Gross&Profit&for&Platform&
36,487!
41,271!
48,120!
59,245!
185,124&
Gross&Profit&Around&Pets&
28,762!
33,780!
38,836!
43,812!
145,191&
Total&Gross&Profit&
65,250&
75,051&
86,956&
103,057&
330,315&
Salaries&
26,750!
26,750!
44,250!
44,250!
142,000&
2,875!
2,875!
4,756!
4,756!
15,265&
0!
0!
0!
1,000!
1,000&
13!
0!
0!
0!
13&
5,800!
6,000!
6,400!
6,800!
25,000&
Office&equipment&
250!
250!
300!
384!
1,184&
Rent&&&insurance&
3,000!
3,000!
3,000!
3,000!
12,000&
Loan&repayment&&
1,762!
1,762!
1,762!
1,762!
7,048&
Total&
40,450&
40,637&
60,469&
61,953&
203,510&
Operating&Profit&before&tax&
24,799!
34,413!
26,487!
41,104!
126,804&
Cumulative&profit&before&tax&
!!
!!
!!
!!
167,909&
Tax&&
&&
&&
&&
&&
15,850&
Operating&Profit&after&tax&
!!
!!
!!
!!
110,954&
Cumulative&profit&after&tax&
!!
!!
!!
!!
139,535&
Costs&]&Platform&
PRSI&
Professional&Fees&
Company/Website&registration&
Brand&Development&
!
176!
!
!
49 Financial)Breakdown)
49.1 Amazon)costs)
Instances)
used:))
)
)
Type!
of!
instance!
Small)
Instance)
Medium)
Instance)
Large)
Instance)
Extra) Large)
Instance)
HighY
Memory)
Extra) Large)
Instance)
!
)
!
!
Ref)
)
14/08/201 1)US)
2) dollar)=)
!
!
!
!
!
!
CPU) in) RAM)in)GB) Storage)
GHz)
0,81155656
5)EUR)
!
!
Architectur
e)
)
)
)
)
)
!
!
price/hour)
on)demand)
!
!
Cost)
reserved)
(initial)
price/per)
hour))
$69!!+!
$0,049!
$138!+!
$0,098!
$276!
$0,196!
$552!
$0,392!
$353!
$0,28!
!
!
Req/sec
*)
!
!
EBS)
optimize
d)
!
!
I/O)
Performanc
e)
!!
NO!
!!
!!
NO!
!!
m1.small!
1.70!
1.70!
160.00!
32!or!649bit! $0,085!
m1.mediu
m!
m1.large!
3.75!
3.75!
410.00!
32!or!649bit! $0,170!
6.80!
7.50!
850.00!
649bit!!
$0,340!
m1.xlarge!
13.60!
15.00!
1690.00!
649bit!!
$0,680!
m2.xlarge!
11.05!
17.10!
420.00!
649bit!!
$0,506!
177!
+)
+! !!
500Mbps! Medium!
+! !!
1000!
Mbps!
No!
+! !!
High!
Moderate!
!
!
HighY
Memory)
Double)
Extra) Large)
Instance)
HighY
Memory)
Quadruple)
Extra) Large)
Instance)
Cluster)
Compute)
Quadruple)
Extra) Large)
Instance)
Cluster)
Compute)
Eight) Extra)
Large)
Instance)
High)
I/O)
Quadruple)
Extra) Large)
Instance)
!
m2.2xlarge! 22.10!
34.20!
850.00!
649bit!!
$1,012!
$706!
$0,576!
+! !!
No!
High!
m2.4xlarge! 44.20!
684.00!
1690.00!
649bit!!
$2,024!
$1412!
$1,152!
+! !!
1000!
Mbps!
High!
cc1.4xlarge! 56.95!
23.00!
1690.00!
649bit!!
N/A!
N/A!
!!
No**!
Very!High!
cc2.8xlarge! 149.60!
60.50!
3370.00!
649bit!!
$2,700!
N/A!
!!
!!
!!
hi1.4xlarge! 59.50!
60.50!
2*1024!
SSD!
649bit!!
$3,410!
$2576!
$2,605!
+! !!
!!
100,000!
random!
read! IOPS!
and! 85,000!
random!
write!IOPS!
178!
!
!
)
!
)
!
)
!
)
!
*:Estimated) !
using))
)
!
)
)
)
)
!
For!our!own!needs:!Pet!
locator!+!App2+!App3!+!
free!users!
)
!
)
!
Platform!
number)of)
components! instances)
API)server)
)
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
&)
!
!
!
Users)of)free)price)plan) !!
!
!!
!
!!
!
!!
!
!!
!
!!
!
!
Ref)
!
!
Cost/month)
in)$)
!
!
!
Cost/month!
in!EUR!
61.9109451
6!
28.0879727
1!
119.788454
2!
32.0754206
!
!
)
!
!
)
!
!
)
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
type)of)
instance
s)
1! reserved!!
m1.mediu
m!
m1.small!
Database)
1! on9
demand!
1! reserved!! m1.large!
Web)
1! reserved!! m1.small!
!
!
!
supporte
d)req/s)
!
!
usage)
7000! 100%!of!
month!
3500! 50%!of!
month!
9500! 100%!of!
month!
2000! 100%!of!
179!
76.2866666
7!
34.61!
147.603333
3!
39.5233333
!
!
application)
Geonotes)
and)
additional)
storage)
operations)
))
))
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
Total!
)
)
)
)
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
2! reserved!! 300GB!EBS!
High!I/O!
+!EBS!
optimise
d!
month!
100%!of!
month!
The)Free)Tier)will)be)used)during)the)first)month)to) !!
!!
perform)all)sorts)of)tests)and)benchmarkings)to)
optimise)our)infrastructure)costs))
))
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
As)part)of)AWS’s)Free)Usage)Tier,)new)AWS)customers)can)get)started)with)
Amazon)EC2)for)free.)Upon)signYup,)new)AWS)customers)receive)the)
following)EC2)services)each)month)for)one)year:)
))
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
750)hours)of)EC2)
!!
!!
!!
!!
running)Linux/Unix)
Micro)instance)usage)
750)hours)of)EC2)
!!
!!
!!
!!
!
180!
3!
4!
131.69! 106.873884! !
!!
!
!
!!
429.713333 348.736676
3!
7!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!!
!
!!
!
!!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!
!
running)Microsoft)
Windows)Server)Micro)
instance)usage)
750)hours)of)Elastic)
!!
Load)Balancing)plus)15)
GB)data)processing)
30)GB)of)Amazon)EBS)Standard)
volume)storage)plus)2)million)IOs)
and)1)GB)snapshot)storage)
15)GB)of)bandwidth)out) !!
aggregated)across)all)
AWS)services)
1)GB)of)
!!
!!
Regional)
Data)
Transfer)
)
!
!
)
!
!
)
!
!
For!paying!
!!
&)
customers!
small!price!
plan!
)
!
!
)
!
!
Platform!
number) type)of)
!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!
!
!
!
!
!
Users)of)free)price)plan)
!
!
!
!!
!
!
!
!!
!
!
!
!!
!
!
!
!!
!
!
!
!!
!
!
!
!!
!
!
Ref)
!
!
usage)
!
!
!
!
Cost/month) !
!
!
)
!
!
)
!
!
)
!
!
Duration)
181!
!
!
components! of)
instances)
instance
s)
API)server))
1! on!
m1.medium!
demand!
))
1! on!
m1.large!
demand!
)
1! on!
m2.xlarge!
demand!
Managemen N/A!
reserved! !!
t)and)
monitoring)
)
!
!
!
))
!!
!!
!!
))
!!
!!
!!
in)month)
!
!!
!!
!
!!
Total!
!
!!
))
)
)
Year)
!
!!
!
!
Averge!
cost!per!
custome
r!/month!
2013)
1.72!€!
2014)
1.60!€!
2015)
1.20!€!
in)$)
3! 100%!of!
month!
3! 100%!of!
month!
3! 100%!of!
month!
12! 100%!of!
month!
Cost/month!
in!EUR!
127.94! 103.830546
9!
252.38! 204.820645
9!
373.89! 303.432884
1!
23! 18.665801!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!!
!
!
!!
!
!
!!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!!
!
!
!!
!!
!
!
!
!!
!
!
!
!!
!
!
!
!!
!
!
!
!
!!
211.5525! 171.686820
2!
!!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
182!
!
!
)
)
)
!
!
!!
)
)
)
)
)
For!paying!
customers!
medium!
price!plan!
)
)
Platform!
components!
Year!2!
Year!3!
!
!
!
!!
API)server))
))
)
!
!
!
number!
of!users!
!
!
!
&)
!
!
number)
of)
instance
s)
1!
!
!
!
!
Cost!of!
Average!
infrastructur per!
e!
month!
130!
2496!
208!
200!
2880!
240!
!
!
!
!
!
!
Users)of)free)price)plan)
!
!
!
!
type)of)
Ref)
instances)
on!
demand!
2! on!
demand!
4! on!
demand!
m2.2xlarge!
m2.2xlarge!
m2.2xlarge!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!!
!
!
!
!
!
!!
!
!
!
!
!
!!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
Cost/month)
in)$)
!
!
!
!
!
!
Cost/month!
in!EUR!
!
!
!
!
!
!
744.28! 604.025320 !
2!
1488.57! 1208.05875 !
6!
2977.14! 2416.11751 !
2!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
Duration) usage)
in)month)
3! 100%!of!
month!
3! 100%!of!
month!
3! 100%!of!
month!
183!
!
!
Storage)
2! reserved!
500GB!EBS!
12! 100%!of!
month!
12! 100%!of!
month!
Managemen N/A!
t)and)
monitoring)
))
!!
))
!!
reserved!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
))
)
)
!!
!
!
!!
!
!
!!
!
!!
!
!
Year!2!
!
!
!
!
!
!
Year!3!
)
!
Year)
!
!!
!
!
Averge!
cost!per!
custome
r!/month!
2013) 29.50!€!
2014) 26.60!€!
2015! 18.73)€)
!!
Total!
128.33! 104.147054! !
23!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
1966.65! !
!
!
!
!
!
!
)
!
18.665801! !
!!
!!
1453.8275! 1179.86325
2!
!!
!!
!!
!
!
!
number!of! Cost!of!
Average!per!
users!
infrastructur month!
e!
85!
27132!
2261!
105!
)
!
23599.8!
)
!
184!
!
!
!
!
49.2 Chip)cost)details)
Type!
GSM/GPRS!
Module!
GPS!module!
Manufacturer!
Telit!
!!
Maestro!Wireless!
Solutions!
Microcontroller! Atmel!
Board!+!
connectors!
Reference!
GL865!MODULE!A!
DUAL!10.00.154!
927AA2200AA!
556AATTINY84A
20PU!
Divers!
price! link!
http://www.roundsolutions.com/pdf/!
24.67! PriceAModulesAGSM.pdf!
http://ie.mouser.com/ProductDetail/!
MaestroAWirelessASolutions/!!
10.12! !
for!a!100!piecesfor!a!100!pieces!!!
1.49! !http://ie.mouser.com!
1.54! for!a!100!pieces!
!
Manufacturing! in!Romania!
1.5! Estimate!=!1A2,50!euros!per!piece!
!
!
!
!
)!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
Total!
!
!
!
!
!39.32! !
!
50 Interaction)with)advisors)
50.1
Minutes)from)our)meetings)
26/06/’12)Marketing!Aspects!discussed.!Unique!selling!point!crucial.!What!will!we!do!better!
than! our! competitors?! The! functionality! should! be! based! on! the! need,! wrap! the! “gizmos”!
around! the! need.! The! value! is! the! need.! Analyze! a! best! and! worst! case! scenarioA! risk!
management.! How! will! we! get! uptake! and! keep! it! if! a! cheaper! competitor! enters! the!
marketplace?! Security,! privacy! and! legal! issues! n.b.! Reduce! technical! language! in! the!
presentationA!clarity!n.b.!What!we!require!is!an!extra!dimension!of!value..!
27/06/’12)Omar!explained!to!Cathal!that!the!solution!entails!building!an!API!server!utilizing!
the! PHP! and! HTML! languages,! MVC! model! to! structure! it,! Google! APP! engine,! Mac! OS,!
visualisationsA! maps,! charts! and! analytics.! The! framework! needs! to! cater! for! multiAuser!
logins.!Cathal!advised!to!focus!on!what!Omar!and!Emma!are!comfortable!with.!He!advised!
using! High! charts! and! Google! tables! for! data! storage! which! gives! access! to! Google! Charts!
(more!chart!ranges).!The!solution!will!not!initially!be!in!the!cloud!but!how!to!implement!it!
via! Amazon! on! Mac! OS! will! be! addressed.! Functionalities! will! be! decided! upon! when!
!
185!
!
!
decision! taken! on! market! segmentA! job! oriented! functionalities.! How! data! collected! and!
security!issues!will!be!answered!although!not!implemented.!Indoor!mapping!integration!will!
be!delivered.!
02/07/’12)We!presented!our!progress!slides!to!Cathal!and!had!the!following!discussionA!Our!
market! research! is! ongoing.! Our! target! is! app! development! companies,! advertising!
companies! and! perhaps! communications! companies.! We! will! research! what! difficulties!
these! companies! have! and! what! they! would! like.! We! explained! to! Cathal! that! we! had!
discussed! other! sectors! eg.! Fleet,! expensive! products,! tourism! and! the! medical! sectorA!
critical! operations! –! would! require! internal! and! external! technical! requirements.! Re.! the!
internal!solutionA!Cathal!mentioned!how!to!do!it!re.!internal!requirements!for!no!extra!cost!
is! the! question! here.! We! have! decided! to! focus! on! the! mobile! sector.! Initial! deployment!
strategies!re.!the!cloud!have!been!thought!about.!Our!main!competitorA!GeoloqiA!we!have!
started! looking! at! their! solution! and! what! they! offerA! they! offer! smart! algorithms! and!
battery!processing!power!but!no!special!functionality.!Location!data!and!functionalities!will!
combine!to!generate!revenue!for!us.!We!forsee!generating!revenue!may!challenge!us.!We!
have!decided!on!our!target!as!that!of!application!development!companies.!
09/07/’12) We! presented! our! slides! with! the! results! from! the! market! research! calls! to!
Cathal.! He! read! our! notes! and! felt! that! a! defeatist! attitude! was! shown! in! some! of! the!
feedback!we!received.!He!felt!the!companies!had!no!vision.!Cathal!advised!us!to!develop!a!
specific!usage!case!or!2!and!to!research!the!upcoming!trends,!best!startAups.!He!felt!its!o.k.!
if! Irish! and! UK! markets! are! slower! re.! uptake.! Cathal! made! some! suggestions! to! usA! eg.!
Proximity!marketing.!Personalization!will!be!very!n.b.!–!personalized!location!services.!Omar!
showed!Cathal!the!technical!progress!so!far!and!this!aspect!is!fine.)
13/07/’12)Regina!posed!the!question!as!to!how!do!developers!know!our!product!exists?!We!
need!to!build!our!business!case.!Our!product!is!predicated!on!people!subscribing!which!is!
predicated! on! the! need! and! this! is! predicated! on! awareness! of! this! need.! We! need! to!
monitise!the!data.!We!presented!our!slides,!market!research!results!and!discussed!our!use!
case!along!with!the!listing!of!the!other!potential!applications.!We!need!to!craft!the!business!
case! (revenue! stream)! and! the! value! proposition.! We! pointed! out! that! there! are! many!
potential! business! models! and! that! analytics! for! the! customer! are! important! (from! our!
market! research).! The! advise! given! was! to! target! the! Tourism! sector;! research! tourism! in!
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Sligo!to!validate.!What!are!the!benefits!of!echoes?!Omar!explained!the!idea!of!the!layers!in!
our! platform! eg.! Daily! deals,! restaurants..Cathal! suggested! researching! how! do! face.com!
make! money?! Regina! suggested! that! perhaps! the! environmental! agencies,! EPA! could! be!
potential! clients! (environmental! location! data)?! Regina! asked! about! how! we! will! charge,!
Omar! explained! on! a! use! basis,! perhaps! less! than! 50! euro! per! month! subscription.! Cathal!
suggested!that!another!possibility!is!that!of!giving!free!access!to!our!platform!in!exchange!
for! data.! Cathal! suggested! researching! AdshelA! they! do! not! know! who! looks! at! their! ads,!
footfall!for!an!ad.!Regina!suggested!that!for!other!companies!who!enter!our!market!offering!
cheaper! dealsA! we! then! highlight! the! other! areas! for! application! of! our! platform.! We! also!
got!confirmation!that!during!the!first!year!of!business!a!loss!making!scenario!is!acceptable.!
20/07/’12) Deirdre! emailed! Richard! slides! in! advance! of! meeting.! Omar! outlined! what! we!
plan! to! deliver,! clarified! questions! Richard! had! in! relation! to! data! layers.! Developers! can!
build! their! own! layers.! Richard! suggested! we! provide! facility! for! people! to! sell! their! data!
layers! Crowdsource! data! can! be! inaccurate,! inconsistent.! ! There’s! a! market! for! accurate!
validated!data.!For!example,!location,!address,!contact!information!is!not!always!up!to!date.!
Richard! is! currently! working! on! an! app! for! Discover! Ireland! that! queries! the! Failte! Ireland!
database.!
23/07/’12) Deirdre! updated! Cathal! on! the! discussion! with! Richard,! the! app! developer.!
Deirdre!explained!to!Cathal!about!the!importance!of!accurate!data.!Cathal!advised!to!havea!
concrete!data!example!for!our!assessors.!!Accurate!data!could!be!a!feature!in!the!platform!
with! the! platform! supporting! data! gathering.! For! the! app! developmentA! Omar! gave! an!
example!of!possible!target!usersA!the!surfer!community!in!West!of!Ireland.!Cathal!wondered!
if!we!would!have!enough!people!with!surfers!alone!and!Grainne!explained!that!this!could!be!
extended!to!include!users!who!engage!in!any!kind!of!water!sports.!Cathal!feels!the!“killer”!
app! is! making! progress.! Deirdre! and! Grainne! expressed! concerns! once! more! about! not!
making!money!but!Cathal!again!reassured!that!this!is!not!a!problem!in!the!1st!1A2!years.!The!
main!thing!is!to!get!users!using!the!platform.!We!will!let!others!build!apps!on!our!platform.!
Grainne!updated!Cathal!re.!business!progress!as!per!the!slides.!She!asked!Cathal!if!he!could!
access!the!Gartner!market!research!reportsA!he!will!look!into!this.!The!discussion!extended!
to!the!idea!of!data.!Having!data!is!very!valuable.!A!licence!agreement!for!user!data!would!be!
required.! To! aggregate! and! the! anonymity! of! the! data! would! be! important.! Omar! went!
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through!the!technical!progress!slides!and!explained!that!the!development!is!that!of!a!web!
platformA! an! extension! of! API! and! a! mobile! app.! Although! there! may! not! be! time! to!
implement! analytics,! they! will! be! described.! Cathal! suggested! the! developer! can! sell! their!
data!layer.!He!went!on!to!discuss!if!people!could!bid!for!data!with!people!buying!data!and!
choices!made!who!can!get!the!data.!Catha!l!said!he!liked!the!idea!of!personally!selling!the!
data.!He!said!there!would!be!2!revenue!streamsA!companies!bidding!to!access!data!and!we!
take!a!percentage!cut!+!companies!buying!aggregated!data!across!populationsA!no!limit!to!
the! amount! of! times! that! data! can! be! “chopped! up”! or! aggregated.! Cathal! felt! that!
companies!would!be!very!interested!in!this!market!research!data,!mobile!dataA!for!example!
a! person! gets! offers! for! their! data! eg.! access! location,! log! text! messages! where! a! certain!
company!is!mentioned!in!the!message.!He!suggested!that!the!“killer”!app!could!be!an!app!to!
gather! data! and! upload! to! platform! /! cloud! server.! We! obtained! confirmation! that! 24th!
August!is!o.k!for!the!Team!Interview.)
30/07/’12)Deirdre!started!the!meeting!by!explaining!we!have!arranged!to!meet!A.!Smeaton!
for!a!“soundness”!check!from!the!business!point!of!view.!Omar!explained!we!have!decided!
not!to!build!a!“killer”app!as!we!have!limited!time!and!this!could!be!confusing.!They!will!build!
a!basic!prototype!to!demonstrate!how!the!platform!works.!Omar!explained!to!Cathal!that!
we!are!deciding!on!a!payment!subscription!or!not!and!we!will!market!the!data!and!create!an!
inner!market!for!the!exchange!of!data!layers.!We!will!offer!data!free!to!developers!to!attract!
them!to!marketing!and!advertising.!Then!we!will!charge.!Cathal!posed!some!interview!type!
questions! to! us.! Grainne! asked! Cathal! if! it! is! o.k.! for! our! first! customers! to! be! in! the! US!
market!and!he!confirmed!that!is!o.k.!Deirdre!talked!about!API!management!companies!to!
market! our! product,! we! need! to! research! how! much! this! costs.! Cathal! suggested! the!
company!produce!monthly!reports!of!data!for!customers.!Deirdre!showed!Cathal!some!data!
re.!data!pricing!data.!Omar!felt!that!reselling!data!would!generate!more!revenue.!Grainne!
asked!Cathal!about!data!certification/validationA!not!part!of!our!remit.!Cathal!suggested!to!
charge! to! handle! data! and! build! into! a! freemium! model.! How! revenue! predictions! are!
arrived!at!we!have!to!research.!Grainne!said!that!she!would!be!able!to!consult!with!Patrick!
Mulcahy!re.!same!if!required.!Deirdre!confirmed!that!our!primary!research!is!adequate!for!
our!business.!We!confirmed!to!Cathal!that!we!will!use!Amazon!cloud!service.!Privacy!issues!
were! discussedA! data! needs! to! be! anonymous! but! not! fully! so.! Omar! asked! Cathal! about!
storage!of!photosA!Cathal!suggested!a!file!system!developed!by!one!of!his!researchersA!only!
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the! web! interface! sees! the! images,! not! the! administrator.! Deirdre! confirmed! that! in! our!
Report! what! we! need! to! highlight! is! that! location! is! the! most! important! context! now! and!
going!forward.!
31/07/’12)Omar!updated!A.!Smeaton!re.!our!solution,!A.!Smeaton!was!not!clear!about!the!
idea! and! concerned! about! the! data! selling! element.! The! meeting! highlighted! to! us! the!
importance!of!a!nonAtechnical!description!and!to!clearly!state!that!we!will!handle!only!nonA
private!data!and!define!this.!We!need!to!know!the!legalities!of!this!area.)
10/08/’12)Omar!discussed!infrastructure!pricing!strategy!with!Cathal.!Cathal!agreed!that!a!
price!plan!based!on!number!of!users!is!reasonable.!Tiered!subscription!plan!starting!at!Free!
(<!5!users)!1st!paid!plan!targets!independent!developers!with!small!number!of!users,!next!is!
for! SME’s.! The! highest! plan! targets! enterprise! use,! pricing! negotiated! based! on! volume! of!
usage.!Cathal!confirmed!you!pay!for!“Data!Out’.!Expect!we’ll!need!100GB!per!month!with!
Amazon,!based!on!4!users!at!a!time.!Scale!up!based!on!demand.!Discussed!level!of!detail!for!
technical!report.!Updated!Cathal!on!recent!meeting!with!Prof.!Alan!Smeaton.!Advised!us!to!
rethink! Data! monetization! strategy! due! to! privacy! and! data! ownership! issues.! Based! on!
advice,!location!analytics!on!the!back!burner.!The!current!plan!is!to!develop!a!Pet!Finder!app!
as!proof!of!concept!and!also!as!a!potential!source!of!revenue!until!we!build!a!solid!user!base!
for!our!platform.!Pet!finder!is!not!intended!to!distract!from!our!core!product,!which!is!the!
platform.!Discussed!poster!content!and!presentation!format!–!10A15!slides.!Demo!one!small!
aspect!of!LBS!but!there!are!many!more!uses.!
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