Tethras Launches in America to Take Mobile Apps Global with Content Translation Platform

Tethras Launches in America to Take Mobile Apps Global with Content Translation Platform

Mountain View, CA (PRWEB) September 16, 2011

Today Tethras, a leading mobile app localization platform, announces the launch of its offering in the U.S. and the opening of an office in Mountain View, Calif. App developers looking to sign up for Tethras' localization service can visit www.tethras.com.

The Irish company provides a simple and affordable platform directly connecting developers to a multi-region community of seasoned language translators. By developing a suite of cloud-based tools and API's, Tethras eliminates the need for project managers and excessive developer preparatory work. This enables developers to spend more time creating new apps, and less time maintaining and updating them for multiple markets.

The online service provides mobile app developers with a powerful way to translate apps into over forty languages. By using Tethras, mobile developers gain access to global markets and new streams of revenue without ever having to leave their desks, give up their source code, or download a single piece of software.

According to Gartner, global mobile app market revenue is predicted to exceed $58 billion USD by 2014. As smartphones gain popularity worldwide, the majority of app downloads is already occurring outside of a developer's local market. According to data made public by Apple, an average of 8 out of the top 10 grossing apps in China, South Korea and France are localized. Therefore, the need for seamless app translation is critical to maximizing revenue and reach.

"Previously, app translation was a fragmented and frustrating undertaking that often resulted in a lengthy go-to-market timeline. Tethras aims to simplify app localization with high quality translation by real human translators and an easily scalable experience," said Tethras co-founder Brendan Clavin, the first internationalization uber tech lead at Google.

As the world's first Localization as a Service (LaaS) platform, Tethras enables translators and developers to preview what a translation will look like within the app itself. This results in a more accurate translation of the app interface. And because Tethras is a cloud-based service, updating and managing translations is a pain-free process, seamlessly integrating with the app development workflow. As a result, developers and translators can work together more freely and efficiently.

Jesta Digital provided $15m for tech incubator company

Jesta Digital provided $15m for tech incubator company

New York City September 15, 2011: Jesta Digital, a leading global provider of next generation entertainment content and services for the digital consumer, has committed $15 million to launch and invest in Jesta Labs, an independent business unit dedicated to the entrepreneurial development and growth of new direct-to-consumer products for the web, mobile and social spaces. Jesta Labs will introduce several new digital and mobile products to the consumer market this year and plans to open funding to other entrepreneurs worldwide next year.

Jesta Labs will focus its creative efforts and technical know-how on identifying

capital efficient digital business models that will benefit from the company’s experienced full-time staff of developers, product managers, and marketing professionals. Leading Jesta Labs is newly appointed managing director Joe Bilman who has a long history of successfully recognizing and building new products and services where the potential for scale and revenue is clear. Bilman is the chief architect of the groundbreaking mobile video subscription service Bitbop that launched in August 2010 in the U.S. and in Germany in September 2011 where it was the first mobile video on-demand service for web, tablet and mobile devices. Since launching his first start-up more than 10 years ago, Bilman has developed more than 20 popular consumer brands and created value for stakeholders at 7 companies. While leading Jesta Labs, Bilman will continue in his role as Chief Product Officer for Jesta Digital.

Said Bilman, “There has never been a more exciting time than now for a digital innovation incubator like Jesta Labs. With the rapidly growing array of smart phones, tablets and other mobile devices in the market, the demand for next generation products, content and services that allow consumers to create their own engaging experience with these devices increases exponentially. Our highly experienced team is passionate about finding and growing new businesses that will transform the way people interact with mobile, web and social spaces.”

Jason Aintabi, CEO of Jesta Digital, said, “Since the acquisition of Fox Mobile Group and its subsequent renaming to Jesta Digital, it was apparent that not only did we gain a number of successful and valuable consumer brands but also an unparalleled amount of intellectual capital, global infrastructure and know how. Joe Bilman recognizes the importance of innovation and has the ability to execute on it. Under his stewardship and with the collaboration of our growing team, I am confident that Joe will bring great value to our planned new ventures."

In early fall, Jesta Labs will debut Gush, a cloud-based photo organization and sharing service, as a public beta. Gush will automatically grab every digital picture stored across laptops, desktops and mobile devices and store them in the cloud where they can be sorted and shared to all popular social sites.

The company has two direct-to-consumer products ready to roll out this year as well as a small number of other products in various stages of development.

Roam Data Partners with U.S. Cellular for Enhanced mCommerce Payment Solution

Roam Data Partners with U.S. Cellular for Enhanced mCommerce Payment Solution

BOSTON--ROAM Data, the leading mCommerce platform provider that extends both physical POS and eCommerce to the mobile environment, today announced an agreement with U.S. Cellular (NYSE: USM) to bring the enhanced mCommerce features of its recently announced ROAMpay X to US Cellular’s 6 million customers.

The app boasts new features, such as enhanced graphics, signature capture, and tip and tax calculations for Android-powered smartphone users.

"Our partnership with ROAM Data represents another opportunity to delight our customers by delivering a helpful tool that enables users to conduct efficient business transactions from their smartphones,” said Joe Settimi, Senior Director of Data Strategy and Services for U.S. Cellular. “Additionally, ROAMpay X will operate on our high-speed nationwide network so users can access information quickly and enjoy everything their cell phone has to offer.”

Currently, ROAM Data has certified the business-friendly BlackBerry Curve 2 8530, and the HTC Merge, which runs on the Android platform. Other devices are under review.

“ROAMpay X makes it easier for merchants to accept credit cards securely on their mobile phones, and the more convenient one can make the experience, the more revenue merchants will generate,” said Will Graylin, CEO of ROAM Data. “We see this as the beginning of an exciting relationship that will drive additional value to mobile merchants using U.S. Cellular devices. The combination of U.S. Cellular’s dedication to businesses and ROAM Data’s secure commerce application will undoubtedly be a win-win partnership.”

Kony Appoints Robert Turner as Vice President of Operations and Legal Services

Kony Appoints Robert Turner as Vice President of Operations and Legal Services

ORLANDO - Kony Solutions, Inc., the leading mobile platform provider, announced Robert Turner has joined as vice president of operations and legal services. Turner is an experienced software operations executive who brings to Kony expertise in strategic contract negotiations, optimizing early-stage company values and streamlining enterprise business operations. He will direct contract operations and legal services, including developing and implementing Kony’s standard contract policies to optimize account performance and client satisfaction.

Prior to joining Kony, Turner has held senior negotiations, operations management and finance positions for large technology companies including IBM Corporation and SAS Institute. In addition, he led business operations and contract negotiations for several early-stage and growth companies including Legent Corporation and Candle Corporation. Turner has a J.D. from Ohio Northern University and a bachelor’s in business administration from Ohio University.

“We are in a period of rapid growth and with Bob’s expertise in both operations and legal services, coupled with his successful track record of streamlining business processes makes him great addition to our expanding executive team,” said Raj Koneru, Kony CEO.

"I’m delighted to join the Kony management team at a time when the company is emerging as a visionary in the mobile applications industry,” said Robert Turner. "I look forward to contributing to the company’s ongoing success and rapid expansion globally.”

40 Percent of Fortune 500 Companies Claim Their Biggest Mobile Challenge Is Developing Across Multiple Operating Systems and Devices | Kony

40 Percent of Fortune 500 Companies Claim Their Biggest Mobile Challenge Is Developing Across Multiple Operating Systems and Devices

ORLANDO – Today’s fragmented mobile landscape is directly affecting many organizations’ mobile plans, with 40 percent of Fortune 500 companies stating that developing applications across multiple operating systems and devices is the biggest challenge to their mobile strategy. Other top challenges ranked by corporations include keeping up with changes in the mobile market (27 percent) and supporting connectivity and technology challenges/updates (20 percent).

These findings come from the second annual Mobile Marketing and Commerce Study commissioned by Kony, the leading mobile platform provider. The study surveyed Fortune 500 corporations to uncover valuable information relating to their mobile computing challenges and strategic initiatives.

Highlighting the confusion over the muddled mobile space, the iPhone retained its position as the highest-prioritized operating system for companies to support for the second year in a row. This is despite Nielsen’s recent report stating Android holds the largest market share among mobile operating systems. Android comes in as the second-highest priority for the second year in a row, with BlackBerry falling to third place on the list (it had previously tied with Android in Kony’s 2010 survey).

“As companies increasingly look to mobile to help them achieve strategic business goals, they are faced with very real challenges due to the fragmentation of the mobile industry,” said Raj Koneru, founder and CEO of Kony. “With the rate at which the mobile landscape is evolving, it’s vital for these companies to choose a partner with capabilities across a multitude of devices and channels, including tablets, to ensure their offering reaches their full customer base.”

In a report from March 2011, Gartner predicted that nearly 70 million tablets would be sold worldwide in 2011. When considering how rapidly the tablet market is growing, along with the vast potential that the iPad and other tablets offer businesses, it’s surprising that the survey reveals only 25 percent of respondents have plans to deploy a tablet offering in the near future. On top of that, only 2 percent of respondents believe developing an offering for the iPad is a priority.

The lack of urgency these companies are taking toward developing tablet offerings is not due to lack of resources. In fact, the survey revealed that many companies are now finding it easier to procure necessary funding to develop and deploy their mobile offerings. 89 percent of respondents expressed they can obtain funding with reasonable or little effort; up from 73 percent in Kony’s 2010 survey. Along with this, only 11 percent of companies find it difficult to fund their mobile initiatives, a figure that is down from 27 percent a year ago.

“The internal debate at many organizations is no longer about whether or not they need a mobile offering, but about the most effective way to develop and deploy one across all devices and operating systems,” Koneru added. “We address this problem head on, having built our platform from the ground up to develop, deploy and maintain offerings across numerous devices, operating systems and channels.”

Syniverse Offers Wireless Caller ID

September 13, 2011

Syniverse Offers Wireless Caller ID and Privacy Management Applications to Operators in North America

Solution provides unrivaled privacy management and call blocking services previously only available on landlines.

TAMPA, Fla. – Sept. 13, 2011 – In the United States, the ability to view caller ID information to screen and block calls is no longer restricted solely to landlines. U.S. mobile operators can now enable their subscribers to manage unwanted calls and SMS text messages with Syniverse's Wireless Caller ID and Privacy Management Applications.

This solution suite allows end users to effectively manage their privacy preferences through a robust set of unique and growing features, many of which are unrivaled by any similar offer in the market, including: call blocking, SMS blocking (Android OS devices only), call look up, do not disturb, directory assistance, group blocking, web portal access and transfer of user licenses. Leveraging its longstanding reputation as the mobile industry’s trusted connector of disparate technologies, Syniverse has coupled PrivacyStar’s applications and TargusInfo’s caller name database to provide these privacy management services to operators in the United States.

The demand for advanced privacy management controls on mobile devices is a reflection of an increasingly mobile society. According to CTIA, 26.6 percent of U.S. households are classified as wireless-only households. As consumers move away from landlines, many still expect traditional privacy-management services to be incorporated into their mobile lifestyle.

“Ultimately, it is all about convenience. Mobile subscribers do not want to sacrifice privacy management services that make life easier,” said Jeff Gordon, CEO of Syniverse. “Syniverse is committed to helping operators deliver these capabilities to optimize the mobile subscriber experience.”

By implementing Syniverse’s Wireless Caller ID and Privacy Management Applications, operators give their subscribers the convenience of not only identifying who is calling but also blocking unwanted calls and text messages to ensure privacy.

This dynamic solutions suite is offered via the Syniverse Applications Service Provider Exchange (ASPX), which connects mobile application service providers with multiple operators through a single relationship with Syniverse.

“We always develop the mobile solutions we offer to operators with their subscribers in mind, and the privacy management suite is a perfect example,” Gordon said. “Our primary goal is to help operators create value by providing a rich mobile experience for their customers.”