First there's the O2 Incubator, with the deadline imminent (14th Feb). Some great teams have pitched in some really interesting proposals. Next stage is to get down to a shortlist and start moving with some funding. The support and interest from various start-ups and tech enthusiasts has been encouraging, especially given the usual frostiness shown by developers towards operators. I have a shoe in both camps, which is new - and often uncomfortable - territory for me. However, it also provides some unique opportunities. My mission is nothing short of trying to change mindsets and enable some outstanding ideas to flourish.
Then there's the #Blue project, which is one of the most exciting projects I've set up in my 20 years in mobile. Why? Simply because it's a rare chance to combine the power and unique assets of an operator - O2 - with the brilliance of a really cool web start-up, both of whom I respect.
I've spent way too many years, especially whilst Motorola's Chief Apps Architect, knocking on operator doors to preach the benefits of "the Web 2.0 way" as an alternative to death by "Telco roadmap." The same old refrain every time - "what's the biz case?" I'm sure Clayton Christensen should write a book about this! (Or I should? - More on my book about innovation later in Q1.)
My hat goes off to O2 for taking a broader vision towards innovation, thanks to the bravery and ambition of some of its broader minded leadership team. Sure, they want a biz case, but they're willing to take a few risks to get there.
Watch this space for some early announcements about the project and a chance to watch it unfold, especially if you're one of the lucky 1000 beta users who'll get selected to join the fun. Stories already building nicely in Pivotal Tracker - velocity = take-off!
Other areas that I'm working in are OpenID, which has some really interesting prospects for connected services. One of my long-standing fellow mobilists in the industry, Ed Moore, has some interesting ideas in this space. He's a dude!
And this is just the start of 2010. Some even better projects being planned, combining talents and resources from the best of mobile and web, UK and US.
Meanwhile, things are starting to move nicely with mConnected, the emerging mobile social network network, with its recent release of the mpul.se platform that enables threaded conversations to evolve around Twitter, Facebook and anything else visible on the mobile web. Watch out for the PR at MWC...
...which is where I hope to see some of you. Ping me @pgoldiing for a meet-up. (Will be at the AR summit on Weds and presenting on Monday at 4pm.)
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