We’ve been promised for a while now that our phones will become our personal assistants. Executives from Cambridge, Mass.-based Vlingo sat down with me this week to talk about how they’ve delivered on that promise — and started turning it into real revenue.
It seems like all the big guys are trying to get into this business. The incentive, as a Googler put it when the company launched a similar service last year, is that voice is much more natural than typing as a way to interact with your phone. Apple, meanwhile, showed its interest by acquiring a startup called Siri. And Microsoft included voice commands on Windows Phone 7.
The difference, according to Vlingo’s vice president of business Hadley Harris, is that the startup has built all its basic technology, including speech recognition (something that Siri outsourced) and the “intent engine” that allows the app to translate your words into actions that it understands. Vlingo is working with other companies to integrate a wide range of apps into the system, so that you can use your voice to buy a plane ticket off travel site Kayak or check your updates on Facebook.
Vlingo has been downloaded 7 million times, Harris said. BlackBerry users represent most of those downloads, since that’s the phone that Vlingo focused on first, but iPhone and especially Android are catching up. The company’s strategy is to release new features on Android first, then port them to other phones as resources and technology allow.
The app is free, so Vlingo makes money through advertising and revenue sharing with its partners. Specifically, Harris told me it currently earns $7.74 for every 1,000 Web searches, $49 for every 1,000 local searches, and $24 for every 1,000 “other” monetizable actions, such as a ticket purchase on Kayak. With users performing an average of 30 actions every month, Harris said Vlingo is making about 14 cents per user per month.
That might seem a little low, Harris acknowledged, but the plan is to dramatically increase both the number of users and the number of actions over the next year. Most promisingly, he said Vlingo has made deals with a number of Android handset manufacturers who don’t want to direct all of their usage to Google services. (He said it’s too early to reveal who the manufacturers are.) Not only will that put Vlingo on more phones, it will also make the application more prominent on those phones by turning it into the default app whenever you want to use voice commands.
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App Store Classics: Game Dev Story, a game about making games.
Ever wondered what it’d be like to run your own game development house? Me neither, but don’t let that stop you getting involved with Game Dev Story (iTunes link), a little gem of a game from Japanese developers Kairosoft, currently on sale in the app store for $0.99.
The concept is straightforward – grow your development house from a tiny team of four staff churning out cheap and cheerful PC games to a revered coding powerhouse in swanky offices crafting masterpieces for the latest consoles.
At first you’ll probably be going over budget left right and centre, trying to figure out which game types work best and therefore shift more units, but once you get into the swing of it you can concentrate on hiring and training the best staff and purchasing licences to develop console games, resulting in better made and better selling games with higher profit margins.
It’s not just a question of hiring and firing, coming up with game ideas and watching your staff working their buns off though. Through the use of ‘boosts’ which are periodically made available to purchase as the game progresses (not in-app purchases I hasten to add), you can choose one of your coders to work on enhancing one specific aspect of the game. This pushes up the overall quality of the game you’re making and results in better reviews and sales, adding a further strategic element as you choose the right moment and category in which to use your boosts. At certain points within the development cycle you also get the chance to work on the graphics and sound specifically, either using one of your own staff or hiring in a freelancer, and this too gives you the opportunity to increase the overall quality of your virtual product.
When you make your first million seller it’s a satisfying moment but there’s no time to rest on your laurels. There are always new consoles appearing on the market, contract jobs to take on, new staff to hire and new game types to discover. If you leave too much of a gap between development cycles you start losing fans and therefore a few sales, but think carefully about what kind of games you make – my pirate simulation was a right turkey.
It’s all great fun, but it’s fair to say there are a few things here which need to be addressed by the time Game Dev Story 2 arrives in the app store. I know it’s a tall order on a phone but I couldn’t help thinking how nice it would be if I could play the games my team had made. Even a comedy cut sequence showing some aspects of the latest game would have been good. There are also some hugely expensive advertising options within this game that offer no feedback other than some numbers increasing on a stat page. If I’m sponsoring a racing team I’d like to see my company logo on the side of a formula one car at least!
Finally, the game is perhaps a bit on the easy side. I’m sure if developing a multi million selling game was this straightforward we’d all be at it. Well, maybe not, but it’s easy to make enough money that you don’t have to worry too much about how you spend it, and this negatively impacts the strategy element.
All things considered however, Game Dev Story is great fun. It’s a good natured game and from the cute graphics and retro sound to the amusing titles you can give your creations, it’s a rewarding experience which works perfectly whether in short bursts or longer play sessions. Did I mention that it’s currently only $0.99 on the app store?
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Steve Jobs, Eric Schmidt and Mark Zuckerberg to Meet With <b>...</b>
Apple CEO Steve Jobs, who recently took a medical leave of absence from his company, and Google chief executive Eric Schmidt will be among the attendees of President Obama's event with business leaders in San Francisco Thursday evening, ...
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epic fail photos - Probably Bad News: Drunk Dialing FAIL.
Washington Extra – Royal <b>news</b> | Analysis & Opinion |
As is increasingly the case, the United States is finding that talking pro-democracy is one thing. Dealing with the aftermath of uprisings another.
benchcraft company scam
Steve Jobs, Eric Schmidt and Mark Zuckerberg to Meet With <b>...</b>
Apple CEO Steve Jobs, who recently took a medical leave of absence from his company, and Google chief executive Eric Schmidt will be among the attendees of President Obama's event with business leaders in San Francisco Thursday evening, ...
Probably Bad <b>News</b>: Drunk Dialing FAIL - Epic Fail Funny Videos and <b>...</b>
epic fail photos - Probably Bad News: Drunk Dialing FAIL.
Washington Extra – Royal <b>news</b> | Analysis & Opinion |
As is increasingly the case, the United States is finding that talking pro-democracy is one thing. Dealing with the aftermath of uprisings another.
benchcraft company scam
Steve Jobs, Eric Schmidt and Mark Zuckerberg to Meet With <b>...</b>
Apple CEO Steve Jobs, who recently took a medical leave of absence from his company, and Google chief executive Eric Schmidt will be among the attendees of President Obama's event with business leaders in San Francisco Thursday evening, ...
Probably Bad <b>News</b>: Drunk Dialing FAIL - Epic Fail Funny Videos and <b>...</b>
epic fail photos - Probably Bad News: Drunk Dialing FAIL.
Washington Extra – Royal <b>news</b> | Analysis & Opinion |
As is increasingly the case, the United States is finding that talking pro-democracy is one thing. Dealing with the aftermath of uprisings another.
bench craft company scam
Steve Jobs, Eric Schmidt and Mark Zuckerberg to Meet With <b>...</b>
Apple CEO Steve Jobs, who recently took a medical leave of absence from his company, and Google chief executive Eric Schmidt will be among the attendees of President Obama's event with business leaders in San Francisco Thursday evening, ...
Probably Bad <b>News</b>: Drunk Dialing FAIL - Epic Fail Funny Videos and <b>...</b>
epic fail photos - Probably Bad News: Drunk Dialing FAIL.
Washington Extra – Royal <b>news</b> | Analysis & Opinion |
As is increasingly the case, the United States is finding that talking pro-democracy is one thing. Dealing with the aftermath of uprisings another.
bench craft company scam
Steve Jobs, Eric Schmidt and Mark Zuckerberg to Meet With <b>...</b>
Apple CEO Steve Jobs, who recently took a medical leave of absence from his company, and Google chief executive Eric Schmidt will be among the attendees of President Obama's event with business leaders in San Francisco Thursday evening, ...
Probably Bad <b>News</b>: Drunk Dialing FAIL - Epic Fail Funny Videos and <b>...</b>
epic fail photos - Probably Bad News: Drunk Dialing FAIL.
Washington Extra – Royal <b>news</b> | Analysis & Opinion |
As is increasingly the case, the United States is finding that talking pro-democracy is one thing. Dealing with the aftermath of uprisings another.
benchcraft company scam
Steve Jobs, Eric Schmidt and Mark Zuckerberg to Meet With <b>...</b>
Apple CEO Steve Jobs, who recently took a medical leave of absence from his company, and Google chief executive Eric Schmidt will be among the attendees of President Obama's event with business leaders in San Francisco Thursday evening, ...
Probably Bad <b>News</b>: Drunk Dialing FAIL - Epic Fail Funny Videos and <b>...</b>
epic fail photos - Probably Bad News: Drunk Dialing FAIL.
Washington Extra – Royal <b>news</b> | Analysis & Opinion |
As is increasingly the case, the United States is finding that talking pro-democracy is one thing. Dealing with the aftermath of uprisings another.
bench craft company scam
Steve Jobs, Eric Schmidt and Mark Zuckerberg to Meet With <b>...</b>
Apple CEO Steve Jobs, who recently took a medical leave of absence from his company, and Google chief executive Eric Schmidt will be among the attendees of President Obama's event with business leaders in San Francisco Thursday evening, ...
Probably Bad <b>News</b>: Drunk Dialing FAIL - Epic Fail Funny Videos and <b>...</b>
epic fail photos - Probably Bad News: Drunk Dialing FAIL.
Washington Extra – Royal <b>news</b> | Analysis & Opinion |
As is increasingly the case, the United States is finding that talking pro-democracy is one thing. Dealing with the aftermath of uprisings another.
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Steve Jobs, Eric Schmidt and Mark Zuckerberg to Meet With <b>...</b>
Apple CEO Steve Jobs, who recently took a medical leave of absence from his company, and Google chief executive Eric Schmidt will be among the attendees of President Obama's event with business leaders in San Francisco Thursday evening, ...
Probably Bad <b>News</b>: Drunk Dialing FAIL - Epic Fail Funny Videos and <b>...</b>
epic fail photos - Probably Bad News: Drunk Dialing FAIL.
Washington Extra – Royal <b>news</b> | Analysis & Opinion |
As is increasingly the case, the United States is finding that talking pro-democracy is one thing. Dealing with the aftermath of uprisings another.
bench craft company sales
Steve Jobs, Eric Schmidt and Mark Zuckerberg to Meet With <b>...</b>
Apple CEO Steve Jobs, who recently took a medical leave of absence from his company, and Google chief executive Eric Schmidt will be among the attendees of President Obama's event with business leaders in San Francisco Thursday evening, ...
Probably Bad <b>News</b>: Drunk Dialing FAIL - Epic Fail Funny Videos and <b>...</b>
epic fail photos - Probably Bad News: Drunk Dialing FAIL.
Washington Extra – Royal <b>news</b> | Analysis & Opinion |
As is increasingly the case, the United States is finding that talking pro-democracy is one thing. Dealing with the aftermath of uprisings another.
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