Archive for January 2014
AirBoxLab launches Alima and we finally get an air monitoring device with a sound proposition
Unless you’ve been living in a cave you’re pretty much aware that your home is getting more connected, and smarter. AirBoxLab has launched Alima, a new connected device for monitoring air quality. Now before starting rolling your eyes with yet another air quality device the value proposition behind Alima is quite different from the typical […]
Apps that leak personal data and a change in android licensing: Will we change how we build software?
As we work on our software and applications it is always good to pause and look at how some news could, or should, affect our ecosystem. Two separate pieces came out this week that will likely have some influence on how our products work and how they are distributed. First, I am sure you read about […]
When it comes to CleanTech, Audi can’t help but choose “Made in France”
France’s Global Bioenergies, a rising star in the renewable energy space, has just announced a milestone deal with German automaker Audi. Global Bioenergies has started to build a name for themselves through their work on transforming renewable resources into light olefins, namely the foundation of the petrochemical industry. Their work with Audi will go through 2016 […]
Bringing innovation to public unemployment centres
When Government agencies embrace technology & innovation to put an end to the Nation’s problems, incredible things can happen. Case in point is MyJobCompany, a French software publishing company that is bringing its technology to Pôle Emploi which is the French agency that registers unemployed people and matches them with potential employers. While there is […]
Prixing sells its M-Couponing Technology to HighCo as founders pivot to…Flink
Mobile couponing startup Prixing has sold the bulk of its technology (IP), business contracts, user database & mobile apps to HighCo, one of France’s leading print & web couponing services. The deal, made for an undisclosed amount, includes “everything but the team and the equity,” says co-founder Thomas France, and comes after the company raised […]
Ezakus teams up with MotionLead to ship the grail of mobile advertising.
The following is a guest post by Alban Denoyel, CEO of Sketchfab. You can follow him on twitter @albn Ezakus, the French leading DMP (data management platform) for advertisers, has just announced a key partnership with MotionLead, who specializes in Rich Media Mobile advertising. I took this occasion to seat down with Christophe Camborde, CEO […]
Looking to hitch a ride to Sochi 2014? Blablacar is now available in Russia!
Blablacar has added Ukraine & Russia to the list of countries it covers (now more than 10) with the acquisition of Podorozhniki. Similar to Blablacar’s acquisitions in Italy & Spain, the amounts have not been disclosed, and the team is small (3 people for Podorozhniki). As TechCrunch’s Steve O’Hear reports, Blablacar raised €10 Million from Accel two […]
2014 looks like a good year for tech to Get Lucky
Some of you may have reached the point of saturation on predictions for 2014, and I can empathize. Even here in this very space two weeks ago, I shared some forecasts of thought leaders I respect within Europe’s tech ecosystem. But I’m going to give you some more, for three reasons: i) I had promised […]
“LaFrenchTech” to launch this week: the same bag of tricks or a real change in strategy?
This Thursday evening, ‘Startup Minister’ Fleur Pellerin will welcome members of the French tech community as she gives her voeux, a tradition in France akin to New Year’s Resolutions, during which she will talk about what she wishes for the French tech community in 2014. In addition to plaisanteries, Pellerin will officially announce La FrenchTech, an […]
France’s ultimatum to Netflix: ‘Our way or the Google way’
Netflix has a new tentative launch date in France, the JDD reported this weekend; the video streaming site has delayed its launch by nearly a year, despite successful internationalization in Sweden and other European countries, raising questions about France’s ability to ‘play nice’ with companies. Quick to respond to the leaked news, the Cultural Minister […]