As I travel to Barcelona once again to attend Mobile World Congress (MWC), the industry’s annual top event, I reflect on my role reversal from corporate executive, representing one of the world’s major communications firms, to that of startup investor and entrepreneur.
The role is quite different, but the excitement is the same because I know MWC presents huge opportunities for companies big and small.
When you attend as the CEO of a major company, such as I did for AT&T Mobility in an earlier role, you get to be on the grand stage. You get to meet with the GSMA board of directors. You get to discuss your company’s strategy, and you meet with key customers and key suppliers.
A needle in the haystack
As a big player, you also look for what’s new, often an innovation being developed by a small company like the startups I’m representing these days.
Not easy. With the amount of innovation on display at MWC, finding the next big thing is like looking for a needle in a haystack.
That’s why I’m excited about my new role as investor and entrepreneur: I get to help a few startups stand out from the haystack so they can be noticed by the big players.
The challenge for small companies
It’s difficult for small companies to stand out. They don’t get to be on the big stage. They don’t have big booths and, more than meeting with key customers, they are looking for partners and investors to help them succeed. At start-up stage, funding is critical.
Having been on the other side of the negotiating table, so to speak, I know what investors and prospective customers and partners expect to see in a startup before they invest or commit resources.
They want to see a compelling mission and vision. A product that meets a need. A potential marketplace for that product. And a strategy that, when implemented, can result in a sustainable business.
And that’s my new role. Let me share a couple of startup examples I’ll be representing at MWC.
Potential: 360 million sites worldwide
I’ll start with Ubicquia. In my role there as investor and vice chairman, I was pleased to work with CEO Ian Aaron, Chairman Lowell Kraft, and its board of directors to define the global platform for a worldwide market.
Ubicquia has developed a digital router (UbiCell) that sits on top of streetlights to help cities control street lighting more efficiently. The routers are powered by NEMA (National Electrical Manufacturers Association) sockets on top of the pole, which lowers the initial cost. With the Ubicquia UbiCell router, cities can expect to see electricity cost savings of as much as 60 to 80 percent when combined with an LED change out. Given that they are more than 360 million street lights worldwide, it is a huge market.
That is Ubicquia’s basic product, and it’s already pretty exciting. But there’s more.
The product line has been expanded to include the first NEMA-based gigabit digital router (Ubihub) to help cities connect to the Internet of Things (think video cameras, sensors, alarms). In Barcelona we will be showcasing Ubimetro, a NEMA-based small cell to help wireless carriers expand their 4G and 5G coverage area.
In sum, Ubicquia has developed a global platform that solves a number of problems for cities and for carriers anywhere in the world.
Potential: 3.2 billion smartphones worldwide
Another startup I’m working with is Adfone. In my role as investor and advisor, I work with its Founder and CEO Brian Boroff on company strategy, and most recently helped his team develop their investor deck to help them attract investors and partners.
Adfone’s strategy is to offer prepaid Android users the opportunity to earn carrier rewards (such as free minutes, texts and data) in exchange for relevant commercial messages. It also gives advertisers direct access to identified demographics and provides wireless carriers with a share of the ad revenue.
As for its potential, consider this: The prepaid wireless segment accounts for 80 percent of the market worldwide. Android devices make up 85 percent of the devices globally. Do the math and you’ll realize that the market for this product is 3.2 billion Android phones worldwide. Pretty exciting.
Excited by my new role
It’s a pleasure to work with startup companies like Ubicquia and Adfone.
They are perfect examples of the startup model. It begins with a vision. We tweak it, refine it, come up with a product plan, and find a way to explain why people should invest in it.
I’m excited about this year’s Mobile World Congress, about my new role, and about helping two promising needles (Ubicquia and Adfone) stand out in the MWC haystack so they can catch the attention they deserve.
By the way, if you’re going to be attending, give me a shout!
