Comments by sdoutriaux.myopenid.com
Reply | Original | Permalink | TweetHi Paul,
It’s great that consumers and bloggers are starting to look into this space, so we can initiate a real discussion about how social networking fits with real-world networking. Your post, mentioned in Allen’s article, is a great start.
As you and others comment, carrying around a dedicated fob is only one answer to the question. Some people say it may be a lot easier as mobile phone app. As founder of Poken, of course I beg to differ. One simple example: USB memory sticks. For the past 10 years one could have achieved the same ends using a mobile phone: store files to your phone either with the a USB cable (on some phones) or via Bluetooth/Wifi. Then, beam them to someone else using Bluetooth, and let them download them back to their computer. You could even cut one step out by simply beaming them from your phone directly to their computer.
Well, the market has opted for carrying around an extra USB fob because it makes it so much simpler. The mobile phone is a great device for certain uses, but when it comes to replacing something that’s simple to achieve by other means, it’s not the answer, even if it means carrying around another fob. Compatibility, connectivity, parametrization, etc. all get in the way.
We’re very excited to be leading the way to a new means of connecting people. We fully agree that success will all come down to implementation: simple, natural gesture & usage, and cheap. Regarding getting to the masses, it’s also about being innovative in terms of distribution… Keep you eyes peeled!