Mobli
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Mobli homescreen
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| Web address | www.mobli.com |
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| Slogan | See the world through other people's eyes |
| Users | 6,5 million |
| Launched | 2010 |
| Alexa rank |  7264 (August 2012[update])[1] |
Mobli is a social mobile photo and video-sharing website. As of November 2013 Mobli has 12 million users.[2]
The New York City-based company competes with similarly-purposed rivals Socialcam, Viddy and Instagram.[3][4]
Contents
Design[edit]
CEO and founder Moshe Hogeg said Mobli’s goal is to “make it possible to see what is happening in the world through other people’s eyes.”[5]
Mobli's mobile app allows mobile sharing of photos and video recorded on mobile devices to its website where other users can view the content. Users can browse the websites content feeds in real time by location, subject, or uploader.[5]
Hogeg compared the service to Instagram saying, “If the substance of Instagram is effects of pictures and shares, we want to offer the option of seeing what is happening at the Eiffel Tower or at Barcelona’s Camp Nou Stadium.”[5]
Mobli apps were initially built in HTML5 but this approach was abandoned due to poor performance. The apps were re-built in native code on iOS and Android while dropping support for Blackberry in favor of Windows Phone. The new apps, also with a re-designed user experience, were slated to roll out in late 2012 starting with its Windows Phone app.[6]
A stand-alone search product that emphasizes location, time and relevance is slated to launch in early 2013. The product has an "autotagging" feature that can recognize and identify certain objects from images.[6]
Business model[edit]
Mobli's main revenue stream is on-site advertising.[5]
History[edit]
Mobli was founded in 2010 by Moshe Hogeg, Yossi Shemesh and Emmanuel Merali.[7]
Mobli found early success in celebrity investors including American actor Leonardo DiCaprio who invested $4 million in 2011.[5][8] DiCaprio's social involvement on the site attracted other celebrities.[8]
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In May 2012, CEO Hogeg said the company was prioritizing increasing Mobli's installed base on mobile devices from three million to 10 million before focusing on turning a profit.[4] Hogeg planned to experiment with money-making strategies such as selling virtual goods, promoting sponsored posts and displaying targeted advertising.[4] Mobli partnered with Tropfest to host the festival's first Micro Film Festival contest, run by Mobli investor, actor Tobey Maguire, on Mobli’s TropfestMicro channel, a channel Mobli calls “a film festival in your pocket.” The contest, announced by Maguire in June at Tropfest Las Vegas, uses the designated Mobli channel as the hub for submitting and viewing short-form videos until deadline in January 2013.[9] The best video, selected by panel, receives $10,000 in winnings and will debut at Tropfest Australia 2013.[3]
The Canyons used Mobli in July 2012 to cast the role of Caitlin, a role that went to Lauren Schacher who was one of 125 who submitted auditions using the platform.[10]
In July 2012, Mobli announced tennis player Serena Williams had invested an undisclosed amount in Mobli.[7]
In September 2012, Mobli was worth an estimated $100-300 million and Mobli said shared content had tripled over the previous two months. A series B venture round of funding to develop its platform and user base brought in $22 million including $20 million from Kazakhstani businessman Kenges Rakishev. Rakishev's funding earned him a spot on Mobli's board.[5][11]
As of November 2012, Mobli has received two acquisition offers.[6]
On November 6, 2013, Mobli announced that they raised 60 million dollars from América Móvil the Latin American telco giant led by billionaire Carlos Slim.[12]
Popularity[edit]
A photo of cyclist and Mobli investor Lance Armstrong relaxing in his trophy room and posted to Mobli by Armstrong in November 2012 accumulated more than 320,000 views in two days making it the most trafficked Mobli post for a 48-hour period.[13]
Reception[edit]
Francis Bea of Digital Trends said Mobli, which he called “[potentially] the YouTube of short-form video,” could succeed in debuting the next generation of Internet personalities with YouTube “beginning to sway under the weight of its own hosted talent.”[3]
Mobli investor Kenges Rakishev said "Mobli has tremendous potential because it enables people to do something very powerful—to see the world through other people's eyes—in a simple, easy to use, and highly engaging format."[14]
Company[edit]
Mobli was founded in 2010 by chief executive officer Moshe Hogeg, vice president of product Yossi Shemesh and chief technology officer Emmanuel Merali.[7]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ "Mobli web traffic statistics". Alexa. August 8, 2012. Retrieved August 8, 2012.
- ^ Mashable. "Instagram Rival Mobli Gets $60 Million in Funding From Carlos Slim". Mashable. Retrieved 6 November 2013.
- ^ a b c Francis Bea (12 June 2012). "Should YouTube be worried? Mobli ‘Tropfest Micro’ offers amateur filmmakers a spotlight". Digital Trends. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
- ^ a b c Garett Sloane (28 May 2012). "Techies amp up their revenue machines". New York Post. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
- ^ a b c d e f Menachem Greenfield (23 September 2012). "Israeli’s Mobli Gets $20 Million from single Kazakh Investor". Jewocity.com. Retrieved 26 September 2012.
- ^ a b c Roi Carthy (19 November 2012). "Mobli May Be The Promised Land’s Most Promising Startup". TechCrunch. Retrieved 9 December 2012.
- ^ a b c Roy Goldenberg (26 July 2012). "Serena Williams invests in picture sharing co Mobli". Digital Trends. Retrieved 12 August 2012.
- ^ a b Phyllis Furman (24 September 2012). "N.Y.-based mobile photo-sharing site Mobli bags $22 million investment". New York Daily News. Retrieved 27 September 2012.
- ^ Degen Pener (4 June 2012). "Tropfest Short Film Festival Crowns All-Star Winner in Las Vegas (Video)". Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 21 August 2012.
- ^ Brian Anthony Hernandez (18 July 2012). "Lindsay Lohan Movie Turns to Visual Startup Mobli to Cast Actress". Mashable. Retrieved 12 August 2012.
- ^ Ryan Kim (19 September 2012). "Picture app Mobli raises $22M to build visual platform". GigaOm. Retrieved 27 September 2012.
- ^ TechCrunch. "Instagram Competitor Mobli Gets $60M From Carlos Slim To Build A Visual Search Engine". Retrieved 6 November 2013.
- ^ Jeff Bercovici (12 November 2012). "Lance Armstrong's Trolling Juices Mobli's Traffic". Forbes. Retrieved 10 December 2012.
- ^ Nicholas Aaron Khoo (27 December 2012). "Kazakhstan investor puts US$20 million in New York-based startup". CNET. Retrieved 3 October 2012.
External links[edit]
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