Investing in Indonesia May Be Challenging But It’s Not Such a Nightmare

We recently posted some concerns regarding the state of the investment landscape for Indonesian technology startups and how it is becoming even more a challenge for them to receive foreign investments despite the abundance of capital being prepared for Indonesian startups from overseas companies. President of Ambient Digital Remco Lupker followed up with a post of his own over the weekend with his take of the situation.
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[DS Notes] Security Researcher May Have Been Reason for Apple Developer Center Shutdown

The Next Web reports that a security researcher contacted Apple about vulnerabilities that he discovered on Apple’s system. and Apple may have taken that warning as an intrusion with possible malicious intent. The researcher, Ibrahim Balic, claims otherwise. The researcher is “a bit irritated” at the tone that Apple has taken with regards to this incident along with the media coverage. He insisted that he had reported all the bugs to Apple to inform the company of his discoveries and has no intention to keep the data that he has collected for evidence of the bugs. Balic has yet to hear anything back from Apple and asked that he be not blacklisted by the company.

Apple Confirms Security Breach on Its Developer Center

Apple’s Developer Center has been down for three days and Apple has had very little to say about it, causing developers a lot of concern as the company is transitioning both its mobile and desktop operating systems to the latest versions. Not any more. This morning Apple confirmed that there has been a security breach to the Dev Center.

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[DS Notes] From XCode Newbie to Publishing on the App Store in Two Months

No, this isn’t a get rich quick scheme but it’s a guide for those who wish to be able to publish an app on the App Store. Sure, the App Store is one massive digital jungle in which more than half of the apps probably never saw more than a few downloads but if you’re diligent enough, you can get your app published, get your friends to use it, and learn on the experience to build better apps in the future. Your first app is probably not going to be a blockbuster hit but it gets you through the door. These tips require you to already be a software engineer or you’ll get lost on week one. Getting on board Code Academy or some other programming 101 course would help before jumping into building full fledged mobile apps.

Read the tips on TheNextWeb.

[DS Notes] Mobile Commerce Grows in Asia Pacific as Consumers Skip the Desktop

Mobile commerce is becoming more prominent in recent times as adoption of smartphones is growing rapidly and lower end devices are beginning to receive smartphone-like capabilities. e27 had a chat with Anurag Banerjee, APAC managing director of mobile-based market research firm Jana who shared his insights into how companies in the region are tapping into mobile commerce and engagement to drive sales and increase revenue. With nearly 80% of Indonesians preferring to go online from mobile, it’s critical that this market behavior be acknowledged and acted upon when discussing strategies.

Read the story in full on e27.

Zalora Aims to Have 40% of Its Sales to Come From Mobile

On Thursday Zalora launched its Android app following its iPhone app which debuted back in April. The Android app follows closely in terms of features and abilities and opens the store to a much wider audience. The company expects its mobile apps to significantly expand its sales and reach in its aim to be the preferred fashion shopping destination.

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Rocket Internet’s Half a Billion Dollar Round Set to Fuel Growth in Emerging Markets

We’ve just learned from TechCrunch that Rocket Internet has raised half a billion US dollars to fund its entire operations. That’s USD 500 million from Kinnevik and Access Industries, two of Rocket Internet’s partners and investors that regularly participate in various funding rounds over the last few years. The group’s largest and most successful ventures so far are in online stores and marketplaces although it does have companies in other fields.

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Indonesia’s Solite Studio Takes Second Place at Imagine Cup 2013

Indonesia’s Solite Studio will be heading home as the second place winner at this year’s Microsoft Imagine Cup, a global app competition for students, which was held in Saint Petersburg, Russia, this week. The studio’s award-winning game, Save the Hamsters, had passed the rigorous judging process which took place in two days as the team fielded tests and questions from five judges.

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Nokia Brings Flipboard, Vine, and Hipstamatic Oggl Pro to Lumia Phones but Yahoo Remains MIA

Confirming our report from April, Nokia announced that Path will be coming to Windows Phone later this year at its Lumia 1020 announcement in New York last night. Additionally, Nokia also revealed that other major applications will debut on the Windows Phone platform within the next several months, providing a much needed cushion for consumers already on Microsoft’s mobile platform and also for those considering to pick it up.

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Talking about Startup Weekend Winning App Bill.E With Project Leader Chrissa Mahtani

Following Startup Weekend Jakarta, we caught up with Chrissa Mahtani, project lead for competition winner Bill.e to find out a little more about the app and what her plans are for further development and whether she’s keeping the entire team of 14 people.

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