[DS Notes] Will Foursquare Finally Get it Right?

With hundreds of partners and billions of data points, Foursquare has become the default reference for apps relying on points of interests, venues, and location in general. However, despite having raised over a hundred million dollars since its inception in 2009, the company has yet to make a meaningful revenue. CEO Dennis Crowley is adamant that the company will be profitable by the end of the year and has a plan to generate up to $20 million in revenue for 2013. However, Yelp! generated over USD 46 million in Q1 2013 alone with a much more limited roll out and a smaller user base. How does Foursquare plan to stay afloat outside of raising investment rounds?

Read all about Crowley’s vision at FastCompany.

[DS Notes] WhatsApp Crosses 300 Million Monthly Active Users, Adds Voice Mssaging

WhatsApp today updated its mobile messaging app to add voice messaging capability across multiple platforms. As the most traditionalist among all mobile messaging companies, this addition is quite a leap as the company had been maintaining a comparatively limited set of features. Voice messages are recorded by holding the microphone icon on the app and gets delivered as soon as the finger is lifted. To AllThingsD, CEO Jan Koum revealed that WhatsApp now has 300 million monthly active users who share 325 million photosphere day, dominating the messaging landscape in dozens of countries.

Continue reading [DS Notes] WhatsApp Crosses 300 Million Monthly Active Users, Adds Voice Mssaging

[DS Notes] How Does Lazada Fare Against Amazon in Southeast Asia?

ecommerce milo took a look at how Lazada is performing in Southeast Asia and comparing that with Amazon. The American retailer has yet to fully entrench itself in Southeast Asia but it does offer a number of its services to the region. Indonesia as the largest nation in Southeast Asia has yet to enjoy what Amazon has to offer aside from being able to purchase physical books, and movies and music on discs. Regardless, the numbers show that Amazon still leads in unique visits across the region although it is dropping quickly as Lazada increases its awareness and reach. Without a proper local presence, Amazon looks set to lose Southeast Asia to Lazada while Lazada CEO Max Bittner dismisses Amazon for not being on the ground, which makes things very difficult for dealing with customer service.

[DS Notes] Bitcoin Reportedly Declared Illegal in Thailand

Bitcoin.Co.Ltd, a Bitcoin exchange service in Thailand this morning announced that the Thai government has made Bitcoin illegal in the country. The decision came following attempts by Bitcoin.Co.Ltd to seek legal foundations to turn the digital currency into a legal one. The decision came as Bank of Thailand representatives found that existing laws in the country cannot accommodate Bitcoin due to a number of factors. The central bank has reportedly outlawed any transaction involving Bitcoin within Thailand’s borders but gave no word as to when this ban will take effect, reports Ars Technica.

[DS Notes] How Facebook Platform Became How It Is Today

Hamish McKenzie over at Pando Daily has published an extensive story on the history of Facebook Platform and how it failed to meet its expectations and potentials through a series of inconsistent changes implemented by Zuckerberg. While initially Facebook Platform, which was launched in 2007, was set to be an ecosystem of applications and services that leverage the power and reach of the Facebook newsfeed, Zuckerberg eventually felt threatened by these third party apps and made changes over the years which prevented them from competing with Facebook’s own applications. In the end, Facebook as a company pales in comparison to Apple’s mobile application ecosystem which is worth multiple times the value of Facebook.

[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.

[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.

[DS Notes] How Much Is Apple Paying Music Labels for iTunes Radio?

We discussed a bit about music licensing fees on Monday specifically when it comes to digital playback. As it happens, the Wall Street Journal revealed the licensing structure that Apple has to pay for songs played through iTunes Radio and to nobody’s surprise, it’s not entirely straightforward. Apple pays US$0.13 per song played plus 15% of net advertising revenue on year one and it goes up to $0.14 and 19% on year two, but there are other qualifiers that will alter the final figures such as not having to pay royalty fees when the played songs are already in the person’s library or when it’s a promoted track, or when the song gets skipped before it reaches 20 seconds. But then Apple is only allowed to skip royalties for two songs per person per hour. Got that? Don’t forget, iTunes Radio is also designed to get people to buy more songs from iTunes.