The Digital Media SIG / Mobile SIG (aka. Mobile Group) ceased hosting events in 2015.

We started out as a Virtual World special interest group in 2006 (Virtual World SIG) and then merged with the long-running Mobile SIG in 2014, after hosting many events jointly.
The final Chair lineup was Ashish Aggarwal, Joe Jasin, Bob Ketner, and Peter Lam.

This site will remain as a record of events held from 2006 – 2014.
If we begin hosting events again in some other format, it will be updated here!

For inquiries please contact Bob Ketner by clicking https://studiosfo.com/contact .

Net Neutrality – A Lucid Dream or Reality?
An Informal and Formal Panel Discussion

Net Neutrality is all but certain to influence the patterns of data communication. Whatever the outcome, the viability of underlying infrastructure and economics is still an evolving discussion.

In this panel discussion, the philosophical value chain of Net Neutrality will be explored. As consumers, it is imperative on us to inspect the scalability of such policies towards our future requirements. It’s critical for us to understand the flow of data across Content Delivery Networks, Wired and Wireless Operators, and Service Providers. Conceptualizing a value chain and its components provides context for studying the broader impact. Essentially, fairness and value are what individuals, entrepreneurs and enterprises seek in sustaining the growing demands of data usage.

The goal of this event is to peel back the layers of technology, usability, and regulatory standards to better understand the fundamental forces at play. This will be a joint event with IEEE Young Professionals

Speakers and Panelists:
Introduction to Net Neutrality by Perkins Coie

Confirmed Panelists:

Nitin Rao, Cloudflare
Nitin Rao works on Special Projects at CloudFlare, growing global infrastructure in datacenter, transit, peering and making hardware investments. Nitin is a TED Fellow and received his MBA from MIT Sloan.

Evan Engstrom, Policy Director, Engine.is
Evan Engstrom is the Policy Director for Engine, an advocacy and research non-profit that connects government and the startup community, educating policymakers on issues of importance to tech startups, where he develops Engine’s positions on the key policy issues facing entrepreneurs.

Vishal Misra, Associate Professor, Department of Computer Science Columbia University
Vishal Misra is an Associate Professor in the Department of Computer Science at Columbia University. His research emphasis is on mathematical modeling of networking systems, bridging the gap between practice and analysis.

Agenda:
6:15pm – 6:45pm    Registration and Networking
6:45pm – 7:00pm    Announcements, Introductions
7:00pm – 7:15pm Background on Net Neutrality
7:15pm – 8:00pm    Panel discussion (to be identified – 3/4 speakers and 1 moderator)
8:00pm – 8:15+pm  QA

Location:
Perkins Coie – Palo Alto
3150 Porter Drive
Palo Alto, CA 94304 (map)

For a quick background on the topic, here are some popular references in media:

Steve McQueen’s Mustang Explains Net Neutrality

With 1 million comments, U.S. net neutrality debate nears first marker

Last Week Tonight with John Oliver: Net Neutrality (HBO)

Register at:
http://svforum.org/Mobile-and-Digital-Media-Group/Net-Neutrality-Lucid-Dream-or-Reality

Open Mobile Ecosystems – Reality of the Future, or just Preso Slideware?
A look into Project Ara and perspectives from GigaOm Research

(SVForum Digital Media SIG is now joined with the SVForum > Mobile Group)

Pre-register at:
http://svforum.org/Mobile-and-Digital-Media-Group/Mobile-and-Digital-Media-SIG-Open-Source-Technology-Freedom-It-year

Open software. Open hardware. Open application markets. These approaches have allowed for transformation in mobile products. The developer community’s has creativity been set free through the modular application store approach – crossing mobile platforms and now, the Internet of things and wearables.

Now, this trend is hitting hardware. The millennial demographic yearns for personalization; yet increasingly the mainstream mobile industry pitches tight integrations between hardware, software and services.

Could open-source platforms of both software and hardware modularity remake the entire mobile ecosystem, and compound billions more people to get on the Internet? Are these directions already unstoppable? Linux is ‘winning’ on the server-side market, why not on the client-side market?

On June 5th we invite industry participants open-source/open platform projects, ask them pressing questions, and invite you participate in the agenda, and to share in a moderated and documented whiteboard session.

SPEAKERS:
Jason Chua, UX Lead,  Google, Project Ara
(http://www.projectara.com/)
Jason Chua leads user experience for Project Ara, a open, modular smartphone platform developed by Google’s Advanced Technology and Projects group. Over the past year, he has led efforts to engage and empower makers of all types including a cross-country maker roadtrip, the development of a “smart” retail experience, and the design of a digital phone configurator. Before Project Ara, Jason co-founded SparkTruck, a mobile fab lab serving elementary and middle school students and teachers. He is an occasional lecturer at the Stanford d.school, and holds degrees in product design and mechanical engineering.

Larry Cornett, Analyst, Gigaom Research
(http://research.gigaom.com/)
Larry Cornett, Ph.D., is the founder of Brilliant Forge; a consulting practice that helps organizations focus their consumer insights, product vision, business strategy, and technology capabilities into new business opportunities. With more than 18 years of experience in the industry ranging from small startups to large global corporations, Larry is recognized in the industry for his best practices and knowledge of how to successfully design products and services for Consumer Markets.

Prior to founding Brilliant Forge, Larry was a Silicon Valley product executive with over 16 years of experience designing, defining, and building consumer products at several of the biggest and best technology and internet companies; including Apple Computer, Yahoo, eBay, and IBM.

Most recently, Larry was the Vice President of Consumer Products for Yahoo! Search, leading a multinational team of product managers, designers and developers who were focused on creating world-class Search experiences. Before that, he was a Director at eBay, where his team focused on multiple products for Tailored Shopping Experiences, Platform, and International sites.

Earlier in his career, he was a designer at Apple Computer, where he worked on the Finder, OS, and International software; and IBM, where he worked on database and development tools. He was also the principal consultant for MindSpan Design, an interaction design agency where he worked on desktop, web, and mobile solutions for a variety of clients. He received his Ph.D. from Rice University, where he designed and developed a coaching system for training software users. He holds multiple patents, which include design work on web-based products and hardware solutions.

Agenda: three crucial perspectives:
1. Research paper – What numbers are driving the future of open source
platforms? How different are the various open software ecosystems?

2. Presentation – A presentation from a guiding force in open source
OS/hardware and ask top questions driving open source now.

3. Whiteboarding – What do YOU think? Bring your own perspective and
influence to the discussion.

Dialogue drivers; your’s and our’s…
1. Where will developers and consumers win with Open-Source platforms?
2. What opportunities are still untapped?
3. Are open platforms emerging and diverging, or simply merging?
4. How will open-source shape the future of mobile platforms other than
smartphone, for example making a smartphone interact with home, car
(transportation), and on the body (health)?
5. Open software has achieved success on the backend, but not front end
(e.g. Linux desktop has not taken off), how is mobile ecosystem
different? (e.g. Samsung already mentioned using Openstack for mobile
ecosystem, but has been quiet on Tizen project). Note to chairs… CES
announcement… watch/wearable…?
6. What do we as developers want from an Open-Source future?
7. With open hardware bringing low barrier to entry, lots of developers
and faster, richer innovation, what areas should entrepreneur focus
on?
8. What do you think of open hardware accelerators?
9. What advantages do Open-Source OS have to the traditional
hardware-software combo?

Industry and entity background references:
Initiative: Google’s Project Ara
Project Ara promise to bring modular development to the ubiquitous smartphone experience. (http://www.projectara.com/  https://plus.google.com/+GoogleATAP http://motorolaara.com/)

MIT Technology Review:
http://www.technologyreview.com/news/525386/why-googles-modular-smartphone-might-actually-succeed/

Time Magazine Review:
http://time.com/10115/google-project-ara-modular-smartphone/

Software: Open-Source Operating Systems
Each have generated huge interest in developing open, independent platforms that power phones – and, certainly – a future full of wearable gadgets of all kinds.

Tizen – Samsung has been working with Intel and others on a mobile platform called Tizen. Samsung is bringing Tizen powered smartphone by end of 2014 and Gear 2 smartwatch already utilize Tizen. (Source: Android Community). History of Tizen:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tizen

Mozilla – Mozilla, a nonprofit organization, is developing its own
open-source smartphone operating system called Firefox OS. Mozilla
announced a deal with Chinese chip designer Spreadtrum Communications
to bring $25 smartphone to the emerging countries

Ubuntu – London-based Canonical Ltd. is making a smartphone version of
its Linux-based computer operating system called Ubuntu Touch.
Canonical has partnered with BQ and Meizu to produce the first
consumer-grade Ubuntu Phones.

Jolla – Finland-based Jolla’s Sailfish OS is another contender in this
category. Smartphones powered by Sailfish OS are already available
across the EU, Switzerland and Norway. Jolla also plays nicely with
Android as Android apps can run using a compatibility layer available
from the Jolla Store.

————————————————
Agenda:
6:30pm Arrival and network
7:00pm Announcements
7:10pm Speaker I Research
7:30pm Speaker II Project Ara
7:50pm Speaker III Open source product company (Invited Mozilla and Tizen)
8:10pm Q and A | White board session
9:00pm Adjourn

Location: (map)
AT&T Foundry
260 Homer Avenue
Palo Alto, California 94301 USA

Price:
$20 at the door for non-SVForum members
No charge for SVForum members
No registration required

Save time and pre-register here:
http://svforum.org/Mobile-and-Digital-Media-Group/Mobile-and-Digital-Media-SIG-Open-Source-Technology-Freedom-It-year
————————————————

The SVForum Mobile and Digital Media special interest groups have now joined forces to form one coordinated group which will be referred to as SVForum > Mobile Group.

In 2014 we have a new strategy and approach to these events. At a macro-level, a strategic point is now to be differentiated from all other community meetings in Silicon Valley. ON a micro-level, it is to have take-away documentation of each actual meeting, distributed to everyone in the group. Are you ready?

We will have new announcements over the next several meetings, so please monitor and join us in person as we refine this new “360 approach” and tune the group outputs to be uniquely relevant to the mobile/wireless/interactive industries.

Topic:
Paradigm: 4G as a Platform

Description:
An introduction to the value-chain of technologies and service sector companies that enable the new 4G (fourth generation) all internet protocol (IP) broadband wireless networks.

We’ve entered the new era of wired and wireless communications and it’s time to psychologically, and technologically, develop for this era. Hence the title “4G as a Platform.”

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s 2014 Mobile World Conference chat stated that Facebook and Internet.org will be formally partnering with mobile network operators (MNOs). Next, the WhatsApp app will be displacing short message service (SMS) text messaging on a mass scale, while also offering voice communications. In short, it’s a new world, based on IP, not circuit-switched phone networks.

The FCC weighing in as well, on net neutrality and 4G. In January 2014, FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler said, “Our communications networks are transitioning to IP-networks. The move from the circuit-switched networks of Alexander Graham Bell to the new networks of the Internet Revolution is all around us — with expanded deployment of fiber, with new forms of wireless, with bonded copper and coaxial cable. These transitions – plural – are a solid attributes because IP networks are more efficient, which can enable better products, lower prices, less tariffs and massive benefits for consumers.”

Speakers:

AT&T Foundry (confirmed)
Learn about AT&Ts 4G all IP voice & data centric initiatives.

Qualcomm, Inc.
Rasmus Hellberg, Senior Director Technical Marketing, Qualcomm
Rasmus Hellberg is a senior director of Qualcomm’s technical marketing team, where he focuses on the wireless evolution and related technologies. Rasmus has spent more than 15 years in the wireless industry and started his wireless career in product management, working on the Japanese PDC system and the first commercial WCDMA products. He previously held various product management positions in Stockholm, Sweden and San Diego, California covering PDC, WCDMA, CDMA2000 1X and EV-DO, focusing on radio access network products.

Rasmus holds a doctorate in electromagnetic wave propagation and a master’s degree in electrical engineering from the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Sweden. He also received a bachelor’s degree in business administration and finance from the University of Stockholm, Sweden.

Research presenter (invited)

* New Location* (click here for map)
AT&T Foundry
260 Homer Avenue
Palo Alto, California 94301 USA

Price:
$20 at the door for non-SVForum members
No charge for SVForum members
Pre-register here:
https://svforum.org/Mobile-and-Digital-Media-Group/Mobile-Paradigm-4G-Platform

Agenda: (approx. 3 to 4 speakers)
6:30pm Arrival and network
7:00pm Announcements
7:10pm Speaker I: Research
7:30pm Speaker II: AT&T
7:50pm Speaker III: Qualcomm
8:10pm Speaker IV: Company #3
8:10pm QA and whiteboard session
9:00pm Adjourn

2014: The Breakout Year for Wearable Tech?

Save time by preregistering at:
https://svforum.org/Digital-Media-Meets-bi-monthly-2nd-Tuesday-month/Digital-Media-SIG

We have an unprecedented FOUR speakers on Wednesday, January 8 – don’t miss this one!

Will 2014 finally see mass adoption of wearable devices? Could this be the year that wearables take some huge leaps and go beyond just being a sideshow to smartphones and tablets?

Broadcom projects that the market for wearables will see a 10x increase by 2018. Given the success of wearables on micro-funding platforms like Kickstarter.com, where small, talented teams can get to market in a matter of months, this growth will likely be even more explosive.

Yet mass market devices like Samsung and Sony’s smartwatches have seemed to launch with just a whimper. Google Glass is still in an exclusive beta release. Meanwhile there’s a growing army of fitness bracelets, dedicated collars for your pets, rings that pay your transit fare, and organic cotton connected jumpers for baby.

Dive into this exploding market by joining our panel of experts in the field on January 8, 2014 for a co-meeting of the SVForum Digital Media and Mobile Internet special interest groups.

Explore new ideas, hear their thoughts, share your own, and look forward to the evolving roles of mobile devices that are, increasingly around us, with us, and on us at every moment.

Takahito Iguchi, CEO, Telepathy (http://tele-pathy.us)

Kevin Lloyd, Co-Founder, Whistle (http://www.whistle.com)
Kevin Lloyd co-founded Whistle with Ben Jacobs and Steve Eidelman in
2012. He is responsible for the buildout of the engineering team and
architecture of the company’s first product, the Whistle Activity
Monitor. Prior to Whistle Kevin spent seven years working in different
roles and groups of Sierra Wireless. He started at Sierra Wireless as
a systems engineer where he primarily focused on leading technology
due diligence and integration for their consumer products. In the last
two years at Sierra Kevin joined the Maching2Machine (M2M) /Internet
of Things (IoT) platform AirVantage team as a product manager
responsible for their application framework and developer tools.

Greg McNeil,  VP Global Technology and Platforms, Flextronics
(http://www.flextronics.com)
Greg McNeil is vice president of Global Technology and Platforms for
Flextronics (NASDAQ: FLEX), which is a $24B, industry-leading, Fortune
Global 500 end-to-end supply chain solutions company with a global
workforce of 200,000 and operations in over 30 countries.  Mr. McNeil
is responsible for our Silicon Valley product engineering and global
technology.

Prior to his current role, Mr. McNeil held vice president level
product development and product management positions within large
corporations. At Apple, Microsoft, Cadence Design Systems, Sun
Microsystems and Palm, he designed world class products and lead teams
responsible for product development and product management.

In addition to his corporate experience, Mr. McNeil has also held
numerous positions at start-up companies. He helped to change the
landscape of the living room at WebTV Networks; created a new class of
servers at Cobalt Networks; developed RFID based credit card payment
solutions at ViVOtech; and founded the media player company, VVM
Systems.

Mr. McNeil holds graduate degrees in Engineering and Business from
Stanford University and Santa Clara University, respectively. Prior to
his technology career, he spent nearly a decade as a professional
cyclist, competing worldwide with the U.S. National Cycling Team,
representing the United States in two Cycling World Championships, and
one world record.

Takahito Iguchi, CEO, Telepathy Inc. (http://tele-pathy.us)
Takahito Iguchi is CEO of Telepathy Inc., which launched its first product prototype –  the Telepathy One – at the 2013 SXSW conference in Austin, TX. Telepathy One is a new wearable social communication device which aims to visually connect people in real-time by encouraging hands-free, interactive communication.

Takahito (aka. “Taka”) has been the creator and evangelist of several innovative multimedia platforms and web services companies including JUST Systems, and Digitao Limited, a blog publishing service, for which he was founder and CEO.

Taka has over 20 years experience in providing consumer oriented services using cutting-edge technology. In 2008 he founded Tonchidot Corporation which developed the Sekai Camera service, a popular augmented reality application which has garnered over three million downloads in 88 countries. Mr. Iguchi holds a BA in Philosophy from Ritsumeikan University Kyoto.

Matthew Diamond MD PhD, Medical Lead, Misfit Wearables (http://www.misfitwearables.com)
Matthew Diamond MD PhD is a sports medicine physician and the medical lead at Misfit Wearables, makers of highly wearable computing products, including the award-winning Shine, an elegant activity monitor. Matthew serves in national leadership roles in sports medicine and is on the faculty of New York University’s Rusk Institute of Rehabilitation Medicine and Harkness Center for Dance Injuries. An award-winning teacher and researcher of integrative medicine and mobile health, Matthew is passionate about helping people improve their mobility and performance through innovative, integrative medical treatments and the development of wearable devices that promote wellness.

Location:
Qualcomm Inc. Building B
3165 Kifer Road Santa Clara, CA 95051-0804

Agenda:
6:30 PM Registration and Networking

7:00 PM Start

Speaker I
Greg McNeil, VP Global Technology and Platforms, Flextronics

Speaker II
Kevin Lloyd, Co-founder & Head of Technology, Whistle

Speaker III
T.B.A.

9:00pm Adjourn

Price:
No charge for SVForum members
$20 at the door for non-SVForum members

Save time by preregistering at:
https://svforum.org/Digital-Media-Meets-bi-monthly-2nd-Tuesday-month/Digital-Media-SIG

How to Build Wireless Web-enabled Projects in Minutes with Pinocc.io
November 13, 2013 6:30 p.m. (Register)

Description:
How to Build Wireless Web-enabled Projects in Minutes with Pinocc.io – a  complete ecosystem for building the Internet of things.

Connecting things in the physical world to the web used to be a difficult task, requiring knowledge of RF, low-power systems, embedded firmware, network stacks, and web and mobile development.  Pinoccio (http://pinocc.io/) is working to make this as easy as possible, essentially giving you an API for your hardware.  In addition, Pinoccio uses mesh networking, so setting up transparent, self-healing networks is easy to do, whether you’re in an urban area, or the middle of the desert.

Eric Jennings, CTO, Pinoccio Inc.
Eric’s background is in software, but he has a soft spot for open hardware. He is a TechStars NYC Winter 2011 alum, has worked for tech startups in New York City, San Francisco, and Los Angeles, and holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science from UNR. He’s In love with the connection between software, hardware, people, and the environment in which they live, but has a crush on Erlang, analog synthesizers, and permaculture.

Location:
Qualcomm Inc. Building B
3165 Kifer Road Santa Clara, CA 95051-0804

Agenda:
6:30 PM Registration and Networking
7:00 PM -8:30 PM Presentations

Price:
No charge for SVForum members
$20 at the door for non-SVForum members

Register for this event:
https://svforum.org/Digital-Media/Digital-Media-SIG-How-Build-Wireless-Web-enabled-Projects-Minutes-Pinoccio

http://electricimp.com

Description:
Electric Imp – Connected Devices Made Simple – An Introductory Workshop

Click here for slides

Electric Imp makes it simple to bring the Internet to your devices. With imp connectivity you can empower your devices with intelligence, customization, and convenience. The possibilities are endless.

The imp is a powerful, yet tiny, hardware module that runs the imp OS. Our operating system provides the foundation to build advanced features and services for your devices, and it works with the imp Cloud to provide seamless and secure connectivity of your devices to software, third party services and external servers. Our solution gives your customers the simplest WiFi setup using our patent-pending BlinkUp technology, and with connectivity you’ll be able to monitor the health and activity of your devices in the field and roll-out updates at anytime… and from anywhere.

Matt Haines, Developer Community Manager, Electric Imp
Matt Haines is a Maker, and the Developer Community Manager at Electric Imp. Before moving to the Bay Area, Matt helped found CrashBang Labs, a hackerspace in his hometown of Regina, SK (Canada).
You can find Matt on Twitter (@beardedinventor), or reach him at matt [at] electricimp.com

Location:
Qualcomm Inc. Building B
3165 Kifer Road Santa Clara, CA 95051-0804

Agenda:
6:30 PM Registration and Networking
7:00 PM -8:30 PM Presentations

Price:
No charge for SVForum members
$20 at the door for non-SVForum members

Registration:
https://svforum.org/Digital-Media/Building-Internet-Things-Electric-Imp

Many fields already benefit from high speed iteration that scales – Lean Startup for business, Agile for software, and 3D printing for mechanical design. Tempo Automation has now developed a robot that brings this capability to electronics.

The current options for making low volumes of circuit boards are unattractive, to put it mildly. Either wait weeks to get a board back from a board house, or strain your fine motor skills trying to build multiple boards yourself. Tempo Automation aims to fix this problem with “Electronics Factory”, a reliable, easy to use, desktop robot. Think “MakerBot”, but optimized for electronics. The objective is to provide a robot that etch traces, applies solder paste, places components, reflows, and even tests. Tempo Automation releases each of these capabilities as they become available.

Our presenters, Co-founder and CEO Jeff McAlvay and Co-founder and CTO Markus Rokitta, will demo the latest production unit, and describe how rapid iteration will transform not only the startup landscape, but advance the impact of the emerging realm of things that generate and report connected data.

Jeff McAlvay, Co-founder and CEO, Tempo Automation (http://tempoautomation.com/). Previously, Jeff worked in industrial supply company McMaster-Carr’s leadership development program. There, his roles included warehouse operations design, sales, and product management. He currently runs the Bay Area Factory Tours Meetup group, and coordinates office hours that connect hardware startups with industry experts.

Markus Rokitta, PhD; Co-founder and CTO, Tempo Automation.
Markus received his PhD in Engineering from the University of Queensland in Australia. Since then, he has designed and manufactured a small form-factor MRI machine and has managed medical device programs at companies including Carl Zeiss and BIT Analytic Instruments, in countries including the US, Germany, and China.

Location:
Qualcomm Inc. Building B
3165 Kifer Road Santa Clara, CA 95051-0804

Agenda:
6:30 PM Registration and Networking
7:00 PM -8:30 PM Presentations

Price:
$20 at the door for non-SVForum members unless you pre-register.
No charge for SVForum members

* For this month only, for members and non-members, there is no cost to attend – if you pre-register. Click here to pre-register. If you do not pre-register, the cost to attend is $20.00 at the door.

Rafael ‘Tico’ Ballagas, Co-founder & CEO of Kindoma (http://www.kindoma.com)
Dr. Rafael ‘Tico’ Ballagas is the Co-founder & CEO of Kindoma where he is creating products to connect children with their long distance loved ones through reading activities. Before Kindoma, Tico was at Nokia Research Center where he lead the research and development of a multi-year exploration of technologies to help families read books together at a distance (see http://connectedreading.com). He earned his Doctorate in computer science at RWTH Aachen University in Germany with a focus on improving the design of pervasive computing experiences, and culminating in the creation of REXplorer, a pervasive game for young tourists that “sounds like magic” (NY Times). He completed his B.S. with highest honors in electrical engineering from Georgia Tech, and M.S. from Stanford University.

Location:
Qualcomm Inc. Building B
3165 Kifer Road Santa Clara, CA 95051-0804

Agenda:
6:30 PM Registration and Networking
7:00 PM -8:40 PM Presentations

Price:
$20 at the door for non-SVForum members unless you pre-register.
No charge for SVForum members
For this month only, for members and non-members, there is no cost to attend – if you pre-register. Click here to pre-register. If you do not pre-register, the cost to attend is $20.00 at the door. Thank you.