Ubiquisys and MIT Entrepreneurship Center Team research femtocell services and business models
Identify High Market Potential in Mobile Advertising, Call Routing and Location-Based Social Networking
Swindon, UK, 16th December 2008 – Ubiquisys, the leading developer of 3G femtocells, today announced that it has been working with a team from MIT’s Entrepreneurship Lab (E-Lab) to look at femtocell application services and operator business models. Using a combination of primary and secondary research the team looked at a number of areas, including femto-enabling existing internet applications, exploration of new application services, and defining and quantifying the consumer value propositions. MIT has also agreed to establish a femtocell application development centre at the MIT Entrepreneurship Center.
“We have successfully answered the technical femtocell questions and mobile operators are now looking to the potential for additional revenue generating services,” said Chris Gilbert, CEO of Ubiquisys. “MIT’s reputation for innovation and technical expertise is second to none and we are delighted to have been working with a very talented E-Lab team who are helping to define the future of femtocell services.”
The MIT E-Lab is a course in which teams of graduate management, engineering and science student’s work for one semester on a problem critical to the success of a new technology venture. Hundreds of millions of people across the world have a both a mobile phone and access to a broadband connection at home or at work. But these two liberating technologies have grown up separately. Ubiquisys has joined them together by pioneering the femtocell, a miniature 3G access point that plugs into a user’s broadband connection. It delivers great indoor coverage, with very fast mobile internet, at very low cost.
About Ubiquisys Ubiquisys was formed in 2004 to bring its ground-breaking ZoneGate femtocell technology to market. ZoneGate femtocells are manufactured with Sony UK Tech and are available as standalone units or as part of a residential gateway device such as Netgear’s DVG834GH. The system supports multiple interfaces to the operator’s core network, and is remotely managed and updated using standard TR-069 management systems such as Motive’s Home Device Manager. Ubiquisys’ sole focus is femtocells, and in 2007 it created the Femto Forum to promote standards and partnerships in this fast-emerging industry. In May 2008 ABI Research named Ubiquisys as the world’s leading femtocell vendor in their Femtocell Vendor Matrix. In September 2008 the company announced that Softbank would be the world’s first operator to offer commercial 3G femtocell services using the ZoneGate. Ubiquisys is funded by Accel Partners, Advent Venture Partners, Atlas Venture, Google and T-Mobile Venture Fund. For more information, visit www.ubiquisys.com.
About the MIT Entrepreneurship Center The MIT Entrepreneurship Center faculty is comprised of renowned thought leaders, dedicated researchers, experienced entrepreneurs, and engaging instructors. The breadth of perspectives and specialties they provide ensures a solid, well-rounded exposure to entrepreneurial concepts. One of the most popular course offerings at MIT Sloan is the Entrepreneurship Lab (E-Lab), a semester-long course in which students work one day a week in a start-up company. Interdisciplinary teams of MBAs and engineering students are charged with helping to solve a real-world problem that keeps CEOs awake at night. Assignments range from conducting market research for a pre-IPO biotech company, to participating in the creation of a fabless (a company that doesn't manufacture its own silicon wafers) semiconductor company's marketing plan, to helping a software company develop high-level customer profiles. E-Lab students take this extraordinary experience with them as they launch their careers; graduates often return to seek advice, reassess their career options, and replenish themselves from the E-Lab faculty's deep well of insight.
