Hello all,
That Friday feeling is descending on the office like a gluey mist, so I thought I’d pass these bite-sized updates from the North East tech and startup pond before we all transform into gin-soaked ghouls from the fourth realm of nightmares.
I’m always on the lookout for more (and my Netvibes feed is playing up this morning) so feel free to send your snippets to john@betarocket.co.uk. Cheers…
STARTUP WARS
It seemed to do pretty well last year, so it’s not a massive surprise that Thinking Digital is bringing back its startup competition for a second whirl in May. Interested teams have until April 30 to apply for the competition, and up to 10 selected startups will pitch for three minutes in front of a panel of judges and an expectant audience. That’ll take place in the pre-conference bit of the conference (bear with me on that), while the top two be invited to a final during the conference itself to duke it out.
The whole thing is being sponsored by Sage One, and organised by startup accelerator Ignite100. Find out more in our article.
FINISH HIM
A quick leap into the games world now. Those of you who follow the progress of Gateshead’s Atomhawk Design (which includes us, because their work is so cool and SHINY) will remember that they chipped in with some work on NetherRealm Studios’ Mortal Kombat game in 2011. More recently, they’ve also “had a hand” in Injustice: Gods Among Us, NetherRealm’s upcoming multi-platform release featuring superheroes pounding the latex out of each other.
It’s currently out for iOS, with other console formats launching on April 16. Here’s a trailer to get you up to speed, DC fans…
GRAB YOUR OWN BMW
Back in April last year, Eutechnyx launched a BMW Experience in its free-to-play social racing platform Auto Club Revolution. Chief operating officer Darren Jobling said it provided a great opportunity for brands to have “a two-way interaction with fans”, even to the extent that they can develop from online fan feedback.
Well, the Gateshead indie game firm’s relationship with BMW has given them a bit of a jump on the upcoming BMW Z4 sDrive35is, which is appearing in the game before it hits the streets of the real world. Users could pre-order the car in the game from yesterday, and the first 200 pre-orders will get access on the 17th (a week before its official game release on the 24th).
Using a digital game-world car to develop, tweak and market a real one adds an interesting dimension to ACR. Let’s see where it takes Eutechnyx in future…
SCREACHTV ON TOUR
Fresh from announcing their $2.5m investment, Screach is taking its ScreachTV plug-and-play entertainment system for pubs and venues on the road. They’ll be one of the exhibitors travelling the country for EmpowerLive, a roadshow organised by Enterprise which will cover locations such as Leeds, Bristol, London and Exeter.
ScreachTV is currently popping up in pubs around the country, including Newcastle’s own Pacific House. Pop in and have a look sometime.
ON BETAROCKET
Thinking Digital’s startup competition returns for a second year, sponsored by Sage One and organised by Ignite100 (Startup Wars Return to Thinking Digital)
BLOGPOSTS THAT ROCK
Refresh Teesside had an excellent night (by all accounts) last night, with a fair wedge of five-minute speakers throwing out wisdom on topics from home working to app-making. I missed it all (boo) because I had tickets to Newcastle United’s European match, but Vicky Teinaki laid it all down on Storify (Refresh Teesside: April 2013)
A few days ago, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs boiled up the comment stream by posting a note at their gig telling fans not to spend their whole show taking smartphone videos and pictures. Now, I’ve been to gigs where people have spend hours recording ON THEIR FECKING IPADS and it’s damn annoying, but is the smartphone at concerts a modern annoyance or just an evolution of cameras and bootlegging? It was interesting to see LA and London-based collaborative video app firm Vyclone get in with a blog on this. Could crowdsourcing fan footage into a unique multi-angle video soften the blow for artists? (Yeah Yeah Yeah)
Evgeny Shadchnev, co-founder of Makers Academy, goes into some of the mistakes that software developers make in interviews (Top 10 Interview Mistakes That Cost Developers Their Jobs)
Everyone loves productivity tips, so here’s Leo Widrich with seven of them on the Buffer Blog (7 Simple Productivity Tips You Can Apply Today, Backed With Science)
A FEW ANNOUNCEMENTS
The fifth NEBytes event of 2013 will take place on April 25 at Newcastle University, and will look at Advanced MVVM in Windows 8 Apps. It’s free to attend, but you have to register here.
The latest Lean North East event will swing round on April 22, and will feature Ryan Foster and Umar Yusufu. Go here for more details.
Remember, you can share your own news or list your event by emailing john@betarocket.co.uk. Prizes include felt and string, while stocks last.
Headline pic by Larry D Moore, via Wikimedia Commons