Skyhook Wireless Launches Developer Network to Help Innovators Build Deploy Location Based Services
Written by Skyhook Wireless
Wednesday, 14 June 2006
Announces joint 'Wi-Fi Cage Match' competition with Tele Atlas® and Segway® Human
Transporter grand prize for most innovative LBS application.
SAN JOSE, CA – June 13, 2006 -- Skyhook Wireless, provider of the industry’s
first Wi-Fi based positioning system, today announced at the O'Reilly Media Where
2.0 conference the launch of the Skyhook Developer's Network. Providing location-based
service and application developers with free access to the Skyhook Wi-Fi Positioning
System™ (WPS), APIs, documentation and a support infrastructure, the Developer's
Network will allow solution providers to build accurate and reliable location-based
products running on commonly available platforms and without the need of additional
hardware such as a GPS. As part of the launch, Skyhook also announced 'Wi-Fi Cage
Match,' a product development contest that will reward the developer of the most
innovative and dynamic Wi-Fi based location application with a Segway® Human Transporter.
Download, Integrate & Participate
The cornerstone for the Skyhook Developer's Network is the Developer's Dashboard,
a web-based support infrastructure that will give LBS developer's access to the
Skyhook software-only positioning APIs and software code, documentation, release
notes, community forums and technical support. Skyhook's unique capabilities as
a softwareonly positioning technology make the Developer's Dashboard the ideal
forum for delivering and supporting WPS-based development efforts. Developers
can download and integrate the APIs under a no-charge evaluation and development
license and then elect to make the integrated application commercially available
by upgrading to a distribution license. The Developer's Dashboard can be accessed
directly at http://developer.skyhookwireless.com.
The Skyhook WPS SDK allows for rapid integration with LBS applications running
on a number of platforms. It give developers the ability to add auto-location
query functionality and incorporate a complete location profile -- latitude, longitude,
full street address -- through a simple API that can generally be mastered in
a single day. Additionally Skyhook's WPS can act as a virtual GPS and provide
latitude and longitude in the standard NMEA format allowing them to leverage location
interfaces that they have already developed.
Partners
The Skyhook Developer's Dashboard will also feature an Application Showcase that
will describe and promote the most innovative partner-developed WPS-based location
based services and applications.
“We developed the Eye-Film integrated Wi-Fi and photo storage card to deliver on the vision of enabling any digital camera to be wireless,
real-time and location aware” said Yuval Koren, president and CEO, Eye-Fi. “Skyhook's
WPS platform and supporting APIs were the clear choice to enable users to location-stamp
every photo taken with an Eye-Film enabled camera. The Developer's Network and
Dashboard will be important tools to help us complete our development efforts
and roll-out this feature later this year.” “Skyhook’s technology is what we’ve
been waiting for. Building location-based multiplayer games for urban environments
has been a difficult problem to solve, and now we have a solution,” said Kevin
Slavin, Managing Director of area/code, developer of 'Big Games' such as ConQwest.
“At the Come Out & Play street games festival this fall, we’ll be premiering
a new game, with the WPS location-engine at its core. By opening up the APIs and
providing support for developers like us, Skyhook is helping us take new game
ideas from concept to reality.”
“Working with location-based service and application developers, we've seen how
the requirement for specialized equipment, such as a GPS, and the limited user
interface on mobile devices, have kept the LBS market from reaching its full potential,” said Jed Rice,
vice president of market development for Skyhook Wireless. “In launching the Developer's
Network and opening up availability to our positioning technology, we are creating
addressable markets for our development partners that will now include the over
100 million Wi-Fi enabled laptops, PDAs and other devices that don't and won't
have a GPS. Combined with our ever-increasing coverage area, this creates tremendous
new technical and business opportunities for LBS practitioners.”
Wi-Fi Cage Match
Skyhook has also launched, and is co-sponsoring with Tele Atlas, the 'Wi-Fi Cage
Match' product competition. Part competition, part community of like-minded developers
and part forum for showing off innovative ideas and approaches, the objective
of the Cage Match is to encourage the development of location-based applications
on more open, reliable and accurate systems. Starting June 15th and running through
September 15th, developer's can enroll via the Skyhook Developer's Dashboard.
Contestants will also be able to leverage the Tele Atlas® DeveloperLink(SM) to
gain access to Tele Atlas map data, development tools, documentation and forum
to further enhance their Skyhookenabled LBS application.
Applications submitted for review will be judged by a panel of industry experts
who will evaluate applications based on innovation, consumer appeal, ease of use
and breadth of functionality. The developer of the winning application will receive
a Segway ® Human Transporter and, more importantly, bragging rights.
About Skyhook Wireless
Founded in 2003, Skyhook Wireless has pioneered the development of the first-ever
metro-area positioning system that leverages Wi-Fi rather than satellites or cell
towers to deliver precise location data supporting the growing market for location-based
services. The Skyhook Wi-Fi Positioning System (WPS) requires no new hardware,
works indoors and outdoors, provides an instant location and is more accurate
than current technologies in congested downtown areas. WPS is currently available
in the top 100 US metro areas and is on target to serve 70% of the US population
by the end of 2006. Skyhook Wireless is headquartered in Boston, MA and is privately
held. Investors include Bain Capital, Intel Capital and Nokia Ventures Organization.
For more information visit www.skyhookwireless.com, send email to
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
or call 617-314- 9802.
Loki, Skyhook Wireless and WPS are the trademarks of Skyhook Wireless, Inc. All
other marks are the property of their respective owners.
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