19 Questions with Ed Cave of Txt2Lock
We recently caught up with Ed, Product Manager for the hot new service Txt2Lock and asked if he would like to answer some of SMS Text News’ probing interview questions! Here’s what Ed had to say…
What was your first mobile? Make/Model/Network
Motorola MR201 Orange Pay as you go
What was your first exposure to working with the mobile industry?
I based my degree around Mobile Phones and 3G technology but my first experience was a Market Research job for NQuire. NQuire are Mobile Number Portability experts and asked me to produce an analysis on European Markets they were targeting to see whether it would be financially beneficial.
What do you think has been the one biggest technological advance that has revolutionized the mobile industry?
Tricky question as there are quite a few. I would say simply the size of handsets coincided with improved screen resolution has to be the main one. The fact you can actually fit a phone in your pocket now (rather than carry a brief case) and see the screen has been the basis for widespread take up in my opinion.
What gave you the inspiration to start Txt2Lock?
Being a victim of Phone theft! Although I cancelled my sim card I was still left liable for some expensive calls to the Middle East. Also my main concern was my contacts, pictures and the fact someone was actually routing through my life by reading my texts, emails and calendar. A couple of my friends also had similar experiences and along with the growth in ID theft that’s when I decided to propose the idea to my colleagues.
What’s next on the horizon for you and the team at Information Mobile?
We have had some very good interest in Txt2Lock in a short amount of time and we are focusing on selling and covering a wider range of handsets in the near future. We also have some interesting projects in the pipeline involving developing specific applications for clients. The most exciting, in my opinion, is getting involved in proximity marketing for a project involving a Media company.
What is your current mobile strategy?
Our current strategy is to simply provide an easy and attractive user experience to any subscribers and users of our products including installing the application as well as using it. (Although I think we could do with some help from Nokia on the installing part……)
If you could only have one mobile phone for the rest of your life, what would it be? Why?
Probably the trickiest question on the list considering I change phones every 4-6 months. For old times sake the Nokia 6110.
What was the last movie you saw? Worth it?
Transformers. Without a doubt!
What mobile services can you not live without?
Apart from the basic calling and SMS has to be Widsets. Suits my day-to-day needs perfectly.
What is your current ringtone?
Rather dull but a preinstalled one called Clerk on my Nokia E65.
Do you have any pets?
No!
What company in the mobile industry has currently caught your eye?
There isn’t really one. There are a few services like Jaiku and Truphone which I think are good. I also like the new service coming out soon by Refresh Mobile, they have really picked up on user experience and what the user wants. I’m also looking forward to testing Taptu once I get my invite which is a mobile search and share service. I find it so hard to search the mobile web and believe there must be more sites out there for me to use.
Most used feature on your handset?
SMS
What sites do you read regularly to keep up with the industry?
Apart from SMS Text News you mean? Er, The Register, Pocket Picks, All About Symbian and Mac Sis are probably the most read but I do have about 25 others in my RSS feeder.
What University/College did you go to? What did you take?
I was at the University or Northumbria in Newcastle up until 3 years ago where I studied Information and Communication Management. Passed with a 2:1.
What was your mobile bill last month? Do you think it’s a fair price to pay for your mobile service?
£67.05p. Far too much if you ask me. Bills should never be more than £50. When will Data charges come down???
Complete this sentence. The iPhone is…
Going to be a flop but I am still going to buy one.
What’s your favourite type of music?
I like Indie, Alternative and Rock music. Stuff like Radiohead, Oasis, The Verve, Stone Roses, The Shins, Beck to name a few off the top of my head. Last album I bought was We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank by Modest Mouse.
What’s good and bad about the mobile industry?
Being involved in the application development side of things the thing that annoys me most is that every handset is different in terms of operating system and that Symbian 3rd Edition means very little in terms of development. It is so hard to make a universal application without testing and tweaking on all handsets. Also the Symbian Signing process could do with an overhaul. Otherwise Data Charges are another of my pet hates.
The good thing is that there is always something new. New handsets, new online services, new applications etc it is forever changing and never stands still there always some new gadget/service to use.
Thanks for taking the time Ed!
