InnoCentive Business

InnoCentive is an "open innovation" company that takes research and development problems in a broad range of domains such as Engineering, Computer Science, Math, Chemistry, Life Sciences, Physical Sciences and Business, frames them as "challenge problems", and opens them up for anyone to solve them. It gives cash awards for the best solutions to solvers who meet the challenge criteria.

The idea for InnoCentive came to Alpheus Bingham and Aaron Schacht after they attended a public lecture at the Santa Fe Institute^. The company was launched in 2001 by Jill Panetta and Alpheus Bingham.

In December 2006 the company signed an agreement with the Rockefeller Foundation to add a non-profit area designed to generate science and technology solutions to pressing problems in the developing world

As of early 2007, InnoCentive's web site features an award from the non-profit "Prize 4 Life" foundation for $1 million for finding a biomarker that measures ALS disease progression.

InnoCentive is based in Waltham, Massachusetts.

InnoCentive calls the scientists who attempt the problems "solvers" and the companies these problems come from as "seekers". As of 2005 InnoCentive had 34 of these "seekers" (including Procter & Gamble, Dow AgroSciences and Eli Lilly), which have posted more than 200 "challenges" in 40 scientific disciplines, of which more than 58 had been solved by over 120,000 "solvers".

The problems listed are categorized as biology or chemistry problems, but use a very liberal definition of these disciplines, for example challenges have been posted in the areas of system network theory, manufacturing engineering, design, materials science and nanotechnology.

Solutions have come from US, Europe, Russia, China, India and Argentina; the cash awards for solving challenge problems are typically in the $10,000 to $100,000 range.

InnoCentive provides a consultancy service to enable its clients to make the most of its "solver" network. "Science advisers" and "problem definers" help clients to identify a challenge appropriate for posting on its network. They then estimate an appropriate award fee by determining the complexity of the problem, the resources required find a solution, and the value transferred to the company. InnoCentive reserves the right to reject the award amounts that are deemed too low and its experts provide a solution vetting service to screen out ideas that do not meet the challenge criteria.

InnoCentive forces its "seeker" companies to agree to intellectuel property audits so that once a solution is provided to the company it can guarantee that the intellectual property is not used if the company decides not to award it. The company may also force the "seeker" company to award the solution if it deems that it meets the requirements of the challenge.

InnoCentive also provides a consultancy service to its network of "solvers". Its "science experts" provide feedback to explain the terms of the challenges as well as why submitted solutions may be deficient. It provides the logistic and legal framework for maintaining their control over the intellectual property until its sale to the seeker company. All communication and submitted solutions remain confidential.

Competitors offering similar services include NineSigma, Yet2.com, and YourEncore.

What is a mash-up ?

It is the capability to mix and match data and applications from multiple sources into one dynamic entity. You put opposite things together= Creates a new product.
The term mash-up comes from the hip-hop music practice of mixing two or more songs.
Timbaland is good in mash ups, mixing different styles of music to rap.

Here's a sampling of mash-up Web sites:
Panoramio: a mash-up of Google Maps and geopositioned photographs of locations
Hiking Outpost: a mash-up of Amazon and online hiking information resources
Flash Earth: a zoomable mash-up of Google Maps and Microsoft's Virtual Earth
Diggdot: a mash-up of Digg, Slashdot and Del.icio.us that integrates and filters content
HousingMaps: a mash-up of Google Maps and Craigslist rental ads that displays geographical information for rental properties.

The freemium concept

Magic videos wall

Stelios Haji-Ioannou at Zeitgeist Europe 2007

Landind with easyJet

Fun chez Easy-Jet
envoyé par Tango-fox

Easy Group model

I think that we are discussing about the most important low cost group ever created. During my research about the EasyGroup, I found a lot of words with a strong meaning to describe it as “The Easy Empire”. In fact the EasyGroup is a private investment owned by one man: Stelios Haji-Ioannou. He is a Greek entrepreneur of 40 years old who started the EasyGroup in 1995 by founding the low cost airline company easyJet. But know the easyGroup is very huge and divided in 17 departments: easyJet, easyInternetcafe, easyCar, easyValue, easyMoney, easyCinema, easyBus, easyHotel, easy4men, easyJobs, easyPizza, easyMusic, easyCruise, easyMobile, easyWatch, easyVan, easyOffice.
It is an evidence this group is a huge success. And I will try to indentify for witch reasons:

• They built a big identity
• they use one color very attractive
• They are using simple name for each group
• They diversified their products at the maximum

We said that the group started with easyJet at the beginning it was a small company but today with their planes we are able to travel in all the biggest European capitals. With easyJet began a new concept, in fact you have no accommodations on board and only few services. This last point could be consider as a negative aspect but on the other hand with the concept it is “easy” to travel for many people who can not use traditional airline companies with more expensive prices.

Let’s have a look to easyHotel wich is one of the specialized hotel booking on the Internet. Stelios Haji-Ioannou, to create easyHotel studied the Japanese model. Indeed he found that customers are ready to stay in a room smaller than usual for a lower price. He took is inspiration from the “capsule hotels” of huge Japanese city by building very small rooms around 5m² and 9m². This kind of room is perfect for the short stay of periodic travelers like an “etap hotel” but I deeply think that it won’t be comfortable at all for business men who are very often obliged to use their room as a work place like an office. To my mind it is clear that easyGroup is following a way to reach certain goals: they clearly want to eliminate all their competitors by developing a huge branding.

Easy Hotels will benefits of lowest rate guarantee include:

• Serves as a great tool to beat the online discounters at their own game
• Such guarantees entice more consumers to book online
• Rate guarantees are great customer retention instruments
• Such guarantees have important psychological and promotional effects for consumers
• More and more, the guarantee is an expectation by online consumers
• Price guarantees have a great "word of mouth" effect.
  

There are four essential conditions for revenue management to be applicable:

• That there is a fixed amount of resources available for sale.
• That the resources sold are perishable. This means that there is a time limit to selling the resources, after which they cease to be of value.
• That different customers are willing to pay a different price for using the same amount of resources.
• Also is important to have direct access to consumers. The sales through intermediaries or wholesalers makes the process much harder to understand demand and often impossible to control and vary price.

Easy Hotels and Yield Management

• Increase revenue by maximizing occupancy and protecting rates when necessary
• To have access to accurate statistical reports both future, current and historical
• Detailed demand forecasting information to help with sales and marketing initiatives
• Competitor analysis on both the internet and GDS to help react to market influences
• Group analysis to help evaluate the impact group reservations have on occupancy and therefore revenue
• Series analysis which assess the impact a tour series contract will have on your property
• Access to reports and real time information on a group wide basis for Head Office personnel