Bloggingstocks Interview: Ajit Jaokar on Mobile Web 2.0

There's been lots of talk about Web 2.0. But how about the next version of mobile? That's what Ajit Jaokar has been focusing on. I recently got the chance to interview this co-author a new book called Mobile Web 20.

What's your take on the funding environment (for startups) in Europe?

AJ: In my view, the U.S. culture of risk taking has not permeated to Europe in a big way. Yes, there is a culture of innovation but the VC community here is very risk averse and there is not a lot of angel investment as in the U.S. In fact, I believe UK startups should look to getting a foothold in the U.S. and building bridges with U.S. companies and VCs.

Maybe a background of your firm, futuretext?

AJ: I started futuretext in 2002. Like I said in an interview with Robert Scoble on the Scoble show, 'If you ask a child, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" they don't reply, "A publisher." In other words, you become a publisher by chance, and I am no exception.

I started off writing management reports but then focused on publishing books. We work with emerging technologies, mainly mobility and digital convergence.

Publishing is a traditional business, but it is being transformed by digital technologies. Today, the barriers to publishing are very few (in the sense anyone can get ISBN numbers, and the cost of printing a book has been reduced). Thus, the barriers to entry in publishing is now mostly "intellectual acceptance," meaning that your idea has to be validated amongst your peers. For instance, I chair Oxford University's next generation mobile applications panel – a vibrant community of thought leaders. As a publishing company, we contribute to this program because it gives us intellectual acceptance in the wider community and thus indirectly benefits our authors.

I follow the same reasoning with my blog – OpenGardens. The blog is all about independent analysis as opposed to the latest news.

How did you get the idea for the book? What were some of the surprises?

AJ: The book started off because I read Tim O Reilly's seven principles of Web 2.0 and realized that the sixth principle "Software above the level of a single device" was not covered in detail (except for Apple's iPod). I started blogging about how Web 2.0 would extend to mobile devices and especially mobile phones. This ultimately led to the book "Mobile Web 2.0" with other chapters contributed by Tony Fish. Thus, the book was blogged about quite extensively.

For the next year or so, what are the big themes for mobile?

AJ: I think the next year will see some major trends: Fixed rate pricing (in Europe), full browser technology (i.e. browsers supporting all web standards), mobile widgets and Web 2.0 services on the Web venturing into mobile devices.

What are some of the companies to watch?

AJ: I think the mobile web will increasingly blend with the web. Thus, I would follow companies that seek to benefit from this converged web scenario for instance: Opera(www.opera.com), Hutchinson 3G (www.three.co.uk) and soonr(www.soonr.com)

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including the Complete M&A Handbook and operates DealProfiles.com.