TEDMOB: CEO talks about his new company

As 2016 takes shape, new industry players are sure to emerge in the fast-paced, developing world of apps. One such emerging player in the Middle East region is TEDMOB, a rising agency focusing on developing the best mobile apps for enterprises, telecom operators, and agencies. Their main aim: To transform any idea into a successful application. In addition, the company is planning to deploy VAS services allowing operators to leverage a complete set of innovative products for generating more customer engagement and increase brand loyalty. We caught up with Mario Hachem, co-founder and CEO of TEDMOB who is optimistic about the establishment of his new company.

Mario Hachem has spent the last twelve years in the telecom, VAS and mobile industries. He led a great team at apps2you which was recognized as the "Best Mobile Application Developers" in the Middle East for 2013-2014. With a team of apps gurus and focus on outcomes that benefit the customers and company, Hachem led some projects and apps like "LAF Shield" which was to be awarded "Best M-Government App in Dubai" at the Deloitte awards for 2015.

"Throughout my journey I was elected as representative towards the government in the Beirut Creative Cluster whose vision was to create a world cluster of content, platform and technology providers, developing and distributing innovative digital content and technologies to global markets," says Hachem.

With his extensive experience in the industry, in late 2015, Hachem felt it was time for a change to extend his outreach to a broad range of customers by opening his own business. On October 5, 2015, Hachem co-founded the company TEDMOB (Technology, Entertainment and Development for Mobile). To Hachem, the establishment of the company is a "dream come true." He founded a team of seventeen developers to initiative the company; a team that he hopes to grow in 2016 by seeking out more talented individuals.

"Over the years, while working with telecom and mobile gurus, I realized that there is a huge need for telecom operators, enterprises, government, startup and entrepreneurs to leverage their distinct assets and capabilities by offering new innovative disruptive products and services," says Hachem explaining the influence behind establishing TEDMOB. 

TEDMOB in a nutshell is a mobile solutions and apps development firm with offices in Lebanon and throughout the Middle East region. They work collaboratively with telecom operators, media, and digital agencies, enterprises and startups to turn their ideas into reality. Now is a better time than ever to emerge as an app developer, especially when you look at statistics provided by Go-Globe who claim that mobile apps now account for more than half (52 percent) of all time on digital media. In addition, Go-Globe claims that estimated worldwide mobile app revenues reached 45 billion in 2015, and will increase to 58 billion in 2016.

"Our Team of mobile app and VAS developers, UI/UX designers, as well as hero project managers is devoted to managing every step of the process of each project while guiding our clients through it and guaranteeing superior results," says Hachem. "Not only do we cover native mobile apps development, but also digital products and concepts, telecom VAS content services, mobile solutions, and products that can be customized upon our clients' every need."

Goals, challenges & looking ahead

The products that Hachem and his team are currently working on are complex; therefore instead of going into detail explaining them, Hachem mentioned the target of TEDMOB's products: "Let's say today the operators are seeking products for the users and the network," he explains. "They want to increase engagement, increase brand loyalty, and engage more with their customers. Mobile apps, one of the main activities of TEDMOB, are a good way to approach our clients to offer them a new experience. We think: Why not join forces with the operators and content providers to create products that can be directly offered to the customers? The billing is directly happening with the customers, the owner of the product is happy, the users are happy, and the operator is happy."

As apps are very much a part of the technology entertainment industry, Hachem and his team closely follow trends in the app market, and other technology that is trending. Virtual reality, for example, is a tech trend that TEDMOB has caught on to. "We have many products lined up related to virtual reality in 2016, including cardboard and oculus based products," Hachem explained. "360 videos are very important - even Facebook are trying to get involved with that." TEDMOB products cover these technologies. They are also getting involved with 3D tours and 3D augmented reality.

Hachem feels sure that his team has the capacity and "know-how" to build this type of technology platform and he is excited to see how far his team can take the business of developing fun, interactive and successful apps. "We are hyping 'Appreneurs' meaning a startup that is based on an application," said Hachem. "We essentially help them and offer them services beyond development."

Looking ahead, 2016 is sure to be a big year for TEDMOB, the up-and-coming tech entertainment development brand. As a new company, like any other, they have faced and will still face more challenges - but Hachem is up for it. For him, one of his main focuses for the year is to continue to add more talented individuals to his team who can provide fresh ideas and expertise.

 He admits that a challenge he faced in 2015 was the "economic and political situations in the region" which caused pushing back of some of his potential investors. However, Hachem remains optimistic offering this final statement: "If you have a good team and a good product, any company has a good chance at making it."

For more:

http://www.activetelecoms.com/index.php?option=com_k2&view=itemlist&task=tag&tag=TEDMOB&Itemid=128