I had the chance to talk with a new player in the mobile-meets-social-networking space several weeks ago. Frengo allows members to create content channels which can be used for private communications and media sharing (publicly or privately) and which can be monetized via a reward system. Mobile allows users to better experience first responder and gut-reactions’ Twitter, for example, allows someone to cover a news event as it happens. Frengo differentiates in its robust feature set, very next-generation, allowing for much greater interaction and community than any other mobile offerings I have seen.
Frengo was the brainchild of co-founders Dan Mosher and Steve Manning, both former employees at Verisign. The Frengo revenue model currently revolves around monetizing ’sponsored experiences,’ offering companies a more ’immersable’ brand experience along with more traditional game sales and advertising.
Overall I think the mobile content delivery space is wide-open, though still a few years away from where should be relative to say Asia. Mass adoption of mobile technologies (using your mobile device as a true media consumption vehicle) is clearly not yet the norm here in America. However, with the iPhone, I think people are going to begin expecting more from their mobile devices. With a talented team, good model and solid VC partner, Frengo is positioned for success.