Tomas Bennich, mobile and multimedia director at Kista Science City AB, talks about collaboration, innovation and other trends for entrepreneurs in the Swedish mobile industry.

Tomas Bennich heads the Kista Mobile and Multimedia Network, an established project whose main purpose is to create growth opportunities for mobile startups.

Bennich says that Kista has become a hub for ICT entrepreneurship. “Most of the large ICT companies such as Ericsson and Microsoft are well-established here. There are several research institutes focusing on mobile and wireless technologies and The Royal Institute of Technology even has a campus here. “Entrepreneurs like to hang out together,” he says.

Hot right now among mobile startups is what is known as augmented reality, Bennich says. “When filming objects with your camera, you can get add-on information about your surroundings through, for instance, internet access and GPS.

“Live streaming is also very popular - everybody wants to be a live reporter. By adding a feedback channel so the viewers can interact with you, the experience gets even better,” Bennich says. “Many of the mobile services that were available a few years ago but didn’t really make it, are now here for real, such as mobile payment, context-aware mobile services, and location-based services.”

According to Bennich, adding mobile services to their offerings is a trend among internet companies today. “In many cases these mobile services become a premium part of their business,” he says.

Also notable, Bennich says, is that compared to the internet boom 10 years ago, the startups of today are much more mature and successful. And they generally have a more global approach right from the start. They often look to growing markets such as China and India while running their business from Sweden.

An important trend among Swedish mobile operators is their efforts to work closely with smaller innovative companies. “They have joined forces with mobile startups and in many cases integrated them into their business,” Bennich says.

Bennich says that Ericsson supports his work with startups in several ways. “We work closely both with the Ericsson Developer Connection and with Ericsson Labs. We also do a lot of activities with Ericsson to address specific markets.”

Bennich says that to be successful, innovation is important. “There is no such thing as a killer app, however. You should adopt a broad perspective and constantly look for new opportunities.”

By Benny Ritzén