Loopt to work in the background on iPhone via deal with AT&T

http://www.businessinsider.com/loopt-to-run-in-the-background-on-iphone-2009-6

by fromedome • 17 years ago

62 60 17 years ago

businessinsider.com

sama2• 17 years ago

wow!

Radix2• 17 years ago

You know, you could give some context to this comment, and perhaps comment on the article since you know more.

Radix2• 17 years ago

Guh, I was trying to point out you're probably the Sama and maybe get some info on the actual deal. Not get you down-voted. Your comment was perfectly acceptable considering your connection to Loopt.

mitchellh• 17 years ago

Cool for people who use Loopt I guess BUT this is really not fair to other developers (especially the competitors of Loopt).

It feels like one of those "Well, if I let YOU do it I have to let EVERYONE do it" type of things, and AT&T should have said no.

I also find it interesting that Apple isn't mentioned anywhere in the deal, which is strange because the article makes it seem that AT&T has the power to just tell Apple to break one of its developer rules for a special case. Shady, if I do say so myself.

chrismear2• 17 years ago

From the article:

"The app isn't running in the background; it's working server-to-server."

So presumably all they've done is a deal with AT&T to access the cell-location data for a subscriber, and using the app to tie that into their Loopt identity. Nothing special going on inside the iPhone OS.

sh1mmer2• 17 years ago

I wondered about this. It was discussed about how Pre sends a location update with its debug bundle. I wondered why Apple didn't send a location update when they pole for the push update.

It wouldn't have to happen every time, but once every 5-10 minutes would be a good balance of phone battery and timeliness.

cyunker• 17 years ago

Interesting. So it shouldn't affect battery life.

icey• 17 years ago

Since when does AT&T have to be the arbiter of fairness?

They are a company that wants to make money; evidently they've decided that this will help them do so.

If anything, other developers should be excited about the fact that there may be some other options for monetization than direct app store sales.

ekanes• 17 years ago

Most relevant sentence: "After the 14-day trial, the always-on feature will cost $3.99 per month, added to your AT&T bill."

axod5• 17 years ago

Seems like these sorts of things will never work in a paid subscription model. The only way I can see them working is ad supported - show you vouchers for the shops/restaurants as you pass them etc etc.

Maybe it's just me, but would anyone here pay $3.99 per month for this?

thorax• 17 years ago

I can easily see parents requiring their teenagers to use this software and pay $3.99 a month.

They already pay hundreds of dollars a year for things like this: http://www.flexispy.com/spyphone-flexispy-apple-iphone.htm

sama2• 17 years ago

stay tuned!

breck• 17 years ago

> Maybe it's just me, but would anyone here pay $3.99 per month for this?

Probably not, but I think the other 90% of the world might. My cell phone bill is high because I pay $15 extra for tethering. My little sister's cell phone bill is high because she buys ringtones. As much as I think that's a waste, way more people buy the latter than the former.

stse• 17 years ago

Now? Probably not. If most of my friends were using it? Definitely.

mrshoe• 17 years ago

AT&T disgusts me. How much money has the iPhone dropped in their lap? And all they do with that money is drag down the entire user experience with horrible, overpriced service which cripples the device severely.

They have had time, however, to try to squeeze as much money from this venture as possible while they still have exclusivity. I've now received two emails from AT&T about their navigation app. They charge $9.99 per month for it. How many other iPhone app developers can send out an email to every single iPhone owner at will? Zero. The rest of us have to charge 99 cents (one time) if we want to get noticed on the App Store.

And now that they've cashed in on Apple's brilliance and innovation, they're going to do the same with Loopt. They are the perfect example of a company willing to do whatever it takes to increase profits, but not willing to do much of anything to help their customers.

mikeryan2• 17 years ago

It seems to me that this would be Loopt's business model?

I can understand bashing AT&T I hate their service, but I think Loopt charges for their service on most providers.

Oh and the $9.99 per month thing made me choke too. Especially when TomTom has a $99 app.

steveklabnik5• 17 years ago

> And all they do with that money is drag down the entire user experience with horrible, overpriced service which cripples the device severely.

How do you think us Verizon customers feel? At least you get phones with WiFi...

blasdel• 17 years ago

That's nothing -- Verizon will charge you rent just to re-enable the GPS API on your phone!

fnid• 17 years ago

Wow, cry me a river. Apple gave them exclusivity for exactly the same reason -- more profits. Obviously you like them enough to be a customer. You could switch, why don't you?

smokinn• 17 years ago

And while they'll probably get a lot of customers to sign on to this service, these people won't be happy when they see Google Latitude running for free on their friend's Android phone.

You can run Latitude on the iPhone but the whole no-background-apps thing renders it nearly useless.

jcromartie• 17 years ago

AT&T is living proof that the "free market" has failed. I know we don't have a free market, but we are led to believe that we do by pro-business establishment conservatives.

andreyf• 17 years ago

PG on Loopt CEO, Sam Altman:

I was told I shouldn't mention founders of YC-funded companies in this list. But Sam Altman can't be stopped by such flimsy rules. If he wants to be on this list, he's going to be.

Honestly, Sam is, along with Steve Jobs, the founder I refer to most when I'm advising startups. On questions of design, I ask "What would Steve do?" but on questions of strategy or ambition I ask "What would Sama do?"

What I learned from meeting Sama is that the doctrine of the elect applies to startups. It applies way less than most people think: startup investing does not consist of trying to pick winners the way you might in a horse race. But there are a few people with such force of will that they're going to get whatever they want.

(source: http://www.paulgraham.com/5founders.html)

sayrer• 17 years ago

I still can't believe he manages to cut the deals that he does. I was really shocked when it showed up on Boost Mobile.

Is Loopt really that great? Does he prove that it makes money for the phone company? I guess that must be the pitch, since it would be easier to track what's driving spending from a pre-pay customer.

sh1mmer2• 17 years ago

I do something like this with http://github.com/tylerhall/sosumi

I was planning to write something which alternates between Sosumi and Clarke (Skyhook FireEagle updater for Mac) so when you are at your computer and updating you don't eat into your iPhone battery.

hiroprot• 17 years ago

If you're using Brightkite, you can get background location on your iPhone using this: http://github.com/HiroProt/playnice/tree/master

Of course, that's a total hack ;)

jonursenbach• 17 years ago

Antitrust, much?

barrkel• 17 years ago

Funny, what with the Apple / Jobs etc. in context, I read that as Antichrist...

roc• 17 years ago

Why do I get this feeling that Loopt simply struck a deal for access to location/tracking/logging data that AT&T is already collecting for its own purposes...

wmf• 17 years ago

Because that's basically what the article says?

The real question is why AT&T is proactively tracking phone location (if they are).

chrismear2• 17 years ago

Probably something really sinister, like the ability to route your phone calls to you, or something.

pkulak• 17 years ago

I would pay 4 bucks a month... if everyone else paid 4 bucks a month and did the same. They won't do that, however.

midnightmonster• 17 years ago

Loopt is not running in the background, AT&T is just updating Loopt from their own data.

http://daringfireball.net/linked/2009/09/04/loopt-location

jzdziarski• 17 years ago

Apps have been running in the background since Backgrounder was published on Cydia. And it doesn't cost anything to do so. Backgrounder lets me set up my TomTom, Flow Chat (IRC), and AMBER Alert to background themselves automatically... and my 3G[s] still runs plenty fast.

darien2• 17 years ago

In reference to pricing, I think you guys are forgetting the study which found that the majority of iphone users make over $80,000 in salary. There is quite a lot of disposable income in that population. Therefore it only makes sense that they would attempt to milk every dime. Especially when competitors are sure to emerge in the next 2-3 years.

axod5• 17 years ago

"...study which found that the majority of iphone users make over $80,000 in salary."

Are these professionals really the target market for Loopt though? Loopt seems more useful to teens/college kids etc.

darien2• 17 years ago

When you consider that location based services like Loopt can be used to feed Apps like Foursquare.com you realize this technology has broad applications for iphones majority audience. Foursquare is a mobile social media platform that allows users to see what bars their friends are situated at.

allenbrunson• 17 years ago

as an entrepreneur: wow, that's a pretty good hack. not many people could have pulled that off.

as an iphone owner: oh no WAY am i going to pay extra for that. at&t already charges through the nose and gives me lousy service in return.

antirez• 17 years ago

This is highly unfair: to provide a technological boost only to a single application is not what I'm comfortable to name as a 'free market'.

charlesju• 17 years ago

As a complete side note; how many people do you know that use Loopt? I'm curious as to how well they're doing in comparison to say something like Facebook.

sdh• 17 years ago

I'm surprised people aren't more up in arms about AT&T continuously tracking their location.

njharman• 17 years ago

It's more or less required for cell phone service. They need to know what cell you are in order to connect incoming calls.

Besides if you're using AT&T you're either ignorant or unconcerned about privacy. They have looong history going back to the Clipper chip, PATRIOT act era wiretaps, of "selling out" their customers.

jmtame• 17 years ago

This is really exciting news; traditionally the carriers have been a bit closed in nature, and this represents a healthy step forward for people like myself who use and enjoy Loopt. Look forward to seeing this technology progress!

whereareyou• 17 years ago

The Nike + iPod app runs in the background. Does that not count as a third part application?

Loopt to work in the background on iPhone via deal with AT&T

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