TechCrunch
30 Petabytes Later, Bitcasa Takes Infinite Storage To Version 2.0 With Revamped Android, iOS, Desktop Apps
TechCrunch Disrupt alumni Bitcasa has spent the last five months or so growing out of its beta launch, picking up new users and listening to feedback. Today, however, the waiting ends as Bitcasa is launching version 2.0 of its desktop, iOS and Android apps.
In case you’re having trouble following along, Bitcasa is a software service that essentially gives you infinite storage on your computer. It does this by only saving information that is unique to you, and only saving one version of all the content that is redundant. Because of this, Bitcasa actually gets faster the more people use it.
“We are shifting into a new phase,” said co-founder and CEO Tony Gauda. “With version 1.0, we just wanted to get it out there and see how it did. Version 2.0 finally adds that polish.”
To start, version 2.0 offers a brand new UI on both of the mobile apps, with an emphasis on the ability to surface your intended content. After all, if you never have to delete anything, it could become a real pain to try and search for something.
This is accomplished through smart search, which lets you search by name or date on every page (a feature that is coming soon to Android), as well as easy access to recent files. (You can even switch between recently viewed or recently added.)
The team has also worked to improve security by adding a pin code to the app, alongside the client-side encryption that comes standard with a Bitcasa experience. Plus, users can now purchase Infinite Storage plans ($10/month or $99/year) within the apps.
“One of our greatest challenges is that we’re seeing a huge uptick in growth, but internationally, even though we had a 100 percent English product,” said Gauda. However, that all changes today with the introduction of Bitcasa in English GB, French, Italian, German, Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese, Chinese, Chinese (simplified), Japanese and Korean.
Last but certainly not least, Bitcasa is now letting users upload and manage files within the browser. According to Gauda, he wants Bitcasa to be anywhere there is a hard drive or Flash.
The service has grown rapidly since launching out of beta, with 18 petabytes of data stored in March to now hold over 30 petabytes of data.
Restaurant Payments Platform Creator Viableware Raises $6.5M
Viableware, the creator of restaurant payment platform RAIL, has raised $6.5 million in Series B funding. Led by a group of angel investors and joined by Swiftsure Capital LLC, this round brings Viableware to a total of $7.45 million in funding.
RAIL is designed to mimic the look of a traditional restaurant bill, while providing an electronic interface for easy and secure payment. Customers can use RAIL to calculate tips, split the bill and pay in several different ways, including credit or debit card, Paypal, or by smartphone. The system keeps credit card information safe by letting users swipe themselves and doesn’t keep unencrypted card information.
This payment system has been in the media since 2011, but Viableware CEO Snell tells me the two companies that have RAIL have only been using it for two months. He says the funding will help implement more RAIL systems nationwide, as well as build the company’s sales and tech teams. RAIL is used by two restaurants in the Seattle area and launching in three more restaurants next month. Snell says several other national brands are still waiting to try it out, including P.F. Chang’s, which will pilot in the next few weeks.
“What we’re doing essentially is we’re extending the point-of-sale system to the table,” Snell explains. “So we’re not a payment method, we’re actually a platform that all the payment methods would use.”
Many restaurants already have a self-payment option in the form of small table kiosks, like Ziosk or E La Carte. E La Carte gives diners the option of ordering, paying the bill and playing games all from a tablet on the side of the table. Ziosk and E La Carte have been integrated into chains such as Chili’s, Outback Steakhouse and Genghis Grill. However, Snell is opting for a different format to better serve his target clientele: upscale restaurants for leisurely dining. While tablets like E La Carte make for easy ordering and payment, RAIL is supposed to complement the waiter’s role rather than replace it.
The platform comes as a package with hardware, support and installation, but prices range from $300 a month to $550 a month for each restaurant location. The wait list for RAIL includes 1,700 new locations and 12 different restaurant groups.
Alibaba Pursues New Smart TV OS To Grow Its E-Commerce Play
Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba has joined the smart TV race, unveiling a smart TV OS and set-top box today.
It hopes to create its own ecosystem of TV-related assets that will allow it to join in the digital content space, letting it provide a platform for users to share content with mobile phones and other devices.
The new OS will also allow users to shop and pay bills via their TVs. This is a big potential catalyst for more growth for the company; if users warm to the OS, it should pull more over to Alibaba’s e-commerce assets, which include Juhuasuan, Taobao and Tmall. They’ll also pay via Alipay, Alibaba’s payment gateway.
Alibaba has been aggressively pursuing other avenues of growth for its business, and in particular finding ways to make Alipay more relevant to the growing e-commerce market in China. In January, it unveiled a mobile app for Alipay, and in April showed off a way for Beijingers to pay with their phones at vending machines using sound waves.
The Chinese e-commerce market hit $120 billion in 2012, and was driven significantly by mobile users, according to the China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC).
Alibaba’s new set-top box will be called Wasu Rainbow, built by fellow Chinese company, Wasu Media Holding, which operates digital TV and IPTV networks in the country. Wasu Media was one of the first companies to obtain an Internet TV license from the government, and claims to have the largest user base in China with 8 million users.
Alibaba said in a statement that other large Chinese manufacturers have agreed to incorporate its OS into their devices. These include Skyworth, Haier, Changhong. Dominant tech companies like Samsung and Apple already play in this space, and as prices come down, the fight for audiences is expected to heat up as smart TVs take over living rooms. According to IHS iSuppli, smart TV shipments climbed 27 percent in 2012 to hit 66 million units. And we can expect smart TVs to cross over the halfway mark of global shipments by 2015, said the analyst firm in February.
Alibaba’s OS was designed by its AliCloud subsidiary, which developed the Alibaba mobile OS in 2011. Users will be able to use their mobile phones to control the Alibaba TVs, and connect with TVs to stream content to the handsets.
The company plans to have an app store for video games, and will incorporate its Xiami music streaming service into the ecosystem as well.
Other Chinese tech firms have also been eyeing the Internet TV space in the country in recent months. The largest search engine in China, Baidu, confirmed its acquisition of online video provider PPS for $370 million in May. It plans to merge PPS with its own iQiyi video platform, making it the country’s largest online video provider.
Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi produced a set-top box called Xiaomi Box, earlier this year, and has said it plans to market this aggressively.
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