Our Handbook on Innovation in Services and Mobility in Cities – “Connected Cities: Your 256 Billion Euro Dividend” – now out!

We are pleased to announce that our new Handbook on Service Innovation in Cities is now out, published by the DesignLondon at the Royal College of Art. The result of a collaborative effort involving more than 20 contributors, the book presents rich original data and serves as a resource for professionals from both public and [...]

VOIP on Mobile Phones challenge Business Models

A while back we featured an article on the Mobility Report that highlighted the attractive and cheap possibilities presented by combining VOIP services and mobile phones. Six months later, I am compelled to point to an equally timely article printed last week in the New York Times about the disincentives or preventative obstacles designed by [...]

Sophisticated Ride-Sharing in Germany

While conducting research for Living Labs Global these past few months in Germany, I spent a sizeable amount of time commuting between cities and I became particularly familiar with the corridor between Berlin and Hamburg. Following a unsavoury trips on the bus, and a delightful but expensive trip on the train, a friend put me [...]

Showcase Award coverage by German National TV 3sat

3sat neues, a programme covering new technologies on German national television attended the Living Labs Global Showcase Award Ceremony, covering the event and airing interviews with Lluis Recoder, Mayor of Sant Cugat, Sascha Haselmayer, General Director Living Labs Global, and Josep Miquel Pique, CEO of 22@ Barcelona. The coverage celebrated the efforts by Living Labs [...]

Living Labs Global Showcase Award Ceremony

As the culmination of the four month Living Labs Global Showcase Award process, over 100 representatives from Europe, North America and Asia attended the Showcase Award Ceremony in Sant Cugat des Valles. The three hour event was a unique opportunity for the nine award category cities and the 45 showcase award finalists to learn about [...]

Interactive Experiential Shop – An Innovative Smart Vending Machine

If there is a smart vending machine that allows you to interact with the machine and obtain a sample of the product you are interested in without having to ask a sales clerk for help or fill out a form on the seller’s website and wait for the sample to arrive, would you be interested [...]

Growth in Mobile Markets in Africa, News from Ovum

In report from Ovum Research this week, we learn that the number of mobile subscribers in Africa has reached 448.1 million—an increase in 20% in 2009 alone. Mobile subscribers numbered 373 million in 2008. MTN Nigeria and Vodacom SA are the leading telecom operators on the continent followed by Ghana’s Zain and Kenya’s EKTL. We [...]

New Self-Powered Sensor Technology from MIT

Researchers at MIT are developing a self-powered, sensor technology system. Manipulating differences in air temperature or body-temperature, these scientists are working towards the creation of sensor systems that may not need external power sources.

Use Solar Power to Charge Your Mobile Phone

The terrible inconvenience that comes with a dead cell phone battery is inspiring some people to look beyond traditional charges for power. A growing number of individuals are discovering that alternative energy, specifically solar energy, provide a convenient and green source of energy. Whereas it might be difficult to collect enough solar energy to power [...]

Taiwan’s Policy to Promote e-Books

The Office to Promote the Digital Content Industry, an agency that helps develop an industry worth tens of billions of US dollars, was unveiled on September 29, 2009. The establishment of this agency is testimony to Taiwan’s intention to develop its e-book industry. Xu Qing-qi, Director of the Office to Promote the Digital Content Industry [...]