Nokia, Microsoft bung student mobe devs £7.5m to 'ideate'
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Nokia and Microsoft are pumping €9m (£7.5m) into a university to promote app development and startups that'll feed their mobile tech alliance.
Finland's Aalto University will receive the cash to fund a new software development programme called AppCampus over the next three years, the companies said Monday.
The scheme aims to "foster the creation of innovative mobile applications" and small biz for Windows Phone and Nokia platforms including Symbian and the Series 40.
Devs and entrepreneurs will get mentoring and training in mobile tech, design and usability as well as funding.
In a statement, Nokia executive vice-president Kai Öistämö said: "The partnership will allow developers to ideate and monetize business opportunities globally, via both Windows Phone Marketplace and Nokia Store."
Yes, he said "ideate".
Aalto University was created in July 2010 through the merger of Helsinki School of Economics, Helsinki University of Technology and the University of Art and Design Helsinki. Nokia board chairman Jorma Ollila - who was chairman and and CEO until 2006 - graduated from Helsinki University as a master of science in engineering. ®
COMMENTS
Re: Good idea
Not sure if serious. But as an iOS dev, I can say that apple incentivise me plenty with a nice chunk of cash each month.
The difference: my rewards come from customers who appreciate my work enough to pay for it, rather than a company giving me cash in the hope something will happen because there aren't enough paying customers there to make it commercially viable.
Still, MS and Nokia are in a tough spot: customers aren't interested in the platform without the support of plenty of good apps, devs aren't making plenty of good apps without plenty of paying customers. You can argue all day about whether it's the chicken or the egg, but if you've got neither your plate is staying empty.
Good luck to them, if they're extremely lucky they'll hit gold and the whole platform will benefit (and so will everyone else if there's a competitive 3rd platform), and the students can learn plenty and ride the gravy train for a while.
Wait, hold on... did I see symbian mentioned there? Who the hell would write for symbian now?! Retro fans?
Re: "Ideate"
Anyone who uses the word ideate should be dragged out in to the street and shot in front of their family.
Now do I get that job on Top Gear?
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