The spate of layoffs during the recession catapulted 9 million more Americans — or 57% of those who had had health insurance in a job that evaporated over the last two years — into the ranks of the millions already uninsured.
In addition, 19 million people anxiously seeking private coverage over the last three years were either turned down or could not find a plan that was affordable and met their needs, the report found.
Coincidently, there are 9 million Americans that suffer from various forms of dementia. And while dementia can be treated, it is an incurable and progressive disorder whose care costs rise exponentially despite the enormous efforts spent by medical professionals and family caregivers to manage the effects and consequences.
The Commonwealth Fund report focused on the struggles of the 43 million adults under 65 who have lost their health insurance along with their job over the past two years. It should be noted that dementia isn’t just a problem of the aged. Autism is the infant version of the senior condition of Alzheimer’s. The report also found a 60% increase in skipped care due to cost in the past decade.
60% of all those afflicted will wander off and become lost. Searching for the lost is very expensive and threatens the fiscal health of a community as the average search can cost $36,000+ over 2 to 4 days. These costs could be reduced by 100 times with a GPS tracking shoe…and wouldn’t those funds be better spent on perfecting a cure…visit www.AetrexWorldwide.com and www.GPSShoe. com to discover the better people finder and the peace of mind a one-click on a smart device can provide.
You need not get lost searching for an answer to the “where is” question that the millions of caregivers have been asking.
Close to 9 million people in this country suffer with some form of a cognitive disorder, from dementia and Alzheimer’s to Autism, Down syndrome and veterans that came home from battle with brain injuries. According to the Alzheimer's Association, about 60 percent of the 5.4 million of those afflicted with the Alzheimer’s will wander off and become lost.
George Mason University Professor Andrew Carle recently stated, “of course these are only U.S. numbers with an estimated 25 million cases of Alzheimer worldwide expected to quadruple to 100 million short of a cure.”
After nine years of research and development, GTX Corp (GTXO.OB) and its partner Aetrex Worldwide have brought to the consumer market a solution for people who wander – a GPS Shoe with an embedded 2-way GPS tracking device that will instantly locate the wearer and send a caregiver an alert via text or email if the wearer wanders off beyond a pre set area.
When a 79 year old victim went missing the Virginia Beach Police Department, Emergency Medical Services and the Virginia Department of Emergency Management Search & Rescue Team and numerous volunteers assisted in her search. Fortunately she was found alive, but the Police claimed the net cost to the taxpayers was about $36,000. No one questioned that the money was well spent, but what if there were a better way to locate those that wander, what if instead of $36,000 you could bring the cost down to $299?
If only 10 percent of the 9 million Americans which have a cognitive disorder get lost – 900,000. Assuming it would cost a thousand dollars on average to locate someone that had wandered off and became lost – 900,000 multiplied by $1,000 for each search would cost $900,000,000. That’s almost 1 billion dollars that could be saved or better spent on research developing cures. That’s 10 percent at a cost of $1,000, when the statistics show it’s closer to 60% that wander at a search and rescue cost of tens of thousands of dollars. Not to mention the emotional toll on the caregivers. The value in peace of mind gained, search and rescue costs and lives potentially saved isn’t quantifiable.
FAQ
How much is a pair of GPS SHOES - MSRP $299
How much is the monthly monitoring service - between $30 to $40 depending on usage and features
How often do they need to be charged - approximately every 50 hours
Do they come in both men’s and women’s- yes
How often do they report back- every 10 or 30 minutes depending on which monthly plan you select
If a loved one wanders how do I get notified – either by text message or email
Can more than one person receive the notifications – yes you can add as many people as you wish on your alert list
Does the GPS SHOE tell me when the battery is low – yes either by text or email
Do I need a special wireless carrier – no the GPS SHOES will work in the U.S. anywhere that there is T Mobile coverage
CBS Early Show demonstrates the first GPS Smart Shoe designed to locate wandering dementia victims.
It costs a community approximately $30,000 to find a wandering Alzheimer's victim and most sufferers of the disease wander repeatedly.
Multiply those dollars by the ever growing numbers of those becoming afflicted and one can see how a billion dollars a year is spent on the problem for which there is no current cure.
While nothing we know of will stop the cerebal plaque, we can locate a wanderer for $300 using a 2-way embedded GPS device worn in a shoe that can be tracked to hand-held or desk top phone or computer. With 5.6 million affirmed cases in the US and knowing that 14% will wander and become lost,
it is esimated that double that number will wander during the coming year.
Presently the GTX Corp GPS Shoe available through Aetrex Worldwide is the
best solution based on cost, accuracy, eash of use, flexibiblity and personal respect for privacy. Contact: info@aetrex.com See how it works on this CBS Early Show news piece.
GTX Corp RECEIVES new ORDER FOR 1,500 GPS DevicesFROM AETREX Worldwide as gps sHOES become AVAILABLE online to consumers
Los Angeles, CA – November 30, 2011 – GTX Corp (OTCBB: GTXO), a leader in customizable, patented two-way GPS Tracking Personal Location Services (PLS) solutions, received its second commercial order from Aetrex Worldwide, Inc. a global leader in comfort and wellness footwear products. GTX recently shipped 3,000 devices to Aetrex and plans to ship these additional 1,500 units in January of 2012. The GTX Corp miniaturized 2 way GPS tracking devices are embedded in the Aetrex Ambulator® collection bringing a reliable solution for monitoring the location of the 5.3 million seniors in the US afflicted with Alzheimer’s disease or dementia.
The GPS Shoe has captured the imagination of the world. The Company’s flagship product has over 20 patents and patents pending, received the Peoples Choice award for most innovative connected device, has been featured on numerous television shows across the globe and now available to consumers in the United States at www.aetrex.com/gps
GTX Corp’s international licensing strategy will make available the GPS Shoes to additional countries beginning first quarter of 2012. There are already 4 countries with another 6 in consideration and a goal to have at least 12 countries up and running by year end 2012. For information about becoming an international distributor you can contact info@gtxcorp.com or go visit www.gpsshoe.com or www.gtxcorp.com
In addition to international expansion, the Company has begun developing prototypes of an even smaller device configuration, for the children’s market, which it plans to unveil at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) on January 11th in Las Vegas.
GTX Corp Expands Partner Alliance Preparation for GPS Shoe Launch
3,000 GPS Shoe devices shipped to Aetrex Worldwide
·Signed Fulfillment and Customer Service Agreement with Omnilink Systems, Inc
·International Expansion of miniaturized GPS Devices
·Speaking at Annual Emeritus Senior Living Conference
Los Angeles, October 19, 2011 – GTX Corp (OTCBB: GTXO), a leader in customizable, 2-way GPS Personal Location Services (PLS)solutions, today announced entering into a Fulfillment and Customer Service Agreement with Aetrex Worldwide, Inc. and Omnilink Systems, who built and maintains a market leading tracking solution for individuals with Alzheimer’s. Under the Agreement, Omnilink will provide an e-commerce and customer service platform for the Aetrex GPS Shoe scheduled to go on sale this month in the US, enhancing the sales, marketing and customer support for the GPS Shoe and user community. MedicAlert Foundation, known for their live 24/7 emergency medical information and identification services, has joined the alliance and will provide 24/7 location based emergency services for Aetrex GPS Shoe customers.
The Partner Alliance was created to provide a world class, senior-friendly, 24/7 customer support platform for consumers and caregivers to assist in selecting monthly plans, GPS Shoe features, best use tips and general overall customer service. The Agreement will allow GTX Corp and Aetrex to concentrate on their core competencies while the Partner Alliance handles support, e-commerce and customer care for this new potential life saving technology.
"As the GPS Shoe transitions from vision to reality and we approach the launch we are excited and honored to align ourselves with these exceptional companies,” stated Patrick Bertagna, GTX Corp Chairman and CEO.
“Omnilink has had the privilege of building unique solutions for helping ensure the safety and security of individual’s with Alzheimer’s,” says Kelly Gay, Omnilink’s President and CEO. “We are very excited to now have the GPS shoe available as one of the first human-wearable, location-monitoring device options for this market.”
The New York Times recently quoted “I’m intrigued by the GPS Shoe” and included in the article its benefits and mentioned how the Alzheimer Association and MedicAlert have published some suggestions on how to address wandering or elopement.
“For over 55 years, the MedicAlert Foundation has been providing vital health information on behalf of millions of people in all types of emergencies. Through this Alliance, our objective is to provide another service option that helps families and other caregivers to ensure the safety of individuals living with Alzheimer’s, and that first responders have the necessary information in an emergency to effectively address their needs,” stated Andrew Wigglesworth, President and CEO of MedicAlert Foundation.
Today, GTX Corp CEO and COO are scheduled to speak at the annual Emeritus senior living conference in Scottsdale Arizona to address the overall benefits of 2 way GPS technology for the caregivers of seniors. And in an ongoing international expansion effort to bring the GPS Shoe technology to the global community, the Company is working on the next generation device, scheduled for release next year, which will have overall enhancements to size, cost and power consumption and localized to provide the cellular data through its global alliance of wireless partners.
About GTX Corp (GTXO.OB) – GTX Corp, a leader in enterprise 2-way GPS (Global Positioning System) real-time personal location services (PLS), was founded in 2002 and is based in Los Angeles, California with distributors in Mexico, Australia and Nepal and customers in 126 countries. GTX Corp utilizes the latest in miniaturized, low power consumption technology and offers a robust enterprise GPS and cellular location platform to track in real time the whereabouts of people, pets, and high valued assets. Answering the “where is” question through a licensing business model and providing a complete end-to-end solution of hardware, middleware, apps, connectivity and professional services, letting you know where someone or something is at the touch of a button. GTX Corp also owns and operates LOCiMOBILE, Incwhich develops GPS applications for smartphones and tablets, Code Amber News Service, and Code Amber Alertag. The Company has an aggressive intellectual property strategy and owns an extensive portfolio of patents, patents pending, registered trademarks, copy rights and URL's.
About Omnilink Systems - Omnilink Systems is a leading provider of end-to-end LBS (location-based services) for any tracking solution. Pairing its award-winning FocalPoint™ software with hardware, services and networks, Omnilink offers the most accurate, reliable and cost-effective platform for powering location-aware mobile devices and applications. Working with tier-one carriers, Fortune 100 companies, leading nonprofits and hundreds of government agencies through its Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) model, Omnilink helps ensure the safety, security and productivity of people and valuable assets. For more information, please visit www.omnilink.com.
About MedicAlert Foundation International - Established in 1956, MedicAlert Foundation International pioneered the use of medical IDs and systems to relay vital medical information to emergency responders on behalf of its members so they receive faster and safer treatment. Today, MedicAlert provides the functionality of an e-health information exchange through an innovative combination of a unique patient identifier linked to an emergency medical information record and a live 24/7 emergency response service. MedicAlert medical IDs alert emergency personnel to a member’s primary health conditions, medications, and/or implanted medical devices. In addition to its live 24/7 emergency response service, MedicAlert Foundation also provides family and caregiver notification so that members can be reunited with their loved ones. MedicAlert services are available around the world through a network of international nonprofit affiliated organizations licensed by the Foundation. Visit www.medicalert.org for more information.
GTX Corp does not warrant or represent that the unauthorized use of materials drawn from the content of this document will not infringe rights of third parties who are not owned or affiliated by GTX Corp. Further GTX Corp cannot be held responsible or liable for the unauthorized use of this document’s content by third parties unknown to the company.
Quantitative proof of the frequency of the “where” question being asked
Among all smartphone users, the most popular app among feature phone users is Google Maps (46%) followed closely by Facebook (45%). The simplest conclusion to be drawn from the data is that “where” is my; friend, family, spouse or co-worker must be top of mind for multi-millions and the GPS Tracking app to resolve that question is to be found at LOCiMOBILE, a subsidiary of GTXCorp(GTXO.OB).
Where they are asking the “where” question is now going vehicular…
The number of consumers using telematics smartphone apps with connected cars is about to increase over 40 times in the next five years. ABI Research today estimates that by 2016, 129 million people will use smartphone software that works with a vehicle, up from only 3.2 million consumers this year. Such forecasts could fuel new and innovative mobile apps specific to vehicles and travel-related activities.
Smartphone applications specific to cars may best illustrate the promise of mobility and connectivity: intelligent, discreet devices combined with wireless broadband and smarter cars. While there have been a number of in-vehicle applications for years — think of navigation, point-of-interest searches, real-time traffic data and remote automobile diagnostics — most until now have been constrained for use within the vehicle.
By leveraging the ability for a smartphone to be tied with a car, such apps can move beyond in-car use. And as vehicles gain more processors and sensors, especially in greener cars as noted in a GigaOM Pro report, (subscription required), the possibilities for mobile apps will expand.
So what kinds of mobile apps will connect smartphone-toting drivers with their cars? Ford already launched software specific to its all-electric Ford Focus, allowing users to remotely monitor the battery level and even schedule a recharge during off-peak rate hours. Location Labs, in a partnership with T-Mobile, today launched software that can detect when a driver is behind the wheel of a vehicle and automatically shoot calls direct to voicemail or lock down access to text messaging. Focused on driver safety, the new app appears to monitor vehicle movement through GPS, but in the future, could get that data directly from the car. Whatever the application, mobile broadband and smart handsets combined with the cars of tomorrow could give new meaning to the term “information superhighway.”
Introducing iCheck-in – the newest and most privacy protected solution to sharing your location with others of your choosing.
With a single click of a smartphone button an iCheck-In ™is either sent as an e-mail or a direct posting to your Facebook wall.
What you send a contact includes; your what’s up message with a Google map and turn by turn directions to get from their wherever to where you are right now as an extra.
LOCiMOBILE is a business unit of GTX Corp (OTCBB: GTXO.OB). It has more than 750,000 personal location service users in 100 countries – from Kathmandu to Klamath Falls you can find people finding people with apps, devices and software you can’t find anywhere else. GTX Corp® utilizes the latest in miniaturized GPS and cellular location platforms enabling subscribers to track the whereabouts of; people, pets, vehicles or valued assets in real time through a proprietary end to end solution via smartphone apps, middleware, and viewing portals.
Discovery Channel documents the GTX Corp GPS Shoe for seniors with dementia
See the complete story
The LOCiMOBILE iCheck-In ™does not need an app to let those in your contact listlearn what you’re doing and where you’re at… IF and WHEN you want them to know. or jump ahead to 11:15 to see the segment on the innovative and life saving GPS Smart Shoe that will be available from AETREX Worldwide. The patented device and supporting software-- a long time vision of Patrick Bertagna, the CEO of GTX Corp.
The need is overwhelming for the caregivers of seniors suffering from mild to severe dementia who may become disoriented, wander or elope from a facility. The Smart Shoe affords the senior their privacy while providing the caregiver a totally private and secure platform for real time locates to a smartphone or computer.
GTX Corp apps downloads up with 20 Million Android Devices Sold in Q3
Thesmartphone revolution shows no signs of weakening, and Google’s Android as well as Apple’s iOS are leading the way; 80.5 million smartphones were sold worldwide in the third quarter of 2010, a 96% increase compared to the same period last year, a new report from Gartner has found.
Android accounted for 25.5% of worldwide smartphone sales with 20.5 million handsets sold, which makes it the second biggest smartphone platform, behind Nokia’s Symbian (which is growing, but not fast enough to retain its market share) and Apple’s iOS, which now has 16.7% market share with 13.5 million handsets sold in Q3 2010.
Symbian and RIM are hanging on, both showing growth as far as the number of devices sold is concerned, but the table above makes it painfully obvious that Google’s Android and Apple’s iOS have the momentum, and this is unlikely to change in the near future. On the other hand, the only clear loser is Microsoft, whose market share fell from 7.9% in the third quarter of 2009 to 2.8% in Q3 2010, with only 2.2 million devices sold.
Gartner sees two ways to succeed in the smartphone market, one fitting the description of Apple’s iOS and the other of Android. “Any platform that fails to innovate quickly — either through a vibrant multi-player ecosystem or clear vision of a single controlling entity — will lose developers, manufacturers, potential partners and ultimately users,” said Roberta Cozza, principal research analyst at Gartner. Unfortunately, RIM, Nokia and Microsoft’s smartphone strategy have only recently starting to take shape resembling one or the other, and it’ll take time for them to catch up with Apple and Google.
Looking at Gartner’s numbers for all phones and not just smartphones, worldwide mobile phone sales totaled 417 million units in the third quarter of 2010, a 35% increase from the third quarter of 2009, with the top five mobile phone makers being Nokia, Samsung, LG, Apple and RIM.
GTXCorp has 17 geo locating and GPS Tracking apps –750,000 subscribers in 100 countries – anyone of which will find you, your family, friends or co workers with a tap on the screen of an Android, iPhone, iPad, BlackBerry and bada Samsung… Sorry it won’t make friends for you… no yet anyway.GTX Corp
In the race for smartphone platform supremacy who is in the lead?
The U.S. smartphone market is booming. Nearing the end of the third quarter a range of analyst firms have posted their current figures on the market.
The figures do provide a clear picture of which platforms are accelerating in the U.S. smartphones market and from which platforms market share is being lost.
For developers these trends are essential for planning and development of new app and for what platform they will be offered. LOCiMobile currently offers 17 apps, many of which are available on multiple platforms.
GTX Corp LAUNCHES ITS LOCALIZED ENTERPRISE PORTAL & EXPANDS GPS TRACKING SERVICES INTO MEXICO AND SURROUNDING TERRITORIES
Advancing its global footprint and generating new revenues for both companies, GTX Corp’s GPS technology platform is being commercialized by PEACE OF MIND FOR LATINAMERICA SA de CV, headquartered in Cancun Mexico. The Company signed a licensing agreement with Peace of Mind, followed by its first order and will begin shipping this month. GTX Corp has been selling hardware into Mexico since 2009 but this will be the first time the actual GTX Corp middleware and portal platform will be localized in Spanish and commercialized in Mexico.
GTX’s VP of Business Development Carlos Briceño said “These latest milestones further expand our strategic initiative to increase our global penetration with customization, localization and optimization, while our partnerships validate our licensing model
.”
Ever Wonder how GPS can locate someone or something from outer space to within 30 feet?
GTX Corp Launches New Personal Location-Based GPS Camera App to GeoTag photos
The new GPS Camera app from GTX Corp (GTXO) GeoTags and time-stamps users’ photos and enables them to upload images to Facebook or email to friends, is now available on iTunes. The app has been described as an essential tool for contractors to record the course of projects, journalists to validate events and interviews, writers gathering research, insurance adjusters and parents that want to chronicle their family’s journey. We are capable of collecting many millions of images in our life times owing to digital imaging advancements, but cataloging them all can be made a simple task with time and location stamps.
GeoTagging, adds geographical identification data to a variety of media. Its biggest growth area is online and mobile media in the form of navigation apps and personal location-based services (PLS). It is mostly used to ID photos or images. "The spread of GPS, coupled with the huge improvements in the quality of cameras on handsets, means that many users have now bought into device convergence - their phone is also their digital camera. The ubiquity of the iPhone, Android, BlackBerry, Microsoft Mobile 7 and Samsung bada Platforms clearly attests to this."
GEOTag Photos
The new app from GTX Corp (GTXO) GeoTags and time-stamps users’ photos and enables them to upload images to Facebook or email to friends is available on iTunes. The app has been described as an essential tool for contractors to record the course of projects, journalists to validate events and interviews, writers gathering research, insurance adjusters and parents that want to chronicle their families. We are capable of collecting many millions of images in our life times owing to digital imaging advancements, but cataloging them all can be made a simple task with time and place stamps.
Certainly our Department of Defense, the providers of the Global Positioning Satellite network, did not anticipate these advanced personal GPS location service applications of their defense and guidance systems when they planned the project forty years ago to answer the: “where am I” question being asked by military generals, aircraft pilots and ships captains.
Finding the lost.
Americans are quite absent minded. Nearly one out of every three of us – some 70 million - lose our mobile phones every year. While losing a “smartphone” is annoying to say the least, losing our way can also be quite disconcerting and that certainly justifies the broad adoption of onboard auto navigation devices and mobile phone applications ending the ego-deflating humiliation of having to ask “the where am I” question of strangers.
“Where am I” has been a question asked for more than one hundred years by those who have lost their way owing to an accumulation of brain plaque Doctor Alois Alzheimer's described a clinical case of dementia based on an examination of the behavior of one 56 year old Frau Auguste D. in 1906. His three page paper described symptoms we have come to know as Alzheimer’s disease. Today 5.3 million people in America have contracted Alzheimer's – a deadly brain-wasting infection that destroys memory and thought processing, dissipates the ability to handle ordinary everyday activities and provokes spontaneous wandering behaviors. A report by the Alzheimer’s Association in May projects that from 2010 to 2050, the cost of caring for Americans over 65 with Alzheimer's will increase more than six times to $1.08 trillion per year.
For a victim of the disease the unequivocal lose of their memory is devastating, but losing the victim is equally terrifying for their 10 million caregivers who have to retrieve the three million that will become so disoriented they get lost within a quarter mile of their home with no knowledge of who they are, where they are or what they have to do. Police, fire department, emergency services with friends and family spend thousands of hours and multiple billions of dollars to say; “we found them and they are ok.”
Eight years ago, Patrick Bertagna and a committed group of his business associates and friends decided to develop a discrete, embeddable GPS tracking device that would enable people to locate people using mobile phones. That simple on the surface idea has taken nearly a decade and millions of investor dollars to realize. But in the next few weeks Aetrex Worldwide a licensee of the GTX Corp (GTXO) patented technology will bring an operable GPS enabled shoe to the retail marketplace providing a life saving personal location solution for Alzheimer’s victims who if not found in hours will in most cases succumb from exposure to the elements.
Costing less than three hundred dollars for the “smartshoes” and less than a dollar a day for tacking access, caregivers will be able to locate a wandering victim in seconds with locates of their path, direction, speed and bearing on a 3g phone, PDA or computer. Using geo-fence technology alerts are securely sent to subscribers when the designated perimeter is breached advising of an elopement or a wandering episode eliminating the drain on municipal services and minimizing the unbearable stress on the caregivers.
What the analysts are saying about location aware personal GPS technology.
ABI Research said GPS-enabled phones are expected to hit 240 million units in 2009 – evidence of an explosion of consumer GPS product and service offerings; LBS applications on cell phones, GPS-enabled PDAs, and more novel GPS products such as iPhone and Android people finder apps have permeated the global marketplace.
"We're just getting started with this era," said William Clark, an analyst for research firm Gartner. New products and applications are being announced almost daily. Likewise, public awareness of the potential utility of GPS has increased.
"When people carry around a device wherever they go, it's not just a phone but a set of connections to their online identity, friends and networks — and the content they care about and where they are as well," said Mark Donovan, a mobile-industry analyst for market tracker comScore.
Location aware companies could find themselves where they will become attractive acquisition targets by handset makers, carriers or larger Web companies said Dominique Bonte, analyst and practice director in the telematics and navigation division of ABI Research.
A leader in Personal Location Services, GTX Corp has recently closed three major licensing deals with others expected to follow. Downloads of their smartphone people finder apps in more than 85 countries attests to the fact that there are no boundaries for innovation either in language, longitude or latitude.
Galaxy Tab Has Similar Features to Apple's iPAD; Likely Cost Is $200-$300
Samsung Electronics Co. unveiled the Galaxy Tab, its take on Apple Inc.'s iPad, as more technology companies move into the nascent tablet market.
Tablets represent a potential new source of revenue for Samsung, which affords manufacturers new revenues within in the intensely competitive smartphone business.
Rather than sell directly to consumers, Samsung will rely on its carrier partners to sell the Galaxy Tab, which runs on Google Inc.'s Android software, comes with a cellular connection, and features a seven-inch screen. The tablet will support GTX Corp (GTXO) GPS TRACKING APPS.
Mobile Location-Based Services Could Rake In $12.7 Billion By 2014:
The rapid evolution of mobile phones, both on a hardware and a software level, combined with a surge in application storefront releases, deployments of higher-capacity network infrastructure and recent developments in positioning technologies could drive revenues from mobile location-based services to more than $12.7 billion by 2014, according to a new report published by Juniper Research.
The report found that while MLBS had experienced a number of false dawns from 2000 to 2007, improvements in handset UIs together with easier consumer access to an range of app distribution channels had led to greater interest from service providers in providing mobile location-based applications.
While service usage will be highest in Far East China over the next few years, greatest revenues will come from Western Europe, Juniper forecasts.
Revenues will come from sales of apps through application stores and other channels, but also from mobile advertising tied to those apps. In fact, the Juniper report notes that advertising will likely form an increasing share of MLBS-related revenues over the next five years.
GTX Corp noticed: Facebook on the go
Facebook users worldwide now top 500 million, up from 200 million users less than 18 months ago. About 30 percent of all users access the service via mobile device each month, a percentage that grows substantially within the smartphone segment: In June 2010, research firm The Nielsen Company said 39 percent of all smartphone owners use the Facebook social networking application every month, adding it is the most popular app on iPhone (used by 58 percent of consumers) and BlackBerry (39 percent), as well as the second most popular on Android (51 percent).
Just show-up and location based geo fencing will take care of the rest.
Beginning today brands such as The North Face can reach 60% of all U.S. consumers with opt-in, location-based marketing SMS messages.
The extensive distribution possibilities are thanks to a strategic partnership between Placecast — makers of ShopAlerts — and Location Labs; the two companies have combined forces to tackle location-based mobile marketing.
ShopAlerts is a white-label product from Placecast designed to let brands send promotional notifications to customers based on their exact location. ShopAlerts uses geofencing mobile technology to send alerts when consumers enter digitally zoned areas.
With the partnership, Location Labs brings their carrier relationships to the table and extends the ShopAlerts service beyond smartphones — there’s no application download required as the opt-in and alert processes can be completed via SMS. For brands and marketers using ShopAlerts, the partnership means they can reach 180 million phones in the U.S.
The North Face is the first to retailer to benefit from Placecast’s partnership with Location Labs. The enhanced ShopAlerts technology lets them better target and reach mobile users with dynamically generated location-based SMS messages.
Here’s how it works: The North Face has created geo-fences around stores, hiking areas, parks and locales that are popular with its customers. When a consumer who has double-opted in to the company’s SMS alerts enters a geo-fenced area, he or she will receive a message appropriately tailored to their whereabouts and pre-defined interests.
The system is configured to make alerts dynamic and tailored to the customer, as well as limit the alerts to one per 48-hour period or three per week.
“If they’re near a store, customers may receive a message about a new item in the store. But, if they’re at Lake Tahoe, and they have noted that they are a biker, they might get a msg about a great biking trail. A different customer may receive a msg about a great swimming spot, based on their preferences,” according to a representative from Placecast.
Location-based mobile marketing is by no means a new idea, especially given the rise of digital loyalty programs and checkin-based rewards. With Facebook set to introduce its own location offering, it will be interesting to watch as retailers make choices around how and where to present location-aware offers to customers.
GTX Corp signs Samsung agreement to deliver GPS Tracking apps to 40 million new smartphones
In the agreement,GTX Corp will make available its popular GPS Tracking apps on Samsung's bada operating system. The GPS Tracking apps will be featured for sale October 2010 in Samsung’s Application Store. Of the 40 million Samsung handsets anticipated to ship between now and mid-2011, 15-20 million will be the new “Scotia” models.
Samsung, the world’s second largest mobile phone manufacturer, launched its own open mobile platform, Samsung bada, in December 2009. Samsung's mobile 235 million unit ecosystem enables developers to create applications for millions of new bada platform mobile phones. Samsung chose the name “bada”—which means “ocean” in Korean—to convey the limitless variety of potential applications that can be created with bada.
GTX Corp’s announcement follows on an 89% increase in its previous quarter’s revenues in addition to a number of software and hardware deals, including the launch of its consumer social networking portal www.gpstrackingapps.comLOCiMOBILE GPS apps.. The company also posted its GPS Tracking app for the iPad and is launching a GPS camera app this month to its suite of LOCIMOBILE apps.
The GPS Smart Shoe
The applications for GPS location aware and prxomity marketing are infinite and in this particluar example unexpectedly unique. GTX Corp a leader in personal location services is launching the first GPS Smart Shoe with Aetrex Worldwide allowing the caregivers of Alzheimer's victims to locate them should they elope or wander and become disoriented.
In most promotional contests involving giveaways, winning consumers must typically reach out to the company involved to claim their prize. Turning that paradigm on its proverbial ear in Brazil, Unilever detergent brand Omo is using GPS to bring prizes to consumers at home.
The promotion, called “Try Something New With Omo,” aims to get consumers talking about a new stain-fighting formulation of the product, which already accounts for half of Brazil's detergent sales, AdAge reported. Toward that end, the company has hidden GPS devices in 50 detergent boxes throughout Brazil. Each device gets activated when the box is removed from the supermarket shelf, causing Bullet—Omo's promotions agency—to send a team into action tracking the box all the way to the purchasing consumer's home. Dedicated teams are in place in 35 Brazilian cities, equipped with the technology needed to zero in not just on houses but even on specific apartments. Winners receive a pocket video camera as well as an invitation for a day of outdoor fun at Unilever's expense, according to AdAge. For consumers living in high-crime areas—which could make them unwilling to open the door to Bullet's reps—the team can cause the GPS inside to start beeping for verification; in addition, each winning box includes an explanation. Finally, in a nice nod to the map-mania trend, the promotional website will be updated to include a map showing roughly where winners live as well as video footage of the giveaways. With a cost of less than USD 1 million for the technological component, the promotion ends Sept. 19.
Aetrex Ambulator® GPS Smart Shoe debuts at WSA Shoe Show in
Las Vegas, August 9-11
GTX Corp (OTCBB: GTXO), a leader in customizable, patented two-way GPS Tracking Personal Location Services (PLS) solutions with Aetrex Worldwide, Inc., a leading maker of orthotic and therapeutic shoes debuts the patented GPS tracking Smart Shoe Ambulator ® collection at the World Shoe Association Show. The Aetrex Ambulator® collection brings a durable, reliable solution for monitoring the location of the 5.3 million seniors in the US afflicted with Alzheimer’s disease or dementia. Aetrex plans to launch the shoes to coincide with the National Alzheimer Association memory walks this fall.
The Aetrex GPS-enabled shoes provide caregivers a safe, unobtrusive means to easily find those afflicted with Alzheimer’s that might wander or elope and become lost. GTX Corp’s eighteen patents and patents pending for the GPS tracking technology cover a GPS transceiver module that is placed within the shoe, a module that transmits the wearer’s location coordinates to a central monitoring station, proprietary software, cellular connectivity, the GTX Corp middleware platform and secure viewing portal. Aetrex will initially offer the shoe through their e-commerce websites www.foot.comandthewww.gpsshoe.comsitealong with a select group of assisted living facilities.
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Use cellphones to buy goods and transfer money: BOKU.com
Jim Wilson/The New York Times
By CLAIRE CAIN MILLER and MATT RICHTEL
Published: June 21, 2009
SAN FRANCISCO On a PC, having to fill out a form and type in a credit card number to buy something is only mildly annoying. On a cellphone, it could make you want to skip the purchase entirely.
This is why investors, start-ups and major corporations are pouring money into services that make it easier to use cellphones to buy goods and transfer money.
The aim is to turn phones into virtual credit cards or checkbooks, enabling the kind of click-and-buy commerce and online banking that people have come to expect on their PCs. But shrinking down those services to fit onto cellphones presents serious challenges.
The smartphone wars are not about devices any longer Nokia (NYSE:NOK) is positioning mobile applications at the center of its promotional efforts as the company seeks to make over its image and make up ground lost to rivals Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Google. In addition to a series of new print advertisements and promotional posters touting popular smartphone apps, Nokia also is embedding software trainers in its local sales units to lure more developers to write for its Ovi Store. "Apps are going to be more central to Nokia's conversation," said Forum Nokia and Developer Community Vice President Purnima Kochikar in an interview with Bloomberg News. "It's no longer about selling devices."
As of the first quarter, Nokia's Symbian operating system accounted for 44.3 percent of the worldwide smartphone market--down 4.5 percentage points from a year ago--according to research firm Gartner. Apple's iPhone increased from 10.5 percent to 15.4 during the past year, while Google's Android surged from 1.6 percent to 9.6 percent. Last week, Nokia confirmed its forthcoming N8 device will be the last N-series smartphone release running the Symbian OS--moving forward, N-series smartphones will run the Linux-based MeeGo OS, although Symbian will continue to power lower-end devices.
