Fotopedia is a collaborative online encyclopedia of photos, allowing its user community to add photographs and contribute to major projects. We sat down with Christophe Daligault, Fotonauts Inc.’s Vice President of Worldwide Business, about their Fotopedia Heritage iPad app, which includes a catalog of breathtakingly beautiful photos.
Location: San Francisco, CA, and Paris, France
Notable apps: Fotopedia Heritage 2.0 (Free)
Platforms: iOS
Specialty genres: Photography and Travel
Company size: 12
Short description of company: We are bringing new life to photos.
After creating the first collaborative photo encyclopedia (fotopedia.com) powered by a community of over 30,000 members, we are now creating revolutionary mobile apps for the iPad and iPhone.
Fotopedia Heritage is our first mobile app, created in collaboration with the UNESCO World Heritage Centre. Fotopedia Heritage is an app with a purpose: to celebrate the beauty of our world.
We have a Twitter account and a Facebook page.
How did you and your firm get into the iPhone/mobile app development business?
It was clear that the iPad would be an incredibly well-suited device to create an immersive experience (in the case of Fotopedia Heritage), to travel the world from your couch, your living room or even your bed. And what a great form factor to showcase stunning photography.
In your opinion, how has the iPhone and Apple’s iTunes App Store changed the media industry?
Apple has created a great all-in-one distribution channel and enjoyment (not to say consumption) device. And the iPad took this further in ways that some did not foresee at the outset.
Apple does a great job of evangelizing apps and iTunes. When you buy an iPhone at the Apple store, the store employee teaches you how to buy, download and use music, movies and apps. The end-to-end experience is very smooth and satisfying.
As for the media industry, I would quote Edo Segal’s answer to TechCrunch’s Erick Schonfeld, when asked “Is Apple a media company?” (just a year ago): “If you are a media exec and you look at your product and at the end of the day it’s a digital file that can be copied, then you have a serious problem with your format. …. However, if a portion of the experience is derived through an integration with a web component that will yield additional value in functionality or social elements, then it will be more sustainable.” The photo is no exception.
Describe the differences between developing apps for the iPhone, iPad, and other platforms.
We only develop for iPhone and iPad.
What factors go into how you ultimately price your apps?
Fotopedia Heritage is free.
But as we consider paid apps, it will be a question of value. We would want people to think: “at this price, it’s a no brainer!” We will be looking at the average price of the top-selling apps in the category. Perhaps by then there will be some widely available research data on elasticity to price.
Describe what your dream app for the iPhone/iPad would look like.
Hard to pick one dream :-). If I have to pick one now, I’d say that I’d love it if my iPad could run the last few apps that prevent me from leaving my MacBook Air at home permanently. Unfortunately they are not Apple apps (even if we can sometimes forget that apps existed before the iPhone).
Here is a short video that provides more insight on the functionality of Fotopedia Heritage. Enjoy!
