{"id":50938,"date":"2014-05-14T21:49:37","date_gmt":"2014-05-15T01:49:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/countingpips.com\/forex-news\/?p=50938"},"modified":"2014-05-14T21:49:38","modified_gmt":"2014-05-15T01:49:38","slug":"four-hot-australian-technology-start-ups-revealed-from-cebit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.investmacro.com\/forex-news\/2014\/05\/14\/four-hot-australian-technology-start-ups-revealed-from-cebit\/","title":{"rendered":"Four Hot Australian Technology Start-Ups Revealed from CeBIT"},"content":{"rendered":"

By MoneyMorning.com.au<\/u><\/a><\/p>\n

I just got back from Australia’s biggest and best business technology conference — CeBIT Australia<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

It was a great show.
\n I walked the halls, discovered brilliant little companies, and met fascinating entrepreneurs and investors. These guys are harnessing technology to redefine how business is done.<\/p>\n

Here I am on my way in…<\/p>\n

<\/a>
\nSource: Editor<\/strong>
\nClick to enlarge<\/a><\/em><\/div>\n

…and here’s a bird’s-eye view of the exhibition floor.<\/p>\n

<\/a>
\nSource: Demotixr<\/strong>
\nClick to enlarge<\/a><\/em><\/div>\n

CeBIT is different to higher-profile tech conferences like the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas and Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.<\/p>\n

Those events show off flashy baubles like FitBit and Google Glass…but CeBIT is about the core of innovation and technology<\/a>. It’s where companies at the bleeding edge of wireless equipment and mobile software come to show off their wares. It’s the stuff that keeps the global economy ticking over.<\/p>\n

But I didn’t go to CeBIT to play with switches and routers.<\/p>\n

I went for a good look at Australia’s hottest technology start-ups<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n

There were more than 150 Aussie start-ups at CeBIT. Some of them are the small-cap superstars<\/a> of tomorrow…the companies with the potential to go from zero to a billion in the space of months.<\/p>\n

I’ll reveal the most exciting companies in a moment. But first, let me show you what it was like to be there.<\/p>\n

This exhibition was huge. Every nook and cranny of Sydney’s Olympic Park convention centre was crammed with company stalls.<\/p>\n

This photo shows just one of the several ‘Start-Up Alleys’ that criss-crossed the floor.<\/p>\n

<\/a>
\nSource: Editor<\/strong>
\nClick to enlarge<\/a><\/em><\/div>\n

It’s a small world though. I bumped into my old housemate from London, Adam, in the registration queue. I’m glad I did — Adam pointed me to one of the more interesting companies I discovered at the conference.<\/p>\n

A full day at CeBIT goes by in the blink of an eye, so I had to stay focussed. Four of the most interesting budding start-ups I discovered are Mathspace, Workible, zipMoney and CareMonkey.<\/p>\n

These companies are too young to list on the Australian Stock Exchange<\/a> just yet…but I’m betting you’ll be hearing a lot more from them in the near future.<\/p>\n

Mathspace<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n

This company has the potential to make a big splash in schools around the world. It provides online maths programs that high school students complete using a tablet computer. <\/p>\n

The programs provide step-by-step solutions that let kids show their working. That’s a key point of differentiation compared to the largely multiple-choice-based online maths programs out there today.<\/p>\n

The company makes money by selling subscriptions to schools. It should save teachers a lot of time that they would otherwise spend marking papers. The software even lets kids request hints to get them through multi-stage programs, which should make it easier for teachers to identify where students are getting stuck.<\/p>\n

Getting innovative new products<\/a> into schools can be easier said than done. But once you’re in, it’s sticky business, and textbooks and workbooks are a multi-billion dollar global industry. Mathspace could make an especially positive impact on schools in remote areas.<\/p>\n

Maths is an international language, so I can see this product gaining in popularity in markets around the world. And with a distribution deal already signed with global education giant Pearson plc [ASX:PSON]<\/strong>, Mathspace has already clinched a powerful partner and potential buyer.<\/p>\n

No wonder the founders have already tipped more than $1 million of their own money into Mathspace. It’s a brilliant idea, and looks sure to be a commercial success.<\/p>\n

Workible<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n

This is an online marketplace that connects jobseekers and employers. Rather than target the white-collar market segment that Seek Ltd [ASX:SEK]<\/strong> and Linkedin [NYSE:LNKD] <\/strong>currently dominate, Workible helps bring flexible and temporary staff to some of Australia’s biggest companies.<\/p>\n

As I told you in your January issue of Australian Small-Cap Investigator<\/em>, the Australian workforce is becoming increasingly flexible. Co-founder Fiona Anson saw this trend developing and asked ‘If a dating site can match love interests, why can’t a job site match availability?<\/em>’<\/p>\n

6.8 million Australians work outside the traditional 9:00am to 5:00pm, so this service has a big addressable market. The ‘holy grail’ for Workible would be cracking the US market, where that figure is currently 92 million.<\/p>\n

Most recruiters have ignored the flexible employment segment because it’s a highly transactional business with a lower price point. But Workible has collected more than $50,000 in revenue since late last year. This business could be as successful as Seek if it hits critical mass with employers and manages to market itself effectively to jobseekers.<\/p>\n

zipMoney<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n

This company provides short term credit for online shopping. It’s ‘credit in the cloud’ that can replace the traditional 16-digit card. <\/p>\n

Although many Australians are keen web shoppers, online retail still has a lot more share to win away from traditional retailers. <\/p>\n

One of the pain points for consumers is the fear of paying for goods long before they can physically touch them. zipMoney eases that fear, providing longer interest-free terms than many credit card issuers.<\/p>\n

Several Aussie online stores have added zipMoney to their websites as a payment option.<\/p>\n

The online consumer finance space will see some fierce competition in the coming years. The spoils for the victors will be fabulous. And with some deep-pocketed family offices standing behind zipMoney, this young company is in a good position to be a winner.<\/p>\n

CareMonkey<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n

This Melbourne-based company has built a health and safety system for schools, clubs and businesses.<\/p>\n

Facebook Inc [NASDAQ:FB]<\/strong> and LinkedIn might have social networking locked down, but until now there’s been no ‘social care’ network.<\/p>\n

CareMonkey fixes that by collecting medical and emergency records and automatically keeping them up to date. This saves teachers, coaches and admin staff the hassle of carrying so much paperwork and entering reams of data. It also makes sure emergency details are in the right hands.<\/p>\n

The platform also automates things like parental permission requests for excursions and sick day requests for kids. No more forging your parent’s signature for a day off!<\/p>\n

The big question for me is the privacy aspect. Is the data secure and encrypted, and what happens if parents opt out of the platform? CareMonkey says it’s worked through these issues and now has more than 50 institutions as customers.<\/p>\n

CareMonkey addresses an important need and is expandable far beyond schools and clubs. Customers have already asked if CareMonkey can be used as a messaging platform…so you can see the potential for this company goes far beyond what it’s achieved to date.<\/p>\n

In fact, that’s the common theme across all the exciting start-ups I found at CeBIT. They all have potential so great that measuring how big these companies could grow and valuing them today is very difficult.<\/p>\n

But that’s okay. Investing in early-stage companies is an exciting, speculative punt. It’s at the riskier end of the investment spectrum…but those who identify and seize the right opportunities early can enjoy tremendous returns. That’s why I focus on this end of the stock market<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The only way a private investor can buy into a start-up is by engaging with the company directly and taking a stake worth tens of thousands of dollars. That’s a privilege that only a few investors enjoy.<\/p>\n

But everyone can consider small-cap companies that still offer tremendous growth prospects.<\/p>\n

In fact, my Australian Small-Cap Investigator<\/em> subscribers have made a profit of nearly 40% on one ASX-listed tech stock that I tipped less than two months ago. <\/p>\n

This company’s fortunes are linked to an exciting theme that’s only just taking off…and the stock could have a long way to run.<\/p>\n

Great investable companies are emerging all the time in Australia. You just have to know where to find them.<\/p>\n

Tim Dohrmann+<\/a>
\nSmall-Cap Analyst, Australian Small-Cap Investigator<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

From the Archives…<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The Retirement War You Know Nothing About<\/a>
\n 10-05-14 – Shae Smith<\/p>\n

Join Money Morning on Google+ <\/u><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

\n<\/img><\/a> <\/img><\/a> <\/img><\/a>\n<\/div>\n


\nBy MoneyMorning.com.au<\/u><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By MoneyMorning.com.au I just got back from Australia’s biggest and best business technology conference — CeBIT Australia. It was a great show. I walked the halls, discovered brilliant little companies, and met fascinating entrepreneurs and investors. These guys are harnessing technology to redefine how business is done. Here I am on my way in… Source: … <\/p>\n

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