“If the United Nations was fully funded why would we need the Arc or social enterprise?”

While the United Nations has done much for the world in times of crisis, and has improved living conditions in the world drastically through agencies such as the World Health Organization (WHO), it does not replace the need for social enterprise.

There are key fundamental differences between charity and social enterprise. The United Nations provides aid that attacks symptoms of a problem, rather than cause. Social enterprise aims to improve conditions through entrepreneurship, improving the skills of individuals so they can fix problems that arise. Where aid is a temporary bandaid to larger problems, entrepreneurship gives individuals the toolkit to completely fix said problems. The United Nations and similar charity work provide help for the short term. Social enterprise teaches the skills to make create sustainability.

Programs like ARC are not charities, instead focusing on the principles of social entrepreneurship. Where the UN and charities focus on short term issues or crises, social enterprise focuses on the long term improvement of its beneficiaries. It is important that the two coexist.

External Source:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/special_report/1998/health/47191.stm

This blog post is a response to Sincere Cheong’s blog post.

Since 2008, Marvel has released successful blockbuster film after blockbuster film, all because they retained creative license over their comic characters. Unlike other studios, instead of purchasing the rights to popular characters; for example, Spiderman and X-Men by Sony and Fox, Marvel uses the rights to characters they already own. Because they own the rights to so many of their own characters, they are able to create a cinematic universe that spans most of the Marvel world. Movies like the Avengers containing a ensemble cast of high profile superheroes would not be possible without the control that Marvel Studios has over the Marvel IPs. This universe, dubbed the Marvel Cinematic Universe has created a competitive advantage that other superhero movies like Spiderman, X-men and Fantastic Four do not have.

However, the recent success of Guardians of the Galaxy, a new IP with no name recognition, has shown that Marvel’s creative stamp carries credibility with viewers. In fact, a formally unknown franchise was able to set many box office records. Marvel Studios does not need to rely on the rights of high profile superheroes like other superhero movies do. Marvel’s name has become a seal of quality creating hype and intrigue for any movie they produce. If the upcoming film Ant-Man is a success, Marvel can rest assured knowing that they can pull unheralded characters from the Marvel roster and create films that can match or exceed those of A-list superheroes.

Sources:

https://blogs.ubc.ca/sincerecheong/2014/11/02/a-revolution-in-movie-making/

http://www.businessweek.com/printer/articles/192489-kevin-feige-marvels-superhero-at-running-movie-franchises

http://variety.com/2014/film/news/guardians-of-the-galaxy-marvel-analysis-1201274603/

When I first saw the Phonebloks concept video, I was intrigued by the simplicity of the proposal: cellphone longevity, modularity, and customization. However, I was skeptical. It was a well presented idea through social media by a team of designers, not engineers or businessmen. The concept had no technological backing, no prototype, and no business plan. The concept simply became viral because of its aesthetically appealing and accessible video, which presented a problem — electronic waste — and a very, very optimistic solution.

Here is the original Phonebloks video for those interested:

When Motorola acquired the project, dubbed Project Ara, I was surprised that the concept was viable. And when Motorola was sold to Lenovo by Google, Google held on to a couple fragments of Motorola: the patents, and notably, Project Ara.

With Google heading Project Ara, the possibility of a modular cellphone is becoming a reality. Under Google’s direction, a prototype has been demoed, and a business plan has been released. The project’s motto: “Designed exclusively for 6 billion people,” shows the team’s goal with the project, to provide a fully customizable phone, and to make smartphones accessible to new markets, ensuring that untapped mass markets use Google services. Google plans to sell working starter kits that include a frame, a screen, a battery, a low end CPU and WiFi for $50 USD. Ara will no doubt saturate the low-end phone market. Modules will be sold on a store similar to the Google Play store. There is no license or fee for producers to develop a module, which lowers the barrier to entry for cellphone hardware producers.

Here are some images by Engadget of an Ara prototype at Expand NY 2014:

Commercial release is planned for 2015 Q1.

Sources:

http://www.engadget.com/2014/11/07/google-modular-smartphone-project-ara/

http://www.projectara.com/

This blog post is a response to Dredge’s blog post on The Guardian.

South Park’s most recent episode “Freemium Isn’t Free” satirizes the recent influx of “free” games that include microtransactions, a genre that has become very popular as app piracy has flourished. Games of this genre include the popular Candy Crush Saga, and Clash of Clans, but is also prone to rip-offs and blatant money grabs. These freemium games are often the top grossing apps on the Apple Appstore and Google Play, but why are these “free” games making so much money?

The show makes some very good points about how these freemium games really work. Summarized from the show by VentureBeat:

1. Entice the player with an easy game loop.

2. Compliment the player with flashy casino slots-like rewards and graphics.

3. Train players to spend the in-game currency.

4. Then offer players the chance to spend real money for that in-game currency.

5. Then make the game about waiting, but let them pay to avoid waiting.

This is basically a foot in the door method of sales. By first allowing a user to download the app for free, it is easier to establish a large user base. Then people who have downloaded the app may decide to pay for the in-game benefits or currency.

The show goes on to explain how the vast majority of people who play freemium games never spend a penny; however, the goal of freemium games is, to quote the show, “finding the heaviest users and extracting the most amount of cash from them.”

The games aren’t engineered to be fun, they are engineered to make users spend money. Another strategy is to purposely create micropayments that are very easily accessible by children.

We all have heard or personally seen the horror stories of microtransactions. It may be impossible to fight off microtransactions completely, but it is possible to make them morally ethical. In fact, many developers have made it their goal to make their games non-dependent on micropayments, or have sworn off micropayments altogether.

Sources:

http://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2014/nov/07/south-park-freemium-mobile-games

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/video-games/9990086/In-app-charging-five-horror-stories.html

http://venturebeat.com/2014/11/06/south-park-is-right-about-why-the-simpsons-and-family-guy-free-to-play-games-stink/

This blog post is a response to Adrian Yu’s blog post.

Reading through Adrian Yu’s blog, I came across a blog post that interested me as a big fan of Elon Musk and commercial space flight. As the CTO of the SpaceX, a private aerospace company, Elon Musk declared the goal of the company: to colonize Mars.

As a strong supporter of further exploration of space, SpaceX’s goal excites me. However, two recent accidents seem to show that commercial flight is still a long ways to go. On Oct. 28, the Antares rocket developed by Orbital Sciences Corporation exploded on takeoff. On Oct. 31, Virgin Galactic’s VSS Enterprise, designed to carry passengers into space suffered a catastrophic failure.

Antares Rocket Explosion – First Hand Account From NASA Wallops

Virgin Galactic Crash

As a very new private industry, governments shouldn’t strictly regulate privatized space travel or risk destroying the industry before it makes progress. However, these two recent events have undoubtedly devastated the commercial space industry as people are questioning regulations and the safety of commercial space flight. These events have possibly thrown a wrench in SpaceX’s plans.

Sources:

https://blogs.ubc.ca/adrianyu/2014/10/05/the-colonization-of-space/

http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-29895140

http://www.space.com/27638-virgin-galactic-crash-private-spaceflight-safety.html