From inception up until the setting up process, how did you start
your business?
As a Network Services Manager working for Telstra’s
Internet and IT Products division in the mid-1990’s, I realised very early on
that the world as we knew it was rapidly evolving; the digital age was fast
approaching. It was clear to me that, eventually, every consumer electronics
product -regardless of what it was – would one day be connected to the Internet
– either wired or wireless.
In addition, every product would need access to
digital media content of some description. Audio and video were the two most
obvious content categories which would one day “stream” over the Internet
instead of the traditional terrestrial or satellite services. In 2003 I founded
the miRoamer business to take advantage of this opportunity.
Today our
international multi-award winning miRoamer product is recognised as a global
market leader in the Internet radio space. Our corporate headquarters are based
in Doncaster Melbourne, and we recently opened an office in Hong Kong. Our
European office is due to open next month, and we plan to open our USA office
later this year. Our Company successfully listed on the Frankfurt Open Market in
Germany in November 2009.
Web radio for cars is an unusual medium; why
have you decided to move into this area?
Roughly 40% of radio listening
is consumed whilst in the car. In the USA for example, approximately 94% of all
drivers listen to radio every week whilst driving to and from work, so the
penetration and consumption rates are quite high. By providing a method to
access tens of thousands of radio stations in the car, drivers can choose what
stations they want to listen to live from anywhere in the world.
In addition,
they can select from dozens of high-quality dedicated music genres including
Jazz, Rock, Pop, Dance, Metal, Country, Symphony, 80s, 90s etc.
Is this
considered a highly competitive market?
The digital media content market
is quite immature and extremely fragmented. The landscape is constantly evolving
due to the entry of new technologies and competitors. miRoamer positions itself
as the premiere digital media platform in the market. We therefore specifically
target large multi-national “Tier 1” organisations, predominantly in Europe, USA
and Asia.
By taking this position, we effectively “reposition” our competitors;
consider the brand comparison between a Mercedes Benz versus a Hyundai. Through
our extensive marketing and public relations campaigns, along with our
continuous participation at major international trade shows and exhibitions,
miRoamer has built a solid brand recognition within the consumer electronics and
automotive industry.
How is business currently?
Business is
fantastic! After our partnership announcement with Blaupunkt at the 2009
Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, we recently announced our membership to
the GENIVI Alliance, an exclusive automotive infotainment community which
includes companies such as Intel, BMW, General Motors, Texas Instruments and
Wind River.
A deal with a large multinational mobile handset maker is on the
cards, and we are working with several automotive companies to integrate
miRoamer as the default standard into a number of vehicle makes and models.
What is your vision for the future of your business?
Our
expansion plans into Europe, USA and Asia in 2010 will provide a solid sales and
business development footprint across these important regions. Moreover, South
East Asia and the Subcontinent markets will become extremely important to our
business over the coming years.
The Automotive, Mobile Phone Handset, and
Consumer Electronics product segments are of greatest importance to us in the
next 24 months.