21.02.2014 - 20:51
Mobile World Capital Barcelona released its “MobileReady” app on Saturday morning, which aims to ‘identify and bring together all activity linked to mobile initiatives and experiences in Barcelona’. One of the key goals of the MobileReady app is to bring technology and people—both visitors to #MWC14 and residents—together.
The app, which is available for iOS and Android, has four major sections: Event Agenda, Recommended Apps, Connection Points, and Experiences. The Recommended Apps section describes a slew of Barcelona, Catalonia, and specifically MWC14-related apps and makes them easy to download.
The Experiences section lists a number of technology enhanced activities, including the augmented reality tour at Gaudí’s Casa Batlló, the Google Glass demonstration at Desigual, and the shopping app at Rabat Jewelers, among others. For example, if you go to the Casa Batlló Experience and then point your mobile device at the Casa Batlló itself (from across the street), you can see the dragon that purportedly lives on the roof.
On Wednesday, the Director General of Fira de Barcelona and Executive Vice President of Mobile World Capital Barcelona, Agustí Cordón, presented the ‘Mobile Ready’ initiative, a set of activities that will show citizens and tourists in Barcelona the potential transformations of mobile technology in their daily lives. ‘Mobile Ready’ will travel across the main architectural, commercial and entertainment points of the Catalan capital, while the activities it will offer will be accessible through the mobile phone application. Moreover, coinciding with the Mobile World Congress, the Fira de Barcelona facilities in Montjuïc will host the event ‘4 Years From Now’ (4YFN), which will bring together international investors and major stakeholders in the information and communications technology (ICT) sector, such as Google or WhatsApp, with over 1,000 entrepreneurs and 200 start-up projects from over 40 countries.
Agustí Cordón stressed that the initiative is part of the Mobile World Capital Barcelona, a title the Catalan capital was awarded in 2011 and started to use in 2013, in order to act as an international platform for the mobile-related industry. Barcelona will hold this title until at least 2018, although it might be extended if the city continues to organize the MWC. Besides, Cordón underlined that the Mobile World Congress Barcelona, which it has hosted each year since 2006, should not only be open to professionals in the sector, but also benefit all the citizens and tourists that visit the city. In this sense, the Mayor of Barcelona, Xavier Trias, explained that the Catalan capital had already begun to bear the fruits of organizing such an event, notably in the field of mobile technology applied to education, health and ‘smart cities’.
Cordón also emphasized that the Mobile World Centre, which was unveiled a year ago in the heart of Barcelona city, acting as a permanent lighthouse for mobile technology, could follow events taking place at the Mobile World Congress, for instance Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg’s keynote presentation which is scheduled for Monday the 24th of February at 6 pm.
4YFN will be “the largest concentration of entrepreneurs at the European level”
The event ‘4 Years From Now’ (4YFN) is another innovation that will be launched for the Mobile World Congress 2014. “It will be the largest concentration of entrepreneurs at the European level,” stated Cordón. The 4YFN will gather a thousand entrepreneurs and 200 start-up projects from over 40 countries along with international investors and major stakeholders in the ICT sector, such as Google or WhatsApp. The event aims to make offers and technology demands meet and encourage networking in the sector.
Barcelona and Catalonia are “ready” to be “an international showcase” in the ICT sector
The Catalan Minister for Business and Employment, Felip Puig, participated in the presentation and praised Barcelona and Catalonia for being “ready” to receive the 2014 Mobile World Congress, thus becoming “an international showcase” for mobile technology. Puig stressed that the country has made “significant efforts” to improve its skill level in the ICT sector with one example being that Barcelona has become a leader in the field of ‘smart cities’.
The Minister said that some sixty Catalan companies will be present at the ‘Catalonia’ booth at the 2014 Mobile World Congress, organized by the Catalan Government. In addition the Executive will also participate in initiatives related to job creation in the ICT sector during the event. Puig explained that Catalonia was a “welcoming” environment for events like the MWC, not only for its climate but also for the business possibilities it offers.
