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Crowdsourcing and the Changing Role of the Consumer

Jan-27-13 By IdeaConnection
Crowdsourcing is changing the role of consumers as they seek to play a more active role with the brands they buy. Not only do they want to be the first to get hold of the latest gadget or product upgrade, but they also want to be involved in online communities associated with them.

$250,000 on Offer at the World’s First Crowdfunding Festival

Jan-24-13 By IdeaConnection
For five days in April, Jacksonville, Florida will be the focus of innovation, inspiration and creativity as artists, entrepreneurs, and innovators from all over the world showcase their best and brightest ideas. The event is One Spark, the world's first crowdfunding festival, a live and fully interactive experience that enables attendees to support brilliant ideas that inspire them. And it’s open to all.

The Caped Crusader Turns to the Crowd for Help

Jan-22-13 By IdeaConnection
“Holy innovative way to raise money, Batman!” – as the caped crusader’s sidekick might say.

A team of Bat-fans want to create a web series, The Batman Chronicles and are asking the crowd for help to raise funds for the non-profit project.

Mobile Phone Operators Should Embrace Open Innovation

Jan-21-13 By IdeaConnection
To remain competitive and secure their futures, mobile phone operators have two choices. Embrace open innovation and cloud computing.

That’s the view of researcher Yrjö Raivio of Aalto University School of Science.

His doctoral dissertation for the Aalto University Department of Computer Science and Engineering Raivio presents operators with a number of strategic recommendations which were picked up by Phys.Org.

Help NASA Boost Power to the International Space Station

Jan-18-13 By IdeaConnection
“Ye cannae change the laws of physics!” was the oft repeated cry of the Chief Engineer of the USS Enterprise. You are right Scotty, but as you so often did on Star Trek, you can make them work better for you.

In the real world of space exploration scientists are increasingly turning to open innovation and the crowd to help them discover more about our solar system and the Universe.

NASA’s latest open innovation challenge, The Longeron Shadowing Optimization Challenge, is a public competition to make the energy-gathering solar arrays of the International Space Station (ISS) more efficient. With more power scientists can conduct more experiments.

Prize Money on Offer for Super Bowl Ad Ideas

Jan-16-13 By IdeaConnection
Viewers of NBC’s hit show “The Office” will be familiar with Dunder Mifflin the fictional paper products company that the mockumentary is based on.

Well, it’s also now a real paper product, the fruits of a partnership between NBC Universal and paper company Quill.

To promote the product and bring it to a wider audience the Dunder Mifflin brand has a Super Bowl ad spot. And that’s where you come in.

The Kickstarter for Solar Could Make You Money

Jan-14-13 By IdeaConnection
Mosaic is a solar project financing company that aims to be the ‘Kickstarter for solar’. Last week it launched a new online platform that lets individuals invest as little as $25 in solar initiatives.

Within 24 hours the first project had attracted 400 investors who pitched in $313,325 to fully fund a number of rooftop solar projects. Investments ranged from $25 to $3,000. The average investment amount was nearly $700.

The big difference between Mosaic and Kickstarter is that it promises to pay investors a return, with an interest rate that varies from one project to another.

Planetary Scientists Need Your Help to Study the Climate on Mars

Jan-12-13 By IdeaConnection
A group of scientists wants the crowd to help them study the weather on Mars. The research is beyond the capability of current computing so it is best carried out by people power. There are also far too many images for the scientists to go through on their own.

Planet Four is a new citizen science project that is asking the public to analyze hundreds of thousands of images of the Martian surface to identify characteristic features that will help planetary scientists better understand the climate of Mars.

More Accurate Public Transport Data Courtesy of the Crowd

Jan-10-13 By IdeaConnection
Getting from A to B could become a whole lot easier thanks to the crowd and a new app called Moovit.

This crowdsourced transit app for iOS and Android is free to download and can determine accurate arrival times of trains and buses and the level of crowding from user locations.

Can you Crowdsource a Hit Record?

Jan-09-13 By IdeaConnection
We are used to seeing success stories of crowdsourcing initiatives improving innovation in industry and society - but can mass collaboration produce a hit record?

Swedish DJ and producer Avicii has partnered with mobile networking giant Ericsson to experiment with a crowdsourced music composition.