Iconicloud is seeking $500k in seed funding to launch tools that transform static media libraries into dynamic visualizations optimized for the semantic web. Their software analyzes metadata to synthesize datasets with new correlations, which are rendered in an immersive user interface enhancing discovery. Their business model relies on recurring revenue from plugins for content management systems like WordPress. Investors will gain exposure to an innovative startup addressing large markets in both the B2B and B2C spaces.
HTML Injection Attacks: Impact and Mitigation Strategies
ICONICLOUD Investor Pitch Deck (September 2013)
1. “Instagram for the Semantic Web
--just a lot smarter”
Investor Pitch Deck
September 2013
Confidential & Proprietary
TM
2. Summary
We have created the first generation software tools to transform static
Media Libraries and Content Management Systems into dynamic media
visualizations and knowledge-bases optimized for the Semantic Web.
We are seeking $500K in seed funding to accelerate product launch into select
CMS platform markets with a compelling and competitively-priced product
portfolio.
Our assembled team, expertise, technology design and architecture enables us
to efficiently scale our toolkits, cloud platform and business to reach a global
consumer audience through our multi-lingual, mobile-enabled web applications.
Our business model is based on proven, lean complexity/low-overhead
commercial delivery methods sustained by multiple and recurring product and
service revenue streams in the B2B and B2C markets.
ICONICLOUD represents a solid investment candidate with excellent strategic
exit potential given our innovative solutions, our market space and the track
record of similar startups in adjacent markets.
3. What We Do
Smart Media Visualizations: ICONICLOUD creates smart, structured “open
web” enabled media visualizations for collecting, correlating and discovering new
visual value in rich, digital media libraries for both business and consumer users.
Creating Structure and New Correlations from Unstructured Data: Our
software toolkit automatically and efficiently transforms Content Management
Systems (e.g. WordPress, Joomla, Ruby on Rails) into semantically-optimized
datasets with new correlations within the Media Library, with other external media
resources, and with knowledge repositories available across the Web.
Visual User Experience: Our visual User Interface (“Aurora”) to these synthesized
datasets creates an immersive User Experience that enhances browsing,
discovery, learning and collaboration on both mobile and desktop devices.
Site-enhancing Software Tools: The cumulative effect spurs new and repeat
website visitors, increases user dwell times through visual engagement and
exploration, and optimizes the site content for semantic search visibility and
enhanced results.
4. ICONICLOUD visual UX
Our software tools efficiently analyze the metadata within CMS/Media Libraries and synthesize this
with natural language processing techniques for media context. The results produce a “meta-dataset”
which can be rendered in new visualization models and content discovery modes, using the media content
itself. ICONICLOUD is a compelling, companion resource to the effort invested by site owners and
contributors in their rich, user-generated media content. The results speak for themselves.
From this: To this:
TabletSmartphone Visual Design
StudioSM
5. Proof of Concept
Our beta software tools have demonstrated ICONICLOUD’s innovative value
proposition on a live WordPress site: Via Lucis Photography of Religious
Architecture.
Dennis Aubrey, Via Lucis founder, photographer and site owner, offers this
assessment:
"Iconicloud presents an entirely different way of looking at the totality of a site. It works both as a
“browsing” tool and as a research tool, serving as a powerful form of visual indexing. In the future, we can
see how an image-intensive site – or for that matter any site replete with rich, mixed media content – that
is organized using Iconicloud can tie into and correlate the local material into other relevant material across
the massive library that is the worldwide web. This is a compelling step towards a visual, semantic web of
knowledge..."
More User Feedback:
"Stunning" ... "Fascinating" … "A tool like this could completely supersede the existing literature… and
help people see entirely new relationships and time sequences in the evolution of church architecture." …
"It's phenomenal! This is a fantastic way to display images and allow people to experience this in a more
neural-network form, almost simulating how the brain creates its synapses and builds neural networks" …
"cool tool"...
The ICONICLOUD Demo Edition is available from our website in the Additional Resources section
6. How We Do It
Media Mapping: Our software tools mine and map the metadata associated
with the rich digital media content and synthesize this with natural language
analysis of the narrative context to determine weighted keywords and themes;
we then merge this with semantic correlations and contextual links to external
libraries, resources and knowledge-bases – this is our back-end data
construction process.
Media Visualization: We use the visual content of the media library itself to
create new visual structures based on this data construction. This visually-
centric User Experience provides an innovative form of pattern recognition (and
higher cognitive recognition and retention value) to facilitate browsing,
navigation and immersion into the content.
We can auto-generate these synthesized datasets in virtually any literal
language based on our Unicode support, and deliver the visual UX via any
device, including tablets and smartphones, based on our use of HTML5
responsive display (with further mobile-optimization in the development
pipeline).
7. Here are some timely articles from Google regarding
recent updates to their Knowledge Graph for
semantically-optimized search:
https://plus.google.
com/116899029375914044550/posts/WsW16hKHk8k
(The post above is extracted to the right for easy
reference)
http://insidesearch.blogspot.com/2013/09/fifteen-years-
onand-were-just-getting.html
We thought it would be helpful to outline how this plays
with ICONICLOUD, which is outlined in the infographic
on the next page.
ICONICLOUD
and the
Semantic Web
8. CMS
Media
Library
a) Our ICONICLOUD software tools and
techniques transform CMS/Media Libraries
into semantically-structured, RDF
datasets. Our data schema conforms to
the same schema standards outlined by
W3C and used by Google's Knowledge
Graph (and others) for collecting and
generating their semantic search results.
b) Instead of an End-User initiating the semantic search
inquiry via the search engine, our ICONICLOUD software
performs equivalent semantic queries of the same
external Knowledge Bases and data resources on behalf
of the CMS/Media Library based on our data analysis, and
then synthesizes the correlated results as new linked
resources within the metadata of the CMS/Media Library.
This new "meta- dataset" is then used in our
ICONICLOUD visual UX for deeper exploration and
discovery by visitors to our customers' websites.
c) As a result of our step (a), and as a
secondary benefit, the semantically structured
CMS/Media Library is also ready to serve as a
contributing entity to the web-wide Knowledge
Bases and repositories used by Google and
other search engines. Thus, the CMS/Media
library is exposed as a viable knowledge
resource itself that can be used in semantic
search engines like Google's Knowledge Graph,
creating new and forward-looking search
visibility for the site owner.
d) ICONICLOUD’s Unicode
support means our tools can
correlate and cross-reference
Media Libraries and external
resource bases in different
languages, and automatically
present visualizations in a
specific language as well
correlate the results across
linguistics and cultural
demographics into a unified
visual media User Experience.
9. Why We Are Doing It
Media is a universal language -- people like to experience and share pictures
and sounds and are doing so on an unprecedented and global scale.
The “InterWeb” is awash in both user-generated and professionally-
produced rich, digital media: photos, videos, music, news, entertainment,
infographics, presentations, websites, blogs, etc
But There's Too Much Information! Most of this media has a limited shelf
life, or is buried and goes completely unnoticed or under-appreciated given
the effort invested by their creators.
The “Semantic Web” is emerging and coalescing, driven by major players:
W3C, Google Knowledge Graph, Bing/Yahoo, Schema.org, Freebase,
DBpedia et al. This will have significant effects on semantically-optimized
search applications, including the important role digital media plays in search
performance and results.
10. Market Opportunity
The B2B Addressable Market for our CMS tools is substantial:
● WordPress is the platform for 40M - 60M websites around the world.
● Popular with individuals, SMBs and enterprises.
● ICONICLOUD’s Aurora Plugin for WP-CMS/Media Libraries is
competitively priced: $49 - $149 annual subscription based on product
feature sets (e.g. Media Maps, Visual Navigator, Media Networks,
Semantic Discovery) and planned enhancements.
● We will use efficient distribution channels and available ecosystems of e-
commerce, marketing affiliates, co-developer and support communities
for our launch ramp.
● The initial ROI of $500K equates to 3,500 - 10,500 site owners -- a very
conservative penetration target.
● Our B2B product portfolio addresses other popular CMS platforms and
user communities, both general-purpose and application-specific.
12. Market Opportunity (cont.)
The B2C Revenue Opportunity is Significant and Scalable:
B2C: Global Service Revenue
Potential (Subscription Model)
$2.99/mos. // $36/yr.
Sample Pricing
Adoption & Conversion Rate -
Free v. Premium (80 / 20):
Annual Revenue:
10,000 end-users / 2,000
premium subscribers
$72,000
100,000 / 20,000 $720,000
1,000,000 / 200,000 $7,200,000
13. Competition
ICONICLOUD is a revolutionary solution for semantically-optimizing media
libraries and user-generated media visualizations that currently has no direct
competitors.
Numerous Software Plugin and Toolkit providers exist for the popular CMS
platforms, including photo-centric applications, gallery themes, etc.
Photo/Video sharing applications and service providers are plentiful and some are
capturing explosive marketshare.
The major players such as Google, Facebook, Microsoft and Yahoo as well as
open-source developer communities and standards groups are actively deploying
tools and techniques for exposing their audiences to the emerging Semantic Web.
ICONICLOUD’s competitive strategy is ongoing innovation, speed to market,
compelling UI design and UX delivery, state-of-art scalability and data performant
technology framework, user platform-agnosticism and cross-platform content
aggregation, combined with world-class business management and execution.
14. Who We Are
ICONICLOUD Co-Founders David McDonell / CEO and Kevin Quinn / CTO
worked together in the late 90s with the Altamira Group founders on the
introduction of the highly successful Genuine Fractals software product line.
McDonell was the MCI Venture Fund Director responsible for the initial
investment. Both are alumni of American University in Washington, DC.
The assembled team has over a century of world-class experience and
combined professional expertise spanning Networks, Mobile, Digital Media, Info
Design & Visualization, UI/UX, Software Development and Systems Integration,
combined with an established track record of successful startups, IP creation,
market expansion, revenue generation, customer service, business management,
commercial value-creation and venture exits.
15. Who We Are (cont.)
Kevin brings over twenty years of experience working with the Internet from all angles,
with a current focus on HTML5 capabilities in Android, iPhone, and webOS as well as
advanced data architectures, data analysis and data semantics. His technical expertise
is in PERL, PHP, Javascript, CSS, HTML, HTML5, iPhone, Android, WebKit, and Linux.
He recently earned recognition from the White House for his technology role in mobile
applications for Colorado’s Department of Transportation.
Prior to ICONICLOUD, David was CEO and co-founder of Imagenomic, a profitable
private software boutique whose award-winning product suite for digital photography
produced $3MM annually in global retail sales in less than 4 years with no direct sales
employees. McDonell's professional accomplishments also include: Directing a $40MM
advanced technology P&L program under the CTO of MCI Worldcom (and having the
privilege of working with Vint Cerf, Google’s current Chief Internet Evangelist); Serving
as a wireless data subject matter expert in MCI’s Product Management team; Building
out and launching a national mobile data network in the Netherlands for BellSouth;
Directing the launch of the first private data network for the international maritime
industry in London, for SAIC and the Baltic & International Maritime Council; Serving as
a top Business Development performer for international sales of first generation
Message Handling Systems on behalf of British Telecom; Assisting in the development
and administration of DHL’s initial logistics tracking network thru NetExpress; and
serving as a startup team member and information analyst out of university for a
groundbreaking commercial intelligence platform (IRIS Systems Development
Corporation) on behalf of Lloyds of London.
16. Funding Status
The Co-Founders have bootstrapped ICONICLOUD through beta
development of the Minimum Viable Product. We are currently seeking
up to $500K in seed-stage funding for product deployment and market
rollout.
We are actively qualifying lead investors and are in due diligence with VC and
Angel funds in San Jose and Sunnyvale, a corporate Venture Fund, and
accredited angel networks and seed funders in LA, DC, and NYC.
Thank you for your time and prospective interest in ICONICLOUD.
Contact Info:
David McDonell
M: 703-864-1203
EM: davidmcdonell@gmail.com
URL: http://iconicloud.com