Arab News

‘Linda’ TV app takes top prize at CABSAT 2017 ‘Appathon’

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Teams of developers took to the show floor on the final day of CABSAT 2017 to create the best TV app during this year’s “Appathon,” sponsored by Metrologic­al SDK.

The winning team got a chance to pitch the app to top telco operators, which offer a total reach of over 40 million households worldwide.

CABSAT is an establishe­d trade platform for digital media and satellite sectors across the Middle East, Africa and Southern Asian region.

Tiberiu Iacomi, chief probabilit­y observer at The Improbable Agency and one of the judges at the “Appathon,” said: “The winning team had a very thorough technical presentati­on. They won because they were able to monetise their idea and marry the technical and business part together. It is so important to have innovation opportunit­ies like ‘Appathon.’

“Every team who took part learned something new. Even if they weren’t a winner today, they have all developed skills that will be invaluable moving forward in their careers. I will be looking out for all of the teams in the next few months to see where they end up.”

A group from the software developmen­t company Strypes in Bulgaria were crowned winners. Their app, Linda, helps individual­s with all aspects of television, removing the need for a remote control.

“It means the world to us to win this award,” said Tifron Statkov. “We are delighted with the product we have built and it is great to have something complete that is really working and can benefit a lot of people. Our app is very technical and required a lot of effort over the last 48 hours and not much sleep, but it is something new that has a lot of potential. It is great that this was recognized by the jury. We are excited to see what the future holds and we hope that we can use this platform to launch the app into the market.”

The team behind Linda have won a three-month membership at one of the biggest technical hubs in Dubai, In 5. There, they will have the opportunit­y to work alongside like-minded tech entreprene­urs and meet potential mentors and investors in the region.

Bodgan Alexandru Zokas, CEO of Online Video Network and a judge of the “Appathon,” said: “It was great to see people from all walks of life taking part.

Some teams had come from fully fledged technical background­s, whereas others were just groups of friends who were passionate about an idea. The ‘Appathon” is a huge opportunit­y for all entreprene­urs looking to get into the tech space and provides them with free access to resources and knowledge regardless of their ability.”

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