Nerissa Golden
Thursday, January 15, 2015
Two Montserratian startups and one Dominican-based company have been included in SiliconCaribe.com’s Top Caribbean Startups to Watch in 2015.
This is the first year that SiliconCaribe, a blog focused on Caribbean technology education, is publishing the list.
Curator and tech evangelist Ingrid Riley said, "The list of startups was chosen through a process of submissions by on-the-ground Caribbean tech community leaders, innovation hub managers and startup experts. We also looked at the winners of key Caribbean wide competitions and of course there were a number of wild cards that we discovered."
"The list represents what Caribbean tech entrepreneurs are thinking and some of the problems they are seeking to solve. Additionally, based on current and developing trends in the growth of the Caribbean’s startup ecosystem, we expect to see, more Caribbean startups overall over the next three to five, with a number of global contenders among them. As a result, this list is a snapshot of where things are now and a glimpse of the region’s bright future," Riley added.
On the list is ComeSeeTV from Dominica. ComeSeeTV is the Caribbean’s largest portal for streaming original content. Over 11 million people annually access content created by churches, carnivals, governments and entrepreneurs. Clients can create free content, On Demand or Live Stream Pay Per View events.
We’re very pleased to have been included in this list," said Lindsay George, CEO of ComeSeeTV. "The demand for services continues to increase and we want to be the platform delivering the best service rivalling YouTube, LiveStream and others. The secret is really the people around the region who are creating the content that friends and family globally want to see."
eVisa (MOVA), an electronic visa application system, provides approval on requests within 24 hours. It also allows the government to collect revenue directly via credit card payments and eliminates the current practices of using consulates in various parts of the world which can take weeks and also does not provide local income. This product is from Lavabits a software development firm based in Montserrat.
Talypso is voting software, which cuts the wait time for results at cultural competitions such as calypso, soca and pageants. It gives real time information on a leader board as the show progresses and results can be announced within 20 minutes of the competitions ending. The team has also developed a government document system that allows various departments to work on the same project and share documents while maintaining security. Talypso is a product of a Software startup Rovika, run by Manish Valeccha and Dennison Daley.
The Caribbean tech startups span the sectors of internet of things, e-learning, online media, mobile gaming, mobile surveys, e-agriculture, e-health, social shopping and more.
