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SINGAPORE: A local start-up by two former National University of Singapore (NUS) students has scored a major coup.
The software invented by the company is now the main component of a 3G trial service by StarHub.
The mobile phone software company, called Mozat, has remained low-key despite making waves in the industry.
One of the two men behind the start-up is 32-year-old Michael Yin.
Born in China, the former NUS student has a simple mantra - mobile phones are the future.
In 2003, he and another student, Jet Tan, got $100,000 each from the NUS and the Economic Development Board to fund Mozat.
And it only took two years for the start-up to break even.
"I was always dreaming of starting a business, even back in Shanghai. But the problem with Shanghai is that we can't find good enough people. Singapore is ideal for start-up location because it's a hub of all the talents in the region. I cannot meet my partner, Jet, in China because it's too big. But it (the meeting) happened a few days after I arrived in Singapore," said Michael, who is now the CEO of Mozat.
Mozat's Morange software is a major part of Singapore telco StarHub's recently announced 'PhingoActive' service.
The software brings together various applications, like E-mail, blogging and chatting, under one platform.
More interestingly, it allows mobile phone users to link up to their PC's hard-drive or even get access to external shared folders.
So, users do not have to carry all their MP3s in their mobile phone.
The company may be a modest one, with only 35 staff members.
But it already has two offices in Guangzhou and Shanghai.
William Klippgen, Director of Mozat, said: "Mobile phones are extremely powerful these days and network connections are very fast. So you have a very powerful tool in your hand but it's not being utilised. There's a huge gap in terms of making use of that power."
And to fill those gaps, plans are already underway for the company to go big in China, India and Europe.
Eighty percent of Mozat's staff in Singapore are former NUS students, more than half of them from overseas.
For Michael, he has just applied for his Singapore Permanent Residency.
He is fully aware of the recent heated debate on foreign talent in Singapore but remains unfazed.
"No matter I'm in a taxi or anywhere......my pronunciation, can tell (I'm) from China. They (taxi drivers) always give me a big smile, never get any bad experience," he said. - CNA/ir
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