Two Newcastle App ideas hit the right notes

Two North East Apps are celebrating business milestones.

Cupple, a relationship App created by Tim Allison, has been snapped up by US tech company Tenthbit; and ShotlList, an App for filmmakers created by Peter Johnson of Soluble Apps, has entered into profit thanks to sales success.

Both ideas were supported by Northern Film & Media, who have previously worked with Channel 4’s 4iP digital innovation fund and Newcastle agency TH_NK who secured a CBBC commission.

John Tulip, managing director of Northern Film & Media, said: “I applaud Tim and Peter for their dedication, creativity and hard work, and am proud that we were able to help them to success.NFM was one of the first of the old screen agencies to engage with digital media and we are able to draw on a long track record of experience to help support our region’s fantastic digital entrepreneurs.

“From innovative investments, through a range oftalent development initiatives, to workshops which bring the most pioneering digital entrepreneurs to the region, NFM has long been committed to developing the North East’s digital economy, and we retain that commitment fully.”

Tapping into the current vogue for secure social networking, Cupple is a private sharing app created by and designed specifically for couples.

Tim Allison, said: “Last year saw a massive rise in apps focusing on privacy and sharing more intimately. Fortunately for us NFM were one of a handful of early stage investors that got behind Cupple and saw its potential. Cupple was right at the start of the movement and we’ve got a solid blueprint to evolve.”

Following the successful launch of an upgraded second generation version of Cupple at the prestigious SXSW Interactive conference in Texas, and with a base of more than 10,000 users built up, Tenthbit bought the app and have relaunched it under the name Couple.

Designed for a much more specific clientele, ShotList offers an affordable way for anyone putting together a scripted movie or video shoot to schedule and keep track of things. Launched in June 2011 and retailing at £7.99, the app is unique in bringing the “Production Stripboard” system used for many years in the film industry to a mobile device.

By storing the details, locations and notes for each scene in an easily viewable and editable form ready for instant recall, it allows filmmakers to track progress throughout the day of a shoot, or break down a script and plan out a multi-day shoot in advance – all “on the go”.

Peter Johnson of Soluble Apps said: “ShotList was a much larger scale and more time-consuming than I’d expected. For me, the investment NFM offered was ideal because it took the risk out of the development process and just incentivised me to make the app as successful as possible.

“It wasn’t just about the money though,” Johnson continued. “The advice and conversations I was able to have at the start of the project were crucial too, especially given NFM’s experience of working with filmmakers. You could almost say it was an ideal marriage of technology and filmmaking!”

Johnson’s work on ShotList has led to even greater success with the company’s lucrative MailShot app, which applies lessons learned on the earlier app to allow users to email groups of contacts directly from their favourite apps. MailShot will shortly hit the 250,000 user mark.