Back in July the BlackBerry Partners Fund revealed the first four finalists in the 2009 Developers Challenge. The next four finalists are David (by Turner Technologies), Sid Meier's Pirates (by Concrete Software Inc), CBS News (by Handmark), and Market Simplified (by Market Simplified Inc). Each finalist will receive a free pass to the Developers Conference, one week as a featured app in BlackBerry App World and one BlackBerry Smartphone. Addtional finalists will be announced at the end of August and September. Check out the full press release after the jump.
BlackBerry Partners Fund Reveals the Second Round of Finalists in the 2009 BlackBerry Developer Challenge
TORONTO-August 4, 2009-The BlackBerry Partners Fund today announced the next four (4) Finalists in the 2009 BlackBerry Developer Challenge. This round of Finalists includes David (by Turner Technologies), Sid Meier's Pirates (by Concrete Software Inc.), CBS News (by Handmark), and Market Simplified (by Market Simplified Inc.). Finalists were selected by a panel of judges based on the following criteria: compelling product or service; clearly defined value proposition, and; technical execution.
* David helps minimize overwhelming cell phone bills by monitoring wireless usage (including daytime, evening, weekend and long distance minutes as well as data) against an existing wireless plan.
* Sid Meier's Pirates lets BlackBerry users live the life and career of a pirate. Strategy and skill are used to build attributes in sword fighting, cash, and ship battles, making it easier to face a multitude of challenges.
* CBS News delivers the latest breaking news and developing stories straight from CBS News, CBSNews.com and CBS owned TV stations. Users are never more than a click away from the latest news from around the world.
* Market Simplified enables TD AMERITRADE clients to execute trades, set technical alerts, view market news, get streaming quotes, and check their portfolios. It ensures that a user's TD AMERITRADE account is never out of sight.
Each Finalist receives a prize package that includes one week on the BlackBerry App World Featured Application Carousel; one BlackBerry Developers Conference pass; one BlackBerry smartphone; and, guaranteed participation in the BlackBerry Sweet 16 Demo Event at the 2009 BlackBerry Developers Conference.
With this announcement, a total of eight (8) finalists have been selected to date. The first four finalists include Fierce Towers (by Nickel Buddy), Astraware Solitare (by Handmark), Expense Manager (by Total Wireless Solutions), and Vision for YouTube (by Metova).
Four additional Finalists will be selected and announced at the end of August and September respectively. Over the course of the four-month challenge, a total of 16 Finalists will qualify for the BlackBerry Sweet 16 Demo Event. Entries for the BlackBerry Developer Challenge will be accepted until September 25, 2009 at 11:59pm EDT.
Contest Rules and Regulations
Full contest rules and regulations are available online (www.blackberrypartnersfund.com/09contest), along with details on eligibility, judging, key dates and prize packages.
About BlackBerry Partners Fund
The BlackBerry Partners FundTM is designed to deliver superior returns on the compelling investment opportunity in applications, services and supporting infrastructure for the BlackBerry® and other mobile platforms. The Fund's mandate is based on the premise that in the future smartphones will be powerful portable computers for use at home, work, and leisure. The Fund invests in companies developing applications that make smartphones a compelling platform for media, commerce, enterprise, entertainment, and lifestyle applications. The Fund is global in scope and will consider all stages of development. For further information visit: www.blackberrypartnersfund.com.
