Taneli Tikka
Encyclopedia
Taneli Tikka is a Finnish technology serial entrepreneur, and a keynote speaker in Finnish and International events.
(2006–2007) he was instrumental in the acquisition of IRC-Galleria by Sulake Corporation, the company behind Habbo Hotel
. Previously Tikka has been CEO in several technology companies, notably at Magenta Sites (the hosting & IT services company behind the global distribution of the Star Wreck
-movie, and also the long time hosting partner for Habbo Hotel
), MobileCRM and Taika Technologies.
in the very early days of the service. Currently Tikka acts as an angel investor in the technology sector. One of Tikka's investments in known to be Muxlim
, the world's largest social network for Muslims. Tikka is also a former executive (COO) and owner of Dopplr
, a company that Nokia acquired in September 2009. Lisa Sounio
and Marko Ahtisaari
are among Dopplr
founders. In the spring of 2008 Tikka started developing a new social shopping startup RunToShop as its CEO. Tikka left RunToShop a year later in the spring of 2009. Tikka is also one of the founders of Vakuutuskone.com (insurance and finance service), he is a Board Member of the Aula
network, and acts as an advisor and Board Member in several technology companies, including: Balancion, Xiha Life
, Umbra Software
and 13 Holding (ENCA).
. F-Secure
founder & chairman Mr. Risto Siilasmaa
heads the steering group. The programme's mission is to renew startup and growth company financing in Finland. In June 2010 a Donald Duck
-based magazine AKU. (Donald) nominated Tikka as the Scrooge McDuck
of Finland. In January 2011 Tikka was appointed as an Executive Vice President of NASDAQ OMX listed public company Soprano Plc, in charge of their web solutions division. In March 2011 the Finnish Information Processing Association nominated Tikka as the opinion leader in ICT for 2010. This nomination has in the past been received by professors, members of parliament (Jyrki Kasvi
) and large organization CEOs (Risto Siilasmaa
) in Finland. It has a tradition extending from 1987 onwards to this date.
Tikka has studied at the Helsinki School of Economics
, where he graduated 1st of his class of the 2004 Executive MBA .
Tikka writes a popular technology entrepreneurial blog at www.tane.li
Media
Tikka has been a frequent guest in the Finnish media, particularly on the morning TV program "Good Morning Finland" on the MTV3 channel. Tikka is the former CEO of IRC-GalleriaIRC-Galleria
IRC-Galleria is the largest social networking website in Finland. It was founded in December 2000 by Tomi Lintelä as a photo gallery for the Finnish users of Internet Relay Chat . As of April 2009, IRC-Galleria has over 500,000 registered users and 9 million images. Over 90% of the users are...
(2006–2007) he was instrumental in the acquisition of IRC-Galleria by Sulake Corporation, the company behind Habbo Hotel
Habbo Hotel
Habbo is a social networking site aimed at teenagers. The website is owned and operated by Sulake Corporation. The service began in 2000 and has expanded to include 11 online communities , with users in over 150 countries. As of August 2011, over 230 million avatars have been registered...
. Previously Tikka has been CEO in several technology companies, notably at Magenta Sites (the hosting & IT services company behind the global distribution of the Star Wreck
Star Wreck
Star Wreck is a series of Finnish Star Trek parody movies started by Samuli Torssonen in 1992. The first movie, simply named Star Wreck, was a simple Star Control-like animation with three ships shooting at each other, but later movies featured 3D CGI, animated characters and, in the latest films,...
-movie, and also the long time hosting partner for Habbo Hotel
Habbo Hotel
Habbo is a social networking site aimed at teenagers. The website is owned and operated by Sulake Corporation. The service began in 2000 and has expanded to include 11 online communities , with users in over 150 countries. As of August 2011, over 230 million avatars have been registered...
), MobileCRM and Taika Technologies.
Stardoll
Tikka was an executive advisor to StardollStardoll
Stardoll is a browser game for girls and boys based around the paper doll concept. Launched in 2004, the website was attracting a reported 200 thousand unique users a month ; as of September 2011 there were over 124 million users worldwide...
in the very early days of the service. Currently Tikka acts as an angel investor in the technology sector. One of Tikka's investments in known to be Muxlim
Muxlim
Muxlim is primarily known as a social networking website for Muslims that is focused on lifestyle aspects of the community. Founded in 2006 by Mohamed El-Fatatry and Pietari Päivänen of Finland, the company was created as a Muslim lifestyle social media network with primary focus on Muslims in...
, the world's largest social network for Muslims. Tikka is also a former executive (COO) and owner of Dopplr
Dopplr
Dopplr is a free social networking service, launched in 2007, that allows users to create itineraries of their travel plans and spot correlations with their contacts’ travel plans in order to arrange meetings at any point on their journey. Additional features include allowing the user to calculate...
, a company that Nokia acquired in September 2009. Lisa Sounio
Lisa Sounio
Lisa Sounio is a past CEO and the current chairperson of social networking site Dopplr. She is also the CEO of her own design management consultancy Sonay. She has a has a background in industrial design management. Early in her career she worked as a sales- and export manager in the Finnish...
and Marko Ahtisaari
Marko Ahtisaari
Marko Ahtisaari is a Finnish technology entrepreneur and musician.Marko Ahtisaari is the son of Martti Ahtisaari, a former UN diplomat, President of Finland...
are among Dopplr
Dopplr
Dopplr is a free social networking service, launched in 2007, that allows users to create itineraries of their travel plans and spot correlations with their contacts’ travel plans in order to arrange meetings at any point on their journey. Additional features include allowing the user to calculate...
founders. In the spring of 2008 Tikka started developing a new social shopping startup RunToShop as its CEO. Tikka left RunToShop a year later in the spring of 2009. Tikka is also one of the founders of Vakuutuskone.com (insurance and finance service), he is a Board Member of the Aula
Aula
Aula may refer to:*Atrium *Avola, a city in Sicily *Aula, Eritrea, a village in western Eritrea*Ultralight aircraft , Advanced ultra-light aeroplane...
network, and acts as an advisor and Board Member in several technology companies, including: Balancion, Xiha Life
Xiha Life
Xiha Life is a multilingual social networking website. It integrates Google's automatic translation software, Google Translate, which enables users to instantly translate comments and posts within the site itself. The user interface has been translated into 42 languages, and the system supports...
, Umbra Software
Umbra software
Umbra Software Ltd. is a graphics software technology company founded 2007 in Helsinki, Finland. Umbra Software specializes in occlusion culling, visibility and rendering optimization technology and provides middleware for videogames running on Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Vita, PC, iOS and...
and 13 Holding (ENCA).
Director
Tikka is a former director of the Finnish Software Entrepreneurs Association. In the summer of 2008 the Finnish governmental Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation (TEKES) appointed Tikka as a director of their Verso technology programme. In October 2009 Tikka was appointed as a Steering Group member of the Finnish governmental Vigo Programme by the minister of the economy Mr. Mauri PekkarinenMauri Pekkarinen
Reijo Mauri Matias Pekkarinen is a Finnish politician. He is the Centre Party of Finland deputy and secretary, and former Minister of Economic Affairs in the Finnish government...
. F-Secure
F-Secure
F-Secure Corporation is an anti-virus and computer security software company based in Helsinki, Finland. The company has 18 country offices and a presence in more than 100 countries, with Security Lab operations in Helsinki, Finland and in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia...
founder & chairman Mr. Risto Siilasmaa
Risto Siilasmaa
Risto Siilasmaa is the Chairman, founder and former CEO of F-Secure Corporation , an anti-virus and computer security software company based in Helsinki, Finland. He is also the biggest shareholder of F-Secure, owning around 40% of the company...
heads the steering group. The programme's mission is to renew startup and growth company financing in Finland. In June 2010 a Donald Duck
Donald Duck
Donald Fauntleroy Duck is a cartoon character created in 1934 at Walt Disney Productions and licensed by The Walt Disney Company. Donald is an anthropomorphic white duck with a yellow-orange bill, legs, and feet. He typically wears a sailor suit with a cap and a black or red bow tie. Donald is most...
-based magazine AKU. (Donald) nominated Tikka as the Scrooge McDuck
Scrooge McDuck
Scrooge McDuck is a cartoon character created in 1947 by Carl Barks and licensed by The Walt Disney Company. Scrooge is an anthropomorphic white duck with a yellow-orange bill, legs, and feet. He typically wears a red or blue frock coat, top hat, pince-nez glasses, and spats...
of Finland. In January 2011 Tikka was appointed as an Executive Vice President of NASDAQ OMX listed public company Soprano Plc, in charge of their web solutions division. In March 2011 the Finnish Information Processing Association nominated Tikka as the opinion leader in ICT for 2010. This nomination has in the past been received by professors, members of parliament (Jyrki Kasvi
Jyrki Kasvi
Jyrki Jouko Juhani Kasvi is a Finnish politician. He has been a member of the Finnish Parliament, representing the Green League. In the Parliament he was most active in the Committee for the Future, which he represented in the European Parliamentary Technology Assessment network , related to...
) and large organization CEOs (Risto Siilasmaa
Risto Siilasmaa
Risto Siilasmaa is the Chairman, founder and former CEO of F-Secure Corporation , an anti-virus and computer security software company based in Helsinki, Finland. He is also the biggest shareholder of F-Secure, owning around 40% of the company...
) in Finland. It has a tradition extending from 1987 onwards to this date.
Tikka has studied at the Helsinki School of Economics
Helsinki School of Economics
The Aalto University School of Economics , known as Helsinki School of Economics until 2009, is the largest and leading business school in Finland and one of the most renowned in Europe...
, where he graduated 1st of his class of the 2004 Executive MBA .
Tikka writes a popular technology entrepreneurial blog at www.tane.li