Zed (company)
Encyclopedia
Zed is a multiplatform digital entertainment company based in Spain
that develops and markets entertainment and community products and services for all platforms. The company is the leading mobile phone value-added services (MVAS) player in the world in terms of revenue and geographical footprint. Zed operates in 60 countries, including Europe's largest markets, United States
, India
and China
and holds agreements with 130 wireless operators all over the world, reaching 2 billion mobiles subscribers.
The company is characterized for its development in services in the field of interactive leisure and entertainment, in mobile phones as well as the Internet. The range of products and services of Zed are 85% internally developed and available for the following platforms: Brew
, Java
, Symbian
, Mac
and Windows
.
Zed belongs to Zed Group, a large organization of privately-held inter-locking European companies at the forefront of mobile phone and internet entertainment, film animation and video game production. Other important companies of Zed Group are Ilion Animation Studios
–production company specialized in computer-generated animation feature films like Planet 51
- and Pyro Studios
–video game developer including “Commandos
”.
in 1996. The family launched the web portal La Netro, whose objective was to offer interactive leisure and entertainment content accessible from any device with access to the internet.
In 2002, they decided to focus on value added services for mobile phones. Two years later, La Netro acquired a mobile phone content provider, Zed, from Nordic operator TeliaSonera
. The company changed its name to LaNetro Zed and kept Zed as its brand for mobile content and services.
Four years later, in December 2006 Zed acquired Monstermob
, one of its competitors based in the United Kingdom
. That same year Zed acquired Alvento, a Spanish mobile phone services company.
In February 2007, Zed markets the first web 2.0
based platform integrating mobile phones and web services, where members can participate in the creation of content which is then shared within the community. LaNetro Zed becomes Zed Worldwide. Later that year Zed passed a milestone grossing $100 million in revenue in a single month. In the United States Zed began to offer its content via RingToneJukeBox.com.
By early 2008 Zed Group established a joint venture with Grupo Planeta to manage the local guides LaNetro.com business. In addition, Zed acquired Netpeople expanding its presence in the Latin American market.
In August 2008, Zed merged with two other companies founded by the Perez Dolset brothers, Pyro Studios
(video game developer including Commandos) and Ilion Animation Studios
(production company specialized in computer-generated animation feature films).
Besides, Zed has announced an agreement with the NBA to expand the league’s mobile phone offerings reaching basketball fans throughout North America, Europe and countries in Asia. Also, Zed has acquired Mobitween, a developer and publisher of Flash-based content for mobile and online environments.
In 2009, Zed acquired Player X , British mobile media company specializing in Operators Portal Management, games and mobile TV & Video and Temafon, the exclusive content aggregator to one of the “big three” Russian operators Beeline. During 2009 Zed also started operations in Brazil, and holds today operations in 60 countries.
Another remarkable step for the group during 2009 corresponds to sister company Ilion Animation Studios
, which premiered in November Planet 51
, the highest-grossing Spanish movie globally on 2009.
business lines is its MCP
(Master Content Provider). More than 32 operators worldwide have already partnered with Zed on this one-stop-shop solution that reaches 600 million subscribers worldwide.
The company provides mobile marketing
solutions, consulting services and application development for companies and public sector across its business unit Zed Business Solutions. The Zed B2B solutions are focused on supporting an increase in sales whilst also complementing marketing and communications campaigns.
In 2009, Zed started the Zed TV business unit. Its first format to go live -more have followed and some are in the process to be aired- was a Weekly Reality show. It combined Live TV, SMS
and Social Networking gathering 100.000 regular Internet users, 2 million single participants and increasing the average share rate for the channel (Spanish number #3 national TV channel –Antena3
).
On the D2C segment, Zed owns a cathalogue of games for mobile phones and Internet. It is updated monthly and all of the Zed games are compatible with the greater part of the market terminals, including the iPhone
and iPod Touch
.
On November, 2009 Zed launched Planet 51 Online, a Massive Multiplayer Online Game available for desktops and laptops, based on the computer-generated animated movie Planet 51
. The game allows players to explore an online virtual world populated by other film fans connected via the internet.
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
that develops and markets entertainment and community products and services for all platforms. The company is the leading mobile phone value-added services (MVAS) player in the world in terms of revenue and geographical footprint. Zed operates in 60 countries, including Europe's largest markets, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
and China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
and holds agreements with 130 wireless operators all over the world, reaching 2 billion mobiles subscribers.
The company is characterized for its development in services in the field of interactive leisure and entertainment, in mobile phones as well as the Internet. The range of products and services of Zed are 85% internally developed and available for the following platforms: Brew
Binary Runtime Environment for Wireless
Brew is an application development platform created by Qualcomm, originally for CDMA mobile phones, featuring third party applications such as mobile games. It is offered in some feature phones but not in smart phones...
, Java
Java (programming language)
Java is a programming language originally developed by James Gosling at Sun Microsystems and released in 1995 as a core component of Sun Microsystems' Java platform. The language derives much of its syntax from C and C++ but has a simpler object model and fewer low-level facilities...
, Symbian
Symbian
Symbian is a mobile operating system and computing platform designed for smartphones and currently maintained by Accenture. The Symbian platform is the successor to Symbian OS and Nokia Series 60; unlike Symbian OS, which needed an additional user interface system, Symbian includes a user...
, Mac
Mac OS
Mac OS is a series of graphical user interface-based operating systems developed by Apple Inc. for their Macintosh line of computer systems. The Macintosh user experience is credited with popularizing the graphical user interface...
and Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
.
Zed belongs to Zed Group, a large organization of privately-held inter-locking European companies at the forefront of mobile phone and internet entertainment, film animation and video game production. Other important companies of Zed Group are Ilion Animation Studios
Ilion Animation Studios
Ilion Animation Studios is an animation studio based in Madrid . The studio was established by the founders of Pyro Studios, a video game development studio, to create state-of-the-art computer-animated movies for theatrical release around the world, using purpose-built technology enabling it to...
–production company specialized in computer-generated animation feature films like Planet 51
Planet 51
Planet 51 is a 2009 Spanish/British/American animated science fiction/family film directed by Jorge Blanco, written by Joe Stillman, and starring Dwayne Johnson, Jessica Biel, Justin Long, Gary Oldman, Seann William Scott, and John Cleese. Produced by Madrid-based Ilion Animation Studios and...
- and Pyro Studios
Pyro Studios
Pyro Studios is a video game developer based in Madrid , that was founded in 1996 with the purpose of developing quality video games. A consequence of this commitment was the development of Commandos: Behind Enemy Lines, which was released in 1998...
–video game developer including “Commandos
Commandos
Commandos is a stealth-oriented real-time tactics game series, available for Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X. The game is set in the Second World War and follows the escapades of a fictional British Commandos section. It leans heavily on historical events during WWII to carry the plot...
”.
History
The Perez Dolset family founded the company in SpainSpain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
in 1996. The family launched the web portal La Netro, whose objective was to offer interactive leisure and entertainment content accessible from any device with access to the internet.
In 2002, they decided to focus on value added services for mobile phones. Two years later, La Netro acquired a mobile phone content provider, Zed, from Nordic operator TeliaSonera
TeliaSonera
TeliaSonera AB is the dominant telephone company and mobile network operator in Sweden and Finland. The company has operations in other countries in Northern, Eastern Europe, Central Asia and Spain, with a total of 150 million mobile customers...
. The company changed its name to LaNetro Zed and kept Zed as its brand for mobile content and services.
Four years later, in December 2006 Zed acquired Monstermob
Monstermob
MonsterMob LTD is a UK mobile content company selling ringtones, wallpapers and full length tracks. It is owned by MonsterMob Group PLC, which owns similar companies across the globe. The company was founded by Lancaster businessman Martin Higginson....
, one of its competitors based in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. That same year Zed acquired Alvento, a Spanish mobile phone services company.
In February 2007, Zed markets the first web 2.0
Web 2.0
The term Web 2.0 is associated with web applications that facilitate participatory information sharing, interoperability, user-centered design, and collaboration on the World Wide Web...
based platform integrating mobile phones and web services, where members can participate in the creation of content which is then shared within the community. LaNetro Zed becomes Zed Worldwide. Later that year Zed passed a milestone grossing $100 million in revenue in a single month. In the United States Zed began to offer its content via RingToneJukeBox.com.
By early 2008 Zed Group established a joint venture with Grupo Planeta to manage the local guides LaNetro.com business. In addition, Zed acquired Netpeople expanding its presence in the Latin American market.
In August 2008, Zed merged with two other companies founded by the Perez Dolset brothers, Pyro Studios
Pyro Studios
Pyro Studios is a video game developer based in Madrid , that was founded in 1996 with the purpose of developing quality video games. A consequence of this commitment was the development of Commandos: Behind Enemy Lines, which was released in 1998...
(video game developer including Commandos) and Ilion Animation Studios
Ilion Animation Studios
Ilion Animation Studios is an animation studio based in Madrid . The studio was established by the founders of Pyro Studios, a video game development studio, to create state-of-the-art computer-animated movies for theatrical release around the world, using purpose-built technology enabling it to...
(production company specialized in computer-generated animation feature films).
Besides, Zed has announced an agreement with the NBA to expand the league’s mobile phone offerings reaching basketball fans throughout North America, Europe and countries in Asia. Also, Zed has acquired Mobitween, a developer and publisher of Flash-based content for mobile and online environments.
In 2009, Zed acquired Player X , British mobile media company specializing in Operators Portal Management, games and mobile TV & Video and Temafon, the exclusive content aggregator to one of the “big three” Russian operators Beeline. During 2009 Zed also started operations in Brazil, and holds today operations in 60 countries.
Another remarkable step for the group during 2009 corresponds to sister company Ilion Animation Studios
Ilion Animation Studios
Ilion Animation Studios is an animation studio based in Madrid . The studio was established by the founders of Pyro Studios, a video game development studio, to create state-of-the-art computer-animated movies for theatrical release around the world, using purpose-built technology enabling it to...
, which premiered in November Planet 51
Planet 51
Planet 51 is a 2009 Spanish/British/American animated science fiction/family film directed by Jorge Blanco, written by Joe Stillman, and starring Dwayne Johnson, Jessica Biel, Justin Long, Gary Oldman, Seann William Scott, and John Cleese. Produced by Madrid-based Ilion Animation Studios and...
, the highest-grossing Spanish movie globally on 2009.
Products and services
One of the Zed’s main B2BBusiness-to-business
Business-to-business describes commerce transactions between businesses, such as between a manufacturer and a wholesaler, or between a wholesaler and a retailer...
business lines is its MCP
MCP
MCP is an abbreviation that can refer to:* In Fire Detection System** Manual Call Point* In medicine and biochemistry** Medical campus of Philadelphia** Medical center Paranaque, a Hospital located at Paranaque City, Philippines....
(Master Content Provider). More than 32 operators worldwide have already partnered with Zed on this one-stop-shop solution that reaches 600 million subscribers worldwide.
The company provides mobile marketing
Mobile Marketing
Mobile marketing can refer to one of two categories of interest. First, and relatively new, is meant to describe marketing on or with a mobile device, such as a cell phone using SMS Marketing....
solutions, consulting services and application development for companies and public sector across its business unit Zed Business Solutions. The Zed B2B solutions are focused on supporting an increase in sales whilst also complementing marketing and communications campaigns.
In 2009, Zed started the Zed TV business unit. Its first format to go live -more have followed and some are in the process to be aired- was a Weekly Reality show. It combined Live TV, SMS
SMS
SMS is a form of text messaging communication on phones and mobile phones. The terms SMS or sms may also refer to:- Computer hardware :...
and Social Networking gathering 100.000 regular Internet users, 2 million single participants and increasing the average share rate for the channel (Spanish number #3 national TV channel –Antena3
Antena 3 (Spain)
Antena 3 is a Spanish terrestrial television channel owned by Antena 3 de Televisión. Some of the more popular programmes broadcast by Antena 3 include Aquí no hay quien viva, El Barco, Los Protegidos, Los Simpson and El Internado....
).
On the D2C segment, Zed owns a cathalogue of games for mobile phones and Internet. It is updated monthly and all of the Zed games are compatible with the greater part of the market terminals, including the iPhone
IPhone
The iPhone is a line of Internet and multimedia-enabled smartphones marketed by Apple Inc. The first iPhone was unveiled by Steve Jobs, then CEO of Apple, on January 9, 2007, and released on June 29, 2007...
and iPod Touch
IPod Touch
The iPod Touch is a portable media player, personal digital assistant, handheld game console, and Wi-Fi mobile device designed and marketed by Apple Inc. The iPod Touch adds the multi-touch graphical user interface to the iPod line...
.
On November, 2009 Zed launched Planet 51 Online, a Massive Multiplayer Online Game available for desktops and laptops, based on the computer-generated animated movie Planet 51
Planet 51
Planet 51 is a 2009 Spanish/British/American animated science fiction/family film directed by Jorge Blanco, written by Joe Stillman, and starring Dwayne Johnson, Jessica Biel, Justin Long, Gary Oldman, Seann William Scott, and John Cleese. Produced by Madrid-based Ilion Animation Studios and...
. The game allows players to explore an online virtual world populated by other film fans connected via the internet.
External links
- Zed
- Corporate Information
- Planet 51 Official Site
- Interview with Javier Perez Dolset, CEO of Zed
- Interview: Javier Perez Dolset – CEO Zed, The reign of Spain
- MIPCOM. Industry Insight / Keynote Video Javier Pérez Dolset