MiKandi.com
Something is going to create a massive stir in the mobile industry and I wanted to get answers before all hell breaks loose.
How does Mobile Handheld Porn sound to you? Got your attention? It got mine. The words “mobile” and “handheld” may seem redundant to some people but not really. Although “handhelds” can be considered “mobile”, not all things “mobile” are considered “handhelds”. I just needed to clarify that for those anal readers out there. No pun intended by any means. Okay, maybe just a little.
Enter MiKandi.com. “The World’s First Mobile Adult App Store”. Really. Their About page (Overview) contains this sentence “MiKandi is the leading Mobile Adult Application Marketplace worldwide.” Leading? Indeed. Not only are they the leading Mobile Adult Application Marketplace worldwide, but they are the ONLY Mobile Adult Application Marketplace worldwide. Talk about finding a niche market that no one has tapped into or even dared to tap into – yet.
Risque? Perhaps. Brilliant? OHHHH YESSSSS!!!!!
Kudo’s to the team behind MiKandi.com, for merging one of the oldest businesses in the history of mankind with the latest, innovative, technology platform –> a mobile open source operating system. Yes folks, the Adult App store will be first developed for the Android platform (with iPhone development on their roadmap). Hey, it’s Android related so of course I’m going to cover this topic – strictly for editorial purposes, honest.
Have you got the creative know-how to create awesome adult apps, but get “app-blocked” from stocking it in current markets, such as Android or iPhone? Feeling a bit… I don’t know… stranded? You know your customers want more, but your product is constantly censored or worse, completely blocked from current app marketplaces. Maybe you’re feeling like your innovative juices are being squeezed by not having the screenshots or video you need to properly showcase and sell your product. Keep reading and you’ll find out the meaning of life… at least for an app developer!
Naturally, the quote above would only speak to the “app-blocked” inclined. Censorship is a very hot and sticky issue on the internet for obvious reasons and this theme has penetrated the now emerging app markets for mobile gadgets. Apple for one, has strict standards for content published in their iTunes app store as this site states. All good for them. I respect whatever values the Apple Brand wants to stand for so I’m not going to say too much there. What I am curious about and anxiously awaiting to see is what the media and mainstream will say about it. That in itself will be like watching an ongoing boxing match (may that’s a little too dramatic) but it’ll definitely be a topic that won’t go away anytime soon.
I don’t want to make any assumptions before knowing the facts. So, I clicked on the Contact Us link and sent an email to the info@MiKandi.com account asking if I could have a copy of their logo and requesting an interview. I got a reply in a matter of a few hours. I was shocked. This was the first info@anything.com that actually replied back. The MiKandi team not only appear to be at the top of their game, but also responsive to the needs of their guests. Nice.
Jen McEwen was my first connection with MiKandi.com. I would like to thank Jen for her kindness and efforts in helping me put this interview together and in gathering up the team for their collective responses. Here is the interview.
PRGal: Wow. Thanks for getting together and letting me have this interview. I’m really excited for your team. This is going to be big. Sex merged with technology has always been a win-win for those involved.
How did MiKandi come about?
MiKandi: Thank you for having us! We appreciate the support we’ve received from both the developer community and the users. The past week has really been a whirlwind.
MiKandi LLC. was founded in 2009 and incorporated in October of this year. We are a start-up of seven founders. Jesse Adams is the President and Co-founder. The team’s experience in both the mobile and adult industries is really what got us thinking about the ideas that would eventually become MiKandi. In particular, as we spent time with the Android platform, we realized that we had the opportunity to go after an area that was being largely ignored by the big players in the space.
PRGal: How long did it take to develop the backend of MiKandi?
MiKandi: We are lucky to have some great technologist as part of the founding team of MiKandi. The core technology has been researched and developed for over a year with a proven track record to supporting thousands of users. Our technology team is lead by former Microsoft, InfoSpace, T-Mobile and SlideME engineers with over a decade of experience in mobile content industry. Our marketing team is lead by founders of InnerVibe. Their knowledge and experience in launching mobile content platforms allowed us to really hit the ground running.
PRGal: Who designed the simple but oh so sexy, website?
MiKandi: The site and the mobile client was really a collaborative effort. As a small team, we are really active about soliciting feedback from one another, regardless of who “owns” the project. We’re glad that you think the existing site is sexy – we can’t wait until we share our forthcoming User Portal with you!
PRGal: What do your families and friends think?
MiKandi: Our friends are supportive and looking forward to what’s coming next.
PRGal: How do they feel about you being involved with offering Mobile Adult Content? (maybe a redundant question if you’ve included this answer in the question above)
MiKandi: The reality is that we just launched (even to most of our friends & family) last week, so we’re still hearing from folks as they find out 
PRGal: Are there mixed reactions? (Yay, good for you .. and Hmmm, I don’t agree with what you’re doing? … what are some of the extreme reactions?)
MiKandi: Reaction has been very positive. I have to admit we see many interesting comments that we use as comic relief… but our supporters defends us valiantly.
PRGal: What were some of the challenges (if any) did you encounter as a team.
MiKandi: Other than deciding whether to order a pitcher of Manny’s or Hoegaarden at our favorite watering hole, no challenges what-so-ever . We’re having a blast working together on something this exciting.
PRGal: Seems like your team is going by “Build it and they will come” again, no pun intended there. You launched the site without any apps yet. This would certainly be a “no-no” in how to start a successful business but in your case, it really is a no fail.
After launching the site, which response did you receive more from, the developer group or people wanting to download apps?
MiKandi: Well, one thing we’ve learned is that a “soft developer launch” in this industry doesn’t always go the way you plan it. We actually launched just our Developer Portal last week, but we’ve heard from a lot of consumers hoping to download adult apps. It looks like there is a lot of pent-up demand in this industry and right now we’re focused on growing our developer base in order to satisfy the consumers who have already discovered us. In the past week we’ve been contacted by hundreds of developers and we’re urging them to get their apps uploaded as soon as they possibly can. We expect that the launch of our User Portal in mid-December will really be a catalyst for downloading applications.
PRGal: How many developers have responded and registered thus far?
MiKandi: While we’re not sharing our specific numbers, I can tell you that we’ve been really flattered by the response. We’re being careful about how many developers we let into our beta right now, so as to ensure that we’re able to support them fully. While MiKandi is invitation only at the moment, developers who don’t have an invitation code can email us at developer@mikandi.com to request one.
PRGal: Have you seen any really good Adult Content apps already? Care to share?
MiKandi: Developers have had no reason to invest in quality apps for adults because there was no platform to deliver their product effectively. The Adult Mobile App market is in it’s infancy and there are only a handful of cool Adult Apps. Many of them are not featured, are censored or are hidden in the pile of non-Adult Apps. Now that the platform is available through MiKandi, it’s up to the developers to release their adult-content applications. Given the level of interest we received just this week, we believe it’s only a matter of time before quality adult apps will be launched on MiKandi.
PRGal: You have provided a simple and easy to use system to help developers launch, promote and especially monetize their work. I’m sure they’ll love you for that. Aside from the type of content you offer (putting that fact aside), how does your Market Place differ from iTunes and the other App Markets out there? What makes it better?
MiKandi: What sets MiKandi apart from big app stores is our commitment to bring premier Adult Apps. We allow developers to upload and monetize their apps quickly without placing heavy restrictions or try to censor developer applications. Therefore, MiKandi is very much driven by applications, consumers and developers. What’s important to us is ensuring that developers are being listened to and supported and that users are able to tell developers and MiKandi what they like and what needs work. As long as we focus on our developers and our application consumers, we believe we’ll be on the right track.
PRGal: Okay, I want to bring up more of the controversial issues that may arise in the course of MiKandi.com getting bigger. Has your team thought about the possible backlash from the more prudent people out there? (I’m not going to name any names, but we know, in general, who they might be)
If so, have your prepared PR-like statements to counter attack these possible backlashes?
MiKandi: Anytime a person or a group pushes the envelope, there will be a backlash. MiKandi believes that it is not our place to tell developers what they can or cannot create, nor is it our right to tell users what they can or cannot enjoy. Of course, if what is created is illegal, we will take immediate action against the developer.
PRGal: The following words and phrases come to mind when I realized the impact that Mikandi.com will have, not only on the mobile industry as a deliverer of third party content but also the way society might be shaped. Feel free to address these words and phrases. You do not have to but it would be great to get your thoughts on these words and phrase:
Exploitation.
Devil Work.
Pornographic Content.
Under-Age Illegal Access.
Perversion Promotion (I made that up).
Sex and Violence.
De-Sensitizing Sensuality (?).
Is it considered cheating on my partner if ….
MiKandi: These items are really personal preferences. Users have the choice to download our client and are able to make their own decision. We hope users will use their personal discretion to avoid content that offends them. In the future clients, MiKandi will offer users to set their preferences to filter content acceptable to them.
PRGal: This may create a lot of conflict in relationships. I can already see many mobile gadgets being thrown across the room or out the window or crashed on the floor when a jealous partner finds one of your Adult Content apps on their partner’s phone (Yay! More sales for the mobile device sector). I can just imagine that the portal you offer might be promoting *stress* between couples. A few of my guy friends already had incidences with their mobile phones when their girlfriends or wives demanded to look at who they were sending sms messsages to. *tsk* *tsk* *tsk*
Sex related services and content have always embraced and adopted new technologies. In 1994 when the “Super Information Highway” went mainstream, porn sites held the largest percentage of content online. When Linden Lab launched Second Life, the porn industry remains to this day, the number one, money making virtual world industry, aside from buying and selling virtual land. Porn is nothing new. Mobile apps are starting to become old. But Porn as mobile apps takes things up a notch.
PRGal: How does it feel to know your team has opened the door for the sex industry and in part will somehow shape the behaviour and experience for society?
MiKandi: We are very excited. It’s not very often a company gets the opportunity to be a trailblazer in their industry. At the same time, we wouldn’t exist if there wasn’t a public demand. We’re not shaping the behavior of society, we’re responding to it.
Most importantly, we do not place heavy restrictions or try to censor your apps. Our job is to make sure you have all the tools you’ll need for success. As long as it’s legal, the sky’s the limit.
PRGal: The phrase, “As long as it’s legal … “. Hmmm. I can already envision issues for some developers. Case in point. Someone downloads an Adult Content App to their mobile device, and yet they reside and are citizens of a country who may have different laws in regards to the use of, the distribution of and the buying of certain pornographic content.
Have you taken this into account as a provider/portal for a global developer community or will the responsibility lie in the developer’s corner?
MiKandi: MiKandi is for adults only and we make this clear at every step of the registration process. We are compliant with current US laws.
Obviously some apps may be more controversial than others, but if it’s legal then it is not our position to place judgement. We have done our due diligence on this issue, especially since some of the founders have had five years experience dealing with the Adult Industry. Unfortunately, there will always be someone who doesn’t believe the law applies to them. We take uploading of illegal content (eg. child pornoraphy) very seriously and make sure that all of our developers clearly understand what is allowed on MiKandi through our developer agreement. If illegal content is uploaded we will take it down immediately and if necessary take legal action against the developer in question.
PRGal: Does MiKandi.com have some sort of review process for apps that may be misconstrued as Child Porn?
MiKandi: MiKandi’s review process is driven by the community, as opposed to imposing our own review process. Obviously, illegal applications aren’t tolerated on MiKandi, but when it comes to applications that might be misconstrued, we’ll leave the feedback to our community of users. It’s important to reiterate that upon registering with MiKandi, the developer assumes full responsibility for the content they provide.
The people in the photos and videos that may be used as part of an apps UI or content may be under-aged.
PRGal: How will you prevent that sort of situation from happening?
MiKandi: See above.
PRGal: Do you have an age-validation process? If so, how does it work?
MiKandi: We are compliant with current US laws regarding online age verification. We will continue to be compliant if or when those laws change.
PRGal: Won’t that present MiKandi.com with potential liability? Or? Do you have a really good Internet Lawyer?
MiKandi: Until new technology emerges that guarantees a user’s age, all we can do is comply with current online age verification laws and procedures. Users bear the responsibility to be truthful and accurately represent themselves.
PRGal: People will go crazy with this shit. People will develop some crazy shit out there. That’s no question. The envelope will definitely be pushed. What worries me, is the safety of the enviroment that specific graphic, visual content will be created. I realize this is out of your hands. I realize that MiKandi.com is simply a portal and platform for developers to go wild. I respect that and I totally understand that from a “need to create” and “be challenged” aspect, but you know how people are. What is to stop an 18 year old developer (I still feel that 18 is quite young in terms of emotional, and psychological maturity) from including his 17, 16 or even 15 year old female friend from being part of his app?. Just saying.
Anyone have anything to say about that?
MiKandi: Being persecuted to the full extent of the law should stop a developer from creating an app with illegal content.
Those who intend to break it should be prepared to face the consequences.
PRGal: Gee, I could probably go on with the “what ifs” but I’ll stop here. My main goal was to get down and dirty with your team and ask you these questions that will most certainly arise. Now on a lighter note ….
There will always be individuals and groups whose values do not align with the portal you are providing. That’s okay. They need not ever visit your site or even download any app from MiKandi.com (although I bet there will be quite a few Closet-Mikandi people). This is definitely not like Youtube where you first watch a news related content then after following a few video links, you find yourself taken to a video where you see someone’s brains getting splattered on the road or even worse, a girl going down on some huge cock. You guys provide a dedicated portal to specific content that caters to the needs of people who are interested in, and would find use for your content. That’s as niche as you can get.
As a female, I hope there will be female developers that will submit content for women, just to balance the equation. Just saying.
THANK YOU! to the MiKandi Team for this interview.
If there any developers (Android and soon for the iPhone OS) who currently have, or are interested in developing *hot*adult content related apps THE place to market it is on MiKandi.com.
Girl Photo Courtesy of: http://www.flickr.com/photos/bodoggirl/ / CC BY 2.0
