Startup Roundup: PopTent’s viral Quiznos ads

Introducing Technically Philly’s Startup Roundup. Here, we’ll parse out the small pieces that make our greater Startup ecosystem thrive. We want to keep you in touch with the innovations that we can’t quite get to covering, but that deserve highlight. Follow along with the Startup Roundup’s dedicated RSS feed. If you’ve got news to share, get in touch.

Correction, 10:15 a.m.: The Nokia Blog is a news site that covers news about Nokia. The official Nokia blog is located at http://conversations.nokia.com.

MUST READS

Video viral ad creator PopTent, which connects brands with semi-pro video producers on the cheap, recently announced a series of ads created for Quiznos that is being aired on television. In related news, Nokia news site The Nokia Blog writes about its Poptent ads for the manufacturer’s new Nuron smartphone.

Baer Business Law’s blog publishes a column about the Blogger Tax, tying in a few other related and recent Philadelphia small business failures (ahem, it involves L&I and cupcakes). As Baer puts it: ” If the city doesn’t stop gargling its creative capital, those talented men and women will grab the first cupcake truck out of here.”

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Forget Snooki, Old City is overrun with techies

Philadelphia Magazine’s September cover story by Richard Rys documents an Old City in transition—and not a pretty one. A neighborhood once thriving with artists, entertainment and prominent restaurateurs turns into a bad episode of Jersey Shore on weekends, the writer contends.

But that’s not the Old City we know. By day, the historic neighborhood has become something of a Web development and technology startup haven. Earlier this year, as city technology leaders prepared Philadelphia’s bid for Google’s ultra high-speed broadband Internet pilot, it was Old City that was chosen as one of the city’s potential technology hubs, for the diverse technologists that live and work there.

Here’s our look at what still sparkles in Old City…

Read the rest at Philly Post.

Local e-commerce firm WebLinc doubles sales for retail lighting site

In the world of residential lighting sales, online retail is a small piece of a much bigger pot. But thanks to some Philadelphia technology, a major retail lighting outlet is focusing more effort online and seeing impressive returns.

Old City-based WebLinc, which is housed above National Mechanics — the bar that the web developers also own — recently helped Southeast U.S. lighting company Progressive Lighting launch an e-commerce platform to show off its extensive selection of lighting.

Since the launch of LightsOnline.com in April WebLinc’s e-commerce technology has increased conversion by 91 percent, doubling online sales, Progressive Lighting director of e-commerce Jon Eggleton says.

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Startup Roundup: DreamIt grads get covered; new Startup Leaders-ship

Introducing Technically Philly’s Startup Roundup. Here, we’ll parse out the small pieces that make our greater Startup ecosystem thrive. We want to keep you in touch with the innovations that we can’t quite get to covering, but that deserve highlight. Follow along with the Startup Roundup’s dedicated RSS feed. If you’ve got news to share, get in touch.

DEFINITE READS

Inquirer’s Mike Armstrong covers the 2010 DreamIt team. DreamIt Ventures is like the Dream Team, but no give-and-go from 90s point guard-great John Stockon. See our coverage of the graduating class here. TechCrunch also covered our Philly peeps.

Philly Startup Leaders has chosen a new crop of leadership to steer the entrepreneurs group. Jameson Detweiler will lead as President, along with Gloria Bell, Cody Ray, Josiah Kiehl and Matt Owens. We’ll have more on this story soon.

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Digital media artists get featured on PECO Building

Photo courtesy of Klip Collective

For the next few months, artists will have a chance to display their digital work on the iconic PECO Building’s crown lights.

The opportunity comes from Art in the Air, a joint project between University City Science Center‘s Breadboard technology arts program and PECO. Each month through December, three selected digital art pieces will be displayed on First Friday atop the building, which is situated on Market Street along the Schuylkill River and which is a striking part of the city’s skyline.

PECO installed its iconic LED signage to replace an older technology in late 2008 and officially lit the billboard on the Fourth of July, last year. The board is made up of 118 40-foot long LED columns, according to Eastern Sign Tech, LLC, the Atlantic City-based company that installed the setup.

In August, Northern Liberties-based digital media firm Klip Collective won honors, along with Tyler grad Jamie Dillon and Kean University’s Brian Oakes.

“When they changed it, I missed the old PECO building. The ads all looked the same, like a PC presentation from 1991,” Klip Principal and Creative Director Ricardo Rivera says. “So I’m stoked that they’re putting some actual art up there, because it’s a great iconic canvas for digital media.”

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New Philly mapping app gives dazzling directions to local businesses

This piece is reported in partnership with PlanPhilly, a news site that covers planning, design and development in the region.

This afternoon, I made last minute plans to meet a colleague to discuss some pressing business. We both had a packed schedule. I’d be biking from University City. He’d be on foot from 5th and South.

Sure, we could go to a staple favorite in Old City, one that’s convenient for him and I both. But what about trying something new? I usually rely on word of mouth, but I had no new ideas. And as for search engine results—where’s the serependipity?

I decided to try CommonSpace — a web application which soft-launched Friday morning — a joint project between Callowhill-based geographic information system firm Azavea, nonprofit tech consultant NPower, the Sustainable Business Network and a handful of other partners, and funded by the William Penn Foundation. [Full Disclosure: PlanPhilly is funded by the William Penn Foundation through PennPraxis and the University of Pennsylvania School of Design.]

The glossy new mapping tool — which helps Philadelphians find under-the-radar businesses and events —is impressive.

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Thanks to our weekly sponsors

Technically Philly is made possible by advertisers and sponsors that are important to Philadelphia’s technology community. This week we’d like to thank:

Springboard Media – Springboard Media is a certified Apple Specialist and retailer based in Center City and now, in Exton. They’ve got a ton of accessories and a great trade-in program that can score you up to $1,500 when you’re ready to upgrade.

Volpe and Koenig, P.C. — Since 1987, intellectual property boutique law firm Volpe and Koenig has provided guidance on matters relating to patents, trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets, e-commerce, technology joint ventures, non-disclosure agreements, technology acquisitions, licensing and litigation. Whatever your intellectual property law issue… Volpe and Koenig bring law to your ideas.

Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce – The Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce is dedicated to promoting growth and economic development, advocating for sound public policy, and serving its members with outstanding programs and benefits. GPCC is the premier advocate of the region’s business community, representing members in 11 counties across three states with one voice.

Caffeine Fish – Caffeine Fish develops the Trainboard iPhone app and offers iPhone development consulting in the Philadelphia area.

Towerstream – Towerstream is the leading 4G service provider in the U.S. and is setting up shop in Philadelphia. Contact Towerstream to find out how, in less than a week, you can have first-class 4G service for your business.

Eight Eleven – The folks at Camden-based Eight Eleven do it all. Branding, communications, marketing, advertising, Websites, Web content management, user-experience (Web & software) and public relations. And they also do it for a lot of tech companies, of all sizes, to boot. Heck, they even customized a media kit just for you. Hit ‘em up.

NextFab Studio — NextFab is a membership-based, high-tech workshop and prototyping center. Our facility provides comfortable, clean, and safe workspaces with hand tools, 3D printers, computer controlled machine tools, software, and electronics workbenches. Expert instructors and a community of collaborators are on hand to help you problem-solve and achieve your vision. NextFab Studio has everything necessary for you to invent, repair, create, and innovate!

Interested in joining these organizations and individuals in supporting Technically Philly? Check out our ad packages and contact our Ad Sales Manager. Can’t find something that fits? We’ll customize a package for you.

Startup Roundup: Vuzit goes social, WizeHive giving away $250,000

Introducing Technically Philly’s Startup Roundup. Here, we’ll parse out the small pieces that make our greater Startup ecosystem thrive. We want to keep you in touch with the innovations that we can’t quite get to covering, but that deserve highlight. Follow along with the Startup Roundup’s dedicated RSS feed. If you’ve got news to share, get in touch.

DEFINITE READS

WizeHive is giving away $250,000 worth of accounts after Google announced that it is shuttering Google Wave.

Vuzit is going social. The company announced DocuPub yesterday, which provides better integration for social media framworks, it says.

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Local DeVry locations join in national open house for tech jobs

Kelley Taptich, senior director of admissions at DeVry University’s Fort Washington Campus, gave a presentation on career-focused degree programs offered at DeVry University that prepare students for in-demand career fields at the University's National Open House event held in Fort Washington, Pa., on August 7th.

These days, it seems it’s all about those growing career opportunities.

On Saturday, Devry University locations in Fort Washington and Center City were part of a national open house program focused on healthcare technology and information services careers, industries where job growth is projected.

In Fort Washington, the school offered 50 students and adult learners the chance to meet with faculty and staff around its college of engineering and information sciences program, organizers say.

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Startup Roundup: TicketLeap redesign roundup, DreamIt grad partners with Journeys

Introducing Technically Philly’s Startup Roundup. Here, we’ll parse out the small pieces that make our greater Startup ecosystem thrive. We want to keep you in touch with the innovations that we can’t quite get to covering, but that deserve highlight. Follow along with the Startup Roundup’s dedicated RSS feed. If you’ve got news to share, get in touch.

DEFINITE READS

TicketLeap has launched its redesign, according to an email. It looks hella sharp. We dig the Facebook and Twitter comments. The company says that its also allowing events with less than 100 tickets to sell service at no charge. It also got the ReadWriteWeb treatment.

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