Opensignal

Opensignal is an independent mobile analytics company specialising in "quantifying mobile network experience".

Opensignal, Inc.
Private company
IndustryWireless, technology
Founded2010 (2010)
FoundersBrendan Gill
James Robinson
Sam Westwood
Sina Khanifar
Headquarters
London, United Kingdom
Area served
Global
ProductsMeteor: Free Internet speed & App Performance Test, Opensignal
Websitewww.opensignal.com

In August 2014, Opensignal raised a $4 million Series A investment from Qualcomm Ventures, OATV and Passion Capital.[1][2]

In 2019, it was reported that the firm has between 50-100 employees. [3] The CEO is Brendan Gill, one of the co-founders. [3]

Products and services

The OpenSignal application points the user in the direction of better phone signal, measures signal strength, data speed and reliability, and displays nearby Wi-Fi networks.[4] Users of the app share information with Opensignal, which is used in their independent maps of carrier coverage and NetworkRank service. As of March 2013 the app has been downloaded over 3 million times.[5]

Opensignal NetworkRank is an in-app service comparing the performance of different cellular carriers in particular regions. The service is a part of their carrier maps, which are colour-coded to show areas of strong and weak cell phone signal. The information used is provided by users of the Opensignal application.[6]

The company produce regular industry and consumer reports based on information crowdsourced from their app users. They have worked with the BBC [7] and TV 2 (Denmark)[8] to create interactive maps of 3G 'notspots' in the UK and Denmark and have also produced general reports, on topics as diverse as how cell phone screen size affects data use [9] to the state of Android Fragmentation.[10]

In May 2013 the firm released a second crowdsourcing app on Android, WeatherSignal.[11] It makes use of native sensors on the phones, such as barometers, hygrometers, thermometers, magnetometers and lux-meters, to collect information sent in real-time to create live weather maps.[12] After one week over 2 million readings had been collected.[13] After iPhone 6 included a barometer, a version of the app for iPhone was released.

CrisisSignal is an Android app to identify the status of communication networks (and outages) in emergency response areas. The interface is a real-time dashboard of signal strength, available networks, and other metrics. It has been used to assist with the relief efforts in Ebola affected regions.[14]

Using the data collected from the Opensignal app, the company is building WifiMapper,[15] an app for finding free Wi‑Fi hotspots, available on iOS and Android.

Method of operation

Mobile operators use different methods when it comes to compiling their coverage maps,[16] Opensignal standardises this process[17] by using crowdsourced signal data from their users to measure the true state of carrier coverage. By crowdsourcing from client devices, the firm can build a picture of the network as it is experienced by its users, rather than modelling coverage using drive testing.

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References
  1. http://fortune.com/2014/08/06/term-sheet-wednesday-august-6/
  2. Primack, Dan. "Term Sheet -- Wednesday, August 6 - Venture Capital Deals". www.Fortune.com. Fortune Magazine. Retrieved 11 August 2014.
  3. "Opensignal". OpenSignal. Owler. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
  4. Matt Warman, Opensignal app review, The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2013-04-30.
  5. Alex Wood, Opensignal launches iOS app, Tech City News. Retrieved 2013-04-30.
  6. Paul Sawers, Opensignal's crowdsourced network coverage app gets a big update, The Next Web. Retrieved 2013-04-30.
  7. Jane Wakefield, 3G mobile data network crowd-sourcing survey by BBC News, BBC. Retrieved 2013-04-03.
  8. Magnus Bjerg, Stor 3G-test: De dækker bedst i din kommune, TV2. Retrieved 2013-04-03.
  9. Paul Sawers, Larger smartphone screens lead to increased Web usage, but only over WiFi says Opensignal, The Next Web. Retrieved 2013-04-03.
  10. Chris Velazco, 3,997 Models: Android Fragmentation As Seen By The Developers Of OpensignalMaps, Tech Crunch. Retrieved 2013-04-03.
  11. Paul Marks, App turns smartphone sensors into weather stations, New Scientist. Retrieved 2013-06-11.
  12. Opensignal Blog, One Week of WeatherSignal. Retrieved 2013-06-11.
  13. Weathersignal - About, WeatherSignal. Retrieved 2013-06-11.
  14. Opensignal, CrisisSignal deployed in Ebola affected regions response, Opensignal Blog. Retrieved 2015-03-11.
  15. WifiMapper, WifiMapper - An App for Finding Free Wifi Hotspots, WifiMapper Site, Retrieved 2015-03-11.
  16. Opensignal Blog, UK networks misleading coverage maps, Opensignal Blog. Retrieved 2013-04-30.
  17. Kevin Fitchard, Crowdsourced network tester Opensignal releases on iPhone, GigaOM. Retrieved 2013-04-30.
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