MMM – Page 5 – StartUpArabia

ContactCars Launches Arabic iPhone App For Egyptian Car Market

September 30, 2010September 30, 2010 MMM

ContactCars, the Egyptian portal that provides news and car specs and prices in for the Egyptian market has gone on and launched an Arabic iPhone app for their service, aiming to make it easier for users to access the information they provide while on the go.

The application, just like the site itself, provides a variety of information about cars available in the Egyptian market, with the goal of providing the information a user needs to be able to choose the best car that suits his budget and needs.

It offers the possibility of checking the latest car prices and their features from the various car models out in the market, with photos of each car and its specifications, as well as a list of similar cars the user might be interested in. Cars can be browsed and searched through either by model or price.

GoNabit Goes Live In Another Arab City With Deal In Beirut

September 29, 2010September 29, 2010 MMM

GoNabit, the online group-buying platform, that was launched for the region from Dubai earlier this year, has officially launched its first deal in Beirut Lebanon, marking its expansion into the third Arab city for it, after Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

Just like in other cities, GoNabit will be featuring deals that people can sign-up to receive and buy if they’re interested, within a limited timeframe, with the deal only taking place once a minimum number of buyers commit to buying.

The first deal in Beirut is one for women, a 61% discount on a blow dry, manicure, and pedicure at the Fadia El Mendelek Salon in Beirut.

Startup Pitch Session At MENA ICT Forum Organized By Microsoft And Oasis 500

September 28, 2010September 28, 2010 MMM

Microsoft Jordan and Oasis 500 will be organizing a Startup Pitch session during the MENA ICT Forum that is being held in Amman, Jordan on October 10th, 2010.

During the Startup Pitch Session, around seven of the top Jordanian startups will present their ideas to Corporate Vice President of Evangelism at Microsoft, Mr. Walid Abu-Hadba.

Abu-Hadba is responsible for Microsoft programs for Startups and Local Software Economy world-wide, in addition to Microsoft’s Cloud Strategy.

Ms. Rula Ammuri, Country Manager of Microsoft Jordan says that this session comes to show Microsoft’s commitment to supporting Startups in Jordan, helping them build connections with the company and grow their businesses.

Khamsat: A Service To Buy And Sell Anything For Five Dollars

September 28, 2010September 28, 2010 MMM 4 Comments

Khamsat is a new service that takes another go at E-Commerce in the region; the site can be simply described as a marketplace for small services or goods provided at the low fixed price of five US dollars. In other words, it’s pretty much like an online 5 dollar store.

Sellers can login to the site and start adding services or products that they are willing to provider or sell for $5, as well as how much time it would take them to provide them.

The offers are listed under categories and tagged to make it easier for buyers to find what they are looking for. When a buyer views a certain offer, they also are able to see other offers from the same seller, as well as other offers of the same kind. Offers can also be rated, and when browsing listed by freshness, rating or popularity.

YallaWain: A New Kuwaiti Social Dining Out Service

September 23, 2010September 23, 2010 MMM 1 Comment

YallaWain is a new social networking service that was launched in Kuwait, and that revolves around the experience of dining out; helping people pick what places to go to and what to have.

The service describes itself as a new way for people to mix and tip-off each other about the finest restaurants and top dishes in Kuwait; which sums it up quite nicely.

Basically, the site is built around user reviews and ratings of the different restaurants and eateries in the country, their ratings of the different dishes those places serve on their menus, and tips they leave for other fellow diners.

The service also integrates a social aspect that enables users to follow their friends and contacts on the service, in order to get a more personal touch and receive their different tips and reviews, as well as what restaurants are their favorite ones.

YallaStartup Weekend – November 12-14 @ Berytech, Beirut

September 22, 2010September 22, 2010 MMM 3 Comments

A number of you must’ve already heard about the StartupWeekend event concept, which has taken place in 54 cities in the US and around the world, with Oman being the first Arab country to host a couple such events recently.

YallaStartup plan to bring the concept to Beirut (Lebanon) too on on the weekend of November 12-14 at Berytech.

The weekend is a hands-on event that encourages out of the box creative thinking and startup creation. The idea is very simple: participants join on the first day of the weekend with a group of highly motivated developers, product, marketing, graphic and business people all mixed together. They team up, decide on an idea, code and deliver a prototype at the end of the weekend.

MENA ICT Forum 2010: 30 Tickets To Be Sponsored By Oasis 500

September 17, 2010September 17, 2010 MMM

The MENA ICT Forum 2010 taking place in Amman, Jordan on October 10-11, 2010; which we previously announced here, is building up to be quite the event; but there’s been one little problem for entrepreneurs, and that’s the high attendance price, with tickets costing US$1000 for Int@j members and US$1500 for non-members.

Oasis 500, the new ICT seed capital fund that was launched from Jordan, as an initiative designed to help entrepreneurs turn their ideas into businesses, though they’d lend a hand in getting entrepreneurs to attend the forum.

Oasis 500 will be sponsoring 30 free passes for entrepreneurs, so that they can get to spend two days with regional and global ICT leaders and key decision makers. These free passes are available through a video competition titled “Why should I be invited to attend the MENA ICT Forum?”

Euro-Mediterranean School 2010 Open For Entrepreneurs’ Applications

August 31, 2010August 31, 2010 MMM 8 Comments

The Euro-Mediterranean School (EMS), which is an initiative that aims to offer young entrepreneurs from the Euromed countries an opportunity to follow a learning program in the field of business management and entrepreneurship, has opened up applications for the fifth “Introduction to Entrepreneurship” course taking place this year.

EMS was founded by the Milan Chamber of Commerce, the Lombardy Region, and the Fondazione per la Sussidiarietà (‘Foundation for Subsidiarity’). These sponsoring bodies offer full scholarships to all participants covering travel costs, room and board, tuition fee and teaching materials for the entire duration of the course.

In 2010 EMS will host the fifth edition of the course “Introduction to Entrepreneurship”, in which the Chambers of Commerce of Naples and Reggio Calabria will also participate.The sponsoring bodies offer full scholarships to all participants, covering travel costs, room and board and teaching materials for the duration of the course.

Video: Online Shopping Portal Nahel.com At Dubai Tech Nights

August 24, 2010August 24, 2010 MMM 1 Comment

Nahel.com is an online shopping portal based out of Dubai, United Arab Emirates; that aims to become the biggest B2C online retailer in the region.

Nahel.com was founded by Saeid Hejazi, and was officially launched in July 2009. It currently only covers the UAE, although there are plans to expand to the GCC region, with hopes to reach the whole Middle East in the future.

They’ve worked on building an inventory of thousands of new brand-name products covering several categories, from electronics, to games to perfumes, watches and clothing. They source products from wholesalers and distributors in order to be competitive in terms of selection, quality and prices.

N2V Announces Investment In Emirati Startup Yebab

August 23, 2010August 23, 2010 MMM 1 Comment

National Net Ventures N2V, one of the top internet groups in the Middle East just announced its investment in Yebab.com, the Arab portal specialized in organizing wedding celebrations in the United Arab Emirates.

Rashid Al Ballaa, CEO of N2V, stated that the project comes in line with the group’s current and future plans to expand its presence at the regional and the international levels. The plan is obviously to enhance the portal’s growth and presence, expanding it into other Arab Gulf countries, and the rest of the Middle East region, establishing it as the most trusted wedding directory in the Arab world.

Yebab.com, which was launched from the UAE in 2009, has proven really successful in the UAE, becoming a leading portal providing a directory of wedding services in the country; including listings for the various suppliers and services from caterers to dressmakers, artists, photographers and traditional musicians. The site shows strong potential to perform just as well and more in other markets around the region.