In 2002 Kobo.biz changed the way email was delivered. Its ability to handle multiple accounts has still not been matched, with a tree interface that allowed heterogeneous groupings from a wide variety of email services. Getting access to different email accounts was as easy as clicking them in an outline format.
The creator and CEO of Kobo.biz was Tom Campbell, who had acquired eSnipe, Inc., a bidding service for eBay users, and who designed the first commercially viable micropayment system for use at eSnipe. eSnipe continues to execute over $300 million in bids per year on eBay, and winning bids are paid for using the BidPoints(SM) micropayment system.
Kobo.biz did something else different from the rest of the pack. It used a streamlined web interface for the presentation of email. eliminating the need for an email client. It was a revolutionary idea–and Google thought so too. The advent of a free email service rendered Kobo.biz obsolete, but a number of research concepts stayed alive.
Our technology is classified
It seems odd, but many of Kobo’s research threads reached out into the classified ads world. Much of the email technology would be repurposed in a form that could be used for an internal messaging system. A messaging system in turn required a deep understanding of identity: who’s sending you that private message, a shill buyer, a seller using a pseudonym, or simply an ordinary customer?
Our karma followed us
Sometimes we need to remain private. Other times, we want the world to know at least some of our identity. The many levels of identity possible led to research into the patent pending and trademarked concept of karma. Current popular auction and classified sites let you know far too little about who you’re buying from, or who’s selling to you.
Fizmo is the result
In 2007 many of these concepts were developed into a free online classifieds system built from the ground up as a Ruby on Rails application in conjunction with the legendary Think Relevance team. It was rolled out initially as the sole classifieds site for radio stations all around the country. A custom classifieds site could be deployed with literally a single click of the mouse. The technology was brilliant, but the radio stations did no promotion. Fizmo closed down in 2008.
Kobo declares victory, OEMs technology
The Kobo technology has been licensed in various forms since the demise of Fizmo, because its components have proven too valuable to die. Work has continued in the creation of sales databases, auto-generation of ad sites, identity management, feedback loops, evaluation mechanisms, and sales of goods and services over the Internet. The BidPoints micropayment options allow an unprecedented variety of transactions to occur in online sales systems, from fractions of a cent to millions of dollars. And the Karma identity manager gives both sellers and buyers an entire spectrum of identity management, ranging from anonymous and untrusted, to anonymous and trusted, to verified and trusted by the community as a whole. Online transactions have never been safer.