The Telecommunication Software & Systems Group (TSSG) located at the Waterford Institute of Technology (WIT) is delighted to announce the official spin-off of FeedHenry, an award-winning software firm.

Dr. Willie Donnelly, Director of the TSSG and Head of Research and Innovation at Waterford Institute of Technology said, "FeedHenry is another successful commercialisation result from TSSG's purpose-built commercial arm, the Centre for Converged Services (3CS). We believe that the application of technology and the exploitation of research is a key driver for Ireland's economic growth. Leading research institutions like TSSG have a crucial role to play in enhancing Ireland's economic competitiveness," he said.

Using a 'cloud-computing' model FeedHenry is an 'on-demand' enterprise mobility solution that can be accessed over the Internet. The software enables applications (apps) to be developed once and then used across all mobile platforms (iPhone, Android, Blackberry, Nokia etc.).

"FeedHenry provides an efficient and cost effective way to create new products. Using this technology, companies no longer have to develop multiple versions of apps for each device. They create one version and with a few clicks can use it across a range of platforms. It also works with complex apps that include location-based services, payment and billing," said Donnelly.

FeedHenry has won a number of prestigious awards including a recent global CTIA Wireless Emerging Technology (E-Tech) Award 2010, amongst 300 entrants worldwide for its mobile marketing/advertising solution. These awards showcase the latest technology products available for consumers and enterprise.

In March 2010, FeedHenry was also awarded "Product of the Year" prize by TMCnet's Internet Telephony magazine. This award recognises innovation, vision and technological acumen amongst world leaders in the converged telecommunications, computing and data industries.

The technology behind FeedHenry was researched and developed using funding from Enterprise Ireland's research commercialisation programmes and incubated within the TSSG's commercial arm, 3CS (The Centre for Converged Services).

In 2009, the technology was trialled with a number of leading commercial clients in Ireland. The success of these trials led to the spin-out of 'FeedHenry Ltd.' and the recruitment of CEO Cathal McGloin to lead the growth of the business.

Barry Downes, the Executive Director of 3CS said, "We are delighted to announce the successful licensing of TSSG/3CS intellectual property (IP) to the FeedHenry spin-off company. Its recent awards are public recognition of the great work done by TSSG research and commercialisation staff. They prove the quality of innovative technology being developed in Ireland and place the firm at the forefront of global technological innovation.

"We wish all our colleagues in FeedHenry and its new CEO Cathal McGloin the very best for continued success. This achievement demonstrates how critical IP driven start-ups are to Ireland's future success and we look forward the continued support of state agencies, such as Enterprise Ireland and Science Foundation Ireland, to create more companies like FeedHenry," he said.

Cathal McGloin, CEO of FeedHenry said, "In a time of economic downturn, it is no surprise that enterprises are attracted to FeedHenry's technology, as our model frees them from the financial hurdles involved in buying and maintaining hardware."

"I am delighted to lead this exciting new global start-up with the TSSG, I was hugely impressed at both the quality of their research and their outstanding commercial expertise. I look forward to working with TSSG/3CS on an ongoing basis in the future to take advantage of this lucrative opportunity," he added.

"The creation of technology start-up companies such as FeedHenry is an important activity in regional economic development", said Gearóid Mooney, ICT Commercialisation Director, and Enterprise Ireland. "We are delighted to have supported TSSG/3CS in the development of FeedHenry. The practical application of research not only benefits Irish industry but also provides growth opportunities for the Irish economy as such start-up companies expand and take on more employees".

Technology research firm Gartner predicts spending on worldwide 'cloud services' revenue will rise from $15 billion 2009, to $150 billion by 2013. The current economic downturn, and subsequent tighter IT budgets, makes hosted applications and services all the more appealing, contributing to cloud growth.