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CardioComm Solutions $EKG.ca Releases Remote 12-lead ECG Telemed Solution with Arrythmia Detection and ECG Reading Services $ATE.ca $TLT.ca $OGI.ca $ACST.ca $IPA.ca

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 8:39 AM on Thursday, March 14th, 2019

GlobalCardio 12 FLEX Supports Traditional 12-Lead ECG Devices and New Wearable Options for In-Clinic and In-Home Use

  • Released GlobalCardio 12 FLEX (“GC12 FLEX“), a complete remote 12- lead ECG acquisition and reading solution.
  • GC12 FLEX has been developed for use by clinics and telemedicine groups that operate from multiple locations and that require rapid and centralized ECG reading services through the use of automated algorithms or human ECG review.

Toronto, Ontario–(March 14, 2019) – CardioComm Solutions, Inc. (TSXV: EKG) (“CardioComm” or the “Company“), a provider of consumer heart monitoring and electrocardiogram (“ECG“) acquisition and management software solutions, has released GlobalCardio 12 FLEX (“GC12 FLEX“), a complete remote 12- lead ECG acquisition and reading solution. GC12 FLEX has been developed for use by clinics and telemedicine groups that operate from multiple locations and that require rapid and centralized ECG reading services through the use of automated algorithms or human ECG review.

The GC12 FLEX leverages two of the Company’s US Food and Drug Administration (“FDA“) and Health Canada Class II medical device approvals for the sale of a cloud-based ECG management software solution and an ECG viewing technology with automated ECG analysis and interpretation capabilities. ECGs can be captured using a standard one to 12-lead device, a 12-lead ECG belt or any CardioComm-qualified ECG monitoring device. Data can be uploaded to a centralized data store within the GC12 Flex Cloud solution via computer or through a smartphone using the GEMS™ Mobile app. ECG files may then be reviewed using an interpretive algorithm which will provide results in near real time. As soon as an ECG has been uploaded and reviewed, an email notification will go out to any healthcare professional associated with the monitored person and allow them to log in, review, over read and/or retrieve the ECG record.

The first installation of the newly-released GC12 FLEX solution is currently being implemented within a clinical research organization which will use the solution with CardioComm’s SMART Monitoring ECG reading service. The Company confirms it has strong market interest form customers, such as research organizations looking for a remote monitoring 12-lead ECG management solution that can include the provisioning of ECG triaging services. CardioComm’s ECG service can return a result within 30 minutes, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week or 365 days a year.

To learn more about CardioComm’s products and for further updates regarding HeartCheck™ ECG device integrations, please see the Company’s websites at www.cardiocommsolutions.com and www.theheartcheck.com.

About CardioComm Solutions

CardioComm Solutions’ patented and proprietary technology is used in products for recording, viewing, analyzing and storing electrocardiograms for diagnosis and management of cardiac patients. Products are sold worldwide through a combination of an external distribution network and a North American-based sales team. CardioComm Solutions has earned the ISO 13485 certification, is HIPAA compliant and holds clearances from the European Union (CE Mark), the USA (FDA) and Canada (Health Canada).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:
Etienne Grima, Chief Executive Officer
1-877-977-9425 x227[email protected]
[email protected]

Forward-looking statements

This release may contain certain forward-looking statements and forward-looking information with respect to the financial condition, results of operations and business of CardioComm Solutions and certain of the plans and objectives of CardioComm Solutions with respect to these items. Such statements and information reflect management’s current beliefs and are based on information currently available to management. By their nature, forward-looking statements and forward-looking information involve risk and uncertainty because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that will occur in the future and there are many factors that could cause actual results and developments to differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements and forward-looking information.

In evaluating these statements, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements and forward-looking information. The Company does not assume any obligation to update the forward-looking statements and forward-looking information contained in this release other than as required by applicable laws, including without limitation, Section 5.8(2) of National Instrument 51-102 (Continuous Disclosure Obligations).

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

INTERVIEW: CardioComm Solutions $EKG.ca Continues Initiatives to Connect Your Heart To The Cloud $ATE.ca $TLT.ca $OGI.ca $ACST.ca $IPA.ca

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 8:26 AM on Thursday, March 14th, 2019

ThreeD Capital Inc. $IDK.ca – Kakao’s Blockchain Arm Raises $90 Million in Private Token Sale $HIVE.ca $BLOC.ca $CODE.ca

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 4:00 PM on Wednesday, March 13th, 2019

SPONSOR: ThreeD Capital Inc. (IDK:CSE) Led by legendary financier, Sheldon Inwentash, ThreeD is a Canadian-based venture capital firm that only invests in best of breed small-cap companies which are both defensible and mass scalable. More than just lip service, Inwentash has financed many of Canada’s biggest small-cap exits. Click Here For More Information.

Idk large
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Kakao’s Blockchain Arm Raises $90 Million in Private Token Sale

  • Ground X, the blockchain subsidiary of South Korean messaging giant Kakao, has raised $90 million in a private coin offering.
  • As reported by Bloomberg on Monday, Ground X CEO Jason Han said that IDG Capital, Cresendo Equity Partners and Translink Capital had participated in the round.
  • The firm is also reportedly planning to raise “a similar sum” in another round starting Tuesday, before launching its blockchain platform in June.

Yogita Khatri

Kakao first revealed its plan to set up a blockchain subsidiary back in March 2018, soon after confirming that it had launched Ground X to develop a blockchain-powered platform as a foundation for application developers. Kakao’s top execs said at the time that the plan was to integrate future blockchain-based services with Kakao’s existing internet offerings, such as the Kakao Talk messaging app.

Ground X launched a test network (or testnet) for its proprietary blockchain network, dubbed Klaytn, last autumn. It has already partnered with 26 companies that aim to run apps on Klaytn, Han told Bloomberg. These include South Korean video game developer Wemade and video streaming platform Watcha, as well as a unit of Chinese travel agency Zanadu.

The subsidiary has also said it will work with the Seoul Digital Foundation, an organization created by the Seoul Metropolitan Government, to develop blockchain projects focusing on social and public services.

Ground X could be summed up as “partial or gradual decentralization,” Han told CoinDesk Korea last year, adding that some of Kakao’s services could be decentralized.

He added:

“The token economy is a business model that no one could have imagined before. Until now, Kakao has only operated in Korea, but through blockchain we could expand into the global market. That means taking a portion of the profits we earn as an intermediary and using it to expand our market by sharing it with users.”

Jason Han image via CoinDesk archives

Source: https://www.coindesk.com/kakaos-blockchain-arm-raises-90-million-in-private-token-sale

Tartisan Nickel Corp. $TN.ca – The Case For #Nickel $ROX.ca $FF.ca $EDG.ca $AGL.ca $ANZ.ca

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 11:18 AM on Wednesday, March 13th, 2019

Tartisan Nickel (TN:CSE) Kenbridge Property has a measured and indicated resource of 7.14 million tonnes at 0.62% nickel, 0.33% copper. Tartisan also has interests in Peru, including a 20 percent equity stake in Eloro Resources and 2 percent NSR in their La Victoria property. Click her for more information

TN:CSE

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Dear Tartisan Investors,

The recently published article below is a preamble to a more comprehensive report on the Nickel sector which will be published on March 31st. The Case for Nickel is being made ……….happy reading.

Regards,

Mark

The Case For Nickel:  (Roskill Information Services)

The nickel price had another volatile year in 20‌18, averaging US$13,‌116/t compared to US$10,‌408/t in 20‌17. The price still swung wildly over the course of the year, however, rising from around US$12,‌700/t at the beginning of 20‌18 to over US$15,‌700/t by early June. From there, however, the price slumped and by the end of 20‌18, the LME nickel cash price was trading at around US$10,‌600/t. Early 20‌19 has seen a recovery and by early March, the price was trading back above US13,‌000/t.

The market was in deficit for the second year running in 20‌18, despite a 6.8% y-on-y jump in supply that came mainly from China and Indonesia. China’s output of refined nickel jumped based on an increase in nickel pig iron (NPI) production, thanks to increased availability of nickel ores from Indonesia. The supply growth from Indonesia, driven by the ramp-up of domestic NPI capacity, has been stellar: the country became the second-largest producer of refined nickel in 20‌18; three years previously, it was the tenth largest.

The growth in supply in 20‌18 was still not sufficient to offset the 6.3% y-on-y rise in demand, however. Demand from the stainless steel sector, which accounted for 70% of global primary nickel demand, continued to grow. The rise in crude stainless production in 20‌18 came mainly from China and Indonesia, two countries that rely heavily on primary nickel units rather than scrap, to produce stainless steel.

At the other end of the first-use spectrum, the battery sector only accounted for 3% of global primary nickel usage in 20‌18. The use of nickel in batteries is expected to grow particularly strongly in the next decade, thanks to the rise in electric vehicle use. Roskill estimates that by 20‌28, the battery sector will be the second-largest consumer of primary nickel.

The upshot of the second-consecutive market deficit has been a rapid drawdown in exchange stocks. Inventories of nickel on the LME and ShFE combined dropped by 189kt in 20‌18, more than the market deficit. This could indicate that some producers picked up material in order to boost their production inventory in anticipation of tighter market conditions. The scale of the drawdown, however, leads us to believe that some of this material has merely been moved by financiers away from the statistical clarity of exchange storage to the statistical darkness of off-warrant warehouses, with the aim of returning this material to the market when prices have risen further.

Tartisan will endeavour to forward you the full March 31st report – and presumably doesn’t hurt to remind all that Tartisan Nickel owns one of the premier assets in Canada in this space !  (100mm lbs Ni, 50mm lbs Cu)

Regards,

Tartisan Nickel Corp. (CSE:TN)
D. Mark Appleby
Suite1060, 44 Victoria Street
Toronto, Ontario
M5C 1Y2
www.tartisannickel.com
Ph: 416-804-0280

Good Life Networks $GOOD.ca – Programmatic Advertising Market to register a staggering expansion at 33.3% CAGR during the forecast period 2017 to 2025 $TTD $RUBI $AT.ca $TRMR $FUEL

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 9:00 PM on Tuesday, March 12th, 2019
SPONSOR: Good Life Networks (GOOD:TSX-V) Video advertising is the future! Company’s A.I. makes 80,000 calculations / second, targeting 750 million users to deliver higher prices and volume. Company announced combined trailing 12 month revenue at just over $40 Million, $7.9M EBITDA, $3 Million net income. Click here for more information.
GOOD: TSX-V

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  • Persistence Market Research (PMR), in its report, projects the global programmatic advertising platform market to register a staggering expansion at 33.3% CAGR during the forecast period 2017 to 2025.
  • In 2016, the market was evaluated at US$ 1,926.4 Mn, and is further estimated to reach nearly US$ 30,000 Mn by 2025-end.

Surging Utilization of Mobile Advertising to Propel Growth

With growing market for mobile phones, wide utilization of mobile advertising is witnessed, coupled with surging demand for more sophisticated technology. Emergence of tools to monitor & measure relevant data on mobile devices is influencing bright prospects for programmatic mobile video. There has been a wide adoption of digital technologies & devices for innovation in business processes and revenue producing opportunities. In addition, several government and international events have generated an incremental online advertising spending, which in turn has influenced adoption of programmatic advertisements. The aforementioned factors are expected to fuel growth of the market during the forecast period. In addition, social media marketers are running more effective campaigns through automated buying, reaching precise audiences with highly relevant messages. This is further estimated to propel market growth.

North America to be Largest Market for Programmatic Advertising Platform by 2025-End

North America is projected to be the largest market for programmatic advertising platform, followed by Europe and Asia Pacific (APAC). Market in this region will account for revenues worth US$ 1,683.30 Mn in 2017, and is further estimated to surpass US$ 13,000 Mn by 2025-end. However, Middle East & Africa (MEA) is anticipated to register fastest growth in the global programmatic advertising platform market, followed by Latin America.

Based on transaction mode, real-time bidding segment will remain preferred in the market during the forecast period. This transaction mode is expected to surpass US$ 16,000 Mn in revenues by 2025-end. In contrast, private marketplace transaction mode is projected to exhibit the fastest expansion at 46.7% CAGR through 2025. This segment is further estimated to create an incremental opportunity of US$ 5,787.71 Mn between 2017 and 2025.

Mobile Video Ad Format to Register Highest CAGR in the Market through 2025

By ad format, revenues generated by mobile video is expected to reach US$ 8.682.57 Mn by 2025, and is projected to register the highest CAGR in the market, followed by mobile display. In terms of revenues, desktop video will be the second largest ad format segment by 2025-end. On the basis of enterprise size, although large enterprises are expected to remain dominant over the market, SMBs are projected to register the fastest growth through 2025. PMR’s report estimates large enterprises to expand from US$ 2,190.55 Mn in 2017 to more than US$ 16,000 Mn by 2025-end. SMBS are estimated to exhibit a CAGR of over 40% during the forecast period.

Key market players identified in PMR’s report include AppNexus Inc., AOL Inc. (Verizon Communications Inc.), Yahoo! Inc., DataXu Inc., Adroll.com, Google Inc. (Doubleclick), Adobe Systems Incorporated, Rubicon Project Inc., Rocket Fuel Inc., MediaMath Inc., IPONWEB Holding Limited (BidSwitch), Between Digital, Fluct, Adform, The Trade Desk, Turn Inc., Beeswax, Connexity, Inc., Centro, Inc., RadiumOne, Inc.

Source: https://digitaldaynews.com/2019/03/11/programmatic-advertising-market-to-register-a-staggering-expansion-at-33-3-cagr-during-the-forecast-period-2017-to-2025/

CLIENT FEATURE: CardioComm Solutions $EKG.ca – Connecting Your Heart To The Cloud $ATE.ca $TLT.ca $OGI.ca $ACST.ca $IPA.ca

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 3:00 PM on Tuesday, March 12th, 2019

Global Leaders in Mobile  ECG Connectivity

  • 20 years of medical credibility licensing technologies to hospitals, physicians, remote patient monitoring  platforms, research groups and commercial call centers
  • Sold into > 20 countries, with the largest customer base located in the US
  • Class II medical device clearances and device agnostic for collecting, viewing, recording, analyzing and  storing of ECGs for management of patient and consumer health
  • ECG solutions for both consumer (OTC) and medical (Rx) markets
  • Owns all IP and source code
  • Market expert contributor for reports in m‐health, mobile cardiac monitoring and new advances in  consumer health and wellness monitoring

Recent Highlights

Innovation Continues as the FDA Clears CardioComm Solutions’ Novel ECG Smartphone App and Heartcheck(TM) Device for Direct to Consumer Sales Read More

  • Received approval from the US Food and Drug Administration for the over-the-counter sales and marketing of their device agnostic GEMS™ Mobile smartphone app and their newest handheld, heart rhythm monitor, the HeartCheckTM CardiBeat
  • Both have been cleared as a Class II medical device and are available for sale direct to consumers.

CardioComm Solutions’ HeartCheck(TM) Device Enters Final FDA Review Phase Read More

  • Completed a request for additional information from the US Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) for the Company’s premarket notification 510(k), Class II medical device clearance application for the HeartCheck™ CardiBeat and GEMS™ Mobile Application.
  • Company had submitted a letter of revocation of their supplementary information submission on December 26, 2018 in compliance with the FDA’s directive

CardioComm Solutions’ HeartCheck(TM) CardiBeat and Smart Phone App Enter Final Stage of FDA 510(k) Review Read More

  • Market Release of HeartCheck(TM) CardiBeat and GEMS(TM) Mobile Application Set For Early 2019
  • Completed its response to the USA Food and Drug Administration for additional information following the Company’s filing of its premarket notification 510(k)
    • Class II medical device clearance application for the HeartCheck™ CardiBeat and GEMS™ Mobile Application
  • HeartCheck™ CardiBeat is the second of several planned Bluetooth-enabled ECG recording devices to be marketed by the Company

An Innovator in the Mobile ECG Industry

Company Accolades

 FULL DISCLOSURE: CardioComm Solutions Inc. is an advertising client of AGORA Internet Relations Corp.

INTERVIEW: NORTHBUD $NBUD.ca Discusses Binding LOI For Acquisition of Multi-State Licensed Operator Eureka Vapor $WEED.ca $CGC $ACB $APH $CRON.ca $HEXO.ca $TRST.ca $OGI.ca

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 1:37 PM on Tuesday, March 12th, 2019

NORTHBUD (NBUD:CSE) is already a late stage applicant at the “Confirmation of Readiness” stage for 25,000 square feet of indoor and 500,000 square feet of outdoor growing space, for the sole purpose of growing GMP pharma-grade cultivation and food-grade extracted inputs.

But Ryan Brown didn’t get this far in the cannabis space by sitting still … and he has made one hell of a great deal with the $20 MILLION acquisition of Eureka Vapor, a multi-state licensed operator in the USA.  The acquisition is subject to typical closing and due diligence but Ryan has a close relationship with the CEO and is confident it will close.

If and when it does close, Eureka will bring about $11.5 million in revenue at a 16% profit margin, which will be immediately accretive to the bottom line of NORTHBUD.  Accretive is actually an understatement.

I also love this acquisition because of its’ terms, which shows the confidence that both sides have in each other.  For example, the Eureka team can earn an extra $25 million if they hit certain milestones.  That says a lot about how Eureka may grown once it is a part of NORTHBUD.

On the flipside, the Eureka group only gets 10% of their shares on closing, with the rest dripped out over the next 24 months. That says a lot about the confidence Eureka has in NORTHBUD.

Find out more about NORTHBUD and this great deal in this interview with Ryan, who has already made a name for himself and is now on his way to growing that success, pun intended.

Esports Entertainment Group $GMBL – ‘Revenge of the gamers’ – eSports hits big time, with or without Olympics $TECHF $ATVI $TTWO $GAME $EPY.ca $FDM.ca $TNA.ca

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 1:00 PM on Tuesday, March 12th, 2019
SPONSOR: Esports Entertainment $GMBL Esports audience is 350M, growing to 590M, Esports wagering is projected at $23 BILLION by 2020. The company has launched VIE.gg esports betting platform and has accelerated affiliate marketing agreements with 190 Esports teams. Click here for more information
GMBL: OTCQB

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‘Revenge of the gamers’ – eSports hits big time, with or without Olympics

  • eSports’ bid to reach the Olympics may be on hold but backing from big sponsors and a relentless march into the mainstream raise the question of whether it needs the Games at all.
  • With sportswear giant Nike last month announcing its sponsorship of China’s Legends Pro League, video gaming already bears the hallmarks of any successful sport.

Adidas, Mercedes and BMW are some of the other global brands to jump on board, while McDonald’s dropped its sponsorship of Germany’s national football team to focus on eSports.

The Legends Pro League, China’s official competition for the League of Legends game, has 14 regional divisions, and teams have their own home venues. The game also has an annual world championship.

As of next year, professional players will be fully decked out in Nike-designed jerseys and trainers, with an accompanying lifestyle range — much like any big football, basketball or baseball team.

“It’s (eSports) already hit mainstream, a couple of years back,” Philip So, who heads business development at League of Legends developer Riot Games, told AFP at last week’s Sportel convention in Macau.

“(But the Nike sponsorship) had a huge reaction from our fans when we announced it, even from the Nike side. I think it was surprising to everyone how much buzz it generated.”

A Goldman Sachs briefing in October said eSports was on course to reach nearly 300 million viewers by 2022 — similar numbers to American football’s NFL.

– ‘NBA didn’t need the Olympics’ –

Some are now beginning to wonder if the Olympics needs eSports more than the other way round, as the venerable institution dating back to the late 19th century strives to reach a younger audience.

“I think it would be great for the Olympic programme to have eSports because they are going to be able to capture the attention of a new audience that otherwise would disappear,” Maurizio Barbieri, Twitter’s Southeast Asian head of sports partnerships, said at Sportel.

“But overall, (how would the Olympics help eSports) in general?

“I mean, the NBA didn’t need the IOC (International Olympic Committee) to become the number one basketball league in the world.”

eSports won’t be part of the Olympics until at least Los Angeles 2028, after it was left off the list of nominated sports for Paris 2024 — which included the equally youth-friendly breakdancing, surfing, skateboarding and climbing.

But So said that when eSports was a demonstration event at last year’s Asian Games, viewing figures in China outstripped those of traditional sports, even though the competition wasn’t shown on TV.

People who play computer games, he added, are now proud to identify themselves as “gamers”, underlining the rise of a movement that has spread organically, from the grassroots up.

“It’s a complete paradigm shift. This is the time for gamers to come out. It’s revenge of the gamers,” said So.

– Deeply fragmented –

Much of the opposition to eSports is related to concerns over screen time and inactivity among young people, as well as a lack of knowledge and understanding of the games.

China has been particularly cautious, last year announcing curbs including temporarily suspending new releases of online games — sending shares plummeting in Tencent, Riot Games’ parent company.

But So said China’s sports ministry remained a supporter of eSports, drawing a distinction between professional, organised gaming and streaming, where amateurs play for audiences online.

“I don’t think eSports makes the government very nervous. I really don’t think so,” he said.

“Because the sports bureau etc, we work very closely with them and it’s definitely on their agenda and interest to grow the sport as well.”

However, So was at a loss to predict whether eSports would finally make it into the Olympics, a campaign that faces a number of hurdles.

As well as concerns over eSports’ lack of physical activity, the scene is deeply fragmented, as different games are made by competing studios. It is also yet to form a world governing body — a stipulation demanded by the IOC.

“I honestly don’t know. I wish I had the answer,” So said, when asked what was the way forward for eSports’ Olympic bid.

“How an overarching arm across all different games (would work), I’d be very curious to know,” he added.

Source: https://www.france24.com/en/20190312-revenge-gamers-esports-hits-big-time-with-or-without-olympics

PyroGenesis Canada $PYR.ca to Present at the Spring Investor Summit on April 1st and 2nd in New York City at the Essex House

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 12:07 PM on Tuesday, March 12th, 2019
  • Presenting at this year’s Spring Investor Summit on April 1st and 2nd in New York City.
  • PyroGenesis Canada, Inc. will be presenting at 10:30am on April 1st.

NEW YORK, NY / March 12, 2019 / PyroGenesis Canada, Inc. (TSX-V: PYR.V) will be presenting at this year’s Spring Investor Summit on April 1st and 2nd in New York City. PyroGenesis Canada, Inc. will be presenting at 10:30am on April 1st.

CONFERENCE OVERVIEW AND STRUCTURE

The Spring Investor Summit (formerly The MicroCap Conference) is an exclusive event dedicated to connecting small and micro cap companies with high-level, institutional and retail investors.

The Spring Investor Summit will take place in New York City at the Essex House on April 1st and 2nd. The upcoming conference will feature 200 presenting companies, 1200 institutional and retail investors, 2000 one-on-one meetings, expert speakers, and industry panels.

REGISTRATION FOR INVESTORS

To request free registration, please go to our website (www.springinvestorsummit.com), and click the “Registration” button

PARTICIPATING COMPANIES

For our most updated list of companies, please go to our website (www.springinvestorsummit.com)

SPONSORS

Regal Consulting
MSK
Proactive Investors
Marcum
Irth Communications
MZ Group
CoreIR
PCG Advisory
ICR

News Compliments of ACCESSWIRE.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

Please visit: www.springinvestorsummit.com
Or, contact Ashley Allard at [email protected]

SOURCE: PyroGenesis Canada, Inc.

BetterU Education Corp. $BTRU.ca – Google $GOOG introduces educational app Bolo to improve children’s literacy in India $ARCL $CPLA $BPI $FC.ca

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 12:00 PM on Tuesday, March 12th, 2019
SPONSOR:  Betteru Education Corp. Connecting global leading educators to the mass population of India. BetterU Education has ability to reach 100 MILLION potential learners each week. Click here for more information.
BTRU: TSX-V

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  • Google is expanding its suite of apps designed for the Indian market with today’s launch of a new language-learning app aimed at children, called Bolo.
  • The app, which is aimed at elementary school-aged students, leverages technology like Google’s speech recognition and text-to-speech to help kids learn to read in both Hindi and English.

Sarah Perez@sarahintampa

Google is expanding its suite of apps designed for the Indian market with today’s launch of a new language-learning app aimed at children, called Bolo. The app, which is aimed at elementary school-aged students, leverages technology like Google’s speech recognition and text-to-speech to help kids learn to read in both Hindi and English.

To do so, Bolo offers a catalog of 50 stories in Hindi and 40 in English, sourced from Storyweaver.org.in. The company says it plans to partner with other organizations in the future to expand the story selection.

Included in the app is a reading buddy, “Diya,” who encourages and corrects the child when they read aloud. As kids read, Diya can listen and respond with feedback. (Google notes all personal information remains on-device to protect kids’ privacy.) Diya can also read the text to the child and explain the meaning of English words. As children progress in the app, they’ll be presented with word games that win them in-app rewards and badges to motivate them.

The app works offline — a necessity in large parts of India — where internet access is not always available. Bolo can be used by multiple children, as well, and will adjust itself to their own reading levels.

Google says it had been trialing Bolo across 200 villages in Uttar Pradesh, India, with the help of nonprofit ASER Centre. During testing, it found that 64 percent of children who used the app showed an improvement in reading proficiency in three months’ time.

To run the pilot, 920 children were given the app and 600 were in a control group without the app, Google says.

In addition to improving their proficiency, more students in the group with the app (39 percent) reached the highest level of ASER’s reading assessment than those without it (28 percent), and parents also reported improvements in their children’s reading abilities.

Illiteracy remains a problem in India. The country has one of the largest illiterate populations in the world, where only 74 percent are able to read, according to a study by ASER Centre a few years back. It found then that more than half of students in fifth grade in rural state schools could not read second-grade textbooks in 2014. By 2018, that figure hadn’t changed much — still, only about half can read at a second-grade level, ASER now reports.

While Google today highlights its philanthropic efforts in education, it’s worth noting that Google’s interest in helping improve India’s literacy metrics benefits its bottom line, too. As the country continues to come online to become one of the largest internet markets in the world, literate users capable of using Google’s products like Search, Ads, Gmail and others are of increased importance to Google’s business.

Already, Google has shipped a number of applications designed specifically for Indian internet users, like data-friendly versions of YouTube, Search and other popular services, like payments app Tez (now rebranded Google Pay), a food delivery service, a neighborhood and communities networking app, a blogging app and more.

Today, Bolo is launching across India as an open beta, while Google will continue to work with its nonprofit partners — including Pratham Education Foundation, Room to Read, Saajha and Kaivalya Education Foundation — a Piramal Initiative — to bring the app to more children.

Bolo is available now on the Google Play Store in India, and works on Android smartphones running Android 4.4 (Kit Kat) and higher. The app is currently optimized for native Hindi speakers.

Source: https://techcrunch.com/2019/03/06/google-introduces-educational-app-bolo-to-improve-childrens-literacy-rates-in-india/