Saturday, June 10, 2017

UPDATE: On That Hapless SaaS Micro-Cap [Chicago-HQ] Public Company...


This is cross-posted, from another property of mine, on a largely sleepless hospital overnight. . . Headlined: "Apple iOS 11 + SalesForce.com = New Threat To Mattersight's Model -- Or... the END?"

Many [regular readers of the other property] will recall the connections "Bob" outlined mid-last year, between Salesforce.com and Hercules, Mattersight's current vulture lender.

Salesforce.com is also a smallish customer/client as to of some of Mattersight's "warez"1 (yes that's snark), if memory serves. That corporate Salesforce.com IP backbone regularly fills our visitor logs, [at the other property] as well -- so I know they are reading this.

And -- the punchline? I read with keen interest this latest overnight Apple organ announcement (styled as an article), in which we learn that iOS 11 will be embedded with very deeply sophisticated iMessage apps, which all of Mattersight's clients may deploy on the fly (and customize!) with their respective ultimate consumers -- without ever involving. . . Mattersight. Here's a bit:

. . . .Similar to placing a phone call, the new Business Chat icons or QR codes open a new conversation type in iMessage. A specific chat button or QR code includes a URL payload that can associate the user with a geographic location (such as a local retail store presented in Maps), a specific product configuration they are looking at or have purchased, their language, or a specific team ID (such as order tracking) that identifies what they need help with.

Business Chat connects the incoming IM request to the appropriate response team at a company via a CSP, and the firm's chat agent can then pull up previous conversations with that customer, access the details of the product they want help with, their associated orders or other shipments in progress, and provide authenticated answers.

The customer service agent can also do anything iMessage can do, including sending photos or other attachments, as well as receive photos and other attachments from the customer to troubleshoot a problem. Companies will able be able to send the customer links to download their apps. . . .

Companies can also build their own custom response app extensions for use with Business Chat. Apple demonstrated an example of an airline seat selector, presenting a user interface the user can interact with to return their choice. . . .


So -- with one of Mattersight's own customers helping design the effort, and Nuance providing the tech -- Messrs. Conway and Muellen look to be... out, in the cold.

This isn't some under-capitalized smallish MIT-lab's start-up idea, either. Apple is embedding it in the next release of iOS. That's the gateway to the best demographics -- in the voice over IP world. About that, there is no serious doubt.

It will be a small step for Apple and Nuance to apply the public domain NASA IP that MATR relies upon -- to deliver smart live voice agent matching, via a routed phone call -- all inside the app, if one but asks for a live agent.

Yep -- $2/share is looking expensive, on the NASDAQ, for MATR.

And (as a reminder) I am neither long nor short -- and never have been -- nor will I ever be. OTOH, I suppose MATR may become a "me too" here, and offer an app, for the Apple App store to. . . resell.

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1. "Warez" -- with a "z" -- is the urban dictionary's term, given to purloined (or dubious origin) software. Public domain, three decades old NASA tech -- here meets that definition, in my opinion.

नमस्ते

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