At the beGlobal 2013 Tech Startup Conference, ten Korean Tech startups pitched their companiesin competition for the attention and capital ofjudges and investors. The ten startups that participated were Korbit (Bitcoin exchange & platform), SEWORKS (mobile security), KnowRe (online adaptive learning program), Gist (news aggregation/summarization), Shakr (video creation), Smile Family (mobile application for mothers), IDINCU (mobile market research), Cultstory (mobile travel and tourism application), Flitto (social media translation platform) and VCNC (private social media for couples).
Out of the ten startups, one stood out among the rest for its presentation and innovation: Shakr Media, who's presentation by CEO David Lee received an overwhelming reception.
Shakr CEO David Lee
Shakr is an online video creation service that connects professional video creators to every-day people through pre-made video templates. Shakr is free to use unless if the user want to upgrade his or her video to HD with through a paid subscription.
“Video can touch your soul, but video is difficult and expensive.” Explained CEO David Lee. Shakr offers everyone the ability to create professional level videos with no experience in film making, whether it be for advertising, presentations or entertainment. The ease of use creates a bridge connecting the gap between service and demand in the video creation industry that has solemnly been well-done.
At the moment, 22% of Shakr’s users chose to upgrade to HD, paying an average of $29 dollars and has a lifetime value in excess of $200. Shakr started out with 21 templates at its launch in May today it has 51 templates and by estimation, it will have 2500 templates by the end of 2014 to tell “every single imaginable story by most people.”
Shakr released the Public Preview of its English site at www.shakr.com just minutes before taking the stage at beGLOBAL. They are now actively working with US partners to set up an office in San Francisco. Although this had been the plan all along, the resounding reception which David and the team received at beGLOBAL prompted them to progress immediately with their US expansion initiatives. They have already begun signing US designers for their platform.
