start ups

We have some rather good news for digital firms based in London who need a helping-hand to take part in the upcoming Digital Mission to New York, taking place from the 18th-22nd February 2013 to coincide with Social Media Week NYC. 

The marvellous people at UK Trade & Investment London have secured 15 grants of up to £500 available for digital companies based inside the M25. This contribution can be used towards the mission costs as well as the travel and accommodation expenses of taking part.

"Spotify Paid Lady Gaga $167 For 1,000,000 Plays"

This headline showed the “dark side” of music streaming start up, Spotify. Critics were in awe about how little artists were being paid for their hard work. Despite the short lived pleas from Spotify that they paid more per play people focused on this number, as if it was a bad thing.

Paying an artist less than 1p per play sounds like a raw deal, until you remember Spotify is a marketing platform. Spotify is designed as a service for people to listen to their favourite tracks cheaply. Why does this benefit the artist? Because if you love their music, you’ll go to the show, get the t-shirt and support the live scene.

Are you thinking of applying for the UKTI Trade Mission to SXSW, but not really sure where to start? Wondering how long the application process takes and how it's assessed?

When and how should you book hotels? Do you need to buy a SXSW badge? So many questions, so to make things a little easier we have outlined some simple steps that we hope will answer all of your questions.

We have already had a strong group of application for the UKTI Trade Mission to SXSW, but you do still have time to apply. Applications close Friday 25th November, so start applying today. 

Next week some of the UK's leading digital firms will be making their way DC for the Digital Mission to Washington. 

The week takes in a heap of activities designed to bring companies up-to-speed on the US market, make heaps of introductions and build their international profile.

For those taking part in the Digital Mission, and anyone travelling to the US from the UK, the forms for immigration have changed and it's now obligatory to complete the snappily titled Electronic System for Travel Authorization for (or thankfully, ESTA form).

Congratulations to the 10 leading UK digital companies that have been selected for the Digital Mission to Washington, DC 2011.

This trip will see the companies travel out to Washington, DC for a packed five day trip. To find out more about what the companies will be getting up to while over in DC, check out the Digital Mission Activities page.

Each of the companies is listed below, don't hesitate to drop them a line directly to arrange a time to meet up in Washington, or follow their progress via their Twitter accounts below. You can follow the coverage of the mission on Twitter @digitalmission and we've put together a Twitter list (@digitalmission/dc11) for all the companies and speakers taking part.

Last week we promised you some exciting news about the up and coming trip to Washington and we would hate to disappoint.

Just in case the top 10 reasons to head over to DC weren’t enough, we’re excited and delighted to announce a stellar line-up of partners for the Digital Mission to DC, including the US Department of State and a range of federal government agencies, Blue State Digital, the State of Maryland, Microsoft and Deloitte.

Along with our partners, Future Gov, Bright Lemon and Kathryn Corrick we have been working away to secure some of the most influential organisations and government departments for July’s mission visiting the US capital from 11-15th July. Applications close on 10th June, with a limited number of spots available.