Pepper is a familiar name within the Windows Phone community. The service originally launched on the platform early last year and has since branched out to iOS, but location support is still restricted to the UK. Why is this the case? The live music discovery and social service is incredibly accurate when it comes to local events and performances. This requires data that's frankly hard to come by, even today.
The team has been working hard on evolving the backend and frontend systems to prepare for a daunting task - enter the US market. UK as a whole is a relatively small market when compared to the US, especially when we talk about distance and number of music venues. The Pepper team is having to start from fresh with no data in the US and build a database of venues, bands, events and more. This is where you guys come in.
The Pepper team requires some assistance to get at least a foothold into the US, offering various pieces of information that's usually overlooked, including support acts and what times performances are held on-stage. That's just an example of how Pepper improves the live music scene - the performances and venues really are brought to life with added social interaction and accuracy. Here's what David Hamilton, CTO at Pepper, has to say about the level of accuracy:
"Due to the level of accuracy we demand in our data, we can't just pull a list out of the Yellow Pages, it isn't up-to-date enough, nor can we simply pull locations from Google Maps - we need to let our system know how big the venue is. The app reacts differently for a stadium compared to a small bar."
We're not talking about just large acts in stadiums and massive venues either. You're also going to find small open mic evenings, clubs and even orchestra and classical music. Both free and commercial events are also supported. It's that big of a deal and it's planned for the states. So how can you help?
More data, please
For the time being, the Pepper team would like to find out the following on any venues you're aware of:
- Venue name
- Town
- State
- Website / phone number
- Any further details you believe might be useful
You can enter the above information over on our forum in the designated thread (more information in the thread - please do not do so on this article in the comments as it'll split the data up). The general idea is to build a small database of venues in multiple states across the country. Gunning for an early 2014 launch, October will see the team finalising details and ensuring event information is ready for the service launch.
Next year will see the service expand into new markets, but the US is the first major focus after the UK (if you'd like to see Pepper in your country, be sure to shout out in the comments). So head on over to our forum to get cracking and help the Pepper team break into the US. The more data they collect now, the easier it will be for the team to break into the market and support your local venues.
Lastly, follow the Pepper team on Twitter and Facebook for announcements and updates.
