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TECHNOLOGY A23
Thursday 3 March 2016
Pet Tech offers to keep animals safe, healthy and connected
TERENCE CHEA erPet) and even speak with In this Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016, photo, Russell Gipson Shearer displays on his phone how the
Associated Press a human voice (Petspeak). Whistle pet tracker follows his dog Rocket in San Francisco.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) But as more pet-tech gad-
— Technology isn’t just for gets come to market, Associated Press
humans anymore. It’s also experts caution owners
for their furry friends. against relying on them too up also created a social getting. see and speak to their pets,
In Silicon Valley and be- much. media app that lets owners Ben Jacobs, Whistle’s CEO and play with them with a
yond, a growing number of “The technology can be share pet photos. and co-founder, said the laser pointer.
startups are selling devices useful as an adjunct, a way “All of the most current pet-tech market is expand- Petcube’s Ukranian found-
to keep pets safe, healthy, of enriching your relation- crazes and fads in tech- ing fast as pets move up ers started the company in
entertained and connect- ship with your pet, but cer- nology were touching ev- the household hierarchy. Kiev,
ed when their owners are tainly not a substitute for erything but the pet,” said “From the yard to the home but moved its headquar-
away. time spent with your dog,” CEO David Clark. to the bed — the dog is no ters to San Francisco to
“Pet tech” entrepreneurs said Pamela Wyman, who Whistle, a San Francisco longer out as part of the reach a global market.
and investors see a big op- runs the DogEvolve training startup, sells a GPS-enabled farm, but they’re actually “If we can connect all the
portunity as pet ownership school in Oakland. Pet Tracker that alerts own- sleeping in bed with you as pets to the Internet and ba-
grows and owners show a The Petzi Treatcam lets ers when their pets have left part of the family,” Jacobs sically digitize this space, it
willingness to spend serious Anne Ryan check on her their “safe zone” and helps said. will be nothing short of dis-
money on their four-legged dogs Oscar and Reggie at find them if they get lost. For owners who want their ruption,” said Yaroslav Azh-
companions. her Berkeley home when The device also lets owners dogs and cats to be more nyuk, Petcube CEO and
Nearly two-thirds of U.S. she’s working in San Fran- track how much exercise active during the day, the co-founder. “It will be very
households, or 80 million cisco or traveling out of and sleep their animals are Petcube Camera lets them big.”q
homes, have pets, and state.
Americans spent more The Internet-connected
than $60 billion on them device lets her see her
last year, according to the dogs, talk to them, take
American Pet Products As- photos and even dispense
sociation. treats — using an app on
“The number of pets in the her phone.
world is growing extremely “I turn it on, get to see
fast and that opens up the them, get to talk to them
market,” said Peter Har- and it changes my mood,
rop, chairman of IDTechEx, and puts me back in a pos-
a technology market re- itive frame,” said Ryan said.
search firm. “I didn’t know that I need-
“I’m sure five years from ed it, but now I don’t think
now there will be all sorts of that I could live without it.”
things we can’t imagine.” The TreatCam was created
Already, there are devices by San Jose-based Petzila,
that let your pets call you which was founded by two
(PetChatz), play games veteran technologyexecu-
and win treats when tives who wanted to get
they’re home alone (Clev- their pets online. The start-
Following rivals, AT&T says DirecTV won’t need a dish or box
TALI ARBEL content blackouts on mo- but not those owned by house or not, but some pro- that have “much of what is
AP Technology Writer bile devices or computers Disney, like ESPN and Dis- grams have been blacked available from DirecTV to-
NEW YORK (AP) — Like oth- when you step outside your ney Channel. It had said in out. Offerings from cable day” as well as a more lim-
er cable and satellite com- house. November that it was add- companies have rights is- ited service that only works
panies, AT&T is trying to win The company wants to ing them. sues that make some chan- on phones and a free offer-
new customers by making launch an Internet TV offer- The industry shift to ditch nels unavailable when you ing with ads.
it a little easier to sign up for ing that replicates a lot of equipment that adds leave your house and, for AT&T has a “number of pro-
and watch TV. what’s in the traditional big to the cost of TV service now, are available only in grammers on board and
It said Tuesday that DirecTV bundle of channels, and comes as a growing num- a few regions. Comcast’s we’re continuing discus-
packages that run on apps hopes that approach will ber of people cancel their Stream also doesn’t work sions with others,” said AT&T
and don’t need a dish or appeal to big entertain- traditional TV subscriptions. on TV. executive Tony Goncalves.
TV set-top box are coming ment companies like Twen- Young people are consid- Competition is increasing He said that AT&T has a
in the fourth quarter. You ty-First Century Fox and Dis- ered especially unlikely to as phone companies want “programmer-friendly ap-
don’t have to be an AT&T ney. pay for a bundle of hun- to be video hubs, too. T-Mo- proach” because it wants
phone customer to sign up. Some other Web TV servic- dreds of channels that can bile lets you watch video to put so many channels
But it’s hard to gauge how es have had trouble getting easily cost $70 and more from dozens of providers, online.
appealing these deals will off the ground. A hoped-for each month. including HBO Now, Netflix Asked if ESPN channels
be, because it’s not clear Apple TV streaming service Over the past year, rival and Hulu, without using up were going to be included
what they are. AT&T, which hasn’t materialized, having cable and satellite compa- data on your plan. Verizon in the new AT&T packages,
bought DirecTV last year, reportedly hit roadblocks nies have introduced TV- exempts its own video app, spokeswoman Amy Phil-
isn’t providing details about in negotiations with chan- watching apps aimed at which has some full-length lips said ESPN was “having
prices, which channels or nels. Sony launched a TV millennials. Dish Network’s TV episodes. productive conversations,
video will be available, or service, Vue, last year with Sling TV has channels that Dallas-based AT&T Inc. said but we have nothing to an-
whether there will be any many popular channels, work whether you’re in the it is planning packages nounce at this time.” q
