Interview with Steven Goh, CEO, mig33
What made you choose the name mig33?
We wanted something simple, memorable and not tied to a functional name like ‘chat’ so that we keep the flexibility to grow and evolve the product as we like. We wanted something that would translate well across different markets easily too. After evaluating a few options and working closely with our early beta testing group, the name mig33 emerged. Our users love it so it’s worked out well. 
What has been the key in signing so many subscribers?
A few factors: The product delivers a compelling proposition of communications and social network features like chat, IM, SMS, picture sharing, profiles, cheap calls and email. This combined with an effective seed strategy helped us grow over 11 million users in over 200 countries.
Has the marketing been mostly word of mouth thing?
Word of mouth, in addition to other marketing.
What is your Facebook strategy? Are those sort of social networks important for you?
For services like Facebook, they have been successful in building social networks for users for whom PC is the first internet screen, and they are extending some of these services onto the mobile screens. mig33 is different. We aim to be the biggest global social network, in the mobile world. We have built mig33 features for users for whom mobile is the first screen for internet experiences.
How many handsets are you compatible with now?
We are compatible with over 1,000 handsets; any handset that is J2ME and internet/ GPRS enabled.
What is the first instant observation you make when you look at mobile VoIP market?
The opportunity for mobile VoIP is big. VoIP has grown and found success through the internet and the PC world and as internet usage moves to the mobile, so too will the usage and take up of mobile VoIP
So what is the thrust area for now at mig33?
Growth of our mobile social network, in size, engagement and monetization.
