Last weekend was truly rich with happy events for Agilie! While our CEO, Sergey Gladun, was nominated and won the third prize as a CEO of the Year at the Outsource People conference, our football team became the absolute champions by achieving the top position in the Dnipro Football IT League and winning the League Cup!
Dnipro Football IT League is the regional football/soccer championship where teams from local IT companies compete for fun and to prove they&rsquo;re good not only in software development and modern technologies. The League features playing seasons a year: one takes place in Spring, the other is in Autumn. Last weekend&rsquo;s games concluded the Autumn season of 2016.
<img style="width: 720px; height: 960px;" src="https://d12zh9bqbty5wp.cloudfront.net/ckeditor_assets/pictures/212/content_14991928_10211040269632265_4299595871486949028_n.jpg" alt="IT League Cup" />
On Saturday, November 5th, the Agilie team played the final Cup game, having defeated our colleagues from Playtika. A quick goal in the first minutes of the game brought confidence in our guys, which helped them to score five more goals and finish the game with a score of 6:0.
On the next day, November 6th, our team played the season&rsquo;s last game in the IT League Championship. This game wasn&rsquo;t a decisive one for our team - we have ensured our championship about a game ago. But it was decisive for our rivals, Noosphere - they had to struggle for the second position in the table. They almost did it: after the half-time Agilie was losing 1:0. But our guys managed to overcome and scored two goals in the second half of the game, winning with a score of 1:2.
Another big thing to celebrate about the season&rsquo;s finale is the becoming of our bombardier, Eugene Kovalenko, the top goalscorer both in the Championship (14 goals after 7 games) and in the Cup (7 goals after 4 games, two of which were scored in the final).
Agilie had won the Cup before - during the Autumn season of 2015. And it&rsquo;s also noteworthy that this year was Agilie&rsquo;s debut in the Championship after ascending from the lower league, the First Division. And the guys aren&rsquo;t going to stop on that!

Our football team became the absolute champions by achieving the top position in the Dnipro Football IT League's Championship!

Our football team became the absolute champions by achieving the top position in the Dnipro Football IT League's Championship and winning the League Cup!

Agilie’s Football Team Becomes the Absolute Champions of the Dnipro Football IT League Autumn Season 2016

You have two ways to enter today&rsquo;s restaurant mobile apps market.&nbsp;
The first way works if you&rsquo;re running a restaurant business and want to extend your services online and on mobile platforms: you develop a standalone branded app for your restaurant. The second way is building a platform-like app to partner with restaurants and provide table booking and discovery services.
Regardless of what your business objectives are, you should, first of all, understand the state of restaurant apps market and build your business strategy according to it.
In this article, we&rsquo;ll first make a breakdown of restaurant apps&rsquo; market, and then explore what problems such apps - if done right - can solve both for restaurants and for guests.
<h2 style="text-align: justify;">What apps for restaurants exist on the market now</h2>
<h3 style="text-align: justify;">1. Restaurant discovery and booking platforms</h3>
<a href="https://www.opentable.com/start/home" target="_blank" rel="noopener">OpenTable</a> is the world&rsquo;s largest table booking platform partnered with tens of thousands of restaurants around the globe with the focus on the US market. Through its website and mobile apps, OpenTable allows users to discover restaurants filtering them by cuisine and location, reserve a table, read reviews from other visitors, and collect loyalty program rewards. Restaurant owners must pay a subscription fee to stay visible on the platform.
Operating since 1998, OpenTable makes most of the income from selling POS (Point-of-Sale) hardware that allows restaurants to integrate with their service. Their revenue from subscriptions, while being impressive, is only a secondary income.
The success of OpenTable led to the appearance of similar apps on local markets all around the world.
<img style="width: 800px; height: 475px;" src="https://d12zh9bqbty5wp.cloudfront.net/ckeditor_assets/pictures/198/content_opentable_roll.jpeg" alt="Opentable for diners" />
OpenTable app for iPhone
Bookatable is an alternative to OpenTable in the UK. The service offers restaurant discovery and booking via their website and mobile apps for iOS and Android platforms. A unique feature that can be highlighted about Bookatable is their promoted hand-picked deals.
Dimmi is the largest restaurant reservation service in Australia&nbsp;and is basically a local OpenTable. Diners can use the website and mobile apps to find a restaurant, book a table, and get rewards.&nbsp;
Zomato is another global platform for restaurant discovery and reservations with headquarters in India. After the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/zomato-buys-urbanspoon-2015-1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">acquisition of a successful Seattle-based startup UrbanSpoon</a> in January 2015, the company got access to the markets of the United States, Canada, and Australia. Aside from that, Zomato operates in 23 countries. Zomato offers a wide range of services, especially focusing on the discovery of restaurant and food delivery services. Their app is available for all popular platforms, but the table-booking feature is fully accessible in a web version only - the mobile apps allow to reserve only in select locations.
As you can see, all these platforms spin around the same stack of services: discovery, booking, rewards and user reviews. However, there are restaurant booking startups that try to change the usual formula.
LocalEats, for example, focuses on offering reservations in a hand-picked list of US&rsquo;s best independently owned restaurants. The app works with local restaurants only, avoiding country-wide chains.
<a href="https://allsetnow.com/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">AllSet</a> app lets not only to reserve a table&nbsp;but also to preorder food. The startup targets at business people who have a&nbsp;busy schedule. AllSet provides booking via mobile apps for iOS and Android&nbsp;and is also one of the first booking services who <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/allset-facebook-messenger-chat-bot-book-lunch-2016-7" target="_blank" rel="noopener">implemented reservations via a Facebook Messenger chatbot</a>.
<a href="https://resy.com/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Resy</a> and TableSavvy are popular US&rsquo;s platforms providing last minute reservations with discounts. Resy is currently offering service in New York, Los Angeles, Miami, Washington DC and San Francisco, while TableSavvy operates in Chicago area only.
<a href="https://www.tocktix.com/#/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Tock</a> is a startup launched in 2014 and currently available only as a web service. Tock&rsquo;s unique selling point is discovering the most unconventional restaurants in the US.
<img style="width: 800px; height: 569px;" src="https://d12zh9bqbty5wp.cloudfront.net/ckeditor_assets/pictures/199/content_tock_web.jpg" alt="Tock restaurant discovery" />
Tock offers to discover the most unusual restaurant experiences
<h3 style="text-align: justify;">2. Branded restaurant apps</h3>
However, <a href="https://www.fsrmagazine.com/marketing/pros-and-cons-opentable" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">not all restaurant owners are excited</a> about the idea of partnering with table-booking platforms like OpenTable. That&rsquo;s why some seek more visibility and enhancement of their services via a standalone restaurant app.
According to the <a href="https://arc.applause.com/2016/06/22/best-restaurant-apps-2016/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">research</a> by Arc from Applause, 45 out of the top 100 restaurant brands don&rsquo;t even have a native mobile app. Sure, most of them have at least a responsive website, but they often lack the convenience and simplicity a mobile app for <a href="https://agilie.com/expertise/technology/mobile-development" target="_blank" rel="noopener">iOS</a> and&nbsp;<a href="https://agilie.com/expertise/technology/mobile-development" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Android</a> can provide.
In the same research, Applause suggests that the restaurant apps that enjoy the most popularity (according to app store user reviews) are those offered by casual eating and pizza places.
<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/panera-bread/id692365393?mt=8" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Panera Bread</a> is one example of such apps. The app allows users to search for nearest locations, order food and instantly become a reward program member. Among the additional features for iOS users are integration with HealthKit to count calories and a companion Apple Watch app.
<img style="width: 800px; height: 465px;" src="https://d12zh9bqbty5wp.cloudfront.net/ckeditor_assets/pictures/200/content_arc-by-applause-restaurant-apps-first-edition-figure-5.png" alt="eating apps reviews" />
The most highly rated casual dining apps. Source: Applause
One of the most successful branded apps (if not the most successful one) out there is <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.starbucks.mobilecard" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Starbucks</a> Coffee Company&rsquo;s one. The app has burst its way to the market thanks to a <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/quora/2014/06/13/why-is-the-starbucks-mobile-payments-app-so-successful/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">convenient mobile payment system and an automatic reward program</a>. With the latest updates, they brought engaging gamification elements to their loyalty system, including reward points called stars and informative dashboards.
<img style="width: 750px; height: 506px;" src="https://d12zh9bqbty5wp.cloudfront.net/ckeditor_assets/pictures/201/content_starbucks_stats.png" alt="restaurant mobile payments" />
Starbucks has experienced the continuous rise of mobile payments after the introduction of a mobile app. Source: Bloomberg
Momofuku&rsquo;s <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/ando-momofukus-delivery-only/id1104421020?mt=8" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Ando</a> is another app worth being mentioned here, even though it&rsquo;s rather a food delivery app. Yes, Ando is actually a food delivery app, but its example illustrates perfectly how a successful branded delivery-only restaurant app (or an app-only restaurant, as Ando is positioning itself) may look like.
At <a href="https://agilie.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Agilie</a>, we have some history with restaurant app development. We&rsquo;ve developed two branded apps for local restaurants: Reporter and <a style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, 'Segoe UI', Roboto, Oxygen, Ubuntu, Cantarell, 'Open Sans', 'Helvetica Neue', sans-serif;" href="https://agilie.com/blog/online-food-ordering-systems-how-to-create-a-restaurant-online-ordering-website" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Coast</a>. These apps allow visitors to book a table, study the illustrated menu and read news about the latest deals. Both apps also feature 3D tours to promote restaurants and their branded interiors.
<img style="width: 800px; height: 486px;" src="https://d12zh9bqbty5wp.cloudfront.net/ckeditor_assets/pictures/202/content_coast_roll.jpg" alt="coast restaurant app" />
Coast app by Agilie
<h2 style="text-align: justify;">What should you focus on when planning your own restaurant app</h2>
At the end of 2014, TechCrunch has published an article titled <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2014/12/24/the-greasy-underpan-of-restaurant-tech/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">The Greasy </a><a href="https://techcrunch.com/2014/12/24/the-greasy-underpan-of-restaurant-tech/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Underpan</a><a href="https://techcrunch.com/2014/12/24/the-greasy-underpan-of-restaurant-tech/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener"> Of Restaurant Tech</a> written by a technology entrepreneur and investor Bryan Menell. The article was focused on analyzing the reasons why most tech startups spinning around the restaurant business tend to fail.
The focal point of most such failures is this: not everything that may appeal for restaurant goers is also good for the owners, especially when it comes to small restaurant businesses.
But that doesn't mean restaurant apps are useless. The examples of apps like Starbucks and Panera Bread are suggesting the opposite. To succeed in a restaurant app market, you need to consider the pitfalls that cause restaurant apps&rsquo; failures and low ROI&nbsp;and plan your app having the successful cases in mind.
The following are some of our thoughts on what should you consider planning your restaurant app, whether it&rsquo;s a discovery and booking platform, or a branded standalone app.
<h3 style="text-align: justify;">1. Table booking isn&rsquo;t necessarily the problem your app should focus on</h3>
Many restaurant apps position table booking as the main feature of their app. However, on the markets occupied by OpenTable, the table booking feature can&rsquo;t be a unique selling point. Moreover, reservations are absolutely customer-centric and <a href="https://qz.com/383261/an-elegant-solution-to-our-terrible-online-restaurant-reservation-landscape" target="_blank" rel="noopener">don&rsquo;t ensure</a> restaurants from ROI losses caused by guests&rsquo; no-shows and cancellations.
Either way, if you have nothing to offer other than reservations, visitors would rather prefer the acclaimed table booking platforms like OpenTable over your app (if you offering a standalone app), or will seek for more valuable features in standalone apps (if you are considering running a booking platform).
That won&rsquo;t be a deal only if you don&rsquo;t have any competitors at all. Otherwise, your app must provide additional value to your target audience.
<h3 style="text-align: justify;">2. Focus on enhancing guests&rsquo; experience</h3>
You can not only offer guests to reserve a table&nbsp;but also to place an order in advance, as the app AllSet does. That would be a valuable feature for busy people who don&rsquo;t have time to spend being in a restaurant&rsquo;s waiting list. Enabling app users to store and customize recurring orders will make dining at your place even more convenient.
Not all people love the very concept of eating out, but that doesn&rsquo;t mean they aren&rsquo;t the target audience of modern restaurants. You can reach out to these people by adding the possibility to order food with the on-demand delivery - just like Panera Bread or Momofuku&rsquo;s Ando. As a restaurant owner, you also should take a closer look at this concept, since on-demand delivery helps reduce the customer load in your place and serve more people&nbsp;at the same time.
Mobile payments are surely a valuable feature from the guests&rsquo; perspective, and they can be a great extension of services when implemented in a branded app (and done right, like, for example, in the Starbucks&rsquo;s case). However, restaurant owners may dislike this idea if mobile payments service is provided by a booking platform since it would mean more additional fees that may have a negative impact on the ROI.
The same goes for loyalty programs. Most OpenTable users love the platform for its reward program, but if you&rsquo;re planning a booking platform, be ready that some restaurant owners won&rsquo;t like the idea of third-party-provided loyalty programs.
For a dedicated app, on the other hand, a loyalty program is one of the major selling points. Apart from retaining guests, you can use it to encourage people to use your app&rsquo;s additional services rewarding them with more bonuses for, say, making food delivery orders or using mobile payments system.
Finally, aside from features and services, there is another important thing that enhances <a href="https://agilie.com/expertise/technology/ui-ux-design" target="_blank" rel="noopener">user experience</a>: clean design and simple menu navigation. Comprehensive information about meals and beverages with filters, tempting images, and easy order placing functionality is another bunch of reasons why diners would prefer your app over a website, or another app or platform.
<h3 style="text-align: justify;">3. Restaurant app can be an effective promotion tool as well</h3>
A standalone restaurant app can also be effectively used for increasing the restaurant&rsquo;s visibility and marketing your services. Here&rsquo;s how you can make your app a promotion tool:
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Start a referral program rewarding users with discounts or loyalty points for inviting friends to the app or for a diner.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Geolocation services implemented in the app will provide better discovery of the nearest restaurants.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Encourage app users (rewarding them with loyalty points, for example) to leave reviews that will be displayed in the app or on a website, thus promoting the quality of a restaurant&rsquo;s services.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Show off your place and meals using appealing photos.</li>
</ul>
<img style="width: 800px; height: 611px;" src="https://d12zh9bqbty5wp.cloudfront.net/ckeditor_assets/pictures/203/content_cafe_app.png" alt="cafe app concept" />
Invite friends and order meals together: a cafe app concept by <a href="https://dribbble.com/alex8volk" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Alex Volk</a>, a UI/UX designer at Agilie
Utilizing <a href="https://agilie.com/expertise/technology/mobile-development" target="_blank" rel="noopener">mobile technologies</a> and expanding restaurant guests&rsquo; experience via convenient food ordering and delivery systems and fair, simple loyalty programs is the winning strategy for any restaurant app, be it an OpenTable-like booking platform or a branded standalone app. But before you decided developing one, you must define the needs of your target audience and know exactly what problems your app will solve - both for restaurants and for diners.
<a href="https://agilie.com/contacts" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Contact us</a> and get more information about <a href="https://agilie.com/blog/online-food-ordering-systems-how-to-create-a-restaurant-online-ordering-website" target="_blank" rel="noopener">restaurant mobile app development</a>, or visit our services page and learn more about technologies we can implement in your app.

Read our breakdown of today's restaurant apps&rsquo; market, and learn what problems such apps&nbsp;can solve both for restaurants and for guests.

A table booking and food discovery platform or a branded restaurant app? A breakdown of today's restaurant apps’ market and the problems such apps can solve both for restaurants and for guests.

What Type of Restaurant App Is Best for Your Business

Over the last several years, many large television companies went beyond blue screens and presented mobile apps that let their audience watch TV content live or on demand. Apart from that, TV companies also offer mobile apps specifically designed to promote and extend the experience of the fan-favorite TV shows.
In this article, we&rsquo;ll find out how local TV channels can benefit from applying these ideas and developing a mobile app for TV content streaming.
<h2 style="text-align: justify;">Live video streaming apps provided by TV networks</h2>
You might have already run across apps like HBO Now, Fox Now, <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.foodnetwork.watcher&amp;hl=en" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Watch Food Network</a>, <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.cbs.app" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">CBS All Access</a> offered by television companies from all around the world, that provide full access to their channels&rsquo; content.
The major selling point of these paid subscription-only apps is that they allow their users to save money by subscribing only to the channel they want to watch, never needing to buy the full cable TV package.&nbsp;
<img style="width: 800px; height: 474px;" src="https://d12zh9bqbty5wp.cloudfront.net/ckeditor_assets/pictures/668/content_content_hbo_now_roll.jpg" alt="HBO now app" width="800" height="474" />
HBO NOW app by HBO company
Meanwhile, some companies - such as British ITV with their <a href="https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/itvx/id446079916" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ITVHub</a> and ITV Essentials - offer a freemium model. The subscription in this case only removes ads from broadcasts.
The same companies have also rolled out a handful of apps dedicated to their most popular shows like Game of Thrones, The Kitchen, America&rsquo;s/Britain&rsquo;s Got Talent and others. These apps are aimed to expand viewers&rsquo; experience, gather feedback, and, of course, promote primary TV production.
<h2 style="text-align: justify;">What additional value a mobile app can bring to your TV audience</h2>
So, how can your television company or product apply these ideas and go mobile using <a href="how-to-create-a-live-video-streaming-website-like-twitch-and-get-your-revenue" target="_blank" rel="noopener">video streaming technologies</a>?
First of all, moving the whole broadcasting schedule of your channel to the mobile live streaming format might be a too hasty and costly decision, regardless if you&rsquo;re broadcasting locally or countrywide.
The safer option in both cases is to start by testing the waters and rolling out an app dedicated to your most popular product. It may be a cooking show, a travel show, a talent show - anything that establishes an emotional connection with the major part of your audience.
As a result, you&rsquo;ll be able to retain your audience and to acquire new viewers. Here are the features that will help you do that.
<h3 style="text-align: justify;">1. Mobile access</h3>
This is one of few cases when the phrase &ldquo;anytime, anywhere&rdquo; actually makes sense. Expanding your television production to <a href="https://agilie.com/expertise/technology/mobile-development" target="_blank" rel="noopener">mobile devices</a> will significantly increase your broadcast range, both in geographical and demographical meanings.
<h3 style="text-align: justify;">2. Notifications about the upcoming episodes or broadcasts</h3>
Mobile users are always online. Thus, another benefit of mobile broadcasting is that you can notify users with the help of push notifications. Remind them about the upcoming viewings of the new episodes of your show or inform them about important events they can catch turning on your channel.
Notifications sent at the right time will ensure viewers from missing new episodes, which, in its turn, will ensure you from losing the audience. And even more - notifications also help you feed the audience&rsquo;s interest in your primary TV content.
<h3 style="text-align: justify;">3. Watching video live or on demand</h3>
Apart from airing new episodes and broadcasts, you can let users rewatch on demand previous streams that will be stored in a cloud.&nbsp;
If you start with a smaller app dedicated to one show only, you won&rsquo;t need significant server capacities. Of course, in case you&rsquo;ll decide to go further and streaming live all your TV content, be prepared for greater server-side expenses.
<h3 style="text-align: justify;">4. Gathering feedback from the audience</h3>
Sometimes, it&rsquo;s really hard for TV broadcasters to get reliable information on how the audience is engaged with their production. In a mobile app, on the other hand, you have two ways to get feedback and measure people&rsquo;s engagement.
First, organizing various user polls will help you both gather feedback on your show and engage people by providing them with a possibility to influence the future broadcasts by their vote.
Second, using app analytics tools, you can effectively track user engagement while they watch the broadcasts and interact with the app itself. Thanks to that, you will know how to make both your mobile and television products better and more engaging for viewers.
<h3 style="text-align: justify;">5. Social features for community building</h3>
Almost any modern mobile app has social elements. And that&rsquo;s surely a must-have feature if you want to build a community of devoted and engaged active users.&nbsp;
You can encourage users to invite their friends and followers from social networks like Facebook and Twitter, as well as to interact with each other within your app discussing new episodes and participating in polls.&nbsp;
<h3 style="text-align: justify;">6. Unified login system</h3>
Implementing the unified login system makes adding connections from other social networks much easier for users. Moreover, new users will feel more comfortable if your app gives them options to log in quickly using their existing profiles in social networks.
<h3 style="text-align: justify;">7. Unique content</h3>
Many TV channels provide online access to their content via social media and video hosting services like YouTube. However, such an approach makes your online content too scattered around social media and difficult to find. It also makes your content totally non-unique. Offering exclusive, well-structured and accessible content in your app will motivate the TV audience to try your mobile product.
<img style="width: 800px; height: 463px;" src="https://d12zh9bqbty5wp.cloudfront.net/ckeditor_assets/pictures/641/content_content_b_live_roll_2.jpg" alt="b.live live video streaming app" width="800" height="463" />
b.live video live video streaming app by Agilie
Feel free to <a href="https://agilie.com/contacts" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">contact us</a> if you are interested in more ways to expand your TV products&rsquo; audience or want to hear about other possible applications of video streaming technologies.&nbsp;Also, we're more than happy to create for you a <a href="how-to-create-a-live-video-streaming-website-like-twitch-and-get-your-revenue" target="_blank" rel="noopener">service to share video online</a>!

In this article, we&rsquo;ll find out how local TV channels can benefit from applying these ideas and developing a mobile app for TV content streaming.

Over last several years, many large television companies went beyond blue screens and presented mobile apps that let their audience watch TV content live or on demand. Let's, find out how local TV channels can benefit from applying these ideas and developing a mobile app for TV content streaming.

7 Benefits a Video Streaming App Can Provide to Your TV Production

Live video streaming apps like Periscope keep gaining popularity among casual social media audiences. However, the technology stack established for this type of apps can be successfully applied in other domains that deal with live video streaming. If you are a security and surveillance system hardware provider, you might, too, be interested in the application of this technology for your business.
The existing third-party solutions often have poor hardware compatibility and, ultimately, may compromise you as a service provider&nbsp;since you can&rsquo;t control what happens to your customers&rsquo; data.&nbsp;
On the other hand, developing your own <a href="https://agilie.com/expertise/technology/ui-ux-design" target="_blank" rel="noopener">mobile</a> and <a href="https://agilie.com/expertise/technology/ui-ux-design" target="_blank" rel="noopener">web</a> app for monitoring your security systems and camera feed live streaming is a secure way to make your products more effective and appeal to new customers.
<h2>How mobile technologies can make surveillance systems smarter</h2>
There always was a number of mobile and web apps that allow users to connect remotely to DVRs, NVRs, and IP cameras and watch the feed from them live. Such apps are often too limited in functionality and don&rsquo;t provide the level of flexibility most users desire. Moreover, an incapable app can compromise both your product and a user&rsquo;s personal data.
To solve this problem, you can incorporate your hardware products with a native mobile app for <a href="https://agilie.com/expertise/technology/ui-ux-design" target="_blank" rel="noopener">iOS</a> and <a href="https://agilie.com/expertise/technology/ui-ux-design" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Android</a> (and even with a <a href="https://agilie.com/expertise/technology/web-development" target="_blank" rel="noopener">website</a>) that is designed to work with your products specifically. This will enhance the user experience and make your security systems more flexible and effective.
A smart surveillance mobile app powered by the live video streaming technologies lets users to:
<ul>
<li>Watch high-quality live video feed from cameras using their phones, tablets or web browser.</li>
<li>Control a PTZ camera remotely using simple gestures to pan, tilt, and zoom.</li>
<li>Store and have permanent access to recordings right from a device&rsquo;s disc and in a secure cloud.</li>
<li>Get push and email notifications about the events (motion detections, noises) captured by the security equipment.</li>
<li>Schedule recordings, so cameras would work only in hours required by a user. &nbsp;</li>
<li>Incorporate any number of cameras to the system, scaling it according to current needs.</li>
<li>Broadcast the live feed from the camera to YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and other social networks.</li>
<li>Make snapshots from the feed.</li>
<li>Map surveillance locations using geolocation capabilities.</li>
<li>Feel safe about their personal data: all data is encrypted by secure data transmission protocols.</li>
<li>Monitor the video stream using any device - from handset to tablet to laptop/desktop computer.</li>
</ul>
<h2>Use our team&rsquo;s experience to build a security ecosystem</h2>
We at Agilie have&nbsp;developed a live video streaming app b.live. It&rsquo;s designed and built natively for iOS and Android systems using different sets of technologies for each platform. Here's how our experience can help during the development of your app.
<img style="width: 800px; height: 468px;" src="https://d12zh9bqbty5wp.cloudfront.net/ckeditor_assets/pictures/186/content_b_live_roll_1080.jpg" alt="live streaming app design" />
b.live app by Agilie
<h3>Less time needed for development</h3>
Since we&rsquo;ve developed a live video streaming app, we already have the technology stack for both iOS and Android platforms to establish live video feed streaming, which significantly decreases the time required for app development. We don&rsquo;t need to integrate video streaming protocols or backend infrastructure from scratch - we only need to fit with your hardware.
<h3>Continuous support</h3>
We&rsquo;re ready to provide full post-release support: from app updates to backend server maintenance. We&rsquo;ll make sure the app is compatible with your new hardware and will be up-to-date with the latest mobile devices as well as the latest versions of OSs and web browsers. Also, we can multiply server-side capacities proportionally to the growth of your user base.
<h3>Security</h3>
Since your customers will now use the app provided by you, and not a third-party solution, all their data will be stored on a private server cluster. This guarantees the security of the data and safeguards you from being compromised by poor third-party software. Also, the video encryption protocol ensures the video is transmitted securely from camera to user&rsquo;s device.
<img style="width: 800px; height: 533px;" src="https://d12zh9bqbty5wp.cloudfront.net/ckeditor_assets/pictures/185/content_photo-1461175128502-8b13d90ee1ec.jpg" alt="security mobile video streaming" />
Incorporating your video surveillance systems with native mobile and web apps means forming an ecosystem that will make it much easier for your customers to monitor their business, house, or private property.
The knowledge and the technology stack we&rsquo;ve got at Agilie allow us to build a smart surveillance mobile app in the shortest term, make your security system more flexible, and, finally, keep you and your customers from cybersecurity threat. You'll <a href="how-to-create-a-live-video-streaming-website-like-twitch-and-get-your-revenue" target="_blank" rel="noopener">get a real-time video streaming app</a> which will even your exceed expectations.
If you are considering to modernize and expand your security services by giving your customers more control over their security with the help of mobile and web apps - please, <a href="https://agilie.com/contacts" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">contact us</a>. We&rsquo;ll be happy to hear your thoughts!

There are a number of mobile and web apps that allow users to connect remotely to DVRs, NVRs, and IP cameras and watch the feed from them live.

Developing your own mobile and web app for security systems and live camera feed monitoring is an effective way to give your customers more control over their security.

Modernizing Surveillance Systems with Live Video Streaming Mobile Apps

The market landscape of taxi services changes rapidly. Especially, since Uber came to the stage and turned the market upside down by popularizing the idea of peer-to-peer (p2p) mobile taxi booking and ridesharing.
This variation of <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/quicktake/sharing-economy" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">sharing economy</a> for taxi services has different names (ridesharing, ride-hailing, carpooling, private taxi services) and shapes (booking of cabs, private cars, personal chauffeurs, buses), but the idea is always the same: instead of traditional taxi services with dispatchers, car fleets and hired drivers, apps like Uber offer the format where passengers deal with drivers using the booking service only as a proxy.
Uber had not just disrupted the market. They had kickstarted the emergence of the new ridesharing marketplaces. And even though the concept of apps like Uber is often <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uber_protests_and_legal_actions" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">questioned and criticized</a> by traditional taxi services, such apps are now taking over local markets across the world. Even in the US, Uber is facing competition presented by Lyft and - <a href="https://time.com/nextadvisor/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">until recently</a> - Sidecar, a company that co-pioneered the mobile ridesharing business.&nbsp;
What does it all mean for app developers, drivers, and taxi services? Let&rsquo;s see how different ridesharing and private taxi services achieved success in their local markets&nbsp;and try to&nbsp;answer this question.
<h2 style="text-align: justify;">Lyft</h2>
<img style="width: 800px; height: 606px;" src="https://d12zh9bqbty5wp.cloudfront.net/ckeditor_assets/pictures/180/content_lyft_carpool-screens-1200x909.png" alt="lyft app" />
Source: Forbes
<a href="https://www.lyft.com/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Lyft</a> started as a US-only peer-to-peer ridesharing service in 2012 and eventually evolved into a hybrid between p2p rideshare and taxi booking formats. As for 2016, it has increased its market coverage significantly by partnering with other market giants from all over the world: Grab (former GrabTaxi, Southern Asia) and Didi Chuxing (China).
Although Lyft is far from Uber&rsquo;s domination in the US, it has become an honorable (however still a distant) No. 2 on the market, having their&nbsp;own peachy market share and continuing to expand.
<h2 style="text-align: justify;">myDriver</h2>
<img style="width: 800px; height: 380px;" src="https://d12zh9bqbty5wp.cloudfront.net/ckeditor_assets/pictures/205/content_mydriver_roll.jpg" alt="mydriver chauffeur and limousine booking app" />
<a href="https://www.mydriver.com" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">myDriver</a> is a Berlin-based subsidiary from Sixt, a large European multinational car rental company. myDriver was launched in 2013 as an alternative to conventional mobile taxi and ridesharing services. The company&rsquo;s main idea is to provide quality limousine and chauffeur services for both corporate and private clients with competitive fixed rates.
Today, myDriver extends Sixt&rsquo;s services offering Android and iOS users chauffeur, limousine, and private car services, as well as airport and exhibition transfers. For group business trips the company provides business-class vans and SUVs.
The service is operating in the majority of Europe&rsquo;s large cities and keeps expanding to Japan, South Africa, UAE, and other countries around the world.
<h2 style="text-align: justify;">Didi Chuxing</h2>
<img style="width: 800px; height: 377px;" src="https://d12zh9bqbty5wp.cloudfront.net/ckeditor_assets/pictures/178/content_didi-app.jpg" alt="Didi taxi booking app" />
<a href="http://www.xiaojukeji.com/index/index" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Didi Chuxing</a> (formerly Didi Kuaidi) is China&rsquo;s largest taxi and vehicle booking company that formed after the merger of two rivals, Didi Dache, and Kuaidi Dache. In May 2016, the company <a href="https://fortune.com/2016/08/04/apple-invest-didi-chuxing-china-uber-merger/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">got $1 billion of investments from Apple</a>.
Didi has been building international partnerships with Lyft and India&rsquo;s Ola to strengthen the competition with Uber in the US, India, Southeastern Asia and China until in August 2016. That's when Didi and Uber China announced their <a href="https://yourstory.com/2016/08/uber-china-didi-chuxing-deal/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">merger</a>: Uber basically sold its regional subsidiary to Didi Chuxing. Was it a truce? A surrender? That - as well as how this merger will affect China and another big local market -&nbsp;is yet to be seen.
<h2 style="text-align: justify;">Grab</h2>
<img style="width: 800px; height: 463px;" src="https://d12zh9bqbty5wp.cloudfront.net/ckeditor_assets/pictures/181/content_grab-new-app-screenshots.jpg" alt="Grab taxi app" />
Source: Tech in Asia
<a href="https://www.grab.com" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Grab</a>, formerly known as GrabTaxi, is the largest Southeastern Asia&rsquo;s company providing taxi booking, vehicle booking, and ridesharing mobile services&nbsp;operating in 30 cities throughout Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, and the Philippines.
Grab is operating in Southeastern Asia since 2011 and now, partnering with Didi, Ola, and Lyft, they can expand their reach to more markets.
<h2 style="text-align: justify;">Ola Cabs</h2>
<img style="width: 800px; height: 404px;" src="https://d12zh9bqbty5wp.cloudfront.net/ckeditor_assets/pictures/182/content_ola_roll.jpg" alt="Ola cabs" />
<a href="https://www.olacabs.com/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Ola Cabs</a> is the leader in India&rsquo;s taxi booking app market - Uber is only second to it. In 2015, Ola reasserted its domination by <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2015/03/02/olaforsure/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">acquiring</a> a taxi aggregator TaxiForSure.
After the Uber-Didi merger in China, Ola <a href="https://yourstory.com/2016/08/uber-didi-merger-ola/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">has reasons to worry</a> about the reignition of their rivalry with Uber in India. It&rsquo;s even possible that this rivalry will end up in another merger. Otherwise, it may become an opportunity for smaller players in India&rsquo;s taxi booking market, who could use this clash of giants to their advantage.
<h2 style="text-align: justify;">GoCatch and ingogo</h2>
<a href="https://gocatch.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">GoCatch</a> and <a href="https://www.ingogo.com.au/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">ingogo</a> are two small taxi booking apps that emerged on Australia's&nbsp;market as alternatives to Uber X which appeared there earlier. As a selling point, GoCatch uses more affordable pricing and ingogo offer fixed fares to their passengers.
Although the two apps have instantly got their own audience of ride-booking Australians, they couldn&rsquo;t disrupt the local market already occupied by Uber. According to SimilarWeb&rsquo;s research, after some initial growth in Q3 and Q4 2015, both apps saw a decline in active app users over the first two quarters of 2016.
<h2 style="text-align: justify;">Shark Taxi</h2>
<img style="width: 800px; height: 451px;" src="https://d12zh9bqbty5wp.cloudfront.net/ckeditor_assets/pictures/183/content_shark_taxi_roll.jpg" alt="Shark taxi ridesharing in ukraine" />
<a href="https://agilie.com/blog/step-by-step-guide-on-taxi-app-development-features-and-business-model" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Developing a taxi app</a>&nbsp;requires analyzing the potential platform basis for its future seamless operation.&nbsp;Agilie crafted Shark Taxi based on&nbsp;<a href="https://agilie.com/expertise/technology/mobile-development" target="_blank" rel="noopener">mobile app development services</a>, like iOS and Android, as well as implemented the app's relevant&nbsp;<a href="https://agilie.com/expertise/technology/web-development" target="_blank" rel="noopener">web development services</a>. Operating since 2013, Shark Taxi constantly expands its presence on Ukraine&rsquo;s mobile taxi booking/ridesharing market, appearing in more and more cities and metropolitan areas all over the country.
Uber hasn&rsquo;t yet stepped on the markets of most developing countries. In Ukraine, Uber X has been launched just recently - in July 2016, - and it&rsquo;s now operating only in the capital, Kyiv. For Shark Taxi, which has already established itself&nbsp;in other regions, the hype around Uber X&rsquo;s launch became a marketing booster that only increased the number of the app&rsquo;s active users.
<h2 style="text-align: justify;">Is there still room for new mobile taxi booking and ridesharing apps?</h2>
Yes, there is. And the biggest advantage has the local services operating in the territories still uncharted for Uber and other big companies. The success of apps like Uber has raised people&rsquo;s interest in mobile taxi booking and ridesharing services (and even beyond them, as we can judge by the &ldquo;Uber for X&rdquo; phenomenon), and those who fit the niche before Uber&rsquo;s arrival have more chances to succeed. Otherwise, they might not be so lucky - as we see from the experience of Australian apps GoCatch and ingogo.
The key to achieving success for taxi booking apps that operate on a local level is applying Uber&rsquo;s experience and its way of doing business, at the same time, making their services more affordable to customers.&nbsp;
Specifically, they should focus on three key points.
Placing an order. The benefits of mobile don&rsquo;t go down to the possibility to book a car &ldquo;anywhere, anytime&rdquo;. Mobile technologies allow using a device&rsquo;s GPS capabilities for a faster search for the closest car, the shortest route, and online payment services for paying for a ride in advance. All this helps to eradicate the unnecessary lags in passengers&rsquo; experience.
Payment processing. The integration of mobile payments has become a must in almost any type of apps. However, for taxi apps - especially for those operating in local markets - it&rsquo;s important to support all popular types of payment processing: online payments, plastic card payments, and the old good cash.
Building trust between passengers and drivers. Uber is notable for its approach to partnering with the trustworthy drivers, as well as for its rating systems that allow both passengers and drivers to learn who will they interact with and what riding history these persons&nbsp;have. This is not the flawless way to build trust between passengers and drivers, but it works nonetheless.
Transportation service companies must act now and adopt mobile app technologies. It&rsquo;s a perfect opportunity for them to partner with the established local mobile services or consider developing their own mobile taxi booking app. On the other hand, entrepreneurs should, too, consider fitting this market before other companies will do that. One way or another, it will lead to the enhancement of the taxi services&rsquo; quality and the emergence of new successful marketplaces.&nbsp;
If you&rsquo;re interested in <a href="step-by-step-guide-on-taxi-app-development-features-and-business-model" target="_blank" rel="noopener">taxi app development</a>, check out our Shark Taxi case study, and <a href="https://agilie.com/contacts" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">contact us</a> for further collaboration.

Let's check some stories from local markets where taxi booking and ridesharing apps coexist with the industry giant.

Uber seems to have international domination. Or does it? Let's check some stories from local markets where taxi booking and ridesharing apps coexist with the industry giant.

Local Taxi Booking and Ridesharing Apps vs. Uber: Market Landscape and Opportunities

In a <a href="https://agilie.com/expertise/technology/mobile-development">mobile app development</a> industry, design quite often becomes a vague, inexact term. When someone says they want to hire a designer, you never sure if they mean a person who deals with product interfaces, or a professional who outlines the way how a user should act within an app, or they seek a designer just to draw some icons or make up animations.
In fact, <a href="https://agilie.com/expertise/technology/ui-ux-design">product design</a> has a more complex part in app development.
<h2 style="text-align: justify;">Design is the foundation of your product and the key to achieving your business goals</h2>
The ultimate success for any product - mobile and web apps included - &nbsp;is to achieve the established business goals, which is impossible without a user&rsquo;s engagement with the product. In this situation, the key to achieving user engagement and, ultimately, your business goals is product design.
Product design is a system that connects user interface, user experience, graphics, and motion. Combining all these elements, a product designer creates&nbsp;visual language, a universal communication medium that will - if used right - drive your product&rsquo;s both production and marketing success.
<img style="width: 800px; height: 479px;" src="https://d12zh9bqbty5wp.cloudfront.net/ckeditor_assets/pictures/173/content_visual_language.png" alt="design visual language" />
The best product design lies within finding the balance between marketing needs and user desires, and, thus, outlines the shortest path to solving user&rsquo;s problem. To achieve this, a product designer must make sure that an app:
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify;">is easy to comprehend and use</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">solves your business objectives and answers target user&rsquo;s needs</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">has a unique visual appearance.</li>
</ul>
Finding this balance and, finally, delivering such a product is a laborious work for the whole development team, that is based on making numerous tough decisions on both small and big ideas.
We at Agilie believe that a truly successful app is the one created with designers&rsquo; participation at all stages - from outlining the initial concept and business plan to marketing and support.
<h2 style="text-align: justify;">How exactly design contributes to your app&rsquo;s ultimate success</h2>
<h3 style="text-align: justify;">1. Design establishes communication and helps define app&rsquo;s competitive advantages</h3>
From the earliest stages of app development - requirements gathering and project planning, - the client and the design team tightly collaborate in order to crystallize the vision of the final product and find the shortest and the most resource-effective path to implement that vision.
Designers carry out the market analysis and gather data on the target audience and competing products. This information helps the team:
1) ensure user engagement
2) make a product unique and create a new niche on the market.
&ldquo;Design is a collaborative effort between designers, manufacturers, distributors, and consumers&rdquo; - <a href="https://www.wired.com/2015/01/what-matters-to-the-worlds-most-important-designers/">says</a> Kim Colin, Industrial Facility co-founder, and we at Agilie are totally up to this idea.&nbsp;
<h3 style="text-align: justify;">2. The design makes an app simple and accessible</h3>
Very often, speaking about the importance of simplicity in product design, people point at Apple products as examples. At the first glance, it seems that Apple&rsquo;s solutions have no complexity behind them, but,&nbsp;in fact, they are results of tough and sophisticated decisions.
<img style="width: 800px; height: 479px;" src="https://d12zh9bqbty5wp.cloudfront.net/ckeditor_assets/pictures/177/content_jony_ive.png" alt="product design simplicity" />
In product design, simplicity isn&rsquo;t just visual minimalism. Simplicity is ensuring that a user understands easily how the app works and gets engaged with it fast. And it&rsquo;s a designer&rsquo;s work to find a key to a product&rsquo;s simplicity by cutting off everything that clutters the user experience.&nbsp;
<h3 style="text-align: justify;">3. Design helps avoid failures</h3>
The design&nbsp;is also an effective risk-control solution. Designers are experts in user behavior within apps and know how a user experience should be built. They also understand the market&rsquo;s competitive environment&nbsp;and can distinguish potentially winning and losing decisions in advance.
Building a user-product interaction step by step and carefully analyzing user feedbacks, designers can adjust the product&nbsp;changing its features according to users' needs and, thus, increasing its desirability.
<h3 style="text-align: justify;">4. Design engages and retains users</h3>
A recent <a href="https://uplandsoftware.com/localytics/resources/blog/mobile-apps-whats-a-good-retention-rate/">report by Localytics shows</a> that due to so-called &ldquo;engagement crisis&rdquo;, 75% of app users across all industries churn within 90 days. The only way to retain users in this situation is enhancing the user engagement with an app. Here are some tools used by designers to engage users.
Onboarding. The first impression is the strongest one. Onboarding screens are designed to explain to users how the app works, motivate them to get started, and show them they are being appreciated.
<img style="width: 800px; height: 600px;" src="https://d12zh9bqbty5wp.cloudfront.net/ckeditor_assets/pictures/702/content_content_wirex_onboarding.gif" alt="mobile onboarding design" width="800" height="600" />
An onboarding animation for financial app <a href="your-own-cryptocurrency-from-scratch-everything-you-need-to-know-to-create-your-cryptocurrency">Wirex</a>,&nbsp;by <a href="https://dribbble.com/linalysenko">Lina Lysenko</a>, a UI/UX designer and animator at Agilie
Offering a new activity. These activities depend on the type of your app, but you can see the basic examples in almost every app on the market. It can be an offer to interact with related content or to write something in clear fields or to complete another.
Gamification elements. Activities that lead to earning the rewards address to peoples&rsquo; natural competitive spirit and inspire users to come back quite efficiently. A product designer&rsquo;s objective here is to find a way to wake this competitive spirit in their users.
Notifications. While some suggest that notifications will replace user interfaces in the nearest future, even now they are your most trustworthy ally in the user engagement process. Notifications are direct calls to action that exist both inside and outside the app. Designers&rsquo; duty here is to organize notifications to be precise, relevant and perfectly timed.
<h3 style="text-align: justify;">5. Design shapes your product&rsquo;s identity</h3>
When creating an app&rsquo;s unique look, designers are focused on empathy - one of the main triggers of user engagement. They can make your app stand out with only a&nbsp;few subtle details: well-chosen colors and interactions, and catchy icons that will distinct your app from others. Just look at Facebook&rsquo;s &ldquo;likes&rdquo; and Tinder&rsquo;s &ldquo;swipe left&rdquo;: they have already become brands themselves.
Even such a small detail as a mascot can become a face of your app and a brand trigger. For example, think about Snapchat&rsquo;s Ghostface Chillah, Twitter&rsquo;s Larry the Bird, Android&rsquo;s Bugdroid (yep, these are their actual names), and you&rsquo;ll realize you can&rsquo;t imagine these brands without them.
<img src="https://d12zh9bqbty5wp.cloudfront.net/ckeditor_assets/pictures/674/content_content_gif_2.gif" alt="design saves your resources" width="800" height="600" />
<a href="https://dribbble.com/shots/2259554-Events-App-Create-meeting">Event app concept</a> by the&nbsp;Agilie Design team
<h3 style="text-align: justify;">6. The design saves your resources</h3>
At last, a thoughtful product design will save you time and money during the app development.&nbsp;
The more effort is put into pre-production activities such like market and user research, building up a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persona_(user_experience)">target user persona</a> and user stories, creating prototypes and gathering feedbacks, the less time your app will need for development, quality assurance, and support activities.&nbsp;
Our lives are shaped by design, though it&rsquo;s not always obvious. The general function of design and the purpose of any app is the same: to simplify peoples&rsquo; life. Thus, all ideas and technologies that you want to stack your app up with must be delivered to users properly - in a usable and intuitive form. And design is a key to finding that form.
by&nbsp;Alexander Demidov, art director at Agilie and Rustam Tagiev, writer

In this article, we will make it clear: what is product design exactly, and why it plays a major role in your app's success.

In today's tech industry, product design has become a victim of misconceptions and wrong interpritations. Many often boil this concept down to interfaces and icons, not realising its complexity and importance for product development. In this article, we will make it clear: what is product design exactly, and why it plays a major role in your app's success.

The Importance of Product Design for Mobile and Web Apps

In December 2015, Apple released a new provider API for Apple Push Notification service (APNs). This API is based on the HTTP/2 network protocol and allows app developers to send remote notifications to their app on iOS, tvOS, and OS X devices, and to Apple Watch via iOS.
We&rsquo;ve analyzed the new provider API, and in this article, we&rsquo;ll present a breakdown of its most important features and the benefits this long-awaited update brings to iOS developers.
<h2 style="text-align: justify;">Why we needed this APNs API update</h2>
APNs debuted back in iOS 3 era, and has remained largely unchanged throughout all these years, even despite implementing APNs has always been somewhat problematic for the app developers. Here are only some of the issues that were making the work with APNs too time-consuming and complex:
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Notifications had to be serialized to a binary format and sent individually using a secure TCP socket.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Sockets required Apple&rsquo;s SSL certificate to be opened in.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">All - Development, AdHoc, App Store, and VoIP apps - had to use different certificates.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">We had to use a separate binary TCP socket API to check for unsubscribed devices in order to avoid sending future notifications to them.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">All errors led to the TCP socket closing.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Error codes were too generalized which made it difficult to identify the exact causes of errors.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">A high notification throughput required multiple simultaneous connections to be opened.</li>
</ul>
The new provider API finally fixes all these issues making Apple Push Notifications service much more fast and convenient thanks to HTTP/2 protocol and JSON data interchange format.
<h2 style="text-align: justify;">New features</h2>
The HTTP/2 APNs provider API makes our life as developers much easier by the following things:
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify;">&nbsp;A JSON-based request-response protocol</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">APNs now sends 200 Success Response on each notification</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Errors are now getting a JSON-string response with detailed error descriptions</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Message length increased from 2048 bytes to 4096 bytes, which enables to add extra content to notifications (not just text, but also images and GIFs)</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Compression allows to reduce the number of simultaneous connections to sustain a notification throughput</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">The connection status check with the HTTP/2 PING Frame</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Topics support - you can now identify topics (bundle identifiers) for your notification</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">The <a href="https://developer.apple.com/library/content/documentation/IDEs/Conceptual/AppDistributionGuide/AddingCapabilities/AddingCapabilities.html#//apple_ref/doc/uid/TP40012582-CH26-SW11" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Universal Push Notification Client SSL Certificate</a> for Development, AdHoc, App Store, and VoIP apps</li>
</ul>
<img style="width: 800px; height: 472px;" src="https://d12zh9bqbty5wp.cloudfront.net/ckeditor_assets/attachments/2088/content_http_2_-_1_updated.jpg" alt="APNS notifications delivery service" />
The updated push notifications delivery service&nbsp;protocol
<h2 style="text-align: justify;">How the HTTP/2 protocol makes notifications more effective</h2>
The HTTP/2 is basically an extension of the previous HTTP 1.x standards. This means that, although HTTP/2 eradicates the performance limitations of the previous protocols, the core concepts remain the same, and the developers don&rsquo;t need any app-level changes to update the existing notification systems.
Binary framing layer
The performance enhancements of HTTP/2 are possible thanks to the new binary framing layer. It introduces a more effective way how to encapsulate and transmit HTTP messages between the client and server.
<img style="width: 800px; height: 377px;" src="https://d12zh9bqbty5wp.cloudfront.net/ckeditor_assets/pictures/164/content_http_2_-_2.png" alt="HTTP 2.0 binary framing layer" />
Binary framing layer
The binary framing layer splits all HTTP/2 communication into smaller messages and frame, encoding them in binary format. Yet, the apps will be unaware of those changes - all changes happen on a client-server level: while the HTTP semantics remains the same, only the way how it&rsquo;s being transmitted and encoded is now different.
Also, with the new binary framing mechanism, we can say&nbsp;farewell to parallel TCP connections. Now, splitting streams into many interleaved and prioritized frames makes connections persistent and fast since it requires only one connection per origin.
Data exchange mechanism
The new mechanism of data exchange is based on three components: 1) Streams, 2) Messages, and 3) Frames.&nbsp;
All communication goes through a single TCP connection that can carry any number of streams.
Stream is a two-directional flow of bytes that happens during the connection and transmits messages. Each stream carries messages using a unique identifier and optional priority information.
Message is a logical request or response mapped by a sequence of frames.
Frame is the smallest unit of communication in HTTP/2. Each frame contains a header that identifies the stream the frame belongs to.
Hence, the HTTP/2 protocol communication is realized through the exchange of binary-encoded frames which are mapped to messages. Messages, in their turn, belong to particular streams. All these components are multiplexed within a TCP connection and ensure the best performance the HTTP protocol ever had.
Request and response multiplexing
As mentioned above, the binary framing layer in HTTP/2 enables full request and response multiplexing within a single TCP connection: first, the client and the server breaks an HTTP message down into independent frames, then interleave them, and finally reassemble them on the output.
This improvement alone leads to a number of performance benefits for push notifications, including:
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Interleaving multiple requests and/or responses without blocking on any one</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Interweaving the logical streams over a single TCP connection without head-of-line blocking</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Using a single connection to deliver multiple simultaneous requests and responses</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Removing of the unnecessary HTTP/1.x workarounds that we were using to compensate the previous protocol&rsquo;s shortcomings</li>
</ul>
<img style="width: 800px; height: 294px;" src="https://d12zh9bqbty5wp.cloudfront.net/ckeditor_assets/pictures/166/content_http_2_-_3.png" alt="Parallel streams HTTP 2.0" />
Three parallel streams being transmitted between the client and the server within one connection
Header compression
Each HTTP transfer carries a set of headers with metadata that describe the transferred resource and its properties. In HTTP/1.x, headers were sent as plain text &nbsp;adding a considerable weight. In HTTP/2, request and response header metadata are compressed using the HPACK compression format.&nbsp;
To compress headers, HPACK uses two techniques:
<ol>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Encoding the transmitted header fields using a static <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Huffman_coding" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Huffman code</a>, which reduces their individual transfer size.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Encoding the transmitted header fields using an indexed list of previously transferred values as a reference for the effective reconstruction of the full header keys and values.</li>
</ol>
<img style="width: 800px; height: 527px;" src="https://d12zh9bqbty5wp.cloudfront.net/ckeditor_assets/pictures/167/content_http_2_-_4.png" alt="HPACK header compression for HTTP 2" />
HPACK&nbsp;header compression for HTTP/2
<h2 style="text-align: justify;">Conclusion</h2>
Before the update, Apple Push Notifications service was limited by the shortcomings of the HTTP/1.1 protocol. The protocol&rsquo;s forcing to use multiple TCP connections to process multiple requests simultaneously had a huge negative impact on the network performance. The old APNs also required different certificates for different app builds throughout the development process course&nbsp;and was making it almost impossible to track the sent notifications.
These and many other issues were unnecessarily time- and resource-consuming for us as app developers.&nbsp; The new APNs provider API employing HTTP/2 protocol solves all major problems the previous API had, allows to eradicate unnecessary workarounds, greatly increases performance, and reduces the overall development time.
&nbsp;
Further reading on APNs and HTTP/2:
What&rsquo;s New In Apple Push Notification Service / WWDC16
<a href="https://developer.apple.com/library/content/documentation/NetworkingInternet/Conceptual/RemoteNotificationsPG/Chapters/Introduction.html" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Local and Remote Notification Programming Guide / Apple Developer</a>
<a href="https://www.smashingmagazine.com/2016/02/getting-ready-for-http2/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Getting Ready For HTTP/2: A Guide For Web Designers And Developers / Smashing Magazine</a>
&nbsp;
Also, read about our <a href="expertise/technology/mobile-development" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">iOS</a> and <a href="expertise/technology/mobile-development" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Android</a> app development services.

In December 2015, Apple released a new provider API for Apple Push Notification service (APNs).&nbsp;

APNs provider API is based on the HTTP/2 network protocol and allows app developers to send remote notifications to their app on iOS, tvOS, and OS X devices, and to Apple Watch via iOS. We’ve analyzed the new provider API, and now present a breakdown of its most important features and the befits it provides to iOS developers.

HTTP/2-Based Provider API for APNS: The Most Important Features And Benefits for App Development

When it comes to <a href="https://agilie.com/expertise/technology/ui-ux-design" target="_blank" rel="noopener">creating animated prototypes for websites</a> and <a href="https://agilie.com/expertise/technology/mobile-development" target="_blank" rel="noopener">mobile apps</a>, our design team normally prefers using tools like <a href="https://www.invisionapp.com/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">InVision</a> and <a href="https://www.adobe.com/products/aftereffects.html?promoid=KLXLW" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Adobe After Effects</a>. Nevertheless, we&rsquo;re always open to experimenting and often try alternative UI prototyping tools, especially when we have to deal with unusual tasks.
This time, we decided to explore <a href="https://helpx.adobe.com/muse/kb/adobe-muse-end-of-service.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Muse</a>, a website building tool from Adobe. Let&rsquo;s see how it worked out.
<h2 style="text-align: justify;">The case</h2>
The team needed to present a fully functional landing page for an elite eyewear company&rsquo;s website. The page is a long read featuring several scroll transitions (including parallax scrolling effects), a product catalog, and headlines and photos appearing with &ldquo;fade in&rdquo; and &ldquo;fade in up&rdquo; effects.
<h2 style="text-align: justify;">Why Muse?</h2>
Adobe After Effects was simply not the right tool for the task. Although animating such a page with After Effects would take comparatively little time, we still wouldn&rsquo;t have got a fully functional website prototype with working transitions and scroll effects.
InVision, in its turn, doesn&rsquo;t support parallax scrolling effects, and our prototype had to rely on these effects heavily.
So, we needed a tool designed specially for creating responsive websites and able to preview prototypes right in the browser.
&ldquo;Create gorgeous HTML5 websites without writing code,&rdquo; the headline on the Adobe Muse&rsquo;s homepage was saying. It seemed to be exactly what we were seeking for.
Muse allows creating text headlines, paragraphs, buttons, input forms, blocks of media content and more right on the fly. Actually, you can build a whole website from scratch using Adobe Muse, but it can deal with a landing page prototype no worse.
<h2 style="text-align: justify;">Adding content and working with parallax effects</h2>
The landing page mockup was created in <a href="https://www.sketchapp.com" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Sketch</a>. Then, the content was exported as .svg and .png files which are fully compatible with Muse.
Next, we had to add scroll transition effects to the page. In Muse, working with scroll transitions is operated via the &ldquo;Scroll Effects&rdquo; toolbar that contains motion, opacity, slideshow and animation settings.&nbsp;
<img style="width: 260px; height: 336px;" src="https://d12zh9bqbty5wp.cloudfront.net/ckeditor_assets/pictures/157/content_muse_scroll_effects.jpg" alt="" />
Setting motion speed in the Scroll Effects toolbar in Muse
Here, to create parallax scrolling effects in Adobe Muse, as well as &ldquo;fade in&rdquo; and &ldquo;fade in up&rdquo; effects for appearing elements, we needed only to play with motion and opacity settings: the former allows to set the initial and the final values of the scrolling and fade effects&rsquo; speed, and the latter does the same for the animated elements&rsquo; opacity.
It&rsquo;s pretty simple, but it may take some time to experiment with different values&rsquo; combinations before you get a smooth result.
<h2 style="text-align: justify;">Adding CSS animation effects&nbsp;to the prototype</h2>
The &ldquo;Scroll Effects&rdquo; tools in Adobe Muse allow to create smooth and beautiful parallax scrolling effects, but we also needed to include several animated headlines to our prototype which wouldn&rsquo;t depend on the scrolling speed.
To do this, we linked jquery and animate.css libraries to the prototype using the <a href="https://wow.js.org/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">WOW.js plugin</a>. Here&rsquo;s a video that explains how to do it in detail:
<iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Vnk_YQv3IPk" width="100%" height="350" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" align="middle"></iframe> &nbsp;
<img style="width: 468px; height: 500px;" src="https://d12zh9bqbty5wp.cloudfront.net/ckeditor_assets/pictures/162/content_muse_html.jpg" alt="" />
Muse allows to assign classes to the created elements and to insert an HTML code right into a page and into the &lt;head&gt; container.
<h2 style="text-align: justify;">A few more valuable features</h2>
Adobe Muse also allows to adding anchor tags that allow a user to jump to a specific location on your page. Anchor tags are often used to create a navigation bar for landing pages.
&ldquo;Scroll Effects&rdquo; toolbar is active only when you have a fixed page width. Thus, if you want to make your prototype adaptive and to apply scroll effects to all the elements, you&rsquo;ll need to set and adjust breakpoints. Breakpoints mark the segments of the screen that can change their proportions or disappear completely depending on the screen or the browser&rsquo;s window sizes.
<h2 style="text-align: justify;">Exporting the prototype as a .html/.css file</h2>
As soon as the prototype was ready, it was time to hand it over to our <a href="https://agilie.com/expertise/technology/web-development" target="_blank" rel="noopener">web development</a> team, so they could prepare it for the presentation in the actual web environment.
Adobe Muse can export a prototype as a .html or a .css file, which means that our web developers got a full-fledged website organized as a set of containers. Thus, the developers had only to edit the existing and add new elements.
<img style="width: 493px; height: 500px;" src="https://d12zh9bqbty5wp.cloudfront.net/ckeditor_assets/pictures/163/content_muse_export.jpg" alt="muse file export" />
<h2 style="text-align: justify;">Final thoughts</h2>
Of course, working on this landing page, we weren&rsquo;t able to explore the full potential of Adobe Muse, so, for now, there will be no ultimate conclusion. We continue testing Muse and have already rated it as an alternative to the usual tools we use for creating prototypes for desktop apps and websites.
The tool is not flawless, though. It really lacks libraries for layers&rsquo; animation, the possibility to work with masks, and the &ldquo;Scroll Effect&rdquo; toolbar is not as intuitive as it can be.
Yet, I&rsquo;d recommend trying Adobe Muse if you want to build a prototype functionally close to an actual website and have no experience of using other similar tools - Muse is quite friendly for the newcomers, yet quite functional to appeal an experienced designer.
Links:
<a href="https://helpx.adobe.com/support/programs/support-options-free-discontinued-apps-services.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Responsive&nbsp;web design with Adobe Muse</a>
<a href="https://dribbble.com/agilie" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Our Dribbble page</a>
<a href="https://www.behance.net/agilie" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Our Behance page</a>

Our design team's first look at how to make a working website prototype with Adobe Muse.

Building a working website prototype with Adobe Muse

How to Build a Website Prototype With Adobe Muse

The rise of crypto wallets represents&ensp;a significant innovation in fintech. Those wallets can be very useful for businesses because, with them, many people can have access to funds depending on roles and permissions.
Depending on the type, cryptocurrency wallets also help in managing digital assets and allow businesses or individuals to control funds without banking, as they retain the full autonomy of&ensp;funds, or even trade assets without manual transfers. In this article, we are going to see what is the difference between a custodial and non-custodial wallet.
<div id="form-description" class="form-description" data-title="Key Takeaways" data-text="The custodial wallet requires identity verification, breaching the user&rsquo;s anonymity, while the non-custodial wallet is pseudonymous. 
Since non-custodial wallets operate independently of centralized exchanges (CEXs), transaction speed depends on blockchain network conditions, leading to delays in crypto operations. 
Although the custodial wallet relies on the Know Your Customer policy, the risks of cyber security attacks arise because of the required identity verification.">
<div class="form-description-title">Key Takeaways</div>
<ul style="text-align: justify;">
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
The custodial wallet requires identity verification, breaching the user&rsquo;s anonymity, while the non-custodial wallet is pseudonymous.&nbsp;
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Since non-custodial wallets operate independently of centralized exchanges (CEXs), transaction speed depends on blockchain network conditions, leading to delays in crypto operations.&nbsp;
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Although the custodial wallet relies on the Know Your Customer policy, the risks of cyber security attacks arise because of the required identity verification.
</li>
</ul>
</div>
<h2 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">Foreword: The Essence of Private Keys</h2>
Hold on! Why is it important to discuss the private key and how it comes with the custodial and non-custodial wallets? Let&rsquo;s define this cryptographic element and analyze its functions and importance for crypto wallets.&nbsp;
The crypto wallet generates a private key, which represents an alphanumeric code consisting of a large string of letters and numbers. The primary functions of a private key include enabling the users to authorize transactions and prove ownership of their assets.
This alphanumeric cipher matters to any crypto wallet type as it generates a digital signature. A private key is used to sign the transaction, which is transmitted to the blockchain, but prior to being added to the block, it requires verification. The computers operating the blockchain check the user&rsquo;s public key to verify the digital signature, and if it is correct the transaction is approved and recorded permanently on the blockchain.&nbsp;
The private and public keys are paired, which ensures the transaction&rsquo;s security due to the resistance to tampering and the impossibility of making any changes on the block. Hence, private keys are central elements of a crypto wallet, so let&rsquo;s discuss their essence in custodial and non-custodial wallets.&nbsp;
<h2 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">What Is a Custodial Wallet?</h2>
The custodial wallet meaning can be defined as a wallet in which a third party, such as an exchange or bank, holds the private keys of the users. This means that the client is not in full control of their funds, as they rely on the custodian who secures and manages their transactions.&nbsp;
There are the following features of the custodial wallets:
<ul style="text-align: justify;">
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Simplified Usability
</li>
</ul>
The custodial wallets represent an opportunity for beginners to trade their crypto assets without managing private keys.&nbsp;
<ul style="text-align: justify;">
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Options for Account Recovery
</li>
</ul>
If users lose access to their accounts, they will be able to recover their funds as the custodian holds their private keys on the centralized server. The users will only have to verify their identity.&nbsp;
<ul style="text-align: justify;">
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Support Opportunities
</li>
</ul>
A central unity manages the client&rsquo;s wallet, providing them with support like undoing the transaction.
Some of the best custodial wallets to consider are: Coinbase, Gemini, BitMex, BitGo, Binance, and Bitfinex.
<h2 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">What Is a Non-Custodial Wallet?</h2>
When analyzing the non-custodial vs custodial wallet, the first one provides clients with full ownership of their private keys and funds, respectively. This autonomy defines the non-custodial wallet meaning that no third party will handle the user&rsquo;s funds and operations. This excludes issues like account freezing and withdrawal restrictions. There are the following distinctive features of the non-custodial wallets:
<ul style="text-align: justify;">
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
User&rsquo;s Full Ownership
</li>
</ul>
The non-custodial wallets function within the decentralized ecosystem, meaning that no centralized unity will manage the wallet.
<ul style="text-align: justify;">
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Direct Blockchain Interaction
</li>
</ul>
A non-custodial wallet does not require an intermediary; transactions occur directly on the blockchain.&nbsp;
<ul style="text-align: justify;">
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Increased Privacy
</li>
</ul>
The users don&rsquo;t have to abide by the Know Your Customer policy and verify their identity in the non-custodial wallet. This crypto wallet type preserves pseudoanonimity.
<a class="incut--wrap" style="transition-property: all;" href="https://agilie.com/blog/digital-wallets-types-ideas-and-future-of-such-products" target="_blank" rel="noopener" aria-label="incut"><img style="float: left;" src="https://d3pxw3l8cozu05.cloudfront.net/images/f9e66e179b6747ae54108f82f8ade8b3c25d76fd30afde6c395822c530196169-1740483774764.png" width="100%" height="100%" />Gain insights into the essence of e-wallets, their benefits, and examples.</a>
<h2 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">Difference Between Custodial and Non-Custodial Wallet</h2>
Based on the aforementioned analysis of two crypto wallet types, their meaning, advantages, and disadvantages, it would be essential to provide a short summative recap, as well as additional details on the differences between the custodial wallet vs non-custodial wallet, focusing on the following metrics.
<h3 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">Security</h3>
<h4 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">Custodial Wallet</h4>
The custodial wallet is less secure than its non-custodial counterpart, considering its vulnerability to cyberattacks. Hackers can attack the centralized servers and obtain access to multiple accounts.
Credential harvesting is a phishing type of cyberattack which aims to steal a user&rsquo;s login and password so that the attacker can access their account. The attackers send the falsified site links, almost identical to the real ones, via SMS or email, so by entering their credentials, the victim provides them with access to their funds.&nbsp;
<h4 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">Non-Custodial Wallet</h4>
The non-custodial wallets depend on the private keys owned by the users, which decreases the risks of theft. Nevertheless, attackers can obtain the key due to malware attacks, which can infect the computer or smartphone as in the case of clipboard hijacking malware attack.&nbsp;
The malware functions, so to say, silently in the device, monitoring the clipboard. When the user copies the wallet address, the malware substitutes it with the attacker&rsquo;s one, so the victim sends them their funds unintentionally.&nbsp;
<h3 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">Ownership of Private Keys</h3>
<h4 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">Custodial Wallet</h4>
In the custodial wallet, it&rsquo;s the custodian&rsquo;s responsibility to hold the user&rsquo;s private keys, which limits the latter&rsquo;s control over their funds. This is one of the most significant disadvantages of the custodial wallets for the following reasons:
<ul style="text-align: justify;">
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Lack of Client&rsquo;s Full Ownership Over Their Finances.
</li>
</ul>
The client has access to accounts but relies heavily on the custodian&rsquo;s controls over the transaction&rsquo;s approval.&nbsp;
<ul style="text-align: justify;">
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Withdrawal and Transaction Restrictions
</li>
</ul>
The custodian can delay or block the transaction based on governmental policies, which can limit the fund movement.&nbsp;
<h4 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">Non-Custodial Wallet</h4>
In the non-custodial wallet, the user holds the private keys by themselves, which is simultaneously convenient and requires a decent level of responsibility not to lose them.&nbsp;
<ul style="text-align: justify;">
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
No KYC Compliance
</li>
</ul>
The non-custodial wallet does not rely on the KYC policy, so the user doesn&rsquo;t have to verify their identity to proceed with the transactions, showing their full ownership over their funds.&nbsp;
<h3 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">Ease of Use&nbsp;</h3>
<h4 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">Custodial Wallet</h4>
Custodial wallets are easier to use as the client does not have to know the precise details of the exchange work. If the user wants to undo the operation, customer support can help with that.&nbsp;
<h4 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">Non-Custodial Wallet</h4>
Non-custodial wallets require decent knowledge about the work of blockchain and smart contracts, as minor mistakes can lead to the loss of funds with no refund option, representing one of the core challenges of this wallet type.
<a class="incut--wrap" style="transition-property: all;" href="https://agilie.com/blog/top-7-crypto-wallet-apps" target="_blank" rel="noopener" aria-label="incut"><img style="float: left;" src="https://d3pxw3l8cozu05.cloudfront.net/images/f9e66e179b6747ae54108f82f8ade8b3c25d76fd30afde6c395822c530196169-1740483930529.png" width="100%" height="100%" />Check out 7 potential crypto wallets you might use.</a>
<h2 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">Choosing the Right&nbsp;Wallet&nbsp;for Your Business Needs</h2>
You might be interested in how to choose the right wallet type per business needs. It's time to discuss the most suitable cases to use custodial and non-custodial cryptocurrency wallets.
<h3 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">Custodial Wallets</h3>
The custodial wallets are a valuable option for businesses that need an insured and regulated service. For instance, Greyscale, a leading crypto asset manager, utilizes Coinbase Custody, which improves its scalability and contributes to success due to alignment with NYC banking laws as the wallet is regulated by NYDFS, one of the most prominent financial regulators in the world.&nbsp;
<h3 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">Non-Custodial Wallets</h3>
The non-custodial wallets are best suited for businesses that manage crypto without third-party integration, and those companies with DeFi projects and NFT platforms. For instance, Open Sea, a web3 marketplace for NFTs, applies Meta Mask, which improves its scalability and success by integrating Layer 2 support like Polygon network for lower fees and faster transactions.
<h2 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">Who We Are</h2>
Agilie is a European IT outsourcing organization that crafts custom digital products for businesses and startups in fintech, real estate, healthcare, and marketing domains. By providing our clients with three outsourcing models, like the dedicated team, staff augmentation, and project-based outsourcing, Agilie elaborates on tech-savvy software relevant to&nbsp;<a href="https://agilie.com/expertise/fintech" target="_blank" rel="noopener">fintech</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://agilie.com/expertise/fintech/payment-solutions" target="_blank" rel="noopener">payment solutions</a>, and&nbsp;<a href="https://agilie.com/expertise/fintech/mobile-banking" target="_blank" rel="noopener">mobile banking</a>.&nbsp;
When it comes to the&nbsp;<a href="https://agilie.com/expertise/fintech/blockchain-software" target="_blank" rel="noopener">blockchain software development services</a>, Agilie can help you craft:
<ul style="text-align: justify;">
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Cryptocurrency
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Crypto Wallets
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Blockchain
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Smart Contracts
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
NFT
</li>
</ul>
<h2 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">Conclusion</h2>
The article analyzed the features, advantages, disadvantages, and differences of custodial vs non-custodial crypto wallet types. Both introduce unique approaches to handling finances, such as the client&rsquo;s full ownership of the private keys versus the custodian&rsquo;s. Nevertheless, when choosing a wallet type, you have to take into account the elements of security, anonymity, and tech knowledge to make your trade or transactions secure and minimize risks.&nbsp;
<a class="incut--wrap" style="transition-property: all;" href="https://agilie.com/contacts" target="_blank" rel="noopener" aria-label="incut"><img style="float: left;" src="https://d3pxw3l8cozu05.cloudfront.net/images/f9e66e179b6747ae54108f82f8ade8b3c25d76fd30afde6c395822c530196169-1740484028707.png" width="100%" height="100%" />Are you eager to craft a personalized crypto wallet? Then contact us to get a consultation!</a>

Explore the differences between a custodial wallet vs non-custodial wallet, their features, and use cases.

Explore the differences between a custodial wallet vs non-custodial wallet, their features, and use cases.

Custodial vs Non-custodial Wallet: Explained & Compared | Agilie

Learn about the cost of building a banking app based on its features, dev process, UX/UI design, and wireframe.

Learn about the cost of building a banking app based on its features, dev process, UX/UI design, and wireframe.

Banking App Development Cost | Agilie

Blockchain has become a paradigm shift that changes the operations of different industries. Nevertheless, like any other disruptive technology, a lot of myths and misconceptions have appeared. We should differentiate between fact and fiction to use blockchain technology effectively and responsibly. We can better understand what blockchain is (and isn&rsquo;t), how it functions, and the varied applications it holds besides cryptocurrencies by clarifying these misconceptions.
<div id="form-description" class="form-description" data-title="Key Takeaways" data-text="Blockchain is not just about Bitcoin; it is the technology that can transform different fields. 

Blockchains are strong but not flawless, and being aware of the possible weak sections is a very important thing in keeping the network safe.

Educational investment and partnerships with software development experts are the main factors for businesses that will use blockchain technology.">
<div class="form-description-title">Key Takeaways</div>
<ul style="text-align: justify;">
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Blockchain is not just about Bitcoin; it is the technology that can transform different fields.&nbsp;
</li>
<li dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" aria-level="1">
Blockchains are strong but not flawless, and being aware of the possible weak sections is a very important thing in keeping the network safe.
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Educational investment and partnerships with software development experts are the main factors for businesses that will use blockchain technology.
</li>
</ul>
</div>
<h2 dir="ltr" role="presentation">&nbsp;Myth 1: Blockchain and Bitcoin Are the Same</h2>
Among the most common myths about blockchain technology is the confusion between the blockchain and Bitcoin. Blockchain and Bitcoin were created simultaneously, so they are widely believed to be the same thing. However, we must understand that blockchain is a much broader term. It is the technology that created Bitcoin. While Bitcoin is indeed the first and most famous application of this technology, equating the two is like saying that Google is the Internet.
Blockchain is a decentralized digital ledger technology (DLT) that records transactions across multiple computers so that the records cannot be altered retroactively, without the alteration of all subsequent blocks and the consensus of the network.
This makes blockchain a naturally secure and transparent method of data and transaction recording.&nbsp;
Bitcoin is a type of digital currency based on blockchain technology and used for secure, anonymous, and decentralized financial transactions. The blockchain of Bitcoin acts as a public ledger for all the transactions in the Bitcoin network, thus, it is possible to transfer digital currency securely without the use of intermediaries like banks or governments.&nbsp;
Blockchain technology can be much broader than purely financial transactions. It can be used in different industries with various aims. Nowadays, many businesses are studying how <a href="https://agilie.com/blog/enterprise-blockchain-development-how-businesses-derive-benefits" target="_blank" rel="noopener">enterprise blockchain development</a> can improve their operations.

Here are a few examples:
Healthcare: Blockchain can guarantee the safety of medical records storage and sharing. Thus, they are only available to authorized personnel and patients and lead to quicker diagnosis and treatment.​
Financial Services: Blockchain is a viable solution for international payments, real-time settlements, and improving transaction transparency and security.
Digital Identity:&nbsp; Blockchain can correct identity theft and fraud by adding digital identities that cannot be changed. For example, Estonia's e-Residency program is the first of its kind, a government-issued digital identity that allows entrepreneurs from anywhere in the world to operate and conduct business online in the EU.
Real Estate: Blockchain can simplify property transactions such as sales, leasing, and financing by reducing paperwork and improving transparency.
<a class="incut--wrap" style="transition-delay: 0s;" href="https://agilie.com/blog/the-evolution-of-blockchain-from-bitcoin-to-business-applications" target="_blank" rel="noopener" aria-label="incut"><img style="height: 344px; width: 778px;" src="https://d3pxw3l8cozu05.cloudfront.net/images/f9e66e179b6747ae54108f82f8ade8b3c25d76fd30afde6c395822c530196169-1716280829344.png" width="100%" height="100%" />Learn more about the evolution of Blockchain from Bitcoin to business applications.</a>
<h2 dir="ltr">Myth 2: Blockchain Transactions Are Always Anonymous</h2>
A frequent mistake people make about blockchain technology is that it is automatically anonymous to its users. However, the truth is more nuanced. Blockchain transactions are not strictly anonymous but pseudonymous.
Pseudonymity means that a user's identity is not directly tied to their blockchain transactions but rather to a digital pseudonym, typically a public key or a blockchain address. These addresses are like a sequence of letters and numbers, giving privacy but not total anonymity.
In contrast, anonymity would mean that the transactions are entirely disconnected from any identity, even a pseudonym, making them untraceable to the user. Blockchain does not usually provide this level of anonymity because the transaction history of each blockchain address is visible to anyone who accesses the blockchain.
Most blockchains are open ledgers, meaning that all transactions are visible to anyone who wishes to view them. This level of transparency ensures that while users' identities are not directly exposed, their transaction histories and patterns can be analyzed.<span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Roboto, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> 
<img src="https://d3pxw3l8cozu05.cloudfront.net/images/f9e66e179b6747ae54108f82f8ade8b3c25d76fd30afde6c395822c530196169-1716280901953.png" />
While basic blockchain transactions offer pseudonymity, several enhancements and tools can increase privacy:
1. Mixing Services: Services like CoinJoin allow multiple users to combine their transactions into a single transaction with multiple inputs and outputs. This mixing blurs the traceability of any single coin, making it more difficult to link wallets with identities.
2. Privacy-Focused Cryptocurrencies: Some cryptocurrencies, like Monero and Zcash, are designed specifically to enhance privacy. Monero uses ring signatures and stealth addresses to hide the transactions&rsquo; origins, amounts, and destinations. Zcash allows users to shield transactions completely through its zk-SNARKs technology, which enables transactions to be verified without revealing the sender, receiver, or amount.
3. Use of Multiple Addresses: Users can increase their privacy by using multiple wallets or addresses, dispersing their transactions across several points, which makes it more challenging to link them to a single identity.
<a class="incut--wrap" style="transition-delay: 0s;" href="https://agilie.com/blog/blockchain-tech-trends-how-to-stay-ahead-of-the-curve" target="_blank" rel="noopener" aria-label="incut"><img style="height: 344px; width: 778px;" src="https://d3pxw3l8cozu05.cloudfront.net/images/f9e66e179b6747ae54108f82f8ade8b3c25d76fd30afde6c395822c530196169-1716280997458.png" width="100%" height="100%" />Explore key blockchain technology trends and stay ahead in its innovation with insights and practical examples.</a>
<h2 dir="ltr">Myth 3: Blockchains Are Unhackable</h2>
The idea that blockchains are completely unhackable is a frequently held misconception that can cause a dangerous level of complacency in security measures. While blockchain technology does offer robust security features, it is not immune to vulnerabilities. Knowing the security features employed and the situations in which breaches happen is very important for anyone who wants to use blockchain for their business.
Blockchain technology secures data through several mechanisms:
Cryptography: Every transaction on a blockchain is secured using cryptographic algorithms, which ensure that data can neither be altered nor read without the appropriate cryptographic key.
Decentralization: By distributing copies of the ledger across a network, blockchain reduces the risk of a single point of failure that could compromise the entire system.
Consensus Protocols: Blockchains use various consensus mechanisms, like Proof of Work (PoW) or Proof of Stake (PoS), to agree on the validity of transactions. These protocols prevent a malicious actor from changing even a single aspect of the blockchain.
<a class="incut--wrap" style="transition-delay: 0s;" href="https://agilie.com/expertise/fintech/blockchain-software" target="_blank" rel="noopener" aria-label="incut"><img style="height: 344px; width: 778px;" src="https://d3pxw3l8cozu05.cloudfront.net/images/f9e66e179b6747ae54108f82f8ade8b3c25d76fd30afde6c395822c530196169-1716281102044.png" width="100%" height="100%" />Learn more about our blockchain software development services.</a>
Despite these security measures, there are scenarios where blockchains can and have been compromised.
<h3 dir="ltr">Scenarios Under Which Breaches Have Occurred</h3>
51% Attacks: This type of attack happens when a single entity gains control of more than 50% of the network&rsquo;s mining hash rate or stake, allowing them to manipulate transactions and potentially double-spend coins.&nbsp;
Code Vulnerabilities: <a href="https://agilie.com/blog/secure-smart-contract-design-best-practices-in-solidity-programming" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Smart contracts</a>, which are self-executing contracts with the terms directly written into code, can contain vulnerabilities. One of the most famous incidents is the DAO attack on the Ethereum network. Hackers exploited a vulnerability in the DAO (Decentralized Autonomous Organization) smart contract code to siphon off one-third of the DAO&rsquo;s funds.
Phishing and Social Engineering: End-user security is often the weakest link in a blockchain system. Phishing attacks can allow attackers access to blockchain assets, bypassing network security measures, to steal private keys or wallet credentials.
<img src="https://d3pxw3l8cozu05.cloudfront.net/images/f9e66e179b6747ae54108f82f8ade8b3c25d76fd30afde6c395822c530196169-1716281254703.png" />
<h2 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">Conclusion</h2>
The blockchain technology is often seen as highly popular and muddled at the same time.&nbsp; Falsified myths are only part of the misconceptions that can mislead such a fantastic technology. Similarly, proper professional knowledge and strategy can help blockchain perform to its potential in various fields.&nbsp;<a href="https://agilie.com/blog/your-own-cryptocurrency-from-scratch-everything-you-need-to-know-to-create-your-cryptocurrency" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Building your own cryptocurrency</a> can be a strategic move for businesses seeking to innovate and tap into new digital markets.
At <a href="https://agilie.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Agilie</a>, we understand that dealing with a complex environment is also a significant challenge. This is why we create powerful blockchain systems and wish to educate our clients regarding the breadth of blockchain-utilizing services. Therefore, such solutions can be tailored to your industry's concrete necessities and problems.
<a class="incut--wrap" style="transition-delay: 0s;" href="https://agilie.com/contacts" target="_blank" rel="noopener" aria-label="incut"><img style="height: 344px; width: 778px;" src="https://d3pxw3l8cozu05.cloudfront.net/images/f9e66e179b6747ae54108f82f8ade8b3c25d76fd30afde6c395822c530196169-1716281316627.png" width="100%" height="100%" />Contact us to find out how our blockchain development services can help you achieve your goal.</a>

Discover the truths about blockchain technology as we debunk common myths and clarify its applications to empower businesses with informed integration.

Discover the truths about blockchain technology as we debunk common myths and clarify its applications to empower businesses with informed integration.

Blockchain Myths Debunked: Separating Fact from Fiction | Agilie

Analyze the latest fintech software development trends. Clarify what impact the evolving digital technologies have on the industry.&nbsp;

Analyze the latest fintech software development trends. Clarify what impact the evolving digital technologies have on the industry. 

Fintech Software Development Trends in 2025 | Agilie

Nowadays, blockchain reshapes the functionality of the fintech industry, invoking a significant interest in institutions that work with financial operations directly. We&rsquo;re talking about accounting, which starts integrating blockchain technology to its daily operations.&nbsp;
Accounting is a noticeable area for blockchain innovation due to the significant improvements it can present. Businesses experience growth of interest in secure financial operations. The elimination of a single-point failure and cryptographic encryption can reduce the dependency on the centralized intermediary and protect financial transactions by improving security and economizing protection costs simultaneously. The article analyzes what is blockchain used for in accounting and its benefits.
<h2 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">How Blockchain Is Transforming Accounting</h2>
As a distributed and public ledger, blockchain benefits versatile fintech and business branches due to its possibility to record transactions that cannot be altered. The impact of blockchain in accounting is significant as it eliminates manipulations with records and minimizes human errors. We&rsquo;re going to focus on fraud prevention and error detection capabilities of blockchain in accounting.&nbsp;
<a class="incut--wrap" style="transition-property: all;" href="https://agilie.com/blog/the-role-of-cryptography-in-blockchain-security" target="_blank" rel="noopener" aria-label="incut"><img style="float: left;" src="https://d3pxw3l8cozu05.cloudfront.net/images/f9e66e179b6747ae54108f82f8ade8b3c25d76fd30afde6c395822c530196169-1739370419274.png" width="100%" height="100%" />In this article you can learn how cryptography makes blockchain safe and the consensus mechanisms its work is based on.</a>
<h3 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">Fraud Prevention</h3>
Blockchain undermines the pain point of fraudulent actions through immutability and security.&nbsp;
<ul style="text-align: justify;">
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Immutability
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As stated above, the transaction is recorded, while the record is immutable. This is important for accounting to fraud prevention because it makes it difficult for fraudsters to manipulate revenue or conceal expenses.
<ul style="text-align: justify;">
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Safety
</li>
</ul>
Authorized parties can access a real-time ledger, proving that blockchain can reduce the likelihood of fraudulent reporting. The auditors can cross-check the transactions in real-time, which greatly reduces the risk of any manipulations in the financial statements.
Moreover, with triple-entry accounting, the blockchain makes it hard&ensp;to commit double-entry fraud. Transactions are cryptographically linked and recorded in the distributed&ensp;ledger, making identifying fraudulent actions easier.
<h3 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">Error Detection and Overcoming</h3>
Blockchain helps to identify common human-factor mistakes and helps overcome them via smart contracts and AI integration.&nbsp;
<ul style="text-align: justify;">
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Human Errors within Data Entry
</li>
</ul>
Blockchain helps resolve issues like incorrect figures or duplicate entries. Multiple parties validate the transduction cryptographically prior to recording. Smart contracts will automate the transactions, minimizing human input.&nbsp;
<ul style="text-align: justify;">
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Duplicate Transactions
</li>
</ul>
Blockchain can help prevent accidental duplication of invoices, expenses, or payroll payments based on the correct realization of smart contracts or transaction control systems. The chances of record duplication are reduced as each transaction gets a unique cryptographic signature. Blockchain&rsquo;s task is to ensure a real-time reconciliation by underlining the duplicate entries.&nbsp;
<ul style="text-align: justify;">
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Transaction Misclassification
</li>
</ul>
Another human error in accounting is assigning the wrong category for revenue, expenses, or&ensp;liabilities, which results in erroneous financial statements. Smart contracts and AI analyze transactions and mark inconsistencies, while the immutable ledger ensures proper classification.
<h2 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">Key Benefits of Blockchain in Accounting</h2>
Accounting organizations can optimize their record processing, minimize fraud, and economize financial input by integrating blockchain technology. Let&rsquo;s analyze the advantages of blockchain in accounting into the following categories.
<h3 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">Transparency</h3>
The blockchain works on the distributed ledger that instantly&ensp;records any transactions and displays them to authorized users. The immutable ledger eliminates the possibility of changes and is deleted once the finance-relevant operation is recorded. Finally, one of the key benefits blockchain brings to accounting is the absence of dependency on centralized units. All the required stakeholders and auditors are independent in verifying transactions.
<h3 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">Security</h3>
Blockchain and accounting are intertwined based on security intensification. Now, let&rsquo;s analyze how exactly blockchain helps accounting improve the security of its operations.&nbsp;&nbsp;
Blockchain assists accounting services in preventing and reducing fraudulent activities due to the cryptographic security mechanisms that protect against unauthorized access. Another way of supporting safety in accounting is securing financial data through advanced cryptographic encryption. Blockchain can prevent unauthorized alterations in the transactions via the consensus mechanisms that verify and record those operations.&nbsp;
Finally, as in blockchain, there is no need to rely on a third party; decentralized storage minimizes the risks of cyberattacks. For instance, Deloitte relies on machine learning in blockchain that helps check, mark anomalies, and set a risk rate for the transaction.&nbsp;
Nevertheless, it is important to remember the existing threats of cyber attacks on the users&rsquo; non-custodial wallets, smart contracts, and network nodes. The intermediary can store data in a centralized server, making it vulnerable to a single-point attack, while in the blockchain, decentralized storage eliminates this single-point failure and reinforces tamper resistance, making the records immutable based on the blockchain hashing.&nbsp;
<h3 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">Efficiency</h3>
Blockchain in accounting applies smart contracts that automate financial transactions. Manual intervention and processing are not required. The ledger facilitates real-time financial reporting, so&ensp;there are no delays in data processing. The distributed nature of the ledger allows auditors to determine if the transaction was legitimate. Overall, blockchain improves the efficiency of accounting services by minimizing the need for repeated data entry, which minimizes human errors.&nbsp;
<h3 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">Cost Savings</h3>
Blockchain minimizes overhead and manual transaction processing by excluding the dependency on third parties and eliminating the need to perform manual audits.&nbsp;
Blockchain favorably affects compliance costs by ensuring automatic alignment with accounting regulations. Finally, blockchain minimizes costs associated with error corrections and fraud detection.&nbsp;
<h2 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">How Can Blockchain Be Used in Accounting?</h2>
Indisputably, the organization specializing in accounting can benefit significantly from integrating a decentralized ledger due to improved security, optimized time, and efficiency in verifying and operating transactions. But what are the practical examples of blockchain in accounting? Let&rsquo;s clarify.
<h3 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">Auditing and Assurance</h3>
Traditional accounting depended on third-party confirmations to check and verify whether the financial record was legitimate. Audits were time-consuming due to manual proceeding and verification. Blockchain functionality is based on the smart contract, which benefits audit compliance. It is possible to pre-program specific financial processes to follow audit rules automatically. Auditors don&rsquo;t have to wait for periodic reports. Instead, they can access data in real time.&nbsp;
<h3 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">Tax Compliance</h3>
Traditional manual tax management faced the challenges of income misreporting or purposeful dedication, which led to tax evasion and non-compliance. Here on, tax audits can be time-consuming to complete.
Integrating blockchain into accounting can eliminate invoice falsification. Smart contracts can automate the process of invoice verification in real-time prior to processing the tax claim. However, the correctness of data depends on the source information checked by the accountants. The immutable ledger ensures no record can be altered, eliminating the manipulation of tax-relevant data. Finally, due to the integration with the API of tax offices, smart contracts can calculate and file tax automatically based on recorded transactions.&nbsp;
<h3 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">Payroll Management</h3>
Payroll management encountered the dilemma of ghost employees who could divert and manipulate funds. Implementing blockchain technology in accounting can eliminate potential fraudulent actions in the following ways. Smart contracts can contribute to payroll automation by the automatic proceedings over the salaries only when the predefined conditions are met. Secondly, in blockchain, the payments will be analyzed only when the ID of the verified worker matches with the work records. The next point is that blockchain ensures the records are tamper-proof, meaning that no insider can manipulate the payroll records.
<h3 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">Supply Chain Finances</h3>
The accounting organizations faced the problem of delayed payments from suppliers. The issue emerged because of the prolonged manual invoice verification. Moreover, manual reconciliation between vendors and clients delayed accounting processing. As blockchain provides real-time reconciliation, it can be integrated to eliminate the presented problems. This translates to real-time transaction recordings, removing the need to carry out manual reconciliation. One of the examples of blockchain in accounting is EY&rsquo;s blockchain analyzer reconciler applied to reconcile and match transactions. The approval of received items stimulates automated payment processing, which eliminates data manipulations, providing accounting with real-time financial tracking.&nbsp;
<h2 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">Agilie, Your Reliable Partner</h2>
Agilie is a European IT outsourcing organization that crafts from scratch and optimizes software solutions that align with our clients' boldest ideas. Specializing in fintech, mobile banking, and payment solutions, our software benefits multiple industries, including fintech, marketing, logistics, healthcare, real estate, etc. We aspire for client-centricity by aligning with the client&rsquo;s unique needs and embedding them into effective and time-preserving SDLC-based product development.&nbsp;
Our&nbsp;<a title="blockchain software services" href="https://agilie.com/expertise/fintech/blockchain-software" target="_blank" rel="noopener">blockchain software services</a>&nbsp;include:&nbsp;
<ul style="text-align: justify;">
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Blockchain Development
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
NFT Crafting
</li>
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Smart Contract Development
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Decentralized Finance Development
</li>
</ul>
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<h2 dir="ltr" style="text-align: justify;">Conclusion</h2>
The article answered the question of how is blockchain used in accounting by demonstrating its advantages and use cases. Blockchain technology excludes the reliance on intermediaries and streamlines efficiency by minimizing manual reconciliations and ensuring security and cost-effectiveness.
Smart contracts automate the transaction verification process, can prevent data falsification, and, by operating on decentralized storage, will make sure that no single entity will have control over the financial records and operations. Therefore, it is important to collaborate with skilled IT professionals who can integrate blockchain technology into your system to ensure the security and integrity of your accounting processes.
<a class="incut--wrap" style="transition-property: all;" href="https://agilie.com/contacts" target="_blank" rel="noopener" aria-label="incut"><img style="float: left;" src="https://d3pxw3l8cozu05.cloudfront.net/images/f9e66e179b6747ae54108f82f8ade8b3c25d76fd30afde6c395822c530196169-1739370637771.png" width="100%" height="100%" />Don&rsquo;t hesitate to contact us if you want to integrate blockchain into your accounting services.</a>

Delve into the cases of how is blockchain used in accounting, including its benefits and examples.&nbsp;

Delve into the cases of how is blockchain used in accounting, including its benefits and examples.

Blockchain in Accounting: Impact, Advantages, Examples | Agilie

Looking to outsource software development? Explore 15 top countries in 2025 that offer the best balance of tech expertise, cost savings, and business-friendly environments.

Looking to outsource software development? Explore 15 top countries in 2025 that offer the best balance of tech expertise, cost savings, and business-friendly environments.