Thesis Proposal Title:
My Mobile Closet
Thesis Statement:
I am proposing to hyperlink the virtual world with the physical world through the use of the mobile internet and fashion. I will construct a mobile application where women will share recommendations, information, and communication to accentuate and aid shopping roles.
Personal Statement:
Women do a majority of the shopping in society today. Almost every person in the world carries a cell phone with first time users increasing drastically every month. With today's technology it’s a wonder women have yet to acquire an application on their phone that contributes to their number one habit: shopping.
RECOMMENDATIONS
While shopping on my lunch break in the summer, I found a huge stack of clothes in my hand with little to no time to try on about one top. I quickly took and sent(MMS) pictures to my best friend inquiring which she thought would compliment my eccentric style, before purchasing what we both agreed was cute, and running back to work. I also find that my friends and I MMS each other while trying on outfits in the dressing room to find the proper attire for certain occasions.
INFORMATION
While waiting in the subway station for the train to arrive I began to glance at a newspaper someone left on a bench. It struck me like lightning; an extraordinarily gorgeous purse. I grabbed the paper to discover the brand was nowhere to be found. I quickly snapped a picture with my phone to later find it was definitely over my budget.
I tend to also "people watch", because what else is there to do in the subway when you've forgotten your book and completely exhausted the game of solitaire in your cell. I almost always see an article of clothing on someone that I must snap a picture of with my phone, to later discover where I can purchase the item or send to a friend thinking it might compliment their own personal style.
COMMUNICATION
Born and raised on the West coast and moving to New York for grad school has had its ups and downs, but with the advent of the cell phone what quicker way to keep in touch with family and friends. I always call my girlfriends on the West to ask what I should wear to certain events. I can remember once when my friend was to speak at an important engagement and she texted me "do you remember what’s in my closet?," that almost immediately sparked the idea that many have dangled in the back of their brains: Mobile Closet.
Always when I think back to my 1st visit to the ITP floor I think of the project where a user was to step on tiles in front of them to change the outfit of a model on the flat panel tv in front of them. I think this project is perfect for the up and coming mobile field with increased data speeds (3G, HSDPA), the fashion industry which has yet to fully tap into mobile resources and women in particular. This product, when geared towards women and girls, will enable an increased use of technology (with hopes of an increased interest). Mobile America has tons of unaffected potential, and I would like this product to be the next in line of mobile 2.0 products.
Ultimately I want women to feel as though they have a product geared toward them where they will feel inclined to not only accept but love not loathe mobile applications. I hope to create a snowball effect which will enable partnerships between mobile operators and the fashion industry that will then result in a more mobile America. I would like new mobile technologies to be taken from the beta stage to the production phase a lot faster, where ideas will not falter at the brainstorming session because "we" have yet to procure the technology.
Research:
Inspiration:
~Product: http://www.mydigitallife.info/2007/09/16/innovative-hm-semacode-allows-you-to-shop-via-cellphones/
~ITP project (don't know the name) where users step on tiles to display a different outfit on the model
~Technology: http://harper.wirelessink.com/?p=83
~Technology: http://www.iconnicholson.com/nrf07/
Work Description:
I will create a mobile application (mobile social network) either in Flash Lite or J2ME. The application will allow users to receive instant feedback from friends/others when in the store viewing or trying items on, create outfits from your closet or joint closets, record notes (voice, text), match makeup and accessories with outfit, enable mobile sales from advertisements, distributing coupons, distributing sale and information through advertisements.
First idea that has inspired me is H&M's use of semacode on billboards and magazines in Europe. This has enabled shoppers to purchase items straight from their mobile phones without the hassle of trying to remember something you thought looked nice on the model in the billboard.
H&M has also attached semacode to the tags of some clothing to scan for later use.
