Open Garden Launches Off-The-Grid Crowd Messaging

FireChat app now enables photo sharing, following, and many-to-many live messaging

HeadCount and YourEDM among first organizations to join

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Dec 18, 2014, 07:30 ET

SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. 18, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Open Garden announced today that you can now share photos and follow your favorite people in FireChat, the popular off-the-grid messaging app for mobile phones. By following your favorite people, you will be able to know when they are active on FireChat, see their pictures, and join the live conversation with them instantly, as it happens.

Open Garden is a San Francisco-based startup dedicated to connecting the next 5 billion mobile devices through peer-to-peer technology.

FireChat enables people and organizations to have live interactions with their audience, no matter how small or large, and regardless of whether they have Internet access or cellular phone coverage. Burton Cummings, HeadCount, Indian Ocean, Niel Mac, Rastafest and YourEDM are among the artists and organizations you can follow on FireChat today.

"We use the power of music to register voters and promote participation in democracy," said Andy Bernstein, Executive Director and founder of HeadCount. "We believe that FireChat can help reach young people and music fans where they already are – at concerts and music festivals."

Unlike other messaging apps which people usually use to chat with one or a few other persons, FireChat enables live communications with text messages and photos between people in very large numbers. The highly interactive discussions are held in chatrooms. Anyone can create an unlimited number of chatrooms, each with the capacity to host as many as tens of thousands of simultaneous users.

"With the new live 'many-to-many messaging' capabilities of FireChat, people, artists and organizations can now engage their audience with unprecedented interactivity and immediacy" said Micha Benoliel, CEO and cofounder of Open Garden. "And we're particularly proud of supporting HeadCount in their efforts to promote participation in democracy."

The new FireChat is available for free in the App Store and on Google Play at www.getfirechat.com.

Among the first artists and organizations you can follow on FireChat today:

Burton Cummings, recipient of the Order of Canada is one of the most celebrated rock artists in Canadian music history and the voice behind such hits as American Woman, These Eyes and Stand Tall. BurtonCummings.com
HeadCount, a non-partisan organization that uses the power of music to register voters and promote participation in democracy. HeadCount.org
Indian Ocean, a rock band formed in Delhi in 1990, who are considered to be the pioneers of the fusion rock genre in India. IndianOceanMusic.com
Niel Mac, a musical prodigy who is quickly emerging in the Electronic Dance Music scene with his captivating sounds and super high energy. DJNielMac.com
Rastafest, Canada's largest celebration of Rastafarian heritage and culture with an annual music festival in Toronto, Canada. Rastafest.com
YourEDM, the most reputable, visited and recognized publication in the world of Electronic Dance Music. youredm.com

About FireChat
FireChat enables people to send and receive messages and photos even when no Internet connection or cellular phone coverage are available. This is particularly useful in situations or markets without reliable connectivity such as: music festivals, public transportation, sporting events and trade shows.

Launched in March 2014, FireChat has reached the top 10 among social networking apps in 124 countries around the world. FireChat's top markets are the US, India, Hong Kong, Mexico, Brazil, China, Russia, the UK, Taiwan and Japan.

FireChat was selected for the App Store's "Best of 2014" in Japan and Korea.

About Open Garden
FireChat demonstrates the benefits of mesh networking technology developed by Open Garden Inc. Open Garden is a San Francisco-based startup dedicated to connecting the next 5 billion mobile devices with peer-to-peer connections by leveraging the density of mobile devices. Open Garden was recognized as the Most Innovative Startup when it was debuted at TechCrunch Disrupt NYC 2012, and was the Grand Prize Winner of the GMIC startup competition in October 2013.

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SOURCE Open Garden