3 Bulgarian applications take part in the second round of the international contest World Summit Award (WSA-mobile).

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SmartBirds is nominated in the category m-Environment&Health, the social network Forward will compete in the category m-Entertainment&Lifestyle, and Talkie continues in the category m-Learning&Education. After the national selections, 7 applications were chosen to represent Bulgaria on the global stage.

457 application from 98 UN member states participated in the mobile edition of World Summit Award ( http://www.wsis-award.org/). 202 of them were shortlisted for the second round. In the first half of September the 40 WSA-mobile winners to be invited to Abu Dhabi, Feb 1-3 2015 will be announced. WSA ( http://www.wsis-award.org/) is the global initiative selecting and promoting the best e-content, innovative and creative applications.

SmartBirds is both a guide to breeding birds in Bulgaria (269 species altogether) and an electronic journal where environmentalist can list their observations. It contains images of birds, maps of their distribution in Bulgaria, information on their appearance, diet, and favourite habitats, as well as on where to watch these birds in Bulgaria. The app also provides brief information on birds’ reproduction, migration periods, conservation status, and the threats they face. The description and map coordinates of the Natura 2000 areas help the user to find the closest possible areas for bird watching. The electronic journal allows the user to quickly and easily keep a record of the birds observed, to get precise GPS coordinates, as well as for automatic input of information about the watcher, the date and time of observation.

These records can be quickly shared with friends via email and social networks. The application is designed by the Bulgarian Society for the Protection of Birds (BSPB) with the aim of facilitating nature lovers in their encounters with wild birds. ( https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=zz.android.smartbirds&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwyLDEsInp6LmFuZHJvaWQuc21hcnRiaXJkcyJd )

Talkie (http://talkie-kids.co/) is a language learning application for preschool pupils (5-8г.). Talkie is an app that uses voice recognition and text to speech engine to interact with kids and goes beyond just simple flash cards. We use spaced repetition and themed lessons in order to make kids learn new words. During the lessons kids earn stars and ad the end of each level depending on the stars earned they receive different awards – songs, stories, free lessons, etc. Kids can challenge their friends and peers comparing their results.

Talkie collects statistics about the performance of each kid and allows adaptation of the vocabulary depending on the pace of each kid. Parents can monitor progress of their kids and receive monthly reports about their performance. (http://talkie-kids.co/)

Forward (http://forward.li/) is a social network generating random content. The users share and receive information anonymously. The application aims to help users overcome the barriers created by excessive personalization and filtering of information. Forward gives you the chance to experience and learn new things without the limitations of your own interests. Users choose a photo, entitle it, and send it to 10 random people. If recipients like the picture they can “forward it” to another 10 random people or conversely remove it.

The important thing to remember is that Forward has proven an underlying logic through the uptake in 35 countries with zero expenditure on marketing. ( http://forward.li/) More information about the contest is available on http://www.wsabg.org.

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