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Tuesday, July 13, 2010
The Pitch
Pagos plots spreadsheet software for users sans IT know-how
By Lynette F. Cornell
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Pagos Inc.
Headquarters: Farmington, CT 06032
Phone: 860-751-6860
Email: ukadakal@pagos.com
URL: www.pagos.com
Founder: Ugur Kadakal, CEO
Year founded: 2002
Employees: 26
In the company's own words:
“Pagos has developed an application development platform that allows business users to build and deploy secure, database-driven web-based applications. Our platform is based on the fact that spreadsheet software is the most common application development platform employed by business users. Every day, hundreds of millions of business users worldwide use spreadsheet software to build sophisticated tools, reports and dashboards, utilizing build-in features such as formulas, charts, pivot tables and macros. However, these applications lack important features like collaboration, security and database integration. Our platform eliminates all limitations of traditional spreadsheet software and allows business users to use a familiar spreadsheet environment to create secure, database-driven, web-based applications without any IT involvement or programming.”
Background:
Pagos’ software is used by organizations ranging in size from small businesses to large multinational corporations. Their licensing model includes both software-as-a-service for smaller organizations and on-premise deployment for large companies.
People behind the company:
Ugur Kadakal, Pagos’ CEO, had a prior startup called Worldwide Trade Networks, that specialized in international trade, but the company fizzled. Serdar Ciris, Pagos’ chief solution architect, joined the company after its founding.
The technology:
Pagos’ spreadsheet technology is divided into two software programs, SpreadsheetLIVE and SpreadsheetWEB. The first allows multiple users to edit a web-hosted spreadsheet in real time. The second program allows business users to build, deploy and manage their own web applications, ranging from simple data collection tools or advanced mathematical and statistical models, data analysis tools or dashboards. The software can also be used to convert an existing spreadsheet into a dynamic web page or online form. Kadakal said the benefits of developing tools based on Excel is that the program is so ubiquitous in the business world, regardless of industry or business size. There are no language limitations in Excel either, he said.
The market:
The company sees a potential market of over $100 billion in the United States. It initially targeted insurance companies because of Serdar Ciris’ experience in that industry. Kadakal said that since the software is useable for nearly every industry, the company is not limited in its potential markets. Because of Excel’s popularity, he said, most businesses are already familiar with the tools behind Pagos’ software, making it an easy program to learn.
The competition:
The current competition for SpreadsheetLIVE is Google Spreadsheets, part of the Google Docs bundle. The advantage of SpreadsheetWEB, said Kadakal, is that it is geared toward enterprise, rather than personal, users and is not limited in its file size capabilities or features. Another competing company is Expresso Corp., which also offers online multi-user editing software for spreadsheets but, according to Kadakal, is not purely browser-based since it requires downloading an add-in.
The Pitch:
Pagos is open to receiving funding of $1.5 million to $2 million but is not actively seeking investors. Kadakal said investment is not critical for Pagos, as they have been profitable and entirely self-funded since the company’s founding in 2002. However, he said, because of the huge potential he sees in the company’s technology, he is considering the option of faster growth with investment funds instead of slower self-funded growth. The funding would be used for marketing and sales and developing new verticals.
"The Pitch" takes a look at a company, its executives and its technology-related business plan. To nominate your company for The Pitch section of Mass High Tech, please fill out the submission form.
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