A smartphone app that allows people to upload, store and share their old photographs has been launched by two British entrepreneurs.
The founders hope that the Clixta app can act both as a place where families or other groups can share old photos privately and as a public archive for British social history.
They are working with foundation the Copyright Hub to ensure that each photograph has a digital identifier.
The app will be free initially.
The idea was formed when Dean Newsome and Shaun Cutler – who describe themselves as middle-aged dads rather than typical entrepreneurs – started talking by the side of a football pitch in Morpeth, Northumberland.
“I was in the process of digitising old photos for my in-laws and we realised that there was no place to share these on a large scale,” said Mr Cutler.
“We treasure our old photographs and the memories that go with them but we are in real danger of the photos that are gathering dust in the attic or under the bed getting lost forever,” he added.
Users can upload photos either by scanning them or by taking a photo with their smartphone. They can choose whether to share them publicly or limit the images to a specified group.
The duo behind the app hope that people will share at least some of their photos publicly.
“I envisage a day when historians and educational institutions can use it, for example, to chart a high street going back over decades,” said Mr Newsome.
