2008 Year in Review: The iPhone 3G and iPhone Clones
By Phil Goldstein
The news: AT&T Mobility launched the Apple's iPhone 3G July 11, ushering in a new era of high-speed data capable smartphones. Apple's second-generation iPhone, which featured the same sleek look and innovative touchscreen user interface of the first-gen iPhone, now offered consumers the ability to surf the Web using AT&T's HSPA network and that sparked a flurry of iPhone clones.
T-Mobile USA jumped into the ring post-iPhone 3G, with the launch of the G1, the first phone based on Google's Android platform, which boasted a touchscreen and a QWERTY keyboard. Then came the Nokia 5800 XpressMusic, formerly known as the Tube. Verizon Wireless followed up shortly thereafter with the Motorola Krave ZN4--billed as both a touchscreen phone and a flip phone.
Then, the deluge came: the Samsung Epix (AT&T); the HTC Touch Pro, a soup-ed up version of the HTC Touch Diamond (Sprint Nextel); the $800 Sony Ericsson Xperia X1; the Samsung Saga (Verizon) and Samsung Eternity (AT&T); Research In Motion's BlackBerry Storm--the first touchscreen BlackBerry (Verizon); the Samsung Omnia (Verizon); and the Nokia N97.
Why it was significant: It is easy to pronounce this or that as a paradigm shift, but the launch of the iPhone 3G truly was one. The genius lay behind its marketing, with each 30-second ad almost like an infomercial for how to use the multiple features and applications of the iPhone 3G, and then, at the end, reminding customers that it was a phone, too. Apple marketed the iPhone 3G as a mobile computer and digital media player first, and a phone second.
And other handset makers felt they had to follow suit, launching a bevy of sleek phones with touchscreen UI's. While each pretender to the throne was looking to be an iPhone-Killer, so far the iPhone 3G remains at the top, simply by virtue that no other handset has achieved the same kind of brand recognition that the iPhone 3G has. [FierceWireless]
UK Advertising Regulator Bans Another iPhone 3G Ad
By Lynnette Luna
For the second time, the UK's Advertising Standard Authority banned an Apple iPhone advertisement for what is says misleads consumers. This time the agency is banning an ad that touts how fast the iPhone 3G can browse the Internet. The ad shows a person using the iPhone to browse the web, downloading a file and viewing Google Maps at very fast speeds. And the dialogue says the touch-screen device "helps you get the news, really fast," and "download pretty much anything, really fast."
The regulator said the commercial would likely mislead viewers into believing they could get those types of connectivity speeds on their iPhone 3G devices. Before the regulator banned the ad, Apple argued that the commercial was designed to show that the iPhone 3G was significantly faster than the first-generation iPhone devices. Apple also said it had a note in the ad that read, "Network performance will vary by location." The agency didn't buy that explanation.
In August, the regulator banned another iPhone 3G ad that promised users access to "all parts of the Internet" on their Apple devices. [FierceBroadbandWireless]
Nielsen: 98 Percent of iPhone Subscribers Use Mobile Data
By Jason Ankeny
Ninety-eight percent of iPhone subscribers use at least one mobile data service according to market research firm The Nielsen Company's Q3 2008 U.S. iPhone Executive Overview.
Seventy percent of iPhone users listen to audio tracks on their device, with 39 percent downloading music directly to the handset--66 percent of users download software and applications, and 35 percent screen video content, which Nielsen says makes them seven times as likely as the typical mobile subscriber. Of course, if 98 percent of iPhone users have embraced mobile data services, that means 2 percent of the iPhone subscriber population does nothing more than make voice calls on the device.
Nielsen reports 43 percent of iPhone users rack up a monthly bill in excess of $100, compared to 20 percent of the total mobile subscriber population--13 percent of iPhone users look to their employers to pay their wireless bill, compared to 7 percent of all subscribers.
Among consumers who purchased a new handset between January and September, 11 percent considered an iPhone, and 21 percent of them made the leap to the Apple device. As of the third quarter, 89 percent of consumers who acquired an iPhone within the previous six months were highly satisfied with their purchase, compared to an industry average of 71 percent of new handset owners.
In all there are now 3.6 million mobile subscribers ages 13 and up actively using the iPhone, Nielsen notes. Adults ages 35 to 54 make up the majority of iPhone users at 34 percent, while Hispanic subscribers represent a larger portion of the iPhone audience (21 percent) than of the total U.S. subscriber audience (13 percent). In addition, 44 percent of iPhone subscribers report a household income in excess of $100,000, compared to 22 percent of the overall subscriber population. [FierceMobileContent]
Best Buy to Acquire Napster for $121 Million
By Jason Ankeny
Electronics retail giant Best Buy announced a definitive merger agreement to acquire digital music service provider Napster for $121 million. Per terms of the deal, Best Buy will scoop up Napster's 700,000 digital entertainment subscribers, its web-based customer service platform and mobile capabilities--Napster CEO Chris Gorog and other senior management suits will remain at the helm post-acquisition.
Best Buy said it will employ Napster's digital services to reach new customers across an increasing array of devices, with an emphasis on capturing recurring revenue via the mobile platform.
Napster's mobile music services include Napster Mobile, an over-the-air initiative launched by AT&T in fall 2007, as well as services in conjunction with operators spanning from O2 UK to NTT DoCoMo.
In May, Napster also launched a new DRM-free MP3 download store promising the industry's largest major-label MP3 catalog as well as compatibility with any portable media player or music phone, including Apple's iPhone and iPod. As for Best Buy, its increasing mobile profile includes a fast-growing line of wireless products as well as dedicated handset departments throughout in its U.S. stores. Best Buy now also sells Apple's iPhone 3G. [FierceMobileContent]
App Store Downloads Top 100 Million Worldwide
Apple today announced that iPhone and iPod touch users have downloaded more than 100 million applications from its groundbreaking new App Store since its launch on July 11, 2008. More than 3,000 applications are currently available on the App Store, with over 90 percent priced at less than $10 and more than 600 offered for free. Applications can take advantage of iPhone's large display, innovative Multi-TouchTM user interface, fast hardware-accelerated 3D graphics, built-in accelerometer and location-based technology to create mobile applications unlike any seen before.
"iPhone's unique capabilities, easy SDK and the ability to reach an audience of millions via the App Store made this an easy development choice for us," said John Pollard, Jott CEO. "To date, we've had hundreds of thousands of downloads of Jott for iPhone, which has been a major win for our company."
"Because I already had a full-time job I used the iPhone SDK to create Trisim in my spare time and in my wildest dreams I never expected this kind of result," said Steve Demeter, founder of Demiforce. "Selling over 27,000 downloads in the first three weeks means I now have a significant new income stream and some exciting career choices that I didn't have a couple of months ago."
"As an 18 year old iPhone Developer Program member I won an Apple WWDC student scholarship and used the opportunity to complete my app over the summer," said Bryan Henry, developer of Equivalence. "It was a lot of fun to pull it together and certainly the most lucrative summer job I've ever had as I made over $8,000 in my first month of App Store sales."
"Our new account registrations on the App Store are 300 percent better than all our other registration avenues combined," said Chris MacAskill, SmugMug's co-founder. "We've been able to do things with our iPhone app that we just couldn't have dreamed of doing on any other mobile platform, so these are revolutionary times for us and for iPhone and iPod touch users."
The App Store on iPhone works over cellular networks and Wi-Fi, so users can wirelessly download applications directly onto their iPhone or iPod touch and start using them immediately. Applications are free or charged to the user's iTunes® account and the App Store notifies the user when updates are available for their apps. The App Store is also available on iTunes (http://www.itunes.com/) for Mac® or PC, which syncs applications to the iPhone or iPod touch using a USB cable.
Apple ignited the personal computer revolution in the 1970s with the Apple II and reinvented the personal computer in the 1980s with the Macintosh. Today, Apple continues to lead the industry in innovation with its award-winning computers, OS X operating system and iLife and professional applications. Apple is also spearheading the digital media revolution with its iPod portable music and video players and iTunes online store, and has entered the mobile phone market with its revolutionary iPhone. [FierceWireless]
Quattro Wireless and uLocate to Launch Location-Based Ads on WHERE for the iPhone
Quattro Wireless ( http://www.quattrowireless.com/), North America's best performing mobile ad network, and uLocate Communications ( http://www.ulocate.com/), the world's leading publisher of mobile location-based services, today announced a partnership that will present brands with unprecedented advertising opportunities to target and serve iPhone owners through an industry-first location-based advertising service.
The deal extends Quattro's In-App Network by leveraging uLocate's WHERE application to deliver location-based overlays for Quattro's innovative iPhone ad units. In addition, Quattro and uLocate will develop new ad-sponsorships for location-based keyword search, Widgets and Map options within WHERE.
WHERE, one of the most popular location-based applications in Apple's iPhone App Store, will utilize Quattro's dynamic ad serving platform to enable highly targeted in-application ads to be served to iPhone users based on contextual, demographic, behavioral and location information. WHERE's location-based service will be added to Quattro's industry leading Video, Call, In-Application, iTunes and Popover iPhone ad units.
Under the deal, ad inventory for the WHERE application on the iPhone is available exclusively through the Quattro In-App Network and for Quattro's flagship advertisers such as Toyota, Herbal Essences, Sony, Comcast and LionsGate. WHERE helps users connect with the people, places and things around them by delivering geographically relevant retail, business and event information, as well as entertainment content.
By contextualizing advertising with location through a consumer's proximity and active search, Quattro and uLocate will create a premium and unprecedented advertising opportunity for brand marketers to elevate the mobile ad market. By example, Quattro and WHERE will enable rich advertising opportunity with:
Search-To-Map Keyword Advertising whereby search results can be paired with contextual advertisements--i.e. Walgreen's could purchase the keywords "headache" and "Advil" to drive consumers to the closest store. Widget Sponsorship allows multi-product or multi-channel brands such as Wal-Mart or Staples to highlight their store locations on the widget map home page and provide product specials. WHERE Widget Banners inside BuddyBeacon and Local Search will be targeted to user behavior and widget type as well as provide full "Click To" functionality--ie. Click-To-Maps or Click-To-Video--to extend the interactive advertising experience.
"Our iPhone-exclusive partnership with uLocate is the latest example of Quattro's leadership in providing advertisers and publishers with unsurpassed access to iPhone users and unprecedented premium advertising opportunities," said Andrew Miller, CEO of Quattro Wireless. "Quattro has the largest network of adapted Publisher web sites for the iPhone--ranging from NFL to CollegeHumor.com to CBS News--and the addition of WHERE adds a sought after location element and cements our reputation as the go-to partner for brands that want to target the coveted iPhone market."
"The popularity of WHERE among iPhone users makes it an ideal platform for brands seeking innovative ways to reach a highly relevant and receptive audience," said Walt Doyle, CEO, uLocate Communications. "Together with Quattro Wireless, we are offering an unprecedented level of context to advertisers as we leverage the power of location to deliver the right message at precisely the right time."
"Coupling Quattro with location-based service WHERE creates a compelling advertising opportunity on the iPhone. Being able to place one of my client's ads in front of a consumer headed to a Wal-Mart or a Walgreens is a premium opportunity for Brand in Hand and its clients," said John Hadl, CEO of Brand In Hand whose clients include Procter & Gamble, American Express and Essurance.
"By adding proximity of a consumer's location to a brand's media placement, we can invest in media much closer to a moment of truth, a sale." A tutorial for the advertising units available through Quattro and WHERE is available at http://www.quattrowireless.com/. [FierceWireless]
Audi Announces First Automotive OEM iPhone Application
Audi of America today announced the release of the first ever iPhone application from an auto manufacturer. "Audi A4 Challenge" is a driving game that utilizes the iPhone's accelerometer (motion sensor) to steer a digital version of Audi's entirely new 2009 A4 through a series of progressively challenging courses.
Players maneuver the course and race against the clock to beat their own personal best time. The application is now available free of charge on Apple's iPhone Application Store. The 2009 Audi A4 will be available in Audi dealerships nationwide starting in September of 2008.
"The iPhone is an ideal platform to help introduce the entirely new Audi A4 to the public," said Scott Keogh, chief marketing officer, Audi of America. "Audi customers are smart, sophisticated and technologically savvy. As a brand, we are committed to progress and innovation at every turn. We're very excited to be the first automotive manufacturer to connect with our audience through the iPhone."
Located in Denver, Factory Design Labs, Audi's interactive agency of record designed the game in just two weeks.
"Innovation is the foundation of the Audi brand," said Scott Mellin, CEO of Factory Design Labs. "This is the first application by an automotive OEM, but it's also reinventing the shopping experience. In combination with the A4 iPhone web site, this is the first viable mobile marketing solution in the automotive space. Importantly, it is also a unique way to engage the consumer with the DNA of the Audi brand."
To support the application and the launch of the A4, Audi has also created an A4 iPhone experience web site that allows users to experience and learn more about the entirely new Audi A4. Customers who visit truthinengineering.com/a4/iphone on their iPhone will find a unique interface and content on the A4, specialized videos, wallpapers, an exterior color customizer, a dealer locator and link to install the Audi A4 Challenge application. [pr/FierceWireless]
Major Banking Group Considers Replacing BlackBerry with iPhone
By Lynnette Luna
Global banking conglomerate HSBC is taking a hard look at using the iPhone 3G over its current fleet of corporate BlackBerry devices. Such a move could involve the purchase of 200,000 iPhones globally and give Apple's goal of penetrating the enterprise a big boost. "We are actually reviewing iPhones from a HSBC Group perspective...and when I say that, I mean globally," HSBC's Australia and New Zealand chief information officer Brenton Hush told ZDNet. HSBC has about 330,000 employees globally.
Hush added: "A decision on a piece of hardware like that would potentially be deployed, conservatively, to 200,000 people," said Hush. "You know, it's a big decision, especially when you have an existing fleet out there." Apple has made it a priority with this latest iPhone launch to penetrate large corporations. The company worked with Cisco to include corporate VPNs in the new iPhone as well as support for Microsoft Exchange. A beta program had support from just over a third of the Fortune 500 companies.
It may not be that easy for Apple to displace the BlackBerry in the corporate market, however. Analysts note the plethora of specialized hardware that enterprises have purchased in conjunction with their use of the BlackBerry.[FierceWireless]
Apple Filing Hints at Remote iTunes Access via iPhone
By Jason Ankeny
A forthcoming Apple software update could enable iPhone and iPod touch users to remotely access their home computer's entire iTunes media library without traditional synchronization, according to a new filing uncovered by AppleInsider.
The 24-page United States Patent and Trademark Office filing, credited to Apple employees David Heller and Thomas Mavrakakis, notes that at present, downloading media items from a computer to a media player is a time-consuming process limited by the device's storage capacity; new versions of iTunes and the iPhone Software propose to eliminate the problem by synchronizing only the metadata, not the content itself, from iTunes to the device.
The metadata--which requires only a fraction of the space necessary to store the media itself--would translate on iPhones and iPods as "virtual media items" representing playlists, videos, photos and mobile games: Instead of accessing the files directly from the device, the iPhone or iPod would employ a wired, WiFi or cellular connection to remotely access and retrieve the media items from a user's Mac or PC. "As a result, the user perceives that the virtual media items may be available on the (the media player)," the Apple filing notes. "In this manner, the virtual capacity of an electronic device may be increased."
The same protocols would enable users to manage their iTunes libraries remotely, adding and deleting files while on the move. The device will constantly monitor all processes against problems or fading signals, and pause or cancel data transfers as warranted. The Apple filing adds that the software update would also enable iPhones and iPods to communicate with one another.
"In the peer-to-peer environment, one mobile device can communicate with one or more other electronic devices (whether mobile or stationary) in the immediate vicinity," the filing states. "Data sharing can be performed when such communication is available."[FierceMobileContent]
Who's Minding the App Store?
By Jason Ankeny
Three weeks after Apple's iPhone 3G dropped at retail, the computing giant appears to have corrected the activation hiccups and MobileMe synchronization snafus that plagued the device coming out of the gate. By comparison, Apple's fledgling App Store has so far managed to avoid the scrutiny and bad publicity that accompanied the other new iPhone initiatives; according to Apple, users downloaded more than 10 million applications in the three days after the virtual storefront opened for business, with that number rising to 25 million by July 21.
Earlier this week, the total number of iPhone applications available via the App Store topped the 1,000 mark, with roughly 20 percent of applications available for free and 90 percent of the premium apps costing $10 or less. No less significant, the App Store user experience is a hit as well: A new study issued this week by market research firm Strategy Analytics says the App Store delivers an efficient, three-click purchasing and downloading process that earned high consumer satisfaction ratings from participants.
Strategy Analytics adds that the simplicity of the App Store reinforces consumer confidence and promotes additional user exploration and purchases.But some applications developers are finding the App Store experience anything but satisfactory. According to developers interviewed by Macworld, their frustrations have much to do with the length of time it requires Apple to push their software updates to iPhone users.
In addition, some developers say Apple consistently fails to relay information on when their apps will go live. Moreover, Apple has yet to provide App Store sales data, so developers are unsure how their iPhone applications are faring. Apple has pledged to share monthly sales reports, but some developers are calling for real-time statistics in order to gauge sales and adjust prices accordingly.
At this point, even Apple's internal application review process remains a mystery: "They reject apps for superficial things (icon being the wrong size, confusingly worded messages) while sometimes major bugs slip in under the radar," an iPhone developer who requested anonymity told Macworld. "It seems pretty haphazard and human-powered rather than automated." Nor is there any apparent rhyme nor reason to the software update process, although another unnamed developer charged Apple with favoring large companies over small, independent firms. "We submitted an update a week ago, and it still isn't updated," the developer said.
"Some apps seem to get updated quickly, so some type of favoritism is evident. I've seen one day, and then I've seen two weeks--no one knows why the disparity, either ... It's either favoritism or just general chaos." The latter alternative seems far more likely--after all, the App Store isn't even a month old. There are bound to be wrinkles to iron out. But the longer Apple keeps its growing legion of application partners at arm's length, the more some developers will continue to fear the worst. [FierceMobileContent]
Report: BlackBerry Will be Threatened by iPhone
By Sue Marek
Needham & Co. analyst Charlie Wolf cut his rating on Research in Motion's stock to an underperform from a previous rating of hold because he believes the company's strength in the consumer market "is bound to come under siege because of the iPhone." Wolf added that until the launch of Apple's new iPhone, much of RIM's BlackBerry success was due to a lack of compelling rivals in the consumer space. He added that much of RIM's recent gains have come from the consumer market. The introduction of the BlackBerry Pearl has helped the firm but now Wolf says that the "days of no competition are over."
RIM is trying to fight back against the iPhone by launching new models such as the BlackBerry Bold and the upcoming BlackBerry Thunder. Nevertheless, Wolf lowered his 2008 earnings estimate for RIM to $3.70 per share from $4.05 per share and reduced his 2009 outlook to a profit of $4.80 a share from $6.25 a share. [FierceWireless]
AdMob: Explosive Growth of iPhone Advertising
AdMob has released ad metrics for their iPhone ad network, and the numbers are looking good! Launched just one year ago, almost 250 million ads have been served, and growth is at 30% per month. This may be more evidence that an iPhone type browsing experience is what’s needed to get people onto the mobile web, leading to overall uptake in mobile advertising.
In the month of June, AdMob served 51.8 million iPhone ads, up 32 percent from the 39.1 million served in June.
The most traffic comes from the following countries (in order): United States, Philippines, United Kingdom and France.
Some of the popular features of the AdMob iPhone ad unit include a store locator integrated with Google maps, and consumer interaction options such as ‘click to call’ and ‘click to play video’.
Major advertisers that have run campaigns on the iPhone ad network include Fox, Jaguar, and Land Rover.
- To see the Jaguar ad on the iPhone, go here.
- To read the MobiAD write up of the Jaguar campaign, go here.
- To see the Land Rover ad on the iPhone and read the MobiAD write up of the Land Rover campaign, go here. [MobiAdNews]
Impressive Second Half Launches Will Help Mobile Phone Markets to a Strong Finish in 2008
Some impressive mobile phone product launches between now and late 2008 will help the world’s mobile handset markets close out the year with strong sales, according to ABI Research.
Apple’s second-generation iPhone has just gone on sale, generating as much buzz as its predecessor. RIM is expected to debut important new BlackBerry models soon, and other handset vendors will add their best efforts as the second half of 2008 progresses. Such “iconic” models generate a lot of interest around the handset industry and get consumers thinking about replacement.
According to research director Kevin Burden, “2008 should still be a very good year for the global mobile phone market. While Q2 performance figures are still preliminary until finalized at the end of July, early indications do not point to an aggressively weak quarter. Historically, the second half of the year has always outperformed the first, and despite nearly global economic problems, a second half lift is still expected, although likely lower than the near 20% increase the worldwide market has seen in recent years.”
One of the strongest drivers for new handset adoption is the design trend over the last two years towards greater simplicity. “A lot of advanced technologies and applications have been built into phones,” says Burden, “but there have often been technical or ease-of-use barriers that prevented wide adoption. The trend now is about making better use of what we have rather than introducing a flood of new services and network features. That’s going to go a long way towards ensuring users’ acceptance of new phones and new applications.”
Many usability issues will also be progressively worked out as the industry increasingly moves towards standardized operating systems. Proprietary real-time operating systems can be painful to manage for operators as well as for users. “Open” operating systems will continue to migrate down phone vendors’ product lines, increasing the penetration of devices using standardized and predictable platforms and boosting overall ease of use.
3G iPhone - The Business Perspective
News analysis: What's standing in Apple's way in the enterprise?
By Natasha Lomas
The 3G iPhone goes on sale this Friday 11 July and the launch hype is already in overdrive - but is the device really going to take the corporate world by storm, as O2 hopes?
O2 claims there's a lot of interest from business - largely because Apple has licensed Microsoft's ActiveSync protocol, so Exchange users will be able to get push email, calendar and contacts on the iPhone. This is why the operator has finally launched iPhone business tariffs. Previously UK enterprises determined to get the 2.5G iPhone had to sign up to an O2 consumer tariff.
Email is the lifeblood of businesses so Exchange support certainly removes a major barrier preventing many senior execs from clipping iPhones to their belts - at least, provided they can talk their IT department into adding iTunes support to its list of responsibilities.
That's because every iPhone user must have iTunes running on their desktop - not an ideal scenario for some businesses.
So even if senior execs get their hands on iPhones, the iTunes factor may make some corporates reluctant to push devices out to the rank and file.
Companies may also have misgivings about iPhones being too attractive to thieves as one CIO Jury member pointed out when iPhone 1.0 launched last year - and/or concerns about using the touchscreen keyboard, which is undoubtedly an acquired taste. Two-thirds of a recent CIO Jury IT user panel said they prefer a Qwerty keyboard over the latest touchscreen interfaces.
Read more - Silicon.com
Greystripe Introduces Leading Mobile In-Game Ad Network to the Leading Mobile Phone
Perfectly timed with the release of Apple's newest offering, the iPhone 3G, Greystripe announced today that their in-game mobile advertising network will now be available for the hundreds of iPhone game and application developers who opened up shop in the App Store yesterday.
As the world's leader in ad-supported mobile applications, Greystripe now offers iPhone game developers an SDK which integrates advertising and reporting APIs and creates the opportunity to make money off every use of their applications and every play of their addictive iPhone games.
Many of Greystripe's 120 existing publisher partners, including Amplified Games, Xgen Media, DS Effects, United Fun Traders, Relaxas and Norbsoft plan to offer iPhone games using Greystripe's advertising technology and will be able to immediately monetize their new iPhone applications. Both existing and new publishing partners will be able to take advantage of Greystripe's already proven results.
"We are excited to be launching Cookie Bonus Solitaire, a new twist on the traditional Klondike game, with the launch of the Apple App Store," said Tom Hubina, CEO of Amplified Games. "By making it free, ad-supported, and included in Greystripe's massive distribution network, we now have the best chance to go viral and make significant revenue as an independent game publisher."
Partnering with Greystripe will allow publishers to rise above the noise of the hundreds of applications being released this week. iPhone publishers who utilize Greystripe's advertising network not only gain the opportunity to ad-monetize their applications, but they also gain access to millions of users through Greystripe's 80+ mobile application distribution partners which have already netted over 70 million downloads.
Brand advertisers have an enormous opportunity because of the massive engagement and usage statistics of iPhone owners; according to an M:Metrics study, 84.8% of iPhone users used their browser versus 13.1% overall. According to a recently released Consumer Insights Report from Greystripe, mobile ad campaigns from advertisers such as Best Buy, Yahoo!, eBay, New Line Cinema and the US Army have seen an average 10.1% click-through rate with consumers across all devices.
"The iPhone fulfills brand advertisers' demand for 100% share of voice - being the only advertiser on the screen, deep engagement with the end user, and a targeted demographic," said Andy Choi, CTO and Co-founder of Greystripe. "It's been a blast integrating the iPhone's killer features - the tilt sensor, GPS, and the massive touch screen - and creating a complete advertising solution that's backed by our proven ad and distribution network."
Greystripe's iPhone SDK supports standardized, full screen square (320x320) advertisements to provide advertisers a new canvas size for their brand messages in pre-, interstitial and post-roll inventory. Application and game developers can add Greystripe's iPhone APIs and start monetizing their content immediately by signing up at http://iphone.greystripe.com/register. [FierceMobileContent]
Google Continues to Dominate Mobile Search
By Jason Ankeny
Google dominated mobile web search in the first quarter of 2008 according to consumer research provider Nielsen Mobile, which reports that the web services giant accounted for 61 percent of mobile searches during the three-month period in question. Yahoo was a distant second with 18 percent mobile search provider share, followed by MSN with 5 percent.
Google's lead is thanks in large part to Apple's iPhone--in February, Google said the device is responsible for 50 times the number of mobile searches of any rival handset, with Google's mobile head Vic Gundotra forecasting that mobile search will soon overtake traditional web search if other device manufacturers make mobile web access as user-friendly.
Nielsen reports that Google users average nine mobile searches per month--65 percent of Google search users are male, as are 63 percent of Yahoo users. Google and Yahoo users also seek out the same search objectives in roughly equal proportion: 33 percent of consumers on both platforms looked for information during Q1, with 29 percent of Google users and 24 percent of Yahoo users seeking local listings and 27 percent of Google users and 26 percent of Yahoo users looking for websites/navigation. Nielsen adds that 44 percent of Google users rate their satisfaction with mobile web search between 8 and 10 on a 10-point scale, compared to 40 percent of Yahoo users. [FierceMobileContent]
Mobile Digital Media Extends Mobile Titles to iPhone
Premier provider of mobile solutions, Mobile Digital Media (MDM), today announced it plans to bring many of its most popular software titles from the traditional mobile device and smartphone markets over to Apple's hugely popular iPhone. Moreover, MDM will forego merely porting existing product code, but rather will rewrite applications from the ground up especially for the iPhone in order to take advantage of its advanced technologies and unique capabilities to ensure the ultimate user experience.
"We're thrilled to be bringing our most popular mobile software titles to the iPhone," said Katie Phillips, CEO of Mobile Digital Media. "With the iPhone, Apple has done a fantastic job of creating a robust platform that will let our software products shine like never before, and provide customers with an absolutely superior experience."
Mobile Digital Media's first product for the iPhone will be the extremely popular Advanced Brain Trainer Deluxe, followed by Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary with Franklin Thesaurus. MDM has also slated the hugely popular Atkins Carb Counter for release on iPhone during 2008, with other major titles to follow thereafter. Pricing information will be forthcoming, as will complete release date and title availability information. Stay tuned to the Mobile Digital Media website at http://www.gomdm.com for complete details as they develop. /PR/FierceWireless
Monetizing iPhone Applications With Advertising!
Smaato has announced the launch of iSOMA, an in-application mobile advertising platform for iPhone SDK developers. It will enable developers to monetize mobile applications for the iPhone through mobile advertising.
SOMA (Smaato Open Mobile Advertising) platform is a quick and easy way for mobile developers to ad-enable their applications – whether online (live request) or offline (cached ads). The SOMA API is provided free of charge to the mobile developer community from the Smaato website.
Smaato already supports leading smartphone operating systems as well as hundreds of Java ME enabled handsets with native SOMA clients. These include: Symbian, Windows Mobile, Palm, Blackberry, Java ME as well as the upcoming Google’s Android platform.
At the same time, Smaato has announced a new strategic alliance with mobile software companies. The companies included are Funambol, Go Life Mobile, MobiComp, Mocondi, MotionApps, Mobifusion, Quickoffice, Spotigo, and Spodtronic. Smaato will help them ad-enable their solutions. [MobiAdNews]
China Mobile Finds 400,000 Missing iPhones
By Robert Clark - ChinaWire
The mystery of the missing iPhones has been solved: they are in China, according to China Mobile and In-Stat.
The US research firm said in a note last week that China Mobile has reported 400,000 unlocked iPhones using its networks at the end of 2007. That represents nearly a quarter of the 1.7 million shipped iPhones, unaccounted for in AT&T and Apple sales figures, that have puzzled analysts.
The China figure represented “one out of every ten iPhone shipments announced officially by Apple,” said In-Stat, which says the figure was four times higher than its previous estimate. The device is being sold in China through gray channels thanks to importers who have been able to source volumes of unlocked devices.
Of course, iPhone would do a lot better by being sold directly by China Mobile. In-Stat reasons that the China smartphone market is much more entertainment-oriented than the enterprise-driven US, which plays directly to the iPhone’s strengths. It also estimates that 20% of handsets sold in China in 2007 cost more than 4,000 yuan, suggesting a market of “28 million potential” iPhone users.
But that is some time off. Apple and China Mobile broke off talks on selling the iPhone after just one meeting, with Mobile rejecting the US firm’s revenue share model. For now, for consumers Mobile and Apple, it’s the gray market or nothing. [telecomasia.com]
Related article:
Analyst: Apple Lost $400M From Unlocked iPhones
Mobile Ad Conference Affirms Brands Are Starting To Move
Last week in San Francisco, Informa held their Mobile Advertising and Marketing USA conference. There were speakers from all parts of the mobile advertising value chain as well as from all regions of the world. This post looks at the key discussion topics.
While its impossible to condense 2 full days of presentations and discussion into a brief article, here are some of the key themes raised at the conference.
Brands:
Finally we’re starting to hear from agencies that more brands are moving past the “test and trial” phase, and are viewing mobile as an ongoing part of their media plan. The budgets are often still relatively small, but the budgets are growing and a lot of the brands are placing “repeat orders” without the need for an agency to justify mobile all over again.
“Mobile is not the web, but …”
It has been a common theme that mobile advertising should not be thought of as simply a new form of online advertising. There are different ad formats, different customer patterns, different forms of engagement, etc. However, one speaker pointed out that at a higher level, many of the key successful philosophies from the online world should in fact be brought over to the mobile world, for example:
- Consumers like ads that are Entertaining.
- Ads should bring Value to consumers.
- Re-purposing content from one medium to another doesn’t always work.
- Creative must be “top shelf“, with as high a standard as traditional advertising or online advertising
It seems that the iPhone will in fact exert a strong influence on mobile advertising for a number of reasons. In the 7 months since its introduction:
- the iPhone is inducing consumers to browse the mobile internet. In fact, the more internet pages are browsed using iPhones than all the Windows Mobile phones put together, actually 50% more. Three key reasons for this seem to be (a) the improved user experience, (b) the flat rate data plan sold with every iPhone removes customers’ cost concerns, and (c) the content discovery process is familiar – like the web.
- the iPhone seems to have captured the imagination of agency creatives, and has made many realize that a mobile web experience can be great.
- the iPhone has enabled a new, higher quality level for mobile ads. While opinions were divided as to whether or not it is economically worthwhile to develop an ad version specifically for iPhone users, it was clear that some agencies would do this just to “push the boundaries” and show what is possible. This can only have a positive effect on the growth of mobile advertising.
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