MSearchGroove

Before I elaborate on the highlights of today’s Mobile Content Forum, let me cut to the chase. JumpTap’s Mike Kent declined to comment on the relationship with AOL, a decision I must (and do) respect. JumpTap, he confirmed, delivers both advertising and search results (apparently AOL believes more is better when it comes to search services and relevant results) and is gearing up to make a formal announcement regarding the tie-up later this week.I’m pleased to say MSG analysis will not be limited to a simple interpretation of the release. JumpTap, which recently featured in a special sponsored edition of the Msearchgroove podcast series (an interview that was distributed on an exclusive basis to c-level execs during CTIA), will be back for an in-depth interview to discuss strategy, targetting - and some surprises.

In the meantime, a few worthwhile observations and impressions from today’s conference. (Thanks again to Catherine Kelly of the KOCCA for inviting me to speak and I look forward to promoting the event more actively on MSG next year.) If you can attend next year, then do. The chance to meet and mingle with Korean execs, who are light years ahead of the West in thinking and execution, is invaluable. To hear representatives from Orange and Vodafone speak at the forum, you would think they wrote the book on openness, but we can all borrow a page from the Koreans when it comes to building and fostering effective ecosystems…

Mitch Lazar, VP Yahoo Connected Life, kicked off the day by walking us through oneSearch, but time ran out before he could take questions - and then he ran off before I could catch up with him. Word is Yahoo will vastly improve its mobile search service to deliver better and more relevant sponsored results come November. If the buzz during the networking break is an indication, then we can look forward to some significant changes.

(Come to think of it, this makeover dovetails quite well with what Nadir Garouche has shared with me both via IM and through an insightful post on his blog over at SEO Principle. In it, he gives us the inside track on Yahoo’s mobile content search service (recall that Google also announced its ambition to create and launch a mobile downloadable content search service/portal).

Nadir also provides some important detail (direct from Yahoo) on Yahoo’s Mobile Media Directory, which accepts images, themes, multimedia files (music, video, etc), ringtones, games and other applications, allowing publishers to associate names, detailed descriptions, tags, and other rich descriptors with their content and ensure it will “be served in as relevant a manner as possible.”

The updated information invites mobile content companies to submit their sites to the directory, where it will “become available to the millions of mobile consumers searching for media content through Yahoo oneSearch and other mobile search offerings powered by Yahoo.” To sweeten the offer, Yahoo promises that “serving up your media products in such a highly-relevant manner, increases the likelihood that consumers will actively trial them. And those who do will be able to submit ratings and reviews, so if your stuff is good, the world will know.”

Yahoo’s mobile content search service raises the bar, but I can’t share the view that it’s a “threat” to white-label providers. If anything, it might give Google a run for its money. I heard at today’s forum that Google is experiencing some serious and unexpected setbacks - difficulties that will likely play in the favor of Yahoo.

• Posted in
• Web 2.0, Mobile Search, Mobile Content, Mobile Advertising

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