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Best & Brightest: COM #215 Ribbit Road Test; Skype App & User Choice; Mobile Breakfast Roundup; Social Stats; Intel Dev Program; Opera For Android & Are Apps Fool’s Gold?

Peggy Anne Salz — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 23:02:31 +0000

This week the Carnival of the Mobilists – the weekly line-up of top-notch mobile blogging from experts and mobile passionatas –comes to us via the ever-dedicated James Coops over at Mobyaffiliates.com, the site that lists all the best mobile Internet and iPhone affiliate programs and mobile affiliate networks in an easy-to-use directory.

Thanks to all the Mobilists we have momentum, more members and a great COM#215 – so keep spreading the word. My vision for the future: contributions from a truly global network of Mobilists, packed with first-hand insights and brimming over with ideas.

Chetan Sharma’s Mobile Breakfast is a prime example. The speakers were first-class and his summary of the event (which includes an excellent presentation from Rob Glaser, Chairman and Founder, Real Networks. His talk focused on the opportunities created by the introduction of smartphone/”superphones”. What is the impact on discovery and digital presence? How can the social element of mobile best be leveraged? Read on and find out.

AMONG THE HIGHLIGHTS:

Terence Eden walks us through Ribbit voicemail. How does it stack up to Spinvox and others? Read on and find out.

His post shares the “Post Of The Week” honors with Tomi Ahonen’s thought-provoking and humorous look at the emerging app economy. Should we celebrate a market where most the apps are free? Are we heading for another dot-com bust? Read on and find out.

What does it really mean when Skype is available for download via Ovi? Does this create a new app order that rewards innovation and promotes app democracy? Will people vote with their feet for the apps they like most? Ajit Jaokar presents his perspective.

Swimming in mobile social networking stats and data points? Of course, we can count on Andy Favell at MobiThinking to bring some order to the chaos.

WIPConnector introduces us to the Intel Atom Developer Program and reminds us that we can meet up with the Intel team in-person @ WIP JAM CTIA Wireless 2010.

What is the Opera Mini experience on Android? Dennis Bournique over at WAP Review presents a thoughtful review and concludes Opera still rocks but there are some shortcomings. What are the pros and cons of Opera Mini? Read on and find out.

Next week the Carnival touches down at TamS60 – and my personal thanks to Tam Hanna for stepping up to host.

See you there!

PODCAST: Report By Chetan Sharma First To Map App Economy & Landscape; GetJar Reveals Strategy Play To Monetize Apps PLUS Why App “Shortcuts” Could Be The Real Money-Maker

Peggy Anne Salz — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 17:12:10 +0000

It’s a milestone day for the fledgling app space. We have a solid report from esteemed colleague Chetan Sharma that gives a good overview of the size of the global mobile apps economy and some valuable insights into the regional differences that developers must know to make their models work. While the U.S. may be a market that pays money (more than any other country) for apps, in-app advertising and other ad-supported schemes are a must if developers want to distribute their apps in emerging markets.

I outline the key data points and takeaways further down in this post.

But the real story is the insights the report gives us into winning players and strategies (that is, who will be selling the most and how).

APP DISTRIBUTION AND APP STORE PROLIFERATION

Chetan documents a real and gradual shift from on-deck stores (translated: mobile operator offerings) to off-deck plays that are primarily DD2C (Developer Direct 2 Consumer) – potentially the toughest kind of sales pitch for developers more adept in tech than marketing.

Indeed, developers are going to need some help with that. Little wonder that Patrick Mork, GetJar VP Marketing, singles out app payment and in-app advertising and reveals these are the next features/functionality in the GetJar pipeline. (Smart! It’s all about making it easier for developers to make money from their apps).

And then there are the regional differences that Chetan has expertly uncovered.

Particularly in emerging markets, the mobile apps- mobile advertising business ecosystem has become robust enough to provide developers added revenue. It’s a big business if we consider that Asia, with the lowest pre-paid subscriber rates, also accounted for 37 percent of global downloads.

Overall, Chetan estimates advertising based revenue accounted for about 12 percent of the overall revenue, but that figure is projected to rise to 28 percent by 2012.

Finally, the report confirms two observations that run through my own research and writing like a leit motif: the business imperative to improve content discovery and the potential for a Long Tail of app stores (not just an “app for that” – but an app store for that!).

Farmers Markets and Supermarkets? I’ll have more on that scenario later this week when I catch up with Mike Lurye, Director, Product Marketing, Amdocs Interactive, to explore the characteristics (choice, convenience, payment, personalization) that can potentially separate the leaders from the also-rans.

GETJAR PODCAST

But first the highlights from my podcast with GetJar’s Patrick Mork, who was instrumental in guiding the research project from the start. We discussed the report numbers that really stand out and the business model strategies they support.

HYPERLOCAL: Developers will need to adapt their business models to the regions. Direct sale of apps in developing markets versus ad-supported schemes in emerging markets. This divide spells fantastic opportunities in mobile advertising for companies that can tap them. (One reason why GetJar is gearing up to launch a partnership with a major advertising company to enable this scenario everywhere.)

THERE CAN BE ONLY A FEW?: GetJar CEO Ilja Laurs is bullish about the outlook for a fortunate few stores that have the right capabilities mix (GetJar among them. Of course). In his view: “There is no way that this many app stores will survive in the long term and while the value of the global app economy is set to be astoundingly high by 2012, we think only a few app stores will share this revenue.” Why? Patrick puts it down to the virtual nature of commerce in an app store. “In a virtual economy such as the app economy retail is different and you don’t need that many players.” The selling point is relevant content and app stores that have this – and consumer traffic – are in the winners’ circle. Another reason why only a few may survive: “Developers have finite resources…. They are resource-starved and will therefore only work with a few app stores because they won’t have the time or energy to work with many of them.” (After all, he adds, it can be a pain and drain to open accounts with multiple stores, connect to the back-end systems and upload the content. “Our value proposition continues to be that GetJar is a one-stop to upload it in one place.)

APP SHORTCUTS PAY-OFF: Patrick and I finally got the chance to discuss the runaway success of app shortcuts, literally shortcuts to mobile websites. Put simply, brands and content companies can promote their mobile website as if it was an app(!) Before you dismiss it, consider this: Facebook counts a whopping 45 million downloads of site shortcuts via GetJar. That number beats their iPhone app downloads by a mile!

Listen to the podcast here. [15:32]

My take: The app economy has officially arrived. In 2009, app downloads worldwide were approx. 7 billion with Asia accounting for a whopping 37 percent of the total. Total downloads are forecast to skyrocket to almost 50 billion in 2012 – a year on year growth rate of 92 percent. This would mean that the value of apps sold would be greater than the value of CDs sold in 2012 ($13.83 billion). But we shouldn’t break out the champagne just yet. The business models are unclear, the market is fragmented and real success is linked inextricably to local and regional market conditions. The hard truth: It’s not a single market and one-size-fits all app schemes won’t deliver. Will app stores be on-deck (operator managed) or off-deck (direct-2-consumer)? Or will there be hybrids? Will the prevailing model be paid apps or ad-supported apps? Or will it be a mix? I’m not avoiding the question when I say ‘all of the above’ and everything in-between. Chetan’s report paints a buoyant picture of a young market (”the proliferation of apps in many directions”) and hints at the key capabilities that will clinch the deal for app stores and there developers.

The bottom line: We need more engaging and creative approaches to mobile advertising in those markets where this model will rule (emerging markets). And we need the various channels of mobile advertising (messaging, Web, search and coupons/barcodes) to work together more tightly. Finally, content discovery is an issue the industry must recognize and solve.

In closing a positive – and possible –scenario (from Chetan) if we get this right: “Connectivity breeds apps. It is a given that as consumer electronic devices become wirelessly connected, consumers are looking to download apps on those platforms. Apps download on the iPod have been every bit of a success as they have been on the iPhone. Similarly, we will see a significant uptick in the apps for devices such as the iPad, telematics platforms in vehicles, digital cameras, navigation devices, picture frames, weight scales, and the list goes on and on. These apps will entertain and amuse consumers, analyze data on the devices, connect users with content and friends, and will interconnect various end-points in the pervasive mobile ecosystem in a much more profound manner.” It’s shaping up to be a great space indeed!

CENTER STAGE: Sony Ericsson’s Christopher David Speaks Out On Apps, Strategy & GetJar Partnership; Tips To Avoid Being A ‘Me-Too’ App Store PLUS Get Ready For App Economy Report

Peggy Anne Salz — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 12:09:58 +0000

The Netsize Guide 2010 is breaking download records and an increasing number of “fans” have even purchased a paper copy of this must-read mobile industry resource. In view of the phenomenal popularity of this content, MSG is joining with Netsize to showcase a “best of” selection of executive interviews and hot topics that have everyone talking. We start the series with a timely and telling interview with Christopher David, head of Developer and Partner Engagement, Sony Ericsson. Over the next weeks I’ll expand the focus to include in-depth features and podcasts with the companies and influencers at the forefront of mobile and mobility.

MAKING AN (APP) OFFER YOU CAN’T REFUSE

Despite the well-founded arguments expressed by close friend and colleague Tomi Ahonen (expertly outlined in this must-read post), apps and app stores continue to eclipse all other mobile industry issues and topics. While many players and commentators appear to be caught up in an app store frenzy, few have fully worked out the business basics such as how to ensure app choice through partnership, how to encourage recurring revenues and the best models to ensure app choice and maintain differentiation.

The jury is out on what will separate the winning app stores from the also-rans. But this interview with Christopher David offers some answers and suggests the real key is freshness and focus. As he sees it: “It’s not about providing thousands of apps; it’s about providing consumers access to a couple of hundred relevant apps and keeping it fresh.” To achieve this Sony Ericsson has developed a three-tier approach to apps and forged a partnership with independent, cross-platform app store provider GetJar, a strategy Christopher discusses in detail below.

HOW BIG IS THE GLOBAL MOBILE APPS MARKET REALLY?

That is THE question and GetJar may have some answers. The company is gearing up to release a milestone report this week that sheds light on the size of the market and challenges us to re-think our assumptions about fragmentation, competition and the split between on-portal app stores and non- carrier app stores ( a number that skyrocketed from 8 to 38 in 2009 alone).

Special thanks to GetJar and Jayne Stala over at Komodo PR for inviting me to the pre-launch briefing in London tomorrow, but I won’t be able to attend. Fortunately, Jayne and I have found a solution: she’s scheduled me for an exclusive podcast interview with Patrick Mork, GetJar VP Marketing, to discuss the report and key takeaways. Patrick was instrumental in developing the research project and I look forward to having his insights on MSG on Wednesday (when the report is officially public).

INTERVIEW: CHRISTOPHER DAVID

In 2009 Sony Ericsson took the wraps off a new app store coupled with a progressive framework to accelerate the creation of compelling apps for Sony Ericsson devices. In practice, Sony Ericsson handles all billing and then passes 70 percent of revenues back to developers. Other tangible benefits for developers include access to tools, distribution, marketing and top-notch placement in the app store. While there is a sharp focus on apps written for Java and Symbian, Sony Ericsson also recently expanded support to other platforms such as Android.

***
Q: How did the decision to launch an app store originate and how do you avoid a head-on confrontation with competitors?

A: Sony Ericsson has always been centered on bringing quality entertainment and content to consumers. To do that we also created long-term sustainable relationships with developers. This has evolved and, in 2009. we decided to take it all to a new level.

We opened up the marketplace to allow more people within the community to participate and launched submit.sonyericcson.com. When we did this we probably did not do a good enough marketing job. At the same time, others in the industry had made a much bigger push around apps. So, we had to think hard about how we would avoid being a ‘me-too’ app store.

We concluded there were things we had to do to raise the bar. We had to make it simple and easy for developers to get involved. There had to be low barrier of entry for the developers and the application providers with no submission fee, no membership fee, no annual fee and no hidden costs. But we also didn’t want to just open up a floodgate; we wanted to ensure a wide range of quality content.

Q: How do you maintain a balance in the quality and quantity of apps in the store?

A: First, the submission process ensures quality. We have a set of competent policy guidelines and a review process. We don’t only look at whether apps function. We examine if they have the right UX [user experience] and if they make the best use of the screen. We also consider if they really benefit the consumer. We asked ourselves: ‘Does the consumer need 15 Sudoku apps or do they want one relevant Sudoku app.’ We opted for the latter.

It’s not about providing thousands of apps; it’s about providing consumers access to a couple of hundred relevant apps and keeping it fresh. The focus is to have around 100 apps and will not be much more than that. That said, to keep this number of apps fresh for the consumer requires us to turn around a much bigger number than that. I would say it needs to be 10X more and – from that – we pick and chose what gets shown to the consumers.

Q: The idea seems to be to forge closer relationships with fewer developers. Is that what you’re doing here?

A: Absolutely. And this approach is reflected in the categories of apps. We currently classify apps in three categories.

Category One is being a good citizen to a non-fragmented platform. What I mean here is compliancy. Whether it’s for a Java platform or a Symbian platform or a Windows Mobile platform, we are always going to be compliant and make sure we’re not fragmenting the core foundation of our ecosystem. Therefore, any application developer that wants to make use of the core, the API set and the features of that platform will find these applications will run ‘as is’ on our phones, requiring a minimum effort to adapt navigational keys, touch and non-touch, and things like that.

Q: And it’s this category that you provide consumers access to through partnerships such as the agreement you have with GetJar, an independent app store with 50,000+ applications on offer.

A: Yes. We figure why make it even more complicated for the developers? We’re looking at this much more in terms of it being complimentary. So, Category One apps is the focus area of GetJar.

Q: What is your focus as Sony Ericsson?

A: Our focus is on Category Two and Category Three apps. Category Two type apps are apps that could potentially run across the Sony Ericsson portfolio, independent of platform. Put another way, there are apps that would leverage the innovation that Sony Ericsson puts around and on top of the core platform. Examples could be apps that harness the advanced imaging capabilities in our phones, make use of face recognition technique, or utilize the OpenGLES and 2.0 3-D environments that we have in all our phones right now.

Category Three are apps that are much more optimal, much more unique and targeted for a specific Sony Ericsson phone. Here we look for third party applications that could potentially integrate well with that UX [user experience] and further enhance the overall proposition of a phone.

Q: How do you encourage sales, which benefits developers, and discovery, to satisfy consumers?

A: Many developers are starting to re-think. Do they go for big, with the probability of being discovered very low, or do they go for a lower volume with a much higher probability of being discovered. The developer community is split.

Most users won’t look beyond a top ten list when they’re searching for apps. We’re trying to change that by understanding what the consumers are doing. If they’ve seen an app several times and not picked it, then we want to present the consumer with an app that is more interesting, fresher. We’re also trying to understand what’s viral and what consumers are recommending.

Q: What is the impact of app stores on the value chain?

A: I think we’re a the starting point of all the crazy things people will do and it’s not only what the developers will do but what the individual users will do. The value chain in itself I think it is pretty straight forward in terms of the players and what they do.

I believe that, over time, we will see scenarios where anyone can create applications. As that happens, and it’s already happening on the Internet today, the mobile phone will become a place where a lot of us can make what we want. That will push the industry toward building more components and building things in a way that allows people to integrate those components.

Q: What is the role of mobile operators?

A: One development is clear, even if it’s slow: the industry is going toward a much more open approach, much more embracing. It’s all about operators allowing others to participate much more in their ecosystem.

Operators will have an important role to play as a facilitator and this will allow them to play several roles. Can they be a billing provider? Can they be an identity provider? Can they be a channel to content and media? They can do a lot of things, but they also have to open up and allow for more people to participate on equal grounds and equal terms. I would not say may the best man win, but rather the consumer will choose.

DOWNLOAD & APP STORE SURVEY RESULTS

The Netsize Guide – which features exclusive interviews with 28 industry senior executives at leading companies and organizations including Havas, M&S, MMA, Nokia NAVTEQ, PayPal and Sony Music Entertainment — provides unique perspectives and reveals how players across the mobile ecosystem are preparing to meet the challenges and take advantage of the opportunities ahead.

The Netsize Guide 2010 also includes the results of Mobile Trends Survey 2010, an online survey asking +1,000 mobile professionals and practitioners across 67 countries their views on these key themes and their insights into trends that top the industry agenda, including the advance of mobile applications stores, progress towards global mobile commerce and the increasing importance of mobile across a range of business verticals.

Finally, the Netsize Guide 2010 presents detailed data on the wireless telecoms sector in 41 countries, including revenues, market shares and value-added service offerings for messaging and billing of 194 mobile network operators worldwide.

DOWNLOAD YOUR FREE NETSIZE GUIDE HERE.

Disclaimer: Netsize is an MSG supporter. Peggy Anne Salz is author of the Netsize Guide 2010.

Gearing Up For CTIA: Reach Out To Schedule bnetTV Video Slots, Briefings Or Connect @ Apps World Forum Event PLUS bnetTV Newsletter With Novarra

Peggy Anne Salz — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 19:33:33 +0000

I’m still sifting through the list of cool companies I met during Mobile World Congress (including a stealth-mode mobile search startup and a company taking the touch/haptic interface to the next level) I can’t wait to feature on MSG and now I have to switch gears and plan for CTIA. I’m in Las Vegas for the week, so there are loads of opportunities to meet up. For one, I have been invited to speak on app marketing and advertising (during Mobile Web and Apps World Forum, an event organized by esteemed colleague and author Ajit Jaokar over at Futuretext). So, if you are attending and want to connect, we can catch up after the panel or you can reach out to me directly to schedule a proper briefing.

BNET TV @ CTIA

We can also meet up at the bnetTV studios. Once again I have joined forces with Michelle Sklar and her fabulous bnetTV team to conduct video interviews during CTIA. Slots go fast, so reach out to me or Ria Nielsen (ria AT bnettv dot com) to schedule an interview ASAP.

Topics that interest me most include: apps vs. Web; mobile advertising companies – even better if you have industry insights (stats, behavior, trends) to share; mobile search and content discovery schemes that set the bar; the business value of personalization (and proof of concept!); social networks shifting from meeting place to marketplace; companies and ideas harnessing crowd-sourcing via mobile, evidence of the Next Web (semantic search, social media tools, cool stuff) – and the list goes on.

By way of background, bnetTV counts an incredible 225+ interviews from Mobile World Congress and you can check them out here. I’m pleased to report that bnetTV will soon provide MSG with a new player and completely up-to-date video juke box – so check back regularly when I showcase the “Video of the Week” timed to my regular column for the bnetTV weekly newsletter highlighting the companies and concepts at the top of my radar.

I kicked off my series this week with an analysis of Novarra’s oneweb offer. This spot-on solution potentially delivers a rich and unified Internet experience to users on their mobile phones – feature phones and smartphones – everywhere on the planet.

Put simply, oneweb draws on Novarra’s corporate DNA (a wide array of tools, technologies and know-how to make content and services accessible on ALL mobile devices) to unify the Web on our phones. In practice oneweb fast, always-on access to daily-use favorite activities (and apps), including social networking, streaming video, webmail, news and information via a single unified dashboard. Thus we have access to apps, widgets and services (dynamically updated, by the way). You can read more (and my take) here.

IN THE CROSSFIRE

In addition to the eclectic mix of one-on-one interviews, bnetTV is offering me the opportunity to put together mini-roundtables (myself and two other execs) to discuss/debate hot topics. I’m looking for execs with insights (no marketing or pitches, please) to participate in roundtables to discuss marketing apps (models, opportunities/challenges); mobile analytics and customer data (why numbers matter more than ever); and mobile search (state of play, what works really?).

SPONSORSHIPS ARE BACK

bnetTV has also made a limited number of sponsorship opportunities available to companies that (literally) want to leave their mark on CTIA. The options (download here) allow companies placement through in-video overlay, logos and other promotion formats. It’s an excellent way to reach an audience of over 1 million viewers and the growing community of influencers at MSG.

Flash-Reel Feature Sponsor – $2500
In-video logo overlay
Logo featured on title bar 2x within each video
As the logo is embedded within the video, it will be seen at all aggregation points
6 spots available

bnetTV Media Player Feature Sponsor – $1000
Logo featured on the lower portion of the bnetTV Media Player
This is a static graphic that will appear on all videos played from bnetTV’s website
3 spots available

Sponsors’ Splash Screen – $5000
Logo featured on the screen that runs after the show Intro and Credits play
Up to 4 spots available on the page
4 spots available

Premier Sponsor – $6500
Combination of 1 & 3 with “Premier Sponsor” naming
1 spot available

INTERESTED?Interested? Email me for directly (peggy@msearchgroove.com ) .

Hope to see you @CTIA!

Best & Brightest: COM#214 iPad Vs Books; Mobile Healthcare Roundup; Mobile Payments Ecosystems; Canada’s NFC; Mobile Advertising; Google; Flash & Cloud Computing PLUS Call For Social Media Support

Peggy Anne Salz — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 15:46:08 +0000

This week the Carnival of the Mobilists – the weekly line-up of the best blogs and bloggers on all things mobile – comes to us via Andy Favell over at MobiThinking, a valuable resource with a good selection of mobile advertising stats, reports and white papers. Between Andy’s outreach for old and new Mobilists to submit posts –and my eager tweets (@COTMobilists) encouraging more people to get involved – the COM attracted a whopping 40+ submissions(!). Thanks to Andy for his extra attention to collecting and ranking posts leaving us with the 10+ posts that made the grade.

AMONG THE HIGHLIGHTS:

What makes a book a book? Does the iPad potentially change all the rules? What is the impact on how teens and kids interact with information? Read this post from new member Peta Andersen and find out.
What are the key mobile healthcare companies, projects and takeaways from Mobile World Congress? The 3G Doctor, David Doherty, gives us a worthwhile roundup.
Mobile banking and payments are the focus of several posts this week. From the proper design to the importance of partnerships to the inside story on a trial of contactless payments (NFC) in Canada. It’s all here – so read on and find out.
Why is Apple determined not to support Flash? What is the link with differentiation? Francisco Kattan connects the dots, so read on and find out.

HELP MAKE THE MOBILISTS MORE SOCIAL

And now…a shout to the Mobilists and mobile enthusiasts for help to make the COM more interactive and – ultimately – more exciting.

As regular readers know I coordinate the COM, updating the host schedule, promoting submissions in a weekly summary post on MSG and over at the Mobilists and tweeting to inform the community that was begun by Russell Buckley (blogger at MobHappy and AdMob Vice President, Global Alliances) some five years ago.

And that’s the problem.

Five years ago social media and Wikis were the exception, not the rule. As a result, the Mobilist site (a WP site, by the way) is in need of a revamp.

During yesterday’s a brainstorming session with Russell, we identified some simple improvements that would yield tremendous results.

The tools allowing regular Mobilists to create and update their own page, linking to their blog and generally telling us their interests, passions and talents.
The software to develop real forum for discussion at the site and allow members to connect or just say what’s on their mind.
A way to bring our outdated Google Groups into the present, making it easier and more intuitive for members and hosts to email all the members and put out the word for blog submissions, ideas, input – the works!
Anything I left out? Well, contact me to put it on the list.

But the blueprint for change is just the start. With this post I formally start the search for a developer who can donate some time to help the Mobilists identify and implement the plug-ins etc… that will allow us to truly be a community.

If you would like to take on this task and help out our community, then contact me directly (peggy@msearchgroove.com).

Next week COM #215 stops at Mjelly – so submit your posts by the weekend. (Find out how to submit your posts here).

App Stores For Everyone Everywhere: What Developers Want & Why; What Do Platform Providers & App Store Owners Need To Succeed?

Peggy Anne Salz — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 13:58:51 +0000

Until now much of the discussion around app store platforms and developer communities has been a technical one focused on primarily on APIs (which ones to open to third-party developers when and why), toolchains and toolkits (the optimal level of integration and how to achieve it) and development costs (value for money and how to deliver it). However, my first encounters with the 150+ developers and mobile execs that attended the combination Nokia Developer Day and Mobile Monday Austria at the University of Hagenberg– which is also home to Europe’s leading mobile computing department — has convinced me that I (and the industry) must move the discussion to another level.

What do developers really want/need in order to make apps and (ultimately) make money?

Why is this question key? Put simply, the companies that get this right will have insights to build the correct mix of capabilities to forge and support a tight-knit developer community, creating relationships that will allow them to take a central spot in the emerging apps value web (not chain – it’s not that kind of a game).

There are no easy answers, but the panels and discussions during the dev day confirm that developers — creative people who are interested in cash AND community – are likely to gravitate to platforms and app stores that help them cultivate and connect with their fans.

LITMUS LEARNINGS

I first started thinking this through during Mobile World Congress (MWC) and the no-holds barred session I moderated on OneAPI. The panel – made up of the architects behind this milestone move: Nauby Jacob, VP, Users Experience, Bell Canada; Larry Baziw, Director Next Generation Services Strategy, Rogers Wireless; SandipMuckerjee, VP of Business Strategy and Marketing, Alcatel Lucent; Shane Logan, Director, Services and Collaboration, Telus; and Al Snyder CEO, Aepona – examined what developers require and how/why operators and enablers can/must work together to deliver. The positive feedback has been overwhelming and I have reached out to each of the participants to participate in a follow-up roundtable podcast on MSG, so watch this space.

(By way of background, the GSMA launched the commercial pilot in Canada as part of its OneAPI initiative, working with Canada’s leading operators to demonstrate the viability and benefits of providing developers standardized APIs for mobile networks. The pilot in Canada – the topic of my MWC panel – represents the first time developers are able to gain commercial access to the network assets of multiple operators from a single gateway. )

But it was the opening presentation by Paul Golding – pioneer, long-time thought leader in the mobile applications space and, more recently, a consultant to O2 Telefonica — that challenged everything we (think) we know about developers.

When Paul took the podium and showed the opening slide – where he had purposely crossed out the title of the planned presentation and replaced the words “Supporting Developers” with “EmPOWERING Developers” — it was clear that this was no marketing-speak. His message to us: Developers need feature-rich APIs and much, much more. (Indeed, Paul’s thinking on this topic left a deep and lasting impression, and I am pleased to report that Paul has agreed to join MSG’s roster of authors and contribute a guest column that builds on his simple, elegant and path-breaking ideas.)

In his presentation (here on SlideShare) Paul introduces three kinds of “power” that interest/attract developers most.

CONNECTED POWER is all about the APIs and platforms that allow developers to reach customers; CASH POWER is all about the APIs and platforms that allow developers to earn money (directly or indirectly); and COOL POWER is all about the APIs and platforms that allow developers to do something cool and interesting (translated: innovate).

Sure, it’s about technology (CASH POWER). But it’s also about harnessing everything we know from the business books about encouraging and channeling creative energy to cultivate developer communities that make great apps to delight the customer (CONNECTED POWER).

And – with a nod to Eric von Hippel, my favorite interview, author of Democratizing Innovation and THE authority on innovation – it’s about connecting developers with their lead users — the users who have a high incentive to solve a problem and the ability to innovate (COOL POWER). Combine all that (translated: enable all that) and it can yield a developer community and a selection of apps that can truly set the bar.

As Paul pointed out: O2 Litmus has recruited 7,000+ O2 UK customers and then helped developer connect with them to gain insights and – interestingly – lay the groundwork for a kind of app developer fan club that provides developers important feedback and critical buzz. (After all, fans will share their picks of favorite apps and cool developers with others – creating the same kind of virtuous cycle than can catapult local bands to rock heroes.)

Paul has an even better idea: Operators can help the process by simply putting fans in touch with developers. “Add some other cool brands to the mix and then let things happen.”

At this juncture, I am also reminded of Mob4Hire and the traction it has gained for its awesome concept which combines crowd sourcing with app testing. It’s a super-sharp business model that Paul Poutanen, Mob4Hire President and Founder, tells me he is expanding to allow people testing the apps to rank/share the ones they like most with everyone else. A great grassroots way to help apps get discovered and gain mindshare. More about this in an exclusive interview with Paul later this month.

The takeaway here: helping developers connect with people (fans) is emerging as key requirement of app stores and platforms.

NOKIA DEV DAY

When Mobile Monday Austria reached out to me to speak at its event over the weekend, one that also allowed me access to developers and other people who love mobile, I was thrilled. It offered me an important opportunity to sanity-check some of Paul’s key messages and test a few of my own ideas about the future of app marketing.

Cool Power: Yes, it matters – a lot! An informal poll of developers yielded a welcome confirmation of the qualities platforms/app store providers must have beyond awesome, rich-feature APIs. Put simply, developers require “partners” that help them create apps and generate revenues. And they will align themselves (eagerly) with those companies that make a conscious effort to help them connect with customers, cultivate fans and allow them to feel that they have made a contribution that matters in the scheme of things. For some developers, a functioning feedback loop tops the list. For others, being able to believe that the platform provider really listens, absorbs, respects and internalizes constructive criticism is paramount.

This came across loud and clear when naxxatoe, a developer in the audience, took the microphone to tell Nokia execs what should be at the top of their Ovi agenda. “It’s about connecting people,” he said, unaware of the play on Nokia’s own motto (Connecting People).

Kudos to naxxatoe for saying what had to be said and my respect goes to Jure Sustersic, Forum Nokia Biz Dev Manager EMEA, for seeking out naxxatoe and other developers between sessions to hear them out on what they loved – and hated – about Ovi. (Inspired by this exchange I have decided to produce an informal series of podcasts to give these developers a voice. My sincere thanks to naxxatoe for challenging me to think and see things very differently. I look forward to showcasing his ideas in the first in the series later this month.)

SUPERMARKETS VS FARMERS MARKETS

Regular readers will know that I am a great believer in the individual. We will accept the content we want on our terms – and we are most likely to accept content (and mobile marketing/advertising can be considered a form of content) if it is in tune with our interests, passions and context. Mobile (an intensely personal device) allows us to communicate all of the above, allowing (with our permission!) content and services companies a way to connect the dots and provide us with stuff (content, services, apps, advertising and all things digital) we are likely to appreciate.

Obviously, there is little room in the scheme of things for one-site-fits all. In fact, our requirement (even demand) for stuff we want the way we want it sits at the core of the Long Tail. While Chris Anderson didn’t explore mobile in his milestone book, we have nonetheless witnessed the impact in mobile. It began with an avalanche of content and then a plethora of portals where we could find it. (Well – content discovery and search is another issue altogether…)

Fast forward and we are witnessing the emergence of a Long Tail of app stores.

My Mobile Monday presentation (which included the findings of the recent Netsize Mobile Trends Survey) explored the evidence for this mega-trend and why this could be good news for developers. For one it means more choice for us (a key requirement for a successful app store, according to the Netsize survey). But it also means more choice for the developers, many of whom told me they are actively seeking alternatives to the Apple app store where they have to beg for shelf space (so that their app might be accepted/included) and then pray for promotion (so that their app might be featured where people can find and buy it).

With 25+ app stores and counting we can’t say we have a Long Tail. But there are more options then ever before. Want an enterprise app? A good chance you might find it at Ondeego. How about a porn app? MiKandi is a good bet. And the list goes on…

With these observations (and in preparation for my talk) I reached out to Mike Lurye, Director, Product Marketing Amdocs Interactive. After an invigorating brainstorm session we agreed that there will be many kinds of app stores, managed in many different ways.

There will be Supermarkets (app stores such as the Apple app store) where the provider gives suppliers shelf space, sets the prices and is pretty much focused on moving merchandise and making money. And there will be Farmers Markets (niche app stores and operator app stores – and combinations of the two) where the relationship between the supplier (a farmer with fresh produce) and the customer (people who really appreciate the opportunity to buy organic) is what clinches the deal.

Surprisingly, it was this observation and the suggestion that there will be marketplaces that fit their needs that got the buzz. Developers took the microphone and told me they would indeed want to sell their apps via a farmers market – if they could. Several even asked me how they could get into contact with a Long Tail app store.

And – thanks to Mike – I can point to a little known example that shows this approach is not only an ideal – it is also an ideal business model making money – now. (BTW, I am also pleased to report that Mike has also agreed to a podcast to explore the supermarket/farmers market analogy and much more! I’m scheduling the appointment as we speak, so check back regularly or follow us on Twitter.

MALAYSIA SHOWS THE WAY?

Malaysian mobile operator Maxis has an app store and a mission: “to nurture and foster interesting developer applications for our community.” (An excerpt from this must-see video interview with Nava Wathan, Director 1Maxis, Maxis Communications.)

In Nava’s view, the operator app store is not impacted by handset app stores because consumers “will go both ways.” They will go to the Supermarkets (my wording) and they will also visit the Farmers Market. In the case of Maxis, the farmers market approach revolves around its sharp focus on local Malaysian apps “more relevant to the Malaysian consumer.” Thus, Maxis is the place to go for “something that is Malaysian.”

But it’s not just about enabling choice; the operator benefits from enabling payment. Maxis has opened up billing APIs for micropayments in apps and is looking to do the same for location, P2P sharing and advertising (allowing the developer to pull an add from Maxis instead of talking to ad agencies around Malaysia).Finally Nava sees that his company can also play a key role in connecting its developers with markets outside Malaysia. Put another way, Maxis can expand the reach of local developers by “surfacing our apps from our local developer community” on app stores run by the handset makers.

My take: As my upcoming series of podcasts will show, developers want to make money but they also demand a feedback channel that will allow them to consistently create better apps for their fans/customers. (After all, recurring revenues are the key to real and sustainable business). They also want some more say in how their apps are marketed and assurances that the app store/platform provider that they – like a farmers market – will do what they can to help developers build and nurture the relationships they need to innovate and – ultimately – succeed. One-off sales or fan following? Developers appear to want the latter. It’s now up to the providers to decide what they want to be (supermarkets or farmers markets) and execute. I know that Nokia has taken careful note of developer’s gripes and suggestions during the event and I will reach out to Nokia soon for their thoughts.

***

My personal thanks to the organizers of this excellent event — Aleksandra Schmid and Philipp Nagele (Mobile Monday Austria) and Mark A.M. Kramer. It was a great idea to link a mobile developer event with a Mobile Monday. It has exposed me to new ideas and allowed me to make some new friends. Warmest regards to naxxatoe and to the other developers who connected with me to share their platform likes/dislikes, and to Dave Dempsey from Radio FM4, who moderated the event and brought some valuable views into the discussion. If ever someone has the interest and empathy to bridge the divide between developers and everyone one else it’s Dave. I hope someone reaches out to him to do just that…I’m sure the results would rock!

EXCLUSIVE: Windows Mobile Edges Ahead Of Apple In Mobile Advertising Performance; Smaato Index Reveals New Mobile Advertising Metrics PLUS Mobile Ad Podcasts

Peggy Anne Salz — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 17:43:37 +0000

Next week MSG’s new contributor Eliza Dashwood takes the helm to summarize the industry stats and reports that matter most. In the meantime, Smaato, mobile ad optimizer and mobile advertising agency, has given MSG exclusive access to latest global mobile advertising metrics. The Smaato Worldwide Index- which analyzes ad network fill rates and sheds important light on click-through rates (CTR) segmented by handset operating system, geography and response times – is based on data Smaato collected in February from 35 mobile ad networks and over 4 billion ad requests served in the Smaato network of more than 3,000 registered mobile publishers.

Overall, Smaato’s metrics show that the average worldwide ad network fill rates remain constant at 29 percent in February 2010. The fill rate is measured as the percentage of ads delivered per ad request and varies by different factors, like country, device, content type.

Smaato’s Index also provides a breakdown of CTR data, segmented according to operating system, showing that Symbian continues to lead the pack, with Android a distant second. However, there are some significant shifts that indicate the gap between operating system CTRs could be closing fast. For example, BlackBerry comes in at 51, up from 30 in December 2009, while Symbian – still the dominant operating system – has dropped slightly. It comes in at 147, compared with 173 in December 2009.

However, the biggest surprise is the lead Windows Mobile has over Apple. Specifically, the iPhone and iPod Touch show a declining CTR, coming in with a rate of 89. This is the first time Apple devices have dipped below the average Index of 100, and the first time that Windows Mobile has edged ahead of its rival. In December 2009 the iPhone posted a CTR Index of 119, sliding to 104 in January 2010.

PERFORMANCE

Overall, the best performing mobile ad network in the Smaato Worldwide Index had a fill rate of 72 percent February 2010, down 17 from January. Despite this decrease, the average for worldwide ad network fill rate performance remained steady at 29 percent. What’s more, Smaato found that six of the top ten ad networks performed above this average. This re-enforces the pivotal importance and potential advantages of the network aggregation business model. Smaato embraces the model (aggregating 35 ad networks worldwide) to deliver partners a high fill rate.

By way of background, the first metrics report, which Smaato released in January, identified the mobile networks in the U.S. that delivered the best performance by name. This month’s metrics don’t divulge the identities of the best-performing ad networks in the U.S. – but I can imagine Millennial Media is in the winner’s circle (again).

Speaking of the U.S., the average fill rate of mobile ad networks in the U.S. hovers at 35 percent, a decrease compared to January 2010 (fill rate – 47 percent) and December 2009 (fill rate – 55 percent). However, closer examination shows that the U.S. fill rate is still significantly higher than the worldwide average fill rate of only 29 percent.

Smaato metrics further show that the two top-performing ad networks in the U.S. also improved their fill rate. One network came in at 78 percent (up from 68 percent in January) and the other reached 64 percent (up from 61 percent in January).

SPOTLIGHT SOUTH-EAST-ASIA:

For the first time Smaato metrics examine fill rates in South-East Asia (Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and Philippines), markets where mobile marketing and advertising are buoyant. Overall, the fill rates reveal that two ad networks are performing head and shoulders above the others, coming in with 90 percent and 87 percent fill rates in this region. Overall, the fill rates show a similar spread to those recorded in the U.S.

South-East Asia’s average fill rate of 32 percent is considerably higher compared to that of India’s, which came in at a mere 8 percent in the January Smaato metrics report. As Smaato CEO & Founder Ragnar Kruse sees it: This demonstrates the large differences across the Asian market and the need for developers to search for different partners or a mobile aggregation and optimization service.

The breakdown of the CTRs by operating system in this region provides an interesting and insightful picture of what devices users have and how they interact with mobile advertising.

Interestingly, the iPhone and iPodTouch dominate the region with a CTR Index of 164 followed by Symbian (127) and Android (124), while Windows Mobile comes in at the bottom of the table with 56.

PODCAST SERIES BACK BY DEMAND

In addition to providing us the inside track on what Smaato sees across its network of partner ad networks, the company is also sharply focused on cultivating a robust mobile advertising business ecosystem in which in can play a leadership role. To this end Smaato also dedicates significant resources to identify and encourage mobile advertising pioneers and innovators.

A prime example of this is the Smaato Mobile Advertising Award, which recognizes excellence in the mobile advertising and developers harnessing mobile apps and the mobile Web that can also be tapped to deliver compelling messages and campaigns to consumers worldwide.

Among the top three winners – chosen by a world-class jury of leading influencers of the mobile community including MSearchGroove – were: Aloqa, a U.S.-based mobile service that proactively notifies people of interesting places, events, music, movies and other activities nearby; Waze, an Israeli startup that taps the wisdom of crowds to provide real-time maps, traffic information and turn-by-turn directions; and Yoose, a provider of mobile coupon and loyalty programs based in Germany.

To showcase these high-flyer companies and their views on industry hot topics including engagement, location services, mobile couponing and crowd-sourcing Smaato has collaborated with MSearchGroove to produce a special podcast series showcasing the three company CEOs. In the interviews, which originally aired in time for the Mobile World Congress in February, the executives also comment on the meetings with eight top-notch VCs – high-level introductions that are part of the Smaato Award.

***

Listen to the Waze podcast with CEO Noam Bardin here. [4:38]

Listen to Yoose podcast with CEO Christian Geissendoerfer here. [4:44]

Listen to the Aloqa podcast with CEO Sangeev Agrawal here. [4:43]

My take on the winners and the trends: Mobile advertising is content, and its value to us is inextricably linked with its ability to entertain us, inform us or simplify our lives. Waze harnesses our personal mobility and our position as nodes in a larger network to tap the wisdom of invisible crowds to deliver tangible benefits combined with a super-cool user experience.

Location isn’t the killer app we thought. But an app that combines location awareness with technology that can read the clues we leave behind – to passively personalize our experiences and present us with precisely what we are likely to appreciate based on our likes and dislikes — AND offer brands and nearby establishments a chance to monetize that fit – covers all the bases to be a crowd-pleaser.

Another trend that impacts mobile advertising is the avalanche of software applications (apps) that have transformed what we do with our devices. As our focus shifts from novelty to utility we will vote with our feet, visiting those websites that allow us to do what we want, quickly, easily and intuitively. Therefore, Aloqa, which ties together location, social media and a push-approach to local search, is well-positioned to benefit from our increasing focus on finding what’s important to us nearby. The clever decision to open APIs to third-party publishers ensures that Aloqa will cover the long tail, which is where the money really is in local in the first place.

And finally, a comment on Yoose. We know from looking at Japan and Korea that mobile coupons and mobile commerce can be part of our daily mobile experiences – provided the experience is seamless and simple. Yoose has developed more than a website; it has perfected a work flow that could move couponing out of the chasm and into the bowling alley.

Moving forward, Smaato will join MSearchGroove’s growing roster of contributors and collaborators.

Disclaimer: Smaato is not an MSG friend – but not a partner/supporter.

Best & Brightest: COM #213 Google’s Mobile Drive, Mobile Search, Web Vs Apps, Freemium Models & New Mobile Book From Ajit Jaokar PLUS COM Roundup

Peggy Anne Salz — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 16:15:18 +0000

This week the Carnival of the Mobilists – the weekly line-up of the best blogs and bloggers on all things mobile – comes to us via Caroline Lewko and WIPConnector. The new site consolidates all of the sites– including the blog, WIPJam information – into one destination and invaluable resource for developers. Please redirect any links you have to the new URL.

The line-up of blogs includes two blogs from COM veteran Volker Hirsh: a progress report on freemium models and a look at the differences between the Web, the Mobile Web and Apps. Are some forms of information and information retrieval better suited to the Web (Internet)? Are some best when we have them on our devices? And is Touch a “game-changer”? Read on and find out.

Another analysis of the Mobile Web comes via Ajit Jaokar over at Open Gardens. He offers us a download PDF of his new book (a collaboration with Google’s Anna Gatti) titled Open Mobile: Understanding the Impact of Open Mobile – Implications for Telecoms/Devices, Web, Social Networks, Media and Personal Privacy. Great job, Ajit! By way of background, I had the honor of working on Ajit’s book as an editor and look forward to collaborating on future projects. MSG will also feature a deep dive into some of the book’s main takeaways – so pls check back or follow us on Twitter (@msearchgroove & @peggyanne).

Andy Favell and the folks at MobiThinking ran an interesting mobile search experiment. Is mobile search broken (as I have also indicated several times)? Read on and find out.

And the week wouldn’t be complete without a fact-packed and impassioned blog on the pivotal importance of mobile from mobile author and pundit Tomi Ahonen. Picking up on Google’s new and sharper focus on mobile, how connects the dots to show why mobile is destined to be BIG. Why? Read on and find out.

COM #212: TOP 25 MOBILE LIST, MOB4HIRE APP TESTING, VOIP WHITE PAPER, APPS VS BROWSERS & WHAT NOW .MOBI?

In case you missed the last weeks at the Carnival – or just got behind in reading in the run up to Mobile World Congress – here is a round up of the best of the rest beginning with a summary of posts from COM #212 via the personal blog belonging to Terence Eden, mobile enthusiast and Vodafone manager.

Who are the top 25 companies in Mobile? Tomi Ahonen connects the dots and adds up the revenues to provide us with an “Ahonen Index” that lists these giants (ranked according to the amount of money they make in mobile only). This is one to bookmark for sure, so read on and find out.

Over at MobHappy Russell Buckley provides us with an in-depth look at Mob4Hire and their unique app testing service that taps the wisdom of crowds. Want to make sure your app works everywhere on the planet? Read on and find out.

Holly Kolman at MobiEnthusiast.mobi – a blog for mobile website owners, developers, marketers and end-users – asks what the recent acquisition of .mobi by Affilias. What does it mean for the .mobi brand? What can/should/must Affilias do to reach out to publishers and generate interest in the domain? Read on and find out.

An excellent and insightful post from esteemed colleague John Puterbaugh (also Nellymoser Founder & CEO) sheds important light on the emergence of an app ecosystem and what it means for major players – and the rest of us. As John sees it: “Powered by better performing underlying mobile browsers, a thriving mobile app and mobile web ecosystem has emerged. However, it should not be a foregone conclusion that “apps” will necessarily simply become rich mobile web sites. To the developer, in the near future, apps will essentially be rich mobile web sites (thanks to HTML5) packaged for distribution in a vending environment such as the App Store.” What did Apple do right? What are mobile operators across the U.S. doing now? And what is John’s (surprising) take on the Wholesale Applications Community ? Read on and find out.

COM #211: MONEY-MAKING IDEAS, OPERA MINI, .MOBI, TWITTER FOR THINGS, WHAT HAPPENS AFTER THE CLICK?, iPHONE IN KOREA, BLACKBERRY HACKERS, AUGMENTED (HYPER) REALITY PLUS BLYK’S MOBILE ADVERTISING REALITY-CHECK

The inimitable Tomi Ahonen (turned Wayne’s World!) gets us into party-mode when he hosts COM #211 at Communities Dominate Brands.

Is it enough to develop sites for iPhone? Dennis Bournique at WAP Review doesn’t think so. He reviews the Opera Mini browser and asks why many developers/designers appear to be ignorant of its reach and impact. Why should developers re-think to focus on the millions who use Opera Mini worldwide? Read on and find out.

We all use Twitter. But is the day coming when our stuff will also use Twitter to connect and communicate. Over at Open Gardens Ajit Jaokar walks us through a scenario where Twitter could indeed be the platform that connects everyone and everything everywhere. His take: “When combined with the Cloud, mobility and sensors twitter could take on a far more disruptive role in the future.”

A thought-provoking post from Francisco Kattan explains Dynamic Cell ID (a way of dynamically assigning the Cell-ID that is reported to wireless devices by base stations) and ways operators might use dynamic Cell-ID to stop Google from “stealing” their location data. What can operators do? Would is backfire? Are there other ways to monetize operators’ assets? Read on and find out.

Russell Buckley over at MobHappy uses a great new video about the downside of Augmented Reality (AR) to make a meaningful case for serious guidelines. Are we destined to live in a world of digital trash? Read on and find out.

MSG uses the opportunity to showcase a recent column contribution from Antti Öhrling, Co-Founder of Blyk, the messaging media that works with mobile operators to link young people with brands and other stuff they like. In addition to mapping out how the company partners with mobile operators to deliver targeted mobile advertising, Antti also reveals the seven rules to effective mobile advertising. Leading the list — Permission, please: An opt-in audience is a must and operators must get customer permission before delivering any advertising. Want to know the other six? Read on and find out why Tomi made his pick of the week!

COM #210: MOBILE MARKET SHARE, iPAD FAD (?), MOBILE BASICS, MOBILE AD SURVEY RESULTS, UK METRICS, ALCATEL LUCENT’S APP ENABLEMENT STRATEGY, MICROSOFT, NOKIA/NAVTEQ, OPERATOR ADVANTAGES & M-DAYS

Martin Wilson over at Indigo 102 (a voice I am also proud to feature via guest columns on MSG) hosts the Carnival for the first time. Martin’s summary (one of the best written I’ve seen) expertly outlines the posts that made COM #210 and their key takeaways.

Among these:

Tomi Ahonen is back with more stats and more energy (and perhaps more coffee!). His post includes a breakdown of market share according to handset maker, as well as operating systems. Who is market giant? Who made the biggest jump in smartphone sales? And where is Apple really? Read on and find out.

Mobile strategist and esteemed colleague Carl Martin cuts through some of the mobile hype and urges us to get the basics right FIRST. What are the business basics? How do we prepare for business? And what is the role of user experience? Read on and find out.

What is Alcatel Lucent’s app strategy? How has it fine-tuned its developer platform to provide service providers and enterprises with tools that enable partners and third-party developers to build, test, manage and distribute applications across networks, including television, broadband Internet and mobile? This pre-MWC interview with Alcatel Lucent’s Francisco Kattan (conducted by Carline Lewko at WIPConnector) answers these questions and more. What will enable developers and service providers to work more productively together and make profitable new apps? Read on and find out.

Why integrate with mobile advertisers to deliver mobile advertising? Mark Westling of Sigma makes a strong case for involving the operators and asks why more mobile operators aren’t in on the action. Why are operators essential partners? Why are operators dragging their feet? Read on and find out.

Finally MSG presents a thoughtful and detailed summary of M-Days in Munich, an industry event that attracted a record 1,650 attendees. From Eastern Europe’s leading content companies and their strategies to Lufthansa’s path-breaking approach community – it’s all here so read on and find out.

COM #209: NEW WHITE PAPER, NOKIA NEEDS TOUCH (NOT!), iPAD, MOBILE & MEDIA, MIFI REVIEW, ERICSSON, OPEN STANDARD SYNCHML, MOBILE INTERNET AFFILIATE MARKETING OPPS, MOBILE APPS SURVEY, FACEBOOK & MAEMO

Many thanks to Dennis Bournique at WAP Review for jumping in to host COM#209 in my place. It was packed with submissions – including a post from a Carnival newcomer (always welcome!). Here are some good reasons to go back and check it out.

Predictably, two posts take a hard look at (and behind) the iPad and Apple’s true motivation in launching it. The post of the week goes to Michael Mace and his argument that Apple might really after Microsoft and the PC market. What is Apple’s game? Read on and find out.

Over at Mobile Mandala Mark Jaffe uses convincing stats to show why mobile and media companies need to work together. Entertainment and mobile are a perfect fit, but will the companies “get it” in time? Read on and find out.

Dear friend and colleague James Coops at Mjelly takes the wraps of his new venture Mobyaffiliates. It’s more than intriguing and the slides tell an even better story.

COM #208: WORLD CUP CONTENT, MOBILE PARALLEL UNIVERSE(S) & REDRAWING THE SMARTPHONE LANDSCAPE

It’s wonderful to have Antoine RJ Wright take the helm of COM #208 and walk the talk by hosting the blog (yes, the blog!) on a mobile phone. (Although the mobile phone platform can be a challenge at times.)

Among the highlights under the Carnival tent:

MobiThinking submits two posts looking at how clubs and companies alike can use mobile (and harness mobile engagement marketing) to grow business and raise profile. What do fans really want? What must clubs deliver? Read on and find out.

Always good for a thought-provoking post Ajit Jaokar at Open Gardens tempts us to see the world through the eyes of youth. Is mobile a communication tool? Or is it all about social? Do youth inhabit another world where the social element is the prime focus? Read on and find out.

(In hindsight this rather eclectic post dovetails well with the last chapter in the Netsize Guide 2010. Thanks to a several deep-dive conversations with Mark Curtis, Flirtomatic CEO, and a mind-meld with Netsize CEO Stan Chesnais, we are one step closer to the real role of mobile in our lives. Download it and please let me know if you think we’re on to something BIG.)

Finally, Guy Agin, guest blogger at VisionMobile challenges us to rethink how we define and segment the smartphone market. Who are the players? What are the opportunities? And is it a prudent strategy to focus on smartphones – period? Read on and find out.

It’s Official! MSG Named Top 50 Influential Blog; Konector Report Lists Sites That Matter Most PLUS MSG Welcomes Eliza Dashwood

Peggy Anne Salz — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 18:34:00 +0000

Dear friends and colleagues including Ajit Jaokar (mobile authority and blogger at Open Gardens) and Mack McKelvey (Senior Vice President of Marketing, Millennial Media) have tweeted and congratulated me on the good news before Mobile World Congress. But now it’s official.

Today MSG was formally named a top 50 influential tech blogs in a new report from Konector, a company linking digital marketers with leading bloggers to help promote brands to highly targeted audiences. The report, Top Independent Gadget Blogs and Bloggers, profiles leading tech sites and found that a whopping 40+ million visit the top 140 technology and gadget websites each month.

MSG joins an impressive roster of technology websites and blogs including CrunchGear, Crunch Mobile and ReadWriteWeb. Other important destinations not included in the top 50 but nonetheless listed in the top 140 tracked in the Konector report include: All Things Digital, Mobile Industry Review and Scobleizer. (Konector does not include corporate blogs or blog networks in the Top 50 list, which is why websites including Ars Technica, Gizmodo and VentureBeat are not mentioned.)

To deliver their message to their target demographic marketing, advertising and PR professionals must connect with quality audiences of influencers who will accept and – even better – amplify the brand message. To achieve this Konector uses a unique methodology to measure the quantity and quality of visitors. Ranking is based on reach, frequency and interaction. As Kingsley Maunder, a director at Konector, put it in a press statement: “We use our proprietary Online Impact Factor to measure how many people visit a blog, how often they visit that blog, the time spent on the blog and how active they are once they get there.”

TIPPING POINT

Being named a top 50 influential technology destination is the latest in a string of developments and accolades that has seen MSG extend its global reach and reputation through the production of highly-acclaimed white papers, market research, podcasts and editorial content for the mobile industry.

Working with the fantastic team at Tego Interactive, an experienced team of professionals helping to build businesses through converged Web and mobile solutions, MSG is extending its reach with new projects and new partners. In the next weeks you’ll see more thought leadership from leading companies as I formally take the wraps off a series of branded microsites – known as Briefing Rooms.

These destinations, accessible via the MSG homepage and mobile website, will promote ideas and insights from MSG partner companies and supporters including Tego Interactive, mobile payments and mobile analytics provider Bango, mobile search provider Taptu and mobile commerce and communications provider Netsize on topics ranging from usability and user experience to mobile industry mega-trends. I’ll announce additional partners in the areas of mobile marketing and Augmented Reality in the next weeks.

MORE AWESOME AUTHORS

MSG is also growing its roster of contributors and collaborators.

In addition to exclusive columns from leading industry executives including Colm Healy, Vice President of EMEA Services for Qualcomm Internet Services (QIS) and General Manager of Xiam Technologies, and Antti Öhrling, Co-Founder of Blyk, the messaging media that works with mobile operators to link young people with brands and other stuff they like, I’ve found a new author who shares MSG values and vision (!)

Eliza Dashwood will be contributing regular analysis of mobile advertising and social media, and commenting on key industry data points. She has a 10+ year track record in the online industry delivering digital strategy and execution for brands and accounts including Mercedes Benz, The White Company and Optical Express. She has also held a variety of senior positions at digital agencies including Ambergreen, a digital marketing agency headquartered in Scotland, and MediaVision, a media planning agency with clients throughout Britain, Europe and North America.

More importantly, she knows the industry and cares about the trends/shifts impacting it at all levels.

Eliza consistently tracks how social media, mobility and permission-based marketing combine – even collide – to change all the rules. But it’s not just about identifying the opportunities and challenges ahead. Eliza also architects strategies that allow brands and companies to connect with empowered people (consumers) who expect/demand a conversation and not a sales pitch.

I look forward to the ideas and insights she will bring to MSG and encourage you to reach out to her directly (elizadashwood at googlemail dot com).

KONECTOR REPORT

The Top Gadget Blogs and Bloggers report provides marketing, advertising and PR professionals with key data and stats on the most influential gadget blogs they should target to promote their brands online, helping them understand:

• Which blogs have the most impact in gadgets
• Which bloggers have the most impact on their audience
• Which bloggers have a captive audience most suitable for their target
• market (by demographic and location)
• Which bloggers promote and review products and services most suitable for their brand

The Top Independent Gadget Blogs and Bloggers report will also give marketing, advertising and PR professionals additional insight into promoting their brands on social networks, including YouTube, Facebook, MySpace and Twitter, giving them an opportunity to increase their exposure to this wider audience.

A detailed overview of the report, including sample pages can be found here.
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Disclaimer: Tego Interactive, Bango, Blyk, Netsize, Taptu and Xiam (all mentioned in this post) are MSG supporters.

Fact-Packed Netsize Guide 2010 Focuses On Mobile Commerce, Mobile Marketing, Exciting Verticals & Augmented Reality Mega-Trends

Peggy Anne Salz — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 19:34:35 +0000

Regular readers will know that a high point of my year is collaborating with the Netsize team to collect the information, ideas and insights from industry authorities and +25 c-level execs that make the Netsize Guide the industry’s number one reference work. This year is no exception. To the contrary, I’m proud to report the Netsize Guide 2010 – the 9th Edition of the Netsize almanac– is widely regarded as the best edition ever (!).

One reason for the heightened interest could be the sharp focus on the future of mobile and mobility. The Netsize Guide, aptly titled Mobile Renaissance, pushes the boundaries and examines the subtle yet seismic shift in the role of mobile in our society.

Indeed, mobile is no longer about technology; it’s about the means to collaborate, communicate, and connect with diverse networks of people, breaking down the walls between cultures and bringing together the physical and digital worlds.

More importantly, mobile is the catalyst for change and improvement in society, enabling innovation across all industry sectors (healthcare, education, retail) and countries.

FIVE KEY THEMES

In view of these developments the Netsize Guide 2010 identifies five key themes taking mobile to a new level of popularity and importance among consumers and businesses worldwide.

Activation (the emergence of mobile as a platform for applications and the advance of app stores);
Interaction (the evolution of mobile as a tool to communicate, capture and create content, and connect with social networks worldwide);
Conversation (the role of mobile in the media and marketing mix allowing brands and companies to connect with consumers on the move);
Transaction (the increasing acceptance of mobile for commerce, banking and customer service); and
Transformation (the expansion of mobile to emerging and developing marketing and the arrival of a new era of user experience driven by advances in smartphones, location services and augmented reality/AR services and browsers).

SURVEY FINDINGS

The Netsize Guide 2010 also includes the results of Mobile Trends Survey 2010, an online survey asking +1,000 mobile professionals and practitioners their views on these key themes and their insights into trends that top the industry agenda, including the advance of mobile applications stores, progress towards global mobile commerce and the increasing importance of mobile across a range of business verticals.

Among the findings:

Activation: 87 percent of respondents indicate that the Apple App Store will be most successful, followed by Google’s Android Market (60 percent), Nokia’s Ovi Store (30 percent) and RIM’s BlackBerry App World (27 percent). Surprisingly, applications stores run by mobile operators finished low in the list.
Interaction: Despite the rising popularity of application stores, side-loading and content-forwarding (ranked first by 84 percent of respondents) remains the most important distribution channel for mobile entertainment content.
Conversation: Mobile is not a stand-alone technology. The vast majority (92 percent) of respondents said mobile is most effective when combined with online media – which includes Web, email and social media — as part of a cross-media message.
Transaction: For 73 percent of respondents search, good navigation and targeted offers lead the list of requirements for a good shopping experience on mobile; 60 percent said a choice of payment methods and the ability to have purchases charged to their phone bill is also central.
Transformation: 2010 will see the take-off of permission-based mobile commerce. 71 percent of respondents expect these purchases will be triggered by location-aware marketing, while 57 percent believe mobile coupons and campaigns involving 2D barcodes will generate sales.

COMPANY EXECS INTERVIEWED

Exclusive interview with 28 industry senior executives at leading companies and organizations provide unique perspectives on these themes and reveal how players across the mobile ecosystem are preparing to meet the challenges and take advantage of the opportunities ahead.

These include: execs at EmFinders, Evernote, Flirtomatic, GeoVector, GetJar, Havas Digital Mobile, Layar, Marks & Spencers, NearbyNow, Netsize, Nokia NAVTEQ, PayPal Mobile, Scanbuy, SFR, Sony Ericsson, Sony Music Entertainment, UGC and Universal McCann; analysts and consultants from comScore, Informa Telecoms & Media, Dray & Associates, Innopay, Memodia and VisionMobile; and representatives of industry associations including Bundesverband Digitale Wirtschaft, Internet Advertising Bureau, Mobile Entertainment Forum and the Mobile Marketing Association.

MOBILE MEETS MEDICI

Are we are on the cusp of a modern-day Renaissance?

It certainly looks that way.

I came to this conclusion after long and invigorating exchanges with Stan Chesnais, Netsize CEO, and Alexander Vlasblom, Netsize Group Marketing Communications Director.

Another confirmation came after I reviewed the arguments presented in the must-read business book The Medici Effect: Breakthrough Insights at the Intersection of Ideas, Concepts & Culture by Frans Johansson. I interviewed Frans a few years back for a feature that appeared in the Wall Street Journal special report on High Performance Business. I was extremely impressed by Frans’ observation that breakthrough ideas are found at the intersection of different cultures, occupations, ways of thinking and points of view.

In his view, the Intersection is where we will find an explosion of extraordinary creativity and thought. In my view, we (all of us everywhere) can wield mobile to forge a new Intersection. It enables/empowers us to create a new world based on “intersectional ideas,” ideas that emerge at the intersection of cultures, expertise and mindsets.

The good news is that intersections tend to yield an exponential increase in ideas and concepts. The better news: this explosion of ideas is percolating at a place within everyone’s reach. As Frans put it: “The movement of people, the convergence of scientific disciplines and the leap in computational power are increasing the number and types of intersections we can access.”

What is the link to mobile?

Stan sums it up best in his conclusion (in the chapter aptly titled Transformation). As he sees it: “Moving forward, mobile is much more than a medium that we can use to link worlds and explore new possibilities. It is a door that opens a multitude of Intersections, where we will find new opportunities, surmount new challenges and gain new insights.”

CALL FOR COOL COMPANIES/IDEAS

What’s next?

In addition to looking for ideas and interview candidates for the next Netsize Guide, I am pleased to announce my collaboration with Netsize to create content around the key themes in the Netsize Guide 2010.

What am I looking for?

Mobile across verticals (healthcare, education, retail – the works); mobile across geographies (emerging and developing markets and/or examples of the global reach and impact of mobile on our lives and lifestyles); mobile at the center or commerce and purchasing (2D barcodes, visual search, marketing, advertising, promotion, CRM – the works); mobile bridging our physical and virtual worlds (Augmented Reality, Open ID, social media and social capital).

And everything in between!

So, if you are company/individual with insights/services related to mobile/mobility or if you simply want to share your “intersectional” ideas, reach out to me directly to set up a briefing. As always (!), I am open and eager to hear what you have to say.

I am extremely fortunate to have made the acquaintance of some super-cool AR companies and champions at Mobile Monday in Düsseldorf and look forward to profiling Dan Romescu, an AR veteran who proposes the fascinating vision of an “Augmented Citizen.”

UPDATE: A simple phone call to the contact number on Frans’ site may have paid off. After connecting with his delightful wife and assistant Sweet Joy, I am one huge step closer to a podcast interview with Frans I am sure will set the bar. I can’t wait to hear his views on mobile at the Intersection and share them via the Netsize Briefing Room microsite.

It’s all good – so stay tuned.

DOWNLOAD AND ENJOY!

In the meantime, I invite you to download the Netsize Guide 2010 and dive into the data and ideas that make it a mobile 2.0 reference work. This year it includes detailed data on the wireless telecoms sector in a whopping 41 countries (covering revenues, market shares and value-added service offerings for messaging and billing of 194 mobile network operators worldwide).

The Netsize Guide 2010 is available for free download here.

The Netsize Guide 2010 will be available for Amazon Kindle and EPUB format e-book readers in March.

Disclaimer: Netsize is an MSG supporter. The Netsize Guide is researched and written by Peggy Anne Salz, MSG Founder & Chief Analyst.

Apps or Browsers? Speak Out On The Touch Web; Contribute To Our Collective Vision

Peggy Anne Salz — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 15:29:16 +0000

Reams have been written about the impact of the Apple iPhone on content production and content creation. Yes, we should be excited about the avalanche of apps and content, but we must also cope with the hard reality that one Web presence may not be enough. In fact, it may be that we are witnessing the emergence of a new Internet – one focused on delivering us an awesome experience across a plethora of touchscreen devices from dozens of handset makers.

Indeed, the outcome of recent platform and device innovation is what Forrester’s Josh Bernoff calls the “Splinternet” (with a well-meant nod to Doc Searls and Rich Tehrani). As Bernoff points out in his blog: “The whole framework of the Web (and Web marketing) is based around the idea that everything is in a compatible format. Any browser, any computer, any connection, you see pretty much the same thing. Now with iPhones, Androids, Kindles, Tablets, and TVs connecting to the Web, that’s not true.”

Put another way, the age of divergence is upon us. Sure, the Internet used to be the one place that connected everything and where all things digital were findable, consumable and accessible. Not anymore.

Now we have fixed, mobile and touchscreen Internets – to name a few.

To complicate matters, each new device comes with its own business ecosystem. Touchscreen devices, in particular, have their own formats, technology and – more importantly – advertising networks.

This could be one reason why Google has tied up with AdMob, a company that can place advertising where Google can’t, namely in apps and across mobile websites. Against this backdrop, Google’s purchase of AdMob for $750 million in stock in November 2009 can be read as a confirmation that the touchscreen device Internet is much different from the rest. Not to be outdone, JumpTap also announced its intention to be an advertising platform for the iPad. (Specifically, Jumptap’s new integrated mobile ad solution will support Apple tablet-compatible ad units by the end of this month.)

MOBILE TOUCH WEB

Taptu — a mobile search company — has tracked this development from the start, becoming the only search company focused on indexing what it call the emerging Mobile Touch Web.

Taptu recently released a report documenting this new Web and the “2nd wave of content” coming online specifically designed for mobile touchscreen devices. Unlike other mobile Web content, this content stands out through finger-friendly layouts and light-weight pages that are faster to load over cellular networks.

The company – which began crawling and indexing the Mobile Touch Web in May 2009 – scans more than 100 million websites each month using specialized software that detects whether a site is a website or one specifically designed for the Mobile Touch Web. It counts a whopping 326,600 Mobile Touch Web sites, a number that far exceeds the 119,047 apps in the Apple App Store and 22,000 applications in the Android Market.

By the end of 2010, Taptu forecasts that the Mobile Touch Web will have grown to more than 500,000 sites, and exceed 1 million sites by the end of 2011.

Taptu’s research also suggests the Mobile Touch Web is entering the mainstream, and will evolve to deliver consumers the same excellent quality user experience they currently get with apps. (Expect to see this accelerate as industry efforts such as the Bondi Initiative provide developers access to deeper device functions such as geo-location and presence.)

IS IT APPS OR BROWSERS?

This worthwhile post from ReadWriteWeb analyzes the Taptu report findings and comments on the split between browser-based sites (social and shopping, for example) and apps (games and entertainment, for example).

My take: The choice (apps or browser) depends on your business model. As Taptu points out: “Many [Commerce] products and services do not really fit into Apple’s iTunes content-oriented billing system.” Thus, social and shopping services/experiences are a better fit with the mobile Web. At the other end of the spectrum, gaming and entertainment content is perhaps better delivered as an app, “since apps deliver a much richer, more interactive gaming experience than the casual games available on the Mobile Web.”

The good news: it’s getting easier for publishers to create rich touchscreen users experiences in the browser without having to create platform specific applications. Even better: for many types of apps (commerce, for example), the economics of software development and publishing favors the Web development route.

The challenge: the Mobile Touch Web, though growing vigorously as Taptu shows, is not the only game in town. Thus, the pressure is on companies everywhere in the ecosystem (content owners, developers, publishers, advertisers) to re-think their strategies and adopt their business models to the existence of the Splinternet. This means creating a balance of touch-friendly content for touchscreen devices and the emerging Mobile Touch Web, while not losing site of the opportunities offered by the other Internets.

We face tough choices, but hoping for the Internet to become a unified place where everything is accessible and connected (again) is not an option.

YOUR VOICE/VISION REQUIRED (!)

Taptu recently joined MSG’s roster of partners and supporters, a relationship that will see MSG host an open discussion of the Mobile Touch Web via a Taptu microsite on MSG.

In the meantime, I am pleased to formally announce my collaboration with Taptu to identify and amplify voices/visions that best describe the impact this new Mobile Touch Web will have on our daily lives.

To this end I have spent the last weeks connecting with mobilists/futurists/experts to get their pick of the three ways the Mobile Touch Web changes all the rules. The result is a path-breaking presentation that illustrates how touch potentially changes information access, super-charges advertising/marketing and revolutionizes content creation, SEO and user experience. (By way of background, the inspiration for this project is Mobile Trends 2020, the phenomenal presentation created and curated by Rudy de Waele at m-trends that was viewed over 46,000 (!) times.)

My sincere thanks for inputs/insights to Hugh Griffiths, Saverio Romeo (Frost & Sullivan), Tomi Ahonen (author), Mike Short (Telefónica Europe), Jonathan MacDonald (JME.net/ Fluid), Dave Moreau (Fonestarz), Mark Curtis (Flirtomatic), Neil MacDonald (Nuance), Dennis Bournique (WAP REVIEW), Carl Uminski (Somo), Daniel Appelquist (Vodafone), and Alfred De Rose (Tego Interactive) for input and insights! I also look forward to input from Russell Buckley (AdMob) and Peter Vesterbacka.

Now I am opening up the project to EVERYONE EVERYWHERE.

I invite YOU to submit your ideas for consideration. The most visionary/thought-provoking views will be included in a collaborative vision of the Mobile Touch Web. DEADLINE: end-FRIDAY (February 26).

I hope you will submit three bullet points/observations that sum up how the Mobile Touch Web will likely impact our lives/lifestyles/experiences/ecosystems/businesses – the works!

Here’s a Taptu presentation to get you started – and you can download the full report here...

Introducing The Mobile Touch Web

View more presentations from Taptu Touch Search.

Knowledge is most valuable and impactful when we share it – so I hope YOU will get involved! Email your views/vision to peggy@msearchgroove.com.

Disclaimer: Taptu is an MSG supporter.

PODCAST SERIES: Smaato Mobile Advertising Award Winners Aloqa, Waze & Yoose PLUS MWC Trends

Peggy Anne Salz — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 07:53:28 +0000

Mobile advertising, location services couponing and crowd-sourcing are just a few of the hot topics we cover in exclusive interviews with the CEOs of Aloqa, Waze, and Yoose, companies that won the prestigious Smaato Mobile Advertising Award 2009.

In this series – a collaboration between MSG and Smaato, a mobile ad optimizer and mobile advertising company – the companies speak out on key mobile advertising trends and what we can likely expect from MWC this week. They also comment on the meetings with eight top-notch VCs – introductions that are a big part of the Smaato Award.

By way of background, the winners were chosen in October by a world-class jury of leading influencers of the mobile community. With about 250 nominees and registrations from all corners of the world, it was tough to choose from such a diverse range of apps and content from a mix of cultures and ethnicities. The good news is mobile advertising innovation and good ideas are percolating around the world in countries such as Brazil, Africa and India. It’s an industry unlikely to be dominated by the usual suspects.

As mobile author and authority Tomi Ahonen put it in a press statement at the time: “I was very impressed by the very high level of quality of the entrants to the Smaato awards and in particular how many of the services have achieved considerable commercial success, wide adoption and use.”

Thanks again to Harald Neidhardt, Smaato CMO & Founder, and Petra Vorsteher, Smaato EVP, Strategic Alliances & Co-Founder, for including me on the panel of judges and helping me reach out to the winners for this series. Huge thanks also to Neil Robertson at IF Communications for coordinating schedules and his help in making this happen.

You can also meet up with all three companies at the Smaato booth in Hall 7, booth C38.

***

Listen to the Waze podcast with CEO Noam Bardin here. [4:38]

Listen to Yoose podcast with CEO Christian Geissendoerfer here. [4:44]

Listen to the Aloqa podcast with CEO Sangeev Agrawal here. [4:43]

Disclaimer: Smaato is not an MSG friend – but not partner/supporter.

MOBILE MILESTONES: Virtual & Physical Worlds Combine; A Look Back With Tomi Ahonen, Facebook, YouTube, BuzzCity & Coke

Peggy Anne Salz — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 06:56:14 +0000

Today MSG concludes its three-part series dissecting the mobile developments impacting the mobile industry and our society at all levels, as documented in the Netsize Guide.

The focus is expansion and what it means when Web goes mobile and mobile gets real.

At one end of the spectrum, Web giants such as Facebook, Google and Amazon have advanced into mobile. At the other end, mobile is becoming the remote control of our collective lives, blurring the barriers between our virtual and physical worlds.

Who are the players to watch and what are their strategies? Why is mobile different? And what are the requirements for a good mobile experience in this age of divergence?

These are just a few of the questions covered in EXPAND, a section of the Netsize Guide 2009 that draws from interviews with mobile pundit Tomi Ahonen and senior executives at Facebook, BuzzCity, YouTube, Coca-Cola, Blyk and Grupo Cortefiel – to name a few.

(Click here to download.)

Read the full article in the Netsize Briefing Room on MSG.

MOBILE MILESTONES: Mobile Engagement & Mobile Advertising; Spotlight on Ogilvy, Orange, Visa, Sponge PLUS More Video Interviews

Peggy Anne Salz — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 18:10:05 +0000

Just two days till the industry gathers at the fist Mobile World Congress (MWC) of the new decade. To get us in the mindset to think about the companies, developments and trends that matter most, MSG presents part 2 of the three-part series dissecting the mobile developments impacting the mobile industry and our society at all levels, as documented in the Netsize Guide.

Today we look at mobile engagement (which we defined to include mobile advertising, mobile marketing, mobile commerce and all the ways companies/brands connect with people on the move. What advertising approaches will people accept? What role do mobile operators play? What are the campaigns that set the bar? What is the future of NFC? And where does mobile fit in an effective CRM strategy?

These are just a few of the questions covered in ENGAGE, a section of the Netsize Guide 2009 that draws from interviews with senior executives at Ogilvy Group, Orange, Twistbox, Telefónica, Visa, E-Plus, MTS Russia, Sponge Ltd., Verrus and Microsoft– to name a few. (Click here to download.)

Read the rest of this post in the Netsize Briefing Room on MSG.

WOW! Over 200 Slots Filled; MSG Reaches Out With bnetTV Special Sponsorship Offer

Peggy Anne Salz — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 18:41:30 +0000

Just tying up loose ends and pinning down last interviews before I’m off to Barcelona for Mobile World Congress (MWC). If you haven’t booked a video interview with me or Michelle Sklar, then best to start planning for CTIA in March because all the slots (over 200!) for coverage are full.

However, there are some limited sponsorship opportunities available allowing companies placement through in-video overlay, logos and other promotion formats. It’s an excellent way to reach an audience of over 1 million viewers. (All MWC interviews will be aired on bnetTV’s website, as well as over 150 other web and social media sites (including MSG), that are part of bnetTV’s larger partner network.

SPONSORSHIP PACKAGES INCLUDE:

Flash-Reel Feature Sponsor – $2500

In-video logo overlay
Logo featured on title bar 2x within each video
As the logo is embedded within the video, it will be seen at all aggregation points
6 spots available

bnetTV Media Player Feature Sponsor – $1000

Logo featured on the lower portion of the bnetTV Media Player
This is a static graphic that will appear on all videos played from bnetTV’s website
3 spots available

Sponsors’ Splash Screen – $5000

Logo featured on the screen that runs after the show Intro and Credits play
Up to 4 spots available on the page
4 spots available

Premier Sponsor – $6500
Combination of 1 & 3 with “Premier Sponsor” naming
1 spot available

BTW: with any of the sponsorship packages listed above bnetTV will also include a copy of the company interview in DVD format with a customized cover and insert.
For more information, contact Michelle Sklar directly (michelle@bnettv.com).

MSG INTERVIEWS & OUTREACH

Update: I have joined with bnetTV to conduct in-depth interviews with companies including Xiam (a Qualcomm company), inMobi, Amdocs, Out There Media, Neomedia, Bytemobile, JumpTap and Volantis- to name a few.

I also have some excellent MSG briefings set up with an eclectic mix of mobile search and personalization companies – a perfect fit with my ongoing research projects.

If you haven’t connected with me for a briefing – or our schedules clashed – then please reach out during the evening events. I’ll be at the fabulous Mobile Entertainment Forum (MEF) party, the Netsize party (to launch the Netsize Guide 2010, the Mobile Sunday networking evening and the sold-out TechCrunch startup event. Text me and I’m sure we’ll connect.

MOBILE MILESTONES: Mobile Entertainment, Mobile Games, Mobile Music & Social Networks PLUS Video Interviews

Peggy Anne Salz — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 12:10:27 +0000

In the run up to Mobile World Congress 2010 MSG hosts a three part series dissecting the mobile developments impacting the mobile industry and our society at all levels, as documented in the Netsize Guide. This
comprehensive annual analysis of what matters in mobile – often referred to as a mobile 2.0 reference work — combines country telecommunications data, exclusive interviews with senior executives and insights from online surveys with mobile professionals and practitioners to provide the inside track on what’s happening in mobile – everywhere.

Today we look at mobile entertainment. What issues/opportunities peg the needle? What models deliver? And what past industry events/milestones shape the future?

These are just a few of the questions covered in ENTERTAIN, a section of the Netsize Guide 2009 that draws from interviews with senior executives at Nokia, Fox Mobile Group, Meetic, Greystripe, Sony Ericsson, Sony Music Entertainment and Streamezzo – to name a few.

Read the rest of this post in the Netsize Briefing Room on MSG.

GUEST COLUMN: Getting The Message Across; Seven Rules For Effective Mobile Advertising

Antti Öhrling — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 16:54:43 +0000

The recent wave of M&A in the mobile advertising space marks the start of more than a just another industry land grab; it should be read as a validation of mobile marketing and a confirmation of its true potential. Indeed, the two milestone acquisitions — Google’s purchase of AdMob for $750 million in stock in November 2009 and the news that Apple had followed the search giant’s lead in January 2010, snapping up mobile ad network Quattro Wireless for $270 million – push the value of the mobile advertising industry passed the $1 billion mark, strengthening the business case for mobile and heralding a pivotal year for mobile advertising everywhere.

These acquisitions—Google’s purchase of AdMob in particular — also confirm what companies including Blyk have known from the start. Mobile is a different market with a huge potential for advertising. According to market research firm Gartner, worldwide mobile advertising spend will reach $13 billion in 2013.

Mobile is also a different media. As Tomi Ahonen, independent consultant and mobile industry expert, points out in his newly released book, Mobile as 7th of the Mass Media: Cellphone, Cameraphone, iPhone, Smartphone, mobile is the 7th of the mass media. It follows print from the 1500s, recording from the 1900s, cinema from the 1910s, radio from the 1920s, TV from the 1950s, and Internet from the 1990s.

The power of mobile begins with its reach. There are twice as many mobile devices as TV sets, three times as many mobile subscribers as Internet users, and four times as many mobile phones as PCs. Mobile is also very versatile as a media channel if we consider that it is digital, multimedia-capable, personal and interactive.

Clearly, the capabilities of the mobile phone are uniquely suited to generate massive new mobile advertising opportunities.

But there’s a catch. A very big catch.

Mobile is a personal, interactive and effective medium. More importantly, I believe the impact of mobile on our lives forces companies across the value chain to re-think advertising. From media planning and buying to creatives and production, mobile changes all the rules, which is one major reason why it’s not possible to simply transfer what we know about advertising in the other media to mobile.

Getting (truly) personal

Companies up and down the TV and print value chains, for example, have long worked out the ecosystems, models and rules of engagement that allow them to wring business value out of advertising. They are mature industries and several, such as print, are in decline.

In contrast, mobile advertising is a new market full of opportunities.

It’s also a market that is crowding fast as Web giants extend their reach to mobile advertising, pursuing expansion strategies that clash head-on with the interests and influence of mobile operators. No wonder industry observers refer to mobile advertising as the next big battlefield for online players and telecom companies.

Fortunately, there are many approaches to advertising in mobile. They go far beyond the paid search schemes that allowed Google and other search engine providers to dominate the online space and displace ISPs (Internet Service Providers) in the value chain.

Indeed, mobile advertising, like the mobile medium itself, is personal, rich and engaging. Different approaches satisfy different advertising needs.

While the advance of touch screen devices and the recent buzz about the iPad may have created heightened interest in ‘new’ ways to deliver advertising (via in-application ads or video overlays in Augmented Reality (AR) campaigns), the money and the excitement is elsewhere.

The money is in advertising that (literally) speaks to the interests and passions of the consumers, engaging them in a dialogue about what matters most to them. This conversation can be direct, connecting consumers with brands they consider important to their daily lives. But it can also be a more subtle, involving so-called branded utilities – for example, weather information sponsored by makers of cold medicine — that deliver consumers a value they truly appreciate.

No matter what the advertising message is, it’s all about messaging.

You text me, I text you and brands text us.

Messaging is at the heart of the most basic and effective form of communication we know. The special appeal of messaging stems from its perfect fit with what advertising is all about: creating a conversation. More importantly, messaging – particularly when combined with rich profile data, time of day and other deep audience insights – brings context, meaning and relevancy to the conversation.

Thus, messaging lays the groundwork for an ongoing and genuine dialogue between the advertiser and the consumer. It also yields significantly higher response rates.

One reason for this lies in human nature and how we prefer to communicate. While one-to-many display banner ads that blast their branding pitch to people may achieve marketing objectives on a PC, their user experience (UX) shortcomings show through on mobile. Beyond their small size, simplistic messages (”download this here” or “buy me”) and intrusive nature, analysts suggest that much of the interaction between consumers and display ads could simply be out of error. (Perhaps because our fingers are too big?) We at Blyk miss analysis of the difference between messaging and display and will examine this topic in more depth in this series.

In the meantime, it suffices to say that messaging has – more than any other mobile advertising format – ticks all the boxes for a good user experience and even better results.

The industry is certainly convinced. A raft of recent industry surveys and reports reveal that – out of the five leading mobile advertising approaches (search, display, content, applications and messaging) – messaging is by far the largest segment. In fact, market research firm eMarketer reports that messaging accounts for over half of mobile ad spend.

Ready to rumble

Google, the hands-down winner in online advertising, is hardly the market leader in mobile. To the contrary, Google’s AdSense, which it launched for mobile in June 2009, is all about landing display ads from online advertisers on mobile phones. However, a one-size-fits all broadcast approach patently ignores the unique requirements and characteristics of mobile I outlined earlier. This could be one reason why Google has tied up with AdMob, a company that can place advertising where Google can’t, namely in apps and across mobile websites.

The move by Google tells us that the race for a top-notch spot in this new market has begun. To date Google is not in the pole position. But that could change. The AdMob purchase allows Google to plug some important gaps in its mobile advertising strategy, paving the way for the delivery of mobile advertising everywhere– including on the Android platform.

What does this mean for other companies across the mobile advertising ecosystem, specifically the mobile operators?

In my view, they appear to have some catching up to do. They also appear to be unaware of the vast arsenal of competitive capabilities at their disposal, such as deep customer insight and superior customer analytics, that more than level the playing field.

Value ad(d)

Put another way, mobile operators have the ace in their hand.

Messaging is not only the dominant channel in the mobile advertising mix. Managing communication via SMS at all levels is core to a mobile operator’s DNA. It also represents the wisest use of mobile operator know-how and network assets.

We may like to think that the Internet like the ‘Cloud’ is limitless. But the bandwidth that makes browsing, downloading and streaming all possible is quite clearly a limited resource. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) predicts that developments, such as the meteoric rise in mobile browsing, mobile video consumption and other bandwidth-hungry applications, will likely result in a “spectrum crisis” and a 30-fold increase in wireless traffic. Since it took more than five years to increase wireless spectrum by a multiple of three, the FCC is understandably concerned that it could take 50 years (!) to accommodate the current rate of wireless data growth.

Clearly, mobile advertising approaches built on messaging avoid this issue.

And let’s not forget another advantage messaging has over all other forms of mobile advertising: it is the universal no-brainer. Everyone everywhere on the planet can send and receive text messages, and all mobile devices support it.

Indeed, the advantages of messaging are many, and all of them play in the favor of the mobile operator.

This is why Blyk has chosen to focus on messaging, spearheading its use across a wide variety of mobile advertising campaigns. But the power of messaging is not limited to the way advertisers and mobile operators can use it to kick off an ongoing conversation with consumers. Clever companies also harness messaging to initiate an exchange that links to a mobile Internet site, drives traffic to a specific offering, asks (politely) for personal data or simply rewards the consumer with downloadable content or apps.

Mission critical

Blyk has evolved its strategic approach to mobile advertising over time and through experience, first as an MVNO catering to the youth demographic and today as a partner with mobile operators such as Orange in the U.K. and Vodafone in The Netherlands. Additional partnerships with mobile operators outside Europe are also due to be announced in the near future.

As a result, Blyk has become a mobile media company, specializing in the end-to-end capabilities and strategies necessary to deliver relevant and targeted mobile advertising to empowered consumers on their terms. (Quite frankly, that’s really the only way to deliver advertising; any other approach is spam.)

Blueprint for impact

Blyk works in close partnership with mobile operators, sharing its valuable insights, intellectual capital, best practice and proven approaches to customer segmentation and social media marketing.

Blyk’s New Business Model: Partnering with Operators — Source: Blyk, 2009

This approach allows Blyk to address the mobile operator’s core business needs (namely, increase ARPU, decrease churn and encourage services uptake), while providing them a springboard to new models and new revenue streams driven by mobile advertising.

Blyk also brings key learnings to the operator relationship that benefit their brand and advertising customers. As a mobile media company Blyk understands the importance of targeting and relevancy and works with operators to deliver advertisers immediate and direct access to the ‘Blyk media audience,’ an audience built in partnership with operators that is 100-percent profiled and 100-percent opted-in to receiving brand messages.

To be clear, success is not about on creating huge databases of ‘opt-ins’ (customers who specifically agree to accept advertising messages on their mobile phones). It’s about wielding that customer permission and the data these consumers freely volunteer to create a unique media opportunity.

Having worked with both sides – the brands that want to connect with consumers who want to hear their message and the mobile operators that want to facilitate this conversation – Blyk has identified seven basic rules for effective mobile advertising .

Permission, please: An opt-in audience is a must and operators must get customer permission before delivering any advertising.
Relevancy rules: Advertising messages must be relevant – period. The best advertising is delivered in tune with consumer context.
Timing is everything: The frequency and timing of advertising is different in the mobile environment, and there are limits depending on the time of day or day of the week.
Value is king: Consumers must feel – at all times – that they are getting value from the advertising.
It takes two: Mobile advertising is not just about delivering ads; it’s about two-way communication.
Numbers add up: Measurement and tracking are essential.
Keep it simple: Everything needs to be simple – for the advertisers and for the consumers.

Moving forward, mobile messaging will be much more than an effective way to deliver targeted and relevant advertising. It will evolve to become the centerpiece of all conversations about everything, allowing the mobile operators who facilitate this exchange to become mobile media powerhouses.

Want to let people know you have a mobile website or encourage consumers to check out your new app? Or are you a physical store out to clinch a virtual sale? It’s a tall order. Reports and surveys show mobile search has more than its share of shortcomings (stemming from the fact that most search engines have been poorly retrofitted for mobile) and content discovery also falls short. A message to the right audience – that is, one profiled, opted-in and open to your message — may be the best way to drive traffic, boost sales and rise above the noise.

Antti is the Co-Founder of Blyk, the messaging media that works with mobile operators to link young people with brands and other stuff they like. He has over 25 years experience as a senior manager in branded goods, retail and wholesale, TV& film and advertising industries. Antti is also founder of Contra Advertising Group, today part of Touch Worldwide. He serves as Chairman of Contra China, an advertising agency specializing in mobile and social media marketing based in Beijing. In addition, Antti is a Fellow at the RSA (Royal Society for the encouragement of Art, Manufactures and Commerce) in the U.K. and a regular speaker at lectures on innovative business strategies and brand issues worldwide. For more information about Blyk, check out the company profile and explore the collection of customer case studies.

Disclaimer: Blyk is an MSG supporter. This is the first in a series of columns by Blyk examining mobile advertising strategies and business models.

Show Us Your Stuff @ MWC; MSG & bnetTV Partner & Film Interviews;Limited Slots Still Available

Peggy Anne Salz — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 12:01:19 +0000

Regular readers will recall that one of my oldest and closest partners is bnetTV, the source for mobile industry interviews. I’ve conducted dozens of interviews on behalf of bnetTV (featured in the video player and playlist in the right-hand sidebar) at leading mobile industry events worldwide and will be joining with Michelle Sklar and the rest of the bnetTV team to film interviews during Mobile World congress (MWC). Companies lining up to take advantage of this editorial opportunity include: Nuance, Novarra, Out There Media, JumpTap GetJar (during the must-attend Showstoppers mini-event), Neomedia and InMobi, to name a few.

Companies and execs are still confirming filming times – so it’s going to be a busy and exciting show indeed! We still have some slots available, so please contact Michelle ASAP (michelle@bnettv.com) to schedule an interview.

Of course, I’m also at MWC to identify companies and content to feature on MSG (for example, exclusive Q&As and podcasts), so please reach out to me directly (peggy@msearchgroove.com) to set up a briefing.

I’ll also be dropping in and out of several events during MWC including Showstoppers, m-trends Mobile Premier Awards, Swedish Beers, TechCrunch Mobile @ Barcelona and (of course!) the Netsize Party on February 16th that also marks the launch of the Netsize Guide 2010 – perhaps my best work to date.

I hope to see you there!

M-Days Wrap: Super Mobile Mega-Trends; Eastern European Biz Models; Expert-Generated Content; Mobile Commerce; Lufthansa Meta-Community: Operator Ad Space

Peggy Anne Salz — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 13:44:17 +0000

A quick roundup of M-Days insights and highlights. Companies mentioned include: Ahead of Time, Rubberduck Media Labs, Service2Media, Out There Media, Fishlab Entertainment, Southend United Football Club, Fjord, Farm Town, Exbiblio, Gedda-Headz, Lufthansa and Velti.

I’m back and settled from M-Days in Munich. The two-day event drew an international and eclectic crowd, and presented a welcome opportunity to connect with companies and people from across Europe. A special highlight was getting the inside track from Eastern European mobile operators and leading content owners on the problems they face and progress they have made. Specifically, Petar Pavic – Managing Director of EPH, Croatia’s biggest media house – and Jana Vyhlidalova from Teléfonica O2 Czech Republic had some excellent stories to tell about mobile usage and experimentation in their respective countries.

Fortunately, both have agreed to share them with MSG in a longer interview/podcast following Mobile World Congress. That’s also when MSG and M-Days organizers will formally join together to launch a new publication to raise awareness about mobile news and developments across continental Europe – so watch this space.

In the meantime, allow me to provide you with the key takeaways from the M-Days sessions I attended/moderated.

Mobile 2010 trends (via Christian Lindholm, Managing Partner, Fjord (digital design company): An awesome presentation with eight of the trends highest on Christian’s radar.

Among these:

Dawn of divergence: Lots of devices with even more implications for personal mobility. But the real game-changer is the emergence of the “finger as a natural stylus.” This cleans up the user experience and opens up new possibilities. What about the iPad? There may a few design downsides with huge implications. The casual and natural way we use mobile touch devices such as the iPhone creates a certain lean-back-and-explore flow that may become disrupted if we have to “pull out a much bigger device out to do the same thing.” And another key question: will women buy new purses and handbags to accommodate a bigger device? Or will they opt for a smaller, sleeker iPhone-like device?
Discovery is the new search: A welcome confirmation of MSG’s consistently sharp focus on recommendation and personalization. Search doesn’t work on mobile and people want to discover the wealth of cool stuff at their finger tips. Great news for companies in the space (and this survey and this guest column from Xiam underline the wider business case for recommenders). Christian believes NOW is the time is right to think through new approaches to encourage discovery. However, this could be quite a task since discovery takes a lot of screen real estate. Another issue centers on the best way to leverage social media and the social Web to “fuel the water cooler moments” of discovery.
Facebook is the people, everywhere: However, Facebook no longer rules the roost. There are communities forming within this community that such as Farm Town, which counts 13,028,899 monthly active users. Could Facebook splinter and pin-out communities? Christian this is a distinct possibility and correctly warns Facebook to be “be fair” about the “tax” it charges communities (such as Farm Town) that use its platform to bump and connect.
Physical goes digital: Look for 2D barcodes, coupons and all the cool tools and technologies we can harness to create “worm holes” in our daily lives at specific locations (shops, streets, venues etc.) to flourish. An awesome example he offer is Exbiblio, a company following a mission to bridge the gap between the paper and digital worlds without making changes to the printing or publishing of documents. It does this by allowing people to scan a snippet of text (about 6 words); it turns this snippet into an identifying barcode, identifying both the document and the reader’s location within it. From the company website: “This means that a reader can use any optical scanner – like a smartphone camera – as the point of entry for ExBiblio to find the corresponding digital version of the document. Once you can link a paper document to its digital version, the paper you hold is transformed into a physical Web page. It achieves this at a faster, more fundamental and transparent level of context than any conventional system of reference.” This is fascinating stuff and I’ll have more after a briefing with the company founders.

Mobile commerce (via Peter Broekroelofs, CTO, Service2Media): Don’t underestimate the outlook for paid content and commerce – if it’s done right. Peter offered several examples of content companies that have cleverly mixed freemium and subscription models. Take the Dutch newspaper Telegraaf, for example. It’s making money from subscription and experimenting with paid-apps to sell special issues on topics such as the Tour de France. Another one to watch: the advance of Elsevier, which is building a solid business on science and medical content via paid-apps. As Peter put it: “CPMs are down and so everyone is moving to transactions.”

More mobile operators embrace ad-funded (via Kerstin Trikalitis, CEO, Out There Media): It was a meting of the minds with Kerstin, so I will save the analysis for MWC, when the company announces significant news. A key learning she shared (and offered as a reason why ad-funded mobile operator service Blyk had to change direction) is the importance of the right incentive. Operators in Eastern Europe are not focused on giving away free service or minutes; they want to make the connection between customer segments and the advertising messages people in these segments will accept. To this end the mobile operators are creating opt-in databases, integrating with CRM and – more importantly – working TOGETHER to give brands reach and audience.

Brands/Organizations share cool CRM strategies (via Michael Schade, Managing Director, Fishlab Entertainment & Mark Davies, Marketing Manager, Southend United Football Club): Great presentations – with some excellent confirmations of mobile advertising/marketing concepts we assume should work… Is listening and caring the way to sell tickets to a game? During his presentation on mobile ticketing and other topics, Mark revealed that making the effort to really pay attention to people (and backing this up with database management) can achieve amazing results. In his case, a text message to people who missed the game (or several games), encouraging them to show up for the next game did the trick. In other words, a personalized SMS saying something like ‘hi [NAME] , you haven’t been at the last two games. Would be great to see you Saturday out there cheering for your team…” engaged people. Simple, elegant and effective. As a result, 750+ attendees at the games show up because their team told them they mattered. Another moment of clarity when Michael talked about the game his company created for carmaker Volkswagen. The game rocked – with downloads to prove it. But the real news in my book was the positive impact on mobile CRM. People played the game and were pleased to volunteer personal information and sign up for a test drive at a nearby dealer. More on that when Michael returns after MWC with the full case study and some exclusive stats…

Mocom 2020 trends (via Monty Metzger, Founder, Ahead of Time): Monty condensed his excellent mobile trends video down to 3 trends that top his radar.

The rise of the “sensorconomy” – a new economy and ecosystem driven by the Internet of Things. Is this M2M on steroids or is it much more than that? Monty expects a wave of new company and business models to cash in one this.
The impact of the emerging market – These fast-followers don’t “get” new mobile business models; they invent them. From the phone ladies of Bangladesh to the Internet ladies of countries across Asia, this region is bubbling with ideas. (I am reminded here of a recent interview with Susan Dray, an independent consultant who uses her abilities in interface evaluation, usability evaluation and ethnographic research to help develop solutions that increase benefits to people in emerging markets and the service providers that operate there. The upcoming Netsize Guide features an interview I conducted with Susan, one chock-full with examples showing how local communities are using mobile tools to achieve socioeconomic development goals.)
The rise of the Digital Natives – This generation raised on the Internet is entering the workforce. Expect them – literally – to rock the globe.

Mobile TV (via Karin Du Rietz, Content Director, Rubberduck Media Labs): Drawing from stats on T-Mobile mobile TV usage and trends Karin confirm a trend to “expert-generated content”. At least in Germany and the markets Rubberduck serves people are more into watching regular TV shows than YouTube juggling-the-cat videos… People also prefer live TV over looped content. Sports is the top content category, with 27 percent of viewers watching it on their mobiles (it was 5 percent a year ago).

Social connected gaming (via Frank Fitzek, European Director, Gedda-Headz): Frank provided an excellent deep-dive into the issues around cross-platform (Java, Android, iPhone and a bridge via PCs to Internet for users who don’t have a mobile flat rate data plan), location-based gaming and the importance of cross-media promotion. His team promotes the game using a professionally produced music video (where the rappers wear the heads/masks of the characters in the game) and physical representations of the characters that players (15-year old demographic) can pick up at selected retailers. The game is live in Germany and Asia, and counts 140,000 downloads (via GetJar since the holidays) and 50,000 active users. Viral marketing is key for commercial applications and Frank has identified and harnessed lead users or “seeders” to help new players install the game on their phones over Bluetooth and – so – spread the word. Players play the game for fun but also for their “respect” points. Frank – who is a professor, a social media enthusiast and a futurist – has thought this through to be sure it’s not just another game. I look forward to having him back on MSG in the next weeks.

The emergence of the meta-community (via Torsten Wingenter, Global Coordination Social Media Marketing, Lufthansa): Should companies seek to make social networks? Or should they invent new ways to harness them? In the case of Lufthansa, it’s the latter. Since we all fly/travel this soon-to-be-released app is all about enabling people to use their existing social networks to tell people where they are (on route to where, for example) and connect with the community to share taxis, get travel advice or other information. As Torsten put it: “It’s about connecting communities on our hardware (aircraft) and facilitating their conversations.” In short, Lufthansa is creating meta-communities that sit on top of other communities for specific types of conversations. A fascinating strategy and an even more interesting observation: people (in the focus group) like the idea of communities of purpose (everything around your trip, for example) and freely offer advice and information. Hmmm- will we see meta-communities harness the wisdom of their crowds (across social networks) to offer good advice and ever better experiences? Torsten’s case study will feature in the MSG-M-Days collaborative project I mentioned earlier in this post, so watch this space.

The evolution of customer loyalty (via Stephane Gantchev, Business Development Manager CEE, Velti): Mobile operators sit on a stockpile of data about their post-paid customers. But they have very little insight into the profiles and preferences of their pre-paid user base. It’s a problem for customer relations and a bigger issue for mobile operators (particularly in Eastern Europe) with mobile advertising/marketing ambitions. Velti’s solution focuses on the critical moment of top up, when the operator is delivering people an important message/service, to incentivize users to interact with operators and volunteer personal information. In practice Velti delivers pre-paid users a code on their mobile phones when they top up, inviting people to participate in a game (with instant win) on the Web. People like the instant win and play the games frequently, allowing operators to ask for more profiling data each time the individual returns. Stephane says the combination of instant gratification and repeat visits allows mobile operators to understand just who their pre-paid customer base is and communicate this to brands interested in advertising to customers on an opt-in basis. Velti counts several deployments in CEE and Stephane will be back on MSG in a few months to share experiences, stats and key learnings. One (sort of) data point he could share: the number of people redeeming the code and joining in the games has already exceeded operator expectation just 2.5 months after deployment.

My personal thanks to the organizers for asking me to participate and to everyone else for the invigorating conversations. Most M-Days presentations and speakers listed here will feature in MSG analysis and interviews/podcast over the next weeks.

Companies/individuals I didn’t meet or cover are welcome to reach out to me directly. I am always open to good ideas…

Disclaimer: Netsize and Xiam are MSG supporters.

Apple App Store Leads The Pack; Will Operator App Stores Struggle?

Peggy Anne Salz — Sun, 31 Jan 2010 13:43:14 +0000

Netsize – a Gemalto company and leading mobile communications and commerce enabler – kicks off its MSG microsite with a look at the controversial findings of the Mobile Trends Survey 2010. Drawing from an online survey of over 1,000+ mobile professionals and practitioners, the survey found that the vast majority (87 percent) of respondents believe the Apple App Store will be the most successful app store in the mobile space.

Google’s Android Market is a distant second (60 percent), followed by Nokia’s Ovi Store (30 percent) and RIM’s BlackBerry App World (27 percent). Respondents could choose more than one answer – which is why the total exceeds 100 percent.

Read the rest of this post here.

MSG @ M-Days Munich; Mobile Trend Survey Results Reveal App Store Success Stories PLUS The Touch Web

Peggy Anne Salz — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 18:29:57 +0000

I’m out the door and off to M-Days in Munich, one of Europe’s biggest and best mobile industry events and exhibitions. The sold-out event brings together 1,400+ mobile industry professionals, executives and analysts to exchange ideas, network and talk global mobile trends. I’m proud to be a media partner and will have other news post-event about an exciting new venture between MSG and my esteemed colleague Carsten Szameitat, M-Days organizer and the driving force behind GFM Nachrichten, Germany’s leading source of mobile industry news and analysis.

And what better event than M-Days to provide a preview of the first (exclusive) results of Mobile Trends Survey 2010?

Drawing from an online survey of 1,000+ professionals and practitioners, the survey – conducted by MSG partner Netsize – provides insights into key trends that top the industry agenda, including the advance of mobile applications stores, progress towards global mobile commerce and the pivotal importance of mobile as a means to bridge our virtual and physical worlds.

During the session aptly titled “Mobile Trends 2020, Mobile Research and App-Commerce: What Comes Next in Europe?” I will provide conference attendees, industry influencers and key bloggers a sneak peek into the controversial survey results, starting with respondents’ views on app store leaders and the enablers that give them and their offers the competitive edge.

Follow the event on Twitter (#mdays).

I look forward to an exciting panel with futurist and trend scout Monty Metzger (best known for his work with MOCOM2020, an open think tank about mobile media worldwide), Peter Broekroelofs (who heads up Service2Media and has valuable insights into the future of mobile commerce), and Karin Du Rietz from Rubberduck Media Lab (with some cool ideas about the future of mobile TV).

Another trend I will include in my presentation/discussion is the impact of smartphones on the fabric of the mobile Web.

The advance of touchscreen devices, app stores and new advertising approaches/formats are all coming together in a new kind of interactive mobile Internet, a brave new place where new content, new experiences and even new mobile search services will set the bar.
This brings me to Taptu, a mobile search company that understands this seismic shift. It lays out its views on this new Touch Web in a thought-provoking series of white papers. (Available for download on MSG – see the right-hand sidebar for more details.)

The Touch Web throws up as many issues as it does opportunities.

•   What does it do to usability?
•   What does it mean for mobile advertising and how do we make it easy and inviting for people to interact with company sites and ads?
•   What is the impact on mobile search?

Tough questions I will address in my presentation.

Taptu doesn’t have all the answers either – but its plan of action (and thought leadership) is impressive. For a start, Taptu has crawled, indexed and graded websites (assessing factors such as their suitability for touch devices and their page weights –key since it impacts the speed of browsing on mobile network and the end-user experience) to create an index of Touch Web-friendly sites.

To make sure Touch Web-friendly sites also figure highly in mobile search results Taptu has also fine-tuned its algorithms to “decide whether to return results from the Touch Web, the mobile Web or the wider Web” depending on factors such as the searcher’s device and what they would likely appreciate.

More about this next week when Taptu releases the first-ever Touch Web report. MSG will delve deeper into the results in a series of articles and sponsored podcasts. And more on the Netsize survey results tomorrow (once they are public).

If you plan to be in Munich, please feel free to reach out!

Disclaimer: Netsize and Taptu are MSG partners and supporters and have committed to presenting exclusive thought leadership via a branded presence on MSG.

PODCAST: Nimble Nimbuzz Sharpens Focus On Context & Community; Will It Go One Better Than Foursquare & Co.?

Peggy Anne Salz — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 19:27:36 +0000

Thanks to all the cool companies for reaching out to me over the last weeks with briefings and product demos. Keep those emails coming and I’ll pick the best to feature on MSG. A company that has been high on my radar is Nimbuzz, a mobile social messaging app that covers all the bases to be much, much more. The multi-community mobile social messenger service combines Instant Messaging, (geo) presence, and VoIP. The free application lets users connect and interact with their buddies across communities, including Skype, Windows Live Messenger, Yahoo! Messenger, ICQ, Google Talk and AIM, as well as social networks including Facebook, Twitter and MySpace.

Last year was one company milestone after another: Nimbuzz updated the app on iPhone, released a version for Blackberry, introduced VoIP for Android and launched Twitter for Symbian handsets. It also sealed deals to be pre-installed on the T-mobile Tap Phone in the U.S. and on the Toshiba TG01 handset offered by O2 in Germany.

To connect the dots in last year’s accomplishments and get the inside track on Nimbuzz’ next moves I caught up with Tobias Kemper, VP of Nimbuzz Inc. USA. Many thanks to Tobias for a straightforward interview and unexpected insights into the product roadmap.By way of background, Nimbuzz – winners of the Techcrunch, Webby and Red Herring awards – counts over 14 million users in 200 countries, a number growing at around 40,000 new users per day (that’s 1 every 2 seconds). It counts over one million voice calls per day (over 300 million per year).

Other podcast highlights:

PLATFORM STATS: Nimbuzz supports all the usual suspects: Symbian, J2ME, Android, iPhone, iPod touch, Windows Mobile and RIM. So what flies? “Symbian is definitely our number one, directly followed by Java and the iPhone. We’ve only just launched a native RIM client with massive uptake….The iPhone has definitely done a tremendous amount and continues to, but Symbian is the most dominant player.”

USAGE & BEHAVIOR: There are distinct and interesting differences depending on the geography. “In the Middle East, for example, people use our products like nothing else to meet people [and] enter the chat rooms. They treat those like mini-social networks, so it’s really going beyond the technology of just making a free call….In the developed countries — Western Europe and North America — it’s all about being able to monitor your friends, having everyone in the same place, reading everyone’s status messages and being able to tap in and say ‘OK I want to get in contact with this person right now.’”

BUSINESS MODELS: Mobile marketing and advertising are candidates, but mobile CRM is highest on the radar. Even better if it involves brands. As Tobias put it: “A mobile social messaging application like ours is perfectly positioned to foster brand engagement. It is something that we’re looking at because it’s an always on product, it’s a very intimate device that the product is based on and it is something that we are going to be exploring more in the next year. It definitely makes sense, it has to be done right and it has to be with the user focus.”

NEW FEATURES IN THE PIPELINE: Look for some surprises and more mobile operator partnerships. Again, Tobias is understandably reserved. What we know: “There’ll be a whole bunch of features that are going to be built on top of location-based services that are being built out and become more contextually relevant.”

My take: Hmmmm… contextual relevancy is an element of a range of exciting – and potentially lucrative –services.

So, will Nimbuzz join the group of hot mobile location-sharing services that includes Foursquare, Gowalla, Brightkite and Loopt – to name a few?

It’s a tough one to call, but Nimbuzz could make the move.

What does Nimbuzz think? Tobias is understandably tight-lipped but his admiration for companies like Foursquare and plans to add “similar features” comes through loud and clear. As he puts it: “It’s about moving beyond the technology and doing that face-to-face meeting. [It's about] what we can do to make that easier and aid users in using that feature and making real-life interactions happen through our application.”

Communication and community are baked into the app, and a whopping 98 percent of people who use it recommend it to a friend. That keeps Nimbuzz’ marketing budget down and boosts its viral appeal. Surely those metrics lay the groundwork for a more ambitious strategy and a new ecosystem around personal recommendations of real-life places and establishments…

Listen to podcast here [15:50]

Mobile Premier Award Finalists Announced; Connect With Mobile’s Rising Stars @ MWC

Peggy Anne Salz — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 15:58:21 +0000

Regular readers may have noticed it was quiet at MSG on Friday – mainly because I was perusing the materials submitted by 48 mobile startups to select the 20 Mobile Premier Award (MPA) finalists and completely mesmerized by what they had to offer.

Several of the startups showcase not only the best in grassroots innovation; they top my list of must-profile companies at MSG. My personal thanks to Rudy De Waele and the team of dotopen for naming me to the esteemed panel of judges and mobile experts.

From one startup that effectively enables everyone on the planet to have a mobile presence to several cool companies making mobile commerce a reality, the MPA event at the Petit Palau of Palau de la Musica on February 15, 2010 brings together some amazing talent. I look forward to joining judges there (I also judged last year). As a media sponsor, I encourage you to register to attend the event and connect with the investors, operators, media companies, peer entrepreneurs, and press and influential bloggers who are also in attendance.

The year’s MPA best in Mobile Startup innovation Finalists are:

MobileMonday Austria – Mobilizy
MobileMonday Barcelona – fonYou
MobileMonday Berlin – spendino
MobileMonday Bogota – RedSalvavidas
MobileMonday Chennai – mobiSiteGalore
MobileMonday Copenhagen – Cepa Mobility
MobileMonday Edinburgh – Mobile Acuity
MobileMonday Estonia – TaxiPal
MobileMonday Lithuania – SendFlow
MobileMonday London – Audioboo
MobileMonday Milan – Soundtrckr
MobileMonday Munich – Aloqa
MobileMonday New Delhi – Voicetap Technologies
MobileMonday New York – PercentMobile
MobileMonday Oslo – Bipper Communication
MobileMonday Rest of EMEA – Layar
MobileMonday Silicon Valley – CloudMade
MobileMonday Slovenia – Visionect
MobileMonday Stockholm – MoSync
MobileMonday Tel Aviv – waze

The finalists chosen to the Innovation Awards will present along with the winners in the other categories chosen by MPA partner networks.

If you want to connect or meet up during the MPA event, then please reach out (peggy@msearchgroove.com).

Preparing For The (Hyper) Connected World; Why Personalization & Partnering Top The Telco 2.0 Agenda

Peggy Anne Salz — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 14:05:50 +0000

In brief: Recounting my briefing in London with Amdocs prior to the CES 8 launch, the results of a recent service provider survey and the wider implications of both as operators move from selling access to selling value.

What happens when the Internet of Things – trillions of devices, sensors and “things” connected to communications networks by 2017 – collides with the advance of the mobile Web? It’s a tough one to call, but the ongoing series over at ReadWriteWeb outlines the elements of this mega-trend. From the spread of barcode scanners and schemes to the re-emergence of M2M on mobile operator agendas, it’s clear that the connected world is upon us.

This was the also the message that came across loud and clear during the Amdocs Connected World Dinner I attended during my last trip to London to connect with MSG partners and clients.

The informal thought leader event provided me the opportunity to meet with Amdocs executives (including Nick East, general manager, OSS Division, and Cassandra Millhouse, director of product marketing, OSS Division) to get a sneak preview of Amdocs CES 8, the updated version of the company’s customer experience system product line (detailed further down in this post). We also took the opportunity to discuss the business and technical demands of the Connected World and debate upcoming industry hot topics in the run up to Mobile World Congress (MWC). My personal thanks to Amy Edwards, Amdocs Managers, Public Relations, for reaching out to me.

SHIFT HAPPENS

The Connected World discussion is centered on how service providers can/should adapt to cope with the capacity challenges to support trillions of “things” that require ubiquitous connectivity. However, the Connected World isn’t just about things; it’s also about people.

Specifically, it’s about architecting the flexible business models that will also connect and empower us. Competitive advantage results when service providers leverage the capabilities of the network and the customer data it collects to deliver highly personalized offerings.

The critical role of customer data in the delivery of relevant mobile search results, mobile CRM schemes and targeted mobile marketing and promotion are obvious. (These two podcasts focusing on the personalization technology and tools within the Amdocs offer – resulting from the acquisition of ChangingWorlds, a personalization and recommendation provider – underscore the value of data and the impact on the operator’s bottom line.)

Personalization also sits at the center of Amdocs’ Universal Storefront – a one-stop-commerce-experience-for-all-goods-and-services offer and a focus of its updated CES 8 portfolio. The aim: to allow providers to offer a single customer interface that masks the complexity of multiple systems and partnership relationships. (A business imperative for service providers determined to power this long tail of app stores and/or cultivate developer communities, according to my personal favorite post from VisionMobile.)

BUSINESS MODEL CHOICE

So, which business models drive positive and powerful customer experiences? And how can/should service providers prepare to do business in a hyper-connected marketplace?

My briefing with Amdocs provided some interesting insights – particularly since Amdocs reduces the plethora of possibilities down to three concrete business models:

• The experience model: The provider makes the conscious choice to own the customer experience and establish its own brand equity. Here, the provider chooses “audience” over “access,” and follows through with expansion into media, advertising, commerce and a range of so-called “Telco 2.0″ services. An example Amdocs offers is the O2 Joggler “home appliance,” a service that is connected to the network and synchronized with family members’ mobile devices. It does loads of stuff under the O2 brand, letting families keep a common calendar, connect around online photo and video albums and consume Web-based content.

• The vertical model: The provider creates and delivers services targeted to a specific vertical such as healthcare or education. (BTW: This model is gaining serious traction, earning it a central spot in the Netsize Guide I just completed. Verticals were also a focus of a comprehensive industry survey conducted by Netsize. Results will be released closer to MWC and MSG will feature an in-depth analysis of the findings closer to that date.)

• The partner enabler model: The provider becomes a smart wholesale pipe and distributor for multiple partners. In line with this the new product portfolio CES 8 exposes network, IT and data assets to content and developer partners. An example Amdocs offers is AT&T’s behind-the-scenes support of the Amazon Kindle.

Some providers might pursue a combination of all three models, depending on their business objectives.

AMDOCS SURVEY RESULTS

It’s encouraging to see this thinking (supported by updates in the Amdocs offer) because it confirms that the basis of competition in the marketplace is shifting from battles between companies to battles between networks of companies. As I have written many times here on MSG and in my white papers and books: winning is about creating the platforms to freely enable other companies/players in the ecosystem to participate in value creation.

More importantly, the timing of the Amdocs launch and thought leadership dinner tells me mobile operators are finally ready to borrow a page from the strategy of Web giants such as Google and Amazon, companies that cleverly opened up their platforms just enough to aggressively further their own interests and promote their business ecosystems’ overall health.

Fortunately, the sharpened service provider focus on new business models, expanding relationships and leveraging customer, network and product data is more than a hunch. It is also a key finding in the Connected World Survey conducted by analyst firm Frost & Sullivan on behalf of Amdocs. Vendor spin aside, the survey of 50 North American and U.K. service providers and stakeholders sheds important light on the opportunities/challenges at the top of the service provider agenda.

Among the highlights:

Web giants are welcome: More than 90 percent of respondents stated that wholesale services and partnering with consumer Internet companies such as Facebook and Google were a growing area of business opportunity. The vast majority (more than 90 percent) also recognized the need for flexible business models to support new partnership opportunities.
Billing, charging and CRM are central: More than 80 percent of respondents cited investment in the network and network planning as the number one area of investment in terms of preparation for the Connected World. Respondents identified the areas of device activation, billing, charging, settlement and customer-directed self-service as essential to ensure future success. Seamless activation, self-healing devices, and “do-it-yourself” support were ranked as critical.
Verticals = New growth: Qualitative data from the survey found that the most promising new areas of focus for service providers include healthcare, consumer electronics, government and utilities. Service providers identified these industries as prime for a high degree of new device adoption, infrastructure support and potential end-user demand.

TRANSFORMATION AHEAD

My take: The survey reveals that the industry is indeed evolving, turning up the pressure on service providers to take the plunge and adopt new business models. Amdocs’ evolved offering correctly focuses on what it takes to enable service providers to define and launch services; integrate customer support, billing, network operations and service delivery; and offer wholesale and partnership models.

Service providers that want to transform their businesses and succeed in the Connected World must boost agility and – more importantly – build an arsenal of capabilities (around customer analytics, preference, presence and device management) that they can/should share but never give away.

Note: The advance of the app stores makes pursuing an all-inclusive partnership model a must. MSG analyzes the impact of app stores and requirements for a better retail experience in an upcoming personalization and recommendation report. Amdocs will feature as a profile in this report along with other leading players in the space.

Disclaimer: Netsize is an MSG supporter. Amdocs is not an MSG supporter. However, MSG has published a by-lined thought leadership column authored by a ChangingWorlds senior executive. MSG has also participated in invitation-only thought leadership events organized by Amdocs.

Best & Brightest: COM #207 Amazon Gets Physical (?); Passion & Infolust; The Smartphonosphere; Comparing Ad Networks PLUS COM #206 Recap

Peggy Anne Salz — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 18:22:03 +0000

This week the Carnival of the Mobilists (COM) brings the best of mobile blogging to Volker Hirsch over at Volker on Mobile. Regular Mobilists – including Russell Buckley from MobHappy, Mark Jaffe from Mobile Mandala, Andy Favell from mobiThinking and WIP Jam — submitted a thought-provoking selection of posts.

How can/should brands monetize our passion? What happens when cloud computing shifts app development to the Web? Will Amazon have to offer us an in-store experience? And how do the mobile ad networks really stack up? Read on and find out!

Volker didn’t provide his pick of the posts, so allow me to present mine. My vote goes to mobiThinking for consistently providing valuable resources and how-to guides. This time it’s a look at the latest mobile ad metrics reports from AdMob, Millennial Media, Quattro Wireless, BuzzCity, InMobi and Smaato, which made its debut this month with the Smaato Mobile Advertising Metrics. The new report reveals for the first time a Click Through Rate (CTR) Index by handset operating system. It also shows a comparison of mobile ad network fill rates (worldwide and U.S.) and found that Quattro Wireless (recently acquired by Apple) and Millennial Media are the top performing mobile ad networks in the U.S. (More in the MSG DATA POINTS stats pack later this week.)

Great job Andy!

Thanks also to Andy for hosting COM #206 over at mobiThinking last week in my place, allowing me to attend client meetings, complete the Netsize Guide and navigate London during some horrible snow storms. As Andy put it: it was a “baptism by fire” – but the results did throw off some interesting sparks (!)

COM #206 showcased thought leadership from a great line-up of Mobilists, including Antoine RJ Wright, Tomi Ahonen, Ajit Jaokar, Judy Breck at Golden Swamp, Mark Jaffe at Mobile Mandala, and Caroline Lewko and Thibaut Rouffineau over at WIPJam.

Are smartphones really innovative? Who will win the battle for smartphone market supremacy in 2010 and beyond? Does Google’s Nexus One change all the rules (and the ecosystem)? Are app stores “soooo 1980s”? How could tablet PCs be harnessed for education? What are the 2010 predictions highest on developers’ radars? Read on and find out!

BTW: registration is now open for WIPJam at Mobile World Congress (MWC). Caroline tells me that she has 200 MWC passes to give away to eligible developers that attend WIPJam. (That’s a value of €500 – so a good deal indeed!)

The Jam takes place Thursday, February 18, and you can find out more here.

And finally, my usual call for contributions and contributors.

Regular readers will know that I now keep the tents at the Carnival. (Put another way, I coordinate the COM and ways to grow its reach and influence.) If you are interested in joining, hosting or sharing your ideas, please contact me directly (peggy@msearchgroove.com). You can also follow COM on Twitter (@COTMobilists).

48 Mobile Startups Named In World’s Biggest Innovation Competition; Winners Announced @ MWC

Peggy Anne Salz — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 14:10:27 +0000

An important update on the Mobile Premier Awards (MPA), the number one global mobile innovation competition organized by Rudy de Waele and the team at dotopen. After sifting through a record 600 submissions from four continents, the list is now down to 48 startups. These startups represent the best in grassroots innovation as chosen by their peers in partnership with MobileMonday, the global community of mobile professionals. The nominees were chosen by participating MobileMonday chapters from over 250 participating startups.

As a media partner and a member of the international jury I look forward to joining the other judges on the panel this week to select 20 finalists from the list. Only these 20 finalists will pitch their idea, application or project at the Mobile Premier Awards event that takes place in the Petit Palau of Palau de la Musica on February 15, 2010 in front of investors, operators, media companies, peer entrepreneurs, and press and influential bloggers.

The finalists chosen to the MPA Innovation Awards will be announced on January 25, 2010. Registration to attend this event opens on January 19.

By way of background, the MPA best in Mobile Startup innovation nominees are:

MobileMonday Austria – Mobilizy
MobileMonday Bangalore – mobiSiteGalore
MobileMonday Barcelona – fonYou
MobileMonday Belfast – SpeechStorm
MobileMonday Bergen – ComCom
MobileMonday Berlin – spendino
MobileMonday Bogota – RedSalvavidas
MobileMonday Brussels – Getyoo
MobileMonday Buenos Aires – Beepoint
MobileMonday Caracas – Consorcio Si-SMS
MobileMonday Copenhagen – Cepa Mobility
MobileMonday Dallas – Wave Integrated Marketing Solutions
MobileMonday Dublin – Locle
MobileMonday Dusseldorf – Yoose
MobileMonday Edinburgh – Mobile Acuity
MobileMonday Estonia – TaxiPal
MobileMonday Frankfurt – match2blue
MobileMonday Hamburg – apprupt
MobileMonday Hungary – InfomatiX
MobileMonday Jakarta – dotus indonesia
MobileMonday Kuala Lumpur – CWorks Mobile
MobileMonday Lithuania – SendFlow
MobileMonday London – Audioboo
MobileMonday Madrid – Tooio
MobileMonday Malmö – Color Monkey
MobileMonday Medellin – Industrialmedia
MobileMonday Melbourne – Callernizer
MobileMonday Mexico – Binbit
MobileMonday Mid-Atlantic – Amphetamobile
MobileMonday Milan – Soundtrckr
MobileMonday Mumbai – Umundo
MobileMonday Munich – Aloqa
MobileMonday New Delhi – Voicetap Technologies
MobileMonday New York – PercentMobile
MobileMonday Oslo – Bipper Communication
MobileMonday Paris – Presselite
MobileMonday Rest of EMEA – Layar
MobileMonday Rio de Janeiro – iMusica
MobileMonday Rome – Mobnotes
MobileMonday Sao Paulo – Atope
MobileMonday Shanghai – mInfo
MobileMonday Silicon Valley – CloudMade
MobileMonday Singapore – Just Mobile
MobileMonday Slovenia – Visionect
MobileMonday Sofia – Bianor
MobileMonday Stockholm – MoSync
MobileMonday Tel Aviv – waze
MobileMonday Vancouver – Sort Shots

The awards are organized in collaboration with some of the main networks in the industry including MobileMonday, Mobile Marketing Association (MMA), Mobile Entertainment Forum (MEF), MEX, MobileActive.org, Women 2.0 and the Women in Mobile Data Association.

* MPA in Innovation – The classic peer-reviewed, global grassroots competition where MobileMonday chapters nominate a local startup to eventually pitch in Barcelona.
* MPA in Marketing - The best startup in Mobile Marketing – in partnership in partnership with the Mobile Marketing Association.
* MPA in Entertainment – The best startup in Mobile Entertainment in partnership with the Mobile Entertainment Forum.
* MPA in User Experience – The best startup in Mobile User Experience in partnership with MEX.
* MPA in Social Change – The best startup using mobile for social change in partnership with MobileActive.org.
* MPA in Female Entrepreneurship – The best woman-lead mobile startup in partnership with Women 2.0 and the Women in Mobile Data Association.

Kudos to dotopen for reaching out to so many expert organizations and making sure mobile innovation reaches beyond just mobility. It’s truly encouraging to see the MPA recognize the best in mobile marketing, mobile user experience and social change.

After all, mobile can only truly cross the chasm when it is an integral part of our daily lives and lifestyles.

I look forward to selecting the nominees for the MPA in Innovation over the next days and will profile my pick of the companies in the weeks that follow on MSG. And be sure to the developments on Twitter (@mobilepremier)

The Mobile Premier Awards are a once a year opportunity to reach the most influential professionals and companies in innovation in the mobile industry and so it offers unique opportunities for visibility and communication. If you are interested, ask us for some more information at info(AT)mobilepremierawards(DOT)com.

Disclaimer: MSG is a dotopen media partner and enthusiastic supporter.

Netsize Guide Debuts @ MWC; MSG Named Top 50 Influential Tech Blog

Peggy Anne Salz — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 18:23:20 +0000

It’s been a busy and exciting time, and the end-product makes it all worth it. The Netsize Guide – the comprehensive mobile industry analysis I have been commissioned to write for the third consecutive year – is finally at the printers. The Guide will be distributed at a special launch party during Mobile World Congress and posted for free download on MSG and other Netsize partner sites on February 17th, so mark the date!

Once again, we recount the key milestones that impacted the mobile industry in 2009, such as the emergence of app stores, the advance of 2D bar codes and the evolution of mobile marketing. But we didn’t stop there. We also surveyed professionals and practitioners for their pick of mobile trends and their views on the future of mobile.

Finally, we identified the case studies, business models and future scenarios that illustrate the profound impact mobile is having on all aspects of our daily lives and our global society. From new services aimed at achieving socioeconomic development goals in emerging markets to the advance of smartphone features that support Augmented Reality (AR) applications that merge the physical and digital worlds around us to the advance of mobile into new vertical industry sectors and disciplines, it’s clear that mobile is the catalyst for significant change and improvement.

Change is also the focus at MSG, which has just this week been named one of the Top 50 Tech Blogs by Konector.

True to its name Konector “finds connectors and mavens (people we call Konectors) who have an online presence and have the social networks and influence to promote products on behalf of advertisers.” The company is about to release a report listing the most influential websites and news services, so I’ll have more details on that next week. In the meantime, I am honored to be in the company of sites that set the bar, including All Things Digital, Mobile Crunch, ReadWriteWeb and VentureBeat – to name a few.

The next weeks will see me take the wraps off a number of new projects and partnerships that build on MSG’s reach and influence to spark debate and educate the marketplace.

A special and personal round of thanks to Stan Chesnais, Netsize CEO; Alexander Vlasblom, Netsize Group Marketing Communications Director; and Christine Blattes, Netsize Graphic Designer, for inspiration and collaboration on this year’s Netsize Guide. It rocks!

Disclaimer: Netsize is an MSG supporter.

Best & Brightest: Carnival Of The Mobilists #205 Kicks Off With Cloud Computing, ‘Comic’ Business Models & Mobile Trends Survey

Peggy Anne Salz — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 19:59:00 +0000

A warm welcome to Ernst Doku over at Omio, a major mobile phone comparison site, who makes his debut today hosting the first COM of the new decade. Despite the holiday slowdown, Mobilists (including Ajit Jaokar, Chetan Sharma and Antoine RJ Wright) have submitted an excellent selection of posts on topics ranging from mobile cloud computing to the results of a comprehensive survey of mobile executives and influencers detailing 2010 mobile trends. You can check out the best in mobile blogging this week here.

Speaking of trends, the Netsize Guide, the mobile industry analysis I have been commissioned to write for the third consecutive year, will also showcase a surprising pick of trends and stats. Netsize, a global commerce and communications solutions providers and MSG partner, has conducted a survey of over 1,000 mobile professionals to identify key trends and drivers behind developments including the adoption of mobile apps, mobile commerce, mobile advertising and social networks. The results will be released in the run up to Mobile World Congress (and appear as data points throughout the Netsize Guide, which is officially launched in Barcelona), so watch this space.

And finally, a call for contributions and contributors.

Regular readers will know that I now keep the tents at the Carnival. (Put another way, I coordinate the COM and ways to grow its reach and influence.) At the top of the 2010 agenda: improve and streamline communications, recruit more bloggers/contributors and encourage everyone to host the COM at their site (a great way to boost traffic, by the way). If you are interested in joining, hosting or sharing your ideas, please contact me directly (peggy@msearchgroove.com). We are tweaking the Google Groups, so it’s best to use this email until we have that sorted. You can also follow COM on Twitter (@COTMobilists).

Next week the COM comes to MSearchGroove – so be sure to get involved and submit your posts!

Warmest Holiday Wishes; Special Thanks To Netsize, GBC, Taptu, Xiam, Tego, Millennial Media, RealWire, Carlo Longino, Matthew Snyder,VisionMobile & All Guest Columnists

Peggy Anne Salz — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 17:27:52 +0000

As we wind down for the holidays I would like this opportunity to thank the fantastic people who have supported MSG with content, ideas and guest columns, taking MSG to a new and exciting level.

My personal thanks to Carlo Longino for DATA POINTS, the weekly roundup he has contributed to MSG throughout 2009. Of course, this regular post is just a small indication of his talents.

Carlo, an experienced writer and analyst who has been working in the mobile industry for over a decade, also takes on communications and consulting projects to help companies build profile and raise their brand and product awareness. Most recently, Carlo has been working as a freelance writer and consultant, delivering marketing collateral and Internet content for companies like Nokia, as well as marketing and content strategy consultancy services to several small organizations and startups. It has been a pleasure to work with him and I highly recommend him for writing/consulting projects you may have in the pipeline in 2010. Please feel free to contact him directly at carlo at mobhappy dot com.

COLUMNISTS

MSG was also fortunate to work with a roster of accomplished analysts and subject matter experts, personalities and voices that will be back with more guest columns and contribution in 2010.

A round of thanks to Annette Kramer for her worthwhile advice to entrepreneurs; Martin Wilson for his excellent analysis of location and local search/advertising; and Jim Levey, who contributed several insightful columns examining personalization and platform convergence before taking a position with NorthPoint, a consulting firm with expertise in financial services and media. A warm welcome to Colm Healy, Vice President of EMEA and General Manager of Xiam Technologies for Qualcomm Internet Services (QIS), who launched a series of columns in December analyzing the role of personalization and recommendation technologies.

ASSOCIATES

I particularly look forward to working with Matthew Snyder (ADOStrategies), whose first guest column included a comprehensive (and opinionated) review of a recent mobile advertising event. The New Year will also see Matthew and I collaborating together (and with a team of esteemed industry authorities including author and analyst Chetan Sharma and Roman Kikta, seasoned entrepreneur, venture capital investor and author) on a variety of strategic projects.

I am also proud to be a VisionMobile Associate and to have contributed to the Mobile Industry Atlas, a must-have wall chart that enables us to understand and navigate the complex mobile industry. MSG will be back with information on how you can order this comprehensive work (with a special discount). MSG and VisionMobile will also collaborate on some exclusive interviews with mobile industry movers & shakers, so watch this space (!)

BRIEFING ROOMS

Part of MSG’s growing portfolio of media solutions and consultative services is a branded presence called a “Briefing Room.” The aim to provide a select roster of clients a microsite where they can share thought leadership and communicate their value proposition to MSG’s in front of our growing and loyal community of mobile operators, influencers, senior executives, VCs and decision-makers.

The New Year will see an avalanche of new content from MSG Briefing Room partners. Tego Interactive — a Web and mobile product and services company — will be back in 2010 with a series of mini-white papers and “cheat sheets” designed to help converged businesses wring more value out of their digital assets.

Netsize, a global provider of commerce and communications solutions, will use its hosted microsite to showcase podcasts, exclusive interviews and excerpts of the Netsize Guide. The combination mobile industry almanac and analysis recounts the highlights of 2009 and industry developments/issues impacting the future of mobile at all levels.

The New Year will see MSG make room for additional Briefing Room partners, including Taptu, a pioneer in socially-assisted mobile search. Taptu will have some exciting news to reveal in 2010, and MSG will be instrumental in communicating what this means for the wider mobile Web. If you want a hint, then I suggest you download the company’s insightful white paper outlining the requirements of the Touch Web on mobile search services.

DIGITAL NATIVES & MOBILE ADVERTSING

I have also been asked by an esteemed colleague to contribute a chapter on mobile youth to her upcoming ebook dissecting the customer segment we call “digital natives.” I’m excited to have the opportunity to share my observations and to showcase Graham Brown and Josh Dhaliwal, foremost authorities in youth marketing and mobile culture research. More on the book as it develops.

I also continue to collect case studies and best practice for my own ebook on mobile advertising and mobile marketing. I am privileged that this work is endorsed by leading global mobile organizations including the Association for Interactive Media & Entertainment (AIME), the Mobile Entertainment Forum (MEF), the Mobile Data Association (MDA) and the Mobile Marketing Association (MMA). With their strong support and good ideas this publication will educate the marketplace, highlight growth opportunities and expertly document the best practices that make business sense.

Paul Palmieri, President and CEO of Millennial Media, the largest and fastest growing mobile advertising networks company in the U.S, is the first member of the advisory board and additional appointments will be announced in the next weeks. (Huge thanks to Erin (Mack) McKelvey, Millennial Media Vice President, Marketing, for her good ideas and enthusiasm throughout this project. I look forward to continuing the collaboration in 2010!)

GOOD TEAMWORK

As we gear up for the New Year I’m especially proud of the broad range of bespoke content MSG will produce and promote for clients in 2010, including strategic industry reports (for example, recommendation & personalization technologies on behalf of GigaOM PRO), publications (for example, the Netsize Guide 2010 on behalf of the great team at Netsize) and podcasts (for example, mobile media and marketing insights on behalf of Blyk). And this is just the beginning!

THANK YOU!

A final round of thanks for partners and colleagues who have helped make MSG a top-notch knowledge resource.

Alfred DeRose and Brian Avery, Tego Interactive executives, for the creation of new features and functionality on both MSG and its mobile website.
Stan Chesnais, Netsize CEO, Alexander Vlasblom, Netsize Group Marketing Communications Director, for inspiration and collaboration on this year’s Netsize Guide.
Inma Martinez, close friend, leading digital media strategist and advisor to venture capitalists, for co-hosting the phenomenally popular MSG podcast series Mobile Groove.
Adam Parker & Jonathan Dolby at RealWire for supporting MSG with a global news release distribution service (specializing in the online media and mobile) that consistently delivers reach, audience and exceptional analytics.
Grant Butler Coomber team (and Billy Burnett!!) for their continued advice and support on how to build awareness of MSearchGroove projects and initiatives
Jeff Fishburn (”always-on” at OnPR) for strategic advice and valuable assistance in extending MSG’s reach back to the U.S. (where it all started before I set up operations in Germany).
Liz Erk for good ideas and good listening. Her talent: securing major media placements and speaking engagements for client companies.
Andrea Henninge for being the most trustworthy PA I could hope for.
Bev Nicholson for transcribing key interviews on tight deadlines (and yes, the complete transcripts will be available for free download in 2010).

To all MSG supporters, enthusiasts and friends: My best wishes for a wonderful Christmas and a great 2010!

It’s all good.

DATA POINTS: Subscriber Data Management Market On The Rise; Mobile Internet Twice As Big As PC; Android Market Hits 20k Apps; App Downloads Booming; Data Revenues Rise; US Texting Doubles

Carlo Longino — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 13:58:41 +0000

SUBSCRIBER DATA MANAGEMENT WILL GENERATE MORE THAN $17 BILLION IN PERSONALIZED SERVICE REVENUE FOR MOBILE OPERATORS BY 2014, says a new report from ABI Research. The firm says that in order to monetize all of the customized services they will launch for their users, they’ll need to be able to individually understand them, down to their “calling patterns, billing history, data usage, location, and availability.” It adds that deployment of IMS will be crucial to this effort, since it will enable a centralized trove of subscriber information. Source

The bottom line: For quite some time, there’s been a lot of hype about operators being able to aggregate and utilize subscriber information to allow for better personalization of services – but also to generate better targeted advertisements and offers. Perhaps it’s now actually on the horizon, though tying it to IMS seems odd when some solutions (such as from ad tech provider MADS, or any number of recommendation vendors) already exist.

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THIS MOBILE INTERNET THING IS GOING TO BE BIG, says the latest piece of research from famed internet stock analyst Mary Meeker at Morgan Stanley. She and her team have released a 424-page report along with a 659-slide deck, coming to the conclusion that the mobile internet will be twice as big as the desktop internet. Perhaps a bit more interesting is the prediction that smartphones will outship notebook and netbook computers in 2010, and will outship the entire PC market in 2012. Source

The bottom line: Welcome to the party, Mary.

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THE ANDROID MARKET NOW FEATURES 20,000 APPLICATIONS, according to AndroLib.com, with about two thirds of them free for users to download. Keep in mind that the iPhone App Store offers about 100,000 applications, but the Android Market’s growth is impressive, having doubled in size since June. November was its biggest month for new apps, with over 3500 added. Source

The bottom line: Another reminder that all the app action isn’t on the iPhone.

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FIVE BILLION MOBILE APPS WILL BE DOWNLOADED IN 2014, says ABI, up from 2.3 billion in 2009. But it’s not all good news: the firm says that app sales revenue will decline by 2013, as competition pushes prices down. It also says that the iPhone App Store’s market share will peak in 2010 as more competitors enter the scene, with the Android Market in particular expected to grow its market share from the current 11 percent to 23 percent in 2014. Source

The bottom line: That’s nearly one app per every human being on the planet. Or, in other words, a lot.

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MOBILE DATA REVENUES WILL DOUBLE OVER THE NEXT FOUR YEARS TO 100 BILLION EUROS, according to Screen Digest. Revenues from rich media content like mobile TV, video, games and music will generate 8.6 billion euros of this, with the balance coming from operator data fees. The company also says that the iPhone will generate more than 7 billion downloads in 2013, a much more optimistic prediction than the one from ABI above. Source

The bottom line: Full speed ahead for the mobile data business.

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THE NUMBER OF TEXTS SENT IN THE US MORE THAN DOUBLED BETWEEN 2007 AND 2008, according to figures from the US Census Bureau, jumping from 48 billion to 110 billion. At the end of 2008, the US had over 270 million mobile subscribers, spending an average of $50 per month on their mobile bill. Source

The bottom line: US subscribers aren’t all thumbs when it comes to texting.

Guest Column: Drowning In A Sea Of Content; How To Cut Through The Clutter?

Colm Healy — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 19:48:02 +0000

Editor’s note: A range of content discovery issues continue to plague mobile operators and content companies on-portal. Add the explosion of content off-portal and the advance of applications stores and finding (and buying) what we like can be like looking for a proverbial needle in hay stack.

In the first of a series of quest columns Colm Healy – Vice President of EMEA services and General Manager of Xiam Technologies, a Qualcomm company – dissects the discovery dilemma.

Search, recommendation and discovery tools are commonplace on the web. We are used to having an intermediary between us and the content that we will eventually consume.

There are many ways in which that intermediary can appear, how we access it, and how it can go about its business, but its role is the same – to enable us to find content. Content that we are looking for; content that we might be looking for; and content that providers want us to see.

The reason that these tools exist is, quite simply, because there is too much content available to do without them. We need some service in place to help us find what we want.

The same now applies to mobile content, be it content designed specifically for mobile, or web content accessed via the mobile. The amount of content available has exploded in recent years to the point where the search, recommendation and discovery tools essential on the web are equally important in our mobile experience.

Key drivers for this explosion in content creation and availability have been led, first and foremost, by the adoption of mobile as an ever-present attachment to our lives, and, in turn, the reliance on the mobile device as a device for more than simply communications.

Evolving from this is the increasing sophistication of mobile handsets – from now so-called ‘Vanilla’ phones, to feature phones, to the emergence and unremitting growth of the smartphone category – users now have mobile handsets that are capable of processing any of the content out there on the web, including HD video. Enabled by the network developments to support increased bandwidth capacity and faster peak data rates, users are now capable of consuming almost any content through their mobile handset.

The user behaviour that this creates represents an incredible opportunity for content developers and publishers. And for the retailers that provide access to that content.

Yet the challenge for all players in the mobile ecosystem is centred on enabling users – buyers – to find the content that they want.

User Research

At Xiam, we recently commissioned TNS Global to carry out transnational – UK and US – research into the experiences of mobile content users which found clear evidence that discovery was standing in the way of a satisfactory mobile user experience. More importantly for the players in the mobile ecosystem, discovery of content is standing in the way of significant revenue opportunities, and creating a user experience that deters customers and will, ultimately, lead to increased customer churn.

The study, which began with a representative sample of 2,666 mobile content users and derived quantitative and qualitative research by focussing more closely on the most active users, revealed an enthusiastic but frustrated demand for easy to use content and applications.

A key finding of the research highlighted that content discoverability was a significant issue, with eight out of ten users reporting a problem obtaining content on their mobile handsets. When it came to finally finding the content for which they were searching, mobile Internet users were, on average, unsuccessful 27% of the time.

Users were frustrated by the time required to find the information they were searching for, and access the specific content that they wanted. Slow page loads, too many layers on websites, and too much irrelevant information are frequent annoyances for mobile content users.

Yet the opportunity presented by mobile content was reiterated by the fact that almost two-thirds (63%) of consumers surveyed indicated that they would spend more time browsing and purchase more content if it was personalized and easier to find.

How We Search

Though mobile content is a relatively new arrival on our plate of entertainment and services for consumption, users are already set in their ways, accessing the same types of content and doing so via the same search tools. Both, more often than not, an extension of their traditional, online content and search habits from their laptop or PC.

Mobile web browsers tend to use search engines (with Google the most frequently referenced), bookmarked sites or to enter URLs directly.

This reflects, very clearly, that there is no significant, regular influence on users as to the content for which they search:
• Search engines are a powerful tool for giving you specifically what you were looking for, though they are far from flawless
• Bookmarked sites are sites that the user has previously visited and had a productive experience of using
• Directly entered URLs indicate that the user knew precisely where on the mobile they wanted to go

Using the mobile network operator’s content portal is one of the less often used methods for accessing content, and was rated in our survey as least effective for finding desired content. Respondents reported that the service provider’s portal was often poorly organised, and that relevant content was not easily and directly accessible.

Those same users reported that they would increase the time and money spent on mobile web browsing if relevant content was easier to find. 59 percent said they would spend more time accessing content – translating to, on average, 65 minutes more per month. And 37 percent said they would spend more money on content purchases – translating to, on average, £5 more per month.

A further criticism of service provider portals was focusing too much on content downloads (i.e. sales) rather than on providing information and a service. Information on events and special promotions, as well as relevant recommendations based upon previous choices of the individual user would enhance the operator’s value to end users significantly.

This element – recommendation enabling discovery – is primary to any mobile content service as it cuts through the time consuming search procedure, and improves the experience of the user. The model adopted and made famous by Amazon – ‘if you liked this, you might also like this’ – is a simple and effective one. The more sophisticated this can be, the more effective the results will be.

And with the myriad different types of content and applications available, a tool to enable the discovery of content that is highly relevant but might otherwise go unnoticed can be especially valuable. Valuable to the user; valuable to the manager of the portal or store; and valuable to developers and publishers of the content, who will focus their efforts towards a provider that can enable their offering to be discovered.

One of Qualcomm’s key messages to the industry is that the mobile experience has to evolve beyond simple search and move toward personal discovery, making the user’s experience more intuitive. These results point to a huge opportunity for operators to increase mobile data usage and sales by providing personalized mobile apps, content and services.

Colm Healy is vice president of EMEA services and general manager of Xiam Technologies for Qualcomm Internet Services (QIS). QIS helps accelerate consumer adoption and consumption of mobile content across all networks and devices by delivering a more engaging mobile experience that is contextual and relevant to consumers’ personal interests. In his current role, Healy manages all business relationship and deployments of Qualcomm’s services solutions within the EMEA region. As general manager of Xiam Technologies, a wholly owned subsidiary acquired by Qualcomm in March 2008, he continues to lead the team’s efforts in selling and deploying Xiam’s discovery and recommendations products to a worldwide network of mobile operators including Vodafone, Orange, O2, AIS and Globe.

Disclaimer: Xiam is an MSG supporter.

DATA POINTS: Media Consumption Generation Gap Disappearing; Checking In On Japan; Getting With The Kids; Operators Cutting Costs

Carlo Longino — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 21:55:25 +0000

PEOPLE FROM DIFFERENT GENERATIONS HAVE LARGELY SIMILAR VIEWS ABOUT CONNECTIVITY AND CONTENT, says a new survey from Motorola, highlighting how the generation gap regarding use of media technology and services is disappearing. The survey found that 80 percent of Millenials, 78 percent of Gen Xers and 78 percent of Baby Boomers want to be constantly connected; 79 percent, 64 percent and 65 percent, respectively, say being accessible at all times is a necessity.

The survey also took a look at what it calls the “tech sphere of influence” – which found that Gen Xers and Boomers have more of an impact on their children’s tech habits than vice-versa. Motorola also found that nearly 60 percent of those surveyed have received customized recommendations for content or services, and almost half of them have acted on the recommendation. Source

The bottom line: The generation gap is clearly disappearing, which isn’t particularly surprising as Gen Xers age. But the stats from the Boomers underline the size and importance of that market, even though it’s often overlooked by new media firms.

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40 PERCENT OF JAPAN’S MOBILE DATA USERS ARE ON FLAT-RATE PLANS, Kei Shimada from Infinita told the Heroes of the Mobile Screen event in London recently, as relayed by Stuart Dredge of Mobile Entertainment. Shimada says this figure will grow to 60 percent in 2011, and rattled off a laundry list of other stats:

- Japanese mobile users generate 239 billion page views per month, with 60 percent of them off-portal
- The Japanese mobile content market was worth $5 billion in 2008, and the mobile commerce market generates $10 billion in revenues
- Mobile ads were worth $913 million in 2008 and are projected to be worth $1.3 billion in 2011. Source

The bottom line: While in many respects, the rest of the world has caught up to Japan’s mobile market, these figures show that in many others, Japan still leads the way.

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1.2 BILLION PEOPLE AGED 5 TO 25 OWN MOBILE PHONES WORLDWIDE, according to Graham Brown from Mobile Youth. He shared the stats in another session at Heroes of the Mobile Screen, and Stuart Dredge again came through with some detailed notes. Brown said half of those 1.2 billion live in Asia, adding that there are still 800 million Asian kids that are yet to get their first mobile. He says that by 2012, a fifth of the world’s mobile youth will be in India alone.

He also said that the average age for Europeans to get their first mobile is now 7.1 years, and that kids spend 10 percent of their disposable income on mobile – which translates to 12 times more than the entire global recorded music industry. 60 percent of kids even sleep with their phones. Source

The bottom line: Kids love mobile. And have got some money to spend on it.

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MOBILE OPERATORS WORLDWIDE CUT COSTS AND INVESTMENT OVER THE PAST YEAR, says a new report from Wireless Intelligence. Opex dropped from 60 percent of operator revenues in Q3 from 63 percent in 2008, while capex fell from 14 percent to 10 percent. The report also projects that total revenues for operators in the 30 OECD countries will fall from EUR411 billion a year ago to EUR408 billion this year, with revenues in Europe down 4.3 percent to EUR36.5 billion. Source

The bottom line: It wasn’t a good year for infrastructure vendors.

Why Personalization Could Be THE 2010 Megatrend; Welcoming MSG Supporter Xiam Technologies

Peggy Anne Salz — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 21:28:34 +0000

The explosion in app stores and off-portal browsing are changing all the rules, pushing content discovery (and the search for solutions to make finding stuff easier) to the top of the agenda. This came across in my own on-going research (dating back to 2005) and the industry-first report I wrote on the topic at the time, aptly titled Mobile Search & Content Discovery.

Back then content owners and mobile operators alike complained about content discovery shortcomings, ones that no mobile search services could solve for a myriad of reasons I outlined during my recent mobile search masterclass.

Fast forward to (almost) 2010, and it’s shaping up to be an exciting time indeed, with recommenders (finally) taking center stage. Industry interest is high and this has prompted mobile operators to issue RFIs/RFQs for recommender systems as they ramp up to tackle discoverability issues in their own app stores.

VISIONMOBILE ANALYSIS

A welcome confirmation of the pivotal role of recommenders comes from Andreas Constantinou, my esteemed associate at VisionMobile. His must-read post provides us a helpful overview of the recommendations market and a SWOT analysis of a selection of the players that matter most. As Andreas puts it: “The market of recommendations solutions is one of the most underhyped in the mobile industry. What started as ‘people who bought this also bought that’ has found its way into 10s of operator portals, not to mention 1,000s of mobile websites.”

What is the business value of recommenders?

It’s a question I address in my upcoming report. (My publisher just pushed the date closer to Mobile World Congress, by the way, so I repeat my open invitation to companies in this space to contact me for a briefing.)

MAKE IT EASY

It’s also a topic Colm Healy — CEO of Xiam Technologies, a Qualcomm subsidiary providing discovery and recommendations solutions to mobile operators — will examine in a series of thought leadership contributions on MSG beginning later this week.

The first in the series will outline the key takeaways of the company’s white paper, titled Make It Easy For Me: 3 Ways Operators Can Use Personalization To Give Customers What They Want On The Mobile Internet. You can also download this white paper by clicking on the box ad in the right-hand sidebar.

Xiam is the first in a string of MSG’s new line-up of sponsors and supporters, companies that recognize the importance of thought leadership and MSG’s position in the marketplace as a premiere thinking space. I’ll have more names to announce in the next weeks, as well as additions to MSG’s growing portfolio of marketing and media solutions. In the meantime — welcome Colm (and a special thanks to Martin Clancy, Xiam Marketing Manager).

MDA Unveils BBC Partnership To Help U.K. Use MMS; The Mobile Internet Must Be Plug & Play; Will Google Dominate Customer Care Too?

Peggy Anne Salz — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 11:15:43 +0000

Kudos to Mark Hawkins and the team over at the Mobile Data Association (MDA) for bringing media and U.K. mobile operators together in a partnership that recognizes the skills gap that threatens to stunt the spread of mobile data services and, ultimately, the growth of the mobile Internet.

On the face of it, the partnership between BBC Radio 1 and all the major U.K. mobile operators is aimed at allowing listeners in the U.K. to send the radio station picture messages (MMS) from their mobile phones for the first-time ever all day today (December 11) free of charge. But dig a bit deeper and the event has been set up as a springboard to encourage people to use their phones to do more.

To this end the MDA has also launched an educational website with the long-term aim of helping people to send picture messages: http://www.getsettings.org. The idea is to provide people a “single, unified hub of settings information” and address configuration issues around older handsets in circulation and SIM-only contracts.”

Of course, this problem isn’t limited to the U.K. and I hope this educational effort sets a precedent other professional organizations and mobile companies follow.

NIGHTMARE AHEAD

In fact, the job of solving the myriad of issues around customer education to make using our phones and accessing the mobile Internet a no-brainer is widely considered to be the chief business imperative of the coming year.

This is the view that came across loud and clear at MIDAS: Managing Innovative Devices and Services, an industry event I attended and spoke at last year (organized by my esteemed colleague Abraham Joseph, Founder, Device Management Forum).

During the event we discussed the advance of the mobile Internet and what the impact would be on stakeholders (device makers, mobile operators and software vendors, distributors and retailers) when we all need assistance to surf the Web, send email and download/install apps. The scenario, we agreed, was a nightmare.

Fast forward, and the problem is no longer a discussion point for passionate technologists; it’s a business issue for companies across the ecosystems banking on us all to use our phones to do more.

Yes, people need assistance to understand and configure their devices. The MDA recognizes this, which is why it has launched an educational web site for precisely this purpose. However, people also need fast track training to get on the mobile Internet and the industry is under pressure to have to come up with some solutions – sooner than later.

PEOPLE ARE BAFFLED

Indeed, a raft of studies shows that we are baffled by our new phones and features. One that stands out comes from independent research firm Coleman Parkes, which asked 4,000 people in the U.K. and U.S. about their pet mobile peeves. (The study was commissioned by Mformation, a provider of mobile device management (MDM) technology. But vendor spin aside it sheds some important light on this real problem.)

Among the key data points, the survey found that a whopping 85 percent of people said they were frustrated by the difficulty of getting a new phone up and working. Additionally, 95 percent said they would try more new services if phones were easier to set up and 61 percent said they stopped using an application if they could not get it working straight away.

So, we know people would like to do tasks as browsing the Web, reading email or sending picture messages, but the complexity of mobile phones (really handheld-computers at this point) is too much for them.

TOP TEN HEADACHES

During the MIDAS event that impressed me with the scope of this problem, I met with Wouter Deelman, CEO of Qelp, who blew me away with his presentation and an eye-opening list of the Top 10 device management challenges. (By way of background, Qelp is a Dutch software-as-a-service company sharply focused on solutions that increase revenues and reduce customer support costs.)

Wouter co-presented with Blyk, a Qelp customer and ad-funded MVNO model (this was before Blyk shifted its focus to becoming a media company). Blyk revealed that it had achieved a 60 percent success rate getting users to accept Over-the-air (OTA) settings (critical since much of Blyk’s ad-funded model was built on users’ ability to receive and respond to MMS mobile advertising messages). In effect, Blyk admitted a 40-percent failure rate – a problem Blyk said it solved by working with Qelp.

Indeed, OTA settings top Wouter’s list of Top 10 device management headaches.

1. Over-the-air (OTA) settings require user acceptance.

2. Some devices do not support OTA and require manual configuration.

3. New handsets are coming to the market through different channels (not just via mobile operators), so the problem and the responsibility to solve it is fragmented.

4. Remote access to a device requires access to the mobile Internet (which is what most users are trying to set up in the first place).

5. Users are confused when settings arrive, and often don’t know what they are for or where to store them on the device.

6. Each handset has a different UI (user interface).

7. Call center support is an option – but costly for the operators and frustrating for the users.

8. Second-hand devices are preconfigured incorrectly.

9. Network operator settings get preference over MVNO settings.

10. New IMEI ranges and handsets not yet recognized by the operators systems.

It may seem that Apple’s iPhone and the slew of new touch screen interface devices/ smartphones solve this problem (because they come preconfigured by the iPhone exclusive channel on the market and most available services are displayed via icons on the screen and not buried in a sub-menu).

But the range of new devices and multitude of UIs only exacerbate the problems. And let’s not forget the many people unlocking their

iPhones because they want to have the devices and the operators they want (!) and therefore need to configure the device themselves, manually.

NEED HELP? GOOGLE IT

Can the device management issue impede the growth of mobile Internet usage? The jury is out on this one – but it’s common sense that we would use it a lot more if we could. (We cannot use what we cannot use.)

Ironically, the mobile operator – the player you would expect would want to educate us to use mobile data (and generate additional data revenues in the process) – appears to have missed the plot – and the opportunity.

In a recent must-read guest post for VisionMobile, Wouter road tested six U.K. mobile operator websites to look for support and set up email on a Nokia N96. The result: a mix of irrelevant results and no results at all. Wouter’s conclusion: for an end-user seeking help to get a service up and running on their mobile phone, the answer is not just a few clicks away.”

Wouter then looked for the same information using Google. The answers are marginally better – but the search results do include sites such as Know Your Mobile, that do the job just fine.

Understanding that Google is destined to play an increasing role in customer care (becoming the first place people look for help to configure their phones) KPN (also a Qelp customer) has applied search engine optimization techniques to ensure it’s website (and brand) at least show up in the top Google search results. (Daily statistics now show that 50 percent of KPN’s subscribers go to Google first for answers.)

The takeaway: The MDA has literally done us a service in the U.K., but there is a lot more work to be done. The advance of the mobile Internet has encouraged us to check out the wealth of apps and content available. However, many of us need help setting up our phones before we can explore this brave new world. Providers have a choice: improve customer education and support, or deal with customer frustration (and lost revenues) when people quite literally turn off.

Disclaimer: The MDA has also endorsed MobileAd World Focus, the upcoming MSG ebook,

PODCAST With Amdocs ChangingWorlds: Make Way For App Emporiums; Will Personalization Boost Sales?

Peggy Anne Salz — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 18:06:27 +0000

“It’s all about apps!” That is the message that has come through in dozens of recent briefings and interviews (many of which will be include in the chapter I am writing about app store business models for the Netsize Guide.) At this juncture, I am pleased to report the chapter will also feature an introduction by Andreas Constantinou, Director of VisionMobile, a market analysis and strategy firm, that summarizes his unique views on what will make an app store fly – or fail – and why.

I suspect his thought-provoking blog will do more than set the tone for my book; it will impact the app store debate that will likely dominate 2010. Just look at the recent raft of app announcements: Analyst firm IDC predicts there will be more than 300,000 iPhone apps by the end of next year, compared to 75,000 Android apps; Samsung takes the wraps off its Bada app platform; and (just today) Orange officially opens its app store to users in the U.K. and France, offering more than 5,000 apps for Java, Android, BlackBerry, Symbian and Windows Mobile.

Connect the dots, and the avalanche of apps turns up the pressure on providers and mobile operators to be good retailers and put stuff we’re likely to appreciate where we can find and buy it. Common sense really.

Or is it? Not is we consider the statement from Nenad Marovac, Managing Partner, DN Capital, who was speaking at Heroes of the Mobile Screen earlier this week, In his view, “Operators should be pipes and shut up.” Hmmm… not much room in that model for mobile operators to wield the stockpile of analytics they collect (such as our browsing patterns and past purchases) to present us with a selection of apps we’re likely to appreciate.

In preparation for my own industry report on personalization and recommendation I have spent the last weeks interviewing a who’s who of industry players and their customers (mobile operators/service providers) who are convinced the company with the most (and best) data wins. It’s a battle between operators (really smart pipes) and aggregators (Google & Co.) – and personalization and recommendation could just be the capabilities that distinguishes the leaders from the also-rans.

With that in mind, we continue MSG’s special podcast series on the top players in personalization, and conclude with Part 2 of my interview with Stephen Oman, Amdocs ChangingWorlds Worldwide Director Sales Engineering. Changing Worlds is an Irish provider of personalization technology that was recently acquired by Amdocs and is now part of Amdocs Interactive.

In Part 1 we dissected the content discovery dilemma, looked at on-portal challenges and examined the results of the company’s recent study that underlined the importance of personalization in determining and delivering mobile advertising.

In part 2 we explore personalization off-portal and across app stores.

ROLE OF THE MOBILE OPERATOR: As Stephen sees it: the operator has a spot at the “center of the Internet.” Their job: “helping the subscriber to go on to the Internet, helping them find the right content, helping them with additional suggestions which they might be interested in, and so on. In doing that, they’re becoming if you like a partner to the subscriber when they are browsing the internet.” So, there’s an opportunity here for the operator to “set themselves up in essence as the home page for the mobile Internet for their subscribers.”

APP STORES: In many ways, it’s a repeat of the content discovery problems we know from on-portal. But it’s also an issue that independent developers will also face as they try to engage people and compete with similar, rival apps across the store. As Stephen puts it: Making an effort to personalize the content will “help people find more niche types of applications that may exist, and that would never appear in the what’s hot today or what’s in the top 10 for today.”

LONG-TAIL VERTICAL APP SCHEMES: Reports show that many apps downloaded are actually productivity apps. Additionally, apps are being downloaded by professionals in line with their professions. So, will we see a plethora of app stores split across lines such as task (apps to do “x”) or jobs (apps for doctors, for example)? Stephen was intrigued by the idea and agrees that we will likely see the launch of vertical app stores (similar to the vertical content portals that offered only ringtones or wallpapers). “It’s pretty much the same as you see in retail, you do have retail stores that sell pretty much everything, but you also have niche retail stores that cater for particular audiences.”

THE GROWTH OPPORTUNITY: In a word: convergence. “Increasingly the mobile operators’ customers are expecting and demanding that if you like connected lifestyle….Crucially, they’re looking to be able to access services across many different devices: their mobile phone, online, through their TV, through digital TV, and that convergence of access is essentially going to improve and drive growth in the mobile digital economy.”

Editor’s note: This special focus on personalization and recommendation continues in the New Year with a look at a cool new recommendation company coming out of stealth mode and an analysis of Novarra. I had to reschedule this one a few times, but this time it is timed to some important news. Not one to miss!

Disclaimer: ChangingWorlds is not an MSG supporter. However, MSG has published a by-lined thought leadership column authored by a ChangingWorlds senior executive. MSG has also participated in an invitation-only thought leadership event organized by Amdocs.

Listen to the podcast here. [15:12]

SPECIAL REPORT: GETTING PERSONAL Openwave Adds Mobile Analytics; Are Gateway Providers The Ones To Watch? PLUS New Report/Project With GigaOM Pro

PODCAST: Bytemobile CMO Adrian Hall: Operators’ Can Win On Personalization; Does A Widget Bar Do One Better Than An App Store?

MSG DEBUT VIDEO: Xiam Talks Targeting & Filtering; Make Way For The Personalized Web!

GUEST COLUMN:Using Personalization To Pump Up The Volume & Increase The Value Of The Mobile Internet

MSG Wraps Up Netsize Guide 2010; Reveals Scoops & Sexy Quotes From GetJar, Flirtomatic, Sony Ericsson & More In Pipeline

Peggy Anne Salz — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 18:20:29 +0000

It’s that time of the year again! This year marks the third consecutive year that I have been commissioned by Netsize, a global mobile commerce and communications enabler, to write the Netsize Guide. This comprehensive mobile industry almanac recounts the year’s milestones in mobile and looks ahead to the future of mobile. A special focus this year is the impact of mobile on verticals such as healthcare and retail, and the outlook for Augmented Reality (through interviews with GeoVector CEO John Ellenby and Layar Co-Founder Maarten Lens-FitzGerald).

I’m thrilled with the variety and caliber of this year’s interviews.

In addition to a slew of important country data and key stats (thanks to partner Informa Telecoms & Media), the guide will showcase a who’s who of industry executives and experts. Companies included this year include (in no special order): Sony Ericsson, GetJar, Telefónica, SFR, Flirtomatic, Nokia Advertising, PayPal, Scanbuy, NearbyNow and EmFinders, a path-breaking new health technology that works directly with 9-1-1 and law enforcement officials in the U.S. to immediately locate individuals with Alzheimer’s who have wandered.

Could such services pave the way for a range of new emergency services and patient care models? You’ll have to wait until the Netsize Guide is released at Mobile World Congress.

In the meantime, Alexander Vlasblom, Netsize Marketing & Communications Director, and I have picked out some great quotes and teasers to share. I’ll list a few in this post to start. But you can get the inside track by following our Twitter feed (@NetsizeGuide), where I will post the best of the book on a regular basis.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

Here are some eye-opening statements that have come through in my edit of the 15+ C-Level interviews to date.

“It’s early days, but I predict 75 to 80 percent of these app stores are going to fail over the next 24 months. The numbers are going to be high because there’s a lot of hype around app stores, which has got a lot of players excited about getting into apps without knowing what is involved and the time and resources needed.”

Patrick Mork, Vice President Marketing, GetJar

+++

“Many developers are starting to re-think. Do they go for big, with the probability of being discovered very low, or do they go for a lower volume with a much higher probability of being discovered. The developer community is split.”

Christopher David, Head of Developer and Partner Engagement, Sony Ericsson

+++

“In my view, there is a high likelihood that things will swing back to a browser-based environment over the next two or three years. Good mobile browsers are already capable of doing quite a lot of things that you can do in an app, so the world will probably swing back to a browser experience because users won’t be able to tell the difference.”

Mark Curtis, CEO, Flirtomatic

And that’s just a taste!
Alexander and I have also worked out an editorial schedule to release a steady stream of content in the New Year, including podcasts, “uncut” Q&A interviews and guest columns, so check back or follow us on Twitter.

Obviously, I will have my head down to complete the Netsize Guide before the holidays. So look for some great guest content including a column on the business imperative for recommendation and personalization from Xiam Managing Director Colm Healy, a column on visual recognition from Kooaba founder Herbert Bay and a podcast with Nimbuzz Head of Communications Tobias Kemper.

It’s all good!

Disclaimer: Netsize is an MSG supporter.

DATA POINTS: US Mobile Web Audience Growing; Worldwide Mobile Web Devices to Top 1 Billion; Microblogging Driving Mobile Web Use; Are Android Developers Upset?; Mobile Ad Market Booming

Carlo Longino — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 18:33:33 +0000

ALMOST 30 PERCENT OF US MOBILE SUBSCRIBERS USE THE MOBILE WEB AT LEAST ONCE PER MONTH, eMarketer reports, based on data from BIA/Kelsey and Constat. That’s up from 22.3 percent last year, but the boom doesn’t stop there: the figures say that 21 percent of US mobile users get online on their mobile device at least 10 times per week, up from 15 percent in 2008.

The survey found that nearly half of US subs use text messaging at least 10 times per week, and a fifth use mobile email that much. Popular mobile web tasks include local searches, looking for movie or entertainment info and information about restaurants and bars. Source

The bottom line: Awareness of the mobile web is booming in the US, and usage is following.

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MORE THAN 1 BILLION MOBILE DEVICES WILL BE CONNECTED TO THE WEB IN 2010, says research firm Gartner. That’s nearly as many as web-connected PCs (1.3 billion), and the higher growth rate of mobile devices mean it won’t be long before the mobile/PC internet tipping point is reached. Source

The bottom line: This has been coming for a while, but Gartner says we’re now just on the cusp of it. This means that the mobile device will be a primary internet device, not a second-class citizen deserving only of cut down and limited services.

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MICROBLOGGING SITES ARE DRIVING HUGE INCREASES IN MOBILE TRAFFIC THROUGH URL-SHORTENING SERVICES, says Novarra, which provides web transcoding services for operators worldwide. The company says that in the first half of 2009, mobile page views for Twitter grew 3500 percent, leading to traffic increases of 1068 percent for services like bit.ly, which are often used to share links via Twitter. Source

The bottom line: This illustrates that a lot of people are increasingly using Twitter on their mobile device as well as on their PC, and they’re clicking through shared links just as they would on their computer.

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ANDROID DEVELOPERS AREN’T HAPPY WITH THE PLATFORM, according to a survey from location technology provider Skyhook Wireless. It says that 57 percent of Android developers aren’t happy with the profits the platform delivers them, 82 percent think Android Marketplace makes it hard to discover apps, and 43 percent think they’d sell more if Android used carrier billing or another simpler billing system. A further 46 percent are worried about device fragmentation on the platform.

A little digging draws up at least one catch to the survey, though: it surveyed only 30 developers for their opinion – hardly a huge sample. Source

The bottom line: It’s hard to draw too many conclusions from such a small sample. Also, a lack of comparative data for other platforms makes it difficult to assert if this is an Android-specific problem – but we’d bet a survey of any significant number of them would show that at least half aren’t happy with their profits.

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THE MOBILE MARKETING AND ADVERTISING MARKET WILL BE WORTH EUR 8.7 BILLION IN 2014, up from EUR 1 billion in 2008, says a new report from research firm Berg Insight. In five years, the company says that 8.7 billion will represent 11.7 percent of the total digital advertising market. Source

The bottom line: This is the latest in a number of similar stats that have piled up over the last few months, revealing the widespread belief that the mobile marketing market is about to boom.

PODCAST: Reality-Check For Mobile Industry Execs; Do You Have The Courage To Hear What Youth Really Think Of Your Offer?

Peggy Anne Salz — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 16:52:33 +0000

Give the customers what they want? It’s an admirable goal, but it can all go wrong if you don’t provide a proper feedback loop. There are many ways to tackle usability testing, but a fresh approach comes from Julia Shalet, who heads up the Digital Youth Project.

By way of background, Julia helps companies in the youth sector by engaging teenagers in innovative research formats. The result is a critical reality-check for products and services as well as an exciting knowledge-sharing exercise (execs get information to help them develop their offering and young people learn more about how businesses are run and ideas are realized.). With over 15 years experience in the industry, Julia has worked with clients including T-Mobile, Weeworld.com, Hertfordshire Careers Services and a variety of Internet and mobile start-ups. In 2007 she was named in Harper’s Bazaar “Top 40 entrepreneurs under the age of 40.”

During Heroes of the Mobile Screen (HOTMS), a grassroots mobile conference that brings together the people and topics people – not just industry – wants to hear, Julia will bring in a panel of Teenage Dragons for a Dragon’s Den session. Together the teens will test mobile gadgets and services, and provide painfully honest feedback. Yes, truth can hurt.

I caught up with Julia to find out more about her business, her approach and what she and industry execs have learned from connecting with the Teenage Dragons. A surprise to both of us: some of the teens experienced problems while preparing for the conference. They were asked to upload images and information via DropBox so that HOTMS organizers can project them on the screen during the session. Hmmm – perhaps DropBox should contact Julia for a reality-check and schedule a testing session with her group of students.

It’s a lively podcast with an anecdote involving a mobile exec who tested his mobile phone multiplayer game (one that invites people to create and play a game in real-life). I won’t give it all away – but let’s just say that the teenagers found it underwhelming and quite “naff.”

The takeaway: ALWAYS check what you think is cool with real people. You might be surprised.

Listen to the podcast here. [11:00]

NOTE; Heroes of the Mobile Screen is shaping up to be a top-notch, sell-out event. Some tickets are still available – and some 60 passes to Mobile World Congress will be awarded to paying delegates in a prize draw. For more information, check out the event website here or follow the excitement on Twitter (@hotms).

Disclaimer: MSearchGroove is a media partner and has agreed to promote the event in a short series of exclusive of podcasts (created and produced by MSG host Peggy Anne Salz).

Countdown to M-Days 2010; Europe’s Biggest Event Outside Mobile World Congress

Peggy Anne Salz — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 19:50:59 +0000

A huge round of thanks to companies and MSG supporters for the congratulatory emails and Tweets on a new-look MSG and a roster of new columnists, contributors and media partnerships. As you may have noticed, MSG has redesigned the Events page to showcase conferences and meet-ups around the world. The aim is to be a leading destination for everything happening – not just in mobile, but also across all the exciting verticals that impact our lives AND the future of mobile.

If you have an event to share, or a media partnership to discuss, then please contact Peter Salz (peter@msgblog.com). MSG also creates free pre-event content (podcasts, interviews, white papers) for select organizers in return for high-profile promotion and branding, so contact us to find out how we can work together to make your event shine.

One event we are closely aligned with is M-Days, a must-attend mobile industry event (January 28-29 in Munich) organized by 11 Prozent – Communication that counts a whopping 1,400+ attendees, making it the largest mobile event in Europe outside the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.

For five years the M-Days event has been synonymous with mobile in continental Europe.

This year MSG is proud to partner with the organizers to bring the event to a global audience. The effort is already paying dividends and Carsten Szameitat, Managing Director, 11 Prozent – Communication, tells me that the exhibition is sold-out (!)

However, some speaking opportunities are still available, so contact me (peggy@msearcchgroove.com) or Carsten (c.szameitat@11prozent.de) directly.

Carsten and I are also joining together to produce a newsletter that combines the best of our news and commentary for a global audience. Our first issue will also feature an exclusive podcast interview with a keynote speaker and list the event highlights. More about in a formal announcement and press release.

To date the impressive line-up of speakers includes: Gian M. Fulgoni, Chairman and Co-Founder, comScore; Rainer Deutschmann, Senior Vice President Mobile Products, Deutsche Telekom; Colm Healy, Vice President (UK), Qualcomm; Joel Berger, Managing Director GSA & Northern Europe, MySpace; Ralf Lauterbach, Head of Consumer Architecture, Vodafone Germany; Jan-Christiaan Koenders, Director Brand Communication, BMW Group; Kerstin Trikalitis, CEO, Out There Media; Christian Lindholm, Partner and Director, Fjordnet Ltd; Ajit Jaokar, futuretext; Lars-Christian Weisswange, Director, HTC; Scott Seaborn, Head of Mobile Technologies (UK), Ogilvy Group; Martin Börner, Director of Telecom Division, Samsung; Marc Mielau, Head of Digital Media, BMW Group; Mark Wächter, “Mr. Mobile” & Member of the Global Board of Directors, Mobile Marketing Association; Daniel Euler, Managing Director, Gettings (E-Plus Gruppe); and the list goes on (!). You can find a complete list of speakers and sessions here.

And speaking of sessions, this year M-Days has doubled the number of sessions to cover an even wider range of topics. A special attraction is the Paid Content panel (how to wring value out of your digital assets).

MSG will be on-location, conducting briefings, connecting with cool companies and filming a limited number of exclusive interviews. In addition, I will moderate the panel on social media with special emphasis on social media marketing. If you want to meet up or catch up, then contact me directly.

M-days also cooperates closely with comScore, a relationship that gives it the inside track on some key data points. Carlo Longino will provide his analysis later in the week.

In the meantime, we learn from a recent press release (to promote the social media panel and sessions during M-Days) that mobile social networking across Europe is up 139 percent compared to last year. In other words, we use the mobile Internet to connect. But we also use it to find information on the fly. comScore reports the number of users browsing and retrieving news and information has increased 44 percent, with the use of news and information apps up a staggering 101 percent.

For the inside track on these trends (Gian M. Fulgoni, Chairman and Co-Founder, comScore, is a keynote speaker) and what it all means for the future of mobile, head on down to Munich for M-Days. As Harald Neidhardt, Co-Founder and CMO of Smaato (and frequent/passionate commentator on all things mobile) put in a recent statement: M-Days is “definitively the best possible start into the mobile year in 2010.”

See you there!

Disclaimer: MSG is an M-Days media partner and has joined with organizers to produce a newsletter tracking developments impacting the mobile industry.

DATA POINTS: Android and Apple Take Charge In US Web Browsing; Carrier Channel Dominates Sales; Mobile Marketers Need Many Methods; Augmented Reality Sees Bright Future; Top Mobile Apps for 2012

Carlo Longino — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 22:12:43 +0000

ANDROID AND APPLE NOW ACCOUNT FOR 75 PERCENT OF US MOBILE WEB TRAFFIC, a stat noticed by TechCrunch in the latest installment of AdMob’s Mobile Metrics Report. The iPhone OS (which also includes iPod Touches) leads the way, generating 55 percent of smartphone requests on AdMob’s network in the US, with Android pulling in 20 percent. RIM follows with just 12 percent, then webOS with 5 percent, and Windows Mobile with 4 percent.

Worldwide, iPhone leads the way in smartphone traffic, accounting for half of it, followed by Symbian with 25 percent. Android pulls in just 11 percent of global smartphone traffic. Admob also looked at results within the RIM and Android platforms. On Android, the HTC Dream (known also as the T-Mobile G1), the oldest Android handset accounts for a little more than a third of the platform’s total, but the newly released Motorola Droid already claims a quarter of the traffic. Source

The bottom line: In case you hadn’t figured it out, mobile platforms with better browsers and web UI get used to access the web more often than those with poor browsers and experiences.

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60 PERCENT OF MOBILE-ENABLED DEVICES WILL BE SOLD THROUGH OPERATORS BY 2013, says research firm In-Stat. Based on their success selling subsidized netbooks, the firm says operators are gearing up to sell more notebook computers, and will sell nearly a third of all notebooks in 2013. In addition, In-Stat says the market for Internet-connected devices will grow at a health CAGR of 22.3 percent over the next four years. Source

The bottom line: Two key trends to note here: the growing market for connected devices like e-book readers, GPS units and netbooks; and the growing data use of these devices. Will operators’ networks be able to cope?

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TEXT ADS AND WEB BANNERS ARE THE MOST NOTICEABLE FORMS OF MOBILE ADS, BUT CLICK TO CALL AND MOBILE VIDEO GET THE BEST RESPONSE, says new research from Parks & Associates. The report says that text ads garnered the highest recall rate of 11 different mobile formats, with click-to-call (CTC) faring the worst. Interestingly, the CTC ads had the second highest response rate (35 percent), behind video movie trailers (38 percent). Text ads elicited a response from just 26 percent of users, and web banners 30 percent. Source

The bottom line: Mobile marketers need a deep bag of tricks to lure in eyeballs and responses as consumers still feel their way through mobile ads.

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MOBILE AUGMENTED REALITY SERVICES WILL BE WORTH $732 MILLION BY 2014, says Juniper Research. AR apps, which overlay content onto maps or images of a user’s surroundings, are starting to emerge, but the company says they’ll be supported by a variety of business models within a few years, including paid downloads, ad support and subscriptions. Juniper says adoption will be driven by AR-based local search services, but the real revenues will first come from AR-enabled games. It adds that AR advertising will also be a viable market. Source

The bottom line: It’s still very early days for AR, even though there have been some pretty cool apps (like Layar) emerge already. This is definitely an optimistic projection, but it seems like some familiar issues, like device fragmentation for developers, will need to get worked out first.

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THE TOP TEN PROJECTED MOBILE APPS FOR 2012 LOOK PRETTY FAMILIAR, at least according to research firm Gartner’s list: money transfer, location-based services, mobile search, mobile browsing, mobile health monitoring, mobile payment, NFC, mobile advertising, mobile IM and mobile music. Most of that list encompasses services that are already popular (i.e. mobile search, mobile browing, mobile advertising); most of the rest of it appears to be services that have been hyped as the next big mobile thing for several years already (i.e. NFC, mobile payment, mobile music). Source

The bottom line: Gartner’s list isn’t too creative – which reflects the staying power of apps like web browsers. But it also reflects some of the endless hype of the mobile industry, where services get pumped up well before their time, then linger and linger on.

BEST & BRIGHTEST: Carnival of the Mobilists #202 PLUS New Twitter, New Schedule, New Energy

Peggy Anne Salz — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 20:06:21 +0000

Mobile platforms, app stores, acquisitions and banking are the posts headlining at the Carnival of the Mobilists #202, which is hosted this week by Mobile Strategy Blog, a site dedicated to understanding and navigating the mobile ecosystem.

I encourage you to explore the content contributed by COM regulars and newcomers including MOPocket (bursting back on the scene after a long break with an in-depth look at Windows Mobile 6.5.1 and an exclusive briefing with Microsoft) and David Eads (a newcomer with a fresh new analysis recent developments in Canada’s mobile banking space.

As the COM’s new “keeper of the tents” I am pleased to report we now have a presence on Twitter (@COTMobilists), the first step in a strategy to communicate our collective ideas and recruit more bloggers. Please also check out the new schedule for 2010. After you have contributed to COM twice you may also host the COM at your site – a great way to raise profile and increase traffic.

I invite you to familiarize yourself with COM’s mission and principles (quite simply to promote the best in mobile blogging) posted on the website and get involved!

Over the next weeks I will proactively reach out to bloggers and contributors to ask for input to make sure 2010 is an exciting and eventful year for COM. If you have ideas regarding recruitment, events and sponsorship – and any other steps we must take to make COM a vibrant organization with a (combined) voice that matters – please contact me directly (peggy@msearchgroove.com).

MOBILE GROOVE PODCAST: It’s ALL about Google!; Google’s Plan To Dominate Mobile; Why Are Android Orders/Sales A Mystery?

Peggy Anne Salz — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 18:54:11 +0000

Another edgy podcast. We take a fresh look at the Google acquisition and zero in on the detail and data the market is missing. We also discuss the phenomenal popularity of Android apps and what can happen when Chrome and Android converge. Another hot topic: mobile valuations and what the AdMob acquisition means other ad networks moving forward. Finally, we raise our goblets of Rock to European media companies that (unlike many U.S. publishers) have mobile strategies in place that are sure to pay off – big time!

Mobile Groove — the monthly podcast I produce with Inma Martinez, leading digital media strategist, “free radical” and advisor to venture capitalists — zeroes in on Google, dissecting its mobile strategy and asking some uncomfortable questions.

ANDROID SHIPMENTS

There’s no denying the phenomenal popularity of Android apps. But how many Android devices have shipped and how big is the Android market – really? Great questions and we wish we had the answers. For some reason, it’s radio silence at Dell and across the 10+ manufacturers in the Open Handset Alliance. Inma will continue to dig for facts and figures, but right now your guess is as good as ours. Listen in and let us know.

GOOGLE’S GAIN

Google snaps up AdMob for $750 million in stock. Is Google banking on a boom in mobile advertising? Or does this latest spree (AdMob and Gizmo5) lay the groundwork for a much larger (and much smarter) scheme to dominate mobile? Inma’s take: Google is doing more than acquiring capabilities to take on rivals (Gizmo5 allows Google to take on Skye, for example). “The Web giant is buying up distribution relationships with mobile publishers – even if it has to buy it at a loss.” (By way of background, AdMob served ads for more than 15,000 mobile Web sites and applications worldwide with a sharp focus on iPhone apps.)

RIVAL AD NETWORKS

AdMob’s price tag sends a clear message to the market: no one (!) can offer a cheaper price for a mobile ad network that has created similar value. What does this mean for Millennial Media, JumpTap and other ad networks making their mark? And while we’re at it: what is the impact on mobile valuations – period? Inma is looking forward to huge deals that show mobile is a serious and solid industry.

GOBLET OF ROCK

This time we salute Europe’s media superstars for harnessing mobile to produce fantastic results. From great apps to sharp monetization strategies European publishers are showing they “get” mobile. Inma’s pick: The Daily Telegraph and an awesome iPhone app she encourages us all to take out for a spin. Since I’m still reeling from an excellent presentation I recall from the last Mobile Marketing Forum in Berlin, I raise mine to The BBC – specifically, BBC World and Tom Bowman, VP Strategy and Operations, BBC Advertising Sales. In addition to developing a cross-platform strategy that has placed mobile in the middle from the get-go – it has also monetized it through mobile advertising with fantastic results. This approach has allowed the BBC to become a Broadcaster 2.0. (More details on the BBC World mobile advertising strategy and the results it has delivered to date in my bi-monthly column for my favorite trade publication, EContent magazine. You can read all the columns here.)

On the occasion of so much excitement in the mobile space Inma also raises a second goblet of Rock to ACCEL Partners, for taking the dive and staying dedicated to mobile. By way of background, ACCEL recently sold two of its portfolio start-ups for a total of $1.5 billion. (AdMob went to Google for $750 million in stock and Playfish went to games publisher Electronic Arts for about $300 million.)

Until next time – keep it fun!

Listen to the podcast here, [17:27]