Customized Mobile App for Windows Mobile Users from the Associated Press

The Associated Press has developed a mobile application for Windows Marketplace for Mobile. The application, aptly named AP Mobile, gives Windows Mobile users access to the global news network of the Associated Press. If you download this application onto your mobile phone, you will be able to get all the information you want right on your mobile phone.

If you remember, the Associated Press launched its own mobile news portal some time back. The response, as expected, has been very good so far. With more than 1.5 million registered users, AP’s mobile application is one of the most popular apps in the marketplace today. Still, AP wants to extend the reach of its mobile news network further. So, the company thinks that developing a customized application for Windows Mobile users is the first step in the right direction.

The introduction of this application will help AP in two ways. One – it will make its mobile news portal very popular. Two – it will create new revenue streams for its members. It will be beneficial for Microsoft as well as it gives Windows Mobile users access to a wide range of information, tools, games, and more. If you are a Windows phone user, this app will bring you stock market news, weather news, sports updates, local news and international news, lifestyle tips, travel tips, and entertainment news right to your mobile phone screen.

The app also includes plenty of social networking features which allow you to share a news story with your friends instantly on Twitter or Facebook. You also have the option of bookmarking it in your Delicious account. If you want to share something privately with your friends, you can email the story as well.

So, how have Windows Mobile users reacted to this new app? A cursory look at the comments section on Windows Marketplace for Mobile gives a good idea. It is full of positive comments like ‘great app’, ‘user friendly app’, ‘nice social networking features’, and so on. So, we can expect a lot more users to download this app. AP has plenty of reasons to smile. If you are a Windows Mobile user, make sure you check out this application and let me know your thoughts.

Categories: All things mobile phones, Microsoft.

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MSNBC’s New Mobile Application for Apple iPhone Users

Here’s an important piece of information for Apple users.

MSNBC has come up with a mobile application for Apple iPhone and iTouch users. It has joined hands with a mobile media company called Zumobi to develop this application. Zumobi is famous for developing unique mobile applications for various smart phones like Apple iPhone, Google Android, and Palm Pre.

The application brings all the latest news from around the world to the mobile screen. The developers have integrated Twitter into this application which makes it even more useful for the end user.

With this application, you will be able to check out all the latest headlines any time you want right from your mobile phone. From world news to business, sports, weather, or entertainment, this app brings you pretty much anything you need right to your mobile screen. You will also be able to track Twitter feeds, or Tweets as they are called by many, from msnbc.com and share your favorite news items with your friends. The best part about this application, as far as I am concerned, is that it is totally free. You can download it directly from Zumobi’s website.

MSNBC has said that the interactive features in this application will offer a thoroughly engaging experience for mobile users. It has also said that this application offers a great chance for advertisers in the form of premium brand sponsorships.

In my opinion, this app could become pretty popular with iPhone users. If you remember, Associated Press launched its own mobile news network some time back. Considering how popular it became in a very short period of time, I think my prediction might come true very quickly.

Categories: Apple iPhone, All things mobile phones.

1 comment.

Mobile News Network from the Associated Press

Joining the list of companies that have launched their own mobile portals, the Associated Press released a multimedia news portal for mobile users called Mobile News Network. This news portal will have everything from local news to national news and international news and you can access it any time you want to, right on your mobile phone.

Unlike the usual run-of-the-mill news sites, the Mobile News Network aims to offer a complete multimedia experience for mobile users as it lets you access photo galleries, videos, and a variety of other news content. You can get your daily dosage of entertainment, breaking news, weather forecasts, sports, and finance right from this portal. Also, you will be able to rate the news items and share them with your friends on the go, which I think is a very useful feature.

If you are an iPhone user, you’ll find this news portal even more interesting, as this web application is optimized for Apple iPhone. You can access it from www.iphone.com/webapps. Since it’s optimized to offer a rich experience for smart phone users, AP is sure that they will find this app very appealing. I think this news portal has the potential to serve as a single access point for all sorts of news, especially for smart phone users.

AP has also mentioned that it will release improved versions of this app in future which will have additional content from other broadcasters and special features to improve user experience.

Categories: All things mobile phones.

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On why location-based mobile advertising will not face a backlash

A couple of days back, I read an article in Associated Press which discussed location based mobile advertising in detail. The author actually went on to compare location based mobile advertising to the recent Facebook ads fiasco and stated that the main concern of mobile advertisers and operators should be to avoid the backlash that Facebook recently faced.

I’d like to say two things.

First, Facebook ads is a stupid idea.

Second, equating Facebook ads with location based mobile advertising is an even stupider idea.

Let me explain.

Facebook, in my opinion, could be made a case study for stupid marketing techniques. In fact, it doesn’t take the brains of Albert Einstein to understand why the backlash happened with Facebook. See; the whole idea was to sell something to people, like any other advertising or marketing program. But Facebook missed out on something called mass psychology. Whenever you ask people to sell something and make them feel that they are being used by someone, in this case Facebook, you can almost immediately expect a backlash of this sort. Plain simple; people don’t like the idea of someone using them to get something done. In other words, people love to be in the driver’s seat. They must have the choice to do what they want, when they want.

This is precisely why I think mobile advertising, even the most debated location-based advertising, will not face such backlash. You see; mobile advertising is a classic case of putting the common public in the driver’s seat. The mobile user is always notified of a particular ad program and its consequences and is given the choice of either to go for it or not to go for it. If someone feels location based advertising is not for him, he could very well say “no; I don’t want this.” And if he feels it’s okay to get ads, he can say “yes; I do want it.” It’s the good old “choice” that people expect from mobile advertisers and the advertisers have no choice but to provide the people with choice.

Moreover, Facebook did what it did without the consent/knowledge of its members. So, they naturally had a reason to get outraged. In mobile advertising, there is no question of doing something without someone’s consent. Unless the mobile user says yes, he can’t get ads on his mobile phone. So, dear privacy advocates, please understand this world of difference before you start comparing Facebook and location-based mobile advertising.

Categories: Cell Phone Advertising, Rant.

3 comments.