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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Huge Slump in Smartphone Market Share - Can Microsoft Reinvent Itself?

When you take a close look at the smartphone market, you will notice something strange. Experts often talk about what is possibly the most popular smartphone available today – the Apple iPhone. They talk about how Google Android could give Apple a tough competition. They talk about Symbian and they talk about Blackberry. They even talk about recently released smartphones like Motorola Cliq and Droid. One name that is conspicuously missing from this list is Microsoft’s Windows Mobile.

It is really surprising. After all, Microsoft entered the smartphone market long back – Pocket PC 2002, the predecessor of Windows Mobile OS, was released in 2002. Soon, Windows Mobile was released in 2003. What has Microsoft managed to achieve in the past six years? The answer is – nothing worthwhile.

Windows Mobile, as of now, is the fourth most used mobile operating system in the world. Nokia with its Symbian OS is the market leader – followed by Blackberry and the iPhone. Experts, however, predict that it might not be able to stay at that spot for long. When you take a good look at the numbers, you get the feeling that what they predict might actually come true.

In the first quarter of 2004, Microsoft’s Windows Mobile had an envious 23% share in the smartphone market. In the first quarter of 2005, there was a steady decline and its market share was somewhere around 18%. In the first quarter of 2006, it further slumped and remained with a market share of 12%. In 2008, its market share dropped to 14%. At the start of 2009, it slumped further and remained at 7.9%. If we go by the recent report from AdMob, Microsoft’s market share, as of now, is only somewhere around 4%.

It is quite a slide – from 23% market share to 4% market share in a span of just five years. In the mean time, Apple, Nokia, RIM, and even Google have made their presence felt in the market big time.

It is really hard to believe. After all, Microsoft has got everything - all the money in the world, some of the brightest minds in the world, and plenty of goodwill. Yet, it has not been able to conquer the mobile market like it conquered the PC market. While late entrants like Apple and Google have been able to generate a big buzz, Microsoft has not been able to do anything that is worth taking notice.

Apple iPhone continues to climb the ladder and even new entrants like Motorola Droid have managed to create a big buzz. With this being the case, Microsoft’s only bet is Windows Mobile 7 OS – which incorporates the elements of Windows Mobile 6.5 and Zune – which is slated for release in 2010.

The mobile phone industry, the smartphone market in particular, is expected to grow bigger by the day. Mobile advertising, as we all know, is set to grow big as well. The time is ripe and the competition is intense. The question is – can Microsoft pull it off?

Categories: All things mobile phones, Microsoft.

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Funambol to serve mobile ads in its portal

Open source mobile messaging software producer Funambol recently announced that it will serve mobile ads in its online portal myFUNAMBOL. For those of you that don’t know Funambol, here is a small intro.

Funambol is famous for its mobile 2.0 messaging software which is considered probably the best push email solution for mobile phones today. Mobile enthusiasts rate Funambol better than Apple MobileMe and the sync apps available for Blackberry. It supports over a billion devices including iPhone, Android, Blackberry, and Windows Mobile.

Now, back to the news. Funambol says the ads served will not be overtly prominent or intrusive in nature. Mobile users will find ads in their inbox and message viewing screens. Funambol believes that this is perhaps the best idea to monetize its service in the most effective manner. There are two reasons for this.

First, mobile users absolutely love Funambol. It is really easy to use and it is one of the best push email apps for mobile phone today. So, they won’t mind a few ads here and there as long as it doesn’t bring down the quality of user experience.

Second, finding ads in inbox is not at all uncommon. Gmail has been doing it ever since its inception and people have had no problem with that whatsoever. So, similarly, they won’t find the ads in myFUNAMBOL intrusive or disturbing.

In my opinion, this is a welcome move. As Funambol is an open source project, they need to monetize it one way or the other to stay in the competition. And as long as people find their service useful, I think they probably won’t mind these ads.

What do you think? Will you say okay to a few ads in your inbox if you get to use such open source mobile apps for free or at a very low cost? Share your thoughts.

Categories: Cell Phone Advertising, All things mobile phones.

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Yahoo dominating mobile internet

If you’ve watched the journey of Yahoo ever since it started out, it has been nothing short of a rollercoaster ride. It was once in an enviable position as far as the internet was concerned, but now it is nowhere in the competition thanks to Google. While Yahoo has been constantly trying to regain its spot in the internet, Google still is way ahead of Yahoo. Also, the recent furor about Microsoft taking over Yahoo didn’t do any good for the company as well. So, Yahoo needed to do something to reassure its customers, stock holders, and most importantly, itself. This is where mobile internet comes into the picture.

Yahoo has been making great progress in the mobile phone market, especially the high end ones. There is a lot of need for mobile browsing among people, as they always want to check out something or the other via mobile internet. However, browsing in a mobile phone is not easy, unless you own an iPhone. With this being the case, Yahoo slowly started to work on improving mobile browser experience for people. The result was Yahoo Go.

Recently, it was announced that Yahoo Go 3.0 will be soon launched in Canada. Going by the positive reviews Yahoo Go got in the U.S., one can safely assume that it will have a similar reception in Canada.

Also, this seems to be a brilliant strategy by Yahoo, as there is not much competition here. Microsoft is busy with Windows Mobile Operating System and Google is busy with Google Android, another operating system, thereby leaving a gap for Yahoo to enter the market of mobile internet and mobile browsing.

With lots of acquisitions, partnerships, and deals, Yahoo is very busy strengthening its hold in the mobile phone market. As someone mentioned, forget about web 1.0, Yahoo is aiming to become the leader of mobile 1.0.

Categories: All things mobile phones, Yahoo, Mobile Web.

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What does Yahoo - Microsoft deal mean for Google?

By now, I think everyone and their mother knows about Microsoft’s proposed buyout of Yahoo! And you should, because if it were to happen, it would be undoubtedly the biggest and the most important acquisition ever made in the industry. Now, what does this deal mean for mobile industry? A lot.

Firstly, we all know that Yahoo Go Mobile is a huge success and it’s really a brilliant interface which offers you the best of browsing experiences and the best of applications. Now, if Microsoft were to integrate Yahoo Go Mobile in its Windows Mobile, it could be huge. Though you can already download Yahoo Go Mobile on Windows Mobile, hardly anyone does. By integrating it into Windows Mobile, Microsoft could simply rejuvenate its Windows Mobile market and Yahoo could reach millions and millions of users effectively.

Yahoo Maps, as we know, is the market leader and when combined with Windows Mobile, it could be a potent rival to Google Maps.

Yahoo Mail, undoubtedly, is way better than Microsoft’s mail service and if integrated into Windows Mobile, could be a huge success. Already, Yahoo Mail is used widely on the iPhone.

When it comes to Instant Messaging, both Yahoo and Microsoft have winners in Instant Messenger and Windows Live Messenger respectively. When these two merge, they could cater to a huge market and be far more effective.

Yahoo already provides the widgets for iPhone and it has been popular with users. If Microsoft could use these widgets on its Windows Mobile devices, it would make them even more compelling for the users. Most importantly, Microsoft will be in a position to tackle the iPhone competition, which already uses Yahoo widgets.

Photos and Sharing would become far more comfortable and easier for the users, as they will be able to access Flickr and Windows Live Spaces, both of which are extremely popular.

Last but not least, if Yahoo and Microsoft did come together, the search app would become far more powerful and could pose a serious threat to Google’s dominancy in the search market.

So, a lot is being speculated on this proposed buyout and it would be interesting to see the developments from now on. It will also be interesting to see what Google does to face this giant of a competition. Interesting times ahead people, watch this space closely.

Categories: Cell Phone Advertising, All things mobile phones, Yahoo, Microsoft.

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