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July 11, 2008

Google Mobile Image Ads: MMA Compliant

When Google launched its mobile image ads in April there was some disagreement over their compliance with the Mobile Marketing Association guidelines, which were issued around the same time. It's nearly three months later, and Google has posted on its mobile blog that it's now compliant with the six sizes outlined within the MMA guidelines for banner ads.

Posted by Enid Burns at 2:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

June 23, 2008

Rumor: Google Android Development Stagnates

Last fall reports of a G-Phone were quelled with the announcement of Android, an open source operating system that would run across all carrier networks. Google established the Open Handset Alliance with the existence of Android, and set to work on the operating system, developers creating handsets, and applications with a goal of availability in the second half of this year.

Demos of Android, on compatible handsets, have been shown at conferences and events here and there, but that’s been few and far between. The Wall Street Journal by reports today the release will be Q4 or later. Carriers and developers are having problems developing for the system. And carriers, in particular, are have issue making it theirs, according to the Journal.

This morning I met with Marcus Colombano VP of marketing from LightPole, a geo-contextual content publishing and advertising platform for mobile that works with companies such as Yahoo Local, Mappy Hour, and Yelp. He who wasn’t surprised by the news. He said his first take last year was “that there was “that there wasn’t more meat” to the Android announcement. While LightPole intends to develop for Android, the next development platform for his company will be the iPhone. “As a small organization, it makes more sense to develop for platforms that exist,” he said.

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June 19, 2008

Did Your Phone Help Elect Bush/Cheney?

With approval ratings for the current administration at all time record lows, Credo Mobile came up with this near-irresistible e-mail subject line.

The body copy and call-to-action are no less compelling:

Sorry to say, but the political action committee at AT&T contributed the maximum amount allowable by law to the Bush/Cheney campaign — twice. So, go ahead, check out your mobile phone company. And then check out the mobile phone alternative you can trust. It's called CREDO Mobile, and it's mobile phone service that stands up for your values, brought to you by Working Assets.

On the other hand, if you're happy with your mobile service just the way it is, accept this photograph as your gift from a real, ahem, Richard.

To get your phone in line with your values, click here.

Just a hunch, but this is going to get Credo onto consumers' radar - fast. Particularly the ones whose major gripe with the telco until now has been its indefensible anti Net neutrality stance.

Posted by Rebecca Lieb at 3:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack

June 11, 2008

Go2 Offers Animated Mobile Banners

If the mobile Web is following in the footsteps of the Internet, then Go2 Mobile's announcement today that it's begun offering animated mobile banner units should come as no surprise.

The company first rolled out the 10- and 15-second loop animations within mobile banners as early as the beginning of the year, and will now offer the unit to all clients. Early advertisers include Best Buy and the Navy.

The Web-based animated banner has not always been well received. While it can provoke higher response rates than static ads, it also runs the risk of annoying consumers. The same principle will apply in mobile environments, only more so.

Posted by Enid Burns at 3:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

June 10, 2008

Giving up on the Year of the Mobile

For some time, people have ceased saying "it's the year of mobile."

Instead, they offer up explanations as to why it isn't the year of mobile.

Enough is enough. This has been going on long enough, folks. It's no longer necessary to explain away.

Why? There probably won't ever be a year of mobile, and it's OK. Mobile will emerge as an advertising channel as every other channel before it.

"I think mobile has had a very healthy last 12 to 18 months," said Paul Palmieri, CEO of Millennial Media in a debate panel at the Mobile Marketing Forum in New York. "2007 has been a pretty formative year." Palmieri and his fellow panelists agreed it may be the decade of mobile advertising.

"I think the question, if this is the year of mobile, it's off the mark. It took 10 years to come to life," said Steen Andersson, co-founder and VP of marketing of 5th Finger. Think of this as the decade of mobile, it takes time for agencies and carriers to realize and learn. [This is] the year of the big uptake…growth, the great time of education and growth in the marketplace."

Dan Rosen, group head of U.K. AKQA Mobile, sees it another way. "I don't think there's going to be a eureka moment, the trend we're seeing is mobile tends to be now, where entertainment meets utility," he said. Mobile now is combining the two, where mobile meets the sweet spot.

The maturation of mobile campaigns is an indication of advertisers' acceptance and uptake of the media, even if there never was a clear "year of mobile." Do we need a blockbuster year? Or can we move on and cultivate a more sustainable growth?

Posted by Enid Burns at 9:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Mobile Marketing, a Look Into the Crystal Ball

At the Mobile Marketing Forum in New York, a panel was asked to describe what will be different one year from today. Here's what they had to say:

--Richard Ting, executive creative director, R/GA: "There will be different things in the marketplace, platforms out there encouraging developers to develop applications on the handset. [such as] GPS applications.

--Jeff Sellinger, EVP, mobile at CBS: It's proliferation of the mobile Web, he said. "The low-cost iPhone, the viral effect of people surfing."

--Steen Andersson, founder and VP, marketing, at 5th Finger: "Android and iPhone are going to generate ecosystems in their own right."

--Paul Palmieri, CEO of Millennial Media: "Advertising will explode and deepen, because media will be made simple to buy."

Posted by Enid Burns at 6:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

May 28, 2008

Ikea's Mobile/Web/Game Ad Hybrid

Ikea is pulling out all the interactive marketing channel stops to promote the opening of its new Brooklyn store. The campaign -- aimed at getting New Yorkers to the new big box retail location in a seldom-visited area -- utilizes e-mail directing recipients to play a game played both online and via mobile device.

The Ikea Brooklyn Get There Giveaway asks viewers to locate boxes hidden on the pathways leading to the store on a map interface built in Ajax. Find and click on boxes containing designated Ikea products and players are given a code they can send via SMS. Each text message is an additional entry into a shopping giveaway.

The game is clever and somewhat engaging -- but it's not really apparent why mobile would come into play here. There's no apparent rhyme or reason in jumping across channels to actually enter the contest. That said, it doesn't unduly burden users, either, given mobile devices are usually within arms' reach.

Posted by Rebecca Lieb at 1:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

May 13, 2008

Entrepreneurs: Random Musings on Web's Past and Future

A group of top tech entrepreneurs paneled in New York tonight. Talk was lively, if not deep, given the audience ofINSEAD alums hailed mainly from the relatively distant shores of Wall Street.

Discussion encompassed online media and marketing. Some highlights:

Start-up vet Kevin Ryan was anything but bullish on mobile. "Not one single company in mobile is valued at $1 billion. The carriers are blocking all the innovation."

Moderator Henry Blodgett asked the panel how to fix newspapers. Bain Capital Group's Daniel Allen thinks they ought to capitalize on their relationships with local advertisers and teach them the ropes of online marketing.

What's hot that should be not? The Ladders co-founder Alexandre Douzet thinks Ning's value lies primarily in co-founder Marc Andressen's name. Indeed's Paul Forster votes for Twitter's lack of a business model.

And while there was general agreement things are about to get a little grim, none of these entrepreneurs believe online is on the verge of a recession that even approaches the severity of the last bubble, or dot-bomb. Ryan laughingly reminisced about a week in 2000 when he went skiing and DoubleClick's market cap soared $1 billion while his out-of-the-office e-mail auto-responder was, essentially, running the company.

Posted by Rebecca Lieb at 9:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack

May 7, 2008

Google Joins Venture for High-Speed Mobile Net Access

Google has signed onto a venture, led by Sprint, to develop and deliver high-speed wireless Internet access for mobile devices, according to a published report.

Comcast, Time Warner, Intel, Clearwire, and others are set to announce they will invest $3.2 billion for the technology called WiMax, the WSJ.com reports.

The New York Times, quoting an unidentified source, said Google could provide the search engine for the wireless platform, enabling it to sell advertising there. Google is said to be contributing $500 million to the initiative.

Plans call for the wireless data-and-voice network to have the download speeds of cable broadband and the reach of a cellphone network.

Posted by Anna Maria Virzi at 6:24 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

April 23, 2008

What Time Is It in the Cloud?

These days, my head is in the cloud.

More and more companies are rolling out cloud computing solutions and applications. On the consumer level, it's getting easier and easier for documents, spreadsheets, e-mail, calendars, presentations, you name it, to live in the ether somewhere above the hard drive, always on and always accessible.

Way cool, and an emerging opportunity for advertisers and marketers to push relevant, contextual messages to cloud computing users.

But what time is it in the cloud? I'm wondering this as I shuttle between the East and West coasts, wielding a battery of BlackBerry, mobile phone, and the laptop I'm using to access the book I'm writing entirely on Google Docs (not a word of the manuscript is on my hard drive).

Some of these devices are set to the time zone I'm actually in, others are set to the one I live in. So how's an advertiser to know what's relevant messaging? Should an ad be pushed for a business or service in Sonoma (where I'm speaking today), or New York (where I live?). Does the cloud know if I'm working at lunchtime or at dinnertime?

Geo- and daypart targeting has long been used in traditional as well as interactive marketing. When life literally shifts to online -- as users move into the cloud -- how will this element of targeting be achieved?

Posted by Rebecca Lieb at 9:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

April 11, 2008

TTYL, FCC

Uncle Sam wants to text you -- but only when there's bad news.

The Federal Communications Commission has approved a plan to deliver emergency alerts to mobile phones via SMS. The messages will be delivered with an attention-getting "unique audio signature" and "vibration cadence."

Three types of grim alerts qualify for the program: a national alert from the president, likely involving a terrorist attack or natural disaster; "imminent threats," e.g. natural disasters such as tornadoes or university shootings; and child abduction emergencies.

Mobile device owners will be able to pt out of the program, and it's possible carriers won't charge for delivery of such messages. The plan is expected to go into effect by 2010.

Posted by Rebecca Lieb at 11:29 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

April 2, 2008

On the Wires from CTIA

If it happens in Vegas this week, it's not staying there. Too much news to get out:

• Mobile technology provider Velti announced it worked on strategic campaigns for Wrigley's and Western Union. For Wrigley's Orbit gum, consumers text a unique code to enter a sweepstakes competition. They then take part in games with the overall goal to increase sales during the duration of the sweepstakes. For Western Union, Velti will use its messaging platform globally to update customers about special events and sweepstakes. Customers will be able to amass points and win prizes based on their frequency of Western Union transactions.

• Bango released benchmarking data from its analytics platform showing click through and conversion rates from mobile advertising campaigns. Though its analytics, Bango finds banner and text ads on mobile Web sites typically have a click through rate of 2 to 8 percent with a conversion rate of 2 to 5 percent, though on some networks conversion can be as high as 12 percent.

• AOL unveiled a WAP-based games portal at http://wap.aol.com/games. AOL partnered with Cellufun to provide games such as Call of the Pharaoh, Space Wars, and Ice Fishing, which will be available for free. Advertising inventory will be sold by Platform-A's Third Screen Media.

• Fox Mobile Entertainment launched the Fox Entertainment Mobile Network. A wireless Internet portal as a single destination for everything the nextwork has to offer from Fox, FX, Speed, National Geographic Channel, Fox Reality Channel, and 30 other mobile Web sites with programming from shows including "The Simpsons," "24," "Family Guy," "Nip/Tuck," "NASCAR," and "Dog Whisperer." JumpTap signed on as the advertising provider, in a deal similar to the one announced with NBC.

Posted by Enid Burns at 12:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

March 27, 2008

dotMobi Hearts Mobile Web

The non-profit dotMobi Advisory Group (MAG) is taking over the ilovemobileweb campaign launched last year by Bango, thereby bringing together over 125 companies to support and foster the initiative.

The stated campaign aims are to:

· Raise awareness of the mobile Web with consumers around the world
· Encourage open access to the mobile Web for every user
· Provide consumers with choice of content and services
· Provide easy pathways for fixed Internet publishers to move to mobile
· More standardization of devices and development platforms

Interested organizations are invited to join the initiative -- gratis -- via the e-mail link on the ilovemobileweb Web site.

Posted by Rebecca Lieb at 4:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

March 21, 2008

Verizon Wins Auction 73

Verizon is the proud winner of Auction 73. The government auction the FCC held with bidders cloaked in secrecy. Google and Verizon were among the most public about their plans prior to the bidding proceedings.

In a statement from Verizon, "We were successful in achieving the spectrum depth we need to continue to grow our business and data revenues, to preserve our reputation as the nation's most reliable wireless network, and continue to lead in data services and help us satisfy the next wave of services and consumer electronics devices." The added bandwidth is likely to come into play with industry plans, as well as Verizon's own plans, for open mobile Web standards, which are expected become available later this year.

Posted by Enid Burns at 12:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

February 28, 2008

Sports Illustrated Swim Suit Models get Mobile

If one magazine issue of supermodels in swimsuits a year isn't enough for you, then Sports Illustrated has the answer. The sports magazine has signed a deal with mobile video provider mywaves to create a dedicated channel of videos about the swimsuit event that can be sent directly to mobile devices.

The channel is ad supported to be free for viewers, and hosts 50 video clips, including video from photo shoots, interviews with the models and other material. The channel went live six days ago and has already had over 180,000 views, according to Nicole Rodrigues, a spokesperson for mywaves.

"Our service skews very high male 18- to 34-year-old. And this Sports Illustrated channel fits right into that demographic," she said.

Mywaves offers advertisers pre-roll, overlay and banner ad placements for its channels, but hasn't signed on a dedicated advertiser for Sports Illustrated's video channel, she said.

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February 25, 2008

Campaign Tracker, for Politicos on the Go

With the election year upon us, some voters may want to get their information and coverage of the big event wherever they go. Microsoft is looking to capitalize on voters looking for breaking news by sponsoring a free Campaign Tracker application for Windows enabled Mobile phones..

NewsGator is providing its Mobile Reader system and widget services, while the news organizations Washingtonpost.com and Newsweek will update the political news via RSS feeds. Campaign Tracker was created by NewsGator's Software-as-a-Service division which handles syndication services, and Microsoft's Mobile2Market program. It'll run on Microsoft Windows Mobile 5 and 6 devices, as well as Microsoft Pocket PC devices. The service itself will go online early next week.

Post updated to correct the application's name from Candidate Tracker to Campaign Tracker.

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February 12, 2008

Microsoft, Yahoo Anuncian Mobile Deals in Barcelona

At the Mobile World Congress this week in Barcelona, Spain, Microsoft and Yahoo both made separate announcements touting their mobile offerings.

Yahoo used the show to demonstrate its forthcoming Yahoo oneConnect service for mobile devices using Yahoo Go 3.0 and Yahoo’s new mobile home page, expected to be available in Q2 2008. The oneConnect service will aggregate social network connections from sites like Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn, along with news, weather and other alerts. The service will also provide e-mail, instant messaging, text messaging connections.

Separately, Microsoft announced it had signed European mobile publishers L'Equipe, Boursier.com and Autonews in France to its mobile ad platform. The company also said mobile operator Orange picked Microsoft as its ad serving partner for mobile display advertising in Spain. What wasn't clear from the news out of Spain was whether this is a mobile ad management or serving deal only, or whether it will involve ad sales representation.

Posted by MatthewNelson at 4:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Virgin Atlantic Launches "Love From Above"

Virgin Atlantic Airways' just-launched American campaign, Love From Above continues the real-speak whimsy that is a hallmark of the Virgin brand. It poses questions to travelers such as, "Shouldn’t a seat recharge more than your laptop?”

Developed by agency-of-record McKinney, the campaign is notable for a substantial mobile component. Virgin's first WAP site, http://LoveFromAbove.mobi, aimed at fliers in and out of New York and Chicago, passes along info on complimentary taxi rides in wrapped London cabs, British pub events, and free movie passes. A Valentine’s Day surprise is promised to top off the launch.

Posted by Rebecca Lieb at 11:21 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

February 4, 2008

Mobile in a Combined Microsoft, Yahoo

In Microsoft's conference call last week discussing its offer to purchase Yahoo for $44.6 billion, mobile was cited as a key asset. Mobile assets combined make a significant footprint in the mobile ecosystem. That's because currently, "there really is no one-thousand pound gorilla in mobile," said Boris Fridman, CEO of Crisp Wireless, in the context of the mobile presence both companies can merge into.

Here's the rundown on Microsoft's mobile universe: Windows Mobile, an operating system with a full suite of productivity software such as Outlook, Word, and Excel, sits at the core of Microsoft's mobile footprint. MSN began advertising on its mobile portal in December, and in the U.K. in January. Its Live Mobile offering, which Sprint uses in a deal with Microsoft, runs pay-per-call ads.

A string of acquisitions including ScreenTonic, Tellme, and MotionBridge bolstered existing properties as well as filled out lacking areas. In a surprising move, Microsoft incubated and then spun off ZenZui, a graphical user interface browsing package, now called Zumobi.

Yahoo has spent time building out its own mobile offering with a multi-platform presence. The search engine began offering keyword-based mobile search ads in fall of 2006. Then it brought out OneSearch the following spring. It also developed a content-driven portal Yahoo Go, which just released a 2.0 version. Sources say Yahoo Go has been perceived as a failure inside the company. Yahoo also brings to the table several relationships with international carriers. In January it signed a deal with T-Mobile U.K., which adds to its existing relationship with competing carrier Vodafone. A separate deal includes relationships with Six carriers in Asia.

If Microsoft and Yahoo's combined mobile presence becomes the 1,000 pound gorilla in mobile, will it be a game-changer? Probably not, according to some industry sources. It will offer a great deal of inventory in multiple formats and in one place. Microsoft can streamline media buying through its global sales force and ad-buying dashboard through its Digital Advertising Solutions Group. It may become the best way to do multi-channel buys, and Microsoft can build mobile network beyond its core sites. It won't take over all of mobile, and pure-play solutions providers in the space may still be the best options for content owners, media buyers, and advertisers looking to build a presence.

Posted by Enid Burns at 4:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

January 28, 2008

The 24/7 Daypart

Starcom released data on mobile user habits last week and we've been mulling over what the agency is calling a daypart. With the mobile audience, it's 24/7. Is it fair to call all day, every day, a daypart? While the report says it's an "on the move," 24/7 daypart, the findings support the utility and entertainment value of mobile. The target here isn't time of day, but content paired with a particular activity.

"They're seeking certain types of content when they have opportunities," said Angela Steele, VP, activation director, and leader of the study at Starcom. "When walking the dog in the morning, they're checking local news, weather, and traffic." She said some employees retreat to the office bathroom to check sports scores. "Something they wouldn’t be doing at their desk."

What's important to note: marketers reach consumers "where and when it was once impossible to do so," a statement describing the research said.

It's been hard to target a particular time of day, even among segmented audiences. "When you look at the mobile Web, it's quite strange the time of day people use it. You get commuter patterns, mid-morning patterns, lunchtime… presumably when people are killing time," said Anil Malhotra, founder and SVP of alliances and marketing at Bango.

It's debatable whether the daypart carries over to a mobile execution. "Daypart has been a component of advertising we all understand," said Bob Walczak, CEO of MoPhap. "With the mobile user, they are a different advertising profile. They want on demand information. They want it when they want t and how they want it. [Accessing the mobile Web] in the bathroom or while walking the dog is accurate from a targeting standpoint."

Perhaps rather than define what time of day to reach a consumer, it's best to determine how to reach the consumer in a more personal manner. It's essential to "deliver personal ads to a subscriber because it's the most personal device," Walczak said.

Posted by Enid Burns at 5:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

January 23, 2008

Amobee to Outsource Ad Sales Up North

Following the decision to turn select advertising inventory over to Winstar Interactive Media's Interep unit, mobile advertising solutions firm Amobee said today Target Broadcast Sales would handle select mobile ad inventory for Canada. "Amobee has continued its strategy of partnering with trusted names in ad-selling. This approach enables us to focus on our core expertise -- developing the best ad-serving solutions available," said Amobee's CEO Zohar Levkovitz, in a statement.

Target Broadcast, which claims to be Canada's only independently owned national media sales organization, has five sales offices throughout Canada.

Amobee said about the Interep deal that sales would be specific to Amobee inventory, and not package deals, the same is likely true here. In the future, it would be something to tap into other media of Interep and Target Broadcast to create multi-channel buys down the line.

Posted by Enid Burns at 12:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

January 22, 2008

Disney to Japanese Women: Moshi Moshi!

The WSJ is reporting that Disney, in local partnership with Softbank Mobile, is launching a mobile phone service in Japan aimed not at kids, but at women in the 20-39 year old demo.

In the country of kawaii (define), Disney enjoys a particularly strong adult female base of consumers. According to the Journal, Tokyo Disney is a popular dating destination (26 million visitors in the fiscal year ending in March, 2007). The Mouse already offers close to 90 mobile Web sites in Japan boasting over 3.5 million subscribers, 75 percent of whom are women 20+.

Disney shuttered its U.S. mobile service, aimed at kids and parents in a partnership with Sprint last year after only one year of operation.

Posted by Rebecca Lieb at 4:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

January 18, 2008

Bud Goes Mobile with Super Bowl Voting

Budweiser commercials are often picked as favorites from the crop of Super Bowl ads, but this year Anheuser-Busch is inviting its consumers to vote on their favorites while the game is still being played. As part of its annual Bud Bowl campaign, the brewer is signing up consumers to vote on their favorite Budweiser commercial during next month's Super Bowl using their mobile phones.

Users that provide their number will get a preview of one of the commercials, and after the game they'll also be provided with a code to unlock an "exclusive" unaired game spot. With seven Bud ads set to run during the event, it's anybody's guess which one the winner will be.

Posted by MatthewNelson at 5:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

T-Mobile and Nokia Deals Could Signal Mobile Market Maturity

Announced yesterday they would partner with Yahoo to deliver display advertising on their Web'n'walk mobile Internet service. The ads will roll out across the network in the first half of 2008, and will be sold and served exclusively by Yahoo.

The deal, together with Yahoo's current mobile advertising partnership with Vodafone, now gives them access to 2 of the most lucrative mobile operators in the UK, and cements Yahoo's dominance in the UK mobile ad arena.

Similarly Nokia Ad Business (Nokia's mobile advertising arm) announced this week they would sell and serve ads for Reuters' UK mobile site, representing the largest mobile ad related contract for Nokia since their acquisition of Enpocket in October last year. In addition to display ads, Nokia will offer solutions such as branded mobile sites for Reuters' advertisers.

Could this mean that 2008 is taking shape as the infamous "year of mobile"? It all depends on whether advertisers start seeing significant ROI from the medium, and begin to view mobile as an effective tool in its own right rather than an afterthought to more traditional Web campaigns.

Posted by Jack Marshall at 12:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

January 15, 2008

A Call from Paris: Hot or Not?

Paris Hilton wants your number.

To promote her new film, The Hottie and the Nottie, which opens next month, Paris Hilton wants to call you. Not once, but an undisclosed number of times to remind you to see it.

Visit the film's Web site and you're asked to supply a mobile or landline number, together with your Zip Code. You'd expect a localized message with this information, but when Paris called back seconds after supplying the data, she just wanted to remind me to see the pic. I have a feeling subsequent calls may contain local theatre information closer to the opening date.

Voice marketing provider Vontoo is powering the backend of the vox initiative.

Posted by Rebecca Lieb at 2:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack

December 28, 2007

InfoSpace Completes $135M Sale of Mobile Business to Motricity

Motricity, a company that builds and runs mobile storefronts for carriers, said today it completed the $135 million acquisition of InfoSpace's mobile services business.

InfoSpace's mobile services unit provides the portal and search functions for AT&T and Verizon in the United States; Motricity offers a storefront, catalog, and other applications that enables its customers to offer ringtones, games, and other content on mobile devices.

InfoSpace, moving forward, will focus on growing its online search business, according to a statement from Jim Voelker, InfoSpace chief executive. InfoSpace's metasearch technology is used by other Web sites such as Dogpile and WebFetch.

Ryan Wuerch remains as Motricity's chairman and chief executive, while Steve Elfman, former executive vice president of InfoSpace's mobile services business unit, becomes Motricity's president and chief operating officer.

Posted by Anna Maria Virzi at 6:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

December 13, 2007

Cellware Socializes Mobile

There's been talk about the mobile platform being perfect for social networking. Among the newer mobile social communities out there is Cellware, which launched earlier this week. Through Web and mobile, users can upload and modify audio, video, photos, and other content and applications, then share it with others. The media can then be used to personalize a handset with ringtones, wallpapers. And of course, discovery is a big part of the experience, as well as having access to videos and a social network when you have time to spare.

The site boasts "We're putting the free back in free!" And Cellware means it. There is no cost for use of the site, it's ad supported. And active users who generate hits, recommend new friends, and create content, will get a piece if the revenues. Cellware has banners on the Web and mobile WAP site, and plans to insert ads in SMS messages in the future. The company's CEO John Ferber was a founding member of Advertising.com, and brought in a handful of his previous company's alums to key positions including Jason Ellin, CFO, and Jason Strauss, CRO.

Posted by Enid Burns at 1:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

November 15, 2007

Lifetime Leads up to Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is family time, will you be watching TV? Lifetime TV wants to make sure viewers tune in and created a mobile contest and sweepstakes to make sure that happens. Lifetime brought in broadline closeout retailer Big Lots as the featured sponsor in the integrated campaign, with the intent to drive purchase intent on the busy shopping day.

From Sunday November 18 through Thanksgiving Day, on-air promotional spots will run on Lifetime Television pointing viewers to a mobile and online promotion run by mobile entertainment community Limbo. Limbo then supports the campaign with its Limbo Unique game across multiple platforms including SMS, WAP, Internet, and e-mail. Users can enter the contest on Limbo's Web site, or by texting "biglots" to a short code (define), in which they select a number. At the end of the contest's run, the participant with the lowest unique number wins. The grand prize winner will receive $5,000, and five other entrants will win $500 gift cards from Big Lots.

The promotion serves two purposes. "Lifetime is encouraging viewers to tune in during the holiday period," said Stacy Geagan Wagner, Limbo's VP of public relations. "Big Lots is trying to be top-of-mind in that key week leading up to Black Friday."

Limbo and Lifetime worked previously on promotions using the Limbo Unique game. "When Lifetime shows [a spot for Limbo Unique], we tend to get a lot of new members," said Geagan Wagner.

Through post-campaign research conducted by a third party, Limbo reports a 7 percent conversion to purchase for advertisers. SMS player averages 50 branded interactions, and averages 15 minutes per Web gameplay session.

Posted by Enid Burns at 11:38 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

November 12, 2007

Android Developer Challenge

Google made available the SDK for its Android open standard mobile operating system as part of the Open Handset Alliance. Details on the platform and the SDK are available on Google's blog.

Google also announced the Android Developer Challenge where the search company will award a total of $10 million between two tiers of submissions. Challenge I, with entries being accepted between January 2 and March 3 of next year, will reward the 50 most promising entries $25,000 to fund further development. The pool of 50 winners will be eligible for an additional $100,000 to $275,000 for their work. Challenge II will commence once handsets are released into the market.

Posted by Enid Burns at 3:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

November 6, 2007

Android Trademark

Google's mobile operating system Android is now out of the bag. And Google acquired the mobile company Android, which supplied the name, back in 2005. Though it's registered a trademark on the name Android only days before the announcement of the Open Handset Alliance and Android. The trademark covers hardware and software, though the announcement only covered the open source software.

On the conference call yesterday, Google Chairman and CEO Eric Schmidt attempted to head off questions of a so called G-Phone by stating "this is not an announcement for the G-Phone, we are hoping that this will power thousands of phones," in his opening remarks. That didn't stop follow-up questions. Those questions were addressed. "Google does not pre-announce anything. If you were to build a G-Phone, this would be the perfect platform," said Schmidt. He also said "we don't want to foreclose on announcements in the future." With the trademark covering hardware and software, it provides a chance there could be a phone called G some day.

Posted by Enid Burns at 3:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

October 31, 2007

Worldwide Mobile Subscriber Forecast

Data released by the Shosteck Group and its strategic partner the Mobile World forecasts 3.3 billion mobile subscribers worldwide by year end. Of those subscribers, roughly 2.6 billion are served by GSM, GPRS, and EDGE networks; 190 million operate on W-CDMA networks; and 422 million on CDMA2000 standards. The remaining few use technologies such as iDEN. By 2011 the research anticipates 5.4 billion mobile subscribers globally. The breakdown will be roughly 2.8 billion on GSM, GPRS, and EDGE networks; 1.8 billion on W-CDMA; and 783 million on CDMA2000.

Posted by Enid Burns at 2:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

October 24, 2007

Targeting Mobile Campaigns by Carrier

At CTIA this past spring Millennial Media launched its Decktrade mobile ad network. Now at CTIA this fall, it's releasing Decktrade 2.0, which offers benefits for advertisers including improved campaign creation, one-click campaign management, and improved reporting and purchase history. Within the campaign management Decktrade allows advertisers to create one campaign across multiple carriers, which previously required separate buys and budget allotments for each carrier. On the publisher side, Decktrade cleaned up the campaign approval process, payout process, performance statistics, and code integration.

Posted by Enid Burns at 4:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Is it True There's Free Mobile Games?

Yes, the days of mobile handsets coming pre-installed with a free game of Snake may be coming to an end. But while Mobile Magazine is reporting the free game is winding down, it fails to mention the emergence of ad-supported mobile games from sources like Greystripe, and various developers using a platform from Amobee and Exit Games. Plus, there's advergames like one from DHL. Handset manufacturers don't have to provide games anymore, users will find them whether they want to pay for the game or see ads in order to gain access. Nokia was among the handset makers to provide games, and is now building out its N-Gage platform and moving into mobile social networking and other ad-supported media.

Posted by Enid Burns at 12:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

October 11, 2007

IPhone Am Legend

Is the Apple iPhone enough of a technology platform to warrant its own specialty ad campaign? Crew Creative Advertising is betting that it is, and they've launched a site specifically for iPhones promoting the upcoming Warner Bros. Pictures and Village Roadshow’s film version of I Am Legend.

The special site links to an iPhone compatible trailer on apple.com, and provides a synopsis of the film, a photo gallery, an RSS news feed and wallpapers all specially made to be viewed on iPhones. And I must admit, as a horror novel purist, I'm not completely taken with the idea of another movie version of Richard Matheson's 1954 vampire story being made again, but the snazziest feature from the site is clearly the sunrise/sunset widget. Just like the story's hero Robert Neville knows he has to be home before sunset, Web site visitors can install the widget that will track the oncoming night directly from their iPhone.

Take that, vampires.

Posted by MatthewNelson at 10:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

October 10, 2007

Mobile Bar Code Resolve

Bar codes for mobile applications are big in Japan. Everybody talks about how a 3D bar code can be scanned by a mobile user to get more information, or respond to an advertisement. Then those people say, "We can't do that here because most handsets don't have the technology." That's true, to recognize 3D bar codes a handset requires technology not built in to most U.S. handsets, but you can use traditional bar codes.

According to Michael Bates, co-founder and CEO of mobile and online classifieds site IQzone, the company's servers can take in and resolve bar codes from photos sent by consumers. The difference is that with a 3D bar code the number is resolved on the phone, then sent to the server for more information. With a traditional bar code a consumer sends a photo and the number is resolved at the server, then sends information back to the consumer. The same can be done with ISBN numbers, serial numbers, and even something recognizable like a movie poster.

IQzone uses bar code recognition to make it easier for its users to post classifieds. If you're selling a book why not take a photo of the ISBN number to populate the description with a summary from sources including The New York Times Book Review and Muze. IQzone also allows its users to send pictures of the bar code from consumer electronics and other items to post goods for sale. It then pulls from data sources to populate the listings with a description, which saves the thumbs of users actually posting items from their cell phones.

Posted by Enid Burns at 3:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

October 8, 2007

GPhone Guessing Game

Google's mobile phone ambition centers on convincing mobile phone manufacturers and wireless carriers to offer phones based on Google's software, The New York Times reports today.

Google is working on a mobile phone operating system based on open-source Linux software that would compete with Microsoft's Windows mobile, according to an unnamed industry executive quoted by the Times. Applications reportedly include mobile search, mapping software, and Web browser.

Mobile advertising may subsidize a portion of the phone's costs, the report says.

The Google phone, or GPhone, is seen as a way for Google to make a grab for additional mobile advertising, a growth market.

Over this past year, there's been widespread discussion over Google's planned phone, including the possibility it may include a phone service subsidized by mobile advertisements. Others have speculated what the phone will look like.

In its report about the GPhone, BusinessWeek last week cranked up the volume on that discourse and examined other advertising-subsidized phone services, such as Virgin Mobile's Sugar Mama. Oh, that's sweet.

Posted by Anna Maria Virzi at 4:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

From Handsets to Media, Advertising

Nokia said today it completed its acquisition of Enpocket. No additional details since the acquisition was first announced. With this most recent acquisition, the creation of Mosh, and other moves the handset manufacturer has recently made, the company is on its way to becoming a global media presence for the mobile Web.

Posted by Enid Burns at 10:56 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

October 1, 2007

Telefonica's Global Search Partners

Madrid-based Telefonica's been busy. Today it said it will partner with Yahoo to bring the search engine's OneSearch, which was launched earlier this year to its users in Ireland, Latin America, and the U.K. Those users will also have access to news, financial information, weather conditions, Flickr photos, Web images, and Web and mobile Web sites. They'll also have access to Yahoo Mail.

Just last week Telefonica and JumpTap announced a deal to enable JumpTap's search capabilities for music, images, and games channels. This service is available to users in Spain, the mobile phone company's home country. JumpTap said it makes Telefonica the first operator in Spain to bring a complete search and advertising solution to the mobile screen.

Posted by Enid Burns at 5:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

September 18, 2007

Location-Aware Mobile Search

When you leave your neighborhood, or even time zone, your phone can sense you're in a different service area, yet targeting for advertising and search defaults to your home area unless you tell your phone otherwise. Through a partnership between Sprint and Microsoft, users on the Sprint network can opt-in to an integrated GPS location-aware mobile search service. Additionally, Microsoft will include a version of voice search with visual results by Live Search using Microsoft property Tellme available for download. GPS-enabled search is a permission-based service, subscribers do have to acknowledge the GPS functionality of the phone in order to take part.

While there was no advertising immediately announced about GPS-enabled search, it's ripe for geo-targeted ads. Sprint was an early adopter among U.S.-based carriers to allow advertising on deck. On the Microsoft side, it can't be too hard to make inventory available to advertisers here.

Posted by Enid Burns at 5:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

September 17, 2007

SpiralFrog Crawls Out from Under its Lily Pad

SpiralFrog, an ad supported music downloading site, officially launched today with approximately 800,000 songs and 3,500 music videos available to download to media players, and the company said it will add more content every day. All is well in the world of SpiralFrog.

Well, maybe.

It's been a tough road for SpiralFrog since it initially got traction for its ad supported music sharing model through a deal with Universal Music Group. It wasn't long before things went wrong when the company failed to sign any additional major labels and then many executives and sales staffers left in December. Still, it's up now, and company executives are touting it as a piracy-free means of downloading music, since a share of its advertising revenue is provided to publishers. It also intends to bring users to its service by providing additional artist bios, reviews, discography and album art, among other rich content features, according to the company. All of which is meant to make the site a "Web-based music experience" rather than a music downloading portal.

But on the other hand, SpiralFrog will play on Windows PCs running XP and Vista, and will download songs to "up to two portable music players or music-enabled phones that support Windows Media DRM," it said. Which means, as many Apple iPod users know, it requires using WMA files with DRM software which won't work on the Apple devices. So there goes 70 percent of the portable music player market. And there's even some question that SpiralFrog will work on Microsoft's own Zune player.

Yup, it looks like the frog has an uphill battle ahead of it.

Posted by MatthewNelson at 11:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

September 7, 2007

Monetize Video Content on Mobile

Transpera is a mobile technology company close to launching with a white label video product. The business model is to partner with content companies, particularly video content, and bring the media to mobile while stitching in ads seamlessly. The targeted ad unit is similar in execution to one offered by Ad Infuse on ZooVision content. Execution has to be seamless as mobile users won't have patience to wait for load time, buffering, and an ad. The ad units, typically under :10, stream right into the entertainment.

Discovery primarily happens on the Web, site visitors can send a video clip to their mobile phone. The sticky application then encourages users to download an app to aggregate more video and share with friends, who will also sign up. Company founder and CEO said Transpera builds discovery tools on the Web, but once users get the video, they'll naturally visit the site via mobile for more content.

Ads, sold either by the content company or Transpera, can by dynamically targeted based on an aggregate of user behavior across the network. Site registration data can also be applied to targeting. Location-based targeting by phone number is another option for advertisers.

Posted by Enid Burns at 5:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Mobile Coupons Spawn New Trees

So September is National Coupon Month. Who knew?

Mobile coupon provider Cellfire, for one. To mark the occasion, the company has partnered with non-profit American Forests and pledged to plant a tree for every 5,000 mobile discount offers sent to subscribers.

American Forests' Greg Meyer: “Mobile coupons are a step in the right direction to decreas