Getting hyper local and let the community build local "local" maps !
Google launches mapping tool "Google Map maker"
Indiantelevision.com Team
(28 August 2008)
NEW DELHI: Google has launched mapping tool "Google Map Maker", mapmaker.google.com, in India.
Developed by its Indian engineering team, the mapping tool allows users to add or edit features, such as roads, businesses, parks, schools, apartment buildings, localities etc. Users can also add detailed information about these locations and this user created geographical content is updated and made visible immediately to all other users.
Says Google head- research and development Prasad Ram, "This is a great achievement for our engineering team. India is a challenging market - but one that has inspired us to really focus on creating technology that addresses real issues around local content and usability. This launch is the reinforcement of our commitment to bring more useful information to people around the world and especially in hyper-growth countries like India where maps are changing on a daily basis given the rapid pace of infrastructure development."
Other than India, Google Map Maker is also available in 57 countries in Asia including the Island Nations and the Caribbean.
Sunday, August 31, 2008
iTunes App Store App Count update and classification
iTunes App Store App Count update and classification
The App count by category:
| Games | 611 |
| Utilities | 535 |
| Entertainment | 527 |
| Productivity | 279 |
| Lifestyle | 265 |
| Education | 190 |
| Travel | 186 |
| Books | 170 |
| Reference | 159 |
| Business | 138 |
| Healthcare & Fitness | 117 |
| Navigation | 100 |
| Music | 88 |
| Finance | 87 |
| Social networking | 79 |
| Sports | 77 |
| Photography | 57 |
| News | 43 |
| Weather | 19 |
Note: the total of the categories is higher than the total for apps as there can be multiple categories per app.
Along with the announcement of the Android Market, its content store a la Apple's application store, Google also announced the winners of the Android Developer Challenge - I (Google's application development challenge for the Android).
Another reiteration of the fact that you cant build everything yourself and to cater to the "long tail" you need to let the community build for the community.
Also interesting to note the strong showing by context related apps. Gives a great insight into the emerging possibilities in the context segment and how its becoming all pervasive and integrating right from gaming to tracking and monitoring applications/services. The interesting trend within LBS is the focus on community based apps/services (social context).
Presenting the Winners of the Android Developer Challenge I
Since we started the first Android Developer Challenge late last year, we all have been eager to see who the winners of $275,000 and $100,000 would be. All 50 applications that emerged from Round 1 of ADC I showed great promise, and these teams have been working intensely for the past several months to polish their apps for the final round.
Similar to round 1 we sent laptops preconfigured with the judging environment, emulator, and all entries to each of our seven judges. In this round, each judge reviewed all 50 applications, took collaborative notes and gave initial scores. Then, all judges met together over conference calls to discuss and debate these applications, finally coming to consensus on which applications should receive $275,000 and which should receive $100,000.
We're pleased to present all of the winners and finalists in our detailed ADC gallery. Peruse and enjoy — there are awesome applications and unique uses of the Android platform. We would like to congratulate the winners and thank all the entrants for their hard work!
The final phase of Android Developer Challenge I is now complete. Out of 50 teams of finalists, 10 teams received a $275,000 award each and 10 teams received a $100,000 award each. All of the teams' hard work during the past several months is apparent in the final 50 entries. The teams have each provided overviews of their applications and the technologies they used to create them; learn about all 50 applications and the teams that created them here in their own words.Congratulations to everyone.
http://code.google.com/android/adc_gallery/
Details of finalists : http://code.google.com/android/images/adc1r1_deck.pdf
Android Market: a user-driven content distribution system
Developers will also be provided with a useful dashboard and analytics to help drive their business and ultimately improve their offerings.
Android Market: a user-driven content distribution system
When we talk to developers, a common topic is the challenge of getting applications in the hands of users. That's why today I'm happy to share early details of Android Market—an open content distribution system that will help end users find, purchase, download and install various types of content on their Android-powered devices. The concept is simple: leverage Google's expertise in infrastructure, search and relevance to connect users with content created by developers like you.
Developers will be able to make their content available on an open service hosted by Google that features a feedback and rating system similar to YouTube. We chose the term "market" rather than "store" because we feel that developers should have an open and unobstructed environment to make their content available. Similar to YouTube, content can debut in the marketplace after only three simple steps: register as a merchant, upload and describe your content and publish it. We also intend to provide developers with a useful dashboard and analytics to help drive their business and ultimately improve their offerings.
I also wanted to share some early details to help with planning your efforts so that you can be ready as our partners release the first Android-powered handsets. Developers can expect the first handsets to be enabled with a beta version of Android Market. Some decisions are still being made, but at a minimum you can expect support for free (unpaid) applications. Soon after launch an update will be provided that supports download of paid content and more features such as versioning, multiple device profile support, analytics, etc. Below are some screenshots that illustrate some of the security features and workflow.
With the addition of a marketplace, the Android ecosystem is becoming even more robust. I am incredibly energized by the support and amazing content I've seen so far. We will share more details as they are available and I look forward to working with many of you in the coming months.
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Google Unveils Android's App Store
The Android Market is expected to be a significant factor in the success of the mobile operating system. We have seen the early success of the Apple applications store. Monetization however, remains the biggest challenge and mobile advertising as we have seen, cannot currently be the sole panacea for this.
Google Unveils Android's App Store
A competitor to Apple's App Store, the Android Market will allow users to browse, purchase, install, and rate applications on Android handsets.
By Marin Perez
InformationWeek
August 28, 2008
With the rollout of handsets featuring Google's Android mobile operating system just around the corner, the company unveiled early details on its competitor to Apple's App Store.
On the Android Developers Blog the company showed how Android users will be able to get applications on their handsets. The process will be similar to posting a video on YouTube: Content providers register as a merchant, upload and describe content, and then publish it.
The first Android-powered handsets will be enabled with a beta version of Android Market that will at minimum support free applications. End users will use this to find, download, and install content, and they'll be able to rate and comment on applications.
"Soon after launch an update will be provided that supports download of paid content and more features such as versioning, multiple device profile support, analytics, etc.," wrote Eric Chu in the blog post.
In what can be seen as a jab at Apple, Google said it chose the term "market" instead of "store" because it wanted developers to have an "unobstructed environment" to distribute their content. By comparison, Apple places restrictions of what types of applications are in its store and also gets a 30% cut from any application purchased.
When Google introduced Android last November, the company said it wanted to create an open and comprehensive platform for mobile devices. The open approach to the application market significantly lowers the barrier of entry for application creators, but some questions about security still remain.
The Android Market is expected to be a significant factor in the success of the mobile operating system. Consumers seem to be hungry for mobile applications, as iPhone users have downloaded more than 60 million programs from the App Store since its launch July 11.
Google Unveils Android's App Store
A competitor to Apple's App Store, the Android Market will allow users to browse, purchase, install, and rate applications on Android handsets.
By Marin Perez
InformationWeek
August 28, 2008
With the rollout of handsets featuring Google's Android mobile operating system just around the corner, the company unveiled early details on its competitor to Apple's App Store.
On the Android Developers Blog the company showed how Android users will be able to get applications on their handsets. The process will be similar to posting a video on YouTube: Content providers register as a merchant, upload and describe content, and then publish it.
The first Android-powered handsets will be enabled with a beta version of Android Market that will at minimum support free applications. End users will use this to find, download, and install content, and they'll be able to rate and comment on applications.
"Soon after launch an update will be provided that supports download of paid content and more features such as versioning, multiple device profile support, analytics, etc.," wrote Eric Chu in the blog post.
In what can be seen as a jab at Apple, Google said it chose the term "market" instead of "store" because it wanted developers to have an "unobstructed environment" to distribute their content. By comparison, Apple places restrictions of what types of applications are in its store and also gets a 30% cut from any application purchased.
When Google introduced Android last November, the company said it wanted to create an open and comprehensive platform for mobile devices. The open approach to the application market significantly lowers the barrier of entry for application creators, but some questions about security still remain.
The Android Market is expected to be a significant factor in the success of the mobile operating system. Consumers seem to be hungry for mobile applications, as iPhone users have downloaded more than 60 million programs from the App Store since its launch July 11.
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
India notches record mobile net additions in June
Another blistering 30 days !
India notches record mobile net additions in July
The Indian mobile market reached record net additions in July with the addition of 9.22 million new mobile subs, up from the previous record 8.94 million subs added in June, bringing total mobile market subs to 296 million, according to newly released figures from the Telecom
Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI).
Mobile market leader Bharti led the way with 3.69 million net subscriber additions in June, taking its total subs base to 72 million, with Vodafone adding 1.76 million subs to reach 50.95 million subs. For its part, Reliance Communications added 1.75 million subs in June to reach
52.54 million subs and Tata Teleservices added around 1 million subs to reach 27.33 million subs.
India notches record mobile net additions in July
The Indian mobile market reached record net additions in July with the addition of 9.22 million new mobile subs, up from the previous record 8.94 million subs added in June, bringing total mobile market subs to 296 million, according to newly released figures from the Telecom
Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI).
Mobile market leader Bharti led the way with 3.69 million net subscriber additions in June, taking its total subs base to 72 million, with Vodafone adding 1.76 million subs to reach 50.95 million subs. For its part, Reliance Communications added 1.75 million subs in June to reach
52.54 million subs and Tata Teleservices added around 1 million subs to reach 27.33 million subs.
Saturday, August 16, 2008
Social Networking Explodes Worldwide as Sites Increase their Focus on Cultural Relevance
Sliced and diced this translates to over 500 million people and possibly the largest potential community globally.
The raging popularity of Social Networking in India is evident from the following statistics :
- Pecking order of social sites in India - Orkut, Facebook, BharatStudent, Hi5, Ibibo, BigAdda, Fropper, MySpace -with an estimated 21+ mn unique visits in June 2008 (this does not take into account overlap between sites on account of a user having IDs across multiple sites)
- A number of local social networking and UGC sites have emerged up over the last 12-18 months
- Social Networking – Big Adda, Fropper, Yaari, Indianpad, bharatstudent, Minglebox, etc.
- UGC – iShare, Apnatube, MeraVideo, MouthShut, TechTribe, PicSquare, etc.
- With an aggregate 12 mn registered users, Indian social networking websites are in their infancy
- All based on similar lines with little differentiation
The next frontier for all the social networking sites is the mobile estate
This infancy is reflected in the fact that while Facebook was recently valued at $500 per registered user, valuation of India social networking sites currently hovers ~ $50 per subscriber.
Social Networking Explodes Worldwide as Sites Increase their Focus on Cultural Relevance
comScore Press Release
Facebook and Hi5 More than Double Global Visitor Bases During Past Year
RESTON, VA, August 12, 2008 – comScore, Inc., a leader in measuring the digital world, today released a study of worldwide usage of social networking sites, indicating that while the growth in new users in North America is beginning to level off, it is burgeoning in other regions around the world. During the past year, the total North American audience of social networkers has grown 9 percent compared to a much larger 25 percent growth for the world at large. The Middle East-Africa region (up 66 percent), Europe (up 35 percent), and
Social Networking Growth by Worldwide Region
June 2008 vs. June 2007
Total Worldwide Audience, Age 15+ - Home and Work Locations
Source: comScore World Metrix
| | Unique Visitors (000) | ||
| Jun-07 | Jun-08 | Percent Change | |
| Worldwide | 464,437 | 580,510 | 25% |
| | 162,738 | 200,555 | 23% |
| | 122,527 | 165,256 | 35% |
| | 120,848 | 131,255 | 9% |
| | 40,098 | 53,248 | 33% |
| Middle East - | 18,226 | 30,197 | 66% |
“While the social networking trend first took off in
Facebook and Hi5 Lead Global Growth among Top Social Networking Sites
During the past year, many of the top social networking sites have demonstrated rapid growth in their global user bases. Facebook.com, which took over the global lead among social networking sites in April 2008, has made a concerted effort to become more culturally relevant in markets outside the
Worldwide Growth among Selected Social Networking Sites
June 2008 vs. June 2007
Total Worldwide Audience, Age 15+
Home and Work Locations
Source: comScore World Metrix
| | Total Unique Visitors (000) | ||
| Jun-2007 | Jun-2008 | % Change | |
| Total Internet : Total Audience | 778,310 | 860,514 | 11% |
| Social Networking | 464,437 | 580,510 | 25% |
| FACEBOOK.COM | 52,167 | 132,105 | 153% |
| MYSPACE.COM | 114,147 | 117,582 | 3% |
| HI5.COM | 28,174 | 56,367 | 100% |
| FRIENDSTER.COM | 24,675 | 37,080 | 50% |
| Orkut | 24,120 | 34,028 | 41% |
| BEBO.COM | 18,200 | 24,017 | 32% |
| Skyrock Network | 17,638 | 21,041 | 19% |
Facebook Gains Traction in
Facebook’s recent ascension to become the top global social networking site has been spurred by its substantial growth across worldwide regions. Though its largest visitor base is still in
Worldwide Growth for Facebook.com
June 2008 vs. June 2007
Total Worldwide Audience, Age 15+
Home and Work Locations
Source: comScore World Metrix
| | Total Unique Visitors (000) | ||
| Jun-2007 | Jun-2008 | % Change | |
| FACEBOOK.COM | 52,167 | 132,105 | 153% |
| | 35,698 | 49,248 | 38% |
| | 8,751 | 35,263 | 303% |
| | 3,712 | 20,712 | 458% |
| Middle East - | 2,974 | 14,951 | 403% |
| | 1,033 | 11,931 | 1055% |
“Facebook has done an exceptional job of leveraging its brand internationally during the past year,” added Mr. Flanagan. “By increasing the site’s relevance to local markets through local language interface translation, the site is now competing strongly or even capturing the lead in several markets where it had a relatively minor presence just a year ago.”
Universal Music launches DRM-free online music store
We surely are moving quickly to a DRM free world. While this clearly is an attempt to battle piracy and dropping record sales, how viable this business model is and how it would evolve is still very open.
Universal Music launches DRM-free online music store
Jonny Evans, Macworld UK
07.31.2008
Universal Music has launched Lost Tunes, its own digital music service offering rare music, DRM-free at near lossless audio quality.
The choice of name could be considered a thumb to the nose against Apple's iTunes service, which (presumably) would like to offer the tracks Universal's making available through its new service as DRM-free downloads.
Universal describes the service as a "groundbreaking online download store dedicated to exclusives, rarities and overlooked classics". Azi Eftekhari, Head of Digital and Media for Universal Music Catalogue commented: "We wanted Lost Tunes to replicate the experience of going to a favorite local record shop where browsing and discovering music is a real pleasure and an adventure. We only include music that we love."
The service has launched with 134 albums which are available exclusively through Lost Tunes.
The initial batch of digital-download exclusives include The Walker Brothers' 'Live In Japan', three albums by the hugely acclaimed Comsat Angels, Bill Fay's eponymous album, UK blues Nine Below Zero, Mellow Candle and Oriental Sunshine to name but a few.
All downloads are sold as high-quality 320kpbs MP3s, meaning the tracks will work on Macs, PCs, iPods, MP3 players and many mobile phones.
Lost Tunes is powered by iTunes competitor, UK firm, 7Digital. International versions of the site will launch in the coming months.
Universal Music launches DRM-free online music store
Jonny Evans, Macworld UK
07.31.2008
Universal Music has launched Lost Tunes, its own digital music service offering rare music, DRM-free at near lossless audio quality.
The choice of name could be considered a thumb to the nose against Apple's iTunes service, which (presumably) would like to offer the tracks Universal's making available through its new service as DRM-free downloads.
Universal describes the service as a "groundbreaking online download store dedicated to exclusives, rarities and overlooked classics". Azi Eftekhari, Head of Digital and Media for Universal Music Catalogue commented: "We wanted Lost Tunes to replicate the experience of going to a favorite local record shop where browsing and discovering music is a real pleasure and an adventure. We only include music that we love."
The service has launched with 134 albums which are available exclusively through Lost Tunes.
The initial batch of digital-download exclusives include The Walker Brothers' 'Live In Japan', three albums by the hugely acclaimed Comsat Angels, Bill Fay's eponymous album, UK blues Nine Below Zero, Mellow Candle and Oriental Sunshine to name but a few.
All downloads are sold as high-quality 320kpbs MP3s, meaning the tracks will work on Macs, PCs, iPods, MP3 players and many mobile phones.
Lost Tunes is powered by iTunes competitor, UK firm, 7Digital. International versions of the site will launch in the coming months.
Friday, August 15, 2008
The New iPhone and LBS: a Perfect Match?
While the term 'The Context Aware Web' might sound increasingly cliche, context in one form or another is increasingly pervading across mobile internet services with contextual dimensions emerging right from the very obvious tracking/monitoring related services to even gaming. The hottest trend within Context/LBS today though is clearly social context.
When looking closer at the application library, LBS applications are prominently present. Friend finder and location-based mobile social networking application and service developers such as Where (Buddy Beacon), Pelago (Whrrl), Loopt, GyPSii and BrightKite have all hurried to have their iPhone compatible versions.
Interesting to also note that of the top 50 applications (listed below) shortlisted to go into the second ands final round of the first Android Developer Challenge (http://code.google.com/android/images/adc1r1_deck.pdf) ~50% related to context/LBS.
Common trend in both cases though is that booth Apple and Google have opened up their platforms to drive innovation and let the community build for the community. The other common thread though is use of Google Maps :-)
The New iPhone and LBS: a Perfect Match?
Author: Dominique Bonte, Principal Analyst, Telematics & Navigation
Fri, 11 Jul 2008
Today the long awaited 3G iPhone with integrated GPS-receiver goes on sale globally. Expectations are high and sales will undoubtedly beat all records following another perfectly executed Apple marketing campaign. However, it is also becoming clear that despite the many improvements, the iPhone still suffers from some major shortcomings: no Bluetooth stereo support, video clips can still not be shot and more importantly a short battery life – shorter than its predecessor due to the added 3G and GPS functionality. Unfortunately, in this case, the streamlined monolithic design of the iPhone fires back: the fixed built-in battery cannot be replaced by a spare one.
However, the new iPhone hardware is not even the biggest news. A new iPhone applications store is launched at the same time with already more than 500 applications, many of which available for free. And Apple has done everything right, linking it to the iTunes store – already known by a large number of consumers – and making it very easy to download and install applications addressing issues the smartphone world has been struggling with for so long: third party application discovery and installation. However, Jobs has stated that no profit objectives are linked to the applications store, the sole purpose being to sell more iPhones. Quite different from Nokia’s strategy moving into content, applications and services as a business in its own right.
When looking closer at the application library, LBS applications are prominently present. Friend finder and location-based mobile social networking application and service developers such as Where (Buddy Beacon), Pelago (Whrrl), Loopt, GyPSii and BrightKite have all hurried to have their iPhone compatible versions ready for the launch today, many of them happy to piggy-back on Apple’s marketing campaign and getting their own press releases out.
So, what is so special about the iPhone as far as LBS applications are concerned? Well, it combines an excellent GPS receiver with a very intuitive touch screen based user interface which is very relevant for mapping-based applications as it allows to easily move the map by just dragging it, selecting items on the map and have quick access to menu items. This becomes very clear when watching this YouTube video clip made available by Where (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eGCa2QAhC2A&fmt=18). When using LBS applications when on the move, this is precisely the kind of experience users expect.
We may well see the iPhone having a similar impact on LBS as it had on mobile web browsing: nothing short of (re) defining the category! Despite the relatively low number of iPhones out there – 6 million and counting - compared to Nokia’s anticipated 100 million GPS-phones to be sold this year – it does attract data users eager to experiment with new applications. A few million additional LBS users could make all the difference in the still emerging LBS market.
But what about navigation? Navigation applications have been held off by Apple up to now, presumably because they want to reap the profits of this killer application themselves. And indeed, the iPhone has a sufficiently large touch screen to be able to compete with Personal Navigation Devices.
So, what does this mean for Nokia? Well, they have not been sitting still, recently acquiring social activity site Plazes and launching the very promising Nokia Chat yesterday – in beta – a presence and location-based chat and friend finder application linked with Nokia Maps and integrated in the Ovi service provisioning platform. However, despite all the good initiatives, Nokia has an important lesson to learn from Apple: however good your products are, in the end in the consumer space it’s all about the user experience, marketing, communication and branding.
Whatever has been said about Apple and the iPhone, credit has to be given to them for their leading role in revolutionizing the mobile experience. Not surprisingly, we had to wait for a real marketing company to accomplish this.
When looking closer at the application library, LBS applications are prominently present. Friend finder and location-based mobile social networking application and service developers such as Where (Buddy Beacon), Pelago (Whrrl), Loopt, GyPSii and BrightKite have all hurried to have their iPhone compatible versions.
Interesting to also note that of the top 50 applications (listed below) shortlisted to go into the second ands final round of the first Android Developer Challenge (http://code.google.com/android/images/adc1r1_deck.pdf) ~50% related to context/LBS.
Common trend in both cases though is that booth Apple and Google have opened up their platforms to drive innovation and let the community build for the community. The other common thread though is use of Google Maps :-)
The New iPhone and LBS: a Perfect Match?
Author: Dominique Bonte, Principal Analyst, Telematics & Navigation
Fri, 11 Jul 2008
Today the long awaited 3G iPhone with integrated GPS-receiver goes on sale globally. Expectations are high and sales will undoubtedly beat all records following another perfectly executed Apple marketing campaign. However, it is also becoming clear that despite the many improvements, the iPhone still suffers from some major shortcomings: no Bluetooth stereo support, video clips can still not be shot and more importantly a short battery life – shorter than its predecessor due to the added 3G and GPS functionality. Unfortunately, in this case, the streamlined monolithic design of the iPhone fires back: the fixed built-in battery cannot be replaced by a spare one.
However, the new iPhone hardware is not even the biggest news. A new iPhone applications store is launched at the same time with already more than 500 applications, many of which available for free. And Apple has done everything right, linking it to the iTunes store – already known by a large number of consumers – and making it very easy to download and install applications addressing issues the smartphone world has been struggling with for so long: third party application discovery and installation. However, Jobs has stated that no profit objectives are linked to the applications store, the sole purpose being to sell more iPhones. Quite different from Nokia’s strategy moving into content, applications and services as a business in its own right.
When looking closer at the application library, LBS applications are prominently present. Friend finder and location-based mobile social networking application and service developers such as Where (Buddy Beacon), Pelago (Whrrl), Loopt, GyPSii and BrightKite have all hurried to have their iPhone compatible versions ready for the launch today, many of them happy to piggy-back on Apple’s marketing campaign and getting their own press releases out.
So, what is so special about the iPhone as far as LBS applications are concerned? Well, it combines an excellent GPS receiver with a very intuitive touch screen based user interface which is very relevant for mapping-based applications as it allows to easily move the map by just dragging it, selecting items on the map and have quick access to menu items. This becomes very clear when watching this YouTube video clip made available by Where (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eGCa2QAhC2A&fmt=18). When using LBS applications when on the move, this is precisely the kind of experience users expect.
We may well see the iPhone having a similar impact on LBS as it had on mobile web browsing: nothing short of (re) defining the category! Despite the relatively low number of iPhones out there – 6 million and counting - compared to Nokia’s anticipated 100 million GPS-phones to be sold this year – it does attract data users eager to experiment with new applications. A few million additional LBS users could make all the difference in the still emerging LBS market.
But what about navigation? Navigation applications have been held off by Apple up to now, presumably because they want to reap the profits of this killer application themselves. And indeed, the iPhone has a sufficiently large touch screen to be able to compete with Personal Navigation Devices.
So, what does this mean for Nokia? Well, they have not been sitting still, recently acquiring social activity site Plazes and launching the very promising Nokia Chat yesterday – in beta – a presence and location-based chat and friend finder application linked with Nokia Maps and integrated in the Ovi service provisioning platform. However, despite all the good initiatives, Nokia has an important lesson to learn from Apple: however good your products are, in the end in the consumer space it’s all about the user experience, marketing, communication and branding.
Whatever has been said about Apple and the iPhone, credit has to be given to them for their leading role in revolutionizing the mobile experience. Not surprisingly, we had to wait for a real marketing company to accomplish this.
Glut of iPhone software pushes down pricing
Another positive effect of the Apple apps store - helped drastically lower the pricing of premium apps and this is likely to have ripple effects across other platforms and the industry per se (Keep in mind that a host of apps available on the Apple apps store today are free/ad supported).
The apps store and its effects on the ecosystem are likely to be challenging for operators too as it not only dilutes their control over mobile VAS (how and what is offered) on offer to their customers, affects related revenues and promotes open access.
Glut of iPhone software pushes down pricing
07/08/2008 - by Ian Scales, Telecom TV
Way back in March, when Apple first opened up the iPhone and offered its downloadable Software Development Kit (SDK), it famously stimulated 100,000 downloads in the first four days. That total had risen to 250,000 by June.
At the time, we at TelecomTV did some quick, back of the cellphone calculations and developed some off-the-cuff analysis on supply and demand principles. With such a high ratio of software developers to actual users at the time (we figured about 1 to 50 or so) we wondered whether iPhone software development would prove to be such a great career move - too many sellers and, as yet, not enough buyers we thought.
When Apple announced and recently opened its online App Store it kicked off another boost to the competitive tempo. The App Store enables users to easily pay for and download applications to their iPhones. For the software provider the barriers were also ground down. Companies and individuals could put up their innovative programs and games and Apple would only take 30 per cent of the retail price while at the same time adding value to their products by placing them in an "Appley" professional, slick, online retail environment.
Everyone was a winner - Apple would add even more value to the iPhone brand by orchestrating a huge number of programs and games to justify the iPhone premium; program developers would have a prestigious channel to market and only lose 30 per cent of their revenues; and users would have a great store of competitively-priced software product to choose from.
The biggest winners, though, appear to be the users. As Dow Jones recently reported, the huge number of products for sale in the App Store - currently around 1400 - is having its inevitable impact. When the store opened in early July (same time as the debut of the iPhone 3G) the popular market price for a program was $9.99. In the month following (clearly a month is a long time in online software retailing) the prices have dropped so far that many are now 99 cents. Even popular games are now debuting at 99 cents, way lower than the companies concerned had originally planned.
Dow Jones says analysts expect the ripples from the App Store price drops to ripple out and affect the pricing of games and programs available for other platforms, includingSymbian and Blackberry.
The apps store and its effects on the ecosystem are likely to be challenging for operators too as it not only dilutes their control over mobile VAS (how and what is offered) on offer to their customers, affects related revenues and promotes open access.
Glut of iPhone software pushes down pricing
07/08/2008 - by Ian Scales, Telecom TV
Way back in March, when Apple first opened up the iPhone and offered its downloadable Software Development Kit (SDK), it famously stimulated 100,000 downloads in the first four days. That total had risen to 250,000 by June.
At the time, we at TelecomTV did some quick, back of the cellphone calculations and developed some off-the-cuff analysis on supply and demand principles. With such a high ratio of software developers to actual users at the time (we figured about 1 to 50 or so) we wondered whether iPhone software development would prove to be such a great career move - too many sellers and, as yet, not enough buyers we thought.
When Apple announced and recently opened its online App Store it kicked off another boost to the competitive tempo. The App Store enables users to easily pay for and download applications to their iPhones. For the software provider the barriers were also ground down. Companies and individuals could put up their innovative programs and games and Apple would only take 30 per cent of the retail price while at the same time adding value to their products by placing them in an "Appley" professional, slick, online retail environment.
Everyone was a winner - Apple would add even more value to the iPhone brand by orchestrating a huge number of programs and games to justify the iPhone premium; program developers would have a prestigious channel to market and only lose 30 per cent of their revenues; and users would have a great store of competitively-priced software product to choose from.
The biggest winners, though, appear to be the users. As Dow Jones recently reported, the huge number of products for sale in the App Store - currently around 1400 - is having its inevitable impact. When the store opened in early July (same time as the debut of the iPhone 3G) the popular market price for a program was $9.99. In the month following (clearly a month is a long time in online software retailing) the prices have dropped so far that many are now 99 cents. Even popular games are now debuting at 99 cents, way lower than the companies concerned had originally planned.
Dow Jones says analysts expect the ripples from the App Store price drops to ripple out and affect the pricing of games and programs available for other platforms, includingSymbian and Blackberry.
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
IPhone Software Sales Take Off: Apple's Jobs
The open APIs mantra - build the platform and then open it up and let the community build for the community. Opening up APIs forsters 3rd party innovation. Similar success has been witnessed by Facebook by opening up its APIs.
iPhone Software Sales Take Off: Apple's Jobs
By Nick ingfield, WSJ
August 11, 2008
CUPERTINO, Calif. -- Apple Inc.'s bet on cellphone software appears to be paying off.
In the month since Apple opened an online software clearinghouse called the App Store, users have downloaded more than 60 million programs for the iPhone, Chief Executive Steve Jobs said in an interview at Apple's headquarters. While most of those applications were free, Apple sold an average of $1 million a day in applications for a total of about $30 million in sales over the month, Mr. Jobs said.
If sales stay at the current pace, Apple stands to reap at least $360 million a year in new revenue from the App Store, Mr. Jobs said. "This thing's going to crest a half a billion, soon," he added. "Who knows, maybe it will be a $1 billion marketplace at some point in time."
"I've never seen anything like this in my career for software," he said.
Apple has hit a few speed bumps along the way, in part because it has set itself up as a powerful intermediary for the distribution of software to iPhones. For instance, it has frustrated some software developers by removing their programs from its App Store without explanation. Some iPhone users also have complained of technical problems with various iPhone applications, which software makers have attempted to correct with frequent patches.
Apple isn't likely to derive much in the way of direct profit from the business, Mr. Jobs acknowledged. It is keeping only 30% of the proceeds from application sales -- about enough to cover expenses from credit-card transactions and other costs of running the online store -- while the programs' creators keep 70%.
Instead, Mr. Jobs is betting applications will sell more iPhones and wireless-enabled iPod touch devices, enhancing the appeal of the products in the same way music sold through Apple's iTunes has made iPods more desirable.
"Phone differentiation used to be about radios and antennas and things like that," Mr. Jobs said. "We think, going forward, the phone of the future will be differentiated by software."
That view is shared by rivals, including Microsoft Corp. and Google Inc., which are working to popularize their own software platforms for cellphones. Richard Doherty, an analyst with market research firm Envisioneering Group, says Apple has caught competitors off guard. "They've lost developers to Apple," he says.
Software developers also say they've been surprised by the popularity of their iPhone applications. Videogame specialist Sega Corp. says it sold more than 300,000 copies in 20 days of its $9.99 Super Monkeyball game, in which players guide an orb around mazes by tilting their iPhones. "That's a substantial business," says Simon Jeffery, president of Sega's U.S. division. "It gives iPhone a justifiable claim to being a viable gaming platform."
Another hit comes from Epocrates Inc., a maker of electronic reference guides for physicians that has developed a free drug encyclopedia for the iPhone. More than 125,000 people have downloaded the software, including 25,000 doctors, says Michelle Snyder, the San Mateo, Calif., company's vice president of marketing. That compares to the some 500,000 Epocrates users the company has previously said it has on other mobile devices.
Dan Hoffman, CTO of SMobile Systems and a certified hacking forensic investigator, talks about malicious software that can affect your mobile device, and offers tips on how to safeguard your smart phone.
Mr. Jobs said developers' share of iPhone application sales in the first month was about $21 million, of which the top 10 developers earned roughly $9 million.
Some developers, however, have run afoul of Apple's limits on software it will distribute through the App Store. The company recently removed an application called I Am Rich that did nothing but display a glowing red gem, for the eye-popping sum of $999.99. The programmer who created it, Armin Heinrich, says he thought he was abiding by Apple's rules for its developers. An Apple spokeswoman said Apple made a "judgment call" to remove I Am Rich.
Apple raised hackles in computer-privacy and security circles when an independent engineer discovered code inside the iPhone that suggested iPhones routinely check an Apple Web site that could, in theory trigger the removal of the undesirable software from the devices.
Mr. Jobs confirmed such a capability exists, but argued that Apple needs it in case it inadvertently allows a malicious program -- one that stole users' personal data, for example -- to be distributed to iPhones through the App Store. "Hopefully we never have to pull that lever, but we would be irresponsible not to have a lever like that to pull," he says.
Mr. Jobs declined to give an updated sales tally for iPhone 3Gs, the new model of the phone introduced last month at half the up-front price of the previous $399 model.
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