Mobile Entertainment Issue 57, November 2009

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NOVEMBER 2009 ISSUE 57

FOR EVERYONE IN MOBILE CONTENT www.mobile-ent.biz

MOBILE ENTERTAINMENT

Vodafone’s degree course Is 360 the start of a revolution?

Binbit

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CONTENTS

CIRCLE 10 FULL Is Vodafone 360 the start of a revolution?

09

WIN OR BUST

12

FUTURE SOUNDS

New name, new start for Windows Mobile

How acts like the Foo Fighters use apps

15

HARD FACTS

23

THE MONTERREY WAY

The big questions facing mobile porn

Just weeks before ME was launched in 2005, Vodafone held a press conference to launch 3G handsets and services. Hopes were so high back then – a world of rich media speedily delivered to hungry customers. Makes you cry to think about how those hopes were dashed.

The old retail model for operator decks died a little bit last month with the phased replacement of Vodafone Live! with Vodafone 360.

In this issue, we quiz Voda all about what could be a strategy of historic significance.

On other pages, we examine how the shift from decks to apps has put the pressure on major games publishers with big money licences, question some adult content specialists, examine the level of M&A activity in the sector and ponder Microsoft’s latest mobile push...

ME talks to Mexican D2C powerhouse Binbit

4-6 News 28 Appointments 30 Shows 31 Network subs 32 Databox 34 Charts 37 Marketplace 44 Discontent www.mobile-ent.biz

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NEWS

The new era starts now wenty years ago this month, the Berlin Wall came down and the complexion of post-war Europe changed forever. For readers old enough to remember the Iron Curtain, those were extraordinary times to live through. It’s not often you see history being made in real time. And today, when the only thing that people in the UK riot about is being first in the queue for a new Ikea opening (true), it was a heartwarming show of people power.

In mobile, we’re living through similarly seismic changes right now. People are expressing their democratic imperative by switching allegiance from the ancien regime of Nokia, Sony Ericsson and Motorola to Apple, HTC and Samsung. This much is evident from the fiscals announced in the last few weeks (see

T

360 is the first operator project to comprehend that the carrier’s best hope is to add value to content provider services, not compete with them. story opposite). They’re also making purchasing decisions based as much on entirely non-mobile brands such as Facebook and Hyves as on operator tariffs. It’s all change.

All thrilling too. Why? Because the old guard is responding to the turmoil with genuinely bold strategies of its own. Vodafone 360 is a case in point. It’s being touted as the successor to Vodafone Live, but there’s really little to connect the two. Live was a retail shop; 360 is an attempt to put the phone/address book at the centre of a panoply of connected services – whether entertainment, maps or utilities.

As ever, everything depends on the implementation. But insiders are saying – and I agree with them – that this is the first operator project ever to comprehend that carriers’ best hope is to add value to content providers, not compete with them.

In this issue, we talk to Vodafone about 360, and we also investigate what the MEF is doing with its Smart Pipe Enablers initiative. I’m sure the MEF will be delighted with 360, as it’s a real world demonstration of what the Smart Pipe project is seeking to achieve – an agreement between operators to give third parties access to its ‘crown jewels’ (knowing where users are, what handset they use etc).

It’s not Coucescu being shot live on TV, but it’s still quite revolutionary to me.

Tim.Green@intentmedia.co.uk; @timgreen64 4

November 2009

New event to focus on app revolution Vodafone, O2, Mobango, Samsung and others back the Mobile Content Congress – delegate price set at only £125 A MAJOR new industry event, Mobile Content Congress, is to give IP owners, content providers and developers the chance to find out how to monetise mobile apps and widgets.

It takes place at Church House in London on Monday, November 23rd and costs just £125 to attend.

As ME went to press, Vodafone, O2, Samsung, Orange and Mobango were among the companies set to present their vision for a mobile future based around

apps and widgets.

The day long event will also give delegates an opportunity to book networking sessions with the vendors and hear ‘speed presentations’ from start-up companies. Lunch and a

drinks reception are also included in the price.

To find out more about sponsorship packages please call 0845 456 2338 or e-mail sales@call2action.biz. To book tickets please go to www.mobile-ent.biz/events.

The opulent Church House in Westminster will host the Mobile Content Congress

Mobango passes 550m milestone ITALY-BASED social mobile application store Mobango says its membership has grown to five million – and that these users have downloaded more than 550 million pieces of mobile content so far.

Mobango's portal allows members to download apps and share them with others from the handset. The

company says its membership is primarily made up of the 18-25 year old and 26-34 year old demographics, with consumers concentrated in the US, India, UK and Italy, with Germany and Spain.

The growth is a vindication of Mobango’s strategy to build a handsetagnostic web-based app store. Fabio Pezzotti, CEO of Mobango (pictured), said: “Reaching over five million members in the Mobango global community is a fantastic achievement for us – and a real endorsement for what we’re doing. The growth we’re seeing reinforces our ideas about how a social mobile apps store works best. www.mobango.com

Meet ME’s new ad manager KATY Grant has joined ME as ad sales manager from London agency CBS Outdoor.

She arrives at an exciting time for ME as it expands activity in events and online – and builds on its print heritage.

Stuart Dinsey, MD of ME publisher Intent Media said: “I’m delighted that Katy has joined us, and I’m confident she’ll use all her experience to take ME to new heights.” www.mobile-ent.biz

www.mobile-ent.biz

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Shazam!

50m users

No Apple crunch

MUSIC discovery service Shazam has added 15 million users since February, taking its total past the 50 million mark. It’s aiming at 100 million by the end of 2010.

It will now streamline its strategy around two offers: a complimentary app for five tags a month, or a $5 payment for unlimited tags.

Shazam has also taken a strategic investment from the VC company behind the prestigious $100 million iFund Andrew Fisher, CEO of Shazam, is thrilled: “We’re the first UK investment for the iFund, which we consider to be a massive vote of confidence in what we’re doing,” he said.

Fiscals reveal Apple as the true winner of the smartphone era

www.shazam.com

THE SUDDEN and disruptive rise of the touchscreen has played havoc with the ‘old order’ in mobile handsets, vaulting Apple to record profits and Nokia to historic losses.

Fiscals posted last month also showed how LG has benefited from the shift, while Sony Ericsson has yet to turn its fortunes around.

Apple sold 7.4 million iPhones and half a billion app downloads in Q3 alone to boost revenues to $9.87 billion and net profits to $1.67 billion for its fourth quarter – its most profitable ever. It achieved this despite component shortages for the iPhone 3GS. Apple’s COO Tim Cook said: "When you look at the ecosystem that we’ve got with iTunes and the App Store, plus the very strong product pipeline that we have, we feel very, very good about sitting up and competing against anyone."

Not least Nokia, which made a net loss of €913 million for the period, compared with a profit of €1.1 billion for the same

Apple’s Tim Cook is feeling good, and so he should after those fiscals

quarter last year. Net sales of €9.8 billion were down 20 per cent year-on-year.

Despite this, market share remained constant at 38 per cent. Service revenues were €148 million for the quarter.

Sony Ericsson fared worse, recording its fifth straight quarterly loss with sales down 42 per cent to €1.62 billion.

However, at least the decline

Remember kids, don’t drink and drive and download

Set the satnav for in-car apps

www.mobile-ent.biz

satnav button. Its showcase presented travel guides, games, web radio, podcasts, Facebook, Twitter and more.

The Concept BMW Application Store can also transfer contact data such as addresses or telephone numbers to the phone. In terms of UI, there's a menu path that links to 'app store' from 'BMW Services'.

Starz and Streams Mobile Streams has announced a licensing deal with FoneStarz to distribute its content in Western Europe, Australasia and Africa. The deal covers FoneStarz' operator partners in the UK, Ireland, Austria, New Zealand, Australia, South Africa and Egypt. Content includes video clips from the Mr Bean cartoon, comedy voicetones and wallpapers from men's mag Maxim.

About TIM for Qualcomm

is slowing. Units shipped in the quarter grew by two per cent.

Conversely, LG prospered through the upheaval. Its handset revenues leapt 24.8 per cent while shipments increased to 31.6 million.

The firm highlighted strong sales in Europe and emerging markets, particularly with its Cookie phone. www.apple.com

3UK goes a bundle on Spotify

BMW has accelerated ahead to launch the ‘Concept BMW Application Store’, and give drivers the chance to download apps for the car.

The German firm presented the app store concept at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September, showing how to personalise a car to the interests of its occupants at the touch of a

[IN BRIEF]

Further options include 'social networks', 'on the road' and 'entertainment'.

Clearly location is an important component for incar apps, and BMW has shown apps that draw on info from the navigation system and even plans to link to other data such as acceleration or braking data. www.bmwblog.com

3UK has once again embraced a ‘disruptive’ service. This time it’s Spotify.

The operator is to sell a HTC Hero Android handset bundled with the streaming music service.

Customers pay £99 up front, and then £35 a month for 24 months for a tariff including a Spotify Premium subscription covering both PC and mobile, 750 minutes voice calls, unlimited texts, data and Skype-to-Skype calls. www.three.co.uk

Qualcomm has announced a big win for its Plaza Retail white-label app store platform, signing up the Brazilian subsidiary of TIM. The App Store will launch in the first quarter next year. The big deal about Plaza Retail is that it’s capable of supporting Java, Brew, Flash and Android, with Windows Mobile, Symbian, Palm and LiMo due to be added in the future. Qualcomm says that TIM’s app store will be available to its 40 million subscribers in Brazil, who’ll be able to download the app store client from TIM’s portal.

Acer in spades New smartphone entrant Acer has targeted double digit market share in two to three years. The Taiwanese company has, unveiled a bunch of Windows and Android-based phones this year. Last month it added the world’s first Android 1.6 device – the Liquid – to the line-up.

Gianfranco Lanci, CEO of Acer International, said: " Our share of the notebook market in 2002 was less than five per cent. Now it's 20 per cent. We believe we can achieve something similar in smartphones."

Boldly gone this month RIM's BlackBerry Bold 2 (aka 9700) will begin rolling out worldwide in the next few weeks. The device is an update of one of the firm’s biggest selling handsets to date. It offers HSDPA, 256MB Flash memory, built-in GPS, Wi-Fi and a 3.2 megapixel camera. RIM says it can also sync with iTunes and Windows Media Player music (DRM-free MP3s only) while supporting BlackBerry Desktop Manager and BlackBerry Media Sync.

MBO for Picsel Picsel’s management team, led by founder and former CEO Imran Khand, has purchased the Picsel Group of companies out of administration, and will continue to operate the business as a going concern. It stated its intention to keep the file viewer and browser firm in Scotland and to re-establish its product line and working relationships. Khand said: “We believe our overall financial package for the company was by far the best solution to take this business forward while also solving for interested parties, including employees.”

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NEWS

Billing all clicks into place for Ericsson IPX Transactions giant enables ‘one-click to pay’ in-app billing in 15 countries ERICSSON has launched a billing platform it believes will open the floodgates for in-app payments.

The solution, released through its Ericsson IPX unit across 60 mobile operators in 15 countries, gives users the option to purchase items transparently without the need to enter any information other than their phone number. Traditionally, users would have to fill out a lengthy form.

Authentication is also handled by the operator, making the purchase process simple and fast. Ericsson claims this simplicity delivers purchase completion rates typically 10 to 15 times higher than when a credit card is used on the web.

However, the company believes its solution will complement not compete

with established forms of billing. Peter Garside, UK and Ireland director for Ericsson IPX, said: “Millions of people don’t have credit cards, and many who do don’t want to use them when paying for items on a mobile web page. This solution is for them. And it also means that web content can be sold regardless of territory.”

With talk of ‘freemium’ models all the rage, and the vast amount of free products making it more and more difficult to sell products on app stores, this is a payments development worth watching. Now, Ericsson is setting its sights on publisher partners, and the sign up of more operators to the system. The firm will charge publishers a fee and take a revenue share from carriers.

Garside: Cross operator on-bill payment can supercharge m-commerce

500m go to the Opera THE Opera Mini mobile browser was driving more than 500 million page views a day in September – up 233 per cent year-on-year.

This traffic was generated by 32 million active users, itself a rise of 68 per cent from the 19 million in September last year.

Opera stressed how much its browser is driving data plan take-up, with the average user downloading 6MB a month. Given that Opera compresses pages by up to 90 per cent, the actual usage is higher. www.opera.com

www.ericsson.com

Handset makers set to jack up JIL Four vendors sign up to make devices for cross-operator widget scheme LG, RIM, Samsung and Sharp have agreed to make handsets compatible with the Joint Innovation Lab (JIL) mobile widgets initiative from early next year.

They are the first OEMs to commit to the project globally, and should increase the buzz around the idea.

JIL is a joint venture between four operators – Vodafone, Verizon, China Mobile and Softbank – which aims to create a single platform for mobile widgets using open standards. This 6

November 2009

gives developers a potential user base of over a billion.

Widgets – dynamic apps that sit on the desktop – can be enhanced when operators let developers embed them with enhancements such as on-bill payment, handset type or location lookup.

This is what JIL is trying to do. It has already released its SDK, while Vodafone launched two JILenabled Samsung phones last month.

See Voda feature on page 10 www.jil.org

The Brazilians were thrilled with their award for Americo

Grease is the word Short film for Vaseline scoops Mofilm ‘Make An Ad’ award AN ANIMATED film, in which a man’s body grows a mouth, has moisturised its way to a Mofilm prize.

The winning entry Stop Ignoring Your Skin was one of

13 chosen by participating brands in Mofilm’s ‘Make An Ad’ contest. Part of the prize was having the film premiered at the London Film Festival last month.

Second was Marco Tessarolo’s The Proposal for McDonalds, while Cesar Nery and Andre Saito’s Americo for Pepsi was third. www.mofilm.com

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WINNER OF

BEST D2C COMPANY ME AWARDS 2009

THANK YOU TO ALL OUR INDUSTRY FRIENDS FOR THEIR SUPPORT

Monetise your

Global TrafямБ c & Generate SERIOUS Revenue

www.playphone.com

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WINDOWS MOBILE

Windows re-opened It might have a new name and a new user interface, but the industry is still to be convinced by Windows Phone. Tim Green examines how the consumer has become the target for Microsoft... ver the last couple of years, there has been much talk about who owns the customer. From Nokia’s stand-off with operators over its various services to Apple’s rejection (initially) of a subsidy model, the big question has been whether users’ loyalty is to the operator or the handset vendor. No one ever mentioned the OS maker.

With the latest version of Windows Mobile – Windows Mobile 6.5 or Windows Phone as it’s now called – Microsoft is attempting, for the first time as far as I can see, to make consumers choose their phone on the basis of the operating system. Tough call. I don’t remember Symbian ever straying into the consumer hornet’s nest, although to be fair Android is dipping its toe there.

But merely by virtue of hosting a major press conference (at which ‘style’ journalists in skinny jeans tried to distance themselves from stinky

O

old tech hacks) and throwing millions at primetime TV ads, Microsoft is declaring emphatically that the consumer is its target.

Of course, Microsoft does have some in-built advantages when compared to other operating systems.

The firm has desktop applications that users – business users in particular – will want to sync across PC and mobile.

However, Symbian can’t say the same. And it’s a pretty strong impulse, one that explains why a million users bought an Orange SPV phone even though it was frankly terrible.

To be fair to Microsoft, it was humble about its track record on mobile, admitting that only ten per cent of consumers actually know that it is in the mobile business at all, and that it has failed to adapt to the speed of smartphone adoption, the emergence of touchscreens and the rise of the app store.

The HTC touch supports Microsoft with its latest version of Windows Mobile

www.mobile-ent.biz

Windows Phone uses a fresh version of Internet Explorer that handles Flash content and shows solid pan and zoom function To this backdrop, the new OS look arrives with some pleasing functions.

There is a smart ‘lock’ screen that displays vital information and offers quicker access to phone functions.

The touch interface is neat too, with simple upwards and sideways scrolling UI. Meanwhile, there are some excellent added-value extras such as a security feature that means you can call a lost or stolen phone from the web and it will ring even if it’s on silent.

There is also a free back-up service that sends data to the cloud without a single click.

Browsing should be easier too.

Windows Phone uses a fresh version of Internet Explorer that can handle basic Flash content and showcases a solid pan and zoom function. It’s good, but you have to wonder why Microsoft – the big daddy of the browser – took so long to modify for mobile.

Finally, all phones from Windows will pre-load

Microsoft’s mobile app store, Marketplace for Mobile, which launches in the UK with around 60 applications, and worldwide with around 250 applications.

All good. But some of these extras may bring Microsoft into conflict with partners. What will operators like O2 think of Microsoft’s free MyPhone back-up service when they’re trying to monetise their own?

Why should HTC choose Microsoft’s own UI over its own expensively developed interface?

Without doubt Microsoft has the clout, the pockets and the will to reclaim some ground in mobile. Thus, it already has support from HTC, LG, Samsung, Toshiba, Sony Ericsson, Orange and Vodafone. However, all of these partners are spreading their bets, with handsets based on Android and Linux too.

It could be that Windows Mobile 6.5 is a stop-gap until next year when a far more disruptive Windows Mobile 7 lands. The executives I spoke to alluded to step-changes ahead. But then they would, wouldn’t they?

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VODAFONE 360

Roundabout way of thinking

Vodafone 360 is a landmark idea – the first fully-formed operator response to the app store ‘revolution’.

Tim Green asked Vodafone’s Internet Services’ branded content director, Lee Epting, all about it… lthough every operator in the Western world had a WAP storefront offering Java downloads during the middle years of the noughties, it was Vodafone Live that became most synonymous with the idea. It was the biggest and the most heavily marketed. Like all the others, it didn’t really work. Sure, it depends how you measure success and, Voda would certainly construct arguments for why it was pleased with Live!

But the fact is, Live is, well, dead.

It’s being replaced by Vodafone 360, a new service that chimes so much more harmoniously with the times. It’s about social networking, widgets, open standards, the long tail.

Still not quite sure what it is?

Here’s the big picture. Vodafone 360 in its purest form can be seen installed in two Samsung devices at launch. Here, all of a customer’s contacts, status updates and messaging services are converged into one rich address book. This is Vodafone’s ‘people service’ linking a person’s phonebook to Twitter, IM, Facebook et al.

The integration in the platform means that people service also links to music, photos and mapping services so users can share their favourite music choices and even physical location with their chosen groups of friends. This is all synced to the PC or Mac. To help third party developers grab a piece of what’s happening on the handsets of 360 customers, Vodafone has introduced a widget/app developer programme. This is being run through the Joint Innovation Lab, a consortium of Voda, China Mobile, Verizon and Softbank. Products will be accessible via an app store accessible from within 360 or via a browser.

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Lee Epting, Vodafone’s Internet Services’ branded content director, talks about the ‘people service’, Vodafone 360

Yes, it’s massive. Or it could be if enough handsets support it and consumers catch on.

What does 360 say about Live?

What will happen to this service?

Whatever you say, there are 30 million Live customers, and 85 per cent of data subscribers use Live. But, the idea is to migrate it to 360. The timeline depends on the territory, but the service will eventually close and it has already been re-branded as My Web in most territories. This will be a destination to offer some of the 360

services through the browser when a download isn’t available.

download. We want 360 to be available to everyone.

360 is a big deal. But there are just two handsets now. Do you think that is enough?

Obviously, those two launch devices deliver the best possible 360 experience, but the service is also downloadable to other handsets including a group of Nokia series 60 3.2 phones. And over 100 devices can download the people client. We do have more devices to come and we will actively market the

Including developers. How soon will we see apps?

The JIL widget standard is based on W3C so it’s an easy and familiar development tool. This means that there’ll be hundreds of apps soon after launch. Developers can work with their local opcos, but if they’re willing to take into consideration translation and other factors, they will be able to genuinely target a maximum of one billion users. www.mobile-ent.biz

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VODAFONE 360

What’s the rev share?

It’s a 70:30 split, although there’ll be a 50:50 arrangement on certain promotional projects.

Is 360 a money-maker or more about reducing churn?

I’d say it’s a balance of the two. We want to monetise compelling apps and, yes, we do hope that the service will help us acquire new customers.

Clearly, people service is the heart of the project. But you’ve unveiled this just when everyone else is making a rich address book. Does that annoy you?

I prefer to think of it as a validation of what we’re doing. There’s been a good reception so far. But what’s really exciting is the stuff that comes next. We’re really relying here on the creativity of developers to make great, useful applications.

Give me an example.

That’s really their job. But once you have access to a rich address book and the music library, then maybe you could do something with birthdays.

Like I say, it’s over to developers.

So much has been said about the headlock between operators and handset companies with their competing content services. Do you think your overtures will be rejected?

Personally, I can’t see why anyone wouldn’t work with us on 360. It’s not prohibitive.

The other area of friction is competing apps – like Skype or Google Voice or even an app storefront…

We’ve no problem with VoIP apps as long as the right data plan is in place.

We’re not really looking to have third party app storefronts in our shop.

The Samsung H1 is preloaded with Vodafone 360

Are you going to ban adult apps like Apple has done?

No. We take the same stance on apps and widgets as we took on Vodafone Live downloads. We have compulsory age verification, so we don’t preclude adult or gambling services as long as they meet our guidelines.

Clearly on-bill payment is a big advantage for operators. What about in-app billing? Is that available?

Obviously, this is important and the plan is to make it available in the new year. It has actually been built into some showcase services at launch.

One example is with Deutsche Telecom, which lets users buy a code that substitutes for a stamp.

Finally, a vital component: customer care. Are you ready?

Customer care is at the forefront of our thoughts. We recognise the importance of in-store set-up, so we’ve worked hard on that. Obviously, the third party element makes it interesting. There’s a loop process where the developer gets notified because ultimately it’s their transaction, but the policy is a refund for unhappy customers.

Vodafone 360 is...

A ‘3D’ connected address book – Vodafone People, open to everyone on any network. It syncs all contacts from a customer’s phone, Facebook, Windows Live Messenger and Google Talk, and will soon include Twitter, Hyves and studiVZ. A set of services that gathers all of a customer’s friends, communities, entertainment and personal favourites (like music, games, photos and video) in one place.

A suite of content including apps, games, music and mapping services accessible from the app or browser.

A developer programme run by JIL and based around W3C protocols.

The handsets

The roll-out

The Vodafone 360 H1 by Samsung has a 3.5-inch multi-touch hi-def OLED screen, 16GB memory, wi-fi and five megapixel camera. The 360 H1 and M1 run the LiMo operating system.

At launch four Nokia Symbian devices will be pre-loaded with Vodafone 360, ten can download it and 100 more can download part or all of the service.

The 2009 launch in Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain and the UK will be followed by launches in a number of other countries in 2010. These include India, Turkey, South Africa, New Zealand, Romania, France through SFR, Russia through MTS, and through Vodafone Hutchison in Australia.

www.mobile-ent.biz

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MUSIC ALLY

Turn the

Can apps come to the rescue of a mobile music scene losing interest in ringtones and disenchanted with full-track downloads? Music Ally’s Nik Miscov thinks so...

music app round a decade ago the ringtone emerged to define the first age of mobile music. It was nice while it lasted, but the market is in decline. Unfortunately, the fulltrack download, which many hoped would fill the void left by ringtone, has failed to take up the slack.

Without doubt, mobile music has not flourished as expected and the last few years have been disappointing. At Music Ally, we compiled a report that analysed mobile music trends in 14 key markets across Europe, USA, Asia, and Latin America. Based on the assumption that over the next three years these trends would persist (Europe declining by 6.4 per cent, US by 9.8 per cent, and Latin America growing by 7.9 per cent), we predict the global mobile income derived by labels will decline in 2011 by 11.4 per cent. That equals a slide of $164 million from $1,439.5 million in 2008 to $1,274.9 million in 2012.

On the face of it, that’s alarming.

However our research suggests a silver lining in the form of mobile apps. We believe they can offset the decline in traditional mobile music formats and start a third wave of growth following the SMS and then the ringtone booms of the last decade.

In saturated western markets, the explosion of apps and smartphones has massive potential to grow mainstream mobile content industries.

In the last year, we’ve seen an encouraging wave of innovation in the music apps space, with some products directly monetising music through streaming and gaming, and others fuelling sales of online and ‘real world’ products. Here are a few examples:

A

Rekords This app, made by Japanese music label Delaware, uses a virtual vinyl record user interface to stream songs.

Users can switch the ‘disc’ from side A to B by flipping their iPhone.

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Music Ally’s Nik Miscov (top right), rock band Presidents of the United States of America (bottom right) and a shopper streaming music

nuTsie This service lets users listen to playlists from their iTunes libraries, but also builds its own recommended lists of best tracks from specific genres.

Tap Tap No doubt the most successful of all iPhone apps. It lets users buy and tap along to a selection of songs. With version three just launched, there are 50 paid bundles of music inside the game costing $2.99 per six-pack.

Artists such as Blink 182, Fall Out Boy and Foo Fighters are signed up. iLike Like Tap Tap, iLike has succeeded in establishing itself as a significant

brand. It’s a social media app that lets people share their music tastes. On mobile it has complemented its core service with the Local Concerts app, which lists upcoming shows in a user’s area and provides links to buy tickets. It’s a fine example of an app that aids ‘real world’ music sales.

Streamed albums Dave Dederer, singer with The Presidents of the United States of America, is now a VP at Melodeo (which makes nuTsie) where he has launched a three dollar app for iPhone containing the four Presidents albums and exclusive material. It’s being watched as a possible new format for the future.

Spotify No introduction needed. Spotify sees mobile as key to growing its premium subscription play.

So what’s the potential impact of apps?

Based on modest assumptions, we project 69 million music app users will generate a monthly ARPU of $1.20 by 2011. This could help labels rake in $630 million. It’s encouraging, and we’re confident that apps can reverse the decline in ‘traditional’ mobile music formats in the West, while accelerating growth in developing markets.

For details of the Music Ally report please phone +44 (0) 207 420 4320 or email anthony@musically.com

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ADULT CONTENT

Maturation point?

Apps, micro-payments, North America… the mobile adult business has a lot to grapple with. Mobile Entertainment canvassed opinion from industry figures Mike Falco and Julia Dimambro…

Julia Dimambro

www.mobile-ent.biz

The US porn industry is worth $12bn, but the US and Canadian operators still don’t permit adult content on their networks. Will this change?

Mike Falco: Eventually, as long as content is monitored and ageverified. My guess is that we’ll have to wait till 2011. It’ll be like pay-per view porn on cable and satellite TV. As competition grew, those companies were forced to meet the high demand for porn, and eventually it became a ‘normal’ aspect of TV. Also, the operators have no choice. They are helpless to control the consumer’s urge to access the mobile web and therefore mobile porn. Our site, myiPlayground.com, is formatted for the mobile web with a directory of hundreds of quality mobile porn sites that work on various devices.

Julia Dimambro: At a personal guess, I get the impression they probably won’t ever allow hardcore content on their networks. American culture is just too expansive and varied. It would be like all European countries allowing it, which hasn’t happened in over eight years, despite many

advances in attitude and technology.

US carriers’ brand values have to stretch across a range of cultures and public opinion, they prefer to keep the brand safe. Remember Janet Jackson? A total scandal there because one nipple popped out.

That said, I firmly believe that sexy glamour will eventually permeate the decks. Popular culture is full of the stuff. Nothing that we currently distribute at ‘bikini level’ comes anywhere near many of today’s popvideos in terms of sexual content.

It all comes down to positioning.

Compare Vodafone UK and Telus.

Vodafone built a world-class age verification system and started with softcore content. It created a public image of a responsible, pro-active operator. Telus also built a good system, but it kept it as quiet as possible, as if it was hoping that noone would notice. When they did, there was a huge public outcry.

Apple still doesn’t allow adult apps.

Can you see a change of policy?

Mike Falco: I believe that open source apps are the future. Since Apple will not accept adult apps,

many will create and sell them for Android open source phones. If so, I believe Apple will adjust its strategy and the floodgates will open. I think that Apple should have a specific section that requires proof of age and sub-contract it to another organisation so the Apple brand is not directly associated with porn apps.

Julia Dimambro: There’s not much doing with apps as yet. Not much point as we are focused on immediate ROI. How can adult providers circumvent restrictions by building mobile web sites?

Mike Falco: A user can already find mobile porn with great ease. That said, I do not believe that all adult providers want to circumvent restrictions. At this point, the mobile web has the same restrictions as the ‘regular’ web. Our duty as porn webmasters is to stay away from illegal content, and keep porn away from minors. It doesn’t benefit anyone in our industry to have minors access this content What’s the best way to charge for adult?

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ADULT CONTENT

Mike Falco: Micro-payments, credit card and on-bill are all available depending on the geographical location. In North America, credit cards are widely used, but on-bill payment is generally not accepted.

The European operators are more lenient towards on-bill and micro payments. One such European market is Spain.

Julia Dimambro: What I find interesting is how billing affects consumption. About 80 per cent of mobile adult sales in the UK are onbill or via PSMS, but barely 20 per cent of them are on subscription, because of the old ringtone backlash.

In the US, it’s all subscription, because it doesn’t make sense to keep entering your credit card details for single downloads.

Surely micro-payments are tailor made for mobile porn…

Julia Dimambro: They are a perfect match because they are noncommittal and allow for impulse purchasing. Signing up to a monthly subscription can make customers feel like they are officially ‘porn consumers’, which is something many shy away from. Micro-payments let them ‘dip their toe in’ and purchase on impulse. As arousal is normally impulsive, it’s perfect for mobile.

How are major adult brands performing on mobile? Is it easier and more profitable to sell niche content?

Julia Dimambro: I’ve been saying it for years: consumers simply do not buy brands. They buy what turns them on. This is where the money is.

Nearly every operator is asking for categories and themes. After six years, not one has seen the commercial return they were promised from brands. Fortunately, some have recognised this.

Mike Falco: We promote hundreds of brands from a variety of sites. 2009 has been a record year and a lot of major adult brands regard mobile as the new star in their portfolios. But demand for niche product will grow.

Nothing sells like original, high quality content geared towards a consumer’s specific tastes or fetishes.

Downloadable web porn is under threat from free UGC sites, which means that live chat/webcam stuff is the best hope for making money.

Is this coming to mobile too?

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What’s the future for mobile erotic content? At the moment it looks as though live video chat and webcams may be the killer apps

Mike Falco: This is a great point.

UGC has definitely changed the game, and will force many porn companies to innovate or die. This is not the web of 1996. My belief is that the future of mobile porn is in sites with original niche content, UGC, live chat/webcam and dating.

Julia Dimambro: It’s true that free porn has come to the web. Will the same happen on mobile? I think compelling ‘erotic environments’ will maintain a paid-for commercial model with a base of loyal customers. These non-immersive ‘shop-front’ download stores won’t because there will be so much content out there for free.

So what kind of content should mobile adult companies focus on?

Julia Dimambro: Mobile erotic entertainment should never be a rehash of what has gone before. In 2003, we invented a video product shot in first person that gave viewers the chance to chat up one of two girls and be charged to see what happened next. Purchasing erotica is

an emotional decision, not a practical one, so this gives great leverage in ‘seducing a customer’ to a purchase.

Generally, live video chat and webcams are the killer apps for mobile. The commercial potential is just incredible compared to other content types. I have heard the average monthly spend for a customer using video chat is $37.

Julia Dimambro is founder and MD of Cherry Media, which creates and manages mobile adult content for operators and other third parties.

Mike Falco is director of marketing at myiPlayground.com. Ir contains a searchable directory that lists mobile-modified adult sites and services. www.mobile-ent.biz

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APP STORES

APPS

upside their heads The shift from carrier decks to app stores has turned game publishers’ strategies upside down, Stuart Dredge reports... ou have to feel for Glu Mobile.

It became one of the top three mobile games publishers by spending big on brands, porting the resulting games to a huge selection of handsets, and running big-budget comarketing campaigns with operators to secure deck placement.

It was an effective strategy, tailored for the market at the time. Then Apple launched its App Store. Glu found itself in an environment where its porting skills weren’t an advantage, where featured slots were entirely down to Apple’s editorial whims, and where brands simply weren’t as important. Not to mention the fact that Glu didn’t have the rights to bring many of its big brands to iPhone in the first place.

Glu isn’t the only mobile games company to face a challenging transition to the App Store world. Its big rivals from the carrier days have done okay – Gameloft ploughed resources into iPhone early and has reaped the rewards, while EA Mobile is benefitting from its in-house megabrands, launching FIFA and Madden onto iPhone in the last month alone.

But mid-tier mobile games publishers have faced the same challenges as Glu. Chumming up with carrier games managers is out, and clever, nimble social media marketing is in. ‘Will-this-do’ games based on movies and TV shows are out, and creative, imaginative and innovative games are in.

And instead of competing against a restricted number of publishers handpicked by the operators, the

Y

Chumming up with carrier games managers is out, and clever, nimble social media marketing is in

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APP STORES

Games for the iPhone now have to be more creative and innovative than ever before. Glu Mobile’s transition to this App Store world is set to be a challenge

competition now includes thousands of independent developers, social games firms, casual games publishers, console studios... even the movie studios are gearing up (again) for inhouse games production.

Ironically, it’s into this ferocious competitive environment that several mid-tier publishers have opted to throw themselves, abandoning the carrier decks. THQ Wireless has refocused its energies on smartphone platforms – particularly iPhone.

Rumours this month suggested Hands-On Mobile might be shifting to a twin focus on iPhone and Facebook games too.

A lot is said about the potential rewards for iPhone hits, but not so much about the risks. It might seem like a respite from the ever-shrinking carrier ecosystem, but penalties for failure on the App Store are severe.

Publishers used to be able to forecast revenues from their games with some accuracy, based on their negotiated operator deck placement. Pay x for a brand and spend y on porting, and you’d be fairly sure of making z revenues unless something went drastically wrong (usually a biz dev 20

November 2009

VP ill-advisedly paying four times x for the brand).

On iPhone, there are no such guarantees. A publisher can spend a lot of money making a game, a good game too, yet see it sink without trace. This is as true, of course, for independent developers as for midtier publishers. The latter at least doesn’t risk going out of business due to one expensive dud.

The key, it seems, is for publishers to mitigate their risk by not placing all their eggs in iPhone’s basket. For some – Glu included – that means investing resources in the emerging

market of social games on Facebook and other social networks. Not only does this open up potential new revenue streams from advertising and virtual item sales, but the experience of both those business models may be useful back on iPhone.

Then there are the rival smartphone platforms. Android Market, BlackBerry App World, Windows and Nokia’s Ovi Store may have various shortcomings, but they are looking increasingly important to the traditional mobile games publishers. It’s partly because there is less competition on those platforms, which itself is partly due to the porting issue rearing its head again. Don’t forget the carriers too, who are readying their own app stores and keen to woo reliable companies to stock them.

However, there’s no denying the cultural shift that’s been sparked by iPhone and the App Store. ME visited Glu Mobile recently for demos of its upcoming range of iPhone games.

Only one was a branded title, based on World Series of Poker.

The others were a mixture of cheap’n’cheerful casual games (not an insult) designed to retail for $0.99 / £0.59, and innovative titles stretching iPhone’s music and location capabilities.

In other words, the third largest mobile games publisher in the West is having to re-engineer itself to think more like an independent developer.

The 99-cent strategy is interesting, too, because it’s a path being followed

by Glu’s biggest rivals. EA Mobile created a dedicated ‘micro-studio’ called 8lb Gorilla earlier this year, specifically to make 99-cent games at arm’s length from the EA brand.

Gameloft, too, has dipped its toes in these waters with the release of topical tower defense game Banker Wars.

All three companies – as well as their mid-tier rivals – are also getting to grips with social media: Twitter feeds, YouTube previews, Facebook promotion, and engaging with a much wider base of bloggers than the handful of websites that covered the mobile games space regularly in the past.

Consolidation in the mobile games market used to be about big firms prospering at the expense of their smaller rivals. Now it’s about whether the big firms can survive in the face of renewed competition from the companies they’d squeezed out of the carrier portals. It’s evolution, but not as we know it. www.mobile-ent.biz

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BINBIT

Binbit has high-profile licences in its portfolio, such as Playboy, EMI, Warner and others

Expanding a Bit Mexico’s Binbit has grown steadily to become one of the world’s largest D2C companies. Mobile Entertainment talks to its chairman, Antoni Muntaner, about what the future holds… if the right opportunity comes along.

We did so last year with the acquisition of Atinco, too. Basically, we had our sights on South East Asia as the first step in our expansion into the wider Asia market, and Acme has excellent reach.

he eclipse of the personalisation sector in ‘mature’ mobile markets has put the emphasis on developing regions and meant that most of the European leaders in the space – Buongiorno, Zed, Neomobile and so on – are now facing outwards to Asia, Africa and Latin America.

However, it’s also meant that companies based in these emerging territories have been able to expand to global proportions. One of the outstanding examples of this is Binbit.

Binbit is headquartered in Monterrey, Mexico and now has presence in 26 different countries, mostly across Central and South America. It came to the attention of the wider industry when it bought South African firm Atinco to signal its first move into an English speaking country. Then, just weeks ago, it acquired Singapore-based Acme Mobile to secure distribution across Asia. We chatted with Binbit chairman Antoni Muntaner:

T

The market for ‘personalisation’ products is declining in Europe.

Is it the same in central and Latin America?

Generally, Latin America is a little behind what is being done in Europe and America in this industry, so the market is still healthy. At Binbit, we focus on local products and services, which has been a great factor in our success and helps us respond to regional changes. In fact, we recently passed the one billion content sales mark. www.mobile-ent.biz

Any plans to move into the European market?

To date our presence in Europe has been virtually nil. It’s always been on our ‘to do’ list though, and we have a plan to move into various Eastern Europe countries soon. Sometimes we’d like to be able to grow faster but we bet on organic growth to keep us as a private company. We don’t have infinite resources to invest and expand into new markets. That said, to have achieved a stable business presence in 26 countries in just four years is something we’re rightfully very proud of.

MUNTANER: “Achieving a stable presence in just four years is something we’re proud of”

Can you tell me a little about the Mexican market?

The market has got huge potential, with 50 million subscribers. But it has undergone many changes in the last four years – the same changes that have affected most European countries as they reached maturity.

Essentially, users are looking for more than downloading ringtones and games, which means companies like ours are migrating to different business models.

Is all your business D2C, or do you work with operators?

In the vast majority of the cases it’s still D2C, although we are analysing new markets. We’re in quite a good position because we have connectivity with 85 mobile operators.

Why did you buy the Asian distributor Acme?

We’ve always had a policy of territorial expansion and we’ll invest

Does Binbit make original content?

We have our own design team but many of the products we produce are based around third party brands like Playboy, EMI, Warner, Sony, THQ and others.

Any plans for the app business?

We have just launched our first application, called Rednews. It aggregates celebrity news and gossip from around the world, and is working already on BlackBerry, iPhone, Android and Ovi. There are three more similar projects in production.

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M&A

Shut up and deal Has investor confidence returned to the twitching corpse that is the mobile M&A scene? New figures suggest it may have done. ME shares them… t’s a cliché, but VCs, big corporates and other investors display a herdlike behaviour. Although these guys are fearsomely bright, they’d admit this is the case: You want to keep your job? Do what everyone else is doing. And in the years leading up to 2007, what they were doing was buying mobile media start-ups.

According to new figures from investment bank GP Bullhound, M&A activity in mobile media rose from $947 million in 2005 to $2,320 million in 2007. It’s a staggering rise, inflated by landgrab deals such the purchase of iTouch and Monstermob

by Buongiorno and Zed, respectively, for example.

Then what happened? In a word: downturn. Activity slowed up and the value of transactions fell to $647 million in 2008. Interestingly, valuations fell faster than deals. The $2.3 billion in 2007 accrued from 98 deals, but the $947 million came from 79. The majority of transactions were valued at below $15 million.

However, as we all know, something big is happening in mobile now. iPhone, data plans, 3G, emerging markets, micropayments – all have conspired to put the focus back on mobile content. And as the wider economy recovers, so M&A confidence has returned to the space.

November 2009

Year

No of transactions

2005 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 2006 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97 2007 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98 2008 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79 Jan to Sept 2008 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59 Jan to Sept 2009 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

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Transactions value Value of transactions $ million . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .947 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1,899 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2,320 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .647 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .340 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .603

Distribution of deals in 2009

Madhvani: “We’ll see more acquisitions”

According to GP Bullhound, the first nine months of 2008 generated $340 million from 59 deals, while the corresponding months of 2009 yielded $603 million from 63 deals. More advanced mobile corporates have completed five deals valued at over $50 million in 2009. These include some of the biggest companies in mobile, with Nokia swooping for Obopay, Cellity, Dopplr and Oz, while Vodafone purchased Zyb and Wayfinder.

Manish Madhvani, co-founder of GP Bullhound, believes activity is set to continue upwards: “Most recent deals have been below $15m, with strategic players laying foundations in the market. We see this as phase one. But as global markets recover confidence, we’ll see more large-scale acquisitions.”

Value of transaction No of transactions $0 to $2.5m . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7 $2.5m to $5m . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4 $5m to $10m . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1 $10m to $15m . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1 $15m to $20m . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0 $20m to $50m . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2 $50m to $100m . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2 $100m to $200m . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3

Breakdown of M&A transactions by sector (2009) % Pureplay content companies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26 Comms software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13 Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13 E-commerce . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6 Operators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6 Advertising . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6 Device manufacturers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6 Other . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26 Source: GP Bullhound www.mobile-ent.biz

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SMART PIPE ENABLERS

Pipe dreaming Operators can add all sorts of value when off-deck content providers use their networks. If only they could agree technical standards and price points. Enter the MEF and its ‘smart pipe enablers’ initiative… t’s a question as old as time. Well, it dates back to when operators began offering data services, anyway. And it’s this: are wireless carriers destined to become ‘dumb pipes’ for carrying, but not sharing in, the value of mobile entertainment?

With handset makers building app stores and consumers gravitating around non-mobile brands such as Facebook and Twitter, the debate has intensified in the last 18 months.

But could there be an alternative future? Could operators evolve into ‘smart pipes’, accruing revenue by adding genuine value to the data services they sell to partners?

The Mobile Entertainment Forum thinks so. Its chair Andrew Bud could be accused of having a bit of a fixation on this issue. But he has a point, namely, that the rush to data services is putting unsustainable pressure on mobile networks. They can’t afford to carry that much data.

And unless they find a way to monetise the traffic, we’ll all suffer.

In his MEF role, Bud is pushing hard a project designed to publicise the issue and kick around some potential solutions. It’s called the Smart Pipe Enabler initiative. The MEF has run webinars and workshops on the issue, and plans to define technical and commercial standards around the various enablers.

So, what the hell are these enablers? Well, some are wellestablished. Operators already sell bulk SMS and on-bill payment – both of which add value to a third party using the network. But the MEF argues that there’s more that can be done in areas that exploit operators’ knowledge of their customers without comprising privacy. They include: Handset type lookup Billing status (prepay/postpay lookup) Charge advice (i.e. will this charge request succeed?)

Price plan lookup

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There’s cash in them there wires. These beauties hold the key to the future of mobile data

Data price plan lookup 3G/2G handset lookup 3G/2G SIM lookup Roaming lookup (is the customer abroad? If yes what country?)

Handset configuration check (does it have the correct settings?)

Bud says: “I’m convinced smart pipe enablers could perform open heart surgery on a $32billion industry.

We’ve seen the help they can be already with shortcodes, which would have been 11 digits long without industry agreement.

“The trouble is that the dialogue has been operator technologists talking to web developers – plumbers talking to geeks – when really it’s the

content industry that needs to be aware of the issue.”

Bud is at pains to point out that the technical specs of the APIs themselves are not necessarily the most important thing. Agreed price points, for example, would make a significant difference to the content market. Indeed, work on technical standards is already proceeding within the GSMA’s One API initiative.

The MEF says it sees this as a complementary project. Bud explains why: “The GSMA speaks for operators and its focus is technical.

It’s far more likely that a company such as Sony Pictures would engage

with the MEF than the GSMA,” he says.

So far the MEF has published a white paper on the subject of Smart Pipe Enablers and held two webinars to discuss the issue. It believes it can implement some of its proposals in 18 to 24 months. And at all times the focus will be on making an ‘everybody wins’ business case.

Bud says ultimately this is the clincher: “There has to be a business case or there won’t be investment. If we show operators an $8bllion opportunity, it’s going to help.”

Go to www.mef.org/initiatives /enablers for more information. www.mobile-ent.biz

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RECRUITMENT

SENIOR LEVEL SEARCH SPECIALISTS

2ergo flies in MEF stalwart and former Livewire exec John Orlando

If you are looking for senior level search specialists, focussing on positions ranging from £60,000 to £250,000 look no further.

CALL ANDREW NICHOLLS DIRECTLY ON

07830 116121 Telephone: +44 207 404 6699 Web: www.digimobjobs.com

JOHN ORLANDO

CTO Mobile Entertainment London – Excellent basic equity

Mobile Sales Account Manager Mobile Ad Network London – Excellent basic bonus

Product Manager Mobile Ad Network London – Excellent basic bonus

Technical Lead Mobile Agency

UK transactions specialist 2ergo has made a significant appointment – recruiting JOHN ORLANDO as its new MD of Americas as part of its ambitious global growth drive. It’s charged John with spearheading 2ergo’s expansion across the Americas. Orlando’s most recent role was CMO at music specialist Livewire Mobile, but he is a highly visible figure on the worldwide mobile scene thanks to his work for the MEF, as vice chair of the Americas chapter.

MARKO AHTISAARI is to run Nokia’s design and consumer experience unit. It’s a logical appointment given that Ahtissari was formerly the CEO of Dopplr, the location-based social network that Nokia purchased earlier this year. He will work on integrating location and UI. Swiss technology firm Myriad Group has recruited BENOIT SCHILLINGS as CTO to lead technology strategy and innovation. It’s quite a coup as he was previously chief technologist at Nokia, which he joined following Nokia’s acquisition of Trolltech.

Myriad recently announced a widget platform for low-end devices.

London – Excellent package

J2ME Developer Mobile Music London – Excellent package

Bluestreak Technology has apppointed SAMUEL SWEET as EVP of sales and

looking to further your career in the Mobile and Digital markets?

VISIT OUR WEBSITE for a full list of our current opportunities.

28

November 2009

MARKO AHTISAARI

marketing. He arrives with 13 years of experience in global technology sales and market development, and is tasked with taking Bluestreak’s Flashbased solutions worldwide.

Out There Media’s expansion continues with the appointment of ALPHA B BARRY to the position of CFO. He joins the ad provider from McKinsey and Company in Berlin, where he was associate principal.

Before joining the venerated management consultancy, he cofounded 4Flow AG, a logistics software provider and consultancy.

App testing and certification specialist DeviceAnywhere has promoted LEILA MODARRES to VP of marketing. She was previously director of marketing, and will now lead the marketing and communications team in this expanded role.

Mobile Streams has a new CFO. He is IAN BREWER, who has held several senior finance positions in tech companies, including Symphony Telecom and Eckoh.

Brewer started his career as an audit manager at Deloitte and is a qualified chartered accountant.

Mobile Streams also confirmed that non-executive director IVAN DONN

Does your firm have a position to fill? If so, you should advertise on the appointments page that’s read by everyone in the content business: yes, this one. We also offer a complementary online service.

Either way, every exec in the business will be reading about your vacancy. Contact Katy Grant at Katy.Grant@intentmedia.co.uk or +44 (0)1992 535647 for more info. www.mobile-ent.biz

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Sponsored by

to Orlando is to head 2ergo’s US drive

BENOIT SCHILLINGS

will step down from the board after nine years.

Warner Bros Entertainment has hired NATALIE FARSI to run its

mobile business division. Farsi has been poached from rival Fox Mobile, where she had been senior vice president of commerce and content.

Another recruitment specialist in the hot seat. This month ME quizzes Ben Rosen, founder of Inspiring Interns...

How did you get into recruitment?

Previously I worked as sales director for iobox and during that time I built up a network of people within the mobile industry. After I left, I decided my skill set matched that of a recruitment consultant!

Best thing about the job? reach Developing relationships with people and helping them bonus. great a that’s and friends many their ambitions. I’ve made Worst thing? for a role.

Giving people bad news that they have not been chosen Worst client experience? ates Sending CVs to a client who then contacted all my candid al. fession unpro very look me made and y, directl Worst candidate experience? shoes that I had one candidate who went to a job interview with pair. ing match a not were How do you see the mobile sector’s current health?

It’s slowly improving.

What qualities make the best candidate? they say.

Great preparation, if you fail to plan you plan to fail, as carefully ons questi to listens ty, humili A great candidate displays ely. concis rs answe and

www.mobile-ent.biz

November 2009 29

30 ME57_Final

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SOURCE: EVENTS

2009/10 Calendar November 2009 November 18th-19th 2009 Mobile Asia Congress Hong Kong www.mobileasiacongress.com The GSMA confirmed the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre as the venue for its sixth Asian showpiece exhibition and congress.

November 25th-27th BlackBerry EMEA Alliance Summit Rome, Italy www.blackberryalliancesummit.com This event will provide RIM partners with an update on the latest information, tools and resources available for BlackBerry, and will also be the setting of the BlackBerry EMEA Innovation Awards ceremony.

EMEA-based BlackBerry Alliance Partners are encouraged to enter in categories that include Public Sector, Enterprise Business Performance, Innovation for Entrepreneurs, Service Quality, Life on BlackBerry, Entertainment on BlackBerry and Connect on BlackBerry.

BlackBerry EMEA Alliance Summit (November 25th-27th). A veritable feast of BlackBerry goodness. The EMEA Innovation Awards ceremony is going to be held here, plus there will be info on all the latest resources available to RIM partners. the Croisette in Cannes in January. This time, for the first time, it will incorporate the MidemNet digital and mobile programme into the main conference programme rather than as a precursor to the week’s action.

December 2009 February 2010 December 2nd-3rd MEX WallaceSpace, London, UK www.pmn.co.uk/mex This UK conference has become a fixture for many on the experiential side of the biz, if such a thing exists. It specifically addresses UE and UI issues over two busy days of workshops and presentations. It culminates in an evening networking drinks party with awards event. Tickets cost £1,499.

January 2010 January 24th-27th MIDEM Cannes, France www.midem.com The future of the year’s biggest music industry trade event, MIDEM, was in doubt for a while. But will return as ever to

30

November 2009

February 15th-18th Mobile World Congress Barcelona, Spain www.mobileworldcongress.com The juggernaut returns to Spain. 2009’s show may have been smaller than in previous years, but still drew 49,000.

Not bad in a supposed global recession.

This year, inevitably, the GSMA is climbing aboard the apps bandwagon with a new event called App Planet. It’ll be held in Hall 7 – traditionally the home of mobile content at MWC – and will include conference sessions, an exhibition of apps, and a networking-focused App Lounge. The GSMA is now seeking three main sponsors for the event, as well as a separate sponsor for the App Lounge.

Mobile World Congress (February 15th-18th). Inevitably the GSMA has cottoned on to app mania and decided to host an ‘app planet’ showcase in good old Hall 7. We’ll see you there.

March 2010 March 23rd-25th CTIA Wireless 2010 Las Vegas Convention Center, US www.ctiawireless.com

knuckle-dragging epsilons and check out shiny new gadgets instead. Despite the downturn, CTIA still attracts around 1,200 exhibiting companies and over 40,000 delegates.

April 2010

It’s back to the monorail, the slot machines and the grinding soulless despair of Las Vegas for CTIA 2010’s spring show.

Some people adore Vegas of course, but for the rest of us the conference centre is the best place to be – a location from which to escape the

April 7th-8th China Mobile Internet 2010 Summit Beijing, China www.china-mis.com In January, China’s Ministry of Industry and Information

Technology issued 3G licences to the three main telcos in China. Thus began an exciting new era in world’s biggest mobile market. This summit is supported by the big three operators – China Mobile, China Unicom and China Telecom – and is also endorsed by the MMA and the MEF. The organisers are expecting 150 senior delegates and among the speakers confirmed are the app VPs at the opcos plus Jin Peng (VP of MySpace China), Lin Bin, (VP of mobile R&D at Google) and many more.

www.mobile-ent.biz

31 ME57_Final

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Page 1

SOURCE: OPERATORS

network subs Key operator subscriber numbers from around the world Subscribers

Country

Operator

Subscribers

Vodafone

18,557,000

Russia

Megafon

43,500,000

T-Mobile

16,588,000

Mobile TeleSystems

67,930,000

3

5,591,000

VimpelCom

49,971,000

O2

20,668,700

Kyivstar GSM

22,223,000

Ukrainian Mobile (MTS)

17,800,000

Country

Operator

Western Europe UK

Germany

Italy

France

Spain

Netherlands

Ireland

Sweden

Norway Denmark Greece

Belguim

Portugal

Switzerland

Austria Eastern Europe Poland

Hungary Croatia Czech Republic

Orange

15,853,000

Vodafone

34,920,000

T-Mobile

39,103,000

O2

14,932,700

E-Plus

18,235,000

Freenet (debitel + mobilcom)

17,952,000

Vodafone

Ukraine Slovakia

O2

417,000

T-Mobile

2,323,000

3

6,052,000

Optus

8,000,000

22,613,000

Telstra

10,191,000

3

8,931,000

Vodafone

3,215,000

Wind

17,500,000

China Mobile

493,124,000

TIM

32,630,000

Orange

25,287,000

SFR

20,211,000

Bouygues

9,894,000

Asia Pacific Australia

China Hong Kong India

China Unicom

140,377,000

3

1,456,000

Smart tone

1,164,000

Bharti Airtel

102,368,000

Vodafone

16,991,000

BSNL

54,365,000

Movistar

23,715,600

Idea Cellular

42,769,000

Orange

11,469,000

Tata Indicom

37,112,000

Vodafone

4,649,000

Reliance

79,616,000

T-Mobile

5,423,000

Vodafone

76,450,000

KPN

6,795,000

Vodafone

2,129,000

O2 Meteor 3 (includes Denmark)

1,423,000

Japan Thailand

NTT DoCoMo

55,007,600

AIS

27,902,000

1,716,700

Dtac

19,200,000

1,017,000

True Move

15,247,000

Singtel

2,991,000

Singapore

Telenor

1,946,000

StarHub

1,849,000

Tele 2

3,236,000

MobileOne

1,669,000

Netcom

5,520,000

Movistar

15,116,400

Vivo

46,819,300

Claro

40,486,000

Telenor

2,928,000

Netcom

1,621,000

TDC

3,126,000

Sonofon

1,783,000

Vodafone

6,057,000

Cosmote

8,800,000

Wind (Previously-Qtelecom)

5,177,000

Latin America Argentina Brazil Mexico Venezuela North America Canada

Telcel

58,081,000

Movistar

15,942,500

Movistar

10,752,900

Bell

6,572,000

T-mobile

8,793,000

Mobistar (Orange)

3,443,000

Rogers

8,156,000

BASE

3,487,000

Telus

6,288,000

Belgacom Mobile

3,809,000

Sprint

48,826,000

Vodafone

5,672,000

T- Mobile USA

33,497,000

TMN

6,980,000

Verizon Wireless

87,964,000

Optimus

3,268,000

AT&T

79,600,000

Orange

1,568,000

Swisscom

5,478,000

Sunrise

1,770,000

T-Mobile

3,402,000

Vodafone

3,528,000

Orange

13,768,000

T-Mobile

13,409,000

T-Mobile

5,256,000

T-Mobile

2,867,000

T-Mobile

5,433,000

O2

4,835,100

Vodafone

2,935,000

www.mobile-ent.biz

USA

Africa Algeria Egypt Morocco Nigeria South Africa

Algerie Telecom

9,000,000

Wataniya Telecom

5,784,000

Vodafone

20,370,000

ECMS

21,180,000

Ittissalat Al-Maghrib

14,289,000

Globacom

22,000,000

MTN Nigeria

27,338,000

MTN

17,231,000

Vodacom

41,306,000

Source: Mediacells was established in 2004 to assist clients in making more money out of mobile. The company provides accurate and actionable intelligence to the mobile, media, retail, research and information sectors. www.mediacells.com

November 2009 31

32 ME57_Final

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SOURCE: DATABOX

databox

A selection of stats from across the mobile industry...

Mobile web user base rises 61 per cent

MEF: content up a third A new report from industry trade body MEF says mobile entertainment will grow 33 per cent this year.

Its third annual Business Confidence Index, compiled for MEF by KPMG, says that despite the economic downturn, members are still optimistic about the market. Indeed, the 33 per cent projection is up six per cent on that being predicted at the beginning of 2009.

Andrew Bud, global chair of MEF, says: “Despite a general downturn and a degree of belttightening in some areas, any

remaining uncertainty is offset by a sense of optimism. This quiet confidence and positive outlook suggests that we are going to see some exciting opportunities developing within our industry.”

The results did point to a divide between the established and emerging market, with Central and Latin America, as well as India, driving proportionately larger revenue increases.

Respondents also showed that apps are developing into tangible revenue streams with 14 per cent of revenue projected to come from this area.

Symbian shipments to double in five years Sales of Symbian devices will reach 180 million in 2014, which is up from 87 million units this year, according to new research from Juniper.

But it’s not all rosy. The report says that the new open source platform faces strong competition, and that its overall market share will remain virtually unchanged during the forecast period.

Juniper says the Symbian figure, combined with a steady increase in Android and LiMo shipments, will push the total open source handset market beyond 220 million by 2014. The report asserts that 32

November 2009

A study by the mobile internet specialist Novarra says its user base is on course to double by the end of the year.

Its latest mobile internet experience update, based on usage stats from the company’s browser and platform deployments with operators around the world, says its user base rose by 61 per cent in the first half of 2009.

The report also suggests that people are increasing their monthly data consumption, especially video downloads. It says users with access spend 80 minutes a month on average watching streams.

Also on the up is mobile Twitter usage. Novarra’s stats show a 3,500 per cent increase in page views for the mobile Twitter website in the first half of this year – and that doesn’t include people using Twitter applications.

Other sites showing strong growth include Flirtomatic (210 per cent), Abphone (260 per cent), Taptu (300 per cent) and Wikipedia (112 per cent).

$2.4 trillion mobile market Buoyant data revenues are helping to keep the vast global market for all mobile services on the rise.

Analysys Mason says data traffic will grow 131 per cent CAGR by 2013. It reported that, despite the economic dowturn, the global telecoms market grew by five per cent in 2008 to hit $1.8 trillion.

The launch of 3G networks in emerging markets will drive the most visible future growth, but the

analyst warns this could present problems for operators. It says they have to monetise traffic rather than see it all go to Apple and Nokia. It warns all-you-can-eat plans are not a sustainable solution.

Voice services accounted for 36 per cent of global service revenue in 2008, and mobile data services accounted for ten per cent, while traditional voice services represented only 21 per cent.

Mums are downloading

even though Apple, RIM and Palm use proprietary mobile OSs, 60 per cent of the current market is open source.

Research suggests the working mum is the most lucrative demographic for mobile content.

Scarborough Research conducted a study among American women who work full-time and have children at home. It claims that they have a higher monthly mobile phone bill than the average user – $94 versus $78 – and they’re also 42 per cent more likely to download content.

“The working mum is the gatekeeper for purchases,” says SVP of agency services Howard Goldberg. “Her high spending implies that mobile marketing could be an important platform for reaching her with product announcements, offers and promotions.” www.mobile-ent.biz

Casual Gaming.biz_final:Layout 1

13/7/09

14:12

Page 1

MAKE THE MOST OF YOUR CASUAL GAMES TITLES

JUNE 2009

STATS

Unique Users: 41,219 Page Views: 70,648 June 2009, Google Analytics

For more information contact

Lesley.Blumson@intentmedia.co.uk

34 ME57_Final

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SOURCE: CHARTS

charts Check here every month for the best selling games, ringtones and mobile apps from across the market...

Tagging

Ringtones

Artists & handsets

Ringtones.com top Euro music tones, September

Song 1 2

Bad Boy Oopsy Daisy

Flycell US Top Ringtones, September

Alexandra Burke

Song

Artist

Chipmunk

1

Best I Ever Had

Drake

1

CU920/CU915/Vu

LG

Obsessed

Mariah Carey

2

SGH-A767 (Propel)

Samsung LG

Model

Vendor

3

Fight For This Love

Cheryl Cole

2

4

Riverside

Sidney Sampson

3

Birthday Sex

Jeremih

3

CF360 (Slider)

Black Eyed Peas

4

Wetter

Twista

4

SGH-A867 (Eternity)

Samsung

Knock You Down

Keri Hilson

5

CU720 (Shine)

LG

5

I Gotta Feeling

6

Sex On Fire

Kings Of Leon

5

7

Sexy Bitch

David Guetta ft Akon

6

Boom Boom Pow

Black Eyed Peas 6

GR500 (Xenon)

LG

Turn My Swag On

Soulja Boy Tell ‘Em 7

M1000 (Wild Card)

Kyocera

Kid Kudi

8

Break Your Heart

Taio Cruz

7

9

She Wolf

Shakira

8

Day N Nite

VX9100 (enV2)

LG

Jay Sean ft Lil Wayne

9

Kiss Me Thru The Phone Soulja Boy Tell ‘Em 9

W350i/a/c

Sony Ericsson

10

You Belong With Me

VX10000 (Voyager)

LG

10

Down

Source: Mobilestreams 1

Meerkat Simples!

2

Green Army

TV Advert

3

Red Car Blue Car Race

TV Advert

4

Answer That You Tart

Only Fools & Horses

5

Compare The Meerkat.com

TV Advert

6

Only Fools And Horses

TV Theme

7

Brring, Pick Up Phone

Meerkat

8

Ghostbusters Car Siren

SFX

9

Red Dwarf

TV Theme

10

Meerkat Message

Meerkat

Source: Flycell

USA realtone soundalikes, September

South Africa realtone soundalikes, September

Jamster top ringtones, September Song

Artist

Boys And Girls

Pixie Lott

Sexy Chick

10

Music

Ringtones 2

8

TV Advert

Source: Mobilestreams

1

Taylor Swift

Source: Flycell

Ringtones.com top Euro funtones, September

David Guetta

3

I Gotta Feeling

Black Eyed Peas

4

Holiday

Dizzee Rascal

5

Supernova

Black Eyed Peas

6

She Wolf

Shakira

7

Never Leave You

Tinchy Stryder

8

Sex On Fire

Kings Of Leon

9

Sweet Dreams

Beyonce

10

Evacuate The Dancefloor Cascada

Source: Jamster Jamster games, September Game Publisher 1

X-Ray Scanner

MobileActive

2

Need For Speed Shift

EA Mobile

Shazam Tagging October 1 Sweet Disposition The Temper Trap 2 Oopsy Daisy Chipmunk 3 Fight For This Love Cheryl Cole 4 Empire State Of Mind Jay-Z & Alicia Keys 5 Down Jay Sean ft Lil Wayne 6 Bad Boys Alexandra Burke 7 What About Now Daughtry 8 Sexy Games David Guetta 9 Watch The Sun Come Up Example 10 Watcha Say Jason Derulo Source: Shazam

1

Sexy Chick

David Guetta ft Akon

1

Down

2

Million Dollar Bill

Whitney Houston

2

Party In The USA

Miley Cyrus

3

Celebration

Madonna

3

Watcha Say

Jason DeRulo

4

Funhouse

Pink

4

I Gotta Feeling

Black Eyed Peas

5

Knock You Down

Keri Hilson ft Kanye

5

Paparazzi

Lady Gaga

6

Bulletproof

La Roux

6

You Belong With Me

Taylor Swift

7

Evacuate The Dancefloor

Cascada

7

Use Somebody

Kings Of Leon

8

Hotel Room Service

Pitbull

8

Sweet Dreams

Beyonce

9

Sweet Dreams

Beyonce

9

Obsessed

Mariah Carey

10

She Wolf

Shakira

10

Run This Town

Jay Z

Source: Melodi Media

Jay Sean

Source: Melodi Media

Video & wallpaper FoneStarz top videos, September

FoneStarz top wallpapers, September

1

Girls From NUTS

1

2

Hidden Camera Show

2

U & I Together

3

Lingerie Sensations

3

Addicted To Texting

4

I Gotta Feeling – Black Eyed Peas

4

I Love You

5

Wii Fit Girlfriend

5

Kiss Me Love Potion

6

Never Leave You – Tinchy Stryder

6

Tiger In The Snow

Jennifer Ellison

3

...Millioniare?

Glu Mobile

4

Bejeweled Twist

Pop Cap

5

Partner Tracker 3.0

Fox Mobile Studios

6

Sonic The Hedgehog 2

Glu Mobile

7

Looney Toons: Monster Match Glu Mobile

7

Sweet Dreams – Beyonce

7

Rather Be On Holiday

8

Scrabble Mobile

RealNetworks

8

YouTube’s Baby Hulk

8

I Miss You

9

South Park Mega Millionaire

RealNetworks

9

Evacuate The Dancefloor – Cascada

9

Exotic Landscape

10

Are You Smarter...?

Capcom

10

Beat Again – JLS

10

Pink Dolphin

Source: Jamster

34

Flycell US Top Download Handsets, Sep

Artist

November 2009

Source: FoneStarz

Source: FoneStarz

www.mobile-ent.biz

Playphone charts

14/10/09

10:52

Page 1

Title

Publisher

Title

Artist

1

Transformers

Glu

1

I Gotta Feeling

Black Eyed Peas

2

Win At Texas Hold'em

I-play

2

Before the Storm - ft. Miley Cyrus Jonas Brothers

Title

Category

1

Haters Make Us Famous

Pink Frosty

2

Robert Pattinson & Kristen Stewart Versaly

3

JONAS!

Disney

3

Beat It

Michael Jackson

3

Bloo Screen

4

Hannah Montana Star Moves

Disney

4

Thriller

Michael Jackson

4

Eds Hug

Ed, Edd n Eddy

5

2 Fast 2 Furious™

I-play

5

Boom Boom Pow

Black Eyed Peas

5

Music/Rap & RnB

Graffiti

6

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen

Glu

6

Here We Go Again

Demi Lovato

6

One Shall Stand

Transformers

7

Flavor of Love

IGfun

7

The Climb

Miley Cyrus

7

Saints

NFL

8

The Price Is Right

Mobliss

8

Fly With Me

Jonas Brothers

8

JEOPARDY!

Jeopardy

9

Flavor of Love

IGfun

9

You Belong With Me

Taylor Swift

9

30 Rock

30 Rock

10 TextTwist Turbo

Real Networks

10

Falling Down

Selena Gomez & The Scene

10

Butterfly Love

Versaly

11

India Games

11

Best I Ever Had

Drake

11

Hiro fights Godzilla

Heroes

NBC's The Office Challenge

Imaginary Friends

12

Wheel of Fortune Deluxe

Sony Pictures

12

Trust

Keyshia Cole

12

Fugitive

Fast & Furious

13

Hannah Montana in Action

Disney

13

Swag Surfin'

F.L.Y. - Fast Life Yungstaz

13

Amazing City Scape

Pink Frosty

14 Jewel Quest™

I-play

14

Paranoid

Jonas Brothers

14

Catalina Nature

FUN

15

Celander

15

Don't Forget

Demi Lovato

15

Burning Phoenix Rising

Versaly

Real Networks

16

DethPhone Ringtone

Metalocalypse

16

Diva Glitter

Versaly Aqua Teen

3D Need for Drift

16 Gem Drop 17

Family Feud Deluxe

Mobliss

17

La La Land

Demi Lovato

17

ATHF Logo

18

Cake Mania

Real Networks

18

Knock You Down

Keri Hilson

18

Pink Tartan

Mobstar Media

19 Tony Hawk's Proving Ground

Infusio

19

Breakup (ft Gucci Mane)

Mario

19

I'm So In Love

Fulep

20 PBA® Bowling

Concrete Software

20

Big Green Tractor

Jason Aldean

20 Dont Call Me Text Me

Pink Frosty

36 ME57 Mobile Content Congress

26/10/09

08:24

Page 1

9 0 0 2 d r 3 2 r e b m e v o N tminster, Central London

Church House, Wes

the revolution in ss re d d a ill w ss re g n co y This major new one-da ore and widget. st p p a e th f o l a iv rr a e by th content brought about HEAR FROM: TO E C N A H C E TH ET G L DELEGATES WIL

Others to be confirmed CH TICKETS COST ÂŁ125 EA ages please ck a p ip h rs so n o sp t u o b To find out more a s@call2action.biz le sa il a m e r o 8 3 3 2 6 5 call 0845 4

This event is produced by conferenceART

For more information go to www.mobile-ent.biz/events

37-43 ME57_Final

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MOBILE MARKETPLACE MOBILE ANALYTICS

MOBILE MARKETPLACE

MARKETPLACE INDEX ADMODA ........................................................08707 661 992 www.admoda.com ARTWIZZ ..........................................................01642 204350 artwizz@playwithhubb.com BANGO............................................................08700 340 365 www.bango.com BRIGHTSHARE ......................................+972 (54) 307 49157 www.brightshare.com DIALOGUE COMMUNICATIONS ...............08700 790 300 www.dialogue.net DYNAMO..........................................................01382 348 635 www.dynamogames.com ELITE ................................................................01543 268 826 www.elite-systems.co.uk FLUID PIXEL STUDIOS ...................................01642 384 336 www.fpstudios.com FROGGIE ....................................................+34 954 98 08 48 www.froggie-mm.com GENIE................................................................0844 415 5531 www.broadbandgenie.co.uk/mobile GORILLABOX ...................................................01628 418 158 www.gorillabox.net

INTERACTIVE MOBILE SOLUTIONS

HANDS-ON MOBILE DEVELOPER NETWORK (HDN) hdn-affiliate@handson.com......http://developer.handson.com/ INLOGIC ....................................................+421 904 628 889 www.inlogic.eu KATINA.............................................................078 3366 4075 www.rawmobileporn.com LOGIC3 ............................................................01923 471 000 www.logic3.com PARTNERTRANS ................................................01753 247731 info@partnertrans.com SPIEL STUDIOS ........................................info@spiel-s.com www.spielstudios.com SPLASH ..........................................................0870 934 2666 www.splashnews.com XIAM..............................................................+353 1 483 2000 www.xiam.com

The Mobile Marketplace offers a complete marketing package of print, online and editorial visibility, allowing companies to maintain contact with readers each month without the cost of full display advertising.

The Mobile Marketplace and its associated online version has also been designed to offer readers a directory of all products and services in the content industry. A presence in this section ensures that your company’s details are easily found, keeping you one step ahead of your competitors.

The standard package includes: 1/4 page advert in each issue Regular editorial coverage in the dedicated column Company details listed in the online directory with web link and marketplace index

To get your company featured here contact tom.roberts@intentmedia.co.uk t: +44 (0) 1992 535647 www.mobile-ent.biz

(

)

November 2009 37

37-43 ME57_Final

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MOBILE MARKETPLACE

38

CONTENT DISCOVERY

DEVELOPER

PUBLISHER

MOBILE BROADBAND

November 2009

www.mobile-ent.biz

37-43 ME57_Final

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17:07

Page 3

MOBILE MARKETPLACE ACCESSORIES FOR IPOD/IPHONE

MARKETPLACE NEWS

Space to grow for InMobi INMOBI will sell inventory for the mobile social network MocoSpace across ten countries in Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Europe.

US-based MocoSpace is one of the most popular mobile social networks, with over 8.5 million registered users and over 2.4 billion monthly page views.

The deal is a coup for Indian company InMobi (formerly mKhoj), which has recently expanded its reach and rebranded to focus better on Western markets.

Justin Siegel, CEO of MocoSpace, said: “We selected InMobi as our first choice for an ad network in these international markets because its focus provides a better overall user experience and increases our revenue. InMobi’s new data infrastructure offers outstanding ad response times that have exceeded our expectations and set a new bar.”

Anne Frisbie, head of North America at InMobi, said: “MocoSpace offers unique inventory for our advertisers in both the APAC region and Europe. Our partnership with MocoSpace

underscores our strong local monetisation capabilities in international markets, where we currently lead as the primary mobile advertising network.”

MOBILE ADVERTISING

BAFTA nod for Dynamo DYNAMO Games’ iPhone title Championship Manager 2010 Express has been nominated for a Scottish BAFTA award.

It’s a genuine coup for the developer, which worked with Eidos Interactive on

the iPhone version of one of the most beloved and successful franchises in the games industry. The game was a serious revamp of the 2009 version, with an improved 2D match engine and detailed press conference component.

InLogic’s fright stuff INLOGIC celebrated Halloween with two appropriately ghoulish titles: Halloween Nightmare and Death Clock.

Both games combined scares and fun, but Death Clock went a little further,

asking players to enter their date of birth, gender, height, weight and other important data to calculate an estimate of when the Grim Reaper will come and get them. Eek.

SEND YOUR NEWS TO TIM.GREEN@INTENTMEDIA.CO.UK www.mobile-ent.biz

November 2009 39

37-43 ME57_Final

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MOBILE MARKETPLACE VIDEO/PICTURE AGGREGATION

GAME DEVELOPMENT STUDIO

GAMES PUBLISHER

40

November 2009

www.mobile-ent.biz

37-43 ME57_Final

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Page 5

MOBILE MARKETPLACE MOBILE SERVICE PROVIDER

MARKETPLACE NEWS

Spiel’s high hopes for PSP INDIAN GAMES specialist Spiel fragmentation and operator relations.

He said: “We got sick of operators and Studios believes its new PSP division can contribute 20 per cent of the complexity of developing across its revenues. multiple handsets with different flavours The company’s founder Mohit of Java. It’s pretty much over for us Sureka, told ME that iPhone gaming now, as is BREW. The simplicity of iPhone and the freedom it gives, works currently accounts for around 60 per cent of income, with Flash-based for us much better. Also, consumers are advergames contributing the rest. more confident in the system. They can However, he believes a balanced view screenshots, check player feedback, portfolio will spread revenues across ratings, demo, etc.” formats. “I would hope we can make it 40/40 between iPhone and Flash with PSP taking the other 20 per cent,” he said.

Sureka also confirmed that Spiel has abandoned the Java market for good because of The new PSP division at Spiel accumulated Studios could contribute 20 per problems with cent of company revenues

Gorillabox plays political games with mobile app LOCALISATION

GORILLABOX has powered a mobile version of Adfero’s leading politics news publication, politics.co.uk.

The product uses Gorillabox’s live news product SNIPIT, and will be promoted directly from the politics.co.uk website. It comprises all stories from the site and is funded through display advertising managed by Gorillabox.

Gorillabox will plan, manage and track the content across the portal and handle all the advertising inventory. This includes everything from ingesting the

content, and deploying and maintaining the mobile site through to handling advertising opportunities within the site and maintaining all customer data.

Nathan Coyne, consumer news director of Adfero, said: “Gorillabox’s news platform will enable us to better exploit the great content we have from our politics web property. With Gorillabox we can have a high-quality mobile service complete with advertising and dynamic content updates, which leaves us to concentrate on content creation.”

SEND YOUR NEWS TO TIM.GREEN@INTENTMEDIA.CO.UK www.mobile-ent.biz

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MOBILE MARKETPLACE DISTRIBUTION

MOBILE GAMING PARTNERSHIPS

AFFILIATE PROGRAMS

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MOBILE MARKETPLACE SOFTWARE DEVELOPER

MARKETPLACE NEWS

Mini adventure at the Opera OPERA MINI browser has achieved 500 million page views a day from 32 million active users.

The company said that its average page views a day in September were up 233 per cent year-on-year, while the active user base soared by 68 per cent over the same period.

It confirmed the average user is downloading 6MB of data via the browser a month, although given that Opera compresses web pages by as much as 90 per cent before delivering them to the browser, the actual usage is much, much higher than that 6MB figure makes it sound.

MOBILE MARKETING & ADVERTISING

Jumbuck superpowers 3 chat and flirting 3 UK HAS launched two new mobile social services: Power Chat and Fast Flirting. Both are supplied by Jumbuck.

Power Chat ties into Jumbuck’s global chat community, offering live chat, photos and profiles, as well as the ability to have private chats and send virtual gifts.

Meanwhile, Fast Flirting is billed as the first ‘global speed dating mobile community’, meaning users get ten

minutes of private text chat with each person they choose to flirt with.

Fast Flirting also allows photos and virtual gifts, as well as avatars. “Because Jumbuck is connecting carriers worldwide, 3 users are always assured of hundreds of people online at any time for quick chat and fast flirts,” said Jumbuck SVP of sales and marketing, Ted Verani.

SEND YOUR NEWS TO TIM.GREEN@INTENTMEDIA.CO.UK www.mobile-ent.biz

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DISCONTENT

(Dis)content

Remember the ME Awards? Have a look at our gallery to re-live all the fun...

Metaflow’s Charles McLeo d won two awards. One for best gam es service provider, the other for bes t celebration of the night. He leapt from the stage with the agility of a much, much lighter man.

Our host for the evening, Greg Davies, was a huge hit with the crowd and proved once again that it’s always better to have a comedian who’s funny. At six foot eight, Greg based much of his material on his height. He enjoyed a manly hug with IPC’s Miles Ross (six foot seven), and received an unexpected cuddle from the eight foot five (chair assisted) Neeraj Roy. Heartwarming.

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Send your pictures and gossip to tim.green@intentmedia.co.uk

IT’S TERMINALS! ME remembers the handsets of yore...

THIS MONTH’S PHONE:

SHARP GX10

Vortex’s Kamar Shah, Fox’s Amelia Gammon and Player X’s Tony Pear ce share a joke and a drink before, well , before the drinking continues.

TXX

l Puyk, Cellectivity’s Marce bling m ga st be e winner of th eady alr is d, ar aw ny compa his of e siz exaggerating the he at th ing ett rg trophy, fo nd. ha his in it s ha ll sti

The ME team put itself about. Here’s BHPR’s Amy Fairchild (le ft) pretending to enjoy Tim Green’s com pany while Stuart O’Brien bores rictus-fac ed IMR’s Ross Wellby and Peter Oates to death (above).

www.mobile-ent.biz

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AWARDS Th

d

Can it be that it was all so simple then? Or has time re-written every line? Ah yes, the Sharp GX10 – winner of the 2003 GSM Association Award and the phone Vodafone chose to be its WAP flagship. In 2002 this was pure mobile sex. It supported Java, featured one click access to something called Vodafone Live, sported a cool clamshell design and – get this – had a camera. A camera! Seems like a lifetime ago now, like some relic from the steam age. Seven years on, and Vodafone has finally pulled the plug on Live in favour of 360 while Sharp is out of Europe completely. But we'll always have our memories. Memories captured in 0.5 crystal clear megapixels.

ient of the next award, Is this mobile exec pondering the recip ile forever, or drifting into having an idea that could change mob into its second hour? ches sleep as Tim Green’s speech stret November 2009 45

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DISCONTENT

FAVOURITES THOMAS KOTHUIS, EVP of strategy and biz dev, Blinck Which phone do you currently own?

Nokia E71.

What’s the best phone you’ve ever had?

My first Nokia Communicator, definitely.

Wouldn't want a brick like that in my pocket these days though.

Nokia runtime environment

What phone would you like next?

N97. Keyboard – difficult to do without.

For the second year ‘running’ Nokia supported the Royal Parks Foundation Half Marathon in London. Nokia execs lined up alongside model Nell McAndrew, who ran a personal best time of one hour 20 minutes. Her race was monitored by the Nokia Sports Tracker GPS app. Nell’s pictured with ‘ultra-athlete’ Jackson Williams, plus Nokia’s Pekka Rantal and Will Harris.

Diva Dimambro

Current ringtone?

Cagney & Lacey theme.

Wallpaper?

The Petronas Twin Towers on New Year's Eve. Favourite mobile game?

Texas Hold’em Poker, I have to admit.

Favourite mobile internet sites?

Dutch newspaper sites and Facebook.

The grand dame of mobile porn, Julia Dimambro, has found a sideline. She’s taken time out from getting footjob videos on to operator decks to pursue a singing career. She’s working with ex Private exec Giles Hirst on an album called Seduction. It won’t surprise you to learn that Jules has a superb deep voice with a hint of filth. Dirty cow. Check it out at www.ondagroove.com

What new service would you like to see on mobile?

A version of buienradar.nl for updates on rainfall.

Useful for cyclists.

Radical name change for Movidia

iPhone uplift In tech, every fresh innovation will eventually work in the service of titillation. Example? Recent figures showed Ocarina was the iPhone’s most loved app – it’s the one that lets you blow the screen to play ethereal flute music. Now, that basic idea has re-surfaced in iBlushBabes. But here you exhale to lift a girl’s skirt. Men, eh?

Pathetic. But also a kind of commercial genius.

When a company wants to reinvent itself, sometimes only a name change will do. It’s a radical step. Costs a lot, means even more. One can only stand back and admire the mobile video specialist, Movidia, when it concluded it needed a ‘more distinctive presence in the mobile handset sector’. The new name: Movidius.

Which content company do you most admire?

Fun Little Movies and GorillaBox. Worst idea you've seen in mobile?

DRM.

MOBILE ENTERTAINMENT

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Executive Editor: TIM GREEN Tim.Green@intentmedia.co.uk

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© Intent Media 2009. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or by any means without prior permission of the copyright owners. Printed by Pensord Press, NP12 2YA

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