Friday, February 26, 2010

Some links for your delectation

New slides from Comscore’s GSMA Mobile Media Metrics (MMM) Mobile World Congress Seminar http://bit.ly/cXBF4A – good to see this initiative for measuring audiences and mobile marketing and advertising at operator level. One to keep an eye on.

John Strand on Nokia "....Bees don't go for the biggest garden, they go for the most beautiful flowers," http://bit.ly/aQ4t9m – a look at smartphone operating systems and who might win the race. (Thanks to Russell Buckley for the tip-off.)

Is a 21-hour working week a real possibility? Well the NEF seem to think so. And although I missed the event yesterday lunchtime at the RSA, the free accompanying report ‘The 21 hour society’ is worth a read. I’m eagerly awaiting the audio of the event to listen to.

My favourite post about Mobile World Congress 2010 from Tim Green at Mobile Entertainment Magazine ‘The Muggers have got into La Fira and stolen all the minutes from operators’.

Ada Lovelace Day Potluck Unconference

This sounds like it could be fun. If you’re in London Town on Wednesday 24th March and are interested in helping women do more in technology, then why not join the fun? Maggie Philbin and Suw Charman-Anderson will be on hand to kick start the proceedings and then it’s up to the attendees to chip in with what and who they want to talk about.

The potluck bit also refers to the self-catering aspect of it. There won’t be any refreshments provided but everyone who attends can bring their own food and drink to share.

Schedule

6.00 pm: Arrival, drinks, networking, attendees sign up to talk if you want to.
7.00 pm: Introduction by Suw Charman-Anderson, Maggie Philbin talks about her inspiration
7.15 pm: Unconference! Those who signed up can give a short, 3-4 minute talk about their tech/sci heroine.
8.00 pm: Drinks and networking.

It’s being held at the Centre for Creative Collaboration which is near Kings Cross. Find out more about the event and RSVP here.

Is the touch web the new black?

Well maybe. It appears that touch friendly mobile websites are more prevalent than mobile applications. Or at least that’s one of the findings from recent research by the lovely folks at mobile search specialist, Taptu. They have done some sterling research into the touch web and they’ve produced a free report which is a *must-read* if mobile is even 10% of your game as it shows us how important touch-friendly sites are amongst smartphone users. And it’s full of lovely stats, facts and figures. And I know how y’all like those.

As a follow on from that report, Peggy Anne Salz is collating research from all and sundry on their thoughts on the touch web and needs your input – deadline today. Yes, I know I’m a bit slow on this one. I’ve been away you know! Anyway, read a summary of the report and find out how to get involved here.

Friday, February 12, 2010

Reality check time – US customers

It’s very easy to get carried away and think the iPhone is the be-all and end-all when it comes to mobile devices, but the fact is, it’s just not true. Sure, the iPhone punches above its weight when it comes to mobile data usage, applications, length of use and so on. I don’t deny that. But the reality is that most customers do not have an iPhone. Comscore’s latest research into US customers bears this out.

So unlike Europe and pretty much the rest of the world, it’s still all about Motorola in the US. And looking at smartphones specifically, it’s all about BlackBerry.

OEM Market Share

A total of 234 million people age 13 and older in the U.S. used mobile devices in December 2009. Device manufacturer Motorola was the top ranked OEM with 23.5 percent of U.S. mobile devices. LG ranked second with 21.9 percent share, followed by Samsung (21.2 percent share), Nokia (9.2 percent share) and RIM (7.0 percent share).

image

 Smartphone Platform Market Share

RIM was the leading mobile smartphone operating system in the U.S. in December 2009 with 41.6 percent share of U.S. smartphone devices. Apple ranked second with 25.3 percent share (up 1.2 percentage points), followed by Microsoft with 18.0 percent share, Palm with 6.1 percent share, and Google with 5.2 percent share (up 2.7 percentage points).image

Mobile Content Usage

In December 2009, 63.1 percent of U.S. mobile subscribers used text messaging on their mobile device, up 2.1 percentage points from three months prior. Browsers were used by 27.5 percent of U.S. mobile subscribers (up 1.5 percentage points), while subscribers who played games made up 21.6 percent (up 0.2 percentage points).

image

Interesting, very interesting.

Source: comScore, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCOR). A global leader in measuring the digital world and preferred source of digital marketing intelligence. For more information, please visit www.comscore.com/companyinfo.

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Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Next MoMoLo event: Where Mobile Meets Media – Tues 16 Feb 2010 in Barcelona

uktech ukti logo2 ukti logo

 

 

Yes, it’s not going to be on a Monday and it’s not in London, but Mobile Monday London is indeed off to Barcelona to Mobile World Congress. And as part of that, we’re putting on a panel session for you. So what’s it all about then?

Probably preaching to the converted here, but we all know how much mobile technology has changed our lives. By the same token, we also know that the world of traditional media is in trouble. Or at least, that's what we're led to believe with declining advertising revenues and fragmented audiences. With all this change, what is the role for mobile? What are the opportunities and challenges? Is traditional media dying, and if so, what should be done about it? And what are the secrets of success for mobile companies wanting a slice of the global media pie?

In this panel session, you'll be hearing from some of the UK's biggest mainstream media owners and some of their counterparts from the mobile industry. All will be sharing their pearls of wisdom with you. We’re just confirming all our speakers but Steve Ives, CEO of Taptu and Lucie Mclean, Senior Product Manager in BBC FM&T Audio & Music & Mobile will be two of them. They will be joined by an illustrious cast. We’ll be able to confirm in the next day or so.

We are opening the event to other Mobile Monday chapters so it’s a good chance to meet and mingle with some new people as well as some familiar faces and try and make sense of the madness that is Mobile World Congress. We will be providing refreshments too – drinks and tapas -  thanks to the generous support and hosting by the UKTI. You will need an exhibition pass for Mobile World Congress in order to attend as it is on site at La Fira.

This event is hosted by the UKTI.

Date: Tuesday 16th February 2010 – 4pm - 6pm

Place: Sala D, Mezzanine floor between Level 0 and Level 1 in Hall 2, Fira Barcelona in Montjuic. This is more or less opposite the UKTI stand so quite easy to find.

Agenda:

Doors open at 4pm. Please be on time. We have a tight schedule.

4.10pm - welcome and introductions

4.15pm - panel session with questions and discussion from the floor

5.00pm - 6.00pm - networking, tapas and drinks

Please RSVP at: http://momolo.org

* Places are limited. Early confirmation of acceptance is advisable *

Please contact Helen Keegan helen@[removethis]mobilemonday.org.uk or Daniel Appelquist dan@[removethis]mobilemonday.org.uk if you have any questions.

We look forward to seeing you in Barcelona!

Essential reading from Tomi Ahonen – the Almanac 2010

Tomi’s done it again. He’s published his 2010 Almanac – a veritable smorgasbord of stats, information, graphs, charts, facts, figures and insight into the world of mobile. It’s 180 pages of mobile goodness, including 84 charts, sized to work as an ebook on your smartphone as well as your laptop. Very neat.

It is, in my view, essential reading for anyone with an interest in the world of mobile. Data in the e-book includes - Size of Mobile Industry; Customers; Handsets and Smartphones; Mobile Messaging including SMS and MMS; Mobile Internet; 7th Mass Medium; Music on Mobile; TV and Video; Gaming; Social Networking; Other services including News, Jokes, Adult, App Stores etc; Mobile Advertising; Voice calls; Enterprise services; Network Infrastructure; Digital Divide; and a Historical Timeline.

There is tabular data included - Index of Mobile Leadership for the 30 most advanced countries; major comparative data on 60 major mobile countries; the 25 countries with largest subscriber counts and 25 with highest penetration rates per capita; plus 25 countries with highest rate of 3G migration. Plus the 20 biggest mobile operator Groups.

The whole document is available for immediate download, has been released today, and costs only 9.99 Euros. The only place you can order it (it is not available at major booksellers like Amazon) is Tomi’s company website. 

Wanna know more and order it? – then check it out here.

Enjoy. I know I will!

Tuesday, February 09, 2010

More Swedish Beers Love to go around from acrossair

acrossairlogo I do like it when a plan comes together. There is more beer to go around thanks to the lovely folk at acrossair. Yes, that’s right folks, we have another sponsor to join our merry throng for Swedish Beers goes to Barcelona at Dostrece on Wednesday 17th February! Chetan and his team from acrossair will be on hand with a bunch of beer tokens for you all and some chat and banter about things mobile.

acrossair are creators of the Augmented Reality Browser on iPhone. The browser uses amazing 3D navigation which you can see as you spin round. There is local data from property companies and big name brands which is represented in an augmented reality view. If you hold it flat, it jumps to a Google maps view and when you spin around, so does the browser to make sure you know where everything is. Cool, huh?

It’s free to download from iTunes and works on iPhone 3GS. And, if you have an iPhone 3GS, rather usefully, one of their services is to find your nearest Metro station in Barcelona. That could come in handy. Hint, the nearest one to Swedish Beers is Liceu. Make sure you have that one saved ;)

Oh, and if Augmented Reality is your thing, then you might want to check out the AR showcase that acrossair is participating in that my pals Dan and Christine are organising on Wednesday afternoon at Mobile World Congress in the Courtyard at 5pm, just before Swedish Beers.

Monday, February 08, 2010

I’m supporting Ada Lovelace Day this year, will you?

Last year, I supported Ada Lovelace Day, the international day of blogging to draw attention to women excelling in technology and science.

The team behind it are now planning this year’s effort for 24 March 2010 and they’re looking for bloggers, old and new, male and female, whether you blog in audio, video, images or written word, and from all sectors to sign the pledge to write a blog post about a woman or women you admire in technology.

Last year, 1200 of us wrote blog posts, there was a great amount of press and it was even covered by the BBC News Channel.

I support this initiative, as women’s contributions, for whatever reason, often go unacknowledged, their innovations seldom mentioned and their faces rarely recognised. So the Finding Ada initiative aimed to do something about that.

It’s a topic dear to my heart, as too often, women are invisible in the mobile industry. Yet as organiser of various mobile events, including the Women in Mobile Data Association, I know there are lots of women in the mobile industry, yet it’s the men in the industry whose voices are heard more often than not. And since women are more than 50% of the mobile phone customer base, it’s increasingly important for women’s voices to be heard and recognised and to be acted upon instead of ignored or sidelined, whether intentionally or not. This is one effort to do something about just that.

So the goal is to reach 3072 names this year – more than doubling last year’s effort. And there’s just over a month to go. There are 72 names on the list at the time of writing, so 3,000 to go. Will yours be on it?

Please sign the pledge at http://findingada.com/ and let all your friends know about it too.

To keep up to date with what is happening:

     The Pledge: http://findingada.com/
     The Blog: http://blog.findingada.com
     on Twitter http://twitter.com/FindingAda
     on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=253179284089

Women in Mobile Data Association informal lunch in Barcelona

Update: Venue is confirmed!

It's that time of year again and Barcelona and a bit of sunshine beckons us to the spectacle that is Mobile World Congress. And I know there'll be quite a few of ladies there. So I’m organising an informal lunch on Tuesday 16th February for the Women in Mobile Data Association. The restaurant, Aranega, is a short walk from Congress (less than 10 minutes) on Avenida Paral-lel and thanks to our fantastic sponsor, HipLogic, there'll be tapas and refreshments for everyone. So that's your lunch break sorted then!

The Lowdown:

Date: Tuesday 16th February at 12.30 until 14.30

Venue: We have the upstairs room booked at the lovely Aranega - just like last year - http://www.aranega.es which is on Avenida Paral-lel 188. Come out of La Fira, walk down Avenida Paral-lel, and it's on the * left* hand side at number 188 -just over the road from Congress and less than 10 minutes walk.

Agenda and timings:

12.30 Doors will open at for drinks and mingling.
12.50, HipLogic's CEO, Mark Anderson, will give us a short talk on his vision for HipLogic followed by a few questions and some discussion. He wants to know what women like us think of the service and how we might use it.
13.10 - Tapas and more drinks will be served. Lots of chat and networking.
14.45 - Doors close and it's back to Congress we go.

It’s free to attend, but space is limited and because of this, priority will be given to the ladies in our group. If any gentlemen would like to join us, please contact me and I'll be able to confirm any remaining places at the weekend.

Please RSVP to me by email or on Facebook http://bit.ly/dr3eH2. Spaces are limited.

About our sponsor HipLogic

HipLogic Logo

HipLogic Live delivers content from real-time sources like Facebook, Twitter, Sky, Disney, Sports, Weather, newsfeeds and more, through a smartphone-like interface that works is delivers push content notifications to the phonetop without using SMS. This means that they bring the world of applications, widgets, live search and real-time notifications to the mass market without the need to invest in a new smartphone. You just need one, simple, free download. The technology relies on a JavaScript virtual machine running on the device that is connected to the cloud that aggregates information and feeds from network operators and the Web to create mash-ups for use on Symbian, Windows Mobile and Android mobile devices. The aim is to provide always-on, fast access and logical presentation of content and applications that can be cumbersome to access through current mobile phone browsers - especially on multimedia-phones.

CEO Mark Anderson describes HipLogic as being an “extreme makeover” for your phone that will deliver an iPhone-like experience to the mass market. And he wants our feedback - that's why he's sponsoring our WiMD lunch. He wants to know what women think about this since we're the ones who are predominantly sold feature-phones and have less time and inclination to explore the world of applications and content - or so we're led to believe. Is this true? Let's find out on Tuesday 16th February.

HipLogic Live is available as a free download from http://www.hiplogic.com

Friday, February 05, 2010

Inspiring Interns are winners!

Just a quick blog post to celebrate my good friend Ben Rosen’s recent success. He’s the founder of Inspiring Interns, a specialist agency focussed on finding meaningful internships for students and graduates, and they’ve been named among the winners of the 2009 BT Essence of the Entrepreneur Award. The gong recognises young companies who use technology to drive their business forward, celebrating the achievements of small businesses that have demonstrated exceptional dedication and passion towards their work. Inspiring Interns received special commendation for their innovative use of video CVs to help candidates stand out from the crowd and assist employers in finding their perfect interns.

Ben’s in the middle of the picture below with Peter Jones of Dragon’s Den fame who was on the judging panel.

Well done Ben!

So good, Silverstreet had to sponsor it twice!

silverstreet logo Yes, that’s right, the super team at Silverstreet had such a good time at Swedish Beers in Barcelona at Mobile World Congress last year that they’re sponsoring it again this year! And I’m thrilled to be welcoming them back to join us :)

So who are the folks at Silverstreet then and what do they do? Well they’re a specialist in messaging (SMS) offering global reach with MT termination options covering more than 700 networks worldwide (that’s going some). They have a focus on mission critical traffic (so making sure your message gets to the right place at the right time) and high volume (wholesale) clients. On top of this, they also maintain coverage for Premium Rate SMS in 32 countries and continue to expand their portfolio.

New to the Silverstreet suite of services is the introduction of its AirTime Transfer services which are geared towards Mobile Operators around the world who are interested in offering their subscribers a service where they can send airtime credits to their friends and family overseas.

Silverstreet has grown *a lot* since they were with us last year and now has local offices in Europe (where they started), the Middle East, Africa, Asia and Australia and most recently opened an office in the Philippines. With 10 years under their belt in the Mobile Industry, and members of the MEF, you’ll find the team a fun bunch and very happy to talk messaging and other mobile stuff until the cows come home. Much like the rest of us really!

Eric, Timo, Mitch and Mil will be there from Silverstreet so be sure to look out for them to say hello, chat about mobile stuff – messaging, airtime, PSMS or whatever. And if you ask nicely, I expect they’ll be more than happy to share their very generous amount of beer tokens with you.

Skål

Wednesday, February 03, 2010

I’m really pleased to announce Monotype Imaging as a sponsor for Swedish Beers…

Yes, it’s true. I can confirm that the lovely people at Monotype Imaging will also be sponsoring Swedish Beers goes to Barcelona!

monotype imaging logoSo you’ll be able to enjoy a beer with Monotype Imaging, the company that combines design with technology to help the world communicate consistently beautifully everywhere. Come and meet their team, a bold bunch of characters who have worked with all the leading players in the mobile world simply making text work. And I quote Julie Strawson, (who you might know already from speaking at Heroes of the Mobile Screen and being a regular at the Women in Mobile Data Association meet-ups), she says, ‘We’re proud to be sponsoring this great event.’ Hurrah!

You might want to take a look at the Monotype Imaging website before you search them out for beer tokens on the night and also download and try out their lovely little font app FlipFont. I’ve downloaded it myself and use it on my Nokia N95 and very nice it is too.

You can follow FlipFont on twitter as well if you like.

Shaping up to be a good one folks!

Skål

Barcelona and Mobile World Congress – the bad and the ugly and how to avoid it

As much as I love the city, and I really do, I know it’s notorious for pickpockets and thefts. Too many of my friends have experienced this first hand…. like a friend of mine who had her laptop bag stolen and the thief called her up and ransomed it to her for 100 Euros. Or the fact that several of my male friends have had their wallets nicked when distracted by girls flirting with them. Or my pal who was beaten up for his laptop & wallet near La Rambla and ended up in casualty. Or the time when a group of colleagues all used the official cloakroom on site at La Fira during Mobile World Congress when going into a seminar. When they came to collect their bags and coats, they were all there, minus the laptops. Or the time in the expensive, fancy restaurant where a friend had his laptop stolen from under his chair whilst he was sitting on it. Or the one I’ve literally just heard about where they had a load of stuff stolen from their apartment by the ‘welcome’ guy – they got everything back when they challenged him, but even so…

I am so very thankful this hasn’t been my personal experience. Nevertheless, I take precautions and I am vigilant (and this applies to London, Barcelona, Rome, wherever).

Anyway, my advice is

  • don’t carry a laptop or any valuables with you if you don’t need to. If you do bring a laptop, make sure it’s backed up and secure with relevant passwords or whatever so that if it got lost, stolen or damaged, it wouldn’t be the end of the world.
  • Don’t keep all your money together in one place. Use zipped pockets for your wallet and passport in your bag. Or a hidden money belt. Don’t carry more cash or credit cards than you need.
  • Use your hotel or apartment safe if there is one.
  • Leave the grey suit, the tie and the formal laptop bag at home. Avoid bringing your laptop to any of the networking parties *if* you can.
  • Tuck your MWC pass inside your top or jacket when you leave La Fira.
  • Have a spare phone and Pay as you go SIM just in case your main phone gets stolen.
  • Back up your phone to your laptop and also to an online service like Synkia (my personal preference as it also stores my SMS), to Mobyko, Zyb, or whatever your preference so you can still access your numbers and transfer them if you need to.

And on top of this, it’s worth reading this blog post about what to avoid.

If you have any tips to share, please comment away and let’s avoid having a nasty experience mar what can be one of the most fantastic weeks of the mobile year.

Only for girls?

I know facebook is not known for its fantastic advertising. It really is tedious to be told that you're lonely and old and must be looking for a man if you're a single women of a certain age. Equally the offers for free Uggs, dresses or whatever because you're a specific age are meaningless drivel too. What has age got to do with it?

Anyway, this advert just appeared when I was on facebook just now and it's wound me up so much I'm sharing with the world. Yet another example of lazy marketing, of dumbing down for girls. I know it's an affiliate who has set it up rather than Vodafone. But it's still a Vodafone offer ultimately that the affiliate is using. You can see what it clicks through to here: http://tbgadserver.com/vodafone/simonly/girls.php

So, I'm wondering do boys get offers for blue phones saying 'only for boys'?!

Quite. Thought not.

And the industry wonders why smartphones are still skewed 75% male which impacts on the uptake of mobile apps, mobile web and more sophisticated mobile services....

Grrr.

Posted via email from Technokitten

Monday, February 01, 2010

I want, you want, we all want Swedish Beers… again!

Yes, it’s that time of year. It’s all about Barcelona and it’s as hectic as ever. But hey, I wouldn’t like it if it was any different.

Jenny Hiley has been keeping the Swedish Beers love going Down Under in Sydney for the last year (thank you Jenny!) and I’m pleased to announce that I will be spreading some more Swedish Beers love by running Swedish Beers in Barcelona again this year with a little help from my friends.

We had such a great time last year – about 800 of you turned up throughout the night and you didn’t want to leave when it was closing time. We had folks there from as far afield as New Zealand and Brazil. We have global reach people! We also had people there from network operators, mobile marketing agencies, brands, analysts, journalists, entrepreneurs, developers of all flavours of mobile, aggregators, content creators, messaging specialists, media owners and lots more besides. You want it, you got it at Swedish Beers.

And by all accounts it was an epic night for some last year. People are still telling their ‘Swedish Beers’ tales, and not just from last year, from previous years to that too! I guess we’re doing something right then…

Anyway, we have the lovely Admob confirmed as our lead sponsor – third year running in Barcelona and I think the 5th time they’ve sponsored Swedish Beers since we started back in October 2001 in London.

We are still on the lookout for more sponsors though to help the party really go with a swing. Like last year, we can provide the atmosphere, warm bodies, great banter, friendly welcome and a good time if you can contribute towards the beer fund. Another £4,000 and I’d be *really* happy and not only would I be happy, but a lot of other people would be very happy too! Do get in touch if you’d like to make that happen :)

Anyway, the important bit…

Our venue for the evening is Dostrece which is a two floor bar and restaurant – a ground floor and a chillout basement. Yes, that's right, a restaurant too! This means that they will be serving food from their normal menu until about 9pm so you'll get a chance to eat too if you want to. Prices are reasonable and it's a mix of Mexican, Spanish and Turkish flavours. @BCN_unlike reviews it here. We ate there last year and it was very tasty.

The venue holds about 300 or so folks at any one time so there’s plenty space for everyone. Dostrece is behind La Boqueria market and the nearest metro station is Liceu. Just walk up La Rambla, walk past La Boqueria and Teatro Grec, then take a left at Calle Carme (or Carrer del Carme) and Dostrece is at number 40 (Google map here). (They also have free wifi if you want to demo your latest iphone app.)

Doors will be opening at 6.30pm on Wednesday 17th February and we'll be open until late so there's plenty of time to drop by and enjoy the fun, meet interesting people and soak up the Swedish Beers vibe. There is no need to RSVP, but since there's a bar courtesy of our lovely sponsors, we will be distributing beer tokens on the night so you’ll have to look for the Swedish Beers crew and the lovely folks from Admob.

Like our previous events, this is a relaxed evening, no formalities, no presentations, no business cards thrust in your face as soon as you arrive. Just come with an open mind, be prepared to talk nonsense to strangers, enjoy a drink or five and have yourself a good time. Oh, and leave the ties at the door please.

It is likely to get a bit busy at times. But don't worry, people will be coming in and out all evening. That’s kind of the point as we know there’s always a lot going on. If it's very busy, there's no need to queue to get in. Just check out one of the other bars nearby and come back a little later when it's a bit less frantic.

We don't have a cloakroom so I don't recommend you bring your laptops with you - it's a liability in Barcelona I'm afraid. You won't need them anyway what with this new fangled thing called the mobile phone ;)

So just to recap:

What: Swedish Beers Mobile Networking
When: Wednesday 17th February 2010, 6.30pm until we run out of steam
Where: Dostrece, Calle Carme 40, 08001 Barcelona

And of course, it couldn't happen at all without the generous support of our lovely sponsors, the first of which is Admob.

*Admob* Founded in 2006 (on my birthday as it happens!), AdMob is AdMob is one of the world's largest mobile advertising networks, offering solutions for discovery, branding and monetization on the mobile web, serving more than a gazillion mobile banner and text ads per month.

Their growing client list includes a diverse range of Fortune 500 brands like Ford, Coca-Cola, EA, P&G, Land Rover, MTV Europe, Adidas, and Paramount Pictures, as well as publishers that are pushing the boundaries of the mobile web like AccuWeather, BluePulse, CBS Mobile, EA, Flirtomatic, Hollywood.com, Peperonity, and TinyTube. Admob are the primary monetization and acquisition partner for thousands of companies.

Widely recognized as the world’s leading mobile advertising networks, Admob has won accolades from the Mobile Marketing Association, Ad Age, Business Week, Wired Magazine, and the World Economic Forum. Not bad eh!

Russell (genuine old skool mobilist and blogger), Andy, Jonathan and I suspect a few more from their crew will be around to hand out beer tokens and generally chew the mobile fat.

Hope to have more sponsors to announce soon as well! Get in touch if you’re interested

Skål

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Join the group or follow us on twitter - you'll be in good company and can keep up to date with Swedish Beers events in London, Sydney and Barcelona.
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