Monthly Archives: August 2012
Apple still hanging onto its mobile ads lead says Velti
Rating: Publishers may reduce time lag twixt iOS and Android app releases
Velti has been mining data from the mobile advertising it aggregates across over 40 ad networks. Figures for its July ‘State of Mobile Advertising’ report, show that Apple’s share of the smartphone and tablet sector is holding up against Android.
Apple devices currently claim 58 per cent of total in-app ad impressions, for example. However, its share is slipping arguably because Apple fanboys are awaiting the launch of the iPhone 5 next month [September 2012]. As Krishna Subramanian, CMO with Velti, points out, “We should also bear in mind that figures from IDC have indicated that 68 per cent of all smartphones shipped in 2012 have been Android models.” Continue reading
Carphone’s prospects bolstered by resumed buy-out talks for US partner
Britain’s Carphone Warehouse looked back on track for a strategic boost to its fortunes last night [27th August 2012] following news that takeover talks for its US partner Best Buy had definitely resumed.
The pair share ownership of retailer CPW Europe, which in the UK operates under the Carphone Warehouse brand, as well as the emerging markets-focused business Global Connect. But if Best Buy is taken over, Carphone Warehouse owner chairman Charles Dunstone can enact a clause in the original deal with the US retailer that allows him to buy back his half of his business for just £440 million which, at current exchange rates, is around £660m less than Best Buy originally paid him. Continue reading
Apple court victory: first Samsung handsets for the chop named
Eight older Samsung phones have already been put in the firing line by Apple in the aftermath of its crushing US court victory, with injunctions against the Korean giant’s flagship Galaxy S2 possibly also on the way.
In trading around the world yesterday and early this morning [28th August 2012], it was becoming clearer how the court ruling would translate into corporate triumph and misery. Continue reading
Weekend QR code roundup: Great British Beer Festival
Rating: UK brewers pretty QR code savvy
Thanks to 3 UK, GoMobile News visited the Great British Beer Festival held at London’s Olympia earlier this month [August 7-11th 2012]. Naturally, we picked up a copy of the show’s guide which is effectively out together by Camra (CAMpaign for Real Ale). Considering that this guide consisted largely of listings, it was quite impressive that the there were four adverts which bothered to include QR codes as part of their call to action. Unsurprisingly Camra’s own QR code was an easy winner. There’s still plenty of room for improvement, though. However, we do think this publication proved GoMobile News‘ that the UK brewing industry is pretty QR code savvy. Incidentally we’ve also found a QR code that makes good use of a simple link to a YouTube video. Continue reading
Nokia the winner in Apple vs Samsung spat
Rating: WP7 ecosystem could get an unexpected boost
Last week [25th August 2012] Samsung was ordered to pay Apple over $1 billion in damages for infringing patents and copying the iPhone’s design. The Californian jury dismissed Samsung’s counter claim that Apple had infringed its own patents. The nine-person jury found that Samsung’s phones infringed patents covering a number of Apple technologies such as double tapping on the screen to zoom in. The result came just hours after a judge banned the sale of both Apple and Samsung products in South Korea. The Seoul court enforced a sales ban on Apple’s iPhone 3GS; iPhone 4; iPad 1; and iPad 2. Plus there was a ban on Samsung’s Galaxy S II phone. Ironically one of the biggest winners here could be Nokia with its Windows Phone 7 (W7 Mango) based Lumia range. Continue reading
Everything Everywhere Guide to 4G in UK
In response to Ofcom’s recent decision to allow Everything Everywhere to utilise the 1800 MHz spectrum in the UK for 4G/LTE, the mobile operator released this guide and backgrounder to 4G. You can download it from here
What is 4G, and what will it mean for Britain?
The UK currently uses 2G and 3G networks to connect [...]
Guest Post: Big Data is getting smarter
Mobile operators get closer to their customers using smarter data
by Lyn Cantor, president of Tektronix Communications
It’s a well-known fact in marketing circles that mobile operators are sat on a potential goldmine of personal data based on presence, location and preference. Operators can mine data that reveals what websites subscribers visit; which applications they use; and what products they buy. Now that mobile broadband has taken hold on wireless networks and subscribers use their mobile device as their window to the world – revealing countless details about their daily lives- the sheer volume of data attributed to individuals is always increasing. The information now applicable to each subscriber relates to their interactions with the services and applications they use, and the network that delivers them. Operators have always had to contend with ‘big data’ – a cross section of information stored in disparate silos and data warehouses – but the more data subscribers generate, the greater the complexity. Continue reading
Billions wiped off Samsung’s cap in wake of US court ruling
Investors desert South Korean maker for fear things can only get worse
More than $12 billion was wiped off the value of Samsung in early trading in Seoul today [27th August 2012] as the ramifications of Apple’s Californian court victory sank in. On Friday, US jurors delivered a sweeping victory to Apple in its battle with the South Korean giant, ordering it to pay $1.05 billion dollars in damages for violating its patents on smartphone technology. More critically, Samsung could now be forced to stop selling handsets in the US that are deemed to violate those patents. Continue reading
UK’s Monitise revs up for fast lane
£24m cash injection to help mobile payments firm accelerate growth
AIM-listed Monitise, which provides mobile payments technology for Visa and most of the UK high street banks, will pass another milestone this Wednesday [29th August 2012] when it raises around £24 million through the placing of up to 81 million new shares. With the pace of mobile payment innovation hotting up and Apple tipped to introduce its own scheme with its new iPhone next month [September 2012], rival contenders need to secure turf now before users of the new technologies get too settled. Continue reading
How to identify which Apple iPhone you have
Rating: bargains to be had after iPhone 5 comes out
A whole bunch of Apple fanboys will be upgrading to the latest iPhone model in the near future. That’s if the rumours that the Cupertino based maker actually introduces an iPhone 5 next month [September 2012], are true. Which means there will be a healthy number of older iPhones kicking around for very little dosh [money]. For the newbie, however, how to you identify which model you’re being offered? And more to the point, how do you find out how much storage it boasts? Continue reading
HUNT to push Facebook Mobile Sponsored Stories
Rating: New opportunity for advertisers to engage with mobile users
HUNT Mobile Ads – which bills itself as the leading mobile advertising company for the Spanish and Portuguese speaking markets, has announced a new facility. This will allow advertisers to place sponsored stories in Facebook Mobile. The offering will enable advertisers and agencies to take advantage of new mobile ads products from Facebook – Mobile Sponsored Stories. This provides advertsiers with the opportunity to reach the majority of Facebook users (now more than 55 per cent of users use Facebook over their mobile phones). Continue reading
Resumed Best Buy takeover talks could prove windfall for Carphone Warehouse
Carphone Warehouse could be in for a handsome profit and undergo a major reshuffle if resumed takeover talks for its partner Best Buy are successful.
The two share ownership of retailer CPW Europe, which in the UK operates under the Carphone Warehouse brand, as well as the emerging markets-focused business Global Connect.
In the US Best Buy’s founder Richard Schulze has made an offer worth up to $8.84bn to buy the company back and, though talks initially stalled, they’re now said to be back on track. Continue reading
Guest Post: The reality of mobile phone tracking for businesses
What you can do with mobile spy software if it is legal
by Ricky Martin who works with Cellphone Tracking
The harsh reality is that the days of the ‘Ethical Work Culture’ have gone. This leads some employees to resort to unprofessional conduct like passing the secrets of the companies they work for to the rival companies. This led some companies to resort to advanced technologies to combat such problems timely. One such tool is mobile phone tracking software – often referred to as cellphone spyware. Continue reading
Samsung selected by 3 UK for LTE RAN & core infrastructure deployment
Samsung signs first major European network supply contract
Press release
August 24th 2012. Samsung Electronics, an advanced network solution provider, has been selected to provide LTE Radio Access Network (RAN) and 3G/LTE core infrastructure solutions to Three, the UK’s leading mobile internet operator. The deployment marks Samsung’s first commercial mobile network roll-out in Europe. To provide an innovative and market-leading mobile data service, Three UK, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hutchison Whampoa Limited, is focusing on the development of its LTE network in the United Kingdom using Samsung’s innovative LTE RAN and Core solutions. Continue reading
Mobeam & ProLogic to promote mobile digital coupon tech
Rating: Works with existing PoS but requires LED inside handset
Here’s an interesting partnership. Mobeam which has specialist mobile phone technology has formed and alliance with ProLogic which operates a coupon clearing house facility for US based retailers. The beauty of this joint effort is that it won’t require any new equipment to be installed at the point-of-sale – it works with existing PoS systems. The only catch is that Mobeam doesn’t quite explain how it is going to get its technology onto existing handsets as well as persuading handset makers to build the technology into their future mobile phones. Continue reading
