BuddyMob is a free mobile application from Kiboo for Android handsets. It provides access to a variety of social networks (Twitter, MSN, Gtalk and AIM) from a mobile device, with one log-in. Kiboo has announced a whole slew of updates to be made to the app, after feedback from BuddyMob users – most importantly that the Android app is being released for both iPhone and Symbian later this year.
Updates:
- Social Networking features updated. It’s easier to update your profile, and make different selections on country, profile, gender or age.
- Support coming for Facebook and Yahoo users, and improved support for GTalk and AIM.
- Addition of HTTP protocol support. BuddyMob uses XMPP to push information to mobile networks. Some operators block this protocol, causing the users problems when connecting with BuddyMob. Kiboo is launching a tool to get around that, which automatically switches from XMPP to HTTP protocol.
- Thanks to “push” features in iPhone 3.0, there will soon be a BuddyMob app for iPhone users. There’s also a Symbian version in the works, to be launched later this year.
- A German and a French version will be released soon for the German and French market.
From the release:
Christophe Hocquet, CEO and co-Founder, Kiboo: ‘Our research has shown that around 60% of consumers are members of more than one social network. The service that BuddyMob provides, integrating all social network feeds and creating a new way to be constantly connected to friends, meets this trend head on.’
What we think?
BuddyMob has been doing well on the Android Market, and now is the right time for this kind of update. Well, earlier than now would have been even better, but making sure it’s in place before iPhone 3.0 launches fully is essential. The problem here is that while BuddyMob is popular on Android, there’s not guarantee that will translate over into the Apple market. iPhone still has the vast majority of the smartphone marketshare, and there are plenty of native social networking apps available there already. A lot of this will depend on how Kiboo markets it to their now much-larger potential audience.
