Rating: While launching another app for the Apple iPad
Sky's David Gibbs
It seems that leading media company, News International, has definitely been bitten with the iPad app bug. Hot on the heels of our story (here) about a new iOS-centric division, Project Two22, another arm of the company has just annouced a new iPad app. This time it is BSkyB which has released Sky Sports News for iPad. It offers live and on-demand video; rich interactive graphics; and up-to-the-minute data. In a blog on the official Sky site here, the company’s director of mobile, David Gibbs, revealed that it had specially commissioned research from Mintel looking at the popularity of mobile tablets and smartphones. This makes very interesting reading indeed.Mintel found that 8 per cent of respondents in this research received a tablet over Xmas, which is on top of the 9 per cent of the British population who already own one (according to Ofcom research released last year).
Furthermore, 16 per cent intend to purchase a mobile tablet in the year ahead. Apple is rumoured to own 75 per cent of the UK tablet market, too.
This compares to figureds from Ofcom that revealed half of the UK’s population now owns a smartphone.
The Mintel survey shows that internet access (67 per cent) is to top reason for acquiring a tablet.
That’s followed by listening to music and social networking (both 48 per cent) along with keeping up to date with the news (40 per cent).
The broadcaster takes heart in the fact that one in three respondents (33 per cent) say watching film, TV and other video is a key reason for buying a tablet.
Never mind the tablets, though because Gibbs also revealed that his division already offers Sky customers over 12 high quality apps across iOS, Android and other smartphone platforms.
His greatest achievement is in getting Sky Sports Football Score Centre into the No. 8 slot of the Top 20 UK apps by cellular data usage in the UK (according to comsCore date for October 2010).
This is pretty impressive given the first six mobile apps are all pre-installed on various smartphones. Plus two other Sky apps are in that same Top 20.
If you’re not a Sky customer you can get the Sky Sports News for iPad app on a standalone basis through a monthly ticket priced at £4.99 per month.
Get it from iTunes app store here.
