Sony Ericsson has announced that it will be selling mobile applications through PlayNow Arena, its mobile content platform. I usually wince every time a new app store gets jammed onto the market, but Sony has done something interesting: it has basically outsourced its entire app outfit to independent company GetJar.
GetJar is independent of platform, operator, OS and manufacturer. It hosts free apps and games for Java, Symbian, Windows Mobile, BlackBerry, Palm and Flash Lite, and currently claims a library of 45,000 apps. These apps will now be available for sale through PlayNow, alongside some premium apps from Sony Ericsson. The basic infrastructure for app approval/publication will remain with GetJar, so if a developer could publish through GetJar before, they can now also publish through PlayNoew
From the release:
“With its experience in delivering mobile applications to a wide consumer base, GetJar has demonstrated the value of choice, quality and performance when it comes to distributing mobile content,” explained Christopher David, Head of Developer & Partner Engagement at Sony Ericsson. “In the rapidly growing mobile content market, partnering with GetJar will allow us to complement the quality application offerings of our mobile content and entertainment service PlayNow™ arena.
“Truly successful app stores need a platform which can cope with the enormous levels of consumer demand from day one, while also providing a deep and varied content offering for consumers across a wide range of handsets and platforms,” explained Ilja Laurs, Founder and CEO of GetJar Networks. “Sony Ericsson is able to draw on our track record and global experience of delivering apps for everyone, to ensure rapid growth and success.”
What we think?
I’m totally in love with this idea. In a market where even Carphone Warehouse was launching their own app store, it’s good to see two large companies co-operating on this. So many other aspects of the mobile market have seen companies working together, but it was looking like apps were immune to that. Presumably because apps are one of the few growing parts of the mobile market, and everyone was hungrily trying to snatch their own slice of pie. Well, bravo to Sony Ericsson for outsourcing this. There are still a lot of problems to be overcome – we don’t have details on profit sharing yet, for example. But this is a long delayed step away from the many walled gardens that were proliferating.
Althought the fact that Sony Ericsson is haemorrhaging jobs and money might have something to do with it as well.
