After last months announcement at MWC, Yahoo has launched it’s new mobile internet service – Yahoo Mobile. The mobile web portal is available for web enabled devices at http://new.m.yahoo.com, or as a downloadable iPhone app. Versions for other smartphones will be released in May.
What’s the skinny?
Yahoo Mobile is Yahoo’s attempt to create a definitive mobile web portal. It has combined all of it’s web services into one location. Through Yahoo Mobile you can access all of the Yahoo functions that were spread out across separate services. Mobile search comes from Yahoo oneSearch. Mobile communication is done though Pulse, which gives access to your Yahoo mail, social networks, email, IM and contacts. It has even integrated location based services, so that you can view your contacts on a map (like Latitude), or perform local searches on oneSearch. It supports third party apps through a desktop-style widget interface, and consolidates RSS feeds and news sites.
For video of Marco Boerries introducing Yahoo Mobile at MWC, see this page: http://www.gomonews.com/yahoo-at-mwc-2009-marco-boerries-introduces-yahoo-mobile/
From the release:
“Consumers around the globe are demanding compelling mobile internet services that offer increased personalisation, and allow them to easily manage all the content they care about in one place on their phones” said Mitch Lazar, MD of Yahoo Mobile in Europe. “To further capitalise on the market potential and continue our mobile leadership, we created Yahoo! Mobile, a dynamic starting point enabling consumers to discover the world around them, stay connected through a variety of communication services, and customise content to define their internet experience on mobile devices.”
What we think?
Opinions are somewhat divided over Yahoo Mobile. In general, people are quite happy with what they’re seeing – with a lot of “this is what we should have been offered years ago” comments. One big black mark against it, according to Techradar, is that reviews of the iPhone app store are lukewarm at best, with reviewe calling ‘okay-ish’, ‘not ready yet’ and ‘slow over GPRS’.
At the end of that day, whether it works or not, this is the kind of service we need to see on the web. A properly consolidated, platform- and operator-independent mobile portal, with all services clearly and easily accesible. This kind of thinking will see us moving towards the kind of mobile Internet space we need. It’s too early to tell whether Yahoo Mobile is going to be a blinding success. It may the case (like with Motorola) that the early innovator will lose out in the long run. But expect to see many more services like this soon.
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My big question is, why?
Why would I want Yahoo! to be my mobile home-screen. Aren’t internet portals for lazy people who never make it past their ISP’s walled garden? Does anyone persevere or spend any time on web portals like iGoogle. And more importantly, do portals like this fit in with mobile usage?
Overweight offerings like Yahoo portal don’t seem to really fulfill any need apart from offering Yahoo! execs the prospect of mobile land-grabbing. But doing everything doesn’t count for much unless you are doing everything really really well. Google manages this trick for quite a bit, but doesn’t claim to the home for content discovery, for instance. Yahoo! doesn’t look like it is offering anything new or better than what is already out there, its just lumped everything in one great big purple sandwich.
I have written a longer article about Yahoo portal, you can check it on: http://www.welovemobile.co.uk/blog/?p=468
Hi Simon,
I hear you -but I think that you are expressing concerns I originally had with the product when it was very monolithic. Now its open its not just about Yahoo Mobile its about anything – like the Social pulse service I mention. You can update Twitter or Facebook from your home screen.
I use Yahoo services and have done since I was at University so for me – I love this for connecting to friends. I use gmail for biz and microsoft for old old school friends and family. I might be unique in this but I love the ability to access what I want from one platform from my mobile. At the moment I have 3 laptops for work, social and gossip that reflect my identities.
I have never been so positive on any Yahoo service but this really does give it legs – it is very good and if I was a brand I would like to be associated with it.
Bena
PS: I loved meeting Si and please tell him am totally sorry for not blogging about our meet yet – next time I am in London will come over and do a proper interview!