The Skweezer Blog

Today CNN announced an iPhone app that has already gained widespread praise in the few hours since its release [1] [2]. According to Reuters, some features of the new app include:

• Users can flick through news stories across categories. Additionally, when the device is rotated horizontally, stories can be flipped through quickly.
• Each story features bulleted highlights above the full article, designed to satisfy mobile “snackers,” allowing them to scan through the latest stories, as well as meet the needs of users who want the whole story.
• Local news, weather and traffic based on user’s actual location or the ability to select a specific location.
• Ability to “follow” a story or topic: As CNN publishes breaking news alerts or new stories related to a chosen topic, the app will push the updates to the device.
• “Saved” content, which enables users to access text stories even when they’re offline.

I find it interesting that CNN Interactive Group chose to launch this as a paid app, as free apps are between four and six times more likely to be downloaded than their paid counterparts. The new app is actually ad-supported as well, displaying ads while video loads (though not utilizing the “pre-roll” ads often found in online news clips).

Although many apps generate more revenue for their developers as paid apps than through an ad-supported model (see this informative article on Jonathan Wegener’s blog), apps that are used repeatedly earn more with advertising in the long run. Playing around with the app this morning, I have to say that I think this is something users will be interested in using frequently indeed.

Still, don’t be too surprised if CNN offers their iPhone app for free within the next few months. The people that had to have the product will have paid up, while the 6x users who were unwilling to pay can still generate revenue for CNN through their mobile ads.

Posted by Mark Sieve

Mike Dano published an interesting story on Fierce Wireless today. The main gist of the story revolves around a recent report by research group CCS, which indicates that Microsoft’s Windows Mobile operating system is losing ground to Google’s Android. Some reasons to support this claim, according to Dano’s article, include:

• Motorola is betting the farm on Android, a decision notable in light of the company’s heavy reliance on Windows Mobile for its previous smartphone efforts (think the Moto Q). The message from Motorola’s leadership is clear: Windows Mobile can’t turn us around. (I realize that Motorola is still technically a Windows Mobile user, but based on the company’s massive Android push I think it’s safe to remove the company from the Windows Mobile column for the time being.)
• HTC–Microsoft’s first and largest Windows Mobile licensee–continues to pour energy into Android at the expense of Windows Mobile. “CCS Insight predicts that sales of HTC Android devices could outnumber those of its Windows Mobile products in 2010,” the firm said. “This is undoubtedly a worrying prospect for Microsoft given its current reliance on HTC as its biggest licensee.”
• Sony Ericsson’s latest smartphone, the Xperia X2, sports Windows Mobile, though the company also supports Symbian products and has stated its intent to build Android devices. CCS Insight predicts Sony Ericsson’s new management will abandon Windows Mobile in favor of platforms it has more control over, like Android. A Sony Ericsson spokesman however reiterated the company’s support for Windows Mobile, and declined to speculate about Sony Ericsson’s future platform plans.
• LG, the world’s third largest cell phone maker and a latecomer to the smartphone game, recently promised to produce 50 Windows Mobile phones. However, the company also recently announced its first Android device. “Microsoft may have offered LG preferential licensing terms in order to offset weakening commitment from HTC,” posited CCS Insight.
• As for Samsung, the world’s second largest handset maker, it remains a Windows Mobile licensee, though it too has worked with Android lately and has dabbled in Symbian as well.

Of course there are other major players vying for the mobile OS spotlight along with Microsoft and Google–most notably the open-source Symbian OS from Nokia and Research In Motion’s Blackberry platform. And of course there’s Apple’s ridiculously successful iPhone.

When we started Skweezer back in the day, potential investors and partners always asked us, “How does your business relate to Microsoft?” Now the question is usually, “How does your business relate to Google?” Looks like there may be a changing of the guard as Google steps in to replace a faltering Microsoft as the alpha-male at the head of the mobile operating system pack.

Still, as Dano notes in his article:

…as with anything Microsoft, it’s not over until the company says it’s over.

Posted by Mark Sieve

The Environmental Working Group has just come out with an interesting study about the amount of radiation emitted by cell phones that’s worth a read. There’s a list that ranks devices by radiation intensity that’s also worth looking at. I was dismayed to learn that my iPhone is one of the heavy emitters, though EWG is quick to point out that:

We at Environmental Working Group are still using our cell phones, but we also believe that until scientists know much more about cell phone radiation, it’s smart for consumers to buy phones with the lowest emissions.

Still, I might just get that Bluetooth headset at Costco I’ve had my eye on…

Posted by Mark Sieve

Over the past few days there have been several columns published regarding the public’s perception of mobile advertising. What’s striking to me, as somebody who follows the news closely on this subject, are two things:

1. The frequency with which studies are coming out pertaining to the social impact of mobile advertising
2. The diametrically opposed findings of these studies

Take for example several headlines from the past few days:

9/14 - Users Of Smartphones More Sympathetic [to] Social and Mobile Advertising
9/12 - Mobile (And Particularly iPhone) Users Not Keen On Clicking Ads
9/11 - Mobile Ads See High Traction Among Youth
9/11 - Consumers Want Nothing to Do with Mobile Ads?

One of the difficulties with measuring public acceptance of mobile ads is the diverse nature of the mobile advertising platform. For instance, advertising on mobile devices can take the form of CPM banners, text-based CPC ads, and opt-in SMS/MMS alerts or coupons. And these ads can be delivered to the user via downloaded apps, mobile browser, or SMS/MMS. Not to mention behavioral differences by age group, economic status, and geography.

One thing seems probable however: we can eventually expect free, ad-supported content to be the norm in the mobile environment just as it currently is in the more mature desktop environment. Given the choice between free apps, ringtones, Web services, etc. with advertising and paid content without advertising, consumers will in all likelihood choose the former.

Posted by Mark Sieve