Work, RIM and Play

Just popped in to say "hi", but also to say that RIM (of Blackberry fame) have launched a new tablet aimed at business users. All very well, but why then, have they called it the 'Playbook' - which implies exactly the opposite?

Very strange indeed.

Hope you like stats!

Two interesting articles were published this week, both of which I couldn't let slip by without a a mention.

Firstly there was this article posted on CNet, and a dozen other sites besides. For those not wanting to read the whole article, or with a nasty case of carpel tunnel, it talks about the levels of profit Apple is gaining on each iPhone sold - somewhere in the region of 50% gross margin. This is impressive, if put in context with the rest of the market where a manufacturer is lucky if they turn 10%.

As well as this, the other story that broke this week is this story from Dailytech, which talks about the % market share of each of the biggest players in the mobile Advertising universe. Googles market share, was estimated to be around 27% as of last year. However, IDC have reported that it expects a 6% drop in ad revenue for Google in 2010, meaning that both Apple and Google will be neck and neck in the market with a 21% share each. Apples purchase of Quattro Wireless and its 9% market share is starting to make much more sense.

Cos I'ma criminal!

Woe me! I am a victim of crime! Another statistic on the British Crime Survey! Yes, I’ve had my mobile stolen. After a short chase and some hardman shouting that does not befit my usual personality, the little tyke got away. Thanks to the wonders of mobile insurance, I will of course, be getting a new phone, which leaves me with a dilemma. I now have the opportunity to sell the new handset, invest a little money and buy a new phone. The decision is easy in one sense, it was only ever going to be between an Android handset or an iPhone. But which?

The high end handsets see to cost almost the same amount nowadays with a top spec Android phone costing around £450 and an iPhone 4 ringing in at about £500.

The cost of the two phones belies the kind of technology that lies beneath the handsets, and it’s easy to forget this cost when you take out a contract and get the phone for free. It is honestly amazing how much hardware they cram into phones nowadays, even for a technophile like me, and the difference beyond aesthetics between the top models from Apple/HTC/Samsung/Sony is growing steadily smaller.

So then, why on earth is it so hard to choose a phone? Well the real value and USPs nowadays, consciously for me, and perhaps unconsciously for the less discerning consumer, is in the OS. This is a real testament to how big an influence Android and iOS on their own, have over the purchasing decisions of our most important gadget.

Consumers aside, the OS of choice for advertisers will continue to be whichever one makes them the most money.

P Diddys tyres

Despite my lack of attention to you, lovely blog readers, I have been storing away interesting articles for a day of motivation. Spread the word! That day has arrived, and you’ll be getting not one, but two posts, in less than 24 hours.

Delusions of people actually caring aside, I suppose I could justify the wait because John Carmacks (not-so) recent diatribe has taken me some time to mull over. For those of you that aren’t familiar with the name, Carmack is one of the gaming industries most well respected developers, and his development house, iD software, have created some of the most well known games of the past 20 years, Doom and Quake, being the two most obvious examples. Think of him as the nerd version of James Cameron, he may not be making the best games around at the moment, but his technical skill is breathtaking and his CV speaks for itself. When he talks, people listen.

During a recent Q&A session, in which Carmack showed off some of the latest games he had got running on the iOS platform, including upcoming shooter ‘Rage’, Carmack was asked by an audience member about iD’s support for the Android platform. In response, Carmack asked the audience how many of them had spent more than $20 on the Android app store. The result: not many. And in fact, while I am approaching having spent that sum myself, currently I believe it is less. Carmack went on to say that he has been monitoring Android closely, and iD will eventually bring their products to Android, it just won’t be in the next 6 months. So, is that part of the reason for the disparity between the size of the two app markets?

My point is this. While figures are constantly released giving us the market share of each of the mobile platforms, what we know very little about is the market itself. Demographics, average spend per user, total spend, click through’s, and what kinds of apps are being bought, is all data that is very hard to come by.

Can we make assumptions about this, and more importantly, without aforementioned data to hand, is that what developers are doing? Is it fair to say that the same people who buy into the idea of a free, open platform such as Android running on phones that cost less than a return flight to Kuala Lumpar, also prefer free apps? In the same way, is it true that the same people who are willing/able to shell out £750+ for an iPhone 4 may also be more willing to pay for apps for that device? Compare this to the automotive industry, P Diddy does not put Halfords Value tyres on his Maybach.

What all this means, is that, despite Carmacks reservations about developing for a platform whose users are not splashing the cash, its quite possible that Android, with its increasingly large market share, and users hungry for free content, currently makes a compelling case for Ad funded apps.

Cupcakes and Eclairs.

Wow, what a gap. Its got to the stage where its almost embarrassing to come back and post after this long away. Like when you don’t send a thank you card to a relative that’s sent you a birthday present. Luckily the internet has no such grievances, and, given the lack of readership, legions of fans won’t exactly be baying for my blood.

Casual surfers, who have tripped upon the site on the way to somewhere else, may be excused for thinking that maybe nothing has happened over the past 2 months. Well, of course, that is simply not true. However, from an personal standpoint, the biggest change has been the upgrade of my HTC Hero from Android v1.5 (aka ‘Cupcake’) to v2.1 (aka Éclair).

The change itself was a bit of a mixed bag. It bought along hardware optimisations, in the form of improved responsiveness of the OS, better support for HTML5, a better keyboard and a few other things, which you either know about already or have no interest in knowing. But just like your mums packed lunch, its not all chocolate and crisps. The homemade bread of the bunch is that some of my apps have just stopped updating. The HTC weather app being the worst offender. Luckily the app stores ‘Weatherbug’ provided me with a simple and free solution to that. Additionally, it seems to now refuse to tell me I have received texts in the notification bar, though email notifications are admittedly, much improved.

Discussions about Éclair aside, it is the app store that seems to have undergone some of the most radical changes for casual and power users alike. First of all, it’s prettier. The hot girl with the funny nose, has finally had that rhinoplasty. A new white background and black text makes it easier to read, and somehow, for a less cluttered interface. Additionally, the number of top level categories has been extended, so if you have something in mind, it is easier to at least begin the search in a more specific section. Even better, upon entering said categories, you get three easily selectable sections with which to browse in, Top Paid, Top Free, and Just In – all are pretty explicable. There maybe many more changes that I am yet to observe, but the aforementioned make massive inroads into the Android app market mess, that I had previously heavily criticised.

It is this kind of progress that is going to really attract developers, and advertisers to the platform. With Androids market share now outperforming Apple, at 17%, progress does need to be made on this front, and it appears Google are both aware of the fact, and committed to doing so.

Is that free?

So much to talk about! So little time!

Its all news news news this week. I've started seeing iPhone 4s 'in the wild'. Over the weekend the owners were especially evident. Out on the tube on Saturday afternoon they could be spotted a mile off after queuing for hours, just look for the the dishevelled, smug looking guy with a posh paper bag. Legend has it, that the O2 store was even giving out bags saying 'iPhone 4 - I've got mine' - though to be honest, they may as well have written 'mug me now' on them. For the stat monkeys among us, they've sold 1.7m since launch.

Meanwhile, Google are trying their best to shout over the rabble that Apple has created. CEO Eric Schmidt claiming that Android Applications now number over 65000, up over 15000 - just this month. Brilliant news for the end user, and in line with the every increasing number of Android Handsets being sold. I make no secret of being a big fan of Google and Android, and their more open applications framework. However, what is concerning is a recent report by Larva Labs - a mobile app developer on the amount of revenue being raised on Androids market. At the risk of recycling statistics from this article, it Apple has paid out $1 billion to app developers since its launch, whereas Google has paid out a comparatively paltry $20 million.

From a personal point of view, I believe a lot of this has to do with the simple yet intelligent synchronisation of your iTunes account with the App store. It seems that buying apps from Android market place is just a tad more hassle to the average user - who, chances are, might already have a iTunes account. Equally, it may also be down to the sheer numbers of free Apps available on the Android marketplace. For the purpose of this article I had a look around to test if the marketplace had remembered my credit card details since the last time I purchased an app. The biggest problem I faced was actually finding a paid for app anywhere near the top of the 'most popular' lists. I can understand the average users mentality. Firstly, its sometimes hard to justify the investment in something you may only use for 5 minutes on the way to work (though Android does have a brilliant 24 uninstall and refund policy). Additionally, when you can get a similar app for free, why bother. Ultimately we will have to ask the question: will a lack of app sales eventually put developers off creating software for the platform?

I suppose this makes advertising revenue even more important, as we may well find it being the one thing propping the Androids application industry up.

Embedding

I have to admit to being entirely distracted in the last week. Work is the usual culprit, and in no small way, the beginning of the World Cup has played its hand in keeping me away from my computer. Anyhow, despite England failing to do anything to talk about on the pitch, Apple have been busying themselves with the upcoming launch of the next iPhone. As have the customers, with AT&T and apple themselves now refusing to take any further pre-orders, and in some cases, even pushing back the launch date (presumably to increase stocks at launch).

In any case, its coming, June 24 (to a lucky few).

Those of you more interested in actually using the device than looking at the possibilities it offers for serving ads might think the rest of the article will be irrelevant. Well, I'm pleased and sorry, in equal measures, to say that this is not the case. Ads will continue to be a very important source of revenue for Apple and its new mobile advertising partner, Quattro.

First up, I'd really like to examine IOS from the perspective of a consumer. The most immediate advantage is that a better advertising framework will continue to attract great developers to the platform, and you'll get great apps and games, sometimes for free! As well as this, you are going to see far better ad integration within these apps. There is nothing worse than an annoying ad that gets in the way of whatever it is you're doing. Apple have promised that IOS will make this a thing of the past. Remember the days, when you are on the final boss of Super Planet Destroyer 3 and the bus stops just a little too abruptly, and your finger hits and advertising banner, shutting the app, and shoving you into browser mode to go to the advertisers webpage. Instead, should this occur (some bus drivers will always be trigger happy with the brakes), Apple tells us it'll be far easier to negotiate your way back to the app, and it'll still be in the same place you left it.

For the developer, Apple claims we'll see far better use of embedded content. Streaming video, similar to that which really, has only come into its own on the net in the last two years or so, will be far more commonplace. We'll also see embedded ads become far more interactive, but lets just hope that they go further than "shoot the (insert animal here) to win $1m". Speaking of money, the deal is, that developers will receive 60% of revenue generated. Which, from the perspective of someone without much knowledge of historical revenue percentages from mobile advertising deals, sounds fair.

What wouldn't seem quite so fair, should you already deal with them, is that Apple has effectively banned developers from aggregating content with Googles MobiAd platform. I can understand this to a certain degree, as some say the MobiAd platform was swiped from within Apples grasp by Google, and so some bad blood may still exist there.

Allegedly, Ads are dynamically sent to devices which may mean that we'll see a larger variety of more relevant ads within the apps we are using. One of the fundamentals of advertising is that ads, are of course, far more effective if served to an audience with a pre existing interest in whatever is being sold.

Come June 24th and beyond, we'll see what the new hardware and software of Apples iPhone will let developers do. I hope it delivers more relevant and better implemented advertising to the consumer. Since, I am one.