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Guitar Hero III Mobile strikes it big at BREW Developer Awards

Thu, 29 May 2008 11:19:59 -0400

By Dan O'Shea

Befitting a collegial atmosphere replete with pool tables, foosball tables and vendor booths with microbrew taps, the BREW Developer Awards last night was a noisy affair at which an explosively popular video game brand added another notch to its guitar.

Guitar Hero III Mobile won Best Game Application and People's Choice Award. The game also would have won the award for loudest cheering section, had there been such an award. Over the happy hour chatter, it was difficult to hear Mitch Oliver, vice president of product management for Qualcomm Internet Services Mobile, and Kathy Braegger, senior product manager and head of developer relations, list some of the nominees, but it was never louder than the applause that erupted each time they mentioned Guitar Hero III Mobile, developed by MachineWorks Northwest for Hands-On Mobile.

The latest entry in the Guitar Hero series was released commercially by Verizon Wireless last December, and became an instant hit. Much of that awareness may be due to the brand itself, but MachineWorks still had to make sure the game could make a successful jump from the family room to the mobile phone. "We still had to make a design that translated well from the console to the handheld," said Andreas Vasen, general manager of MachineWorks Northwest, after accepting both awards. "We went to great lengths to get the sound exactly right."

Other award winners included:

Best Up and Coming Application: mSpot Make UR Tones, mSpot Inc.

Best Public or Private Sector Business Application: Farmer Friend, Sichuan Greatwall Software Technology Co. Ltd. of China

Best Location-Based Service Application: Where, uLocate Communications

Best Community/Social networking Application: Loopt, Loopt

Best Personalization or Infotainment Application: MLB.com GameDay Plus GameDay Audio, MLB Advanced Media

Kevin Mahoney, project manager, mobile for MLB Advanced Media, credited developer Gravity Mobile for its win, and said the content his team had to work with was the key. "Baseball fans really enjoy their content, and it's a natural for a mobile platform," he said. "Gravity Mobile did a great job for us."

John Wilson, director of uLocate Communications, an LBS development environment, said the win for Where in the LBS category comes at a time when LBS applications have turned a corner in consumer adoption, and put initially slow acceptance in the past. "We solved the adoption problem by going free to consumers," Wilson said. "In the next six to nine months, you will see more ad-supported revenue models for LBS applications."

He also said that uLocate's win at the BREW Developer Awards is a reflection of the developers that have been building applications based on its LBS development environment. "We've had the benefit of a very strong developer community, with over 1000 developers," he said. "The applications that underpin our success were written by other people, and the kudos really goes to them."

Mapping Technology

Wed, 28 May 2008 16:39:02 -0400

By Lynnette Luna

When the Federal Communications Commission mandated enhanced-911 capabilities 2001, the mobile industry had its eye on monetizing the requirement by offering mass-market navigation services. Seven years later, 2008 is becoming what Yankee Group calls the turning point for location-based services in North America as the majority of handsets now have integrated GPS capabilities and all major mobile operators plan to offer at least one GPS-based navigation application this year.

"We have taken as an industry people driving and walking around with paper maps to where customers expect a great mapping experience on their mobile devices," said Dave Singer, vice president and general manager of the Americas with mapping and navigation solution provider Telmap.

Indeed, mobile operators have now discovered a financial incentive to leverage their E911 investments and bring consumer navigation services to market, notes Jill Aldort, senior analyst with Yankee Group, in a recent report. "With the first indications that consumers would pony up $10 per month for driving directions, operators (namely Verizon and Sprint) painted their marketing campaigns with LBS."

Mapping and navigation applications aren't just about reading a map on a mobile screen anymore. It's now about premium services such as turn-by-turn directions, 3D maps, traffic overlays, inserting landmarks and points of interest to ultimately location-based advertising, social networking and mobile gaming, Singer said.

Verizon Wireless, partnering with Networks in Motion, is already encompassing several advanced features through its BREW-based VZ Navigator, which allows subscribers to use audible turn-by-turn directions to find their way to any address. VZ Navigator can also direct users to some 14 million points of interest, landmarks, restaurants and ATMs. The core of VZ Navigator is its GPS positioning features, which tells users where they are and which points of interest are nearby. It's estimated that VZ Navigator supports more than 1 million subscribers.

Telmap is working with a host of BREW operators, most recently partnering with Mexico's Grupo Iusacell to deliver a white-labeled mobile navigation application. The service includes Telmap-powered location-based turn-by-turn driving and walking directions with voice, graphic and text-based guidance to subscribers' mobile phones. It also offers maps , free-text local search capabilities along with advanced address search capabilities with auto-complete and fuzzy matching to enable users to find what they are looking for even with partial information or misspelled words.

TeleCommunications Systems (TCS), which offers a host of location solutions to carriers, government and public safety, works with developers by offering up a mapping server similar to Google's and allowing them to create applications using the server across various platforms, including BREW, Java and Windows Mobile.

TCS recently expanded its relationship with regional CDMA operator nTelos to enable the operator to offer a BREW-based turn-by-turn navigation application called Rand McNally Navigator, which was developed by TCS. This version of Navigator enables users to access real-time, voice-based turn-by-turn directions from their mobile devices as well as find points-of-interest and navigate to that location. But a key element of the deployment is location roaming, said Sean Murphy, director of mobile products with TCS.

"One of the things we've been driving from an industry perspective is LBS roaming and cross-network LBS support," Murphy said. "Regardless of what network an end-user is on, they can leverage the same LBS services they are accustomed to on a daily basis."

LBS roaming is especially critical for operators like nTelos, which don't have a national presence and rely on big operators such as Sprint and Verizon for service outside of their operating areas. "The worst thing that can happen is having your navigation or directions applications stop in a strange city," Murphy said.

TCS is also focusing on mapping capability that goes beyond the automobile-whether an end user needs to find his or her way while walking, hiking, bicycling or riding various forms of public transportation.

"The states have been so focused on driving directions in the car, while Japan and others have been focusing on alternative modes other than driving," Murphy noted. "WE are seeing a lot of requests in the U.S. now for a travel guide. If someone is in New York they might not have a vehicle but will still need help to navigate from point A to point B ... I may walk and then take the metro. I need all of that information to help me navigate."

And going forward, expect to see much more integration of navigation services, starting with a search for the nearest sushi restaurant along with turn-by-turn directions on how to get there. This integration trend should eventually turn into more sophisticated applications such as LBS-based mobile advertising.

Telmap is current in trials with a CDMA operator outside of the U.S. for a mobile advertising application. "That advertising model is the next step in maps and directions , and from our standpoint, part of an overall location-based solution," Singer said.

IBM launches mobile applications initiative

Tue, 22 Apr 2008 06:59:58 -0400

Computing giant IBM announced a new mobile initiative that promises to develop new mobile device features and functions, with an emphasis on promoting the web, financial services and entertainment in developing markets. The new IBM Research program spotlights six projects: The Spoken Web (i.e., voice-enabled mobile commerce), Instant Translation (real-time communication between multiple languages through mobile devices), SoulPad (enabling any portable device to carry computing applications) Social Networking On-the-Go and Good Samaritan (delivering mobile healthcare information in any emergency situation). IBM added it is making major investments in mobile software and hardware platforms, opening a series of worldwide telecom solutions labs focused on R&D. "We are launching projects that will make a mobile device an even easier to use than the PC, allowing you to do everything you can with a PC and much more," said IBM India Research director Dr. Daniel Dias in a prepared statement.

For more on IBM's mobile efforts:
-read this release

Android Developer event yields almost 1800 entries

Tue, 22 Apr 2008 06:59:58 -0400

Google announced that its Android Developer Challenge generated 1,788 entries from over 70 countries, chief among them the U.S., Germany, Japan, China, India, Canada, France and the U.K. The contest--first announced in November--will dole out $10 million in awards for innovative mobile applications created for the Android mobile OS, with suggested application subjects including social networking, media consumption and management, productivity solutions, gaming and location-based services. According to Google, the number of entries spiked in the final hours leading up to the Android Developer Challenge's April 14 deadline, reaching as high as more than 170 submissions per hour. Winners will be announced July 21.

For more on the Android Developer Challenge:
-read this Android Developers Blog entry
- Also check out this video on building Android applications

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Trolltech integrates Qt framework with WebKit

Tue, 12 Feb 2008 06:59:58 -0500

Mobile software developer Trolltech--acquired by Nokia in late January for $153 million--announced its Qt cross-platform development framework is now fully integrated with web browser WebKit, which is employed across millions of Nokia smartphones as well as Apple's iPhone. According to Trolletch, the Qt/WebKit mash-up promises to enrich mobile applications via live web content including Google Earth and Apple's iTunes multimedia service, as well as services like social networking, IM and real-time financial updates. Qt/WebKit Integration also enables handset makers and operators to clearly define their browser environments, creating a more web-like, uniform user experience across different operating systems and devices.

In addition, Trolltech announced version 4.3 of its Qtopia Phone Edition applications platform and UI for Linux-based devices, improving start-up speeds and external benchmarking for standards compliance. Version 4.3 also boasts new features including a finger-touch interface, Microsoft Outlook synchronization, and enhanced support for the Gstreamer and Real Networks Helix DNA mobile audio and video frameworks.

The Nokia deal affords Trolltech the opportunity to expand the role of mobile Linux within the development sphere, said Trolltech CTO Benoit Schillings in an interview with FierceDeveloper. "[Nokia's Trolltech acquisition] encourages the developer community to use [Linux] in a wide range of designs," Schillings said. "We're seeing the handset industry's major player looking to run Linux on a wide range of devices. Some very interesting pieces are combined here, and that certainly opens up the role of the developer."

Nokia adds GyPSii's LBS app to Symbian handsets

Tue, 27 Nov 2007 06:59:58 -0500

Geo-location service provider GyPSii announced that handset giant Nokia will add the Symbian version of the GyPSii application to its N95 and 6110 Navigator mobile devices. According to GyPSii, the web-based application--which combines social networking, location-based news, search services and user-generated content creation and sharing--is already optimized for Windows Mobile-based devices. "Consumer demand for mobile location based services is rising dramatically, and widespread handset compatibility is key to any company wishing to launch new and exciting services such as GyPSii into that market," said GyPSii CEO Dan Harple in a prepared statement. "Symbian is the dominant handset operating system, and Nokia the dominant handset manufacturer."

For more on the GyPSii/Symbian announcement:
-read this release

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Nokia inks multimedia deal with Vodafone

Tue, 13 Nov 2007 06:59:58 -0500

Despite speculation that Nokia's move into mobile content would prove to alienate its operator partners, the handset giant announced Wednesday an agreement to launch its Ovi multimedia portal via the Vodafone deck. The two brands will debut an integrated suite combining Vodafone and Ovi services across a range of Nokia 3G handsets, many of them exclusive to the carrier. In addition, both the Vodafone music service and the Nokia Music Store will be available on Nokia's 2008 handsets.

"Web 2.0 is all about social networking and enabling people to connect with each other in new ways. Bringing location and context awareness to web 2.0 services is the next stage in the web development, and Nokia multimedia computers enable people to participate in their favorite Internet services on-the-go," said Nokia Multimedia's executive vice president and general manager Anssi Vanjoki in a prepared statement. "We're excited to work with Vodafone to provide consumers with Internet services like navigation, music, games and communities to make their life richer and more enjoyable, independent of time and place."

For more on the Vodafone/Nokia deal:
- read this release

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Nokia delays N-Gage relaunch

Tue, 06 Nov 2007 06:59:58 -0500

Nokia announced it will delay the launch of its resurrected N-Gage gaming platform. Originally set to go live in November, Nokia said N-Gage will now appear sometime in December as a result of software issues. "This is because of a delay in software testing," a Nokia spokesperson told Next Generation. "It's been pushed back a few weeks but the website will launch globally before the end of the year."

In related news, the Wall Street Journal reports Warner Music Group will withhold its content from the fledgling Nokia Music Store digital site, chalking up the decision to concerns over the handset giant's social networking site Mosh. According to WMG, Mosh--which enables consumers to share videos and other user-generated content--is also a hotbed for illegal downloads of copyrighted material. So far, WMG is the sole major label to restrict sales via the Nokia Music Store site--content from rivals Universal Music Group, Sony BMG Music Entertainment and EMI Group remains available.

For more on the N-Gage delay:
- read this Next Generation article

For more on the Nokia/Warner spat:
- read this Wall Street Journal article

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Nokia delays N-Gage relaunch

Tue, 06 Nov 2007 06:59:58 -0500

For more on the N-Gage delay:
- read this Next Generation article

For more on the Nokia/Warner spat:
- read this Wall Street Journal article

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Facebook sells stake to Microsoft, partners with RIM

Tue, 30 Oct 2007 07:59:58 -0400

Microsoft acquired a 1.6 percent stake in social networking service Facebook for $240 million, a deal that values the website at $15 billion. Microsoft will now sell Internet ads across the Facebook platform both inside and outside the U.S., expanding a marketing alliance first launched last year.

The news followed hours after Facebook co-founder Dustin Moskovitz's keynote appearance at the CTIA Wireless I.T. and Entertainment event in San Francisco, where he announced the debut of Facebook for BlackBerry Smartphones, a mobile social networking software application developed in collaboration with device maker Research In Motion. According to RIM co-CEO Mike Lazaridus, who joined Moskovitz onstage at CTIA, Facebook for BlackBerry Smartphones leverages the push-based BlackBerry system architecture with the open Facebook Platform--the app will make its carrier debut via an exclusive deal with T-Mobile.

"Mobile is the next frontier in social networking," Moskovitz said.

Facebook for BlackBerry Smartphones enables Facebook users to send and view messages, photos and related content via mobile--it automatically pushes notifications to the BlackBerry device, allowing users to upload photos complete with captions and tags. The app also enables users to send event invites, manage photo albums and manage their Facebook status away from the PC.

Facebook and Research In Motion inaugurated their collaboration about six months earlier. "Within two days, we had our first working prototype, and we realized we were really on to something," Lazaridus said Thursday. "We realized that with two open platforms, we could start intimately linking them together."

According to Moskovitz, Facebook now boasts an active membership close to 50 million--after crunching numbers in the Microsoft deal, each of those members is worth roughly $300. It is also the most trafficked photo site on the web, housing close to four billion images.

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