Mobile Behavior: an Omnicom Group Company

• AT&T Begins Rolling out MMS for iPhone | MobileCrunch
  The much anticipated multimedia messaging support for iPhone has started rolling out for some AT&T users, three weeks ahead of schedule.

• The Phone Beckons: Got Game? | New York Times
  Among BlackBerry owners, BrickBreaker is the bundled game of choice. Signs of a growing community around it include the first ever BrickBreaker tournament, over 150 Facebook groups, and blogs dedicated to presenting players with written guides.

• Location-Based Mobile Social Network Centrl Integrates Web App, Adds First Real-Time Location-Based Messaging System | TechCrunch
  Centrl, a player in the location aware game, has released a  mobile web app which allows free instant-messaging on a map interface. The app is "platform agnostic"  and does not rely on the host device's SMS.

• T-Mobile Declares World War? | Daily Wireless
  The deal has not yet happened, but T-Mobile is reportedly considering a possible 11 billion dollar bid for Sprint Nextel. If this were to happen, T-Mobile would nearly equal AT&T in size.

• Hitchhiking With Your Mobile Phone | Wired
  OpenRide is a mobile application that instantly matches drivers with ride-seekers, allowing spontaneous carpooling for anyone with a mobile phone. Instead of holding a thumb high hoping for a trustworthy ride, users can simply connect over OpenRide.

• 300,000 Kanye West Tweets Interrupt Twitter | Mashable
  The media is abuzz about the weekend's Kanye West and Taylor Swift confrontation at the VMA's. Twitter reflects the conversation showing almost 300,000 tweets in an hour .

• Clearwire Lays Groundwork for WiMax Global Roaming | Phone Scoop Clearwire and international WiMax operators have agreed to take steps to make global roaming on WiMax networks possible. The companies involved believe that taking this step will push for the success of WiMax as a networking technology.

• Nokia Makes Social Networking Play, Picks Plum | MediaPost
  To keep up with social networking technologies, Nokia has acquired Plum, a micro sharing social startup. Plum gives people in small social groups the ability to connect through private networks instead of using Twitter or Facebook.

• Speed Trumps Quality for Mobile 'Net Users | MarketingVox MarketingCharts reports that the speed at which a mobile site loads, the ease of navigation, and the quality of site content are the top three things determining a user's return to a mobile site.

Addicts of the Information Age [WSJ]
Can't put your smartphone down? Some may call you rude, the Wall Street Journal call you a "Smartphoniac". This "condition" crosses demographics and goes way beyond bad manners, stemming from “a deeper disconnect anxiety, an irrepressible fear that you will miss something if you put it away." Look for the University of Florida's study on the subject, currently being conducted.

GeoMe Launches World’s First Mood Based Search Engine on Mobile [IntoMobile]
The search engine offers location-based searching with updates for your friends. Available on any Java based phone, users can even indicate their mood (from "Cheap" to "Sexy") for filtering results. The search engine battle continues, will niche dominate mass?

Facebook Debuts 'Fan Box' Tool [CNET News]
The social network is opening up even more with a widget for brands, products, celebrities, or anyone that has a fan page to embed their presence on their own sites.  People can now become fans, get live updates, even browse other fans' pictures without going to Facebook at all.

YAPPA Rolls MagaStore iPhone App [Wireless Watch Japan]
YAPPA and Dentsu have launched an iPhone app for browsing or buying Japanese magazines.  The project is going to be launched on a multitude of mobile platforms, and promises to be huge and probably imitated elsewhere (CondeNast, are you reading this?).

Africa texts Obama Before Visit [BBC News]
Obama is once again using mobile technology to connect with the people, soliciting questions via text prior to his trip to Africa. The best questions will be selected by African journalists and asked to the Prez. Who needs the red phone anymore? Just text the guy.

Google's AdSense for iPhone Trips up Advertisers [Advertising Age]
Fresh from its launch two weeks ago, Google AdSense for iPhone is still facing some issues, mainly that ads look formatted for the desktop and not mobile. This is by design; Google thinks that HTML-enabled smartphones are just like little desktops. However this fails to consider the unique relationship that people have with their phones.

Youth Lifestyle Trends | Youth Marketing Mobile Culture Research [mobileYouth]
A look at how teens in China use their mobile, how entrepreneurship might save unemployed youth, and a general roundup of what is happening to young people everywhere.

Coldwell Banker Uses Billboard to Interact with Mobile Consumers [Mobile Marketer]
A huge billboard display on Times Square lets you text any zipcode to 30241 and see sample prices for homes in that area...on the billboard. The interactive DOOH campaign is a smart idea for the real estate powerhouse, especially since the real estate market's integration into the mobile universe is sill lagging.

Consumer Trust by Form of Advertising [BitBriefs]
Simple, straight to the point chart of people’s level of trust in different advertising mediums. Data compiled by Nielsen in April 2009.

Cloud Computing to Transform Mobile Landscape [ABIresearch]
Cloud Computing is destined to become the standard for mobile phones, and while phones today still rely on their internal memory and CPU capacity, a system that transfers all that to the web is bound to become a standard. With the advent of Cloud computing, smartphones will become more accessible as the cost of components will be reduced due to the system’s use of the internet to run apps.

Using iPhone Apps to Position Your Brand [OnlineSPIN]
This piece by Cory Treffiletti discusses the attempt by certain brands (StateFarm and Nationwide in this case) to redefine their image by offering an iPhone app. He suggests that brands that are perceived as “conservative” can use the app platform to reengage with a new type of customer. But branding on the iPhone is risky. The risk? A mobile presence can be useless if it is not truly integrated into a larger mobile plan. So just having an app as one more line on a company’s resume will yield little results, and if done wrong, can actually do some damage.

Juniper Research: Ad-funded MMS revenues to hit $8.7 billion by 2014 [IntoMobile]
The new research offers a clear idea of the kind of growth expected in the MMS, SMS, and mobile email advertising market. The growth rate of ad-funded MMS is predicted to be over 90%/year, with Asia being the top market. With evolution of technology, SMS’ share of the global P2P revenue will decline 18% during that same period.

Arby’s Launches Mobile Campaign to Promote Roastburger Debut [Mobile Marketer]
After a successful mobile couponing campaign back in May, Arby’s has a new one: text BBQ to ARBYS (27297) to receive a free burger with the purchase of any large drink. It seems that more and more QSRs are embracing the medium through such coupon campaigns and convenient ordering services like GoMobo.

WeeWorld Survey: Teens Still Willing to Spend [Virtual Worlds News]
A survey of over 4000 teens using WeeWorld found that the economy is not affecting teen spending power. Only 11% are getting less allowance money, and they are willing to shell out for things they deem “fun.” The bottom line: “Entertainment value trumps economic woes.”

Nielsen: Kids ‘Are All But Living Online [Ypulse]
New research from Nielsen shows that tweens and teens have been using the Internet…a lot. Usage is up 63% in the last five years with an 18% increase in kids’ web universe. The average 2-11 year old spends 11 hours a week online and represents almost 10% of the total online users. We’d be interested to learn how many hours these kids are spending on mobile phones, though, as that time surely supplements, even replaces, traditional computer use.

Sprint, Scanbuy Deal to Change Mobile Commerce? [Mobile Marketer]
The Samsung Exclaim to be offered through Sprint will come pre-loaded with Scanbuy’s QR code reader, a win for the company in the battle to become the QR code standard in the U.S.

• Industry Pitching Cellphones as a Teaching Tool [New York Times] - CTIA is making the case for cellphones in the classroom and, you know, it makes sense. By pitching them as a viable educational tool due to their inexpensiveness (relative to laptops) and convenience, they're also tagging a trend that's been sweeping developing countries like India and Brazil, where mobile users have essentially skipped computers and gone straight to handsets.
• Surgeons send 'tweets' from operating room [CNN] - We mentioned surgery tweeting awhile back and it happened again the other day. Let's just hope no one @'s your surgeon that hilarious kitten video during your appendectomy.
• Shazam Seeing 1M Song Tags a Day [Media Bistro] - Shazam seems to be a hit for Apple's App store, generating about one million song tags a day. It is not to be confused with its semantic cousin, Kazaam, which did not generate millions of anything.
• Microsoft targets its own smartphone store [Financial Times] - Microsoft is hoping to borrow some application thunder from Apple and Android by putting out the news that a Windows Mobile storefront is brewing.
• Mobile Web Becoming a Necessity [Media Bistro] - Mobile data plans are a necessity. If you're on this site, you probably already know that. However, in a recent survey by Nielsen, for Tellabs, they found that 71 percent of those surveyed agreed. Internet is the most popular reason (duh), followed by e-mail and messaging. :D
• Implementation of Universal Phone Chargers [Mobile Burn] - Universal phone chargers! It may seem minor, but if you've ever been to a friend's house and found your phone gasping for air and about to go under - only to discover that your friend doesn't have a charger to fit your set - then you know why this is hot.
• Twitter Triumphant [Mobility Site] - In this great piece by Zealot, Twitter is positioned as the horse on which to pin our colors in the race towards actually connecting the world via web. It's not that it's doing anything essentially new, it's simply doing it in a unique, easy and engaging way. It requires only a matter of seconds to drop into someone else's world and, in turn, bring them into ours.
• The Cellphone, Navigating Our Lives [New York Times] - As John Markoff points out in this piece, social map applications are quickly turning us into Sims-esque characters on a grid, with flashing green lights above our heads.

• Ka-Boom! Marvel Plans to Release Motion Comics via iTunes [ReadWriteWeb] - You've maybe seen comics adapted for the iPhone - The Watchmen is a good example. (Download the Watchman app for some examples.) However, the planned Marvel "motion comics" will really be more of a midpoint between the very comic book-esque feel of The Watchmen download and a full-on cartoon. The really exciting part? Original art! No reinterpretations, though surely there will be additional input to make the idea work and move. My spidey senses are tingling!
• New AU mobile line-up goes high-tech niche [Trends in Japan] - Japan is ahead on the mobile curve. Whoa, stop the press - yes, earth-shattering news to anyone who vaguely follows mobile technology. So is South Korea, Singapore ... anyway, back to Japan. While most of us are still impressed daily by the wonderphones that do everything - iPhone, G1, assorted Samnsung and LG - Japanese company KDDI is both moving forward and getting back to basics by planning phones that do one thing really well. For example, a phone could have an awesome camera, a great sense of style, etc. For the rest of us, bring on the application avalanche. I want my BBC World News and a programmable fart machine.
• Social Media Stats: Your Significant Other is Shady [Mashable] - Mobile social network MocoSpace recently polled members and, at least among this crowd, cell phones are being used for everything from flirting to breaking up. Apparently 34 percent of those polled admitted to chatting up a different person while on a date with someone else. Though, if the cell phone is out during a date, honestly, how well could things be going?
• Mexico Gathers Mobile User Data To Fight Crime [mocoNews] - In an effort to fight kidnapping and other crimes, the Mexican government has passed a law which will require mobile phone companies to track their users, fingerprints and all. It seems that many ransom requests are made over prepaid cell phones and authorities are hoping this will lead to more success in fighting kidnapping and extortion.
• Cell Phone Reunion [College Humor] - What happens when cell phones stop being nice and start getting real?
• Cylon Detector iPhone app shows who you can trust [DVICE] - Hopefully you never have cause to scan your neighbor to find out if he's a cyborg. However, if you start to worry that your neighborhood is beginning to look like a Stepford Wives sequel, this handy application may be just what you need when you present evidence to the city police. Shout out to Rowdy Roddy Piper.
• Target Aims for Mobile [Media Bistro] - Target is jumping back into mobile - specifically, the iPhone - after their foray this past Christmas. With a selection interface reminiscent of Urban Spoon and the ability to choose the price range, gender and lifestyle of your recipient, this might be the easiest way to shop for that hard-to-please family member or loved one.
• Twitter to begin charging brands for commercial use [Marketing Magazine] - @eeki Twitter is continuing to move forward with plans to make that money. However, fear not tweeting denizens, it's going to be more in the vein of increased opportunity and tools. You won't have to pay money to tell the world how much you enjoyed your lunch.
• Rural India Snaps Up Mobile Phones [WSJ.com] - Cellphone sales may be down all over the world, but in India they're still conducting a brisk trade. In fact, India's rural communities are leading the trend that sees millions of new subscribers a month, according to the Wall Street Journal. What are they using them for? Farmer K.T. Srinivasa "uses it to decide when to plant and harvest by calling other farmers, to get the best prices for his rice, coconuts and jasmine by calling wholesalers, and to save hours of time waiting on the road for deliveries and pickups that rarely come on time." Case in point that the future of mobile communication extends far beyond the iPod App Store.
• Fast-food chain Subway launches mobile ordering system [Mobile Marketer] - Subway is now making it possible for you to get your five dollar foot long via shortcode. Text "Menu" to the designated code and then simply reply with the number of the desired sandwich. You can save your credit card information securely within the account, so there won't be anything between you and those delicious inches when you get there to pick up your order.
• Nearly Half of Mobile Phone Users Eschew Multimedia Features and Use Handsets Solely to Make Calls [The NPD Group] - According to a new report by The NPD Group, a leading market research company, 45 percent of U.S. mobile phone users prefer to use their mobile phones to make calls, and not for other available multimedia features. Only 20 percent of mobile phone users prefer to use their phones as an all-in-one multimedia device for music, videos, Web surfing, and other activities beyond making phone calls. NPD’s “Mobile Phone Usage Report” also reveals that among top wireless carriers, Verizon Wireless customers are least likely to embrace their phone as an all-in-one multimedia device.The adoption of advanced handset features shows a gap between the usage of these features and the increasing sell through of devices supporting these features.
• It's cooler than ever to be a tween, but is childhood lost? [USA Today] - The prepubescent children of days gone by have given way to a cooler kid — the tween — who aspires to teenhood but is not quite there yet. Tweens are in-between — generally the 8-to-12 set. The U.S. Census estimates that in 2009, tweens are about 20 million strong and projected to hit almost 23 million by 2020.
  Among them now are Malia Obama, at 10 already a tween, and sister Sasha, who turns 8 this year. With the Obama daughters in the White House, the nation's attention will focus even more on this emerging group — and the new "first tweens" will likely be high-profile representatives of their generation."