More Moments in Mobile’s Maturation:
Well here we are again, a few months have gone by since my last update on the evolution of the mobile web. As would be expected in a market evolving as quickly as this one, several interesting and/or significant developments have occurred. Here are a few of the highlights as I see them.
MySpace Goes Mobile
Vodafone brings the MySpace community to the mobile front. Through an exclusive partnership, Vodafone will begin pre-loading MySpace software onto its mobile phones. Slated to happen sometime this year, the partnership will bring millions of Vodafone users, at least across Europe, the ability to edit their profiles, add friends, upload photos and send/receive messages within the MySpace community, all from the convenience of their mobile phone. Maybe with the convenience of mobile access I will finally have the time to get my second life? Doubtful.
Don’t think it stops there for Vodafone though; they have been extremely busy working to establish themselves as a leader in advanced mobile applications as they relate to bringing the worlds of the PC and the mobile device closer together. Some of the highlights include mobile eBay, Google Maps, YouTube Mobile, and Microsoft Instant Messaging compatibility.
Mobile Video Killed the Desktop Star
A company called Vringo is bringing a subscription based service that allows users to push video to their friends via their mobile phone. Applications include both sending homemade videos captured with their camera phone as well as pushing various types of video content to friends in the form of ringtones. Possibilities for that latter include movie trailers, TV clips, music videos and several other cleverly disguised advertisements, which reportedly finance about half of the costs related to this service.
Ping Your Friends
Another company hoping to change the way users interact with an existing mobile phone service is Pinger. Improving upon both voicemail and the text message, Pinger allows users to instantly send voice messages to another person bypassing the need to ring their phone, listen to a greeting or be prompted with message options. Just dial your friend’s number, say what you have to say and hang up. Your friend will receive your audio message just as they would a text message.
Webaroo! – Again?
A company that I have talked about before, and actually receive a little flack around here for continuing to talk about, Webaroo has released some new features as well. New additions include Web Packs and a new software version designed specifically for mobile devices. The mobile version is self explanatory, and Web Packs are pre-bundled webpages grouped by topic. Say you’re really into tech gadgets; you can download the tech gadget web pack and a group of related sites will be added to your list of sites that update whenever you’re connected to the internet.
Mobile Boob Tube
I guess no mobile update would be complete without at least a mention of what has been going on in the world of mobile TV. CBS has made a significant move towards offering programming to the mobile viewer with the launch of CBS Mobile. Verizon’s V Cast mobile TV seems to be establishing itself as one of the most attractive mobile TV options with the release of full length television programming. And recent speculation around the possible future of Apple TV has also been nothing short of interesting.
With all that continues to evolve in the world of the mobile web, I guess it’s no wonder that Vint Cerf himself has been reported as saying that mobile phones are the future of the internet. Now I realize that I haven’t covered it all here, so if you feel that a noteworthy development in the evolution of the mobile web has been overlooked, feel free to post a comment.
