Mobile Entertainment, the best platform?
By ShockExcite Media Sdn Bhd
Before we begin, we would like to take this opportunity to thank those whom read our articles, this will be our 3rd contribution, although unlike others whom so sincerely contributed their share of knowledge and experiences with readers, ShockExcite team has contributed somewhat more towards an inner side of information we have experienced in the industry, mainly the mobile development sector.
Indirectly, expressing our disappointments, struggles and frustrations,on issues such as STANDARDS and PLATFORMS determined by these "big boys" in the industry. At the end of the day, developers unheard while end users suffers the most.
To some, maybe our articles aren't related, but we beg to differ, our first article, "Introduction to Flash MX 2004", and "Wireless Broadband, a clash of the Titans?" and now "Mobile Entertainment, the best platform?" is an indication of the directions the giants are heading, an inside of whats the latest, and of course, us developers and directions. We so hope the readers can link and understand the message we are trying to convey..developers unite!!
Mobile platform? unknown, but one thing is certain, that Macromedia Flash and Flash Lite (Mobile version) will be the stable, standard accepted by developers across the globe with the support or mobile manufacturers, when the time comes, whatever wireless standard the operators has finally made their minds up, shall not affect what we want to offer the end users to enjoy at the end of the day. So there you go, thank you for sharing your time on ShockExcite, without further delay and sulking, Please carry on with our 3rd contribution, Mobile Entertainment, the best platform? Thank you.
Following the previous article regarding Wireless Broadband, are they a clash of the titans? or just still trying to determine the best platforms to follow.
However it may go, mobile operators will have the opportunity to make application development much easier for developers, which will help the developers create new revenue streams for both developers and operators..
Identifying and defining the right (or best?) platform(s) for mobile entertainment has become synonymous with as many users you can target.
Unfortunately, mobile operators aren't making it any easier for developers to bring content to market.. and this, causing the mobile industry to suffer.
Getting content to multiple devices (OS platforms and brands)which creates a barrier for content providers, application developers and publishers which compromises the impact of user experience.
WAP - all the hype, but what happened?
When asked about the evolution of WAP, many has said didn't have a good revenue model for developers and operators, especially nothing that truly attracts the end user to want to pay for it.. so we developers only built a single iteration of their application however it wasn't very compelling. Since we never had any financial return (you do? what application?), there was no incentive to make more compelling applications for more handset models (seriously, name one that did.. the loading was really slow, charges were way way out of reach..and coming to this, yes, platform standards)
To optimize, operators need to invest into multi-platforms, including allow of revenue sharing opportunities for developers as traffic increases. When (if and when) traffic increases, that provides an incentive for developers to create better websites and better content. The platform needs to foster innovation.
Sources and reports by reliable studies revealed the sad fact in the U.S. only 1% of data revenue comes from off-portal applications. In Europe developers and content owners use short codes and advertise their applications in print, on the television and radio, which creates broader awareness and allows a more robust marketing platform and a better purchasing experience.
To be successful, we need more open distribution schemes and deliver relevant content that users want (this is the biggie, what do they want??).
One of the applications that MIGHT go with a bang...Music Goes Mobile!
There is interest in audio content on mobile devices. Quoting sources from the Yankee group, they cite the success of companies like Disney (in the Japanese market) and the billion global ringtone market as leading indicators of a growing trend: mobile music.
Apple has reported that more than 85 million songs have been downloaded in the US alone since their iTunes® launch. This proves the demand for personal and portable music combined with an ever-improving wireless environment, paves the way for audio on the mobile phone to expand far beyond ringtones.
In UK and Germany, O2 Music, the music arm of UK-based telecom operator mmO2, is responding to the demand for music by offering songs for download to mobile phones. In the US, the recording industry hopes to drive CD sales and, eventually, direct sales of songs over mobile phones.
Again, reports show that Apple has registered more than 85 million songs downloaded in the US alone since their iTunes® launch, and Napster announced first-quarter sales of more then .1 million in the US. Puretracks in Canada reached 1 million downloadsin February.
OD2, which powers more than 50 European portals for music downloads, announced in April it had sold more than 1 million downloads through its retail partners during the first quarter of 2004. (Note, Sources from Ovum 2004)
The Music industry officials are also optimistic that mobile phone networks will be less susceptible to rampant pirating seen on the Internet, which the industry blames for sagging sales. The emerging trend of selling full-length songs directly to mobile phones can be attributed to improved cooperation between operators, handset manufacturers and record labels.
Wireless device capabilities continue to improve in both storage capacity and functionality.
Today, low-cost, mass-market wireless devices often include radios or MP3 players, and memory expansion slots come standard on many models. At the same time, networks are improving, enabling richer media and larger file downloads. And with 3G networks and WiBro/ WiMAX coming online soon, the time is right for operators take advantage of the seemingly endless demand for mobile music.
So there we go, at least some light from the end of the tunnel for developers.
Stay Tunned for more information of mobile applications we are about to introduce the market. And of course, hoping for those interested to tag along, would certainly assured doors at ShockExcite are always open for discussions and brain storming!
Read more articles here
Copyright Notice
This article is copyrighted by ShockExcite Media Sdn Bhd.
You may publish this article on your web site provided that no modification is
to be done to the article text, a link is provided to the article index page
(http://bizpartner.com.my/articles), and this copyright notice is included
in full.
|
Domain Name Search