Showing posts with label mobile. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mobile. Show all posts
Thursday, 11 April 2013
Thursday, 15 November 2012
BlackBerry 10 AppWorld
RIM to spice BlackBerry 10 AppWorld with local flavors
Research In Motion is pushing for app quality, not quantity, with its make-or-break BlackBerry 10 devices set for launch on January 30, and targeting applications to customers in various regions.RIM's projected 100,000 apps - a record for any new platform at launch - will still be a fraction of those available on Apple Inc or Google Inc devices.
But it is a stronger showing than RIM's PlayBook tablet computer which was slammed at its 2011 launch for a dearth of apps and incomplete software.
In an interview with Reuters on Wednesday, RIM Chief Executive Thorsten Heins admitted that app libraries play a crucial role in the success or failure of smartphones. But he said the game is not just about numbers.
"The tactic we are deploying is by country and by region. We are aiming to have the most important 200 to 400 apps available, because many applications are regional and they really do have a regional flavor," Heins said.
RIM says it aims to offer both the most popular applications in the market, and also those most relevant to Blackberry aficionados - people Heins described as hyper-connected multi-taskers who need to get things done.
RIM's ultra-secure BlackBerry was once the smartphone of choice for government and corporate elites. But rivals have taken giant bites out of RIM's market share, especially in North America, and the company's stock has slumped. The BlackBerry remains popular in many emerging markets, partly for its popular BBM messaging system.
With this in mind, RIM has hosted events with developers across the globe.
"We've done 30 jam conferences in various cities all around the world, to get the bucket filled with meaningful local apps and not just a huge bunch of applications that you collect and throw at your audience," he said. "It is a very, very targeted approach."
Heins, who has met with customers and carriers in a series of whirlwind global tours, came across as relaxed and confident in the interview, in RIM's Waterloo headquarters.
Speaking rapid fire English with just a hint of an accent from his native Germany, he acknowledged that RIM's fate may depend on the success of BB10, but he said feedback from clients has been very encouraging.
RIM hopes its new line of BB10 smartphones will help it claw back market share from Apple's iPhone and devices powered by Google's Android operating system. Developers say like what they see, but analysts are not convinced that RIM's gamble on BB10 will succeed.
Big name draws
In terms of numbers, RIM's app offering will remain far behind the Apple and Google app stores, each of which boast over 700,000 apps. But Heins said he was not worried.
"In my view it is really short-sighted to say, you have 600,000, you have 400,000 and you only have 100,000 apps, so you are not good," he said.
"Look at how many actually get downloaded. ... BlackBerry App World today is still the most profitable portal for application developers - it has the highest number of paid for downloads."
In a small dig at his rivals, he added: "We don't have 1,500 Solitaire apps. That is not what Blackberry is about."
RIM has already said it plans business focused apps from the likes of Cisco WebEx, Box, SAP and Blackboard, as well as music and movie apps like TuneIn, Nobex and Popcornflix and gaming apps from developers like Gameloft, Halfbrick and Paw Print Games.
Heins has said social networks such as LinkedIn, Foursquare, Twitter and Facebook will all have apps for BB10 at launch. But he declined to name any of the other big name apps that RIM will have on board come launch day.
"Allow me to talk to you about this on January 30, otherwise I'm losing a lot of thunder," he said.
But it is a stronger showing than RIM's PlayBook tablet computer which was slammed at its 2011 launch for a dearth of apps and incomplete software.
In an interview with Reuters on Wednesday, RIM Chief Executive Thorsten Heins admitted that app libraries play a crucial role in the success or failure of smartphones. But he said the game is not just about numbers.
"The tactic we are deploying is by country and by region. We are aiming to have the most important 200 to 400 apps available, because many applications are regional and they really do have a regional flavor," Heins said.
RIM says it aims to offer both the most popular applications in the market, and also those most relevant to Blackberry aficionados - people Heins described as hyper-connected multi-taskers who need to get things done.
RIM's ultra-secure BlackBerry was once the smartphone of choice for government and corporate elites. But rivals have taken giant bites out of RIM's market share, especially in North America, and the company's stock has slumped. The BlackBerry remains popular in many emerging markets, partly for its popular BBM messaging system.
With this in mind, RIM has hosted events with developers across the globe.
"We've done 30 jam conferences in various cities all around the world, to get the bucket filled with meaningful local apps and not just a huge bunch of applications that you collect and throw at your audience," he said. "It is a very, very targeted approach."
Heins, who has met with customers and carriers in a series of whirlwind global tours, came across as relaxed and confident in the interview, in RIM's Waterloo headquarters.
Speaking rapid fire English with just a hint of an accent from his native Germany, he acknowledged that RIM's fate may depend on the success of BB10, but he said feedback from clients has been very encouraging.
RIM hopes its new line of BB10 smartphones will help it claw back market share from Apple's iPhone and devices powered by Google's Android operating system. Developers say like what they see, but analysts are not convinced that RIM's gamble on BB10 will succeed.
Big name draws
In terms of numbers, RIM's app offering will remain far behind the Apple and Google app stores, each of which boast over 700,000 apps. But Heins said he was not worried.
"In my view it is really short-sighted to say, you have 600,000, you have 400,000 and you only have 100,000 apps, so you are not good," he said.
"Look at how many actually get downloaded. ... BlackBerry App World today is still the most profitable portal for application developers - it has the highest number of paid for downloads."
In a small dig at his rivals, he added: "We don't have 1,500 Solitaire apps. That is not what Blackberry is about."
RIM has already said it plans business focused apps from the likes of Cisco WebEx, Box, SAP and Blackboard, as well as music and movie apps like TuneIn, Nobex and Popcornflix and gaming apps from developers like Gameloft, Halfbrick and Paw Print Games.
Heins has said social networks such as LinkedIn, Foursquare, Twitter and Facebook will all have apps for BB10 at launch. But he declined to name any of the other big name apps that RIM will have on board come launch day.
"Allow me to talk to you about this on January 30, otherwise I'm losing a lot of thunder," he said.
Wednesday, 14 November 2012
Google offers free Internet
Google offers free Internet to South African mobile users
Google said on Wednesday it has entered into a deal with South Africa's giant telecoms operator Telkom to offer free Internet access to mobile phone subscribers that cannot afford data costs.Under the deal dubbed "Free Zone," subscribers to Telkom's 8ta mobile phone service can access the web and versions of Gmail and Google+ without paying for data charges, as long as they have data-enabled handsets.
"Around 80 percent of South Africans have a cell phone, and much of this mobile resource is untapped due to data charges that many cannot afford," Google South Africa manager Luke Mckend told AFP.
Many mobile phone users find data charges for email, web browsing and social applications, to be too expensive.
"Our goal is to make more of the mobile web affordable for everyone, in order to enrich their lives with information at their fingertips," said Mckend.
Google launched a similar deal with a mobile phone provider in the Philippines earlier this month.
Amith Maharaj, senior managing executive at 8ta, said the idea is to help South Africa, the wealthiest country on the continent, keep pace with the rest of the developed world.
"Breaking down the barriers to Internet adoption is critical for South Africa to keep up with the rest of the world in terms of socio-economic development," he said, citing World Bank studies that a 10 percent rise in Internet use could result in one percent increase in GDP.
"Now 8ta subscribers can enjoy a free value added service to explore the Internet, check emails and connect with friends, ultimately boosting internet adoption in South Africa."
The deal is on trial until the end of May next year.
8ta is the mobile phone brand for the Johannesburg Stock Exchange-listed Telkom, South Africa's largest fixed line phone company but struggling parastatal.
"Around 80 percent of South Africans have a cell phone, and much of this mobile resource is untapped due to data charges that many cannot afford," Google South Africa manager Luke Mckend told AFP.
Many mobile phone users find data charges for email, web browsing and social applications, to be too expensive.
"Our goal is to make more of the mobile web affordable for everyone, in order to enrich their lives with information at their fingertips," said Mckend.
Google launched a similar deal with a mobile phone provider in the Philippines earlier this month.
Amith Maharaj, senior managing executive at 8ta, said the idea is to help South Africa, the wealthiest country on the continent, keep pace with the rest of the developed world.
"Breaking down the barriers to Internet adoption is critical for South Africa to keep up with the rest of the world in terms of socio-economic development," he said, citing World Bank studies that a 10 percent rise in Internet use could result in one percent increase in GDP.
"Now 8ta subscribers can enjoy a free value added service to explore the Internet, check emails and connect with friends, ultimately boosting internet adoption in South Africa."
The deal is on trial until the end of May next year.
8ta is the mobile phone brand for the Johannesburg Stock Exchange-listed Telkom, South Africa's largest fixed line phone company but struggling parastatal.
BlackBerry 10
BlackBerry 10 will fuel RIM's growth for the next decade: CEO
A new line of BlackBerry 10 devices will provide Research In Motion with a framework for growth over the next decade, offering long-term value for unhappy shareholders, Chief Executive Thorsten Heins said on Wednesday.In an interview with Reuters, Heins said RIM had identified $800 million of the $1 billion of savings it promised for the financial year ending in early March, and was confident of finding the rest as it gets ready to launch the new phones.
RIM is betting that the new smartphones will help it claw back the market share it has lost to the likes of Apple Inc's iPhone and devices powered by Google's Android operating system.
Both consumers and corporate customers have abandoned the BlackBerry in droves, even though the devices offer security features that rivals have been unable to match.
"There's this high-level security that you cannot walk away from, and then there's 'good enough' security," Heins said in an interview at RIM's Waterloo, Ontario, campus, a sprawl of low-rise buildings.
But analysts remain skeptical, especially after the botched 2011 launch of RIM's PlayBook tablet computer, which the company had hoped would compete with Apple's wildly popular iPad. The PlayBook had top-of-the-line hardware, but its software was far from complete at the launch and needed multiple updates.
RIM delayed the roll-out of the BlackBerry 10 phones to the first quarter of 2013 so as not to repeat the errors that surrounded the PlayBook launch.
Heins said the delay was the correct decision - the way to ensure the BB10 phones are a high-quality product rather than a rushed one that would not meet customer expectations.
"I think it's all lining up. Sometimes you get the feeling that the universe is in disarray, and with BlackBerry 10 coming, I see the stars lining up," Heins said.
Sleek demo models
Sleek demo models of the new phones look much like the high-end smartphones in the market today, and company executives proudly showed off a touch-screen version and a version with the miniature QWERTY keyboard popular with many BlackBerry users.
Users flick a thumb or finger to maneuver from one program to another and can sneak a look at an incoming email while browsing the Internet or using other applications, a multi-tasking ability that RIM says rival devices lack.
Personal and business profiles can be kept separately, something RIM calls BlackBerry Balance. Corporations can erase only their share of the data on a device if they need to do so for security reasons, leaving personal photos, contacts and emails untouched.
The app library available at launch will not match the vast number available on other devices. Heins said RIM had chosen to focus on providing those apps needed in different regional markets. It expects some 100,000 apps to be ready at launch.
The developer community has been broadly enthusiastic about the devices. But financial analysts have mixed views on their likely reception in an ultra-competitive market.
Pacific Crest analyst James Faucette warned last week that BlackBerry 10 is likely to be dead on arrival - with an operating system that gets "a lukewarm response at best," due to the unfamiliar user interface and a shortage of apps.
Shareholder value
Heins insisted morale was high at the company, despite 5,000 job cuts and a rapidly sliding market share ahead of the launch of the new phones.
RIM's share price is down more than 90 percent from a 2008 peak of about $148. It has fallen even after Heins, a former Siemens AG executive, took over in January. The shares on Wednesday closed at $8.49 on Nasdaq.
"The message to our shareholders is that we understand this is and has been a difficult time for them and for us," the tall, bespectacled CEO said. "But with the development of the BlackBerry 10 platform we are truly convinced that we will create long-term value for RIM's shareholders and investors."
RIM has already given the demo phones to developers and to carriers, and its new BlackBerry Enterprise Server 10, which runs the devices on corporate networks, is in beta testing with 20 key customers -- both government agencies and corporates.
Next month, the company will give more than 50 top enterprise customers technical previews of both BES 10 and the devices.
Heins said the feedback he is getting from the customer base "is very encouraging."
With the erosion of RIM's base particularly strong in North America, there has been speculation the company could choose to launch the new phones in a region where the phones remain popular. Heins said that would not be the case.
"We cannot launch every carrier and every country on the same day, but what we have defined is a set of waves in the various regions," he said. "It is going to be a global launch. There isn't one preferred region. We are managing and planning it as we speak."
RIM is betting that the new smartphones will help it claw back the market share it has lost to the likes of Apple Inc's iPhone and devices powered by Google's Android operating system.
Both consumers and corporate customers have abandoned the BlackBerry in droves, even though the devices offer security features that rivals have been unable to match.
"There's this high-level security that you cannot walk away from, and then there's 'good enough' security," Heins said in an interview at RIM's Waterloo, Ontario, campus, a sprawl of low-rise buildings.
But analysts remain skeptical, especially after the botched 2011 launch of RIM's PlayBook tablet computer, which the company had hoped would compete with Apple's wildly popular iPad. The PlayBook had top-of-the-line hardware, but its software was far from complete at the launch and needed multiple updates.
RIM delayed the roll-out of the BlackBerry 10 phones to the first quarter of 2013 so as not to repeat the errors that surrounded the PlayBook launch.
Heins said the delay was the correct decision - the way to ensure the BB10 phones are a high-quality product rather than a rushed one that would not meet customer expectations.
"I think it's all lining up. Sometimes you get the feeling that the universe is in disarray, and with BlackBerry 10 coming, I see the stars lining up," Heins said.
Sleek demo models
Sleek demo models of the new phones look much like the high-end smartphones in the market today, and company executives proudly showed off a touch-screen version and a version with the miniature QWERTY keyboard popular with many BlackBerry users.
Users flick a thumb or finger to maneuver from one program to another and can sneak a look at an incoming email while browsing the Internet or using other applications, a multi-tasking ability that RIM says rival devices lack.
Personal and business profiles can be kept separately, something RIM calls BlackBerry Balance. Corporations can erase only their share of the data on a device if they need to do so for security reasons, leaving personal photos, contacts and emails untouched.
The app library available at launch will not match the vast number available on other devices. Heins said RIM had chosen to focus on providing those apps needed in different regional markets. It expects some 100,000 apps to be ready at launch.
The developer community has been broadly enthusiastic about the devices. But financial analysts have mixed views on their likely reception in an ultra-competitive market.
Pacific Crest analyst James Faucette warned last week that BlackBerry 10 is likely to be dead on arrival - with an operating system that gets "a lukewarm response at best," due to the unfamiliar user interface and a shortage of apps.
Shareholder value
Heins insisted morale was high at the company, despite 5,000 job cuts and a rapidly sliding market share ahead of the launch of the new phones.
RIM's share price is down more than 90 percent from a 2008 peak of about $148. It has fallen even after Heins, a former Siemens AG executive, took over in January. The shares on Wednesday closed at $8.49 on Nasdaq.
"The message to our shareholders is that we understand this is and has been a difficult time for them and for us," the tall, bespectacled CEO said. "But with the development of the BlackBerry 10 platform we are truly convinced that we will create long-term value for RIM's shareholders and investors."
RIM has already given the demo phones to developers and to carriers, and its new BlackBerry Enterprise Server 10, which runs the devices on corporate networks, is in beta testing with 20 key customers -- both government agencies and corporates.
Next month, the company will give more than 50 top enterprise customers technical previews of both BES 10 and the devices.
Heins said the feedback he is getting from the customer base "is very encouraging."
With the erosion of RIM's base particularly strong in North America, there has been speculation the company could choose to launch the new phones in a region where the phones remain popular. Heins said that would not be the case.
"We cannot launch every carrier and every country on the same day, but what we have defined is a set of waves in the various regions," he said. "It is going to be a global launch. There isn't one preferred region. We are managing and planning it as we speak."
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