April » 2011 » mobilegroove

The new, updated Netsize Guide (released in December 2010) counts over almost 2,500 downloads. A main attraction is the exclusive interview with Tom Daly, Coca-Cola Group Manager, Global Connections, a mover in the mobile space who walks us through some of the brands' recent marketing campaigns -- and impressive results.

Few major brands are as sophisticated in their use of the mobile channel as Coca-Cola. To date the company has embraced a wide variety of activities and mechanisms, including apps, games, high-performing SMS campaigns, and even a music download store. At the other end of the spectrum, Coca-Cola has also reported successful mobile commerce trials involving mobile phones and specially

The question looms like the next iPhone rumor. Will wireless subscribers accept advertising in exchange for price breaks on hardware and services?

This week, Amazon moved to at least partially get an answer, introducing the Kindle coupled with Special Offers for US$114. That's a savings of US$25. What’s the difference? This new Kindle comes with "deals" and sponsored screensavers that display on the Kindle screensaver and on the bottom of the home screen.

While last week's #doxchat Tweetchat focused on all the big-picture issues around the emerging mobile app ecosystem, the real discussion -- one that Tweetreach reports reached a whopping 58,000+ people via 400+ tweets to achieve exposure of nearly 412,000 -- centered on the likely impact of Amazon on the app store landscape.

The best response came from @iboy, who shared a "visualization of what Amazon will do to other Android app stores." It's a eye-opening image that should have alarm bells ringing in operator and OEM board rooms -- everywhere.

WORLDWIDE USAGE OF MOBILE BARCODES GREW BY 61.95 PERCENT IN Q1/2011 COMPARED TO Q4/2010, says a new report from 3G Vision. The U.S. continues to lead the pack as the top user of mobile barcodes. (Although it is important to note the stats don’t include Japan because "the barcode market there is so far advanced over the rest of the world that it’s not statistically relevant.")

Meantime, barcode use in the U.K. market grew a whopping 166.5 percent for the period, an increase that allows it to jump from the 7th to the 4th position in the top users of QR codes worldwide. The report attributed this to the number of major brands (such as Heineken, SKY Network, Pizza Express and Grazia Magazine) that adopted the use of QR codes in their campaigns and promotion during Q1/2011. Other countries that experienced strong growth (again thanks to more brands getting on board with barcode promotions) include: The Netherlands (146.3 percent), Spain (94.4 percent) and Canada (94.0 percent).

Is a consumer’s mobile search more valuable to an advertiser than an online query? The stats say yes, particularly in view of the growth in local mobile search.

According to the BIA/Kelsey Group, one in three mobile searches is local in nature and also interactive. After searchers on their smartphones find a local business, 61 percent call the establishment and 59 percent visit the location.