Mobile Groove

Editor’s note: In part two of the series of interviews MSG conducted people and companies across the mobile marketing ecosystem we speak with Jonathan MacDonald, co-founder of this fluid world, and David Murphy, editor of Mobile Marketing Magazine. They discuss the outlook for permission-based marketing and why messaging and personalization (through opt-in) are a winning combination.

Despite the excitement about mobile computing and apps for everything, the mobile is first and foremost a fiercely personal communications device. Commerce, marketing, advertising, promotion, and customer

In brief: MSG kicks off a new series showcasing must-read sites and resources with a look at VisionMobile, a premier destination for mobile industry market analysis and advisory services. The new report, Mobile developer Economics 2010 and Beyond, based on a survey of 400+ developers, provides a wide range of insights into what developers demand and how the industry must respond.

The advance of the app store changes all the rules. But who would have thought that the arrival of this new business ecosystem would shift the balance so blatantly in favor of new platforms (primarily Android and Apple) and new players (Google)?

In brief: What’s the next big thing? This interview with Jerome Nadel, Executive Vice President of Marketing & User Experience at Sagem Wireless, gives us some answers. His radical and revolutionary thinking about devices, services and the role of the brand in the scheme of things points to a mega-opportunity in mobile brands really shouldn’t miss. All the more reason for you to take advantage of the 10 percent discount NOW and register for MLOVE (Berlin, June 23-25).

Mobile isn’t about just mobile anymore! To borrow an observation from Alan Moore, close friend, colleague and a brave voice you will hear from in this podcast series – mobile has become the “remote control of our lives.” It sits at the center of all we do – and we need to start thinking of mobile in this way.

In brief: Kicking off a podcast series on mobile marketing with views from companies across what I’m calling the engagement ecosystem. Over the next weeks we’ll hear from brands, agencies, consumers – the works. The focus: approaches and strategies aimed at turning the one-off sales pitch into an ongoing conversation. As Dan Parker, CEO of the mobile and digital marketing agency Sponge, puts it – it’s all about turning annoying advertising into a service people will accept and appreciate.

Give the people what they want? On traditional media – such as TV – it’s a guessing game. But on a fiercely personal device such as the mobile phone, brands can start a conversation (using SMS or MMS – or both, for example) with people to just ask. Research shows people will volunteer personal information if they perceive that they are getting value in return – and part of that value is getting advertising that is relevant. Even better if that advertising is also life-simplifying.

In brief: Back with Part 2 in this three-part podcast series looking at the business value of recommendation and personalization. Colm Healy — Vice President of EMEA Services for Qualcomm Internet Services and General Manager of Xiam Technologies – discuses the issues related to fragmentation and where personalization fits in to drive mobile commerce (for paid apps) and user acceptance (for ad-supported apps).

Fragmentation, distribution, monetization. These are the headaches that plague developers everywhere. It’s all about reaching an audience of people who are mostly likely to appreciate and buy their apps. Or, if the model is ad-funded, it’s about an approach linked to advertising that people will accept. In both scenarios, the ability to bubble up apps we appreciate – or encourage us to discover the wealth of apps at our finger tips – is at the foundation of a sound and scalable business model.

In brief: Will recommendations from our significant others help us navigate the content deluge? This post draws from provocative statements about our future and the pivotal role of personalization in our everyday lives made by Andrew Gilbert, EVP, President QIS and Qualcomm Europe, and a