We were invited by Nokia to attend their Hackathon Widget coding contest alongside the Nokia Developer Summit in Monaco/Monte Carlo (we mentioned that earlier). It was a great chance to get to know many interesting people in the mobile development space and especially in the area of widget development based on Nokia’s Web Runtime (WRT).
The hackathon contest was all about implementing ideas of customers in a 24h period and we implemented an idea for a travel planner widget by Bruce Hopkins from Joplin, Missouri, USA. The basic idea was to create an application to collect all travel related information, such as flight numbers, times and car rental reservation info of a trip to have that handy while you are on the go so you would not have to mess around with printed paperwork. But let’s tell Bruce the whole story (and myself a bit about PavingWays and the contest):
Related to one of our new services, called Panda Route, which is a travel diary service (with a planning part), we created the Panda Route WRT widget -
Nokia Developer Summit 2009 Wrap up - Day 1
On Tuesday the Nokia Developer Summit started. The conference was opened by Rob Taylor, Head of Forum Nokia. At the beginning he showed us a demo of a coming service (powered by qik) where consumers will be able to share videos live from their mobile devices.
The topic of this conference was mainly Nokia’s Ovi Store, which will launch this month. 500 people were at the event, mainly developers from all over the world, but also bloggers, press, analysts, students etc.
The topic of this conference was mainly Nokia’s Ovi Store, which will launch this month. 500 people were at the event, mainly developers from all over the world, but also bloggers, press, analysts, students etc.
Mobile Monday Frankfurt: Mobile Internet and Applications
Yesterday we attended the Mobile Monday in Frankfurt. The topic was Mobile Internet and Applications. Forum Nokia was one of the sponsors of this event. For us it was a good accommodation for the upcoming Nokia Developer Summit next week in Monaco.
The first presentation was held by Jarkko Tolvi from Forum Nokia. He introduced Forum Nokia, an important platform for developers of mobile services. Forum Nokia offers them a wide range of resources to help them design, build, test, certify, market, and sell or promote their applications, content, services, or Web site to mobile users. It’s the worlds biggest mobile developer community with over 4 million members.
Arnaud Caigniet from Opera was next. The topic of his talk was “What can the industry do to see ‘One Web’ everywhere?”. With statistics Arnaud showed that the mobile usage has grown and the growth still continues. The most growth in mobile usage Opera sees in Indonesia, China, Russia and India.
The first presentation was held by Jarkko Tolvi from Forum Nokia. He introduced Forum Nokia, an important platform for developers of mobile services. Forum Nokia offers them a wide range of resources to help them design, build, test, certify, market, and sell or promote their applications, content, services, or Web site to mobile users. It’s the worlds biggest mobile developer community with over 4 million members.
Arnaud Caigniet from Opera was next. The topic of his talk was “What can the industry do to see ‘One Web’ everywhere?”. With statistics Arnaud showed that the mobile usage has grown and the growth still continues. The most growth in mobile usage Opera sees in Indonesia, China, Russia and India.
Attending Nokia Developer Summit 2009
We’ll be going to Monaco by the end of April to attend the Nokia Developer Summit 2009.
During this summit in Monte Carlo on 28-29 April, Nokia is holding a “N97 24-hour Hackathon” competition. I am one of 10 developers selected by Forum Nokia who is gonna hack together a Web Runtime (WRT) widget for the home screen of the new Nokia N97.
The Hackathon session will be streamed live and I will be in action 24h competing face-to-face with the other developers. At the end of this Hackathon, all widgets will be judged by a panel of experts from Nokia Forum & Nokia’s N97 team. The winning designer will get a Nokia N97 pre-loaded with the app. Also, the next to cash prizes, “[…]The winning widget will also be awarded premium spotlight status on the main page of the new Nokia Ovi Store, which is opening in May. It will be free to download in Australia, Germany, Italy, Ireland, Russia, Singapore, Spain, United Kingdom, and United States. The apps which come second and third at the Hackathon judging panel will also get spotlight placement on the sight.[…]” (Source: Nokia).
Nokia is going through quite some replacements on the widget and content distribution front these days: Their WRT Widgets will replace formerly well received WidSets and maybe other apps too, and Nokia’s new Ovi store will replace their current offering called Mosh.
I am really looking forward to the event - not just because I can spend some exciting days in Monte Carlo :), but also because it’s a great opportunity to get in touch with many people in the mobile and mobile web area since a long time.
Sources:
Nokia Developer Summit 2009
Nokia N97 Widget Competition Nokia N97 Data Sheet
Forum Nokia
During this summit in Monte Carlo on 28-29 April, Nokia is holding a “N97 24-hour Hackathon” competition. I am one of 10 developers selected by Forum Nokia who is gonna hack together a Web Runtime (WRT) widget for the home screen of the new Nokia N97.
The Hackathon session will be streamed live and I will be in action 24h competing face-to-face with the other developers. At the end of this Hackathon, all widgets will be judged by a panel of experts from Nokia Forum & Nokia’s N97 team. The winning designer will get a Nokia N97 pre-loaded with the app. Also, the next to cash prizes, “[…]The winning widget will also be awarded premium spotlight status on the main page of the new Nokia Ovi Store, which is opening in May. It will be free to download in Australia, Germany, Italy, Ireland, Russia, Singapore, Spain, United Kingdom, and United States. The apps which come second and third at the Hackathon judging panel will also get spotlight placement on the sight.[…]” (Source: Nokia).
Nokia is going through quite some replacements on the widget and content distribution front these days: Their WRT Widgets will replace formerly well received WidSets and maybe other apps too, and Nokia’s new Ovi store will replace their current offering called Mosh.
I am really looking forward to the event - not just because I can spend some exciting days in Monte Carlo :), but also because it’s a great opportunity to get in touch with many people in the mobile and mobile web area since a long time.
Sources:
Nokia Developer Summit 2009
Nokia N97 Widget Competition Nokia N97 Data Sheet
Forum Nokia
“State of the Mobile Web” 2009: Mobile Web is booming in developing countries
Recently, Opera released its new “State of the Mobile Web 2009” report and revealed that they had one of their largest monthly increases ever in January 2009. Opera Mini now has more than 20 million users. Those users viewed approximately 7.6 billion pages in January. Page views and data transfers increased 18% month-over-month. That means, not only more people are using the mobile web, but they also use it more often.
The mobile Web usage is booming in developing countries. Among the top 35 countries using the browser, Armenia, Nigeria and Egypt showed the most growth between January 2008 and January 2009 in terms of unique users. The most significant growth (2800%) was in Armenia (a country with 3 million residents). On average Armenians surfed 669 pages per user in January and that is far more than it is in other countries.
“Looking back on a full year of mobile Web growth, it is easy to see why mobile devices will become the primary device for Web usage in most of the world,” said Jon von Tetzchner, Opera’s CEO, in a statement. “Developing countries may lead the way due to the sheer prevalence of mobile devices versus PCs, but the solid growth rates in developed countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom and Germany, show the entire world is moving in this direction.”
The mobile Web usage is booming in developing countries. Among the top 35 countries using the browser, Armenia, Nigeria and Egypt showed the most growth between January 2008 and January 2009 in terms of unique users. The most significant growth (2800%) was in Armenia (a country with 3 million residents). On average Armenians surfed 669 pages per user in January and that is far more than it is in other countries.
“Looking back on a full year of mobile Web growth, it is easy to see why mobile devices will become the primary device for Web usage in most of the world,” said Jon von Tetzchner, Opera’s CEO, in a statement. “Developing countries may lead the way due to the sheer prevalence of mobile devices versus PCs, but the solid growth rates in developed countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom and Germany, show the entire world is moving in this direction.”
Upcoming Mobile Events in 2009
There are some interesting events coming up:
Are there some other events coming up in the next couple of weeks? Please let us know!
- Mobile Monday Berlin: Operator Day: Mar. 2, 2009, Berlin (Germany)
- Le mobile 2.0: Mar. 10-11, 2009, Paris (France)
- IIR’s Mobile Internet 2009: Mar. 23-25, 2009, Vienna (Austria)
- MobilePlus Summit: Mar. 26-27, 2009, Kiev (Ukraine)
- Mobile Monday Munich: Mobile Automotive: Mar. 30, 2009, Munich (Germany)
- BRIC: Emerging Mobile Markets conference: Mar. 31, 2009, Las Vegas (USA)
- Mobile Monday Frankfurt: Mobile Internet and Applications: Apr. 20, 2009, Frankfurt (Germany)
- ForumOxford: Future Technologies Conference: Apr. 24, 2009, Oxford (UK)
- The Mobile Web 2.0 Summit: Jun. 3-4, 2009, London (UK)
- Mobile Monday Berlin: Mobile Entertainment / Mobile Games: Jun. 8, 2009, Berlin (Germany)
- Mobile Vision Congress: Jun. 23-24, 2009, Munich (Germany)
- Mobile Asia 2.0: Aug. 17, 2009, Singapore
Are there some other events coming up in the next couple of weeks? Please let us know!
The Mobile Internet Has Arrived
During February 16-19, Barcelona again has become the “capital” for the whole mobile industry with the Mobile World Congress taking place. Despite the global economic crisis and declining mobile phone sales (for the first time ever since 2001), the mobile industry expects global growth due to new devices and services. This optimistic outlook is also proven by the sales figures of smart phones. In 2008 almost 160 million smart phones were sold worldwide. This year as much as 190 million smart phones could be sold.
A survey by analyst Nielsen and Tellabs, based on more than 50,000 mobile users in the UK, France, Italy, Germany, Spain and the US, shows that there will be an dramatic increase in the use of mobile data services (such as mobile internet, email, photo uploading and MMS) over the next two years with a significant ramp up in the next 12 months. 71 per cent of consumers anticipate the daily usage of services such as mobile internet and more than half of the approximately 200 million mobile data users in those countries expect to increase use in the next two years.
According to the study, about 49% of US respondents said they were planning to surf the mobile web more in the next year, compared to 34% of those in Europe. Preferences of US and Europe users differ (see the following picture below). In Europe, Italy tends to be the leading adopter across all services, while Germany shows comparatively low adoption rates.
(Source: http://www.tellabs.com/news/2009/index.cfm/nr/53.cfm)
A survey by analyst Nielsen and Tellabs, based on more than 50,000 mobile users in the UK, France, Italy, Germany, Spain and the US, shows that there will be an dramatic increase in the use of mobile data services (such as mobile internet, email, photo uploading and MMS) over the next two years with a significant ramp up in the next 12 months. 71 per cent of consumers anticipate the daily usage of services such as mobile internet and more than half of the approximately 200 million mobile data users in those countries expect to increase use in the next two years.
According to the study, about 49% of US respondents said they were planning to surf the mobile web more in the next year, compared to 34% of those in Europe. Preferences of US and Europe users differ (see the following picture below). In Europe, Italy tends to be the leading adopter across all services, while Germany shows comparatively low adoption rates.
(Source: http://www.tellabs.com/news/2009/index.cfm/nr/53.cfm)
Mobile Devices Market & Mobile Messaging Adaption
1. Mobile Devices Market Share:
ABI Research released their quarterly report about the mobile devices market. There, I found this interesting chart about the market share of mobile device vendors in the 3Q 2008:
Source: Mobile Device Vendor Market Share, 3 Q 2008
Some interesting facts from this ABI Research report:
ABI Research released their quarterly report about the mobile devices market. There, I found this interesting chart about the market share of mobile device vendors in the 3Q 2008:
Source: Mobile Device Vendor Market Share, 3 Q 2008
Some interesting facts from this ABI Research report:
- 3Q 2008: 8.2% year-on-year growth
- 4Q 2008: will be a vital quarter for handset vendors and mobile operators, 7.5% growth
- Year-on-year annual growth: 10.5%-11%, 1.27 billion
- on the winner side: Samsung, Apple, RIM
MissionFuture: Emergency Session 4
Last wednesday evening we again attended the MissionFuture: Emergency Session 4 “What’s next? The crisis gives birth to tomorrow’s economy”. The speakers were
I really liked the presentations of Dr. Andreas Pratz and Daniel Überall. Dr. Pratz talked about “Disaster Recovery: Chances in the financial market crisis”. He gave an interesting overview about how the financial market crisis developed and showed us chances in the crisis, e.g. alternative business financing. Social lending websites like smava.de have great potential in times of crisis. These web sites offer a market place for credits where consumer or entrepreneurs can invest or lend money to others without dealing with a bank. Here are some social lending web sites:
- Gabi Lück, thinknewgroup.com
- Dr. Andreas Pratz, Vice President, A.T. Kearney
- Daniel Überall, Utopia.de
- Christoph Santner, thefuturekitchen.net
I really liked the presentations of Dr. Andreas Pratz and Daniel Überall. Dr. Pratz talked about “Disaster Recovery: Chances in the financial market crisis”. He gave an interesting overview about how the financial market crisis developed and showed us chances in the crisis, e.g. alternative business financing. Social lending websites like smava.de have great potential in times of crisis. These web sites offer a market place for credits where consumer or entrepreneurs can invest or lend money to others without dealing with a bank. Here are some social lending web sites:
MissionFuture: Emergency Session
Last Wednesday evening we attended the MissionFuture Emergency Session. Founded by CScout Trend Consultancy and innovation agency TheFutureKitchen the event took place in the famous Löwenbräukeller in Munich. The idea behind this initiative is bringing together people from different industries and with different backgrounds to inform, assist and help each other during this economic crisis.
The event started with short presentations from Dr. Aleksandra Weber (EUCON - European Institute for Conflict Management), Prof. Hugo Kehr (Professor of psychology at TU München), Jörg Schallehn (Vermögensakademie GmbH), George Zoche (Transnational Republics), Jan Wildeboer (Red Hat / Linux Evangelist), and Stephan Doesinger (Doesinger & Partner).
All the presentations treated the financial crisis topic really differently and from different point of views. Prof. Hugo Kehr talked about his latest study ”From the monetary quarterly target to a motivating vision”. He explained why a vision is more motivating and helping you more through a crisis than setting a monetary quarterly target (e.g. vision: being an innovator in a specific branch versus target: reducing production costs by 10% in the next 3 months). His conclusion is that a vision keeps you flexible and motivated, because you can adjust your strategy when needed, while a monetary quarterly target makes you inflexible. Motivation is very important, especially during times of crisis.
The event started with short presentations from Dr. Aleksandra Weber (EUCON - European Institute for Conflict Management), Prof. Hugo Kehr (Professor of psychology at TU München), Jörg Schallehn (Vermögensakademie GmbH), George Zoche (Transnational Republics), Jan Wildeboer (Red Hat / Linux Evangelist), and Stephan Doesinger (Doesinger & Partner).
All the presentations treated the financial crisis topic really differently and from different point of views. Prof. Hugo Kehr talked about his latest study ”From the monetary quarterly target to a motivating vision”. He explained why a vision is more motivating and helping you more through a crisis than setting a monetary quarterly target (e.g. vision: being an innovator in a specific branch versus target: reducing production costs by 10% in the next 3 months). His conclusion is that a vision keeps you flexible and motivated, because you can adjust your strategy when needed, while a monetary quarterly target makes you inflexible. Motivation is very important, especially during times of crisis.