The debate over mobile Apps and why they make no sense...

So let me get this straight. Mobile Apps developed simply because mobile screens where too small to accommodate all the functionality of a webpage and needed their own UI. So, instead of simply creating intelligent web services that better recognized mobile devices in order to serve up the best experience necessary we have become slaves to apps that are simply facades of webpages with the same data calls.

In other words Apps are simply mobile bookmarks with a customized UI. But, unlike my bookmarks I cannot organize them as well as I can within a browser and to add insult to injury we have to pay for them too! Imagine that..paying for bookmarks!

There is a good reason that we have to pay. We have to pay because someone has to pay for all of the added developers and QA teams that are now needed to produce Apps that support multiple mobile platforms instead of simply executing for a mobile browser. And there are millions of them too. Like shiny little bits of candy ready to rot our minds. Insanity all around!

Now many mobile Apps are stand-alone services and I do exaggerate to make a point. Games are fun too. Love my Doodle Jump. I even wrote this on the mobile Evernote app (what a hypocrite I am!).  But we need to stop and think about how this new world of Apps is creating millions of fragmented silos akin to when we lived within the walls of AOL or MSN. They shut out the next generation from the possibilities of a broader experience.

Oh, and I almost forgot, the good news is that some of these Apps will now be free because Apple is going to sell advertising against them. Ads on my bookmarks....fantastic! Who thought of that one? Give them a raise!

Posted via web from Jared Hendler

Will YouTube trump local news affiliates?

As featured in the NYTimes, YouTube is experimenting with a local news filter at: http://www.youtube.com/news. Viewers are able to pull local news-feeds down to a specific zip code. While much of the news-feeds are in-fact professionally produced content, many are not. Pro-sumer feeds often make up in value what they lack in content and I was surprised at how much I learned from/about my own neighborhood.

Short term, this is an experiment. Long term this could easily trump local news affiliates given at how nimble this could become.

Success rests on the quality, reliability and relevancy of local news sources which of course will be up to local reporting - professional and pro-sumer alike.

Either way, local news affiliates from the major networks will be given a run for their money once this matures.

Software is a new form of media!

Widgets...those pesky little viral applications that spread...well...like a virus, hunting you down via email while simultaneously polluting your Facebook page. Gosh-darn-it, some of these applications are damn useful, like CareerBuilder that allows me to track the emerging job market in Asia, or Qloud that enables me to stream all of my friend's music for free. I mean, EVERYONE has Funwall! It won't be long before the Funwalls of the world are brought to us by brands like Staples or OfficeMax. Anyone send an Elf-Yourself greeting last year? Elf-Yourself widget anyone? Sure beats another vampire bite! Anyone know what I am talking about? Make sense?

So, what does this all mean? First off, the smart brands have finally acknowledged that they have to bring value to consumers in order to build the relationships they crave. But are they ready to move to the next step? Building software.

The notion of building value via software takes on a larger psychological & sociological shift in the way we view media and how we connect with consumers. Marketers have had to literally pay their way into the public space via the media buy, but what if they were invited in by the consumer - which would be nothing short of a sociological revolution! This is waaaay bigger than the 'Pull' vs. 'Push' strategy. Imagine if Brand communications were as valuable as the products and services that we, the consumer, are willing to pay for...a brand extension of sorts. A new 'soft' SKU?

Think about it? Brands have access to API's like any other developer. There is nothing stopping them from developing applications that will allow them unfettered and free distribution to the audiences of Facebook, Netvibes or the iPhone for example.

Now, I am sure that if Brands did start to go for this in a big way, that the Facebooks of the world would charge them a tariff of sorts. But in this world content is king and if a Brand is truly delivering something valuable to the platform's viewer base, it suddenly has bargaining power...much more than it has ever had in the past.

This is what Steve Ballmer means when he talks about the fact that the lines between media and software are blurring.

Confused?...log onto Facebook and make sure you get a vampire bite. The effects are immediate and the transformation is forever lasting.

Mobile content up for grabs...

Just when you thought you knew who would be responsible for bringing mobile content to market...you were wrong.

More and more the shift to deliver content over mobile devices is falling to the handset makers. Competition amongst handset makers has become so fierce that manufacturers fight for favor with the carriers for ways to better feature their devices. Carriers ask the handset makers to throw in products and services other than the usual manufacturer rebate in order to help the carrier sell the device, in addition to allowing the carrier to mark up these services at an added profit margin for themselves.

Make no mistake - this is a big deal as it is akin to television set manufacturers getting involved in the development of the content.

Take a look at Nokia's public entree into the content creation and delivery space at: http://www.ovi.com
At launch the service will primarily focus on services surrounding online photo sharing, map services, music delivery & gaming.

Sprint has also launched Sprint Exclusive Entertainment, the first wireless TV network to be produced in house by a major U.S. carrier. http://www.sprint.com/landings/see/?id8=vanity:see

This is also a big opportunity for Brands to participate in the development of the content as the handset makers look for valuable, household name partners in order to lower their risk as they enter this new market.

Everyone knows mobile content will be big business. Some regions of the world have developed faster than others due to technological advancement, ubiquitous standards or simply lifestyle differences. Whatever market you are in, the delivery of content over a mobile device will be yet another service that we will not be able to live without.

iPhone...one affordable mobile PC!

I swore I would not write anything about the iPhone. I mean really...at this point, what has not been said? The biggest debate has been on cost. Who will pay $500-$600 dollars for a phone with no carrier discounts? Yes, for a phone this is expensive. But a phone this is not.

This is a mobile PC, and a cheap one at that. One that is about to change how many people use a wireless network. So, for those of you that are still waiting for Apple to design another Newton-like device, I’ve got news for you - this is it.

Most people in the United States own 2 devices. A phone and a PC. One is used for voice, the other for data and email.

In Asia, most people have one device, a phone for all of the above.

My bet is that the iPhone changes America's relationship to their ‘phone’ to more closely resemble the habit of our Asian friends, where one device is all you may need.

For many people, owning a PC is a luxury, high ticket item. My bet is that the iPhone will be viewed by many people as a great AFFORDABLE option as an all around communications device rather than as an expensive phone. I am willing to say that many people, especially young adults, would choose this over a PC if given the option. Yes, I know that you cannot do your homework on the iPhone, but this is a launch model. You can bet Apple has several follow up models behind this one in addition to a whole host of applications like Office ready to run on it’s streamlined OS.

The iPhone is a layman's PC bargain, one that is about to change our communications habits while it challenges our notion of personal computing.