RIM should really feel complimented at this year’s WWDC because Apple has announced its Notification Center and BBM-clone. Imitation is the highest form of flattery and these two announcements are definitely imitations. First of all, the notification center is a big announcement from Apple and it looks nearly identical to the notifications tab in BlackBerry 6. Granted, the iPhone version does have a nice “Clear All” feature that we could really use in OS 6. Another feature announced at WWDC is Apple’s new messaging platform. The platform seems to work just like BBM and it even comes with ‘delivered’ and ‘received’ notifications just like BBM. What’s interesting here is that Apple hasn’t copied any of the crucial viral app distribution elements that RIM has announced and demoed themselves at BBWC. This is definitely something Apple will also be copying and will surely announce at their next event.
PIN sharing is still going really strong. We can see a great example of it on our facebook page where every day users comment their PIN. It seems to be most popular in Asia and South America, where users may not have the same worries about privacy as in North America. SearchBBM is a new site that connects BBM through Facebook and potentially other social networks (we assume Twitter is on its way). So if you’re in the mood to find a new BBM friend, we suggest you check it out.
People love to criticize RIM and its platform and rarely give them credit when it’s due. In a recent hiring move, Apple has given RIM a nice compliment by hiring the developer behind MobileNotifier. In the words of the MobileNotifier developer Peter Hajas, MobileNotifier is iOS notifications “done right”. Watch the video to see MobileNotifier in action. Look familiar? That’s because it’s essentially the notification bar in BlackBerry 6. Well Apple was obviously impressed with the app and has recruited the developer. Does this mean that an upcoming iOS version will include something like the BlackBerry 6 notification bar? We hope so. It would hopefully put an end to all the comments about “stop trying to be like Apple.”
Mobihand traffic has taken a considerable hit this past year.
It looks like Mobihand is on the decline and having a hard time staying relevant in light of App World. Recently, Mobihand sent out a letter to their distribution partners saying that they are reducing commission rates in order to accommodate the fact that they are paying developers 10% more on their sales. Developers used to get 60% from Mobihand and they now get the industry standard 70%. According to Mobihand:
Due to this 10% increase given to the developers, we need to lower the shared sales rate you earn to a maximum of 13%, with lower rates applicable to lower amounts of sales, effective July 1, 2011. This is an unfortunate revenue reduction for us and our network partners, but we believe the new developer rate evens the playing field and will have developers promoting our network of stores as much as they have done in the past.
What Mobihand doesn’t seem to understand is that they’re shooting themselves in the foot. Developers don’t make much money on Mobihand. From all the developers we’ve spoken to, it seems the average developer sees about 20% of their total revenue come from Mobihand and the majority comes from App World. The reason Mobihand is great is primarily because of the distribution partners. Mobihand and its distribution partners make a great marketing team and spread the word about apps to the partners’ readership. An additional 10% to developers isn’t going to amount to much in the end. Lowering the commission rates could create a sour relationship with the distribution partners who are keeping the company alive. The distribution partners are also driving a lot of traffic to Mobihand and lowering commission rates could have a negative impact on traffic as partners move elsewhere. From the above graph, it’s clear that Mobihand’s traffic is on the decline and it’s only a matter of time until the company either sells, goes bankrupt or pivots to remain competitive. Click through for the letter from Mobihand to partners. Continue reading ‘Mobihand Reducing Commission Payments and Unable to Compete with App World’
Rogers is expanding its 4G HSPA+ network out to the Maritimes with an $80 million investment. The investment will help expand the network to cover 94% of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island which includes almost one million more people. Customers across all parts of the region will benefit from faster data speeds and stronger signal strength. Work on the wireless network will begin later this month and new coverage areas will be announced throughout the construction period, which will continue throughout 2012.
RIM has made the BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing app available in App World for all to download. The free app is designed to make scheduling, joining and rejoining conference calls from your BlackBerry quick and easy. With BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing, users benefit from one-click join, easy conference scheduling and optimal conference call number selection.
