Is Apple developing its own mobile ad network?

March 4th, 2010 by Scott Rowe

As reported on AppleInsider.com, the company is in the process of hiring developers to extent the current iPhone/iPod developer framework to include advertising. It appears that Apple will be creating additional functionality to allow application developers to easily add paid advertising into their applications. This new feature will allow publishers to add a new simplified revenue stream into their published applications with minimal effort.

Apple hasn’t yet delved into the ad network arena so it will be interesting to see how they sell the new mobile ad inventory that will of course become available to advertisers. I also want to see how will they target users with relevant marketing messages? Will they pull usage information from each application the user currently runs or will they leverage information about their iTunes purchasing and browsing habits. It will be very interesting to see this unfold over the next year or so.

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Slow and Steady Wins the Race

March 3rd, 2010 by Scott Rowe

While putting my son to bed tonight I read him the story of the Tortise and the Hare. This is a story I have read many times as both a child and an adult. The moral to the story is simple. Take your time to ensure that things you do are done well. Don’t rush around from thing to thing just because you can.

As marketers we can tend to focus on the latest trends looking for the next silver bullet. Well, while we may get lucky from time to time, we probably waste more time than we should on unproven tactics.

I’m not implying we shouldn’t try new things but let’s be sure to temper our ambitions and make sure we work hard on a few things to bring them to fruition. Remember slow and steady wins the race.

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Microsoft Unveils Windows Phone 7

February 15th, 2010 by Scott Rowe

In the past couple of years Microsoft has lost their way on the mobile platform. With the iPhone, Blackberry, Pre and Android phones getting all the headlines Microsoft has been trailing the pack in innovation and attention. Microsoft is putting their best foot forward to try and regain some market share with Windows Phone 7. As an iPhone owner who absolutely loves his device I can’t see myself switching but I have to admit that Microsoft seems to have hit the mark pretty well with their new offering.

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