Shoppers Get Savvy With Apps

Retailers are optimizing their mobile apps this holiday season because shoppers are armed with more than just a wallet and their lists.

Until recently, smartphones didn’t do much but help shoppers find a store location or take a picture of an item to share with someone for their purchasing input. Apps that were able to check inventory or compare prices were few and far between.

As the pressure on brick-and-mortar stores to compete with online retailers increase, physical retailers have ramped up the functionalities of their apps to do more than just provide location and hours. However, according to marketing firm Acquity Group, only 25 percent of major retail chains offer their own mobile apps and just over 37 percent have a mobile website. Has this trend of consumers utilizing mobile apps to shop, compare prices, and purchase products thrown retailers off guard? For the first time in history, smart devices have become most people’s primary computer. Not desktops or laptops, but the devices in our pockets. It isn’t a fad; it’s here to stay.

Experian’s PriceGrabber issued results of its third winter shopping holiday survey which uncovers retail app trends. According to the survey:

• 39 percent of consumers have shopping-related apps on their smartphones
• 42 percent said they plan to download new shopping apps on their phones
• 65 percent said they will download coupon apps
• 62 percent will download price check apps with the ability to scan barcodes
• 38 percent use shopping apps to enhance the experience of shopping in physical stores

Some of Keynote DeviceAnywhere’s customers have upped the ante this year by appealing to mobile shoppers. Amazon.com, one of the world’s largest online retailers, said they will provide a five percent discount to shoppers if they use Amazon’s Price Check app from a physical store. eBay’s RedLaser and Google Shopper also offer apps that allow consumers to find pricing information online while shopping in physical stores.

Brick-and-mortars retailers will undoubtedly get creative to underscore advantages of shopping at the physical store. What does this mean for mobile shopping apps during holiday season 2012? GPS functionality that provide locations of sales clerks and products that consumers have tagged? Self-checkout via mobile devices? Scanning items and having them delivered directly to your car in the lot? There is limitless potential for retailers, whether physical or online, as long as their apps are optimized, bug-free and functional. Needless to say, the way for them to secure and grow their customer base is through mobile.

Retailers and all other organizations must extend their businesses and brands to the mobile channel or they’ll be left in the dust. Though Black Friday is over, I’m optimistic consumer holiday shopping will continue through January with last-minute incentives and price drops in the coming weeks. Retailers still have time to ramp up their mobile offerings to grab a piece of this mobile revenue pie.

As 2011 holiday shopping soars online, read about how mobile is redefining retail commerce in The Keynote Benchmark. Happy savvy shopping!

CTIA and ESRB Debuts Mobile App Rating System

CTIA and ESRB announced a rating system for mobile applications that is designed to make it easy for parents to determine whether or not a specific mobile app is suitable for their children. The ESRB has been utilizing this rating scale for years with gaming consoles and PC games so parents are already familiar with the system. Most of the major mobile app storefronts are supporting this measure including AT&T, Microsoft, Sprint, T-Mobile USA, U.S. Cellular and Verizon Wireless. But with 83 percent of all apps downloaded in the last 30 days downloaded on Apple iOS and Google Android smartphones, why are Apple and Google missing from this list? These big players haven’t issued an official statement as to why they’re not participating in this rating system but it’s pretty apparent.

Both companies already provide age and maturity level suggestions for each app listed in their storefronts. Reading between the lines, it’s obvious neither company wants to relinquish control over part of the app submission process to a third party. Apple seems to be rating their apps just fine on their own, having descriptive ratings for their apps, some of which even encompass the essence of ESRB ratings. Google indicates that they “put a lot of effort into Android Market’s rating system… so they think it’s best for Android users and developers to stick with Android’s existing ratings which are well known and understood.”

So what does this mean for app developers? According to CTIA and ESRB, developers submitting apps to participating storefronts will be required to fill out a multiple-choice questionnaire designed to determine the age-appropriateness of the content and context of apps. This includes information on violence, content, language, drugs, and what location or personal information is shared with third parties. This is only applicable to new app submissions. Those that are already in app stores won’t be rated unless developers choose to submit them for ratings. Developers also have a choice to appeal ratings if they feel it’s inaccurate with regard to their app’s content.

The question is: Do developers really need to go through an extra step in the already-complex app submission process, even if it is relatively painless? Whether a mobile app rating system will have much impact or show itself to be useful still remains to be seen.

(LinkedIn Poll: Is the CTIA/ESRB Mobile Apps Rating System going to have a big impact on you or your organization? Go here to answer: http://linkd.in/vULUaC)

It seems like tech gifts such as smartphones and tablets are all the rage for children this holiday season so perhaps it’s not a bad idea after all. But I’m sure both sides of the fence will have their own opinions once the first rating badges begin appearing. What do you think?

Flash for mobile is dead, but through its ashes, HTML5 was born

 The debate around the suitability of Flash on mobile devices came to an abrupt end this week. Adobe formally announced that they will now be focusing their Flash developments on PC browsing and will “aggressively contribute” to HTML5 development for mobile devices.

In doing so, Adobe has in part validated the criticisms of Flash made by the late Steve Jobs in 2010, when he was CEO of Apple. “Flash was created during the PC era – for PCs and mice,” Jobs wrote in an open letter defending his company’s refusal to support Flash in iOS in favour of the HTML5 standard.

Adobe hinted at this move away from Flash for mobile in its acquisition last month of Nitobi, which makes cross-platform mobile development software called PhoneGap. This tool allows developers to create mobile applications using HTML5, CSS, and JavaScript and to package that code in a wrapper environment so it will run as a native mobile app.

This effectively means that developers will still be able to take their Flash content, repackage it, and optimize it for mobile devices by turning it into native apps that can be downloaded via the appropriate storefront – including the Apple App Store.

Both Adobe and Flash have long been part of the developer ecosystem and this shift raised some interesting points.

Firstly, Adobe Flash was made for the PC-to-PC era and as a result, when utilizing the technology on mobile, there were some clear challenges both for developers and the end user. Issues such as security, reliability and even its effect on battery life, due to software rather than hardware decoding, were often cited as reasons why Flash wasn’t fit for mobile.

Secondly, by eliminating Flash for mobile, Adobe has cemented the current mindset of developers and organizations the world over – either you make a standalone app, or you develop an HTML5 Web app. I suggest you read my recent post on this topic to learn more about how you can come to a decision on this question.

However, another way to look at it is that Adobe allowed the Web to mature much faster than it would have without Flash. It essentially became the vision for the future of HTML. As HTML5 came about, Flash-like capabilities such as animation and interactivity became the new standard. We should perhaps thank Adobe (and Macromedia who created Flash and was acquired by Adobe) for showing the community the way to make the Web behave in ways that greatly enhanced the user experience.

So, what does the future hold for Adobe Flash? Support for the platform will continue to be available on PC with a focus on those areas where they can have the most impact, such as advanced gaming and premium video. At the same time, with the Adobe team looking to leverage their expertise to progress HTML5, a standard that is built with the connected world in mind and somewhat device agnostic, this could be the end of mobile Flash as we know it. Then again, HTML5 aims to incorporate most of the goodies of Flash so in a sense, Flash for mobile is dead, but through its ashes, HTML5 was born.

What can we learn from the Gmail iOS App escapade?

Since its invitation-only beta release back in 2004, Gmail has grown to become of the most popular email services in the world boasting over 260 million users. It has received critical acclaim from across the ecosystem, ranging from the media, to users and web developers, and it has become a central hub from which Google has promoted other successful services.

With the rapid adoption of smartphones, the ability to access email on your handset in a simple, fast and function-rich environment has become a basic requirement for the end-user. Online services have begun to leverage HTML5 to provide this functionality irrespective of the device; however, demand for native applications that provide smoother functionality is still in high demand.

Getting Gmail on the iPhone has, up to now, been a bit of an arduous task. Users have had to input their Gmail data into the phone’s Mail app or access it via a browser, which ultimately lacks several of the features that are included in the online version. So, when on Wednesday, the Gmail App for iOS became available, the industry was excited – well until they tried it out.

A flood of complaints from early adopters around a bug with notifications resulted in an apology from Google (both on Twitter and their blog) and the removal of the app from the App Store. So, what happened that allowed a buggy app get through two traditionally comprehensive testing processes? Well we don’t know and are never likely to, but perhaps we can learn a lesson or two.

When speaking to our customers one of the most common reasons that we have found is that they previously only tested a fraction of the real-world scenarios. Bug proofing on an emulator, a single test phone hooked up to the computer or a quick trip down the road for real world testing is not enough and they were surprised when they encountered end-user complaints.

I am not suggesting that Google or Android test this way, in fact they both have an impeccable track record in my opinion, however it illustrates the point that companies need to test a lot of different scenarios before going live with a new app. Now, we don’t expect people to fly all over the world, purchase thousands of local handsets and go to remote mountain summits to test functionality – it’s financially prohibitive and impractical to say the least. But by leveraging a cloud-based, SaaS solution which automates the testing of all of your mobile apps and websites, combined with a test plan, you can have a comprehensive real-world QA process. But it shouldn’t end there, as mobile is far from static, it is constantly changing with new spectrum, operating systems and user-cases requiring ongoing monitoring, product improvements and updates.

As this case shows, no one can guarantee that an app will never go out with a bug or not perform as expected in a certain user case, but we can work together to mitigate the risks.

Gartner Top 10 Strategic Technologies – Enterprise Mobility?

Despite a tough global economy, IT research and advisory firm Gartner recently predicted that worldwide enterprise IT spending is projected to increase from $2.6 trillion this year to $2.7 trillion in 2012. While a 3.9 % annual increase might not be a headline grabbing statistic, the strategic technologies they believe will maintain and increase enterprise IT spending in the next three years, caught my attention.

The Gartner top ten IT trends are recognized by the IT industry as a strong indicator of those technologies that will have a significant impact on enterprise infrastructure in the coming year. For example, cloud computing took the number one spot in 2010 and it has subsequently dominated the corporate agenda and media headlines over the past 12 months.

Enterprise mobility is clearly a key strategic move that many organizations are currently undertaking. However, one of the biggest challenges we have encountered while dealing with our customers is understanding where to start – from development, deployment to long term monitoring and adaptation.

There is no one-size-fits all solution and no singular technology that enables enterprise mobility. Instead, multiple systems combined with a shift in how IT departments, floor employees and C-level execs “control” access to the content and systems within the organization is necessary.

Gartner has clearly recognized this trend, breaking down some of the core technologies that will play a key role within mobility within organizations over the next year:

Media tablets and beyond (1). According to Deloitte, more than 25% of all tablet computers will be purchased by enterprises this year – an incredible figure when you realize that the iPad, the first tablet to gain widespread attention, was launched just over one year ago. Tablets, as a result, will be one of the several new environments that IT departments will have to be prepared to support.

Mobile-centric applications and interfaces (2). Siri is just one way that user-interfaces are evolving on the mobile handset. Touch and gesture will continue to transform the way we interact with, consume and create content.

Application stores and marketplace (4). As companies look to take advantage of the mobile opportunity, ranging from cost savings to improvements in productivity, IT departments are struggling to ensure only approved apps find their way onto company-owned devices. The rise of the enterprise app store will allow IT departments to manage and control certain applications getting on to handsets.

Cloud computing (10). The growth, support and adoption of the HTML5 standard will be a driving force behind the growth of cloud computing on the mobile platform. The development of hybrid and pure HTML5 applications will leverage this infrastructure and drive this strategic technology forward.

Motorola (Solutions) Launches Enterprise-Friendly Tablet

Following the proposed acquisition of Motorola Mobility by Google a few months back, I wrote a post that described my views on the potential impact of this deal on the enterprise market. Seen by many as Android’s champion in the enterprise, I fully expected to see a series of Motorola devices coming to market that redefined the market – combining consumer appeal with IT-friendly features.

Fast forward to today and it is in fact Motorola Solutions, rather than Motorola Mobility, that has taken up the challenge with the launch of the ET1 tablet. The tablet, however, is unlikely to find much appeal amongst C-level executives or the mobile workforce, nor was it intended to, as this device is to be sold to employers for use by shop floor employees.

The seven inch enterprise tablet features specifications to rival the latest high-end consumer-focused devices on the market, including front and back cameras, Wi-Fi, a 1GHz dual-core processor with 1GB of system memory running and the Android v2.3.4 (Gingerbread) operating system. However, hot-swappable batteries, lack of cellular support and lack of access to the Android market show its true colours.

The device is pre-loaded with key applications for its target market including product comparison tools, manager dashboards, mobile POS and item location tools. This is clearly ideal for IT departments who want to avoid the security issues traditionally associated with the mobilization of the workforce.

Those companies wishing to offer additional applications built in-house will be required to use the tablets HTML5 compatible web browser, combined with a new web-based application development tool called RhoElements, to roll these out.

The advantage of this approach, in addition to security and employee control, is that these applications will also run across existing Windows Embedded Handheld and Windows CE devices already present within the workplace.

With a price tag of $1,000 for bulk orders, the ET1 tablet is clearly targeting those employers in key verticals; however I struggle to see why I wouldn’t buy an iPad, a durable case and a custom HTML5 solution instead.

iPhone 4S and HTML5: The Future of Enterprise Apps

The idea of ‘write once, run anywhere’ has been the golden panacea that the software industry has been chasing since the mid-1990s with the arrival of Java. Since then, several standards, companies and initiatives have come and failed in realizing this ideal.

With the rumored launch of a Facebook HTML5 application at today’s Apple Event, it will be interesting to see what the future holds for this new standard despite the obvious conflicts of interest for the handset manufacturer and what some of the challenges the industry need to still overcome before it’s deemed enterprise ready.

Why is the industry excited about HTML5?

With growing industry unease around the iOS walled garden, headaches over Android fragmentation and a flurry of new OS contenders, the hype around HTML5 might be justified. So, with companies including Salesforce, Slideshare and Pandora already signed up, what are some of the key advantages of HTML5?

• Cross-platform & Cross-Device Compatibility.  The consumerization of IT has meant there is a plethora of devices and operating systems within each organization, with each requiring a native application to be built from scratch. A HTML5 application can be run on Android, iPhone or Blackberry devices and CSS3 features can be leveraged to automatically adjust the application page layout.
• Version Control and Time-to-Market. HTML5 apps delivered as mobile web applications enable direct control over the app. Organizations can upload new functionality and bug fixes onto the application server, making these changes immediately available for the mobile user. This also allows enterprise developers to be more reactive and shorten time-to-market of new apps by not being subject to stringent and lengthy app store approval processes.
• HTML5 Skills Are Available in Abundance. According to The Wall Street Journal, companies are being forced to increase salaries, retrain software engineers, outsource app development and set up offshore development labs to meet the demand thanks to a young mobile app ecosystem. Web skills are much more likely to already exist within an organization and the ability to reuse existing code brings on other advantages.

Adoption of the standard is clearly on the rise for the reasons stated and many more. However, the mass rollout of HTML5 over native Android and iPhone apps still face some considerable hurdles.

The Challenge for HTML5 & the Growth of Hybrid

The consumer influence has driven higher IT expectations from workers. Native apps that can take full advantage of all the phone features will be able to offer the “high end experience” currently not delivered through HTML5 web apps.

Another key challenge that is likely to be adopted soon is that employees have shown they aren’t comfortable working on the web all the time. The ability to save data on the native device is still a comforting feeling for the users and, although HTML5 can support this to some degree, there is still room for improvement.

This doesn’t mean we won’t see the growth of HTML5 in the enterprise market, not in a pure play fashion, but in a hybrid approach.

Ron Perry is chief technology officer at Worklight, recently provided the following description in an article published on Venturebeat:

A hybrid app is a native, downloadable app, that runs all or some of its user interface in an embedded browser component. To the user, a hybrid app is almost indistinguishable from a native one: it is downloaded from the app store or marketplace, it is stored on the device, and it is launched just like any other app.

But to developers there is a huge difference because instead of rewriting the app from scratch for each mobile OS, they write at least some of their application code in HTML, CSS and JavaScript, and reuse it across devices.

What the future holds (in my opinion at least)

Native apps will still be extremely popular for many developers; however, HTML5 represents a major shift in the industry and is quickly closing the performance gap. As a result, organizations are likely to develop a variety of applications, rather than adopt a single approach, producing a mix of native, hybrid and pure-play HTML apps (similar to the rumored Facebook approach).

For example, HTML5 apps targeting the consumer market, both by independent developers and B2C companies, are likely to be a key growth area for the technology. This is predominantly due to the ability to bypass the costs and time required to develop a multi-platform application, but there are some other key reasons.

• HTML5 apps are searchable by crawlers such as Google’s search engine, ensuring that the apps can be discovered by billions of consumers;
• They can mash content with data or apps from third parties and access analytical services such as traffic measurement tools and ad server targeting technologies;
• You don’t need to get anyone’s permission to distribute HTML5 apps.

New Opportunities Means New Challenges

Whether this standard will rise or fall, like many before it, will not be decided by a single organization or developer group, but by the developers that have shaped the mobile industry and the tools available to them.

Up until now, one of the major obstacles has been the lack of a standardized test environment that supports each of the above use cases.  Now with HTML5 support within DeviceAnywhere Test Center Enterprise, that barrier to adoption has been removed and companies have a single solution that can be used for any use case, device or development technology.

Over the next 12 months, we’re likely to see a new debate emerge above the traditional one over fragmentation – native, hybrid or HTML5. Who do you think will be leading the market at the launch of iPhone 5?

A LinkedIn group for “Mobile Application Lifecycle Management Professionals”

The global mobile ecosystem has been challenged year-on-year through the introduction of countless new mobile devices, OSs, applications and services. Recognizing that organizations need extra support to keep pace with the dynamic mobile industry, DeviceAnywhere established a peer group on LinkedIn, “Mobile Application Lifecycle Management Professionals.” Join the group by following this link: http://linkd.in/n0XnTy.

This group is an outlet to discuss strategies related to mobile application lifecycle management, or mobile ALM, to help developers and QA professionals navigate through the complete mobile application development lifecycle from planning and execution to post-deployment analysis and support.

DeviceAnywhere encourages your participation so feel free to start discussions, post questions, share resources and create dialogue with fellow industry peers. Your engagement in this group will be extremely valuable to all members and we’re sure you’ll find it resourceful, too.

Private App Stores vs. Consumerization of IT

Market research firm IDC reports that the mobile worker population passed the one billion mark in 2010 and estimates that this number will rise to make up more than a third of the world’s workforce by 2013. As companies look to take advantage of the mobile opportunity, ranging from cost savings to improvements in productivity, IT departments are struggling to ensure only approved apps (rather than Angry Birds) find their way onto company-owned devices.

In response to this growing IT headache, Verizon Wireless earlier this week announced the launch of the Verizon Wireless Private Applications Store for Business, a private application store for their enterprise customers. The proposition is simple in that each storefront will offer both company-created apps and third-party efforts, all optimized for use both inside and outside of corporate firewalls across any operating system, device or carrier.

However, there are two clear challenges which jump out at me. Firstly, as enterprises have learned over the past couple of years, the ability to offer an application across any operating system, device or carrier is both expensive, time consuming and often not realistic for organizations.

The second challenge is that although IT departments can develop this application storefront, the consumerization of IT has shown that employees will not wait for their employers to catch up to the market. If the applications available do not perform as well, or better than consumer apps, employees will simply bypass the storefront and return to the unapproved, yet bountiful app stores, of the relevant operating systems.

As a result, it’s essential that prior to launching a private storefront, the IT department are able to ensure those applications developed in-house reflect the personal preferences, requirements and devices of that company. Bringing “good enough” products to market is not an option.

2011: The Year of Mobile OS Consolidation

Over the past two years every time a group of mobile developers gathered in the room, the topic of conversation often veered to fragmentation. Predominantly referring to the operating systems rather than the hardware or network itself, most mobile developers (and even handset manufacturers) have eventually resigned themselves to the fact they have to make a choice amongst the big three – iOS, Android and Blackberry (though this could be replaced by Windows 7 if Gartner is correct).

What does this mean for the mobile ecosystem itself? While consumers have enjoyed the “choice” of multiple operating systems each offering a unique flavor from which to choose, it has meant that 2011 has been a year of consolidation within the mobile industry as “rival” operating systems fall by the wayside (Symbian, WebOS, MeeGO).

Ed Hansberry of InformationWeek highlighted this for me by writing about how just last year, we saw seven potential candidates when it comes to mobile operating systems (iOS, Android, MeeGO, WebOS, Windows Phone, Blackberry, Symbian) and today there are just four (iOS, Android, Blackberry, Windows 7).

But does this mean that developer conversations need a new topic? With the recent news that both Amazon’s upcoming Kindle Tablet and China’s Baidu will be running operating systems based on Android, there are likely to be more versions and derivatives of Android than you can shake a smartphone at.

Bloggers and mobile pundits can once again sleep easy at night!

Open Certification Processes: Key to App Store Success?

Last week, the long time Mac coder Rogue Amoeba resigned from the Apple App Store in frustration at the approvals process, stating that a simple bug fix took almost four months of “slow replies, delays, and dithering by Apple” before being cleared for public consumption.

Over the past few months Apple has made some efforts in making their approvals process more open, recently allowing developers to see how apps are progressing on the Dev Centre site. However, as this post by CNET shows, the administrative challenge faced by an App Store owner is huge, with each member of the approvals team having to review an application every six minutes.

With the Apple App Store already offering over 100,000 applications, how can competing storefronts ever hope to catch-up whilst still ensuring quality content? Google has taken the approach to only check the technical performance of the application and then allow the users to flag unsuitable content; however those technical tests still represent a costly and time consuming process.

One option would be to put those processes into the hands of the developer themselves, who already thoroughly test their applications before submission to ensure solid reviews. Companies could simply submit their application along with a video recording, screenshots and other pre-determined data points to provide an extremely simple and coherent submission platform.

This process would benefit everyone from store owner to developer through to consumer:

• Store owners bypass an expensive and time consuming process, whilst benefitting from a steady stream of quality content and applications
• Developers gain access to a more open certification process that allows them to get their content into stores faster and more cost-effectively than before
• Consumers gain access to a range of content in a more timely manner, whilst benefitting from ensured quality controls

With global mobile application downloads predicted to grow to 18.7 billion by 2014 the opportunity for the entire mobile ecosystem looks bright, however only if we put in place the controls and processes which will allow this market to grow at this pace today.

Emblaze Mobile: A Chicken & Egg Conundrum

Mobile phone maker Emblaze Mobile, an Israeli start-up, unveiled their contender for the smartphone market yesterday, the First Else. Featuring a brand new Linux-based operating system called Else Intuition, which they developed jointly with ACCESS; the handset aims to put applications on the centre-stage rather than the phone itself.

The video above provides an overview of the look and feel of the new handset and some of the applications which all looks extremely impressive, but I also feel this may prove to be the Achilles heel of this handset.

Two years ago, the Apple iPhone first hit our shelves and has since revolutionised the way people use their mobile handsets. Despite its hi-tech prowess however, the winning formula of the phone has relied heavily on Apple’s iTunes store that offered a range of third-party content, most importantly applications.

Despite a range of native applications already available on Else Intuition and the established ACCESS developer network, will third parties be tempted to invest time, money and marketing budgets on this unknown platform? The level of investment may also be a barrier to entry for some developers, with first looks at the operating system signalling significant levels of design and integration required.

Also, how will the handset itself meet the demands of developers looking to maximise market penetration with only a handful of applications compared to the tens of thousands on the Android, Symbian and Apple operating systems. With operators also looking to boost their developer friendly credentials, such as Orange with the launch of a new forum, Emblaze Mobile faces a challenge if they truly want to change the way we think about smartphones.

I wish them the best of luck in solving this and can’t wait to get my hands on the handset.

Too Much Choice: A Predicament Facing the Mobile Industry

Since the launch of the first generation Apple iPhone, the mobile industry has transformed beyond recognition. However despite more mainstream users downloading content, affordable smartphones and overwhelming industry support, are there clear horizons ahead?

For developers, the answer is not really. Faced with an OS ecosystem that is no longer fragmented as much as splintered, increasingly complicated certification processes that are often unique to each store and a new flagship handset being launched on an almost weekly basis, bringing content to market is a daunting task.

The problem intensifies when you consider applications should ideally span not only phones, but MIDs, UMPCs, cars (telematics), and other embedded and wearable computing devices. Pervasive is the new mobile. A single platform that spans all “Screens of Life” is the ideal.  But how can developers truly innovate with such a wide variety of platforms for which to cater their “mainstream” application.

Even so it is unlikely that the industry will see an end to this diversity in the near future. Mobile operators and handset manufacturers both see the mobile operating system as a unique selling point and have made it clear that they do not want a repeat of the Wintel paradigm.

With new operating systems and application stores being launched on an almost weekly basis, Bada and Else Institution being two recent examples, this issue of too much choice is unlikely to dissipate any time soon. But I expect OS and application store consolidation to be a clear theme this time next year.

2010 Predictions: It’s All About the Consumer, Right?

You don’t have to look too far to find companies’ and journalists’ prognostications about what will happen in the mobile industry in 2010.  For instance, Wireless Week took a serious stab at peering into the crystal ball with their Trends for 2010 article, while FierceWireless’ Lynette Luna poked some fun at it with a playfully acerbic post on December 21: “A Peek at Wireless Executives’ Christmas Wishlists”.

But we didn’t see too many predictions about how consumers will benefit from all the launches and technological advancements in our industry. After all, customers are the ultimate decision-makers for every mobile app we test and deploy; every app store the carriers and device manufacturers launch; and every smartphone and device that hit the market and sizzles (…or fizzles).

So…we’re lighting up the holiday spirit with the gift of good news for consumers everywhere.  Here are our predictions about how everyday people will benefit in 2010 from our industry’s hard work and innovation:

• mHealth Helps Consumers Take Their Health into their Own Hands—While the monolithic debate continues in Congress over the national healthcare plan, healthcare organizations and independent developers such as EOS Health and Sensei are launching all flavors of innovative mobile apps that enable consumers to proactively manage their own physical fitness, whether it’s alerting them to take their insulin or helping them make healthy eating choices at point of purchase.  In the same way that mBanking has helped us manage our financial health, the new crop of mHealth apps are helping us manage the most important health of all…our own physical wellbeing.
• Choosing a Mobile Phone will Get Easier—Sometimes “too much choice” can be a bad thing, making it confusing and overwhelming for consumers to select the handset they want from a plethora of carriers and manufacturers.  It’s becoming increasingly important now that smartphone functionality is becoming so sophisticated and feature-rich—you have to see them to believe them.  Thankfully, some operators are ramping their efforts to help educate consumers by embracing technologies that allow people to “try before they buy.”  Instead of providing static pictures and lists of features, this technology allows people to test-drive the devices—and see just what it looks like and how it functions in the real-world—through the Internet from the convenience of their home computer or at carriers’ in-store kiosks.  Pretty soon, “try before you buy” will mean a whole lot more than simply checking out your friends’ phones.
• Watch out iPhone, There’s a New Kid in Town—As we mentioned in our November 13 post, handsets built on the Android operating system have been around for over a year, but they haven’t “wowed” consumers enough to pose a serious challenge to Apple….until now.  Last month, GigaOm reported in November that nearly 250,000 Motorola Droids were sold by Verizon in the first week of its US launch, making it the fastest-selling Android device sold to date.  And now that the handset is making its way around the globe, Motorola predicts it will sell a million units by the end of 2009.  There’s wind in the sails of Android, and hearty market competition is good news for consumers everywhere.
• An App Store Avalanche?  It’s Only Just Begun. Apple announced last month that they have more than 100,000 apps in the iTunes store now, up from 10,000 a year ago (annual growth of 900%).  And now, analyst firm IDC predicts that there will also be 50,000–75,000 new Android applications this year alone.  Consumers should expect mobile apps and app stores to multiply in triple-digit growth thanks to Android’s advantage as an open platform, and application testing solutions that simplify and speed deployment so developers can focus on making innovative, cool new apps that all of us will enjoy. Still haven’t seen all the apps that really compel you to fill your phone with downloads?  Don’t worry—you will.

Mobile While Mobile

New apps keep on rolling in but one caught my eye recently in the Financial Times. The UK Government is considered a plan to monitor traffic on the country’s freeways via drivers’ mobile phones. Turning on this app presents some obvious challenges.

They’ll need to put detectors into the road that’ll track the movements and speeds of automobiles and use this data to forecast congestion more accurately and quickly. Big problem that I can see is personal privacy and why aren’t they looking at GPS especially as this becomes practically a given in many handsets?

Mobile World Congress 2010: Did You Survive?

Was Mobile World Congress quieter this year? Not according to the official stats or my aching feet, hands and vocal chords resulting from an extremely busy and fruitful schedule of meetings during the show.

What was very much apparent during the show and echoed by Rob Conway, Head of the GSM Association (which runs MWC) is that 2010 will be the “year of the developer”.

This was firmly established on day one when I picked up the MWC Show Daily and saw the launch of The Wholesale Applications Community which aims to make it easier for developers to build and sell apps “irrespective of device or technology”. However, with so many industry consortiums launched in the past that have aimed to deliver similar benefits (with several of the same members); I am interested in how they will convince developers this will work.

Another key announcement that caught my eye was the launch of Windows Mobile 7 which saw several of the key features being showcased during the event. With some of the technical details and the availability of the handsets being somewhat vague, as well as whether developers will need to recode existing Windows content for the platform, I wondered whether The Guardian was correct in stating that Microsoft may have “pressed the launch button a little early”.

Despite both announcements not quite offering the full story, they both provide further support to the crucial role that mobile (and therefore mobile developers) will play across a range of industries in the year ahead. I’ll be watching both with interest in the coming months and as always welcome any views you may have on these announcements.

Finally, we did manage to have some fun at Mobile World Congress between meetings with the new office Flip which we plan to start using increasingly at events we attend.

Apart from the team interviewing myself about our own announcements at the show (see below), we also took the opportunity to talk to some of our customers and partners during the event and plan to post them in the coming weeks.

Cloud Computing: Golden Panacea or Head in the Clouds

I read a recent article by Richard Wong in the Washington Post with a smile on my face. He had hit the nail on the head with his title – In Mobile, Fragmentation is forever. Deal With It.

However, despite this being a well known “fact of life” within the industry I still often read articles around how one day we will be able to access content and services irrespective of platform, device or location. But if we can’t even get it right on mobile, what happens when you add other devices to the mix?  When you consider the colliding worlds of tablets, e-readers, netbooks, set-top boxes and other web-enabled devices coming to market (Samsung unveils fridge with built-in Internet); this undertaking becomes even more complex. Delivering a consistent user experience seems almost impossible.

This is why some developers are looking to a new model based on cloud computing – one in which applications are hosted remotely from centralized servers – a promising alternative, especially for enterprise solutions where multi-platform support is essential. This route to market has the potential to completely flip the way mobile applications are developed, acquired and even used.  There are, however, some major hurdles, such as concerns around storing data in the cloud and dealing with data management law across country boundaries.  However the promise of a consistent user experience across platforms has an obvious attraction for the end-user and the developer.

That’s one possible future, but coming back to the present, ubiquitous hi-speed data connectivity and widespread mobile cloud apps are still a very long way off.  Right now consumers are “voting with their feet” and choosing downloadable apps.  As long as it works well and is not prohibitively expensive, consumers will continue to opt to download apps for the foreseeable future.  That means the immediate priority is for developers to continue to develop where they will see the greatest return, meaning downloadable apps across multiple platforms.  People may not like it, but fragmentation is the current reality for developers and, at least for the next few years, that means splitting their focus across iPhone, Android, BlackBerry and the rest of the gang.

Adobe and Apple: The Rivalry Heats Up

The long-standing rivalry between Apple and Adobe Systems heated up last week following the release of the latest incarnation of the iPhone Developer Program License Agreement, particularly changes made to section 3.3.1 which effectively banned the use of the Adobe Creative Suite 5 Flash-to-iPhone converter. Adobe has since announced that they are dropping iPhone development technology after CS5.

Flash support was not included on the iPad

Throughout 2010, Steve Jobs and Apple made it very clear that they do not like Adobe. They prominently left Flash off the iPad, instead promoting HTML5 at every opportunity despite the fact that 75% of all videos on the web are developed with Flash and 70% of online gaming sites support it. By neutering it, Apple deals another blow to Flash. It’s also a major setback for any developers that were building iPhone apps with Flash as a backbone — they will almost certainly have to start back at square one.

Despite research continuing to show the iPhone as the more popular platform for today’s mobile developer, Adobe and Flash have long been part of the developer ecosystem and it will be interesting to see what was previously seen as convenience becoming more significant when choosing which OS to develop for in the future.

Android: A Developer Conundrum

Fragmentation is a common theme in the life of the mobile developer. This was highlighted recently with the release of an updated Android chart which shows the relative number of active devices running a given version of the platform.

This data is important to developers because it indicates how fragmented the market is, and which operating systems they should ensure their applications is ultimately compatible with. With six versions and a seventh version on the way later this month, combined with the mixture of handsets that the OS is deployed upon the open source platform can present a minefield for the developer community.

A recent example that highlights this issue of fragmentation is the launch of the Twitter application for Android which devices running version 2.1 or higher. This means it will currently only run on the Motorola Droid, Google Nexus One or the new HTC Incredible and is therefore accessible to less than one-third of Android customers.

As the market share of Android increases it is becoming an increasingly attractive platform to the mobile developer. According to a comScore  survey, Android’s share among US mobile subscribers increased from 2.8% to 7.1% for the past few months, which is a 154% increase. However, with the Apple platform still representing 25.1 per cent of the market according to the same report and offering a less fragmented platform to build for, is Android truly the developer centric platform it was once positioned as?

The Definition of Multi-Platform is Changing

With the arrival of the Bada SDK last week, the highly competitive smartphone market looks to become hyper-competitive in 2010. While more choice is always good for consumers, for developers seeking a return on the investment of time and effort the right platform choice is crucial and has subsequently become a regular topic of conversation on this blog.

Some could argue that developers should look no further than the Apple iPhone, with more than 75 million devices sold and a highly successful App Store. However, there are trade-offs for developers, most notably the closed nature of the App Store and an approval process that can be seemingly byzantine at times.

Also, recent conversations with our customers have also shown that when discussing which platform to develop for it is no longer limited to mobile. They’re considering other portable personal devices such as tablets, mobile internet devices (MID) and e-book readers. And this is going to get even more exciting when Android powered television sets appear.

The challenge of fragmentation is set to reach new heights. But this isn’t just about coding but how to ensure the finished product aligns with high end-user expectations. The way users interact, consume and purchase content across these various devices differs significantly and to be successful the end product(s) need to meet those requirements out of the box.

To help support the developer community take advantage of this new market opportunity and help deliver the services they want, irrespective of device, platform or network (if there is one), we have begun plans to extend the devices available via DeviceAnywhere Test Center™. The first of these devices, the Apple iPad was made available last week, and new users will have access to three free hours on the system.

We already have a list of additional devices we plan to add in the coming months; however I would be really interested hearing from you about the devices you want to see us bring to market in the comments section below.

The Early Bird Gets the Worm: Developing Apps for Tablets

A few days ago, Narij Sheth of the Wall Street Journal reported that Verizon Wireless is working with Google on a tablet computer “to catch up with iPad host AT&T Inc. in the area of devices that connect to wireless networks.”  Verizon Wireless Chief Executive Lowell McAdam capped the announcement by confirming widespread opinion that tablets are part of the “next big wave of opportunities.”

It’s an understatement to say that Lowell doesn’t stand alone in that opinion.  Industry analysts ABI Research predicted that the tablet market would reach 57 million by 2015.

No doubt, the iPad will require catching up to.  Stan Schroeder reported last week on Mashable (along with a small army of tech reporters around the country) that Apple had sold 1 million iPad tablets in the first 28 days since launch, which is apparently half the time it took to achieve that milestone with iPhone sales.

So what does this mean for application developers?

NEW OPPORTUNITY…with Low Financial Risk

Even though tablets, mobile internet devices (MIDs) and smartbooks have been available from other manufacturers for quite some time, the nascent installed base didn’t present a particularly lucrative case for mobile app developers.  It wasn’t until the iPad morphed from rumor into reality that the developer community got behind it full force, building 5,000 unique apps (Apple press release), which resulted in more than 12 million iPad downloads by iPad users from the Apple App Store in the first month.

That many unique apps is nothing to sneeze at, but we’re surprised it’s not even higher given that developers who bring their iPad app to market are facing far less competition for consumer mindshare (i.e. 5,000 other apps vs. more than 100,000).

Plus, for developers, the financial risk has been relatively low, especially since they’re typically charging more for iPad apps to offset the added cost of developing and testing on this new device, and any concerns they may have had about how strong iPad sales would really be.  As developer Igor Pusenjak of Lima Sky told BBC News in March, “We are really testing the waters on pricing.  For a lot of us it is an early experiment to see how people will react…”

NEW CHALLENGE…  Fragmentation Isn’t Unique to the OS Anymore

Over the last six months, discussion has resurfaced among developers about the challenges of OS fragmentation particularly with open-source platforms like Android.  Now, as the iPad ushers in the next phase in the evolution of smart mobile devices, developers face a renewed challenge…device fragmentation.

Sure, hardware diversity has been a challenge for developers in the past.  But traditionally, not when dealing with Apple.  Suddenly, developers who thought they had a pretty straightforward development path with the buttoned-down Apple OS now face considerable porting issues with the iPad, since it requires a whole new set of specifications primarily due to the larger screen.  In order to scale their app to fit the 9.7 inch screen, a lot of developers are rebuilding their apps from scratch to make sure they’re not pixelated when scaled up, or don’t look like an awkward little postage stamps in the middle of the big iPad screen when unchanged from the standard iPhone size.

The Bottom Line?

Apple developers who want to jump on the tablet bandwagon need to kick into high gear to stand out before the crowd becomes a mob.

And those that once thought they could plug in their iPhone and iPad Touch for testing, and call it a day are going to lose out if they only develop for the iPad and not for all the other manufacturers’ tablets and MIDs that hit the market.  As consumer thirst drives sales of iPads and tablets, as well as MIDs and smartbooks, app developers will have to adjust to the new level of device fragmentation with increased testing and maintenance.  It’s not like they haven’t had to adjust before; it’s just that the added hardware diversity adds a new layer of complexity on top of the process, and they’ll have to adjust.  Quickly.

Mobile Enterprise Applications: A Huge Market Opportunity

The recent acquisition of Sybase by SAP, and the subsequent release of the new Mobility Platform, has resulted in a heated discussion around the challenges and opportunities for companies looking to extend the availability of enterprise applications onto the mobile platform.

Reaching out to the mobile platform is a necessity brought by the quickly changing demands of enterprise mobility and has the potential to change the way we do business for the better; however it also faces an array of unique challenges.

The complexity of fragmentation is a constant challenge in the development of consumer mobile applications, however this somewhat pales in comparison when mobilising enterprise software. Adapting solutions to work across a pool of devices, operating systems and even firmware versions can represent a major challenge when looking to provide even the most basic service to your workforce, especially when required to work with your own organisations back-office systems and secure networks.

Boxtone, a Mobile Management Software company focused on the enterprise space, has written a guide on “managing the diversity network” citing three models possible solutions. As with most things mobile there is no one size fits all, with each company required to assess their own requirements and available resources to ensure the appropriate ROI.

What is evident is that mobile operating systems and software providers are looking to the enterprise market as a huge opportunity and we are likely to see several mobile software providers look to get on the ground level.

Customer Experience beyond Functionality and Game Play

British mobile phone owners will spend more than £747 million this year on apps they never use according to a report published earlier this week by MyVoucherCodes. The study of 1,476 UK phone owners showed 79 per cent of smartphone owners were “highly unlikely” to use a paid-for phone application or game more than once.

Although it is likely that several of these applications were low cost and impulse buys where the novelty soon wore off, it nevertheless could be indicative of the challenges I see around how we promote, sell and support mobile applications today.

As highlighted in a recent blog by Google’s Tim Bray, he wrote when it comes to both Apple’s App Store and Google’s Android Market, “just as with the Internet itself, Sturgeon’s Law applies: almost everything is crap”. The problem is that consumers are forced to filter through thousands of applications and base their decision to buy on a short description, peer reviews which can often be dubious and a few static screenshots which loosely represent game play.

It is also important to acknowledge that the customer experience doesn’t simply end at discovery, a major gripe amongst developers, but also encompasses the download and use of the selected application itself. As applications and smartphones themselves become increasingly complex, whilst also breaking into more mainstream audiences, the level of support needs to evolve to meet the needs of those end-users beyond simply a couple lines of text in the application itself (a chicken and egg tale when referring to download and installation problems).

These challenges will ultimately have a financial impact on both developer and app store owners who are currently enjoying the golden era of mobile application stores. Developers will lose revenue from In-App Purchases and cross sold applications where frustrated users simply uninstall the application, whilst app store owners themselves will lose customers and face rising and expensive customer support costs.

Someone who is leading the way in terms of addressing these specific challenges is the team over at the Nokia Ovi Blog. Not only are they helping Ovi Store users to locate the best content by providing in-depth reviews of the best Ovi applications based on a variety of factors, but they are also providing interactive tutorials to show users how to get the best out of these applications.

This is really exciting and I fully recommend other application store owners to take note.

iEnterprise

Apple has shipped 7.5 million iPads since it launched in April, turning it into the largest player in the tablet computer market, and according to Tim Cook enterprise sales played an important role.

During the recent quarterly conference call to discuss earnings, Tim went on to state that about two-thirds of the 100 largest companies in the world on the Fortune 100 list have begun deploying iPads for enterprise use, nearly 85 percent of which have also deployed the iPhone as well. A recent announcement from Good Technology adds further fuel to the discussion, with iOS devices representing more than 50 percent of new activations and Android around 30 percent.

From our perspective we have seen a steep incline in the number of our customers developing business applications with mobile in mind from the start. This is unsurprising, especially when you consider how smart devices have been causing havoc for business computing hardware, GPS devices and nearly every other technical device the smartphone can imitate or move to mobility for some time.

This momentum is also likely to continue, both in terms of the number of applications being created and the speed at which they are developed, especially as app and web app developers realize the major advantage of enterprise development – companies will actually pay them to write good applications.

Windows Phone 7 Coming Soon….

Canalys have released their Q3 2010 smartphone market share figures, and the latest statistics see Windows Mobile market share hitting what is likely to be rock bottom for a Microsoft mobile OS, 3%.

With just one week until the availability of the first Windows 7 devices in the US, following a blaze of positive publicity over the past month, could this be the turning point for one of the biggest losers of the OS wars?

The news that Steve Ballmer, Chief Executive Office of Microsoft, will be giving devices to Microsoft Professional Developers Conference attendees and over 89 thousand Microsoft employees is also likely to ensure better figures in Q4 from Canalys. But what about the rest of the non-Microsoft employed consumers, enterprise customers and developers?

The integration of Microsoft service assets, such as Xbox Live, Bing, Zune and Office, and strong multimedia features has ticked many of the boxes for consumer reviewers. The interface itself also fits with the demands of Gen Y, with the focus on delivering the information that an end user needs, and making it easier to accomplish key tasks.

It seems clear that Microsoft has been influenced by Apple in creating Windows Phone 7, even if the resulting platform is very different from the iPhone. In particular, Microsoft seems to have observed how Apple is penetrating the enterprise market by creating a compelling device that many professionals have acquired as a consumer purchase and then lobbied their employer into supporting in the workplace.

From an IT manager perspective Windows 7 is also appealing due to Microsoft’s existing strengths in the business market, such as Office and its Exchange email system. However there are still some security concerns, but knowing Microsoft these will be quickly fixed.

From a developer community perspective there are still some definite advantages when developing for Microsoft and best of all it doesn’t require starting to learn code from scratch. From our viewpoint this is an exciting new player in the OS space and I’m looking forward to getting my hands on one of these devices (even just to take apart and integrate with DeviceAnywhere Test Center™).

Enterprise Mobility Trends

There has been a lot of hype surrounding the integration of enterprise mobility into organizations and in particular about how IT decision makers will respond to the challenges arising from the plethora of operating systems, devices and service providers available on the market. As the mobile enterprise opportunity evolves, new players are entering the sector and the diversification of products, applications and services continues to increase.

Although Blackberry OS is still the most widely deployed operating system on the market, its popularity is gradually receding and opening up space for new operating systems  and devices. Evidence for how this is going to change the market is supported by recent research.  According to a Yankee group survey of US IT decision makers only 25% of the organizations are planning to support Blackberry OS in the next two years, while iPhone and Android are favored by respectively 34% and 28% of IT decision makers. This means that Blackberry will soon be overtaken as the most popular OS supported by enterprises.

The statistics clearly show that there is a trend towards diversification of the the number of operating systems and devices supported by the enterprise as there is room for multiple players in this field. Similarly, as device manufacturers and mobile software providers are developing more ‘enterprise friendly’ products, the number of enterprise applications adapted to the mobile platform will increase and there will be further proliferation of new services.

Currently email and access to the corporate database are the most popular applications available through the mobile platform. However, IT decision makers are increasingly looking to add additional capabilities to the mobile platform including unified communications, customer management applications and sales force automation among the most popular ones.

Many players will be involved in making this happen, including device manufacturers, mobile operators, hardware vendors, application developers, mobile software vendors and additional services providers. The role of service providers will be increasingly important in resolving the complexity of the enterprise mobility market and offering flexible support platforms to aid application developers in adapting their applications to the multiple Oss and devices available on the market.

Developers “Angry” Over Android Fragmentation

According to a recent article on FierceDeveloper, CEO Steve Jobs has criticized other operating systems, specifically Android, regarding the increasing number of Android iterations in the wild.

Ironically earlier this week we saw the release of iOS 4.2, the latest version of the operating system for the iPhone and iPad, with indications that another update could be just a month away. From a testing perspective reactions are likely to be mixed. Several developers will welcome certain bug fixes and new features whilst some will sigh and begrudgingly begin to update their iOS applications to work on another plethora of device combinations heralded by this latest update.

The Android OS is also expecting an announcement later this week with the launch of Android 2.3, a.k.a. “Gingerbread,” which may also prompt trepidation amongst the developer community already struggling to keep up with the rest of the Android iterations in the wild. New features such as the integration of Near Field Communications technology, which will allow users to make retail purchases via their smartphone or share content with other users, clearly open up new exciting opportunities for developers but also the possible requirement of making multiple versions.

One example of Android fragmentation prompting multiple versions of an application being created was publicized this week on FierceDeveloper. Rovio Mobile, the company behind the Angry Birds franchise, stated that it will develop a lightweight version in response to a wave of negative consumer feedback. The company currently lists more than a dozen Android smartphones that the current version of the game does not support with older, lower-performance handset models being played by performance issues.

As an increasing number of operating systems, handset specifications and the introduction of new network technologies come into play, the fragmentation of these “new” OS platforms is likely to continue. With strong developer relations being a core factor in their success, they will need to develop tools to ease development pains or risk losing market momentum.

Microsoft vs. Google – The Battle for Enterprise

Gartner has predicted that enterprise IT spending in Europe, the Middle East and Africa will recover in 2011, after almost two years of decline. This is in part due to businesses beginning new software applications replacement cycle. As a result companies are keen to use this opportunity to expand or in some cases kick off their “official” presence within organizations.

But what will be the key differentiator of product x from product y? In my opinion, and 66% of IT leaders, the ability to successfully mobilize services across a range of devices will be fundamental. This is no longer on a company’s wish list but a fundamental requirement as connected devices overtake shipments of PCs in the next 18 months.

Two companies well positioned to take advantage of this environment are Google and Microsoft. Both of them have been bolstering their enterprise credentials, and subsequently competing heavily, throughout 2010.

The competition between the two companies intensified this week with the launch of Chrome OS, Google’s new operating system, which aims to convince businesses to use the cloud for everything. Microsoft responded by criticizing it’s suitability for business, perhaps taking some PR lessons from Steve Jobs who also recently criticized Android around issues of fragmentation.

The battle for winning the enterprise market over, however, goes far beyond Google, Microsoft and Apple. Traditional telecom service providers, device manufacturers and independent software companies are also looking to develop propositions. A recent example is the MeeGo OS launched by Intel and Nokia, which at launch is available across both smartphone and tablet devices.

As businesses look to extend enterprise applications to the mobile platform, the competition between the biggest players on the market will continue to increase. One advantage is clearly the need to innovate and differentiate, something which was difficult in the monopolised PC world, but this also means they will be faced with an increasingly complex ecosystem to support.

Is Your Mobile Application Ready For Business?

ABI Research recently issued a research paper, “Is Your Mobile Application Ready For Business?”, which outlines critical considerations for enterprises aiming to mobilize their business through applications. It addresses three significant themes:

-The trends that are driving mobility to the forefront of business investments as well as forcing businesses to invest in mobile applications;
-The ecosystem and processes currently available to enterprises to mobilize with particular emphasis on the application development and testing process;
-The options for mobile application testing and a review of the competitive environment for application testing services.

The research highlights how the enterprise mobile application development world is taking off as smartphones and tablets further penetrate the corporate environment.  However, in a world where new smart device models with different OSs, capabilities and form factors are introduced every day, developing mobile applications remains a complicated process.

As the research validates, application testing is one of the more vital steps in the application development process. As the enterprise app development ecosystem continues to grow, mobile application testing will become more important than ever.

You can download the paper here: http://bit.ly/dY9rdu.

-Faraz Syed, CEO, DeviceAnywhere

 

ABI Research recently issued a research paper, “Is Your Mobile Application Ready For Business?”, which outlines critical considerations for enterprises aiming to mobilize their business through applications. It addresses three significant themes:

· The trends that are driving mobility to the forefront of business investments as well as forcing businesses to invest in mobile applications;

· The ecosystem and processes currently available to enterprises to mobilize with particular emphasis on the application development and testing process;

· The options for mobile application testing and a review of the competitive environment for application testing services.

 

The research highlights how the enterprise mobile application development world is taking off as smartphones and tablets further penetrate the corporate environment.  However, in a world where new smart device models with different OSs, capabilities and form factors are introduced every day, developing mobile applications remains a complicated process.

 

As the research validates, application testing is one of the more vital steps in the application development process. As the enterprise app development ecosystem continues to grow, mobile application testing will become more important than ever.

 

You can download the paper here:

http://www.deviceanywhere.com/userfiles/file/DeviceAnywhere WP – Final Format.pdf.

 

-Faraz Syed, CEO, DeviceAnywhere

The new enterprise challenge in 2011: Android Botox?

In 2011 Google will become, or remain depending on whether you believe Canalys or Nielsen, the dominant smartphone operating system. Although noteworthy on its own, the point that really interests me is that this will likely be achieved by growth in the enterprise and not consumer market.

As pointed out in a previous post, the popularity of the Blackberry device is gradually receding and opening up space for the iPhone and Android handsets. Jason Perlow of ZDNET points out in a recent column that, in the short term at least, that large, medium and small IT environments will find executives and employees asking for iPhones and iPad. But this is set to change, especially in large organizations.

This is for two main reasons. Firstly, there are the logistical challenges of deploying and developing applications on Android versus the iPhone. Secondly, the ability to partition personal data from corporate data will be essential in the “bring your own” culture which we see growing amongst our own customers.

The mobile enterprise market is clearly a key focus of 2011, having seen both AT&T and T-Mobile USA staking their claims in this space in recent interviews.

So, in 2011 will we be seeing the  “Android Botox”? Let me know in the comments below.

Windows Phone 7: A New Contender?

Brandon Watson, Microsoft’s developer evangelist, last week caused a stir within the industry when he announced that the Windows Phone 7 toolkit had been downloaded 1.5 million times. He also then went on to state they were adding 1200 developers every week.

We have also observed a slow but steady increasing testing popularity amongst our customers in recent months, with Windows Phone 7 reaching a 1.3% share of total testing time in our latest DeviceAnywhere Metrics report.

Buzz around Windows Phone 7 peaked in February following the announcement of a strategic partnership that would see the OS used in Nokia handsets (due in 2012). But as cited in recent posts the true litmus test for the sustained growth of a platform is appeal to the enterprise market.

The platforms enterprise features were showcased at launch, with Brandon Watson  strong SharePoint and Office integration, remote wiping and support for multiple Exchange Server accounts being just a few of them.

But as we know these aren’t the features that resulted in the growth of Android and iPhone use in enterprise, having to appeal to the consumer is essential. Appealing to the “Bring Your Own Device” enterprise, that many IT departments dread, the finger friendly interface, form factor and hardware specifications has gotten consumer hearts racing.

However, to speed up the adoption of Windows Phone 7 by enterprises, albeit through consumer channels, Microsoft will need to ensure that there are enough phones to attract app developers and boost the revenue that apps can bring in. So far the company has shipped 2 million Windows Phone 7 devices in the last quarter of 2010 compared to 14.1 million Apple iPhones, 33.3 million Android devices and 14.6 million BlackBerry units.

Windows Phone 7 market share is still insignificant compared to its strongest competitors. However, it is a great achievement for the five months in which the platform has been around and we expect to see further growth in its popularity with app developers, both consumer and enterprise alike.

Mobile enterprise: Are businesses prepared to take advantage of this opportunity?

A new research forecasts that the enterprise mobility market will reach $1.6 billion in 2014 with enterprises tapping into the mobile platform to extend business services and internal applications, and improve productivity.

However, in spite of the growth prospects, businesses are facing challenges around platform integration and mobile fragmentation which hinder the quick adoption of effective mobile enterprise strategies. These challenges bring forward the pressing need of skilled mobile application developers and innovative solutions that can cater to the needs of the mobile enterprise market.

The increased demand for mobile engineers, which affects large companies and fast-growing start-ups alike, is emerging as a key bottleneck as companies struggle to capitalize on the fast growth of smartphones and other mobile devices.

Early this year Google announced its plans to hire top mobile application development talent while recruiters reported a record demand for mobile engineers with vacancies for Android developers rocketing by 424% in the space of a year.  As enterprises are increasingly looking to take advantage of enterprise mobility, it becomes clear that most of the companies are not prepared to deal with the challenges on their own.

Mobile computing is fundamentally different from traditional enterprise computing models and enterprises need to adopt solutions and business strategies which are specifically tailored to the mobile platform.

mHealth Apps Are Changing the Entire Healthcare Ecosystem

Through our work with Kaiser Permanente, GE Healthcare, McKesson and others, we recognize that smartphones and other smart devices are penetrating medical organizations as a preferred information and resource delivery platform. The use of internally-developed mobile apps to diagnose, treat, transmit data, provide medical decision-support, monitor and provide care to patients can help streamline and increase the efficiency of everyday tasks and effectiveness of medical professional care-giving.

Despite this, John-David Lovelock, a Gartner analyst, points out that many healthcare companies are dragging their feet about mobility rollouts in the vain hope that if they wait it out, they will get to the point where there is just one mobile platform to support.  As John-David rightly points out, this is not going to happen any time soon.  The healthcare market, like every other market, needs to accept the reality of supporting multiple platforms.

There will be multiple operating systems, wireless access technologies and form factors.  When CIOs accept this reality, they can manage around it.  This whole issue is something that we at DeviceAnywhere have been looking at very closely.  We are getting more and more requests from CIOs to help define for them which devices they need to support and test.  We’ll have more on our solution to those requests coming very soon…

Although there may be a little stuttering just now, long term, mHealth apps will save the medical industry and its customers billions of dollars through a more efficient healthcare system. It will drive efficiency and productivity within medical organizations and provide patients with a more streamlined way of receiving the care they need.  Regardless of the use case, DeviceAnywhere aims to provide developers with the tools they need to ensure that their mobile apps will work as they are intended to, function flawlessly and integrate seamlessly with pre-existing software and apps. After all, patient health and lives are at stake here.

ALM Systems Extend Mobile Reach With DeviceAnywhere

The rise of smartphones, tablets and other mobile devices for business use has been a point of tension for some organizations in the past, especially within professions where “desk presence” was traditionally used to measure productivity. However, according to the latest Mobile Workforce Report by Visage Mobile, this viewpoint could be outdated, as employees are now thinking about work even during their personal downtime more than ever, thanks in large part to their smartphones.

Mobile is no longer a nice-to-have but a strategic asset that can be tied back to business objectives  and ultimately impact the bottom line. As a result, companies are now looking to roll out these technologies on an unprecedented scale and quality control is at the top of the IT department’s agenda.

As a result, DeviceAnywhere is proud to announce its latest extension for Rational Quality Manager 3.0.1 at IBM Innovate 2011 in Orlando, Florida. The deep integration of DeviceAnywhere’s Test Automation for Smart Devices™ and IBM Rational Quality Manager 3.0.1 provides a holistic approach for mobile enterprise app test management and execution.

The Test Automation for Smart Devices integration to Rational Quality Manger enables users to:

• Test native and web apps on any device. Whether developing an internal or external facing app, businesses need to ensure compliance, performance and functionality before mass-rollout. Using the combination of Rational Quality Manager 3.0.1 and Test Automation for Smart Devices, users are able to create, implement and schedule automated tests on any mobile device or tablet. With rigorous automation, errors can be detected early, saving significant costs associated with bug fixes and performance issues that may be otherwise detected by end-users. Leveraging DeviceAnywhere’s patented technology, there are no limitations. All complex device features, such as accelerometer, swiping and pinching are supported.

• Leaner, simplified, yet powerful, testing processes. Manual testing is a resource intensive activity. Test automation provides a much leaner way to ensure software quality while saving costs associated with redundant testing; freeing up valuable resources to focus on product innovation. Users of DeviceAnywhere Test Automation for Smart Devices have been shown to reduce testing time on average by 70-80%* compared to manual processes. Using the integration with Rational Quality Manager, users are able to achieve further time savings by creating structured scripts into high-level, device-independent test cases and low-level test steps (actions) that are implemented across chosen devices.

• End-to-end management. Whether it is a standalone mobile project or a mobile product developed alongside existing assets, effective tracking is essential for any IT project. With Test Automation for Smart Devices, for each test case executed, all testing steps and proofs (screenshots, videos) are passed back to Rational Quality Manager for tracking and reporting to ensure projects are on track. Any issues can then be quickly identified, whether in the back office or on actual devices, and quickly assigned and tracked using a single management console. This improves bug resolution, time to market and ultimately return on investment.

The integration to Rational Quality Manager also enables DeviceAnywhere customers to transform their mobile application software delivery through use of IBM Rational’s Collaborative Lifecycle Management solution to enable active collaboration and end-to-end traceability.

If the latest market report from Gartner is any indication, the pervasiveness of smartphones and the commonality of always being connected will only increase. According to the research firm, a total of 427.8 million mobile communication devices were shipped during the first quarter of 2011, 24 percent of which were smartphones. IBM and DeviceAnywhere are subsequently working together to help developers, QA managers, engineers and business analysts take control of the mobile opportunity and bring quality mobile applications to market faster than ever before.

To learn more about this integration and our presence at Innovate 2011, please check out the full press release here.

Mobile enterprise is thriving, but is your company ready for it?

Recent ABI Research suggests that the number of enterprise smartphone and tablet app users will reach 830 million by 2016. These numbers include Business-To-Employee (B2E) apps and Business-To-Customers (B2C), branded company apps and reflect the rising role of mobile enterprise in improving work efficiency and fostering better relationships with the customer.

However, to facilitate this growth, businesses will have to overcome a number of challenges.  A recent survey of mobile experts and IT professionals shows that while nearly all employers allow access to company resources from employees’ personal devices, mobility management methods are often outdated and don’t actually work. Furthermore, a staggering 41.1% of the surveyed businesses do not use anything to manage their mobile devices.

To meet the demands of the growing mobile enterprise space, businesses need to adopt effective mobile enterprise solutions that enable them to successfully mobilize services across a range of devices and carrier networks. This will be fundamental for the differentiation of their products from their competitors. Another big challenge will be to ensure mobile application compliance with company regulations as well as compatibility with different web servers, database servers, etc.

To achieve that, businesses need to apply the same high standards of QA and application performance management as they do for enterprise applications.  This includes adopting platform-agnostic mobile app testing solutions that can run complex automated testing scenarios and provide reliable bug-fixing and reporting services to ensure seamless app performance before mass roll-out.

Mobile application testing and QA differs significantly from traditional IT app management, and requires a tailored approach that takes into consideration its unique characteristics.

The Google Phone Could Have Enterprise Appeal

Despite wide spread speculation around why Google has chosen to buy Motorola Mobility, from patent acquisition to simply wanting to shake up the industry, very few articles have mentioned the desire to strengthen their proposition and route into the enterprise market.

Motorola Mobility was seen by many as Android’s champion in the enterprise. For over a year, they have aggressively targeted CIOs and enterprise-grade developers with “business ready” devices that showcase business necessities such as Exchange-based integration, VPNs and strong security features (which were boosted by Motorola’s acquisition of 3LM in February).

Add to this Motorola Mobility’s sibling Motorola Solutions, which is exclusively focused on the enterprise market, and a compelling story begins to take shape.

But as we have to come to realize, IT department appeal is only one part of the strategy needed  to succeed in enterprise mobility today – the end-users are increasingly becoming an intrinsic part of the decision making process.

The consumerization of IT has meant that workers are now bringing their own devices to work at a faster pace than ever before, and have increasing amounts of influence. Android is a hugely popular operating system, approaching almost 50% market share, and a Google phone with a Google operating system could be very appealing to consumers.

Furthermore, the pure play versions of its tablets and the ability to limit fragmentation across its device portfolio, a current challenge cited by Android developers, provides additional appeal.

However, with Google’s purchase of Motorola, Microsoft is also likely to begin recruiting handset manufacturers that feel alienated by the deal to its Windows Phone OS, and in turn bolster the BYOD appeal of its portfolio which is essential to enterprise adoption.

With the market undergoing dramatic changes in both the consumer and enterprise smartphone marketplace, the mobile industry couldn’t be much more exciting!

AT&T’s MEAP Helps Enterprises Extend Critical Business Apps to Devices

AT&T just announced that it is offering a managed version of its Mobile Enterprise Application Platform (MEAP), which enables enterprises to offer applications across a range of devices, including PCs, smartphones and tablets.

For those interested, MEAPs address some of the difficulties of developing mobile software by managing the diversity of devices, networks and user groups at the time of deployment and throughout the mobile solution’s lifecycle, providing a long-term approach to deploying mobility.

Cross-platform or device considerations – specifically when you consider the fragmentation present across the mobile industry – is one of the big drivers behind using MEAPs. For example, a company can use a MEAP to develop the mobile application once and deploy it to a variety of mobile devices (including smart phones, tablets, notebooks and ruggedized handhelds) with no changes to the underlying business logic. However, testing, customization and monitoring are still required.

According to Gartner, using a common mobility platform like a MEAP brings considerable savings and strategic advantages in this situation, especially with the Rule of Three:

1. Support three or more mobile applications
2. Support three or more mobile operating systems (OS)
3. Integrate with at least three back-end data sources

I’m on a Panel at ITEXPO West 2011 to Discuss Managing Devices and Apps in the Enterprise on Sept. 13

 

 

 

 

The panel will showcase how organizations can manage the explosion of mobile devices and applications in the enterprise environment.

I will be featured  as a panellist at ITEXPO West 2011 in Austin, TX next week. I’ll provide first-hand insights and best practices based on DeviceAnywhere’s experience in mobilizing hundreds of enterprise organizations worldwide. I’ll be joined by industry thought-leaders including:

• Bob Emmerson (moderator), owner, Electric Words

• Nathan Clevenger, chief software architect, ITR Mobility

• Sam Liu, VP of marketing, Partnerpedia

• Chris Perret, CEO and founder, Nukona

WHAT: “Managing the Deluge of Third-Party Devices and Apps in the Enterprise”

WHEN: Tuesday, September 13, 2011 at 3:30 – 4:15

WHERE: Room 8C on the Enterprise track

Additionally, DeviceAnywhere will be showcasing their mobile application lifecycle management (mobile ALM) product suite including the latest in Mobile Test Automation in booth #325.

I hope to see you there!