07/06/10 | No Comments »
On July 1 the first edition of ‘Best of Mobile’ was launched in Amsterdam. This publication discusses 30 of the best practices concerning mobile internet and applications. Three of these best practices are developed by Service2Media!
In ‘Best of Mobile’ professionals showcase 30 innovative examples of mobile internet such as of Location based services, applications, text-services (SMS), mobile websites and QR-codes.
Three applications developed by Service2Media made the top 30 best practice list. These are the Schadehulp application from insurance company Interpolis, Rabobank’s Rabo bankieren and the daily newspaper application of the Telegraaf.
The publication ‘Best of Mobile’ is the result of a collaboration between OMI² and Jungle Minds and is a source of inspiration for businesses and institutions who are considering taking their first steps in mobile internet.
A review copy of the publication is available for download on the website of Jungle Minds. (In Dutch)
About OMI²
OMI² is a platform for mobile professionals. Small and big market initiatives unite under the OMI² banner with the purpose to stimulate new developments in mobile services and the use of mobile platforms. Members of OMI² are active in the mobile sector, some of which are strong brands who are actively working with mobile services. This makes OMI² a strong and complete platform housing a lot of knowledge about the use of mobile services and devices in different market sectors. OMI² is powered by ECP-EPN, the platform for the information society.
About Jungle Minds
Jungle minds is a leading internet consultancy firm, working for the top 200 companies and institutes of the Netherlands and Belgium. Housed in Amsterdam, the Jungle Minds team consists of over 60 internet professionals. Offering their experience and expertise in the fields of; Internet strategy, new propositions, concept & design and channel optimization.
06/16/10 | No Comments »
With Rabo SMS Betalen you can easily transfer money to any mobile phone in the Netherlands. This handy application from the Rabobank was already available for iPhone and Android, and is now finally here for Windows Mobile.
Whether you have to pay back a friend or pay the bill for your drinks, Rabo SMS Betalen always comes in handy. The service application from the Rabobank lets you make financial payments with your mobile phone using text messaging. You can make direct payments to other mobile phones or buy your movie tickets with it. You can even use it to make payments to (mobile) websites while shopping online. Rabo SMS Betalen is a service that can be used by anyone, whatever their bank or telecom-provider!
Rabo SMS Betalen is a perfect example of how Service2Media is bringing mobile applications to all mobile devices thereby making them available to a wider audience!
Download it now from Windows Marketplace.
06/14/10 | No Comments »
Today the dutch Rabobank added another innovative iPhone application to their mobile services: Rabo Rekening Delen. This application helps you to ‘Share the bill’ amongst friends, by dividing costs and sending reminders to the participants of the bill.
Putting money together for a trip or sharing the bill afterwards? ‘Rabo Rekening Delen’ makes splitting a bill easy and makes the financial administration as simple as a few taps on your iPhone.
If you buy concert tickets for your friends for example or just paid for the restaurant bill, you can make a new item in the Rabo Rekening Delen application. You can then indicate who has to share the bill and how they pay their share. You can choose to pay in cash, by transfer or with the Rabobank service ‘Rabo SMS Betalen’, another application with which you can make direct payments using text messaging.
When starting up the application you can make an account with your email address, so it is not necessary to have an actual bank account at the Rabobank. When sending payment requests or reminders to your friends they immediately see the amount they have to pay, which payment options they can use and the bank account to which they have to transfer the money. After making the payment they can change the status of their payment within their own Rabo Rekening Delen application on their iPhone or on the Rabobank Rekening Delen website. So friends who don’t have an iPhone can still use this service with you!
To learn more about the Rabo Rekening Delen service or to register for the service visit the special Rabo Rekening Delen website.
‘Going dutch’ with your friends has never been this easy! Download it now from the App Store!
The Rabo Rekening Delen application for iPhone and Mobile Web were both developed by Service2Media.
A review on the Rabo Rekening Delen application can be found on iPhoneClub (in dutch).
06/04/10 | No Comments »
Veronica magazine is one of the most popular tv-magazines in the Netherlands. Every week they cover the latest news on film, tv and music. And today they launch their very own Mobile application for Windows Mobile.
With this app users can consult the tv-guide of Veronica Magazine wherever they go. They can look up what shows and movies are playing on all channels and can access extra information about each show whenever they please. Veronica Magazine provides the user with detailed information on all movies and tv shows with reviews, trailers and parental information. Users can even activate alerts so that they never have to miss their favorite program again. And everyday Veronica Magazine offers daily tv and movies tips to the user, so that they will never miss the most interesting things on television.
The application of Veronica magazine was developed by Servic2media in collaboration with Microsoft Mobile and is available from the Windows Marketplace today!
05/10/10 | No Comments »
Since today, train travelers can experience Dutch Railways’ (NS) Travel Planner with a native mobile application on most devices, including J2ME, iPhone, Windows and BlackBerry. Service2Media has developed these applications, after the introduction of the J2ME version of last year and a redesigned mobile internet version early this year.
NS Travel planner offers real-time train travel information from door-to-door and offers notifications in case of travel disruptions.
Last week the NS Travel planner (“Reisplanner” in Dutch) was introduced on iPhone, directly making it the most popular Dutch download in the App Store. A good review about the application (in Dutch) can be found on iPhoneClub.
Since today Reisplanner is available from Windows Marketplace, the app store for Microsoft Windows 6.x applications.
The BlackBerry version of Reisplanner is also available, soon to be downloaded from BlackBerry’s App World.
The J2ME version will appear in Nokia Ovi store soon.
03/25/10 | No Comments »
Service2Media today revealed that it has created a mobile plugin for Sony Ericsson’s Timescape ™ signature application that enables members of the most popular social network in the Netherlands – Hyves – to interact with their contacts direct from the home screen of the new Sony Ericsson XPERIA ™ X10 phone.
“Ensuring a seamless user experience, while maximising the functionality and features of the XPERIA ™ X10 was essential when creating this plugin,” explained Geert Kolthof, CEO and Co-Founder of Service2Media. “Working with Android is further illustration to our commitment to support all mobile platforms” he adds.
The XPERIA ™ X10 is a key device in Sony Ericsson’s multi-platform strategy. Their open approach offers consumers maximum choice and with the XPERIA ™ X10 they can download any application they want directly from the Android Market ™ and create a truly personalised experience.
Wouter Boender, Business Manager at Sony Ericsson DACHNL: “The integration of Hyves into our Timescape ™ signature application is an important step for us. The way people communicate is no longer limited to a call or SMS. With Timescape ™ they have the ability to integrate social media, SMS and phone calls within one user friendly experience.“
Sony Ericsson Timescape ™ manages all communication with a user in one place. Customers can interact through conversations in a clear way and see at a glance their Hyves™, Facebook,™, Twitter™, photos, emails and texts.
03/17/10 | No Comments »
More good news from device manufactures. We have been invited by Blackberry to join their Alliance programme as Select Member. Reserved only for organisations that have proven sustainable BlackBerry revenue through various channels, we are very excited and honoured to be invited.
The benefits of being a Blackberry partner include:
Technical
Assigned RIM Application Development Consultant for application development support
Ability to participate in software beta programs
Access to pre-release BlackBerry smartphones
Marketing
Access to marketing on various online BlackBerry resources
Opportunity for co-operative marketing activities with RIM
Priority placement in the BlackBerry Solutions Catalog
Sales
Assigned RIM Business Development Manager
Access to RIM Internal Business Units (Carriers, Product Management, Global Sales teams)
Priority placement in the Mobile Solutions Center, a RIM Internal portal for application demos and trials to various RIM channels
03/16/10 | No Comments »
We are proud to announce that we have been invited by Samsung to join the Mobile Innovator Program, as a Core member. This is an invite-only program for Samsung business partners.
The program provides ServiceMedia access to dedicated technical support and a dedicated account manager to create applications and services for Samsung’s open OS devices. In addition there is a strong focus on creating business opportunities. The program provides a direct route to Samsung Application Store; one of the best ways to get applications in front of Samsung users.
Through joining the program, we demonstrate our continued commitment to supporting all mobile operating systems, including the exciting new BADA platform.
02/17/10 | No Comments »
Feb. 17 (Bloomberg) — Apple Inc.’s iPhone has more applications than any other mobile phone. Now the world’s wireless companies are trying to catch up.
This week, at least five efforts to dislodge Apple from the top of the global market were unveiled at a trade show in Barcelona, Spain, as companies from Nokia Oyj and Intel Corp. to Deutsche Telekom AG and Samsung Electronics Co. sought to lure developers of games, music, social networking, news, navigation and other apps to their platforms and smartphones.
“Everyone wants to be part of the game as the application business is showing tremendous growth,” J.K. Shin, president of Samsung’s mobile-communication division, said in an interview.
All of the new attempts may have an uphill climb as they try to pull alongside Apple, which offers 140,000 apps and has had more than 3 billion downloads from its App Store by iPhone and iPod touch users worldwide. The Cupertino, California-based company has made it easy for developers to design apps across its platforms and provided them clear software tools.
“The Apple store provided a very simple path for developers to create stuff and get it into the hands of users, and there’s no question they’ve done it more effectively than anyone else,” said Nick Jones, a Egham, U.K.-based analyst with industry researcher Gartner Inc. “Now everyone’s playing catch- up. Apple is still way ahead of everyone else, with five to 10 times as many apps.”
Nokia’s Effort
Twenty-four phone companies including Vodafone Group Plc, AT&T Inc. and Deutsche Telekom said they plan an open platform for mobile-phone apps. Nokia and Intel are developing one that makes it easier to create apps for multiple devices. Ericsson AB, Alcatel-Lucent SA and Samsung Electronics Co. are building their own apps platforms.
Nokia’s Intel partnership is banking on a newer, more open approach to draw developers, who can write once to create applications for a variety of devices, and market them through Nokia’s Ovi Store and Intel’s AppUpSM Center, said Kai Oistamo, Nokia’s devices chief. They also plan to bring other companies’ apps to their stores, giving users access to social networking, media readers, games and other add-ons.
“The Ovi Store has been a problem child for Nokia since its launch,” Ben Wood, a London-based analyst at CCS Insight, said. “They’ve already alluded to the fact that that will be refreshed in April so this might be the perfect time to lift the curtain on the new Ovi Store and try to address some of its shortcomings in an attempt to catch up with Apple’s App Store and the Google Android Market.”
Beyond Smartphones
Apple “might not be ahead” in a year, said Gartner’s Jones. “If you look at the numbers developers are looking to reach, Nokia has a much greater number of users. The number of Apple users is still relatively small,” he said.
The apps will also be taken beyond smartphones to lower- priced devices, said Jon Fredrik Baksaas, chief executive officer of Telenor ASA, Norway’s biggest phone company.
“The consumer interest in the iPhone and App Store have shown us that this development path should be extended to the much larger number of other handsets out there,” he said. “Why shouldn’t these applications also be accessible on a Sony Ericsson or more of a normal type of phone?”
Analysts are less optimistic about attempts being made by the carriers’ group to get into the apps market.
“It’s not unrealistic to aspire to getting a piece of the applications space,” said Ameet Shah, a London-based director of consulting firm Pittiglio Rabin Todd & McGrath. “I think it’s hard to pull off. The risk is that when Apple has gone through half a dozen iterations of its applications store, the consortium might just be on their first or second.”
Keeping Pace
With 24 operators all wanting their say, it’ll be difficult to keep up with the pace of the market, he said.
The carriers are betting on their more than 3 billion customers to lure developers.
“Apple did an excellent job in boosting the mobile applications market,” said Olaf Swantee, head of France Telecom’s Orange global mobile business. “But the plan to develop an open platform is the right approach to move the application business to a new level and allow developers to target a much bigger market.”
Creating a platform able to serve multiple handset types is a “good way to go,” said Geert Kolthof, founder and chief executive officer of Netherlands-based mobile application and service development firm Service2Media.
“But the market requirement exists today and the opportunities in the enterprise application space in particular will not wait,” he said.
‘Walled Garden’
The 24 carriers’ plan is aimed at countering the fragmentation in the industry, said the GSM Association, a London-based trade body for wireless companies.
“The customer wants to have a choice of applications, he doesn’t want to have a walled garden,” said Rainer Deutschmann, senior vice president of mobile products at Deutsche Telekom. Regardless of which mobile phone model the customer has, they should be able to download any application they please, as would be the case for users of different computer brands, he said.
Developers may not get on board, said Mark Newman, chief research officer at Informa Telecoms and Media in London, adding that they’ve historically distrusted operators because of unfavorable revenue-sharing deals.
‘Smart Pipes’
“A number of the developers that we have spoken to would rather operators keep out of the applications development community entirely,” Newman said.
Operators could function as “smart pipes” for application services, exploiting the information they have on their customers, such as age, gender and location, to deliver useful and relevant applications, Shah said. In return, they would get a piece of the applications revenue.
“The operators don’t like this idea of becoming dumb pipes, where their services are commoditized, but the writing is on the wall,” Newman said. “They have simply not succeeded in launching these services.
02/15/10 | No Comments »
While we welcome today’s announcement from global operators that they would co-operate on a unified wholesale applications community, the App market requires cross platform services now.
CEO and co-founder Geert Kolthof: “This is a positive move and creating a platform able to serve multiple handsets types is a good way to go. But the market requirement exists today and the opportunities in the Enterprise application space in particular will not wait.”
Service2Media specialises in working with financial institutions, commercial organizations, brands and the media industry to create applications that can be delivered to all major handset brands types today – including platforms such as Apple, Android and Nokia that remain apart from the operator plans announced today. The company also keeps applications up to date as new handsets are introduced or current models upgraded.
“Our Enterprise customers want to build relationships with their customers regardless of handset type and also want to deliver applications from within their own brand.”, explained Kolthof.
“We allow them to host the application download link on their own web site and in most cases manage that process for them within their own branded environment. In the majority of cases, they dont have to ask their customers to visit an externally branded portal to get service.”, he added.
Kolthof also said that the move announced by the operators would ultimately help Service2Media’s business:
“We are about ensuring applications reach to as many handsets as possible and this initiative will help that cause and make some things easier to accomplish. But we will also add the brands that are not within operator community initiative and ensure that our enterprise customers can get deliver and manage services across multiple platforms and devices.”
Service2Media used the Mobile World Congress to announce its next generation mobile application service development platform, M2Active. The platform already allows applications to be written once but serve all the major handset brands.
The result of more than five years experience in the creation and management of award-winning mobile services and applications, M2Active is the most powerful and advanced mobile development and runtime platform available today.
Service2Media already runs application services for businesses such as CNN, Heineken, Dutch Rail, Rabobank and Royal KPN. The next generation M2Active platform adds even more features and enables, from one single script, mobile applications and services to run natively across all mobile devices, minimizing the time and effort spent on development and maintenance.
“Using our new platform, companies will be able to both reduce their time to market for new applications, and expand their reach. Everybody wins.”, said Kolthof, “Developers, handset companies, operators and most importantly of all – customers.”
