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Today's Top Stories
1. Microsoft: Google is sabotaging YouTube on Windows Phone
2. Rumor Mill: Apple acquiring Waze to fortify Maps for iOS
3. Amazon wins ruling on 'appstore' case vs. Apple
4. Skype for Windows Phone 8 update disables People Hub integration
5. Canonical promises Ubuntu smartphones in 2014 Editor's Corner: 'The Room' tops this year's list of the best apps for Android, iOS Also Noted: Spotlight On... Singly seeks to simplify social media integration in mobile apps
iPad Web traffic share plummets over holidays; Mobile Content Venture, Rentrak team and much more... 2012 Year in Review
 Every year wireless companies make investments and decisions to plan for the future. It's just part of doing business. FMC looks back at the signature headlines and trends that shaped the mobile media sector in 2012 and set the stage for the next wave of innovations to follow. Special Report
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'The Room' tops this year's list of the best apps for Android, iOS
The holiday season is over, and few will be sadder to see the new year begin than iOS and Android developers, who enjoyed record app download numbers during the week between Dec. 25 and Dec. 31. Mobile app analytics firm Flurry reports that consumers activated 17.4 million iOS and Android devices and installed 328 million apps on Christmas Day, both all-time one-day highs; over the holiday week as a whole, consumers activated more than 50 million iOS and Android devices and downloaded 1.76 billion apps, breaking previous records in both categories. Consumers who unwrapped a new smartphone or tablet over the holidays undoubtedly discovered an embarrassment of riches when they visited Apple's App Store or Google Play: The sheer quality and quantity of apps now available for download is nothing short of remarkable. Developers made enormous strides in 2012, building innovative, immersive games, productivity tools, social media services and location apps that dramatically expanded the possibilities of the mobile user experience. FierceMobileContent's picks for the best iOS and Android apps of 2012 celebrate a year of breakthroughs. There were so many cool, compelling apps released over the last 12 months that it was more difficult to decide which ones to leave off the list than it was to determine which ones made the cut. The final 15 make up a veritable murderers' row of apps--the absolute best of the best. They'll be difficult to top in the months ahead, but I'm confident developers will find a way.--Jason Read more about: Android
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> Director, Business Operations, Marketing and Sales Analytics – Atlanta GA – Cox Communications
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> Senior Analyst, Business Operations, Analytics– Atlanta GA – Cox Communications
> Manager, Business Operations, Analytics– Atlanta GA – Cox Communications
> Analyst I, Business Operations, Analytics– Atlanta GA – Cox Communications
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* General ad info: Click here | Today's Top News 1. Microsoft: Google is sabotaging YouTube on Windows Phone
A Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) legal representative has alleged that Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) is deliberately stifling the company's efforts to build a full-featured YouTube video application optimized for its Windows Phone mobile operating system. Dave Heiner, Microsoft vice president and deputy general counsel, wrote Wednesday that Google has failed to develop a Windows Phone version of YouTube in an effort to undermine the consumer appeal of the Microsoft platform. Microsoft contends that Google has ported YouTube to Apple's (NASDAQ:AAPL) iOS but not Windows Phone because Apple does not offer its own competing search services. Heiner adds that Microsoft has been attempting to build its own YouTube app for the past two years, but he maintains that Google is refusing to license the necessary coding information. "Just last month we learned from YouTube that senior executives at Google told them not to enable a first-class YouTube experience on Windows Phones," Heiner writes. "Google's refusal deprives consumers who use competing platforms of a comparable experience in accessing content that is generally available on the Web, almost all of which is created by users rather than by Google itself. And it's inconsistent, to say the least, with Google's public insistence that other competing services, such as Facebook (NASDAQ:FB), should offer Google complete access to their content so they can index and include it on their search site." A Google spokesman disputed the allegation. "Contrary to Microsoft's claims, it's easy for consumers to view YouTube videos on Windows phones," he said. "Windows phone users can access all the features of YouTube through our HTML5-based mobile website, including viewing high-quality video streams, finding favorite videos, seeing video ratings and searching for video categories. In fact, we've worked with Microsoft for several years to help build a great YouTube experience on Windows phones." YouTube is the largest source of mobile data traffic across all international markets, accounting for more than 25 percent of total network data in some regions, according to a report issued last year by broadband equipment vendor Sandvine. YouTube generates 27 percent of all North American data traffic, Sandvine adds. Google recently announced that YouTube mobile views have quadrupled during the past 18 months and mobile devices now generate a quarter of all traffic across the video platform. Heiner's post also expresses disappointment that Google is reportedly close to an agreement to avert a potential antitrust lawsuit spearheaded by the Federal Trade Commission. Multiple reports indicate Google will implement a series of voluntary changes to satisfy FTC concerns over potential abuses of its market position in Web search. The Wall Street Journal adds Google is expected to sign a consent decree in a separate probe into its handling of mobile patents acquired when the company purchased handset maker Motorola Mobility for $12.5 billion in mid-2011. "Hopefully, Google will wake up to a New Year with a resolution to change its ways and start to conform with the antitrust laws," Heiner writes. "If not, then 2013 hopefully will be the year when antitrust enforcers display the resolve that Google continues to lack." For more:
- read this Microsoft on the Issues blog entry
- read this Wall Street Journal article
- read this Associated Press article
- read this NBCNews.com article Related articles:
YouTube: Mobile consumption has quadrupled in last 18 months
Google launches ad-supported YouTube app for Apple's iOS
Apple pulls YouTube app in iOS 6
Report: YouTube is world's largest source of mobile data traffic
Report: YouTube investing $100M to produce original content
Google: Mobile devices generate 10 percent of all YouTube video downloads Read more about: Google, YouTube
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2. Rumor Mill: Apple acquiring Waze to fortify Maps for iOS
Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) is in advanced negotiations to acquire crowdsourced location services firm Waze, a move to improve its much-criticized Apple Maps platform, TechCrunch reports. Citing sources close to the talks, the report states Waze carries a $750 million price tag despite generating less than $1 million in revenues in 2012, primarily from advertising efforts. So far, Apple has offered $400 million and another $100 million in incentives. Both companies declined to comment on the report. Waze is one of several companies providing mapping and navigation data to Apple Maps, released last year in association with the revamped iOS 6 as a replacement for Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) Maps. Consumers have been harshly critical of Apple Maps, identifying dozens of inaccuracies, and the outcry prompted a public apology from Apple CEO Tim Cook, who suggested that users "should consider downloading native mapping applications like Microsoft's (NASDAQ:MSFT) Bing, Waze or MapQuest" while Apple works to overhaul the platform. In the weeks following Cook's shout-out, Waze increased its market share to 10 percent of U.S. iPhone users from 7 percent, according to a study from mobile data compression firm Onavo. Last fall, Waze told Bloomberg Businessweek that downloads surged 25 percent in the wake of Apple Maps' Sept. 19 launch to 100,000 a day. The Waze acquisition rumors follow a few weeks after The Wall Street Journal reported Apple is in discussions to integrate foursquare local data into Maps for iOS. Citing sources close to the talks, the report states Apple Senior Vice President of Internet Software and Services Eddy Cue has met with foursquare executives to explore incorporating data from local restaurants, clubs and retailers, and some onlookers have predicted that Apple would acquire foursquare outright. But while foursquare local recommendations would improve Apple Maps, acquiring Waze likely would benefit the platform to an even greater extent: Waze maps are built on data obtained from moving vehicles, offering real-time, hands-free traffic updates, and its services span the globe, bolstering Apple Maps in problem areas like Asia and the Middle East. Apple is "putting all of our energy into making [Maps] right," Cook said in a BusinessWeek interview published last month. "We've got a huge plan to make it even better. It will get better and better over time." Cook did not divulge specifics on that plan, nor did he reveal when consumers can expect the overhauled Apple Maps to become commercially available. For more:
- read this TechCrunch article Related articles:
Report: Apple, foursquare in talks to share local data
Apple CEO Cook: 'We're putting all our energy' into Maps improvements
Apple CEO Cook apologizes for Maps, suggests alternatives Bing, Waze
Apple promises to improve iOS mapping service as consumer fury mounts
Google Maps returns to Apple's iPhone, adds turn-by-turn navigation Read more about: Location-Based Services, iOS
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3. Amazon wins ruling on 'appstore' case vs. Apple
Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) scored a significant win against rival Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) thanks to a judge's ruling that Amazon's Appstore for Android is not being falsely advertised. In 2011, Apple filed a lawsuit against Amazon to block the online retail giant from using the term "app store" for its Android application storefront. Apple argued that Amazon hoped to mislead users looking for Apple's own App Store. However, the ruling does not cover Apple's trademark infringement claims over Amazon's Appstore. A trial over that issue is scheduled for August. "Apple has presented no evidence that consumers or customers understand 'app store' to include specific qualities or characteristics or attributes of the Apple App Store, or that any customers were misled by Amazon's use of the term," wrote U.S. District Judge Phyllis Hamilton in the ruling. Apple declined to comment on the ruling, according to media reports, and Amazon didn't immediately respond to requests for comment. The case is among the first clear signs of combat between Apple and Amazon. Amazon launched its Appstore for Android in 2011 in the United States, and the company has since expanded the offering to a number of international markets including Europe and Japan. Further, Android developers consistently generate substantially greater revenues per user in the Amazon Appstore than in the rival Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) Play storefront, according to data published earlier this year by app store analytics firm Flurry. For every $1 yielded by Apple's pacesetting App Store for iOS, Amazon Appstore drives an average of $0.89 per user, while Google Play earns developers just $0.23 per user, Flurry reports. Flurry credits Appstore for Android's success to Amazon's digital retail prowess, noting Google's strengths are its search tools and advertising technologies. Apple, for its part, helped grow the market for smartphone apps with the 2008 introduction of its App Store for the iPhone. The store today contains more than 700,000 apps and has paid out more than $1 billion to developers. In the past year, Amazon has dramatically expanded its war against Apple to include battles in tablets, cloud services and streaming media sales. Meanwhile, Apple has worked to revamp its own App Store and increase sales of its iPads and iPhones. For more:
- see this Reuters article
- see this Bloomberg article
- see this Verge article Related articles:
Amazon expands Appstore for Android to European market
Amazon Appstore for Android begins accepting promotional images
Amazon Appstore for Android streamlines developer payouts
Amazon dumps $20 pricing limit on Android in-app purchases
Apple sues Amazon.com over 'App Store' trademark Read more about: App Store
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4. Skype for Windows Phone 8 update disables People Hub integration
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) is temporarily disabling People Hub integration with the latest version of its Skype application for Windows Phone 8 devices, citing device stability concerns. People Hub enables Windows Phone 8 device users to more efficiently access contacts, initiate conversations via phone, text, IM or email, view Facebook (NASDAQ:FB), Twitter and LinkedIn updates, and create Rooms (invitation-only groups for sharing conversations as well as photos, notes and calendar items). With the release of the new Skype for Windows Phone 8 Preview 2.1, Microsoft is temporarily removing a feature supporting Skype calls directly from a contact card: "We are working with the Windows Phone team to resolve the issue and to enable the integration again in a future release," said Raul Liive, beta program manager of Microsoft's Skype Division. Skype background calls still work and users can continue receiving calls when the app is not running in the foreground. Skype for Windows Phone 8 Preview 2.1 also adds an updated chat keyboard with improved autocomplete/autocorrect features, the option to "toast" notification from Windows Live Messenger contacts, and a series of performance and reliability enhancements. Microsoft acquired Skype for $8.5 billion in cash in May 2011. In addition to Windows Phone, Skype supports Apple's (NASDAQ:AAPL) iOS and Google's (NASDAQ:GOOG) Android. More than 45 percent of smartphone owners now use some form of instant messaging or over-the-top messaging app in addition to or instead of traditional SMS, according to a survey conducted in late 2012 by Analysys Mason; in addition, 20 percent of consumers use a VoIP app, and 20 percent within that segment use it more than conventional voice services. Analysys Mason notes that Skype dominates the VoIP market, with 79 percent of VoIP app users/16 percent of all respondents embracing the service. For more:
- read this Skype Garage blog entry Related articles:
Survey: Half of smartphone owners use IM, OTT messaging apps
Skype for iOS adds support for Microsoft Hotmail, Messenger
Microsoft launches Skype for Windows Phone but skips low-end devices
Skype pushes into social messaging with GroupMe acquisition
Microsoft acquires Skype for $8.5B in cash Read more about: Skype, Windows Phone 8
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5. Canonical promises Ubuntu smartphones in 2014
Canonical, which makes a Linux-based computer operating system called Ubuntu, announced it will release versions of Ubuntu for low- and high-end smartphones, and the company said it expects phones running the platform to be commercially available sometime next year.
Ubuntu joins an already intensely crowded market for smartphone operating systems that includes Apple's (NASDAQ:AAPL) iOS, Google's (NASDAQ:GOOG) Android, Microsoft's (NASDAQ:MSFT) Windows Phone, Tizen, the Firefox mobile OS, Jolla's Sailfish, Research In Motion's (NASDAQ:RIMM) BlackBerry 10 and other platforms. "This is obviously a very hotly contested segment," explained Mark Shuttleworth, founder of Ubuntu and vice president of products at Canonical, in a conference call with reporters announcing the company's plans. "We have had a series of private conversations with key members of the (wireless) industry, both with mobile operators and OEMs. … We do have ample evidence of a high level of interest in a fresh face at the table." Shuttleworth argued that there is room in the market for another player, and he said the approach Canonical is taking with Ubuntu for phones will set it apart in the market. Specifically, Shuttleworth explained that Ubuntu for phones is essentially the same version of the Linux-based OS that Canonical offers for desktop and laptop computers, tablets and TVs. "We think that our vision, which is so powerfully convergent, is somewhat unique," he explained. A key selling point of Ubuntu for phones is that the high-end version will allow users to plug their phone into a PC and run the full desktop version of Ubuntu. Perhaps more importantly, Shuttleworth said that a number of computer makers and wireless carriers have already evaluated Ubuntu for phones and have expressed interest in building products using the platform. Indeed, PC OEMs including Asus, Dell, HP, and Lenovo all sell Ubuntu-powered computers; Canonical said there are currently over 20 million desktop PCs running the OS today, and that in 2014 it expects that close to 10 percent of the world's new desktops and laptops will ship with Ubuntu. Further, Canonical has already put its toe into the mobile waters. The company in 2011 released its "Ubuntu for Android" product for handset makers. When installed into Android phones, the product allows users to connect their phone to a computer to run a full Ubuntu system. Shuttleworth said that at least one major smartphone maker plans to sell a phone with Canonical's "Ubuntu for Android" in 2013, though he declinded to name the vendor. As for Canonical's new Ubuntu for phones platform, the operating system appears to be a mix between RIM's BlackBerry 10 and the webOS platform from Palm. Ubuntu for phones allows users to navigate through the platform by swiping from one side of their screen to another: swiping from the left brings up a list of favorite apps, swiping from the right navigates to the most recently used app and swiping from the bottom brings up each app's menu. For handset makers, Canonical said its Ubuntu for phones can run on Intel- or ARM-based chipsets, and the company said the platform relies on the Android Board Support Package, which Canonical said will allow Android smartphone makers to easily install Ubuntu into their products with a "trivial" amount of work. For wireless carriers, Canonical said that "operators have room to enhance Ubuntu with their own services, content, apps and branding without breaking compatibility with the broader Ubuntu app ecosystem." And for developers, Canonical said Ubuntu for phones supports HTML5 apps as well as native Linux apps. "We are very respectful of the challenges we face," noted Shuttleworth, adding: "We've seen phenominal interest in this." Shuttleworth said that Firefox's mobile OS, Tizen and Android represent the most direct competition for Ubuntu for phones, since each of those platforms are offered for free to handset makers. Already Samsung has promised to release Tizen phones in 2013, and Sprint Nextel (NYSE:S) has said it will support Tizen and Mozilla's Firefox mobile OS. For more:
- see this release
- see this Unwired View article
- see this Engadget article
- see this Verge article Related Articles:
Samsung readying first Tizen devices for 2013 release
Report: Nokia scraps Linux-based OS for feature phones
HP transitions webOS platform to open source community Read more about: Smartphones, Canonical
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Also Noted SPOTLIGHT ON... Singly seeks to simplify social media integration in mobile apps  Social media integration is quickly becoming a critical part of the app experience as Facebook and Twitter increase their presence on mobile devices. According to a research study published by Nielsen and NM Incite last month, the use of social media mobile apps grew 63 percent in 2012 compared to the same period the previous year. However, having to manually write the code that will authenticate users via third-party services, sync friend and profile data and share it with those services can be a time-consuming task.
In December, San Francisco-based startup Singly released a SDK into open beta that promises to accelerate this process in a matter of hours. The company refers to its services as "app fabric" for developers or, calling to mind Amazon's entry into cloud computing, "AWS (Amazon Web Services) for user data connectivity." Jason Cavnar, previously of social reader startup Nsyght, explained that Singly began as an open source initiative called the Locker Project, which archived tweets, photos and other social media activities into a private online space. "As we just dealt with the complexities of accessing the data, it became obvious that, more than an end user product, what was needed was a service for developers," he said. Feature Quick news from around the Web @FierceMobiCo: Feature: Mobile games dominate VC investment in November http://bit.ly/W1UeYU Article | Follow @FierceMobiCo > Chitika: iPad tablet Web traffic share plummets over holidays. Article > Mobile Content Venture, Rentrak team on mobile TV measurement. Release Wireless News > Fujitsu to target U.S. market with smartphone aimed at seniors. Article > Samsung, Apple poised to dominate smartphones in 2013. Article Broadband Wireless News > AT&T, Verizon LTE users suck up 36 percent more data than 3G users. Article > NimbleTV begins streaming OTT TV content to mobile devices. Article European Wireless News > Report: Mobile VoIP users to reach 1 billion by 2017. Article > Vodafone's Colao: UK consumers to embrace NFC payments in 2013. Article And finally… How the Victorians invented Photoshopping. Article > Globalstar's New "Wi-Fi" Super Highway - Tuesday, January 22nd, 11:00am EST/8:00 am PST This webinar will discuss the innovative technology, public benefits, and regulatory outlook of providing a new 22 MHz channel under the existing 802.11 IEEE standard. Join to learn technical aspects of TLPS deployment and the outlook for near-term relief from the FCC. Register Now!
| > Fierce Innovation Awards 2012 Live Announcement of this Year's Winners - Now Available On-Demand Please join Jason Nelson, Publisher of FierceWireless, FierceTelecom, and FierceCable as we announce the winners of the Fierce Innovation Awards 2012. Click here to RSVP today.
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