Following a number of new Google+ updates announced at Google I/O, a new Google+ app for Android is rolling out today with more options to organize and edit photos, a new locations section that lets users know where their friends are, and the new automatically-added Google+ hashtags to locate related content within a user's stream. Photo Organizing & Editing Options The new app now includes an Auto Backup feature that stores photos as they are being taken, along with an Auto Highlight feature where users can browse a selection of top shots from added sets of photos, and an Auto Enhance f [...]

Related Topics: Channel: Mobile Marketing | Google: Android | Google: Google I/O | Google: Google+ | Google: Mobile

It's time to hear about Android from Google's Android team. About a billion members doing a "fireside chat" here at Google I/O. I'm not sure what marketing aspects may come out of this one, but you never know. At any rate, I'm here, I'm ready to live blog and we'll see how it goes. Things start at 5:20 pm PT. There should also be a livestream here. Speakers will be: Reto Meier, Rachel Garb, Dave Burke, Xavier Ducrohet, Dan Morrill, Dianne Hackborn, Ficus Kirkpatrick, Romain Guy, Adam Powell, Jeff Hamilton, Rebecca Zavin. Hope I can keep them all straight when they start talking. [...]

Related Topics: Channel: Mobile Marketing | Google: Android | Google: Google I/O

At the Google I/O keynote this morning, Google announced that Google Play had seen 48 billion app downloads. This was on the heels of the announcement that there were 900 million Android device activations since inception. Later in the day at roughly 5 pm US Eastern time, Apple said that its App Store saw its 50 billionth app download. This had been long anticipated. And, it's quite a milestone. However, Google partly stole Apple's thunder with its own announcement of nearly the same number of downloads earlier in the day. This afternoon, the following image appeared on Apple's homepage: [...]

Related Topics: Apple | Apple: iOS | Apple: iPhone | Channel: Mobile Marketing | Google: Android | Google: Business Issues

Pinterest is upping its mobile game by adding more mention, notification and search features to its iOS and Android apps. Now including the "@" sign before a name makes it possible for Pinterest users to mention friends within the app. The new notification feature alerts users via the app when they have been mentioned or if a comment has been made on one of their pins. Push notifications also have been added, letting users know they received a comment or have been mentioned without opening the app. Because the nature of Pinterest includes finding content from across the Web, the Pint [...]

Related Topics: Apple: iOS | Channel: Mobile Marketing | Google: Android | Mobile Marketing | Pinterest | Pinterest: Mobile

One of Google's top executives says the company is okay -- for now -- with Facebook Home's presence on Android devices, but it may change its mind in the future. Sundar Pichai, who recently took over Android in addition to leading Google's Chrome and Apps efforts, spoke about Facebook's new Android experience in an interview with Wired's Steven Levy. Home essentially replaces the primary Android experience by converting the home and lock screens into a Facebook-based content experience through what Facebook calls "Cover Feed." As soon as Facebook announced Home, many wondered if Google w [...]

Related Topics: Channel: Industry | Facebook | Facebook: Home | Google | Google: Android | Top News

Is Google simply trying to create a better user experience on the iPhone and iPad or is it trying to "colonize" iOS with its apps? It all depends on your point of view -- though, it's probably a bit of both. When the new Gmail app for iOS was released May 6, immediately, inflammatory headlines appeared, suggesting that Google was "taking over the iPhone." However, that's not exactly the case. Users of the new Gmail app have the (default) option to go directly to the native versions of YouTube and Google Maps, as well as open Chrome via links in email. Previously, such links would have op [...]

Related Topics: Apple | Apple: iOS | Apple: iPhone | Apple: Safari | Channel: Industry | Google: Android | Google: Chrome | Google: Gmail | Google: Maps | Google: Mobile | Google: YouTube | Mobile Marketing | Statistics: Mobile Marketing | Top News

The March smartphone market share numbers are out from comScore. What we see is Apple gaining 2.7 points to maintain its lead as the top US smartphone maker. Samsung also gained slightly and remains the number two smartphone manufacturer in the US. All other hardware makers, including Google's troubled Motorola unit, lost ground. Below are the smartphone operating system share percentages. Android lost about a point and a half of share. Apple gained 2.7 percentage points. And Windows Phones saw a slight gain. These comScore data above stand in contrast to data released earlier in [...]

Related Topics: Apple: iOS | Apple: iPhone | Channel: Mobile Marketing | Google: Android | Mobile Marketing | Statistics: Market Share | Statistics: Mobile Marketing | Statistics: Popularity & Usage | Top News

Google's "predictive search" service Google Now has finally arrived for iOS users, after being Android-only since it launched last June. Ironically, the ground-breaking service is now available to more iPhone and iPad users than Android ones, because on Android, only the minority with Android 4.1 or higher can access Google Now. We have full coverage of the roll-out on our sister-site Search Engine Land: iPhone & iPad Users To Get Google Now, As It Comes To iOS: News about the launch & how Google Now is part of the Google Search App The Amazing “Google Now” — When Google [...]

Related Topics: Apple: iOS | Apple: Siri | Channel: Search Marketing | Google: Android | Google: Search

Not that long ago many people were speculating about when smartphone penetration would reach 50 percent. That happened relatively early in 2012. And today US smartphone ownership stands at roughly 60% according to Nielsen. Yesterday IDC reported another milestone: smartphone "shipments" surpassed non-smartphone shipments for the first time in Q1. According to the device-tracking firm, "more than half (51.6 percent) the total phone shipments in a quarter were smartphones." The following chart shows top global phone vendors (all phone shipments) according to IDC: Samsung lead all ot [...]

Related Topics: Apple: iOS | Apple: iPhone | Channel: Mobile Marketing | Google: Android | Statistics: Market Share | Statistics: Mobile Marketing | Top News

The consensus view is that Google bought Motorola Mobility in late 2011 for its patent portfolio. The company spent $12.5 billion, Google's largest acquisition by far and a major bet by Larry Page. During the acquisition approval process Google said that it would treat Motorola the same way it treated any other Android OEM and keep the division at arms length, giving it no special access or Android favors. Yet, Motorola has continued to lose market share and revenues. Last week, Google said that its Motorola division lost $271 million and revenues declined from $1.51 billion in Q4 to $1.02 [...]

Related Topics: Channel: Mobile Marketing | Google: Acquisitions | Google: Android | Google: Business Issues | Google: Mobile | Mobile Marketing | Top News

Two reports over the past two days from ad network Chitika shed light on adoption of the much anticipated BlackBerry Z10 touchscreen phone, as well as the current state of tablets in North America. The new iOS and Android competitor is generating 5.3 percent of all BlackBerry traffic, which reflects a "doubling in usage share since the Z10’s US release 20 days prior." That's impressive until those figures are put into context. Chitika also told me that "BlackBerry-based Web traffic as a whole constitutes about 1 percent of all mobile Web traffic on our network." So, in fact, the Z10 is [...]

Related Topics: Amazon | Apple: iOS | Apple: iPad | Channel: Mobile Marketing | Google: Android

Opera has released its quarterly State of Mobile Advertising report for Q1 2013. The major finding is that "iOS continues to outperform all other device platforms in terms of monetization, with the highest average eCPM and greatest percentage of publisher revenue." In addition the iPhone has regained its lead (among the publishers using Opera's Mediaworks platform) over Android handsets on a global basis. This is remarkable given the overall OS lead that Android has now established. Opera observed that "Android tablets [have grown] to a small but noticeable share of the market." However [...]

Related Topics: Apple: iOS | Apple: iPhone | Channel: Mobile Marketing | Google: Android | Statistics | Statistics: Market Share | Statistics: Mobile Marketing | Statistics: Popularity & Usage

In the original Star Trek series episode called "Let That Be Your Last Battlefield," two nearly identical aliens, inflamed by mutual hatred, beam down to their decimated planet to continue their fight, seemingly for eternity. That might also be a way to describe the Apple-Android global litigation: it goes on and on, seemingly forever. A frustrated federal judge in Florida has publicly attacked both Apple and, in this case, Motorola (Google) for being unwilling to voluntarily streamline and simplify their case or engage in sincere settlement talks. According to Bloomberg, exasperated US  [...]

Related Topics: Apple | Apple: iPhone | Channel: Mobile Marketing | Google: Android | Google: Business Issues | Google: Legal | Legal | Legal: Patents | Top News

Anti-Google lobbying group FairSearch lobbed an antitrust grenade at Google's Android operating system yesterday, complaining to the European Union that it violates competition laws. Unfortunately, this week's release of the HTC First -- the "Facebook Phone" -- may cause the grenade to bounce back at FairSearch. The FairSearch Complaint We covered FairSearch's complaint earlier, that Android is a "Trojan Horse" product that forces makers to include Google products. Actually, what we covered earlier was FairSearch's statement about the complaint. It hasn't released the actual complain [...]

Related Topics: Channel: Industry | Facebook: Home | Features & Analysis | Google: Android | Google: Business Issues | Google: Critics | Top News

Android is rolling out a Google Play store redesign for phones and tablets. Created to offer a more simple and clean look, the new design will include bigger images with similarly-themed content grouped together. As users scroll down the page, recommendations will appear in a continuous stream of new content to explore. The purchasing process has also been simplified so that users can quickly access content. The updates are rolling out today for Android phones and tablets running Android 2.0 (Froyo) and above, while other Android versions will see the new design over the next few week [...]

Related Topics: Channel: Mobile Marketing | Google: Android | Google: Google Play

Yesterday, the Fairsearch.org coalition, now featuring Oracle and Nokia, filed a fresh antitrust complaint in Europe against Google. The complaint focuses on Android and calls the operating system a "'Trojan Horse' to deceive partners, monopolize the mobile marketplace and control consumer data." Fairsearch cites data showing that Android dominates the smartphone market in Europe to the tune of a roughly 70 percent market share. It also cites Google's dominance of the mobile search market (96 percent share). However, StatCounter shows a smaller OS share for Android in Europe (46 percent vs [...]

Related Topics: Channel: Mobile Marketing | Google: Android | Google: Business Issues | Google: Legal | Google: Mobile | Legal | Legal: Antitrust | Top News

According to Reuters, a judge on the US International Trade Commission (ITC)  has affirmed that Samsung infringed an Apple patent involving "text selection" (copy, cut, paste). The ITC is a "quasi-judicial federal agency" that reviews patent and trade-related disputes. The decision above is not final and must be reviewed by the full ITC body. Apple originally filed seven infringement complaints against Samsung in 2011. Last October another individual ITC judge held that Samsung infringed four of the seven Apple patents. The full ITC asked that two of those four claims be re-examined mor [...]

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Mark Zuckerberg told Marketing Land at the Facebook Home announcement today that ads will not be served on the new Cover Feed at the launch. Zuckerberg confirmed that they are planning ad units, but they won't roll out for some time. More Facebook Home Coverage Facebook Launches 'Home' – A New Android Home Screen Experience Hands On With Facebook Home Cover Feed And Chat Heads While "Facebook Home" Keeps Google, Search Is Harder To Reach Live Blog: The Facebook Android "Home" Phone Event [...]

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It was 40 years ago today that Martin Cooper, an employee at Motorola, made the first ever cell phone call from the streets of Manhattan. Cooper used the Motorola DynaTAC to dial his rival, Joel Engel, the Bell Laboratories research chief. The cell phone Cooper had helped create was ten-inches tall and weighed two and a half pounds. It would be ten years before Motorola's DynaTAC hit the market, costing $3500 in 1983. While mobile phone technology has greatly improved during the last 40 years, the mobile Internet is still relatively new. With the first iPhone in 2007, followed by the first [...]

Related Topics: Apple: iPhone | Channel: Mobile Marketing | Google: Android | Mobile Marketing

Net Applications, a site that monitors web traffic, announced today that Apple's iOS browser Safari won 61.79 percent of all mobile browser web traffic last month, a solid six-point percentage jump from February when it led with 55.41 percent of the market. At 61.79 percent, Safari ranks high above its competitors, owning 40 percent more than Android's default browser which holds the No. 2 spot in mobile browser marketshare. Android captured 21.86 percent last month, dropping from 22.82 percent in February. Safari and Android are the only browsers with marketshare in the double digits. O [...]

Related Topics: Apple: iOS | Apple: Safari | Channel: Content Marketing | Google: Android | Microsoft: Internet Explorer | Mobile Marketing | Top News