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Friday Grab Bag: Look at Android 4.0

November 18, 2011 by

Major League Baseball makes Two Moves- Hate them Both
MLB has made moving to the American League a condition for the purchase of the Houston Astros by Jim Crane, a deal that was unanimously approved by baseball owners The team will move in 2013 and so there will be two 15 team leagues, with interleague games starting at the beginning of the season.

The second move is the creation of two more Wild Card spots for the playoffs. Ohh boy, I will be on the edge of my seat waiting for that one game playoff between the wild card teams before the real playoffs begin.

I guess Selig wants this as his legacy prior to his long awaited retirement. I thought turning a blind eye to a decade of steroid usage and then crying crocodile tears was enough of a legacy for the man.

A good look at next generation Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich technology
The good folks at Slash Gear have uploaded a walk through on some of the latest features that will be included in the new Android 4.0 operating system that is just now reaching users hands. The operating system has a range of features that will continue to create a clear differentiation between it and Apple’s iOS technology.

The first feature highlighted is the Active Voice Diction feature that greatly enhances an already existing feature of the phone. It allows for pauses from the speaker and types out what you are saying as you go along.

Another feature is the Face Unlock and unlock to camera. This technology allows the phone to automatically unlock when it views a preregistered face. There are still issues to this and it can be deactivated by the user. The device will also have a quick method to unlock the camera so that you can quickly take photos. Head on over and see all of their coverage of ICS.

Klip Raises $8min Series B Round-App Popular with Sports Fans?
Klip, a startup app developer that is creating an iOS App that enables users to capture, share and view mobile videos has closed its Series B funding round after raising $8m led by Benchmark Capital with Matrix Partners and Klip founder Alain Rossman also participating. This brings the total funding for the company to $10m.

The company, which launched its first App in September, will now have Bruce Dunlevie of Benchmark join Josh Hannah of Matrix Partners and Klip Founder/CEO Alain Rossmann on the Board of Directors.

The program has a range of automated features that allow users to easily record, ports and resend klips. Video can be easily accelerated for a quick look. In an interview with TechCrunch, founder Rossmann said that the use of hashtags is very important especially among sports fans where its use is very prevalent.


A solid look at Tebow’s Throws
The ever solid Football Outsiders takes a look at how Tim Tebow has progressed as a NFL quarterback this season. Tebow baiting has been growing as a popular sport and this appears to be one of the few well researched pieces on his games.

One thing that leaped out at me was the amount of time between snap and throw, which in the Miami game was 4.4 seconds but declined every week and was 2.5 seconds by the Kansas City game five games later. It also breaks down his results according t how long he holds the ball. I would love to see a chart like this for every NFL quarterback.

PCWorld Writer Claims not too late for Windows Phone-Or Not.
A recent column by Tony Bradley in PCWorld talks about why it is not too late for Microsoft to establish Windows Phone 7 as a serious player in the smartphone arena. While acknowledging that it is late to the market he sees positives from the company.

Bradley lists the ability to take advantage of the Microsoft ecosystem, to seamlessly integrate with that ecosystem and that Microsoft, by scrapping Windows Mobile and developing Windows 7 from the ground up helped it integrate new features that will differentiate it from its rivals.

For a counter point look no further than PCWorld columnist Joseph Fieber who wrote a week earlier that Windows Phone 7 is too late and has missed the boat. Not yet having had the opportunity to try Windows Phone 7 I am staying out of this one.

A Last Laugh-Password Edition
PCMag has released a list of the 25 worst passwords. Does anybody really use 123456? Aside from my Dad?

Filed Under: Android, Apps, Athlete to Follow, Denver Broncos, Klip, Major League Baseball, NFL Tagged With: , , ,

Intel the Latest to Create Mobility App Fund

November 17, 2011 by

The company has a strong history of focusing funds on specific markets

Intel has created a $100 million investment fund called AppUp Fund that invests in a range of mobile companies and has already helped provide financing to two startups, 4tiitoo and Urban Airship. The fund will invest not only in app developers but also middleware, mobile infrastructure, and digital content.

Intel has created several funds such as this over the years including its $500 million Communications fund formed in 1999 and its recently formed $300 million Ultrabook fund. The funds are managed by Intel Capital.

Of course Intel is not just investing in any company. The ones that will get its blessing, and funding, are ones that advance the Intel architecture, something that is increasingly important for the company as it continues to see important platforms and products being built using processors from rivals such as ARM.

Just One of Many Players in Fund Space

There are other efforts at funding startups, and the number is growing with companies seeking to fund everything from efforts to create apps for a specific operating system like Android, or social media platforms like Facebook, and increasingly just to push the overall market.

There is the App Fund from VezTek that seeks to bring investors and inventors together, United Holdings Group’s Mobile App Fund that offers between $5,000 to $500,000 for developers in a range of mobile spaces from Enterprise, small business, B2B as well as social media and collaborative entertainment.

The Founders Fund and Accel Partners, original funders of Facebook, launched a $10 million fund in 2007 called the FBFund, although it is run a bit differently than others with Facebook executives participating in the vetting process.

First two Investments

One of the first two companies that have received undisclosed funding from Intel is Urban Airship, a Portland, Ore. developer of a platform that enables developers and publishers to target specific market segments with push notifications, subscriptions and geo-location info.

The second, with the snappy name of 4tiitoo, was founded in 2007 in Germany and is an open source developer that already has experience working with Intel. It developed the WeTab OS that is based on the MeeGo technology that was jointly developed by Intel, Nokia and the open source community. It is currently working on software solutions across all system layers from kernel development up to application development.

The amount of funding shows just how important major companies and venture capital firms see the emerging mobile app and social app markets. Expect this to lead to new innovations and a new generation of programs that can enhance all aspects of the user and business experience as related to the mobile space.

Filed Under: Android, Apps, Google, Startup, Tablets Tagged With: , , , , ,

Verizon: MNF a ‘Big Draw’ for NFL Mobile App

November 7, 2011 by

The ability to watch Monday Night Football on your phone — like tonight’s game between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Chicago Bears — has drawn a lot of new fans to Verizon Wireless’s NFL Mobile app, according to a company executive in charge of the service.

“The NFL Mobile app is very popular, and we continue to see growth [in user numbers],” said Mitch Dornich, Verizon Wireless marketing director for entertainment and sponsorships, in a phone interview. Though Dornich would not disclose updated subscriber numbers, last year Verizon reportedly had at least 4.5 million of its wireless customers using the NFL Mobile app — a number that has almost certainly grown thanks to the addition of live Monday Night Football games to the app’s premium-service tier this season.

“Last year, we had Thursday night games, Sunday night games, the NFL Network shows and the RedZone,” said Dornich. “This year we added Monday Night Football and it’s been a big lift. RedZone as a companion device during other broadcasts and Monday Night Football seem to be our biggest draws.”

Audio Broadcasts Also Popular

Though Verizon’s promotions of the NFL Mobile app center around live video and the company’s new, fast 4G LTE network, it is good old audio broadcasts that account for another big chunk of NFL Mobile use.

“Audio consumption is very high, probably because it’s the perfect companion if you’re doing something like driving, where you can’t watch the screen,” Dornich said. With both home and away audio broadcast choices NFL Mobile can satisfy fans of either side of any NFL contest, and couples the live audio with instantly updated text play-by-play.

According to Dornich, many Verizon wireless customers may start out with the basic free version of the NFL Mobile app, which supports features like the audio broadcasts and play-by-play, and then upgrade to the premium version after getting a taste of the video choices available. Verizon added some video-on-demand features, like in-game highlights, to the basic package this season and Dornich guessed the appetizer has enticed many fans to upgrade for the full meal deal.

For Verizon customers with 3G phones that support video (like the iPhone 4 or the iPhone 4s) the premium NFL Mobile package requires a $10 per month “Verizon Video” fee in addition to any other data plan.

“This year we put the VOD into the basic package so people could see the value,” Dornich said. Verizon is also waiving the $10 monthly fee for the rest of the 2011-12 season for customers who purchase 4G LTE phones. In and of itself, the NFL Mobile app is a bit of a promotional tool for the 4G LTE network, Dornich said.

“It’s really good for us, because [the NFL Mobile app] helps us differentiate our network from the competition,” Dornich said. “It shows customers what the network is capable of.”

Technical Challenges: Getting Good Video to Handsets

One of the biggest challenges for Verizon is optimizing the video streams to the many different handsets that are supported, which include Android smartphones as well as a long list of BlackBerry devices. “It’s not just about delivering the highest bit rate, since you may deliver something that a handset processor could choke on,” Dornich said. “The challenge for us is how to optimize the stream, so it’s right-sized for a particular handset.”

Though the NFL Mobile app is not yet supported on what is fast becoming the couch potato’s favorite companion device — the Apple iPad and its tablet imitators — Dornich said to “stay tuned” for news about iPad and NFL Mobile.

Verizon also takes care to alert potential NFL Mobile heavy users that watching a lot of video on your phone may be hazardous to the health of your monthly data plan. “We are always pretty clear up front that high usage [of NFL Mobile video] may impact your data plan,” Dornich said. One way fans can keep data consumption under control is to seek out Wi-Fi hotspots when they know they are going to watch a lot of video, Dornich said.

Verizon Wireless, which also has mobile apps for fans of the National Hockey League and IndyCar auto racing, said it is happy with the results of its $720 million deal with the NFL, which gives Verizon exclusive rights to cellphone viewing (though fans with other paid packages, like DirecTV’s Sunday Ticket or the Slingbox can also watch their services via a mobile connection).

“We’re very happy with the agreement,” Dornich said. “Our expectations have been validated.”

Filed Under: 4G LTE, Apps, iPad, iPhone, NFL, Sling Media, Verizon Wireless Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

‘Tour Tracker’ App Brings Race Action to Cycling Fans’ Phones and iPads

September 7, 2011 by

The Tour Tracker app shows not only live racing action, but also a wealth of race-related information, like elevation profiles and current standings. Credit: Tour Tracker.


The traditional time sacrifice made by cycling fans — hours spent waiting on a remote hillside for only a brief glimpse of the riders as they pass by — is now history, thanks to a revolutionary app that brings full live race action to phones and handheld devices.

At the recent USA Pro Cycling Challenge in Colorado, many fans were seen alongside race courses with mobile devices in hand, watching both the live race in front of them as well as the television-quality coverage provided by the Tour Tracker application, a free app for iPhones, iPads and Android devices.

Like the live TV coverage from the Versus cable channel, the Tour Tracker app brought live in-race coverage to fans’ mobile platforms, allowing people to both see the race in person — if for only a few seconds — while still following every second of action via their portable devices.

“It’s the perfect example of technology really solving a problem, instead of just being a cool device to play with,” said Rob O’Dea, one of the two brains behind Tour Tracker. As a professionally published cycling photographer (as well as a longtime successful marketing executive), O’Dea knows well the problem cycling fans have traditionally endured when it comes to watching races live: You might spend hours by the side of some remote mountain pass with no idea what was going on until you saw the racers quickly pass you by.

With the Tour Tracker app, all that is changed since fans can basically watch an entire stage unfold from start to finish, combining the best of the couch-potato TV-watcher and on-the-scene worlds. Sponsored by electronics retailer and pro cycling team sponsor Radio Shack for the USA Pro Challenge, the “Shack Tracker” was the buzz of the crowd lining the streets in Aspen and Vail during the two USA Pro stops there in late August, with people watching the race on their phones and iPads while waiting for the cyclists to arrive at their viewing spot.

Cycling fans in Aspen watch the USA Pro Challenge on an iPad while waiting for the racers to reach town. Credit: MSR.


Though Tour Tracker isn’t a brand new phenomenon — “it’s an overnight success that has been years in the making,” joked O’Dea — it’s safe to say that the combination of application maturity and great mobile-viewing platforms like the iPad are the perfect storm for an app that’s perfect for its intended audience — zealous cycling fans who want to watch both the entire race and the few seconds of live action, who can now do both things at once.

Close-up of the Tour Tracker app in action on an iPad. Credit: MSR.


Though O’Dea won’t give out audience download-number specifics (he says those stats are the ownership of the individual races like the USA Pro Challenge or the Tour de France, which Tour Tracker licenses its app to on a race-by-race basis) it’s a safe guess that it has probably already attracted hundreeds of thousands if not millions of viewers who learned of the app’s existence while watching the Tour de France or the USA Pro Challenge on TV this year.

Though this year’s app was already chock-full of important race information beyond the live action — such as elevation profiles, maps and even an fan-interaction forum via Twitter — O’Dea said that he and Tour Tracker co-founder Allan Padgett (one of the original architects of Acrobat, now part of software giant Adobe) have even bigger plans for 2012. For cycling fans, that’s like Christmas in July — knowing that they may never again miss a moment of the Tour de France, no matter where they may be.

A race fan follows the live coverage while watching course-side in downtown Vail during the USA Pro Cycling Challenge. Credit: MSR.

Filed Under: Android, Apps, iPad, iPhone, Live sports via mobile, Tour de France, Twitter Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Mobile Sports Viewers Winners in AT&T ‘Sideloading’ Move

May 18, 2011 by
The Samsung Infuse supports applications from sources outside AT&T Marketplace

The Samsung Infuse 4G is the first AT&T device to support app 'sideloading.' Photo source: Samsung.com

AT&T finally backed down, and not a moment too soon (for its own sake).

The wireless giant said today it will allow AT&T smartphone customers with Android mobile devices access to sports and other applications through the Internet and well-stocked but unsanctioned app stores.

Before today’s move, AT&T had a long-standing policy to prohibit applications unless they were downloaded through AT&T AppCenter, which is a proprietary marketplace run by the communications giant. The Samsung Infuse 4G is the first AT&T device capable of running applications from other sources, which is a process called “sideloading.”

According to a Wired.com report, pressure from Amazon.com forced AT&T’s hand.  Greater than 3,800 Android applications, including a new version of the blockbuster Angry Birds game, were unavailable to AT&T users because they could not access Amazon.com’s newly launched Amazon Appstore for Android.

While Angry Birds was clearly the driver, NFL team-themed clock widgets, free TackMaster horse racing selections, and Mixed Martial Arts applications were also beyond the reach of AT&T customers before today’s move.  

Although The Samsung Infuse 4G is the first AT&T device to allow sideloading, the HTC Inspire 4G, Samsung Captivate, HTC Aria and LG Thrive are other AT&T devices slated to receive new-found downloading freedom through a network software upgrade, according to Wired.com.

AT&T’s move is good for mobile sports consumers. As sports apps continue to emerge as key for many smartphone users, restricted access to marketplaces could enable cellular phone service providers to tack a surcharge onto popular or niche-oriented applications that enable viewing. Wouldn’t it suck to pay $9.99 to view a season’s worth of broadcasts of your favorite team only to discover that your neighbor purchased the same application for $7.99 because his wireless communications provider supported sideloading and yours didn’t?

Filed Under: Amazon, AT&T, Samsung Infuse, Sideloading, Top News Tagged With: , , , , ,

Score Media Beefs Up to Battle ESPN, Yahoo

May 12, 2011 by

Canadian Benjie Levy is committed to giving mobile sports consumers in North America choice.  Chief operating officer and executive vice president of Score Media, Levy was the driver behind his company’s May 12 deal to acquire SportsTap.

The SportsTap acquisition means Score Media has the third largest U.S. audience of sports consumers on smartphone sports applications, trailing only Goliaths ESPN and Yahoo.  

A corporate challenger speaks

In a statement, Levy said, “ScoreMobile’s acquisition of SportsTap brings together two innovative and popular services and positions us well to deliver even more exciting experiences for sports fans and creative solutions for our advertising partners.”

Two mobile sports application worth a look

Launched in 2007, SportsTap is available free through iPhone App Store and Android Market for free. Providing real-time NFL, Major League Baseball, NBA, NHL, NCAA, NASCAR, Futbol, Golf and Tennis scores, SportsTap includes drill downs to stats, player news and top stories. The app has automatic refreshes, and is an excellent choice for the mobile sports viewer on a budget.

Terms of the SportsTap acquisition were not disclosed, but ScoreMobile said it would operate SportsTap as a stand-alone company. Based in Toronto, Score Media operates The Score.  A more robust application that includes a strong take on sports news and video, The Score is a portal for sports fans with a strong take. For example, The Score featured May 22 an excellent blog post and video about James Hardin’s flop against the Dallas Mavericks that most mobile sports viewers would consider a value-add to their sports knowledge.

Competition guards again mobile sports monopolies

Score Media’s acquisition of SportsTap is significant because it means not all companies are willing to cede the mobile sports application market to ESPN and Yahoo. If Score Media or others are able to retain enough consumers to woo big-budget advertisers and sponsors, it will likely be able to forge into live video broadcast. In turn, that would break ESPN’s potential stranglehold on live sports via mobile devices, and a charge-what-it-wants mentality. Consumers would benefit. 

Is Levy an emerging industry’s Ted Turner?

With its bold move to acquire SpartsTap, ScoreMedia bears close watching, and prime placement on the menu of your mobile device. That is, unless you don’t believe consumers gained when Ted Turner acquired the Atlanta Braves and created a super station in the early days of cable.

Filed Under: Apps, Benjie Levy, ESPN, ScoreMobile, SportsTap, Yahoo Tagged With: , , , ,
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