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Comment by Bruce Eric Montgomery on November 1, 2009 at 1:41am

Looking for Digital Media Mavens who want to use Clear WiMax Mobile or Fixed Broadband Internet serice in Chicago. Please contact me at 773-410-0608 or via email at TATVSHOW@YAHOO.COM

Comment by Bruce Eric Montgomery on October 21, 2009 at 3:44pm

I agree. There has got to be a better way. Let's get this fixed. Thanks.

Comment by Mark Smithivas on October 21, 2009 at 1:01am

Is there any way to get these comments from any of the Ning subgroups on The Chicago Convergence emailed to you in full-text? It is incredibly annoying to have to log into this site to read what people are posting. There is also no RSS feeds to anything, as far as I can tell.

Comment by Bruce Eric Montgomery on October 19, 2009 at 11:29am

Learn how to differentiate, engage with end users and build brand loyalty by addressing the emotional needs of consumers

CHICAGO – October 19, 2009 – Mobile Monday (MoMo) Chicago, a community of mobile professionals that promotes the mobile industry and fosters cooperation and networking, today announced the details for its October event, which will provide a snapshot of a veteran mobile UI designer's point of view on the emotions in UX design.

WHO: Alfred Liu, Senior Mobile User Interaction (UI) Designer for Motorola

WHAT: Presentation of a veteran mobile UI designer's perspective on the emotions in UX design followed by networking; light refreshments will be served and there will be a quick tour of the TechNexus startup incubation space

WHEN: Monday, October 19th from 6:00 – 7:30 p.m.

WHERE: TechNexus
200 S. Wacker Drive, 15th Floor, Chicago, IL 60606
Directions: http://www.technexus.org/GettingHere

Space is limited, so advance registration is recommended and free: http://momochioct2009.eventbrite.com

Note: Participants must sign-in at the reception desk on the first floor, and picture ID is required

WHY: The mobile application market has exploded since the Apple App Store opened in July 2008. More than 85,000 apps became available in a little more than 1 year (about 8 apps per hour). In addition, the Android market opened in October 2008 with a quicker approval process, and promises a larger user base as the number of Android phones grows. As UI and UX designers, how can we attract and engage consumers in this crowded and quick-changing attention economy? Beyond user-friendliness, what are the new boundaries, thinking and tools that user experience/user interface designers should engage with?

“We’re expecting a big crowd for this event given the relevance of the topic to a range of disciplines, from product managers and business managers to marketing/advertising professionals and engineers,” said Ray Villares, director of Mobile Monday Chicago.

Started from his graduate course work, Mr. Liu will capture the current research and thoughts on how companies can differentiate from the competition, engage with end-users and build brand loyalty by addressing the emotional needs of consumers. For the past five years, Mr. Liu has been defining compelling user experiences for multimedia and social media applications at Motorola. Prior to joining Motorola, Alfred was an ERP and B2B systems analyst for Zurich Insurance, and a consultant for IBM Global Services.

About Mobile Monday Chicago
Mobile Monday (MoMo) Chicago is a community of mobile professionals that promotes the mobile industry and fosters cooperation and networking. MoMo chapters are active in more than 70 cities worldwide, and new locations launch monthly. MoMo Chicago’s main activities are the community’s face-to-face gatherings on every third Monday and virtual networking through the use of the Blog and mailing-group. Follow MoMo Chicago on Twitter: @MoMoChicago.

About TechNexus
TechNexus is a coworking and incubator space, home to 28 new companies and used by more than 2,000 execs a month. TechNexus is a collaboration with the Illinois Tech Association and their 600+ member companies, designed to bring the community together in a more collaborative way. For more information, please go to www.technexus.org

Contact:

Kristie Heins Fox
MoMo Chicago
312.329.3985
heinsfoxk@ruderfinn.com
# # #

About Mobile Monday Chicago
Mobile Monday (MoMo) Chicago is a community of mobile professionals that promotes the mobile industry and fosters cooperation and networking. MoMo chapters are active in more than 70 cities worldwide, and new locations launch monthly. MoMo Chicago’s main activities are the community’s face-to-face gatherings on every third Monday and virtual networking through the use of the Blog and mailing-group. Follow MoMo Chicago on Twitter: @MoMoChicago.

Comment by Bruce Eric Montgomery on July 29, 2009 at 2:01pm

iOffer.com Sellers Increasingly Select mPayy to Provide Buyers Faster, More Secure Checkout Experiences

Growth Confirms Demand for Debit-Based Mobile Commerce Solutions

CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--mPayy, a scalable online and mobile payment provider, today announced that iOffer.com, an innovative, alternative auction and trading site, has successfully completed the deployment of mPayy technology to provide seamless, faster experiences for buyers and sellers.

“The future of retail lies in mobile commerce,” said Ryan Boyce, President and CEO of iOffer.com. “We decided to include mPayy as an online payment alternative because we view its technology as a strategic enabler for catapulting our site into the next generation of e-commerce.”

“We’re very encouraged by the month-over-month growth in sellers selecting mPayy as one of their online payment solutions on iOffer,” said Conrad Sheehan, founder and CEO of mPayy. “Our highly scalable payment platform for Internet retailers improves margins by reducing fraud and transaction costs.”

mPayy’s secure debit solution provides iOffer buyers an alternative payment solution to credit cards. Buyers making purchases on iOffer can instantly open an mPayy personal account to make quick, simple and secure payments from their checking accounts with just a cell phone number and password.

mPayy technology empowers iOffer’s sellers to take their stores “on the road” by transforming their cell phones into mobile point of sale systems. iOffer sellers experience significant savings on every transaction versus competing online or mobile payment services with mPayy Small Business accounts.

About mPayy, Inc (www.mpayy.com)

mPayy is a secure online and mobile payment provider that enables merchant processing for any sized online retail business, plus quick and simple purchasing for buyers. The company’s highly scalable payment platform for Internet retailers improves margins by reducing fraud and transaction costs. mPayy has created an efficient and ubiquitous payment service that enables profitable micro-payments; easy, yet secure purchases of digital content and physical goods; and free person-to-person payments. mPayy is fundamentally changing the economics of both e-commerce and m-commerce.

About iOffer

iOffer fosters the relationships between Sellers and Buyers in a venue based on honest negotiations between individuals. And since launch, the goal has remained the same: to bring real people together to buy and sell, to exchange ideas and information in an engaging and entertaining manner within a safe and secure environment.

Comment by Bruce Eric Montgomery on May 13, 2009 at 10:40am

Google Android Will Grow 900 Percent in 2009, Analysts Say

Google’s Android mobile OS is expected see a growth rate of 900 percent in 2009, Strategy Analytics is predicting in a new report. The Apple iPhone OS will follow behind it, as the second fastest-growing smartphone OS, and the RIM BlackBerry is also in good shape, as the second-largest overall smartphone OS in the U.S. in 2008.

Google’s Android operating system is expected to grow by 900 percent in 2009, encouraged by vendors, developers and operators, a May 11 report from research firm Strategy Analytics is predicting.

The report, “Global Smartphone Vendor Market Share by Region: 2008,” breaks down smartphone market growth by region and operating system.

“The Android mobile operating system from Google gained early traction in the United States in the second half of 2008 and it is gradually spreading its presence into Europe and Asia during 2009,” wrote Tom Kang, the author of the report, in a statement.

Kang additionally expects the iPhone OS to grow 79 percent in 2009—outpaced only by Android, which is expanding from a lower user base.

Neil Mawston, director at Strategy Analytics, also remarked in the statement that Android’s “relatively low-cost licensing model, its semi-open-source structure and Google’s support for cloud services have encouraged companies such as HTC, Motorola, Samsung, T-Mobile, Vodafone and others to support the Android operating system. Android is now in a good position to become a top-tier player in smartphones over the next two to three years.”

Despite the global economic climate, global smartphone shipments reached 152 million units in 2008, and Kang’s report states Asia Pacific is still the biggest market for smartphones, followed by North America and then Western Europe.

Core markets for Symbian have been sluggish Kang additionally writes, but the RIM BlackBerry has also seen success, pulling ahead of Microsoft Windows Mobile to become the second largest smartphone OS in 2008.


Bruce Montgomery
Montgomery & Company
Technology | Innovation | Commerce
773-410-0608
onepresence@yahoo.com

Comment by Bruce Eric Montgomery on April 29, 2009 at 5:06pm

Palm Extends webOS Early Access Program for Developers

Company Reveals Expanded SDK Program, Plans for Integrated Cloud Services, and Palm OS Emulator Application from MotionApps at Web 2.0 Expo


SAN FRANCISCO----Here at the Web 2.0 Expo, Palm, Inc. (Nasdaq: PALM) today revealed additional details regarding its developer program for the new Palm® webOS™ platform. In a keynote address, Palm’s senior vice president of Application Software and Services, Michael Abbott, said that Palm is expanding its early access program for the Palm Mojo Software Development Kit (SDK), and discussed the company’s plans for integrating cloud services into the new platform. Palm also today announced an application from MotionApps that will allow legacy Palm OS® applications to run on webOS devices.

The Mojo SDK, previously available only to a select group of partners, will be provided to a broader set of interested developers that apply for access to the program at the Palm Developer Network website (http://developer.palm.com). Access to the program initially will be limited as the tools and systems continue to be refined and improved, with general availability scheduled for later this year.

“Developers are an incredibly important part of the webOS ecosystem, and we’re eager to get the SDK into their hands,” said Michael Abbott, senior vice president, Application Software and Services, Palm, Inc. “Now that the SDK will be available to a broader base of developers, we think the enthusiasm for webOS will only grow and accelerate. We’re very excited to work with developers to make this unique development environment even better.”

With Mojo, developers have the ability to integrate their applications into core webOS functionality, such as linked contacts, layered calendars, multitasking, notifications and GPS capabilities.(1) webOS applications run natively on the device. They don’t depend on any server connection to run and can cache data locally. Providing developers with the freedom to integrate unique webOS functionality and services into their applications paves the way for a rich catalog of innovative offerings for webOS users.

Palm webOS is a new kind of mobile platform. Standard web technologies, such as HTML, JavaScript and CSS, are deeply integrated into the webOS architecture, enabling a much broader developer community to easily create compelling applications. The ability to customize webOS applications will appeal to developers and ultimately benefit consumers with a unique and differentiated user experience.

“webOS makes mobile application development incredibly easy – we were able to get a version of Pandora running in no time,” said Tom Conrad, chief technology officer, Pandora. “And because webOS has true multitasking capabilities, Pandora runs elegantly in the background while you’re using other applications. The unobtrusive notification bar lets you know what’s currently playing, and allows you to pause and play without having to go back into the application. It’s an incredibly powerful and flexible platform.”

“The webOS functionality and integration opportunities provide a richer experience for moviegoers on the go,” said Ted Hong, chief marketing officer for Fandango. “With Fandango’s webOS application, you can watch trailers and buy tickets, pick your showtime, which is automatically added to your calendar, then get directions to the theatre, and easily forward the showtime to friends or family. You can even create a reminder to let you know when a specific movie is opening so that you can buy tickets in advance on Fandango. The webOS technology helps further our goal of making moviegoing experience as convenient as possible.”(1)

Integrated Cloud Services

Palm also announced that it would deploy its first Palm branded cloud service. Cloud services are software resources provided over the Internet. These services can deliver direct benefits to the end user, such as giving them access to their favorite web applications, or can be incorporated by developers into their applications to enhance the end-user experience.

When the Mojo SDK is broadly released later this year, it will include a developer-facing offering called the Mojo Messaging Service, an XMPP publish/subscribe service. The Mojo Messaging Service is an elegant, standards-based way to exchange information over the Internet. When new information is available, it is “published” to the cloud and all interested parties who are subscribers are notified that new information is available. This will allow developers to push live content to their applications or services. The Mojo Messaging Service initially will have a limited feature set and service level that will evolve over time.

Palm OS Emulator Application

Palm also announced that MotionApps (www.motionapps.com) is creating an emulator application that will allow most Palm OS applications to run on webOS devices. The application, called “Classic,” will be available for purchase when the Palm Pre™ phone becomes available from Sprint in the first half of 2009, and gives users peace of mind as they transition to Palm’s new webOS.

Since Palm OS applications running in Classic won’t be able to leverage core webOS functionality, Palm is working with partners to ensure that popular Palm OS applications are made available on the webOS platform and are optimized to take advantage of everything it has to offer. In the meantime, the MotionApps Classic application will allow customers who have invested in the Palm OS platform to use Palm OS applications they’ve grown to love and depend upon on their new webOS devices.

About Palm, Inc.

Palm, Inc. is a leading mobile products company, creating instinctive yet powerful mobile products that enable people to better manage their lives on the go. The company’s products for consumers, mobile professionals and businesses include Palm® Treo™, Pre™ and Centro™ phones, as well as software, services and accessories.

Palm products are sold through select Internet, retail, reseller and wireless operator channels throughout the world, and at Palm online stores (http://www.palm.com/store).

More information about Palm, Inc. is available at http://www.palm.com.

Bruce Montgomery
773-410-0608
http://twitter.com/onepresence

Comment by Bruce Eric Montgomery on April 16, 2009 at 10:58am

How Apple Put Everyone In an App State of Mind

By Om Malik, April 13, 2009

(gigaom.com) -- Sometime in the near future, Apple (AAPL) is going to announce that a billion little apps have been download for use on its iPhone and iPod touch platforms. As of yesterday, about 945 million apps had been download. That translates to about 31 apps per iPhone/iPod touch out there. As it crosses the billion-apps mark, the company is showing that once again it has been able to take an existing, mundane business and turn it on its head. It panned a lead mine and struck gold. When the company took on the seemingly moribund music downloads business and turned it into a constantly clanging cash register, its detractors often bemoaned its autocratic ways and tight control of the iPod ecosystem. Apple, nevertheless, changed consumers’ behavior from downloading music on Napster to actually paying for it, and in the process, it became the largest digital downloads retailer.

Something similar is going on with mobile apps and the iPhone/iPod touch ecosystem. Apple certainly isn’t the first company to have apps for its platform — that honor goes to Palm (PALM), which ruled the PDA planet, thanks to its thousands of developers. Nokia (NOK), Microsoft (MSFT) and RIM (RIMM) have had developers writing clever apps for their Symbian, Windows Mobile and BlackBerry operating systems.

But neither the handset makers, the carriers, or even the OS vendors were able to create a user experience that allowed us to browse, search and download the app that really mattered. Perhaps they didn’t care enough — so long as the mobile industry maintained its status quo. Mike Rowehl, a mobile industry insider, writes:

The entire system was deadlocked cause no one with the power to was really interested in shaking it up. We kept getting fed excuse after excuse justifying the general lack of forward progress on all fronts. But then something comes along that makes it easy, often profitable, and frequently even fun to develop for mobile again. Apple has exposed the fact that the lack of progress in mobile wasn’t something inherent in the system. That someone with the right motivation can really shake things up and get the train moving again.

Since Apple’s iTunes for apps, almost everyone has jumped on the App-store bandwagon. RIM just announced its very competent App World store for BlackBerry. Microsoft is cooking one up, and Nokia has Ovi. Google has its Android Market. Every carrier is cooking up its own version of the app store. The current app store market is no different from the digital music download business in 2005. The market confusion helped Apple eventually become the dominant player, with Amazon presenting the only viable challenge.

Ask mobile app developers, and an overwhelming number are going for iPhone platform first, everything else later. Rowehl writes:

I’ve developed for just about every platform, and I know the ecosystem extremely well. It’s not that I’m blind to everything else. I know everything else that’s out there, and because of that I’ve chosen to develop for iPhone.

He’s not alone, as I pointed out earlier. According to some reports, Nokia’s Ovi store is being ignored by developers, even though Nokia ships many millions of smartphones every month. It seems folks at Nokia are aware of the problem at hand, though I’m not sure they quite get the extent of the apathy among developers. Earlier this month, when I met Anssi Vanjoki, executive V-P of markets at Nokia, the discussion unsurprisingly shifted toward Apple’s iPhone and the developer momentum.

“There is momentum with other platforms, which is good for the industry, as developers are now thinking about developing for mobile devices,” Vanjoki said. “But the situation is not static, and when products like N97 come to market, lots of people will develop for Nokia. We have to show volume, ease of development and show them (developers) the money.” Nokia clearly has its work cut out for it, if developers like Rowehl are any indication.

From a consumer perspective, what really matters to me is the long-tail of apps that are easy to find, download and install. I may have given up on AT&T’s (T) iPhone, but I have not given up on the iPhone platform. Why? Because of the applications.

On my iPod Touch, I have three dozen apps installed, only a handful of them (like Facebook, NetNewsFire and Last.fm) that are free. Some are part of my daily work and play life: Sonus Controller, MLB.com At Bat, Plusmo’s Mobicast, Evernote, Skype and Truphone. There are others that are indispensable to me: iBP, Weight Track and Blood Sugar. Prior to downloading these apps, I recorded my daily blood pressure, weight and glucose levels on a piece of paper, entering the data into a spreadsheet later and mailing it to my doctor every month. These obscure apps aren’t likely to be on the top 10 anytime soon, but they are on my top 10.

As Apple’s latest TV spots for the iPhone say, “There is an app for pretty much everything.”

With nearly a billion downloads, you can say that again. To all the other contenders, good luck catching up.

(*) 945 million apps divided by 30 million iPod touches and iPhones.

Bruce Montgomery
http://twitter.com/onepresence
773-410-0608

Comment by Bruce Eric Montgomery on February 25, 2009 at 11:01pm

New Fund to Accelerate Creation of Rich Mobile Content, Applications and Services

Adobe Systems Incorporated (Nasdaq:ADBE) and Nokia Corporation (NYSE: NOK) announce a $10 million Open Screen Project fund designed to help developers create applications and services for mobile, desktop and consumer electronics devices using the Adobe Flash® Platform.

The new fund is a result of the Open Screen Project, an industry-wide initiative of more than 20 industry leaders set to enable a consistent experience for web browsing and standalone applications. Additional Open Screen Project partners are expected to join the fund in the future.

“We are excited about the Open Screen Project Fund and the possibilities it offers to designers and developers worldwide,” said David Wadhwani, general manager and vice president, Platform Business Unit at Adobe. “With close to 40 percent of all new mobile devices shipped with Flash Lite in 2008, the fund will enable more developers to bring their rich content and services to a large number of mobile users.”

“The Open Screen Project Fund encourages the use of Adobe tools and existing developer skills to create exciting and unique Flash applications for millions of Nokia devices,” said Tero Ojanpera, EVP, Nokia Services. “With more than 300 million Flash enabled devices in market, we will support these developers through the Forum Nokia developer community while providing a more targeted distribution channel to consumers with Nokia’s Ovi Store.”

Developers are invited to submit concepts for applications that are based on the Adobe Flash Platform, will run on Nokia devices, and will work on multiple screens, including mobile, desktop and consumer electronics devices.
Applications will be reviewed for how innovative and compelling the user experience is, how robust the application or planned implementation is, and how well it exploits the capabilities and features of Nokia devices, Adobe Flash and Adobe AIR™, which enables developers to use proven web technologies to build applications that extend outside the browser.

Projects submitted for development will be reviewed by a group of multi-screen application and services experts from Open Screen Project partners including Adobe and Nokia. Focus areas include: entertainment; social networking; productivity; gaming; news and information. Developers retain all rights to their applications while Adobe and Nokia have the right to evaluate, test and promote the content.

For more information and details on how to apply, visit www.openscreenproject.org .

Announced in May 2008, the Open Screen Project is designed to enable a consistent runtime environment across screens. The initiative is dedicated to enable web content, standalone applications and full web browsing across televisions, set-top boxes, mobile devices and other consumer electronics that take advantage of Adobe AIR™ and Adobe Flash Platform capabilities.

The Adobe Flash Platform is the de facto standard for delivering breakthrough applications, content and video on the web. Flash Player content reaches over 98 percent of Internet-enabled desktops, and over 80 percent of online videos worldwide are viewed using Adobe Flash technology, making Flash the number one platform for video on the web. Adobe Flash Lite delivers rich experiences across mobile devices and other consumer electronics. Adobe Flash Player is a key component of the Adobe Flash Platform, a complete system of integrated tools, frameworks, clients and servers. For more information, visit www.adobe.com/flashplatform

About Adobe Systems Incorporated

Adobe revolutionizes how the world engages with ideas and information — anytime, anywhere and through any medium. For more information, visit www.adobe.com.

About Forum Nokia

Nokia's global developer program, Forum Nokia connects developers to tools, technical information, support, and distribution channels they can use to build and market applications around the globe. From offices in the U.S., Europe, India, Japan, China, and Singapore, Forum Nokia provides technical and business development support to developers and operators to assist them in achieving their goal of successfully launching applications and services to consumers and enterprises. More information is available at www.forum.nokia.com.

Comment by Bruce Eric Montgomery on February 12, 2009 at 10:12am

Facebook Developer Garage Chicago - 2/20/09

Hey Chicago Developers!

On Friday, February 20th, there will be a Facebook Developer Garage in Chicago. Please come out for a deep dive into Facebook Platform. Share ideas, find partners for your latest project, check out app demonstrations, seek technical support or just socialize and network with people like you.

RSVP for the event here:
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=59423674771

Bruce Montgomery
tatvshow@yahoo.com
773-410-0608

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