Market Dialogue Report Are Mobile Apps the New Language of the Cell Phone Sector? Mobile Industry Positioning in 2009 Apps – The New Language of Mobile Apple has done more than just introduce a new way of computing to millions of their handset customers – they have changed the entire communications landscape of the mobile application industry in the US market. Prior to the iPhone, cell phones were primarily voice and messaging devices, while mobile applications were the domain of early adopters and IT managers. In addition, the walled garden put up by the wireless carriers defined the limited application market, and all communications for mobile application companies were targeted directly at working with carriers. Apple’s iPhone has changed all of that. No longer is the application delivery discussion around carrier’s walled gardens, but instead it’s around platforms. Consumers are increasingly discussing not mobile services, but mobile “apps,” and they are judging mobile platforms based on their ability to deliver a range of applications (entertainment and reference apps being the most popular). As an example, the Palm Pre went from being praised for its interface, to being criticized for not having its app development ready at launch time. This shift has permanently changed the industry landscape and has fundamentally changed how mobilerelated companies must communicate with the market. Summary of Recommendations The language centers on apps and app stor: “App Store” is becoming a general use trademark store for all mobile application delivery platforms. Service providers are no longer the center of the app discussion: The service provider discussion is centered on what phones/platforms they carry and service quality. Their own media and application platforms are not central to the current market dialogue. The consumer media influentials are also industry influentials: A round of calls to industry executives found they were reading the same tech blogs as the early adopters (e.g., engadget). However, business publications remain critical targets for industry communications. Watch iPhone user habits to prepare for the next hyped phase: iPhone users are not only setting the benchmark, they may be indicators of what new mobile service apps will rise in popularity in the future (e.g., video). Be prepared with enterprise messaging: The discussion may split between consumer- focused platforms (e.g., iPhone) and business-focused platforms (e.g., Palm Pre). As a result, an enterprise-oriented market discussion may emerge. The general tech media is increasing the focus on mobile: IT and tech spending projections are now focused on mobile applications. As a result, we expect business model stories to become increasingly important. - - - - The Market Projections are Coming Out “Recent research from Compass Intelligence, a global consulting and market analytics company, predicts that U.S. businesses will spend about $11.6 billion on mobile applications by 2012. The study also finds that applications are the second fastest growing IT category of spending, in which mobile application spending is a high-growth component.” - TMCNet – Sept 2008 www.fortexgroup.com For more information: Ephraim Cohen at +1-212-917-215-5413 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Copyright 2009 The Fortex Group Page 1 Market Dialogue Report Are Mobile Apps the New Language of the Cell Phone Sector? Mobile Industry Positioning in 2009 iPhone Users Are Setting the Benchmark for the Mobile App Industry Recently release data on iPhone users from Nielsen shows an early indication of new trends:      37% watch video on their phone (6x more than typical sub) 98% use data features on their phone 88% use in the mobile internet (4x more than typical sub) 75% download apps (5x more than typical sub) 72% use location-based services (7x more than typical sub) The data shows that IPhone users are also a diverse group demographically, with 36% age 35-54, 29% age 25-34, 17% age 55+, 13% age 18-24 and 5% age 13-17. What App Platform Names Are Most Popular The following chart demonstrates the recent share of articles referring to specific app platforms. Note that the smallest bars are articles that mentioned the specific application store name for that platform. What we are seeing is that only the iPhone App Store is catching on as a name. News articles mentioning platforms Blog Buzz Around Top Platforms – iPhone Dominates www.fortexgroup.com For more information: Ephraim Cohen at +1-212-917-215-5413 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Copyright 2009 The Fortex Group Page 2 Market Dialogue Report Are Mobile Apps the New Language of the Cell Phone Sector? Mobile Industry Positioning in 2009 Carriers, so far, are not a part of the App Store Conversation The hottest app stores are owned and operated by platform manufacturers, not carriers. This may be the end of the walled garden, as new operator stores are rumored to be far more open. The carrier discussion has been, at least for the moment, relegated to that of infrastructure providers. The following excerpt of an October 2008 News.com article, with an analyst quote from Forrester Research, is a good indicator of current attitudes to the wireless carrier industry. …Forrester's Golvin believes that wireless carriers see the writing on the wall, and they realize they must be more open to new applications if they hope to drive usage on their networks. "It's true that the role of the carrier as the key distributor of applications is dissipating," he said. "But the upside is that these same operators still stand to make money on their data plans." The danger for wireless operators is that by ceding application distribution to handset makers or platform developers, they are essentially making themselves into dumb pipe providers. This is a wireless operator's worst fear and one they have already begun to see play out in the broadband market. The Language of Mobile Apps It’s all about the “app.” The only two stores not using that term are Windows and Nokia. However, although they both have significant market share as platforms, their app stores are not generating significant buzz in the US. What do the reviewers care about? App Store Features The following comparison chart from Gizmodo is a good example of the features media focus on when rating app stores. Developers and marketers also need to communicate around these features as they target the same influencers. www.fortexgroup.com For more information: Ephraim Cohen at +1-212-917-215-5413 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Copyright 2009 The Fortex Group Page 3 Market Dialogue Report Are Mobile Apps the New Language of the Cell Phone Sector? Mobile Industry Positioning in 2009 Who are the influencers? The following list of top social and news media influencers was based on the volume of articles, links and comments for each publication. This list does not include business media which write fewer articles, but with a larger market impact. It is important to note that several media sources that rank high as overall influencers also focus on individual platforms such as iPhone or Blackberry. This is an indicator of the broad industry influence of a particular platform. For example, on messaging features, Blackberry is the benchmark, while on apps, iPhone is the benchmark. This is a critical point for communications professionals who must keep in mind how the market may discuss and compare their products and services. INFLUENCER NAME Gizmodo The Boy Genius Report wireandmedia Mashable! TechCrunch The iPhone Blog Engadget The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) Read/WriteWeb Ipod2YouStore » iPod2YouStore MobileCrunch Engadget CrackBerry.com blogs GigaOM VentureBeat BerryReview.com Mobilewhack.com CNET News Gizmodo Techdirt mocoNews.net AppleInsider CrunchGear www.fortexgroup.com For more information: Ephraim Cohen at +1-212-917-215-5413 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Copyright 2009 The Fortex Group Page 4 Market Dialogue Report Are Mobile Apps the New Language of the Cell Phone Sector? Mobile Industry Positioning in 2009 About Market Dialogue Reports Market Dialogue reports provide insight and analysis to help companies determine what information, messaging, and positioning will be most effective in the conversation taking place in the market (i.e., the market’s dialogue). The purpose of a market dialogue analysis is to take a snapshot of how a business market is discussing a particular topic and then determine what course the discussion is likely to take over the next year. This information should be used to adjust marketing and communications messages to ensure the messages are timely, relevant and reflective of what the market is saying. About The Fortex Group The Fortex Group is a strategic communications agency specializing in high-impact reputation programs for the convergence industries – media, communications and high-tech. Whether targeting a complete audience or specific executives and influencers, our success is measured not by tactical output, but by the actual shift in awareness and reputation. www.fortexgroup.com For more information: Ephraim Cohen at +1-212-917-215-5413 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Copyright 2009 The Fortex Group Page 5