Twilio acts as universal translator between the arcane language of telecom networks and the new speak of the developer world. Apparently VCs are buying into the power of its APIs, and they’re investing accordingly. Read more »
The reverse-lookup service is now available to developers who can find a use for it, although users should rest assured that telemarketing operations won’t gain access to this treasure trove of numbers. Read more »
Google Glass is still leagues short having the thriving developer community of Android, but at I/O Google began seeding that app ecosystems with the help of six big-name web and media brands. Read more »
What better way to draw developers to your platform than by hosting a developers conference? That’s exactly what Dropbox is going to do. Read more »
Developers who make apps for Amazon do so because it’s convenient, not because they believe Kindle Fire hardware is great or they’re widely anticipating it overtaking Android or iOS someday. Read more »
In the push to keep developers building for Facebook and keeping users on its apps and products, Facebook launched updates to its developer set of tools on Thursday. Read more »
Twilio wants to become the universal translator of communications protocols in the cloud. The new service acts as a bridge between the SIP-based world of enterprise PBX networks to any other type of calling technology. Read more »
While questions remain about a company that makes companies bid for developers, DeveloperAuction is taking on $2.7 million in first-round funding. Read more »
The OneAPI Exchange will get carriers into the identity verification business, but more significantly it’s the first carrier developer service designed to work universally across all carriers’ networks. Read more »
A company in the United Kingdom is using Kickstarter to fund an open-source version of its software for simply developing apps. It’s one way to help more people learn to code. Read more »
DeveloperAuction co-founder Matt Mickiewicz responds to concerns raised about the company, which runs a disruptive recruitment website, and says venture capitalists have shown investment interest. Read more »
Verizon is now reviewing iPhone and Android apps, but not based on how fun or useful they are. It’s concerned about the resources they consume, which means Facebook and many popular games get docked. Read more »
Ford and GM opened up their closely guarded connected car platforms to developers at CES, which means we’ll soon see a plethora of apps appearing in our dashboards. But the automakers aren’t Google. They’ll be careful about what exactly they’ll let into the vehicle. Read more »
AT&T is using the big CES pulpit to talk up its work in services and applications, rather than just unveil its latest handsets. It’s exploring a new universal phone number APIs, expanding its smart home program and launching a new video streaming service. Read more »
MongoDB startup MongoLab has built a seemingly solid business delivering the popular NoSQL database via the Platform as a Service model. The trick, CEO Will Shulman says, is knowing how to sell to developers and understanding why someone would use MongoDB in the first place. Read more »
The Wholesale Application Community’s dream of a single pool of APIs shared among all global carriers may have died, but Telefónica may be trying to revive it. It’s recruited fellow mega-operator Telenor into its BlueVia developer platform. Together they reach 400 million global subscribers. Read more »
Pearson may be a giant of corporate publishing. But now it is throwing DK’s rich encyclopedic image bank and dozens of classic novels in with the content it wants developers to re-use in their own apps. Read more at paidContent »
Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey was brought back into the company last year to be its chief product visionary, but his role appears to have been dramatically reduced. So who is Twitter’s product visionary now, and what does that mean for the future of the service? Read more »
Both iOS and Android use is growing, but app developers are adopting Android at a faster rate, according to a recent GigaOM Pro survey. See our chart for more details. Read more »
Open-source principles have helped create a host of useful software, including the Linux operating system and the crowd-powered resource that is Wikipedia — but could the same approach be used to open up the process of producing government legislation? Clay Shirky argues that it could. Read more »
AT&T is launching a new program called Advanced Communication Suite which not only resells Twilio-powered cloud communications apps but lets more-savvy businesses tap into its voice and SMS APIs. What’s more, given Twilio’s broad reach, AT&T may overcome the problem of cross-carrier fragmentation. Read more »
One developer who has been creating custom Twitter applications for corporate clients says the network’s crackdown on use of its API makes him afraid for his livelihood, but could also damage the company’s long-term prospects if enough people like him start looking for alternatives. Read more »
Evan Williams, the co-founder of Twitter and the company’s former CEO during the beginning of its evolution from a side project into a major social-media entity, says that the influence of the network’s ecosystem has been overstated. But is that true? Read more »
As Twitter shuts off the access that services like Instagram and Tumblr used to have to its valuable “follower graph,” it is also promoting the new relationships it has with media players like NBC. Between them, those two moves speak volumes about the company’s future. Read more »
The reaction to Twitter’s restrictions on its API has focused mostly on whether the moves are unfair to third-party developers and apps. But what about the impact they will have on users? Twitter seems to care more about monetizing its network than what users want. Read more »
What does Twitter’s new API version mean for developers? Thursday’s news that the company would place new restrictions on its API elicited quite the response on Twitter itself. Read more »
The way Facebook and Twitter have been controlling and/or closing down their platforms to outsiders may have parallels to the way other technology leaders have behaved in the past, but both companies need to be careful that they don’t ruin their platforms in the process. Read more »
Mobile operators big ambition to expose a common global API to developers has evaporated, but carriers are still searching for that holy grail — relevance to the developer community. Carriers are signing their own API deals and launching new standards efforts, but ultimately they’ll be disappointed. Read more »
Develop apps for smartphones, tablets or TVs? Take our survey: we’d like to hear more about what you’re working on, what screens and platforms you develop for, how you monetize your work, as well as what categories of apps. Read more »
Facebook’s shutdown of the Face.com API and Twitter’s increasing clampdown on its API reinforce the lesson that “open” APIs can be very appealing, but they can also become a lot less open over time — and developers and users can get trapped in the middle. Read more »
Mobile apps may not be shipped on galleons or via airfreight, but they are definitely crossing oceans. According to data from VisionMobile’s recent developer survey, a big market around the import and export of apps has emerged globally. Read more »
Twitter has made it clear it plans to crack down on third-party services by tightening the rules on use of the network, but this desire for control — and the drive to monetize its user base — could ruin what made Twitter special to begin with. Read more »
BlackBerry development may be on steep decline, but the platform still remains a profitable one for the developers that have stuck with it. According to a new study, average monthly revenue from a BlackBerry app is $3,853, compared to $3,693 for iOS and $2,735 for Android. Read more »
Here’s our daily pick of stories about Apple from around the web that you shouldn’t miss. Today’s installment: Samsung’s new CEO, Apple asks a judge to block the import of the latest Samsung Galaxy, Apple’s contribution to Google revenue, iOS’s popularity among mobile developers, and more. Read more »
Here’s our daily pick of stories about Apple from around the web that you shouldn’t miss. Today’s installment: How Facebook is reminiscent of Palm, phones shipped versus phones sold, how doctors are using the iPad, and another clue that Apple is redesigning its mobile maps. Read more »
With its biggest developer event just weeks away, Apple is nailing down a few final details, including unveiling the official schedule. It was posted Tuesday morning for registered attendees on Apple’s developer website. There’s also an app they can download. Read more »
Although the majority of API attention has centered on consumer Web services, an emerging cadre of startups are focused on infrastructure and business processes. Robin Vasan, managing director at the venture capital firm Mayfield Fund, gives an overview of the potential infrastructure categories and disruptive companies. Read more »
“Operators treat partners like vendors.” That quote comes form Google director of global android partnerships John Lagerling, who said it at a Dublin conference where it was captured by Light Reading. It’s a telling statement — one that sums up a big problem facing the wireless industry. Read more »
Microsoft is facing a challenge in getting developers to make apps for its upcoming Windows 8 tablets: getting their attention. But there’s also a practical concern of having the right hardware. A rather unlikely middleman is looking to help bridge this gap. Read more »
Hyperlocal mobile advertising is at a critical juncture: Leading analysts predict that mobile ad spending will increase by more than five times between 2011 and 2015. But what are the forces at play, and how effective are HyLoMo ads? Read more at GigaOM Pro »
