Foursquare and Open Table's new partnership is just the latest in the location-based app's moves into the local search arena, challenging popular resources like Yelp by aggregating user check-ins to provide personalized recommendations. Booking tables seems like the next step in these moves.…
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The Mobile 15, as a PDF
Last week, we published The Mobile 15, our list of the most-innovative companies in the world of mobile. It explored how these…
Read MoreFuture of mobile: 5 takeaways from Mobilize 2012
With the future of mobile quickly evolving, what do you need to know now? After a long cross-country flight home, I had plenty of time to digest the key data nuggets from our GigaOm Mobilize 2012 event held last week. Here are five worth sharing.…
Read MoreHow ad agencies are a bottleneck in the video economy
While publishers and developers have evolved to take advantage of new digital platforms, advertisers are lagging behind. Too often, they are simply repurposing TV material rather than tailoring their creative material to the online video environment.…
Read MoreYou shouldn’t need a computer science degree to write a mobile app
You don't need to be some kind of infrastructure-loving genius to bild a mobile app -- and really, you shouldn't have to be. That was the message from Kevin Lacker, the CTO and co-founder of Parse, who gave some tips on how to build engaging apps.…
Read MoreRafter CEO: The innovation curve hasn’t hit education yet
Educational content still looks and feels like mobile apps before the iPhone, argued Rafter CEO Mehdi Maghsoodnia at GigaOM's Mobilize 2012 conference. His thought-provoking take: What education really needs is not more digitized textbooks, but open platforms, where smaller innovators can compete with big publishers.…
Read MoreAt Square, we’re building technology that sells itself, says COO Keith Rabois
The future is bright for mobile payment company Square, which as COO Keith Rabois noted Friday is not only taking off with a Starbucks partnership that will bring its technology to stores across America, but with a popular product that sells itself through in-store presence.…
Read MoreWhen it comes to the connected home, it’s keep it simple, stupid
The connected home -- which would let you control your thermostat from your phone, check on the dog while you're traveling, automate the downloads of your favorite entertainment -- is getting closer, but it ain't here yet. Here's why.…
Read MoreiOS’s lead over Android in app monetization is shrinking
For a long time iOS app monetization was far and away better than on Android. But as monetization strategies change in the app world, the statistics are changing. Android is no longer as far behind.…
Read MoreElephants or ants: Will MVNOs make a dent in national carriers?
Mobile virtual network operators are popping up everywhere, but will they ever be large enough to threaten the large national carriers? Can they build a profitable business? Time will tell, but these companies have high hopes.…
Read MoreWhy the internet of things needs ‘curated openness’
The internet of things is for real, even if it's nowhere near the nirvana of devices that speak with each other and take care of our every waking need automatically. The only way it will get there, says RIM's Sebastian Marineau-Mes, is with industry-wide standards.…
Read MoreT-Mobile’s Las Vegas network is officially iPhone ready
T-Mobile is now ready to start marketing its HSPA+ service to unlocked iPhone owners in one city, though T-Mobile's CTO said more will quickly follow. Previously iPhone users could connect to T-Mobile at mere 2G speeds. Now they have a 42 Mbps network at their disposal.…
Read MoreApp stores are suffering from the tyranny of the charts
App developers are at the mercy of the app store charts, which play a huge role in determining an app's success. That prevents a lot of good apps from being discovery and can lead to chart manipulation, said a panel of experts at GigaOM's Mobilize conference.…
Read MoreMobile can be the ‘personalization lens’ for offline stores
Smartphones have a unique potential not just to support online shopping but also to enhance the physical store experience - but, to do so, they must think digitally and quickly, retailers tell GigaOM's Mobilize conference.…
Read MoreVoice is a killer app, but not all carriers will kill to control it
Despite the dust up over FaceTime, not all carriers see blocking or restricting over-the-top communications services as their option. VoIP player Sidecar thinks carriers will try and match the features of OTT apps, while T-Mobile says it actively encourage the use of competing IP communications services.…
Read MoreThirst takes judge’s award in Launchpad, inTooch takes people’s choice
GigaOM's Launchpad contest at Mobilize brought nine companies on stage to compete for the distinction of the greatest disruption and innovation in mobile technology. The companies pitched Thursday at the conference in San Francisco.…
Read MoreIntelligence is a mobile developer’s best friend
Yes, 4G and LTE networks are huge improvements over previous-generation mobile networks, but they’re not about to cure mobile-data woes without some…
Read MoreWhen it comes to maps, Android co-founder thinks Apple made a wrong turn
Rich Miner isn't a huge fan of Apple Maps. The co-founder of Android, who is now a partner at Google Ventures, had that to say, as well as that carriers just keep on conceding and RIM's market share loss is an opportunity for startups.…
Read MoreSprint CTO: Spectrum is like crude oil – you could always use more
Sprint CTO Stephen Bye didn't want to say what he had to promise Apple in exchange for getting the iPhone 5 with LTE when quizzed about it at GigaOM's Mobilize 2012 conference. Instead, he said that Sprint isn't all that concerned about the spectrum crisis.…
Read MoreEA seeks gaming ubiquity across models and platforms
Electronic Arts has survived in the cut-throat gaming business since 1982. And it plans to keep its console games alive while diverting resources to the fast growing mobile and social gaming world, company senior vice president Nick Earl said today.…
Read MoreMaking money on mobile: the YouTube perspective
Consumers' desire to consume content on mobile applies to video just as much to display. YouTube's head product developer shared what this means for content makers and for advertisers.…
Read MoreSony not ceding mobile to casual games
At GigaOM's Mobilize conference in San Francisco on Thursday, Jack Buser, Sony's senior director of PlayStation digital platforms, talked about why Sony developed the PlayStation Mobile platform for PlayStation games that can, for the first time, be played on devices not made by the Japanese company.…
Read MoreFoursquare’s Crowley wants to take on Yelp, Google and Harry Potter
Dennis Crowely of Foursquare has a big goal of creating an ambient-aware location service that will recommend people, places and events happening nearby, but the hardware isn't quite up to snuff yet. In the meantime, he's using location data to take on Yelp and Google.…
Read MoreThe car dashboard is not the place to let 1,000 apps bloom
Despite the proliferation of increasingly sophisticated connected car platforms, those systems remain largely closed to developers due to safe driving concerns. While those platforms will eventually open up, automakers have to be wary of placing too many limitations on development today. Otherwise consumers will ignore them.…
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