Mobile+Media+Page+3

= Apple finally unveils new iPhone = by Daniel Iglesias Castillo [|Article] After much anticipation, Apple finally unveiled its newest iPhone model in Cupertino, California. Its called iPhone 4S, a newer version of the iPhone 4 that includes a personal assistant, Siri, which recognizes voice commands to perform various actions. Other than that, the iPhone 4S looks the same as the iPhone 4, but Apple says that there are many new technical upgrades including a new microprocessor, A5, the same installed in the iPad tablets. Despite the innovations, Apple fans and investors were not pleased causing its stock to fall four percent. Users were disappointed because they were expecting a new iPhone 5 version. It is also important to notice that this was Tim Cook's first public appearance as CEO of Apple since the resign of Steve Jobs in August.

What Ads Do Consumers Really Want? Personalized Ads! Posted By: Josh Noble Article Ads are something all of us have seen and see on a daily basis. Advertisements fill up our society, but the problem is a lot of them are for things we are not interested in. Facebook has already gone in the direction of personalized ads and it appears so will phones. "Mobile offers marketers many unique advertising possibilities. Among them are the ability for location-based ads, personalized ads, and ads based on time of day." This will only make ads more effective and looks like it may even be beneficial to the users.

Want to Join Me for a Game? Anyone? Rachel Sterne, New York’s chief digital officer, mentions Sportaneous, a mobile app that demonstrates the potential that software developers have to create innovative new services for today’s society. Sportaneous allows people who want to play pickup sports, such as basketball or even a Quidditch match to create a game and invite others in their area to participate, or join a game that someone else has created. Although this app has won the popular choice prize, as well as second prize over all, at the NYC Big Apps 2.0 contest in March, Sportaneous lacks what most Internet services rely on called, network effect. The concept that services only work after they have become popular to the masses. Initially, this system only consisted of 100 people, but after the app’s founders appealed to Colombia University’s current academic year it has gained 900 active users. Still the question that has not been resolved is, “how to connect people with nothing in common but a desire to play and a couple of free hours on a Thursday afternoon.” Ultimately the Mobile Media industry needs to learn what gets students motivated enough to want to network and share an App to their peers and also get them to stick with it to help with the longevity of their product. [|Article]

2.5 Billion by 2015??! [|Article] The first official form of payment in our "industrialized" society was the dollar bill. We soon had written checks and nowadays it seems as though the majority of the US population pays with plastic credit and debit cards. However, according to this article, the number of consumers using their mobile phones to pay for goods and services is predicted to increase by 40% in the next few years. Due to the increase in "mobile commerce," many brands and retailers are beginning to focus more on allowing consumers to make purchases over their mobile channel. The article goes on to explain a couple of differences in how consumers all over the world will be using their mobile devices to make purchases. For instance, India, the Far East, and China will be home to the majority of people making purchases from their phones. However, North America, Western Europe, the Far East, and China will be host for those consumers who will be making the most mobile payments in terms of total value. Posted by David Garcia

**Apple is now shipping greeting cards … seriously!** ** [|Article] ** Apple is at it once again… and this they are getting physical, literally. Announced on October 4, a new iPhone App, "Cards" will allow users to create cards on their phone, taking pictures with their iOS devices and Apple will handle the rest … and by that they mean shipping them for you. Tracking within the US will be done through a US Postal Service barcode. Now here's the catch - this is a free App, but shipping costs you $2.99 - with over 21 designs to chose from and this easy access shipping at your fingertips, sending cards to loved ones has never been easier. Hey, it costs about the same to buy a card in stores, but less hassle and its all a click away. **By: Megan Vaughn**

**Kindle Fire A Hit Before November Launch**

[|PCW Article] Posted by: **Alex Garcia** The Kindle Fire, at $199 is projected to be a huge hit, even before the November 15th launch date. Daily sales are estimated from 20,000 to 25,000 per day, with an opening day of 95,000 sales. The Fire makes news for two reasons- the Fire is expected to out pre-sell the iPad (over a quarter million sold so far; the iPad had roughly 300,000) and interest is expressed among various age demographics due to current Kindle usage. We'll have to revisit the Fire in a month...