Thousands download Skyfire's new 1.0 version for smartphones

2292853 — Thu, 28 May 2009 11:30:00 GMT

This week the mobile browser Skyfire released it's long awaited 1.0 version, for use with smartphones, taking the company out of a hugely successful beta period that has seen 1 million people downoad the free service.

Skyfire is free to download at: www.get.skyfire.com

The service is currently available in the UK, USA and Canada, and runs on Windows Mobile (smartphones and PPC) and Nokia N and E Series (Symbian S60, 3rd Edition) phones. With its release yesterday, thousands of people lit up on fire with excitement for Skyfire and have been reporting their experiences on Twitter, with many tweeting that the service is the iPhone for other handsets. Skyfire is feeding the strong popularity and desire people have to get connected to the internet by their mobile phones, for instant access to social networking sites, viewing videos and reading their RSS feeds, among other features. Skyfire describes its service as bringing the full web experience to handsets, and it is the only mobile browser that supports Flash, Silverlight and Ajax, technologies that normally crash when attempting to access the internet from a handset.

Skyfire's 1.0 release means millions more people will be able to catch up on Facebook, Twitter and watch YouTube, BBC iPlayer from their mobile, and this rich-media content experience bodes well for brands who are increasingly using the mobile internet for advertising and marketing. The excitement for this new milestone in technology captured the attention of mainstream media and bloggers, who have given the service rave reviews. Here's what some have said:

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“You see, Skyfire isn't a 'proper' browser, more of a content viewer, with all the serious processing handled by the company's proxy servers, the pages then being 'rendered' onto your phone. Just like the Opera browser in fact, but with more whistles, bells and streaming video.” – T3’s David Walker

“The release brings with it a host of improvements, such as improved navigation, zooming and interaction and a faster launch, lower power consumption, and new search functionality. Also, while the new version of the browser starts up, you can begin typing URLs or search queries into the box at the top, saving time. The company is operating a closed alpha for the BlackBerry platform, so that'll likely be next for release.” –Pocket-lint.com’s Duncan Geere

“Their browser is fast and responsive, and Skyfire’s goal is to give a faithful representation of web pages that is equivalent to the desktop browsing experience. One important focus for Skyfire is in the area of video rendering… Skyfire’s approach is to introduce their own video-crunching servers between, say, YouTube and your Nokia N95. These servers take full Flash (Flash 10) and then video transcode the signal in real-time, giving a lower frame rate (8 frames per second), and a smaller screen rendering for mobile. The result is that the Skyfire browser can render an original YouTube page or Vimeo page, or even blogs with embedded video, so that you have access to the entire video catalogue, live on line.” –Martyn Davies, The Really Mobile Project

Watch The Phones Show hosted by AllAboutSymbian.com's Steve Litchfield, for an interview with Skyfire’s VP of Business Development Raj Singh, who offers extra insight to the browser’s features and hints of what’s to come.

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CNET was among the first outlets to announce the news yesterday, and just prior to Skyfire’s 1.0 launch, The New York Times named the browser as “App of the Week”.

My consultancy the Hai Media Group handled the UK/EU media outreach for Skyfire, teaming up with our fantastic US media partners VSC Consulting to orchestrate this highly successful PR 2.0 outreach programme.

Still finding more and more coverage results for Skyfire,

-Lisa

Vodafone to Give Star Mobile Developer €150K

2292853 — Mon, 11 May 2009 14:36:00 GMT

The deadline is fast approaching for UK mobile developers to get in entries for the Vodafone Mobile Clicks competition that will see a talented idea get €150,000 to produce a new mobile site or service.

This is the first time the compeition has run for the UK, and developers have until ~~Thursday, 14th May 2009~~ FRIDAY, 22 MAY 2009.

It is an opportunity to show the mobile technology industry that Britain's got mobile developer talent, and for last year's winners, it was a financial and professional success.

"As a judge for this year's Vodafone Mobile Clicks competition, I'm very excited at the prospect of seeing what Britain's talented mobile internet developers have to offer," said Helen Keegan, a specialist in mobile marketing, advertising and media, who heads Beep Marketing and pens the blog Technokitten. "It's a great opportunity for developers and folks with good ideas for mobile internet applications to win the cash to deliver and develop those ideas further. The entry criteria are straightforward and as long as you're over 18, resident in the UK or Netherlands and are in a start-up or are planning to form a start-up with your idea then you pretty much qualify to enter."

Winners last year included:

-Nulaz, a location-based social networking service that let's people see where their friends are, share locations and view local information.

-Tipspot an events guide

-Map the Gap, an idea-sharing application for mobile phones.

More information in the press release here.

Mobile industry bloggers are getting the word out about the competition, visit:

AllAboutSymbian.com

AlexKinch.com

MobileMarketingMagazine.co.uk

Vodafone Mobile Clicks is a close cooperation between Mobile Monday Amsterdam, Mobile Monday London, Vodafone NL, Vodafone UK, PICNIC and Trend8.

Glad to see some funding going toward mobile innovation,

-Lisa

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Thousands download Skyfire's new 1.0 version for smartphones

Vodafone to Give Star Mobile Developer €150K