Plastic Mobile in the News: Melody Adhami Talks Pizza and Mobile

The battle continues over which is the superior platform – Android or iOS. Everyone from users to marketers have weighed in with their future predictions, past musings and current praises and complaints. From a developer’s perspective, things remain uncertain and, at times, contradictory. Here’s the low down based on the latest research.

A couple of months back, the general opinion was that app developers were turning their attention to Android over iOS, because of its rapidly increasing market share. A survey from Appcelerator indicated that the momentum was shifting in favour of Android, closing the gap on current app development that traditionally favoured iOS. The idea behind the supposed shift was that the Android platform is considered to have the best long-term outlook.

The latest news, however, turns that theory upside down. It appears that Android continues to take a back seat to iOS, in part because, well, it’s not as mainstream cool (those Mac commercials still make us chuckle). While Android operating system is still the big winner on the charts (46.3% of US smartphone owners running the mobile operating system) according to the Strategy Analytics’ survey, “App Developer Attitudes and Behaviours,” it seems that Apple’s iOS platform remains near and dear to developers’ hearts, with 51% saying they plan to write for the “iTeam” (iPod, iPad and iTouch) platforms in 2012. Yes, Android is fast approaching a majority share in smartphones among US customers, but it now seems that the platform is suffering among its app builders, with interest rising only 30% from 23% in 2011. If it’s not one thing, it’s another.

That being said, it seems that Apple’s status among the people writing app code comes from the multiple device types now using the operating system, with the iPhone down 26%. In fact, the real growth for iOS comes from the iPad, which attracted only 8% of developers last year, but will get 19% in 2012 (+138%). With more than half a million apps now cataloged in the Apple App Store, over 150,000 are compatible with or written specifically for the iPad.

Experts such as Strategy Analytics report author and Director of Apps Research, Josh Martin, expect that money will talk and developers will continue to favour platforms that offer the most diverse ways of generating revenue.

Piper Jaffrey recently estimated that Apple’s App Store substantially outperforms the Android marketplace for developers, with Apple responsible for about 80% to 90% of revenue generated by the app market.

What do you think? Will iOS continue to corner the market in app developers despite Android’s appetite for market share? Or will the interest in the iTeam fizzle out and watch Android steal their fan base?

Check out Melody Adhami’s interview for AppTV. If you want to go straight to the segment, it’s around the 21 minute mark. Our Queen of Apps discussed the recently launched PlayBook app called Hockeycentral and winning a Webby Award for the Pizza Pizza app. In addition, talked about Plastic Mobile’s new online app studio, Joomo, to help bloggers and content providers build mobile apps for all operating system at no cost.

(May 3^rd, 2011)  Plastic Mobile and Pizza Pizza are honored to win a Webby Award for their recently launched pizza ordering iPhone app. Under the category of Mobile Shopping for smartphones, the members of The International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences awarded the Webby to our Pizza Pizza app. This mobile ordering app was in the running with giant US brands such as Target, Walgreens, Consumer Reports, and Gilt.

In the entire category of mobile, both Plastic Mobile and Pizza Pizza are the only Canadian company to receive this prestigious award. “We are absolutely thrilled to receive this award and excited to represent Canada at the Webby Gala,” says Melody Adhami, co-founder of Plastic Mobile and crowned Queen of Apps, Globe & Mail.

The 15^th Annual Webby Awards attracted nearly 10,000 entries from all 50 US states and over 60 countries worldwide, as it’s the leading international award honoring excellence on the Internet that includes mobile, websites, online film & TV, etc. The Pizza Pizza app has been ranked #1 Lifestyle app in the Apple iTunes store, and a favorite app among Canadians.

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Our Twitter & Hashtag:
@PlasticMobile
@PizzaPizzaLTD
@TheWebbyAwards
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Download the Pizza Pizza app:
http://itunes.apple.com/ca/app/pizza-pizza/id425026119

Graphics of the app:

http://www.plasticmobile.com/media-pizza-pizza-iphone-app/

Media Contact for Plastic Mobile:

Salome Sallehy

Plastic Mobile has teamed up with Rogers Sportsnet to develop a hard-hitting Hockeycentral application for the launch of RIM’s BlackBerry PlayBook.

“With playoff hockey in full swing, this app will become your immediate guide for all hockey news and analysis,” says Melody Adhami, President of Plastic Mobile. “Being hockey fans, we really enjoyed working with the team at Sportsnet and Mobile product development at Rogers Digital Media to build the application for the launch of this exciting new tablet.”

Whether you’re a hockey buff or just jumping on the Playoff bandwagon – the Hockeycentral App for the BlackBerry® PlayBook™ will be your mobile broadcast hub for all hockey highlights, scores, news, and analysis from top hockey insiders in the industry.  The app also includes breaking news on Twitter from the Rogers Hockeycentral panel as well as latest coverage and editorials. The app is available free in the BlackBerry App World on launch.

We are truly pleased with the outcome of the Hockeycentral App for the BlackBerry PlayBook and the immediate access to NHL news that we are providing hockey fans,” said Pary Bell, Vice President of Product, Rogers Digital Media. We are excited to release this dynamic and useful app just in time for the launch of the PlayBook and the Stanley Cup Playoffs.”

Avoid the penalty box and download the app here.

Tweet this release:
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@PlasticMobile
@RogersSportsnet

About Plastic Mobile

Plastic Mobile is an award-winning mobile marketing agency, working with some of North America’s best brands. Plastic Mobile expands their presence into the mobile space through innovative, cutting-edge strategies, user experiences and creative. They are known for many first-of-their-kind mobile initiatives, including launching the first video iPad app in Canada. Recognized for their exceptional client service, Plastic Mobile designs and delivers mobile applications and websites for all platforms, while achieving optimal results for their clients.

Founded in 2007, Plastic Mobile’s rapidly growing client list includes both Canadian and US companies, such as Rogers Communications, CBC, Unilever, Sportsnet, Liberty Science Center and Pizza Pizza. For more information on their services and client work, visit www.plasticmobile.com

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Media Contact for Plastic Mobile:

Leila Pejman
Leila@plasticmobile.com
604.644.8293

April 4, 2011 — Pizza Pizza and Plastic Mobile Delivered a One of a Kind Pizza Ordering iPhone App.

Plastic Mobile has joined Pizza Pizza, Canada’s leading pizza chain, as their mobile agency to help build and launch an iPhone application to make ordering and delivering pizza both convenient and fast. This free app is available for all iPhone models, the iPod Touch, and the iPad. The app will let users build the pizza of their dreams; a half order of ham & pineapple and the other half Italian sausage, extra mushrooms, no cheese, and easy on the sauce? Looking to order a gluten-free pizza? Pay through your application or when it arrives. It all can be done with the Pizza Pizza iPhone App.

This innovative application will fundamentally change the ordering experience, making it fast, visual and convenient for the customer. By using location-based services (LBS) to locate the nearest Pizza Pizza restaurant, as well as allowing users to simply pay within the application, the app provides a seamless experience.

The application, delivered by Pizza Pizza and Plastic Mobile, can be downloaded from the App Store on iTunes. For more information on this app visit http://www.pizzapizza.ca/mobile.

Check out our news release here.

Plastic Mobile team had a great trip to South by Southwest Interactive. Austin, TX was buzzing with over 20,000 people traveling from around the world to attend the festival. We hopped from one panel to the next keynote speech to the various industry parties. Most importantly, we enjoyed connecting with talents in the digital space.

Over the last few years, SXSW has become a launch pad for many start-ups. Social networking tools like Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare, etc all got their popularity boost from this festival. For the sake of mobile, here are some highlights from this year’s SXSW:

1) Group Messaging: Before the festival began, the hot thing expected for 2011 was ability to message an exclusive group of people. After SXSW, we still don’t think group messaging got its sex appeal (yet). It’s still a tool that people will find useful on the specific occasions. Beluga, Fast Society, Kik, Yobongo, and GroupMe were all contenders in the group messaging app battle. According to an infographic published in TechCrunch, GroupMe won at SXSW. Now, I’m not sure if the results were skewed since GroupMe were serving free beer and yummy grilled cheese sandwiches. Marketing is king at SXSW.

2) iPad 2: Opening day of SXSW fell on the same day that the iPad 2 became available in the US. Apple made it convenient for the fellow SXSW tech aficionados to get their hands on the latest tablet by opening up a pop-up store in the heart of downtown Austin. Yes, iPad 2 was heavily talked about at the festival. Plus, we saw a lot of tablets being held up in the air, as people were testing out its camera feature. (I hope this doesn’t become a trend) As expected, the iPad 2 was pretty much sold out…well, they only had 64G version in Austin.

3) Mobile app creator. Everyone wants to create a mobile application. Many bloggers and online publications have the influence but not the budget to invest on a mobile application. New platforms are coming out help alleviate that problem – so people can produce high-quality apps at an affordable price. Plastic Mobile will soon be launching its mobile platform called Joomo (pronounced “You-Mo”). It’ll create applications for all platforms on smartphones and tablets based on a site or blog. Learn more about Joomo by checking out our site (it’s in beta): www.joomo.com

4) QR Codes: The movie Source Code with Jake Gyllenhaal premiered at SXSW. Microsoft was a sponsor and used its Tag technology to promote the film. Essentially, Microsoft Tag is a form of QR Code where you scan the barcode and it’ll direct you to a specific site. The Source Code tag, took its users to a social game on Facebook. The game itself was based on the movie. Are we seeing a new trend for Hollywood in order to promote its films?

5) Deals: As Groupon leads the race on the daily deals space many other mobile applications are jumping on the bandwagon. Facebook has announced that they are testing daily deals in a few US cities. The co-founder of Foursquare, the geo-location mobile app, said in a SXSW presentation that they are aggressively looking into offering more deals for its users. All I have to say, let’s move away from the discounts on spas, massages, or bootcamp sessions. New deals please!

Imagine how convenient it’ll be to make payments at restaurants or stores with your iPhone or iPad! Imagine how great it’ll be to have a fast checkout process and not have to wait in line. According to Bloomberg’s report, Apple’s next iPhone and iPad are expected to have NFC technology.

NFC technology (near field communication) that is gaining popularity, allows various forms of data transfer between the iPhone and other NFC capable devices. NFC technology receives and sends out information at distances up to 4 inches. This means iPhone and iPad users will soon be able to make payments using NFC.

The key to this is iTunes, or better say the payment system within iTunes that is already in use by millions and millions of people around the world. By entering the payment service market, Apple has a massive opportunity. By including NFC into its iPhone and iPad, Apple could use its existing iTunes accounts and give consumers an alternative to traditional financial services by Visa, MasterCard and PayPal.

Right now, Apple has launched a prototype for the payment services by allowing smaller businesses to scan NFC-enabled devices.  Upcoming versions of the AT&T iPhone and iPad 2 are expected to have the technology enabled and the technology is anticipated to be available by mid 2011.

If Apple can nail NFC and tie it directly into their iTunes payment system, it could change everything. This can be an evolution of the payment system within iTunes.

This could be the greatest tactic they’ve ever pulled. Is it possible that Apple and iTunes will replace Visa and Mastercard? From our perspective, it seems unlikely that they will go that far due to the complications and the financial burden associated with giving consumers credit.  But I guess we will never know how far they will go and we will just have to wait and see!

Happy Birthday to the Mac!

Apple introduced the very first Macintosh on January 24, 1984, beginning an era that is still going strong 27 years later. Steve Jobs introduced the Apple Macintosh on January 24, 1984 and received wild applause from the crowd of 3,000 people. It was originally introduced simply as the Apple Macintosh and was re-branded as the Macintosh 128K when its big brother, the Macintosh 512K, was introduced in September 1984.

Apple has evolved it’s business beyond the Macintosh computers and has revolutioned the music and mobile industries with the introduction of the iPod, iPhone and iPad. In the latest earnings release, apple revealed that their new iPad device has sold close to $15M.

The iPad is definitely a hit based on the reports & iPhone sales are coming in ahead of estimates. In addition to these, Apple’s App Store has just posted its 10 billionth download, just two and half years after the store opened in July 2008.

Up to this point, consumers have largely driven Apple’s iPhone & iPad growth, and these technologies are said to be creeping into corporate world.

For those that want to relive a piece of history, here is the demo of the first Apple Macintosh by Steve Jobs. Demo of the first Mac computer by Steve Jobs