Breaking Mobile Industry News

Shazam Debuts (RED) Special Edition Music ID Application

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 24, 2009 - 10:18am.
London - Shazam, a provider of mobile music identification services, on Tuesday debuted the Shazam (RED) application on Apple's App Store, 20% of the $4.99 purchase price of which will go towards the organization fighting HIV and AIDS in Africa. Shazam counts over 10 million iPhone and iPod touch users worldwide.

tags: Mobile | Music | Shazam | iPhone | (RED) |

Dell, China Mobile to Launch Mini 3i Smartphone This Month

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 23, 2009 - 11:42am.
Beijing, China - PC maker Dell (NASD: DELL) said on Monday that China Mobile will be the first operator to sell its new Mini 3i smartphone, set to launch in China later this month. The device features a 3.5-inch multi-touch display, 3-megapixel camera, Bluetooth, GPS and up to 32GB of memory. Dell said the Mini 3i is "the result of a year-long collaboration with China Mobile," which counts over 500 million subscribers.

Mobile TV Chipmaker Telegent to Raise Up to $250M in IPO

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 23, 2009 - 11:14am.
Sunnyvale, Calif. - Telegent Systems, a developer of semiconductors that enable mobile TV services, on Monday filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to raise up to $250 million in its initial public offering (IPO).

Apple to Launch iPhone in South Korea This Week

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 23, 2009 - 10:16am.
Seoul, South Korea - Apple (NASD: AAPL) will launch the iPhone in South Korea later this week with local carrier KT Corp, which is already accepting pre-orders for the smartphone, the Associated Press reported.
tags: Mobile | Korea | Apple | Retail | iPhone | KT Corp. |

Report: Million Spotify Streams Earn Lady Gaga Just $167

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 23, 2009 - 10:03am.
Los Angeles - Despite racking up more than a million streams in Sweden during a five month period on ad-supported streaming service Spotify, artist Lady Gaga's song "Poker Face" generated a songwriting royalty payment of just $167 from Swedish performing rights society STIM, TorrentFreak reported, citing the local Swedish outlet Expressen.

Nokia Lays Off 330 Research and Development Staff

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 20, 2009 - 10:23am.
Espoo, Finland - Cell phone maker Nokia (NYSE: NOK) announced on Friday that it will lay off up to 330 employees from its research and development operations, representing about 2% of its global research and development staff of 17,000.
tags: Mobile | Nokia | Layoffs |

Mobile Broadcast Firm IPWireless Lands $15.5 Million

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 20, 2009 - 8:08am.
San Francisco - IPWireless, a San Francisco-based developer of mobile broadband and broadcast technology, said on Wednesday that it has raised $15.5 million in its first round of funding, led by Spark Capital.

RealNetworks to Power Mobile Music for France's SFR

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 18, 2009 - 1:20pm.
Seattle - RealNetworks (NASD: RNWK) announced on Wednesday that it has signed a three-year deal to power the mobile music service for France-based mobile network operator SFR. Real said its mobile music services are now deployed with 15 providers in 14 countries, including 11 in Europe.

tags: Mobile | Music | RealNetworks | SFR |

LimeLife Raises $1 Million for Women's Lifestyle Site

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 18, 2009 - 9:52am.
Menlo Park, Calif. - LimeLife, a women-focused community site offering news, entertainment and lifestyle content, has raised $1 million in new venture capital financing, PaidContent reported, citing a regulatory filing.

1020 Placecast Lands $5 Million for Location-based Marketing

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 18, 2009 - 9:41am.
San Francisco - Location-based ad network provider 1020 Placecast announced on Wednesday that it has raised $5 million in second round funding.

Digimarc Files Patent Claims Against Music ID Firm Shazam

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 17, 2009 - 11:49am.
Beaverton, Ore. - Digimarc (NASD: DMRC), a developer of digital watermarking and other technologies, has filed patent infringement claims against Shazam, the maker of mobile music identification software.

Report: Despite Economy, Entertainment Subscriptions Hold Up

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 16, 2009 - 12:48pm.
Port Washington, N.Y. - While fewer Americans subscribe to newspapers and magazines, the subscription model continues to either maintain popularity or grow in areas including television, music, games and mobile services, according to a report from market research firm NPD Group.

VeriSign Sells m-Qube Unit to Mobile Messenger

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 16, 2009 - 11:15am.
Mountain View, Calif. - VeriSign, a provider of Internet infrastructure and identity services, said on Monday that it has sold its m-Qube mobile messaging aggregator to Los Angeles-based Mobile Messenger.

European Ringback Tone Firm Muzicall Lands $13.5 Million

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 16, 2009 - 9:34am.
London - Muzicall, a European provider of ringback tone services, has raised $13.5 million in new funding, from previous backers BlueRun Ventures and Thule, and new investors Orkos Capital, Veddis Ventures and GP Bullhound.

Mobile Ad Firm Millennial Media Raises $16 Million

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 16, 2009 - 8:46am.
Baltimore - Millennial Media, a provider of mobile advertising technology and services, said on Monday that it has raised $16 million in its third round of funding, led by New Enterprise Associates (NEA).

Qualcomm's FLO TV Ships Personal Television Device

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 13, 2009 - 11:34am.
San Diego - Qualcomm's (NASD: QCOM) FLO TV unit on Friday began selling its new FLO TV Personal Television device, which features a 3.5-inch screen and delivers live and time-shifted TV programming on the go. The device is selling for $249, which includes a six-month subscription to FLO TV programming, at stores including Best Buy, RadioShack and Amazon.com.

Dell to Release Mini 3 Smartphone First in China, Brazil

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 13, 2009 - 10:32am.
Round Rock, Texas - PC and peripherals maker Dell (NASD: DELL) this week confirmed that it will enter the smartphone market, with its first Google (NASD: GOOG) Android-powered handset, the Mini 3, to go on sale first in China and Brazil. "Our entry into the smart phone category is a logical extension of Dell's consumer product evolution over the past two years," said Ron Garriques, president of Dell's global consumer group.

Orange U.K. Sells 30,000 Units on iPhone Launch Day

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 12, 2009 - 11:07am.
London - U.K. mobile operator O2 sold 30,000 Apple (NASD: AAPL) iPhones on their first day on sale in the country, a company spokesman announced on Twitter. "Orange UK had sold more than 30k iPhones, smashing what we believe is the previously published first day sales records for a phone in the UK!," tweeted Orange's Conor Maples.

tags: Mobile | Apple | Retail | Orange | iPhone |

Sony Music Taps Azuki Systems for Mobile Artist Sites

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 12, 2009 - 11:04am.
New York - Sony (NYSE: SNE) Music Entertainment has tapped Azuki Systems to create mobile versions of its artist websites. Among the first Azuki-designed mobile sites for Sony artists is a new official Michael Jackson mobile site, which features news, photos and streaming access to a number of music videos.

iBiquity Digital Releases $79 HD Radio Accessory for iPhone

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 11, 2009 - 2:32pm.
Columbia, Md. - HD Radio technology developer iBiquity Digital on Wednesday introduced a new accessory for Apple's iPhone and iPod touch that will enable reception of HD Radio broadcasts. When paired with a free application from Apple's App Store, the $79 Gigaware Navigation Control HD Radio Receiver can receive HD Radio broadcasts, complete with "iTunes Tagging" that lets users tag songs heard for later purchase on iTunes.