Operators play with open models for mobile apps stores

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Operators play with open models for mobile apps stores

By CAROLINE GABRIEL

Published: 1 July, 2009

The momentum behind new mobile application stores does not let up, with the Chinese 3G carriers getting in on the act early. China Mobile has already promised a major, own-branded store based around its own implementation of Android, and now CDMA rival China Telecom says it plans to launch its own store before year end.

Meanwhile, the vendors are trying to keep the upper hand for their cross-carrier shops. Microsoft says its forthcoming Windows Marketplace for Mobile will launch with 600 applications, rolling out in the fall alongside WinMo 6.5. It will support free and paid apps, and both credit card and operator billing, with a 24-hour grace period to return apps if user are not satisfied.

According to Microsoft, Marketplace will debut in 29 countries, promising developers 70% of revenues and allowing them to set their own prices. Microsoft will start to accept submissions in August.

Nokia got to market ahead of Microsoft with Ovi Store, and after a month of being live, said almost 60% of Nokia device users have begun downloading content from the new shop. According to a user survey conducted by Nokia itself, 31% of Ovi Store users have downloaded between two and five pieces of content from the store, and 6% have downloaded more than 10 pieces. However, 36% of Nokia users have yet to download anything from the shop, and 5% admit they don't even know what the Ovi Store is. After launching with just over 1,000 apps, the store is now approving about 100 applications a day, and has crossed the 2,000 barrier now.

But China Mobile has the right idea, says Linux standards and advocacy group Linux International. Carriers should build their stores around open source Linux platforms, stimulate usage by giving away free web-friendly devices such as netbooks, and make their main profits from apps. This is the view of Jim Zemlin, and reflects some of the medium term aims of operator initiatives like those of China Mobile, and of the JIL group formed by that cellco plus Vodafone, Verizon Wireless and Softbank, which focuses on standard, open applications systems and widgets.

"In less than a year, I predict that the new cost of a netbook will be zero," Zemlin told a conference. A carrier that uses an open source platform does not have to pay the OS designer, and can share all the revenues with the developers rather than vendors. However, open source does not mean 'free' - carriers will incur significant costs in deploying attractive and customized stores. This is the heart of Ericsson's recent move to become an app store 'broker' - offering cellcos either a hosted service, or a template with which to create their own shopfronts relatively quickly and cheaply, and eventually, perhaps, setting industry-wide standards for these stores.