txtWeb’s collaboration with Karbonn Mobiles, why is it a decent value addition?

txtWeb’s collaboration with Karbonn Mobiles, why is it a decent value addition?

– By Prathamesh Patil

txtWeb, a text-based app platform from Intuit Inc. and Karbonn Mobiles, have entered into a license and distribution agreement to make available a range of apps via the txtWeb app platform on Karbonn phones. . The platform democratizes access to information for every mobile user, even the ones with the most basic mobile phones with no GPRS or data plan.

Karbonn phone users will have access to information ranging from academic content, social networking, sports, breaking news, financial tools, games and more, through simple SMS at 50 paise per query or Rs.1 per day for unlimited queries on subscription. txtWeb aims at allowing millions of users across India to access relevant content through text-based apps embedded in the Karbonn phones.

“Karbonn is a leading mobile manufacturer in India that has bridged the digital divide by offering mobile phones at affordable prices to users across market segments. We are delighted to partner with Karbonn to equip their phone users with the world class features of txtWeb that gives them the power of the internet,” said Manish Maheshwari, Managing Director, txtWeb.

“At Karbonn we are excited to collaborate with Intuit to offer affordable, real time information and content to Indian mobile users via the txtWeb platform. Intuit txtWeb fits into changing dynamics of VAS segments in India and have conviction about product given low cost for users. I would look towards Intuit to continue its innovation and expand platform with innovation as per the user adoption pattern” said Ashish Aggarwal, Executive Director, Karbonn Mobiles.

txtWeb lets anyone with any mobile phone can create, discover and consume Internet and txtWeb-only content and services just by texting keywords to one national number. txtWeb provides universal access to information to anyone with any mobile phone on any carrier network with or without internet connectivity. Currently, txtWeb has over 11 million users from India using one or more of the 3500 active apps built by developers and businesses across India.

Commenting on this partnership, Devendra Prasad – Head VAS, Karbonn Mobiles said, “Today, users are looking at unique aggregated services, products, and applications that are available at an affordable price. As a dominant device player in the segment, Karbonn is looking at providing simple-to-use VAS services, in-house, or through third party developers. The Intuit partnership is poised to bring forth innovations by complying with all regulatory guidelines.

 

InMobi ties up with mobile gaming platform CocoaChina. What’s the deal?

InMobi ties up with mobile gaming platform CocoaChina. What’s the deal?

-By Prathamesh Patil

InMobi, the world’s largest independent mobile advertising network has announced a strategic partnership with CocoaChina, owner of the Fishing Joy app franchise, to enable app monetization and revenue maximization across its entire user base. The partnership also extends to CocoaChina’s parent brand, Chukong Technologies, the top Chinese mobile gaming publisher with the largest iOS developer community.

With nearly 415 million smartphone users in China and mobile ad market growing at 150% year-on-year, China is an exciting mobile Internet market. Similarly, the InMobi network in China, has witnessed an 84% increase in the number of ad impressions across mobile devices and tablets from September 2012 to September 2013. For the same period, in-app advertising also grew by 86%.

InMobi currently delivers 350 million peak impressions and 1.5 million clicks, in the region, daily. This partnership will grow the InMobi network by 25 per cent by leveraging CocoaChina’s user base and the extended developer community working on its Cocos2D platform.

“InMobi is a global leader in mobile monetization with superior technology and partner management teams. This partnership will help us to better monetize our user base of over 100 million game consumers through features such as a rich library of ad formats, analytics, and access to top advertisers worldwide,” said Li Jian, Director of Inventory, CocoaChina. “We also aim to attract more developers to our platform as a result of this partnership, who will also look to InMobi and its new ad formats that increase click through rates by up to 50 per cent.”

This partnership brings China’s leading game franchise, Fishing Joy, into InMobi’s ad network, and positions InMobi as the partner of choice for brand and developer advertisers in the region.

“CocoaChina is the leading developer platform for mobile gaming in China and we are excited to partner with them. The partnership will enable CocoaChina and its developers to benefit from InMobi’s market access, technology and monetization capabilities, including our newest ad formats that increase click-through rates by up to 50% and app install conversion rates by up to 600%,” said Jayesh Easwaramony, Vice President, Business Development, JAPAC, InMobi. “The partnership will aid developers as they approach the Chinese market while aiding CocoaChina to increase its global footprint in the West.”

The partnership follows InMobi participation as a top sponsor at CocoaChina’s annual developer forum last month in Beijing. The event drew over 1,000 developers who were looking for new ways to monetize their apps and access global markets.