By adaptive - August 31st, 2015
Facebook hits 1 billion users in a single day, as Amazon abruptly fires engineers in its Lab126. Andrew Tolve reports.
In this week’s Digest: Amazon Fire Phone, Lab126, The Wall Street Journal, Samsung, SumUp, Groupon, American Express, iZettle, Intel Capital, Zouk Capital, Apple, Apple Watch, Fitbit, IDC, Facebook, PayAnywhere, Apple Pay, Android Pay, Samsung Pay, AT&T, DirecTV, Sprint, Lenovo, Motorola Mobile, Google, SocialBattles, Instagram and Intelligent Energy.
In the news
So long Amazon Fire Phone. Amazon sacked dozens of engineers in its Lab126, the tech department behind the Fire Phone and other consumer devices, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal. Just a year after launch, the Fire Phone has failed to drum up much interest among consumers, who evidently aren’t enticed by the potential efficiencies of a single-purpose smartphone. Amazon didn’t confirm or refute the news, but it looks highly likely that the online retailer will return for now to what it’s really good at — world dominating e-commerce.
In the money
One buck. That’s how much it costs to take a Samsung smartphone for a spin for a month, data included. The Korean smartphone maker launched the new Galaxy Note 5 and Galaxy S6 Edge+ a couple weeks ago and is leaning heavily on them to turn around 18 months of poor market results. More info about the promotion here.
Two European startups on the mobile payment front hauled in big fundraising rounds. SumUp raised €10 million from the likes of Groupon and American Express, while iZettle raked in €60 million ($67M) courtesy of Intel Capital and Zouk Capital. iZettle also announced that it has expanded beyond mobile payment devices for small businesses into actually giving small business loans.
In other news
That didn’t take long. Apple shipped a total of 3.6 million Apple Watches in the second quarter of 2015, just 0.8 million units behind market leader Fitbit's 4.4 million units, according to IDC’s Worldwide Quarterly Wearable Device Tracker. That means Apple nearly jump-frogged to the top of the wearables market in a single quarter. In Q315, don’t be surprised if it’s comfortably in the lead.
Facebook announced M, a Siri-esque digital personal assistant integrated into Facebook’s Messenger app. M will live and breathe exclusively on mobile operating systems, offering everything from on-demand jokes to concierge services. The system is in beta right now and is being tested in the SF Bay Area. Facebook also reached a new milestone last week, largely driven by mobile: 1 billion users in a single day. Hoorah, we're all officially addicts now.
Small businesses keen on offering all mobile payment solutions are in luck: A company called PayAnywhere has debuted a card-reading solution that accepts all major credit cards and mobile payment offerings, including Apple Pay and near-field-communication solutions like Android Pay and Samsung Pay.
Following AT&T’s $49-billion acquisition of DirecTV, Sprint has rolled out an offer meant to pin one company against the other. All DirecTV users can get a year free of service if they switch to Sprint. “DirecTV customers love their TV service -- but they shouldn’t have to settle for AT&T wireless” is the line Sprint is going with. Thank goodness they’re finally taking the high road.
Lenovo plans to shift responsibility for its smartphone making business to Motorola Mobile, a brand it purchased from Google last year for $2.91 billion. The world’s largest PC maker wants to improve efficiency and market penetration after lackluster sales on the smartphone front. Fusing its business with Motorola’s, and letting Motorola handle all design and manufacturing responsibilities for Lenovo phones, is the company’s solution.
Think you’re the best photographer around? A new iOS app called SocialBattles takes an Instagram-esque social platform and adds a heavy dose of competition. Users can either challenge friends to tete-a-tetes or they can post an open challenge to other app users to see if anyone else can take a photo as popular.
Finally, Apple is working with British Tech Company Intelligent Energy on an iPhone battery that will last a week on a single charge. Dubbed “Upp”, the battery fuses oxygen and hydrogen in a hydrogen fuel cell to create oodles of electricity. The downside: lots of heat and water vapor, which have to be discharged without igniting a pocket or a purse in the process.
The Mobile Digest is a biweekly lowdown on the world of mobile, combining Open Mobile Media analysis with information from industry press releases.
Andrew Tolve is a regular contributor to Open Mobile Media.