Electronics giant, Samsung has released an application development tool, bada 2.0, to boost its mobile platform, but analysts say the move is unlikely to catch the energy of developers.
Arthur Goldstuck, MD of World Wide Worx, says developers will not be interested in developing for a platform that is only available on a few phones, such as Samsung Wave smartphones.
According to Samsung, bada 2.0 supports HTML5 and some flash functions. The introduction of in-app ads to the platform is a key feature, says the company. “Using the Ads API [Application Programming Interface], developers for bada 2.0 can easily insert advertisements, creating new revenue opportunities,” says Samsung.
Goldstuck says while the Wave is a good phone, the apps world is about getting developers on-board and making platforms as open and available as possible. Goldstuck explains, Samsung is already a big Android user, and is working closely with Microsoft on Windows Phone 7. Boosting its own platform, therefore, only leads to fragmentation in the Samsung apps world, he adds.
While in-app ads are essential for commoditising app platforms, these are already available on other platforms, so the inclusion of in-app ads is more a case of Samsung catching up with the market Goldstuck points out. As such, he says, this will not give Samsung a competitive advantage; it merely means the company gets to play in the same sand pit as its competitors.
According to Steven Ambrose, MD of Strategy Worx, none of the new features offered by bada 2.0 fundamentally shift the platform in relation to other platforms, such as Android or iOS. However, he points out, the features and updates to the platform were needed to keep it competitive with other smartphone platforms.
Goldstuck, however, indicates that he is impressed by how active Samsung has been regarding the development of local apps. The company says it has trebled revenue from local app downloads since it began engaging with local developers in June.
Ambrose also points out that the development and distribution of local apps is the only way smartphone makers will compete going forward. “I think it is extremely strategic for Samsung to focus heavily on this in SA. This focus will help differentiate them and will help them grow their market share going forward,” he says.
He also argues that the market will reward platforms that are more locally relevant, while penalising those that are not. “Samsung appears to have grasped this and is pushing hard in this regard.”
Samsung says bada 2.0 can be downloaded from the bada developer site. According to the company, the bada 2.0 platform will be available in SA, and the shipment of bada 2.0-enabled devices is expected at the end of 2011 or the beginning of 2012.
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