BASKING RIDGE, N.J. and NEW YORK, June 27, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Revolutionizing mobile entertainment, Viggle Inc., and Verizon Wireless today announced that Viggle((SM)), the popular rewards-based loyalty program for television, is now available to Verizon Wireless customers with Android((TM)) devices. To celebrate the launch on the Verizon Wireless network, Viggle announced a daily 1 million point giveaway.
Viggle transforms the television viewing experience by allowing users to accumulate points by checking into the television shows they're watching, playing games and puzzles about their favorite TV shows and interacting with special branded media. Customers can then use Viggle points on a wide array of rewards such as movie tickets, gift cards, wireless accessories, music and more, and they can also convert points into charitable donations.
"Viggle is another way Verizon Wireless customers can experience the power of 4G LTE, which delivers video and other information faster and smoother than before," said Ed Ruth, director, new market development/business development, Verizon Wireless. "Viggle's rewards-based loyalty program provides a valuable interactive mobile experience for our customers, allowing them to look at television in a whole new way."
"Working with Verizon Wireless lets us share Viggle with a broader audience across a variety of platforms," said Greg Consiglio, senior vice president, business development at Viggle. "We've seen a lot of excitement around the ways the app adds to the television viewing experience for consumers, and we're excited to expand to Verizon Wireless' 4G LTE Android subscribers so they can further enjoy their mobile devices."
Verizon Wireless customers can download Viggle on a wide range of smartphones and tablets from Verizon Apps, Verizon Wireless' mobile storefront, and Google Play. There is no charge to download the app, but a Verizon Wireless data plan is required and usage may count toward a customer's data allowance.
Viggle members will be automatically entered into the daily 1 million point giveaway and will automatically receive an entry when they check into a TV show during the promotion. For more information, please visit http://www.viggle.com/index.php/june-21-million-points-a-day-sweeps/.
For more information about Verizon Wireless products and services, visit a Verizon Wireless Communications Store, call 1-800-2 JOIN IN or go to www.verizonwireless.com.
About Verizon Wireless
Verizon Wireless operates the nation's largest 4G LTE network and largest, most reliable 3G network. The company serves 93.0 million retail customers, including 88.0 million retail postpaid customers. Headquartered in Basking Ridge, N.J., with 80,000 employees nationwide, Verizon Wireless is a joint venture of Verizon Communications (NYSE, NASDAQ: VZ) and Vodafone (LSE, NASDAQ: VOD). For more information, visit www.verizonwireless.com. To preview and request broadcast-quality video footage and high-resolution stills of Verizon Wireless operations, log on to the Verizon Wireless Multimedia Library at www.verizonwireless.com/multimedia.
About Viggle((SM))
Viggle is a loyalty program for television that gives people real rewards for checking into the television shows they are watching. Available for Android, Apple iPhone, iPad and iPod touch, Viggle automatically identifies the television shows its users are watching and awards them points when they check-in. Viggle users can redeem their points in the app's rewards catalogue for items such as movie tickets, music, gift cards or they can convert them into charitable donations. For more information, visit http://www.viggle.com, follow us on Twitter @Viggle or like us on Facebook.
This press release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and as defined in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected or anticipated. All information provided in this press release is as of June 27, 2012. Except as required by law, Viggle Inc. undertakes no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, after the date on which the statements are made or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.
SOURCE Verizon Wireless
Think smartphones are ubiquitous now? Just wait a few years - The Guardian
Five years after the first iPhone went onsale, the sales of smartphones – loosely defined as phones that can run third-party "apps", and access the internet directly – now make up nearly two-thirds of mobile phones sold in western Europe and north America, although only about half of mobile users in both regions own one. (The difference arises because some early smartphone adopters have upgraded a number of times, while many "featurephone" users have not.)
Analyists predict that in two years, 90% of mobile users will have no choice but to own smartphones – even if all they want to do is call and text.
Yet the revolution has had its casualties, with BlackBerry-maker RIM expected to announce a second quarter of losses this Thursday, and the sector's former dominant player Nokia's debts downgraded to junk status. Some analysts wonder whether both companies will see the sixth anniversary of the phone that undermined them.
"The iPhone had three big effects," says Neil Mawston, executive director of the research company Strategy Analytics. "We moved from keyboards and keypads to finger-driven touchscreens; it meant a shift away from the painfully slow mobile phone browser to app stores; and it revolutionised the market by encouraging more use of data, beyond just text messaging." The fact that the first iPhone contracts offered completely unlimited data use transformed a market where mobile internet connectivity had previously been parcelled in per-megabyte allocations, to screens with tiny displays.
But the real agent of change was the arrival in late 2008 of Google's Android mobile software, which soon offered the same touch-driven experience, with multiple handset companies – including Korea's Samsung – vying for the top spot. "Android democratised touchscreens and app stores," says Mawston. "The iPhone was relatively expensive. Android brought smartphones in at low price points."
That brought in all sorts of other transformations – particularly the ubiquitous "apps", without which no company seems to be complete. Android phones now make up more than half of all smartphone sales globally (with Samsung's making up half of those on its own, outpacing Apple).
And Apple has grabbed a huge share of the profit in the mobile market: according to Horace Dediu, who runs the Asymco consultancy, in the first quarter of 2012 Apple grabbed 73% of the handset industry's operating profits, Samsung 26%, and HTC 1%; meanwhile LG, Motorola, Sony, RIM and Nokia all posted losses.
Even so, the profit in the handset industry has grown enormously, from a total of $5.3bn (£3.4bn) in the first three months of 2009 to $14.4bn (£9.2bn) at the same time in 2012, Dediu points out. Apple has grown its profits hugely – in effect, sucking them out of mobile operators, which have seen their per-user profits diminish even as smartphone use has risen.
They're not alone in feeling the pinch. Nokia has seen smartphone sales collapse as it struggles to reinvent itself after abandoning its own pre-2007 Symbian software. Some analysts worry it could run short of cash before Microsoft's new Windows Phone software can revive it.
As for BlackBerry, Mawston says: "Arguably its new handsets in autumn are its last chance. If they're a hit it will be back on an upward track. Otherwise it will continue downward."
The economic crunch in many eurozone countries is already showing that the 50% of consumers yet to buy a smartphone will be very different from those who queued up five years ago. "In some countries such as Portugal, most iPhones are sold without a data plan," says Francisco Jeronimo, smartphones analyst for the research company IDC. "They're used at home or offices, where people connect to the internet via wifi, because in most European countries and the US – though not the UK – people have to pay extra to get internet data on their phone plan. But if you pay €50 per month for an iPhone, you don't want to be paying another €20 for the data."
Even so, Jeronimo sees the market becoming 90% smartphone-based by 2016 (Mawston puts it at 2015): There's no price point where carriers can make any money with them," he explains.
Now, Chinese manufacturers such as Huawei and ZTE have begun making smartphones for carriers using Google's Android for just £100 – an indication of how commoditised the business has become. "They'll just be used for voice and text," says Jeronimo.
At the same time, carriers are also trying to inch away from subsidising phone sales, because they make almost no money from selling them, even at the top end.
Ironically, the models on which carriers make the most money are RIM's BlackBerrys – and the prospects of an Apple-Android (or even Apple-Samsung) duopoly has them worried. What they are hoping is that Nokia will come back with a resilient showing – though it may be 2013 before that happens, on most analysts' reckoning.
Mawston, meanwhile, is certain that smartphones will almost see off other models, whether users want them or not. "In Europe, all the young and rich segments have purchased one already," he says. "The older and less wealthy won't have a choice – they'll have to buy them. But they'll tend to go for simpler versions. They'll use them for voice and text – and the app stores."
iPhone 5 Prototype Suggests NFC Support - TrustedReviews
iPhone & Android Shimi robotic dock dancing on video - Phones Review
Well now if you simply must have a dock for your iPhone or Android smartphone then why not have one that can dance along to the beat of your music whilst looking cute and adorable? Well perhaps sometime in the near future you will be able to own a robotic dancing dock for your iPhone or Android handset.
According to the guys over at Gizmodo, by way of The Next Web, Shimi the robot has been developed by Tovbot, and are apparently going to showcase the Shimi prototype at the Google I/O 2012 after party, and Shimi is a robot speaker dock for both the iPhone and Android smartphones that can dance along with the beat of the music you are listening to.
However, Shimi doesn’t just dance to the beat, the cute robotic dock can also apparently recognise both gestures and facial expressions using your smartphone camera, along with keeping you updated with what’s going on over at Facebook and Twitter.
The Co founder and CEO of Tovbot, Gil Weinberg has said, “Shimi is actually the product of nearly a decade of musical robotics research. We’re very excited about the opportunity to show the Google developer community what we’ve put together using the Android platform.”
So for our readers we have a couple of videos showing off Shimi in action, the first of a lone Shimi ding its stuff, and the second is the Shimi Band so head on down and hit those play buttons to check out the cutest robot dock around. However unfortunately the word is you probably wont be able to pick up Shimi before next years CES…enjoy.
Vodafone India offers new international roaming pack - Times of India
"Vodafone subscribers can now avail international roaming services at 60 per cent discount rate for voice, data and SMS in one single pack. This discount offer is applicable across 40 countries on specific partner networks across the globe," the company said in a statement.
These packs will be available till September 30. The offer is activated on a minimal one-time rental fee of Rs.1,499 valid for 30 days, the rental for which will be charged in the customer's bill.
"This latest offering addresses the latent needs of customers travelling to multiple countries with a single pack on one number and one-time rental, thus making international roaming a worry-free experience," said Sanjoy Mukerji, chief commercial officer, Vodafone India.
With this pack, customers can roam internationally without having to pay multiple rentals, in various countries they visit.
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