According to Mobile Marketer the rush is on:

On the heels of Steve Jobs’ official introduction of Apple’s iPad, marketers and developers are racing out the door with applications and advertising services for the new tablet.

Mobspree has launched TouchPlay, an interactive publishing service that uses the iPhone and iPad’s rich-media capabilities. First up on the platform is “Ordinary Mary’s Extraordinary Deed,” a copublishing collaboration between SnackLogic and Gibbs Smith.

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Scoreloop, a provider of social mobile games, has begun development on games for the iPad.

The game developer said the iPad will allow for a more sophisticated gaming experience with integration of its play challenges, achievements, friend recommendations and social network integration. Scoreloop also supports the iPhone and Google’s Android devices.

Read more @ Mobile Marketer

Call us skeptical (about the specs), but this is what IntoMobile has to say:

According to a report citing comments from South Korea’s KT execs, Apple’s upcoming iPhone successor could feature a removable battery, OLED display, video calling, and a new dual-core processor alongside upgraded graphics processing hardware. If true, we could see this feature-packed “iPhone 4G,” as it’s being called, hitting market as soon as April of this year. The expedited launch window would be a departure from Apple’s traditional mid-year launch of new iPhone hardware.

And what might we see in April?

The rumored feature-set of the iPhone 4G is everything we’d hoped for in a next-gen iPhone. The higher-resolution OLED display should go a long way in competing with smartphones outfitted with 3.7-inch and 4-inch high-res displays from the likes of HTC and Motorola. The removable battery is something that iPhone users have been clamoring for ever since the original iPhone landed on US shores – an Apple patent application bodes well for a removable battery. And, while supposed Android “superphones” like the Nexus One tout 1Ghz Snapdragon processors, this new iPhone 4G might just come to market toting a latest generation of ARM Cortex A9 dual-core processor capable of clock speeds in excess of 2Ghz. That’s going to make for an iPhone that’s not just fast, it’ll have more processing power than laptops of just a handful of years ago!

Sounds exciting, but, alas, unlikely.

It seems like every day there's another story in the news about sexting (news search results). It now looks like MTV is going to turn the 18 to 25 demographic's fondness for sexting into a reality TV show:

 MTV News put out a casting call for "people who appear to be between the ages of 18-25 to share their stories" about the latest teen trend: sending text messages or e-mails with sexual images or provocative words.

The network's documentary arm is looking for people who have engaged in sexting, are worried that their private pictures have been disseminated to the masses, have had relationships ruined by sexting or are facing legal trouble from engaging in the activity.

According to a new Pew Research Center study, 15 percent of cellphone owners between 12 and 17 have received nude or partially nude photos on their phones, while four percent admitted to having sent the images themselves.

Read more @ The New York Post.

Gizmodo has scored the first hands on review of the rumored, found, confirmed Google Nexus One.

Thanks to a clandestine meeting with a source, I got a chance to play with and try out the Nexus One. It's basically, from my time with it, Google's Droid killer. It's thin, it's fast, it's better in every way.

My source was very firm about no photography, and I didn't want to jeopardize anything on my source's end, so there are no photos, hence these photos are ones we've already shown you. But, based on all the leaked shots this week, plus the very pretty and very clear one last week from Boy Genius, everyone knows what the phone looks like already. Hell, there's even a complete UI walkthrough today that's on YouTube. So I'm going to focus on the experience, and how it compares to the Droid and the iPhone 3GS.

To those of who you who don't think the Droid is sexy, you'll be glad to know that the Nexus One is major aesthetic improvement:

You can call the design the antithesis of the Droid: smooth, curved, and light, instead of hard, square and pointy. It feels long and silky and natural in your hand—even more so than the iPhone 3GS.

Head over to Gizmodo right now to learn all about the Google Nexus One.

Want to learn about Mobile Couponing? We've got a guide for that!

The technology has been around for a few years, but couponing campaigns have only recently taken off with brands and consumers. We first started to see major brands launch national couponing campaigns last year.

Since then, three things have changed. First, consumers have grown familiar with mobile coupons; second, companies like Club Texting have launched dead simple couponing platforms; and third, financially stressed consumers are looking for ways to save money.

Now is the time for your business – small and local, or large and national – to launch a mobile couponing campaign. You no longer need to pay a marketing agency tens of thousands of dollars to run your campaign for you; Club Texting’s mobile marketing platform allows you to Do It Yourself. This guide will show you how easy and effective mobile coupons can be for your company.

Read more about mobile coupons in our guide at Club Texting.

Club Texting is based in New York. As such, we know a thing or two about New Years Eve parties. If you're a native, or you'll be visiting, we've got some info for you, along with some links to valuable resources. In New York, New Years Eve is one of the biggest and most exciting party nights of the year. It gives you an excuse to get dressed up, spend time with friends, and party like a rock star.

New Years NYC is an experience like no other, whether it is spent in Times Square or at one of NYC’s hottest clubs. The ball drop in Times Square is an event that cannot be replicated and belongs solely to New York, drawing crowds of over 700,000 people. Two clubs having New Years NYC parties near Times Square are China Club and Aspen Social, both located close to the madness where you can ring in the New Year out of the cold.

A lot of people would rather avoid the madness altogether, good thing New York is a big city. New Years Eve in NYC has an endless list of places to celebrate. Clubs are the perfect New Years option embodying all things New Years, glitz, glamour, music, dancing, and of course the countdown to midnight. Some of NYC’s best places to ring in the New Year include; M2 Ultra Lounge, BLVD, and Kiss & Fly.

Whatever you do, everyone at Club Texting wishes you a happy and a healthy new year!

In the last year SMS marketing has taken off in the real estate industry. Why the surge in usage? It's no secret that residential real estate is going through a (ahem, major ) slump. SMS Text Message marketing allows real estate brokers to cheap and effectively market properties to interested sellers. So how does it work?

Club Texting's Real Estate Text Messaging Software System allows house hunters to request and instantly receive property listing information using their mobile phones.

Home buyers text in--upon seeing a sign on the front lawn or in your agency's window--requesting more information. Our text messaging software system replies in seconds, delivering relevant info including beds, baths, and price. If interested, our two-way system allows the potential buyer to set up a showing or a call back.

Learn more about SMS marketing for the real estate industry at Club Texting.

Yesterday saw the unveiling of a potentially groundbreaking product:

The idea – let people quickly and easily accept physical credit card payments from their mobile phone. A small device attaches to the phone via the headset/microphone jack. The device gets the power it needs to send data to the phone from the swipe of the card, and sends the information over the microphone connection. Based on the shots below, the device is compatible with both the iPhone and Android (or at least the recently released Droid).

Think paypal, but anyone can now accept physical credit card payments, too. With no contracts or monthly fees. People are sent receipts by text and email.

Head over to TechCrunch to learn more, or just watch the video to see how it works!

A report from Clicky reveals some interesting results:

This page shows the daily web browsing marketshare for mobile phones of interest, which is calculated from all mobile traffic across the 150,000+ sites that are tracked by getclicky.com. It is updated every 30 minutes.

2.63% on Nov 11, 2.84% on the 12th, and 2.67% on the 13th. Learn more @ Clicky.

As a nightclub owner or promoter you're always looking for new, cost-effective ways of getting people through the door. At Club Texting, we help hundreds of nightclubs, bars, and lounges connect with their patrons through text messaging:

Nightclub promotions can be a difficult task--you spend money in various places, and it is often difficult to see if your investments are paying dividends. Club Texting's mobile marketing program for nightclubs holds down your costs, while taking the uncertainty out of the nightlife promotions process. When you send out text messages promoting parties at your nightclub, patrons come through the door, with their phones in hand. Unlike with email, which stays on the computer, you can have your customers pull out their phones to show you the message they are responding to--and in turn you can offer them VIP access, drink specials, reduced admission, or whatever else you dream up!

So what can you do with text messaging for your nightclub? As patrons wait in line at the door, have them text your keyword to 25827 (212121 in Canada) to join your VIP mobile guest list, showing the auto-reply message for reduced admission. Send a mass text the same day as a special event, telling people to show the text message for free admission before 11pm. Soon, you will never print flyers again!

Learn more: Mobile marketing is the future of nightclub promotion.

We wanted to relay to you a quick bit of news that will certainly excite many of our customers. Earlier this week, MetroPCS provisioned our short code, 25827 on their network, making us one of the first mobile marketing firms to support true two-way messaging for MetroPCS customers!

See our full carrier coverage list at Club Texting.

Mobile Marketing Watch has an interesting take on just why smartphones are hammering the carriers' networks. It's a bit more nuanced then you probably expect:

Through its research, Airvana identified a significant mobile network “load multiplier effect” caused by smartphone data traffic on the macro-cellular network.  Airvana engineers comparing data use profiles found that for a given volume of data transmitted, one smartphone typically generates eight times the network signaling load of a USB modem-equipped laptop. Although smartphones may only account for a minority percentage of all devices on operator networks today, they’re always on, moving between cell sites and continually ‘polling’ the network.  As a result, smartphones are already responsible for the majority—two to three times as much as laptops—of the total signaling activity.

Put simply, the nature of smartphones – with their mobile Web-focused design and always-on capabilities are swallowing bandwidth faster than any other device in use on wireless networks today- eight times more than a laptop pulling the same bandwidth from a USB-based mobile broadband connection.

Read more @ Mobile Marketing Watch.

MediaPost's OnlineMediaDaily brings news of a new report on the mobile entertainment industry:

The worldwide economic downturn isn't slowing down mobile media growth, according to a new forecast. The Mobile Entertainment Forum's latest Business Confidence Index, compiled by KPMG, projects average mobile media revenue will grow 33% in 2009 -- a 6% increase over the rate predicted at the beginning of the year.

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The explosion of mobile applications is also starting to pay off as apps alone are expected to account for 14% of all mobile media sales. It's likely Apple's App Store, with more than 2 billion downloads to date, will generate the vast majority of app sales this year. Even so, most iPhone apps are still offered free.

Read more @ OnlineMediaDaily

If you've got the right Verizon phone and you're a college football fan, pay attention:

Read more @ Fixed Mobile Convergence.

IntoMobile has the details on the PGA's new iPhone app for golf lovers:

Read more @ IntoMobile
Read about text messaging solutions for golf courses at Club Texting

Mobile Marketer has an interesting case study up about a small shoe store, and the wider implications of its successful mobile marketing campaign:

Go Mobile Now Or Regret It Later indeed.

Read more @ Mobile Marketer
Learn about SMS mobile marketing for retail @ Club Texting

Coors Light has just rolled out a very cool new SMS based mobile marketing effort:

Coors Light, a subsidiary of Molson Coors Brewing Co., is launching a mobile initiative as part of its continued “Cold Certified” campaign to create interactivity between consumers and the brand.

Read more @ Mobile Marketer

Mobile Marketer reports that Jägermeister's American importer is turning to mobile marketing, which makes perfect sense considering the demographic alignment:

At the events, announcers, displays and the Jäger team promoted the mobile call-to-action of texting keyword JAGER to short code 47201 for a chance to win a Supercross bike.

Consumers that texted in had to verify their age and were than notified that they had been entered into the sweepstakes and asked if they would like to opt-in to future messages from Jäger.

The call-to-action was displayed on-site with signage and over the loudspeakers: “Win this bike tonight!!! If you win, it goes home with you tonight. It’s so easy. Just text JAGER to 47201.”

The SMS sweepstakes exceeded Sidney Frank’s expectations for driving consumer interaction.

The percentage of attendees who texted in to enter the sweepstakes ranged from 4 percent in St. Louis and Jacksonville to 8 percent in Salt Lake City.

Of the consumers who entered the sweepstakes, the percentage who opted in to receive future marketing messages from Jägermeister on their handset ranged from 4 percent in St. Louis to 12 percent in Jacksonville and Las Vegas.

Read more @ Mobile Marketer.

MMS and bar codes are two mobile marketing technologies that are slowly being adopted. Sports Illustrated has jumped aboard:

Using the phone's camera without specialized software is something that every bar code campaign should do--otherwise brands can't expect to go as wide as they need to go to see success. Still, the program is not available across all carriers:

For the time being only SMS-based mobile marketing can reach all US mobile users.

Read more @ Mobile Marketer.

Mobile Marketer reports on a recent Ace Hardware mobile advertising campaign:

Ace Hardware’s idle screen mobile marketing campaign has generated an 18 percent click-through rate and has helped the retailer drive in-store traffic. 

The company used Mobile Posse’s idle screen advertising platform to promote popular home maintenance products to mobile consumers. The campaign was launched around Ace’s Memorial Day Sale and  invited consumers to visit their local Ace Hardware to take advantage of great deals.

Read more @ Mobile Marketer.

Visit Club Texting to learn more about Mobile Marketing for Retail.