I am excited to introduce to you Microsoft OneApp, a new software application that will allow feature phones to run mobile apps like Facebook, Twitter, Windows Live Messenger, and other popular applications and games. OneApp complements Microsoft’s existing mobile strategy by bringing mobile apps and services to feature phones in emerging markets.
OneApp’s software plus services design enables mobile apps to run on feature phones that have limited memory and processing capability. (What we call “feature phones” are devices –very often found in emerging markets -- that can connect to basic data services and install applications.) Customers will experience OneApp on their phone as a single application where they can easily access all of their mobile apps.
Let me walk you through how this can happen, technically:
· OneApp’s very minimal on-phone footprint of just 150 KB (whereas most downloaded mobile apps are measured in terms of MB) makes installing it quick and easy.
· OneApp will launch only the parts of a mobile app that you want to use; that cuts down on additional installation time and the need to store all of your mobile apps on your phone.
· OneApp uses data networks very efficiently to help lower data access charges, which can really create substantial savings for the customer.
· OneApp includes cloud services that can help shift processing and storage weight from the phone to the Internet, which improves overall performance.
In the coming weeks our local partner Blue Label Telecoms in South Africa will be the first to launch their consumer mobile service using Microsoft OneApp. OneApp is part of the release of their service called ‘mibli, powered by Microsoft OneApp’ which will ship with over a dozen new mobile apps, including a Mobile Wallet. Customers in South Africa will be able to download and install mibli for free. They have plans to offer more apps which would be available over the next year, focusing on areas like healthcare.
Our hope is that OneApp will develop new business opportunities for partners like Blue Label Telecoms and create more opportunities for the industry as a whole. Software developers are going to be able to write new apps for OneApp using familiar industry standards like Javascript and XML. The OneApp software developer kit is expected to be available for developers by the end of this year.
The video below gives a brief overview of OneApp and if you are interested in learning more please visit the OneApp website.
Tim McDonough – Senior Director, Unlimited Potential Group
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