We got a lot of great comments on your favorite Mobile Web apps in the contest post, which we will analyze soon. Keep telling us the Mobile Web apps you use, e.g. in this comments thread too, because it's great to know.

Publishers can now use Zong apps to offer their customers polls, quizzes, alerts, RSS feeds and more via SMS shortcodes and responses. The company says its API also allows publishers to leverage web content, serve up and bill customers for a wide variety of applications beyond SMS interactions.

Publishers are expected to charge customers for use of the apps and billing functionality is built into Zong. The US carriers will take 40 to 60% of revenue from the apps, Zong will take less than 10% and the publishers can pocket the rest. That sounds like the kind of revenue split that could prove viable in the long run. While a lot of the apps we'll start seeing soon will probably be pretty corny, there will be some good ones too. Good mobile apps that work are something I'm willing to pay to use.

Competitor Golife Mobile just began offering limited Java application access last week. Some comparison to Google's Android Mobile OS can't help but come to mind - but Zong is a far more limited application framework, is explicitly commercial in its relationship to end users - and it's live now. While the Android SDK has been released - the Operating System isn't live on any phones yet.

Reading news on your mobile device - Another Web inventor, Dave Winer of RSS fame, is now busy creating mobile versions of popular news sources and weblogs for reading on your BlackBerry, Treo, or web-enabled cell phone. Included in the first batch is a mobile version of Read/WriteWeb! Also available is mobile NY Times. When I hear Dave saying something like this, I always prick up my ears:

"I've not been so excited or so sure about a new direction for mobile technology since podcasting in June 2004. I'm sure we'll look back on this as a turning point for mobile news."

And speaking of the future of the Web... Read/WriteWeb is giving away two seats to The Future of Web Apps conference - courtesy of Carson Workshops. For a chance to win, answer this question: What is the name of the person speaking about Google Calendar at The Future of Web Apps?

Email readwriteweb [at] carsonworkshops [dot] com with your answer and the folks at Carson Workshops will choose the first two people with the right answer.

With Cascada Mobile's platform called Breeze, anyone can take their idea from thought to app in about fifteen minutes. Well, maybe not anyone - the apps are built using HTML, so you would have to have some rudimentary web programming knowledge to use their platform. Still, you have to admit, that's a lot easier than using a professional development platform.

With Breeze, you can build, test, and distribute mobile J2ME apps that run on hundreds and handsets. And these are "real" apps, too - fully integrated mobile applications with their own icon, not just mobile widgets.

The "Breeze Simulator" lets the novice developers test their app for hundreds of different handsets - a usually daunting task in the world of mobile web programming where apps that work on one model don't work on another, even if they're similar in design or from the same manufacturer.

Check out this video that shows Breeze in action:
Cascada Mobile Breeze from Cascada Mobile on Vimeo.

In addition, Breeze developers will receive a line of code they can put on their web sites, blogs, or social network profiles that let their visitors download the app by entering their mobile number. Breeze takes care of the distribution via SMS, WAP Push, and direct download. To subsidize the cost of distribution, the apps are ad-enabled. However, developers wanting to go ad-free can pay for the use of Breeze in order to do so.

Should Programming Be Left To the Professionals?

So, now we have an application that lets everyone program web apps (Iceberg) and a platform for building mobile J2ME apps, what's next? If this trend is to continue, the next big move would be to let novice developers build their own iPhone applications, you would think. But the real question is do we actually want amateurs building apps for our mobile devices? Or would you rather that was left to professionals?

You can try some Breeze applications for yourself from here. (Ooh, mobile Twitter!)

Personally I don't read feeds in my mobile phone, although I would like to. I do download content from the Web onto my Palm PDA, for offline reading. So it makes sense to go the next step and read content online on my mobile device. Anyway Barb's readers recommended the following apps and services for mobile RSS reading, if you're interested:

- BuddyBuzz
- winksite.com
- LiteFeeds
- Bloglines mobile
- PHONifier
- iFeedYou
- FreeNews

The iPhone has a ton of selling points. It sports an user interface that goes beyond anything ever seen on the Windows Mobile, Blackberry, and Palm OS'. The performance is fast! The interface is intuitive and it sports an iPod. How many people have phones with music playback capabilities, yet don't transfer any songs to play on their phone? I'm one of those users and if you're one too, you know you'd use the iPod that's integrated with the iPhone with no hesitation. All in all, the iPhone is sleek, beautiful, and performs adequately. The biggest selling point though, is not necessarily the Safari browser, but the applications that have been developed to take advantage of Safari's functionality on the iPhone.

Why the Apps Make a Big Difference

Touchscreen phones are being snapped up left and right. More than enough are already available including the LG Voyager (Verizon), Samsung Instinct (Sprint), HTC Touch (Verizon, Sprint), LG Vu (AT&T), and Samsung Glyde (Verizon). While this is great for those who may want to go against the rising tide of the iPhone, these phones will not break the iPhone's stronghold. Why? Their browsers suck!

The biggest reason most people would like an iPhone is because of the Safari browser. However, it's not just the browser. It's the mobile applications that are accessible via the browser. Have you seen the user interfaces for mobile apps made for the iPhone? The functionality is splendid. The design is flawless just like the iPhone. Execution these applications is in strict accordance with Apple-like standards. There are tons of mobile applications already available that don't require you to download them. And after the WWDC, there are tons more on the way.

Reaching for Something Better

While it's nice to see more touchscreens on the market and phones that pick up where the iPhone natively slacks, meaning you don't need to "jailbreak" them just to do something, they just don't compare to what's available for the iPhone. Sure there are more Windows Mobile applications floating around than iPhone apps, but take a look at the design and execution difference. When it comes to mobile apps, it doesn't get any better than what the iPhone has at this point. However, I hope that mobile handset makers and carriers are striving for something better to break what is surely a monopoly that the iPhone will eventually hold on the mobile web.

One of the main problems in the mobile industry today is fragmentation. There are thousands of different handsets out there and multiple mobile platforms to code for, too. Sometimes, mobile applications for the same platform - like the Blackberry, for instance - don't even work on all Blackberry devices, only on certain ones. That makes it challenging for both the developers who have to write the various versions of their mobile apps and for the mobile users who want to install applications on their phones.

In many cases, consumers don't even know the model number of their phone - they may know the brand, but only because it's etched into the top of their handset. So when they happen across a mobile application on the mobile web, they're stumped as to whether their device is supported.

With GetJar's new service, that confusion could be a thing of the past. By automatically identifying a consumer's handset, the mobile App Download Page can point the end user to the correct download automatically. And if their phone isn't supported, the page can redirect the user to another mobile webpage of the application developer's choosing.

Developers who sign up with GetJar can manage all their mobile applications from the Developer Site, where they can also track download and performance analytics, sign up to advertise on GetJar sites and partner networks, and integrate in-app ads within their mobile software. 

Future Plans

Facebook was one of the first companies to use the new service and photo-sharing website Photobucket will roll out their GetJar integration later this fall.

Next year, GetJar will also launch a new version of their mobile application store which is currently available only as a traditional website and a mobile-ready WAP site. The future version, which will feature some 50,000+ mobile apps from GetJar's catalog, will more closely mimic the iTunes App Store mobile experience as it will be accessed via an icon placed on mobile phones' homescreens. The company is currently working on establishing partnerships with mobile carriers in order to prepare for the store's launch.

With FriendMobilizer, you can view your friend's information and profiles, write on their walls, browse photo albums, approve friend requests, view group and event invites, read your new wall posts, read the messages in your inbox, update your status, and more.

Click Image to See Larger Version

The application is currently available for both Windows Mobile devices and Pocket PCs and can be downloaded from the web site at www.faceofmobile.com. However, according to the company, the generic software platform developed for FriendMobilizer will soon be ported to other mobile OS's as well. In addition, the company plans to build mobile apps for other social networks in the future.

It would be nice if Apple gave us a better breakdown of the kinds of apps it actually delivers (free vs. paid, games vs. utilities, etc.). This kind of transparency is obviously not in Apple's DNA, so we depend on data from third-party services like AdMob for this information. According to AdMob, iPod touch and iPhone users are more likely to buy apps than users of any other mobile platform and are also more likely to interact with mobile ads.

For developers, no matter the grumblings about the App Store approval process, the App Store is simply the largest and most lucrative marketplace for their work right now.

Of course, this is only a first attempt and we laud the Wikipedia Mobile team for releasing this app as an open-source application. However, the fact that the search field is populated with "::Home" when you first open up the app shows that the app still needs a lot of polish before it can compete with the 'unofficial' apps. For now, if you just want a lightweight way of accessing Wikipedia articles from your phone and you don't want to install an app, just use the official mobile site.

While the iPhone App Store will open some day soon, will be available around the world and will be usable on more affordable handsets than is the case today - Fring may still be more globally accessible than iPhone apps will be.

What would you like to see tied into Fring? I'd love to see some FriendFeed integration, perhaps Qik and I imagine interesting things could be done with VOIP and Yelp and Fring presence and Fireeagle location tracking. How about a notification when I'm near a contact's physical location and they are available online for IM contact? That would be great.

The company is well funded, has an app for the jailbroken iPhone and reports that it's seeing more than 100k new downloads every month around the world. Here at RWW many of us are happy Fring users and we're excited to see what the developer community can add to our IM, VOIP and file transferring mobile experience. Presence data, knowing when contacts are online and off, adds a particular exciting dimension to any application - mobile apps leveraging presence could prove wildly useful.

What's it going to look like when mobile devices really change the world? A new effort to provide funding to mobile projects aimed at public good could give us a good look at the future. The nonprofit N2Y4 Mobile Challenge from Netsquared is accepting project submissions from mobile developers through this month and will provide seed funding to a handful of lucky winners. The submissions so far are quite interesting.

Here's a sample of what projects have been submitted so far.

Think about the billions of people around the world whose lives could be touched by apps like this. There are 4 billion mobile phone subscriptions around the world. There are only 175 million active Facebook users. The iPhone has a fraction of the users that mobile in general has or that Facebook has, but it's got all kinds of apps. What kind? Apple approved 14 iPhone fart apps in one day recently and I know, mobile world, that ain't the best you've got.

Check out some of our favorite submissions so far to the N2Y4 Mobile Challenge.

FloodSMS - Early Detection and Warning of Catastrophic Flooding via SMS is an early warning application for floods. It will push SMS messages to people downstream of a flood event giving them up to 24 hours advanced warning.

mStockGuru provides mobile medical inventory control for the 70% of the developing world that gets its medicine from "mom & pop" type kiosks.

FrontlineSMS Medic puts the FrontlineSMS system, an open-source, free SMS client, to use in creating and distributing medical records over mobile devices.

For more examples of mobile world-changing projects, check out Britt Bravo's list of nonprofit iPhone apps.

The winners of the N2Y4 Mobile Challenge will receive varying portions of $50k in total seed funding. Submissions will be accepted through April 3rd. Send yours in today and get ready to vote on which ones you think should get the money. If you've ever played the Ocarina on an iPhone, a few minutes of participation in this event online is the least you can do. The web is supposed to be a world changing phenomenon and mobile devices could be the ticket for billions of people whose lives have seen too little change.

What would you like to see developed on a mobile platform that could make the world a better place?

The iPhone apps still have to go through Apple's approval process, which can take a while, but the Android apps will be available today and the Nokia apps should be available in about one week.

Pixelpipe's App Factory

As Butterfield told us, the company has automated most of the app development process, so whenever Pixelpipe adds a new service, a new mobile app can also be created with very little effort.

App Store SEO

Overall, this seems like a very smart move. The company started to experiment with co-branded Android apps for a few services like Facebook, Twitter, and Photobucket a few days ago. As these apps actually include the name of the service in their titles ("Twitter for Pixelpipe"), they are much easier to find for consumers who would otherwise never have heard of Pixelpipe. After all, as we pointed out earlier today, most users rely on Top 10 lists and browsing through categories to find interesting new mobile apps.

As Pixelpipe told us, these apps are already outselling the company's own app by a significant margin and Pixelpipe has heard from a number of services who would like to partner with the company and promote the apps.

We think this is an interesting story, as it points out some of the problems developers face when trying to market their apps. Also, while social media mavens love the fact that Pixelpipe Pro can send documents, audio, video, and pictures to 100 other social media services, for most users, this is simply overkill and just generates confusion.

The Yahoo Finance app gives users access to all the data one would typically expect from a financial app, including stock tickers and financial news stories. In addition, users can also follow their own personalized portfolio on Yahoo Finance. Another neat feature is that the app can display streaming video from Yahoo's Tech Ticker.

Unlike other finance apps, Yahoo also made its own app very customizable. In the 'Quotes' section, for example, you can simply press down on a ticker symbol and a menu will pop up that allows you to reorganize the page, move stocks around on the page, or display them as a full-sized graph.

While the app isn't necessarily revolutionary, it does give users access to the wealth of information available on Yahoo Finance and displays this information in a more customizable format than most other finance apps, including the CNNMoney and Bloomberg apps.

Fantasy Football

Yahoo's Fantasy Football '09 app gives players access to all of the features they would probably expect in a mobile fantasy football app. Users can manage their teams and view matchups, standings, and player stats. The app also gives users access to live scores. Users have obviously been waiting for this app for a while and it climbed into the top 10 of free sports apps in the App Store within hours of its release. The only complaint these users seem to have is that the app doesn't display data from players on other teams but their own.

So instead, via the BONDI initiative, OMTP will define what interfaces developers need to access when writing apps that tap into more sensitive functions on the mobile device. BONDI will expose those handset features to the developers while also protecting the users from any fraudulent or malicious activity.

In addition, the web services that result from the BONDI initiative will incorporate the various open and proprietary work currently in progress in this area of mobile development so as not to cause more fragmentation.

As today's mobile phones become more like mini-computers, the need for standards and security is paramount. The members of OMTP agree. Having standards will "encourage more developers to create unique, exciting applications for mobile web 2.0," says Arnd Gallmann SVP Terminal Technology at T-Mobile.

We couldn't agree more and are now eagerly awaiting the plethora of services that are sure to result from this move.