Curtis Sasaki,VP of Product Management at RIM, explains the aggregated ad network service for BlackBerry devs that will also include analytics such as advanced info from Omniture.

CORP TALK: Further to the tightly integrated collaboration RIM has announced with Adobe at the BlackBerry Developers Conference in San Francisco, RIM has also unveiled a slew of new services platform for developers that will help streamline processes and build location-aware, revenue-generating apps for BlackBerry smartphones.

BlackBerry Advertising Service for new revenue opportunities

The new BlackBerry Advertising Service enables developers to integrate ads into their BlackBerry apps. An aggregated ad network service covering a large pool of quality and innovative ad units from networks like Jumptap, Lat49, Millennial Media, Navteq, 1020 Placecast, Quattro Wireless and Sympatico.ca.

The service will feature ads compliant with the Mobile Marketing Association’s (MMA) guidelines for rich media ads. Examples include the ability to initiate a call from an ad, add a calendar entry or contact entry from an ad, and basically link to an app in BlackBerry App World from an ad. (more…)

Co-CEO of RIM, Jim Balsillie (right), with Adobe CEO, Shantanu Narayen, on stage to welcome BlackBerry developers and members of the press.

Adobe and BlackBerry demoed how intuitive it was to have a GUI builder for BlackBerry devices integrated into Creative Suite 5.

CORP TALK: Research in Motion (RIM) opened its 2nd annual BlackBerry Developers Conference in San Francisco today with a three-hour General Session keynote.

Jim Balsillie, co-CEO of RIM welcomed partners, developers and international press and kick-started the session.

One of the announcements made was the tightly integrated collaboration RIM will have with Adobe Systems, where future versions of Adobe Creative Suite (starting with CS5) will give designers the ability to use optimized graphic assets like images and video content, in Photoshop, Illustrator and After Effects for the BlackBerry platform.

These assets can then be imported into BlackBerry application development tools such as the BlackBerry JDE Plug-in for Eclipse and BlackBerry Web Plug-in for Eclipse. Photoshop can also used in the new BlackBerry Theme Studio to create BlackBerry themes while Dreamweaver, Fireworks and Device Central software will support the creation and testing of BlackBerry Widgets and Web content optimized for the BlackBerry browser. (more…)

CORP TALK: Memory manufacturer Kingston will be teaming up with Paramount Digital Entertainment (a division of Paramount Pictures) to deliver full-length motion picture feature films on Kingston Flash memory products.

The movies on Kingston memory will be available to consumers as part of a bundle package and for sale.

According to LegitReviews, “Transformers: Revenge of The Fallen” is available in selected US-based Office Max stores at US$29.99.

Customers who purchase this, receives the movie on a 4GB Kingston DataTraveler I drive with additional storage space. Kingston DataTraveler USB Flash drives are backed by a five-year warranty and 24/7 tech support.

HWM Indonesia

HWM Indonesia: It’s a novelty which won’t generate a lot of additional sales.

Ordinary people won’t just buy this UFD (USB Flash Drive) based on the movie in it because they still have to find another storage medium to put the movie if they intend to use the UFD for other purposes.

If the UFD is sold in video stores, they might appeal to movie buyers who will buy the UFD for the movie, and not for the storage purpose.

Navin Danapal, Technical Editor, HWM Malaysia

Navin (HWM Malaysia): This isn’t the first time we’ve seen this attempt. Back in Computex this year, Kingmax showcased the same concept about tying up their USB Flash memory devices with other partners to provide a more value-added delivery system where the USB Flash drive has now become the CD medium of delivery.

Kingmax bundled the online MMORPG WarHammer with its 16GB Flash products as part of its content-packed Flash memory initiative.

Not only content but also apps like bundled Language Learning software, online games DLC, and so on.

According to Kingmax, they’re also considering working with entertainment partners like Disney so perhaps you’ll be able to buy 2010’s animation films on a USB Flash drive and watch it on your USB-capable device.

Of course, we might end up with a deluge of USB Flash drive content like people did in the past with all those jokes about AOL bundled CDs. But at least with USB Flash drives, you can always erase it and use it.

A timely distribution move compared to the fragility of CDs for sure.

Vijay Anand, Editor, HardwareZone.com

Vijay (HardwareZone.com): Actually, Kingmax was the first memory vendor to have pioneered the concept several years ago of providing movie content on their flash products - an easy way to charge a premium over the bare basic storage devices which is already busy with competition.

However as Martin (see quote above) has voiced out, for this to become a success, they should target others outside of the PC retail stores and in the existing video stores where people are genuinely looking to purchase videos - the thumb drive option is another convenient method.

Kingmax however isn’t pursuing this anymore now. We’ll have to see how Kingston manages their planning and distribution of this idea, else it’ll end up nowhere as well. (more…)

SHOWCASE: Motorola has unveiled the first Android 2.0-based smartphone for Europe called Milestone (the US equivalent is called DROID and is carried by Verizon Wireless).

With an ultra-thin 13.7mm QWERTY keyboard slider, and a multi-touch ‘pinch-and-zoom-supported’ display, the Milestone has generated quite a lot of buzz ahead of its availability.

Here’s a promo video of the Milestone (it’s in German).

HWM Indonesia

HWM Indonesia: This is a nice effort to steer things around for Motorola.

By going “open source”, this move might well become a breath of fresh air to Motorola fans out there.

I do however foresee a change in the marketing efforts (a lot of it) of the company.

This is because Motorola has to now target lifestyle consumers and smart executives with what this phone seems to offer.

Vijay Anand, Editor, HardwareZone.com

Vijay (HardwareZone.com): Well, well, looks like this is the company’s last ditch effort in making an impact in the mobile phone scene. This is quite reminiscent of Palm’s Pre effort.

Like it, the Milestone is certainly a nice and forward looking device, but if it’s not executed well in roll-out, availability in numbers and a proper marketing message, this might be the end of the mobile phones portfolio of the company that revolutionized mobile phone design in its heydays.

Hear’s hoping for a kick-ass Milestone indeed.

Navin Danapal, Technical Editor, HWM Malaysia

Navin (HWM Malaysia): With the revelation that Google’s Android 2 will have free Google Maps navigation, Android 2 phones are going to become GPS device killers and we’ve seen this effect in the falling stocks of GPS device leader Garmin and TomTom, the latter being a paid iPhone GPS app.No doubt Android 2’s weakness is GMaps, which will only work when there’s a telco connection and not anywhere unlike GPS devices, but considering city usage and fixed data rate plans, I think Android 2 does have an edge over GPS.

Stock prices for Garmin and TomTom plummeted in recent weeks.

All Google needs to do is offer downloadable GMaps content for telcos who don’t offer fixed plans so users will only need to have a telco connection for navigation purposes, cutting down on their bandwidth costs for maps delivery.

Then unless you’re going to the wild outdoors, Android 2 phones will do the GPS job instead of GPS devices.

City navigation might then be taken over by Android 2 phones, while players like Garmin might focus on rural adventures.

(more…)