It doesna4‚¬a4„t look like the Verizon iPhone will offer much in the way of new features for application developers. But Jeff Smith, co-founder and chief executive of music app-maker Smule, seemed pretty giddy about the announcement when I talked to him this morning.
Why the excitement Smith said it all comes down to data. AT&'Ta4‚¬a4„s network (both its voice and data plans) has been overwhelmed by the demand in iPhone-heavy areas like San Francisco and New York, leading to frequent complaints and criticism.
And thata4‚¬a4„s had an impact on apps. Smith said that a number of his companya4‚¬a4„s products, which include some of the coolest and most popular apps on the iPhone (such as Ocarina and Glee Karaoke), require users to both upload and download significant amounts of data through the network. As a result, he argued that Smulea4‚¬a4„s negative reviews boil down to bad connectivity, with complaints like a4‚¬Acouldna4‚¬a4„t download the appa4‚¬¯ or a4‚¬AI got a blank screena4‚¬¯.
Come February, Smith predicted data-hungry iPhone users will be migrating in large numbers to Verizon, where they will have a much more reliable connection. That wona4‚¬a4„t just mean a better experience on Smulea4‚¬a4„s existing apps. It will also give the company more leeway to build apps where most of the content and features are accessed online, rather than downloaded completely to your phone. Developers are moving in that direction, Smith said, because it allows them to update and add new content to their apps more quickly, rather than waiting for approval from Apple.
Smith added that Smule itself will be moving from AT&'T to Verizon. The team will still keep one or two AT&'T phones around, he said, so that it can continue to test apps for AT&'T users, and just to have a4‚¬Asomething to look at and to throw fruit at,a4‚¬¯ Smith said.
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Companies: AT&'T, Smule, Verizon
People: Jeff Smith
Companies: AT&'T, Smule, Verizon
People: Jeff Smith
Anthony is a senior editor at VentureBeat, as well as its reporter on media, advertising, and social networks. Before joining the site in 2008, Anthony worked at the Hollister Free Lance, where he won awards from the California Newspaper Publishers Association for breaking news coverage and writing. He attended Stanford University and now lives in San Francisco. Reach him at anthony@venturebeat.com. (All story pitches should also be sent to tips@venturebeat.com) You can also follow Anthony on Twitter.
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