This Week In Mobile


Player-acquisition costs rise on mobile even as revenues-per-gamer holds steady

Player-acquisition costs rise on mobile even as revenues-per-gamer holds steady The cost for a new install (CPI) hit $4.36 last month. That’s up more than 288% from January 2012 when CPI was only $1.30. But the average revenue per user (ARPU) is only $1.08  (up 38%) in the same timeframe. ARPU was $.78  in January 2012. This …

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Samsung Electronics fourth-quarter profit sags

Samsung Electronics fourth-quarter profit sags Samsung’s smartphone sales slumped 18% as the new iPhones slowed the S4. Not too surprising. The real test will be if they can pick up again when Samsung’s successor to the S4 comes out. 


Smartphones Give 69% a Better Shopping Experience

Smartphones Give 69% a Better Shopping Experience Retailers take note. We’ve been saying this for a while, 2014 will be the year that apps change retail. It would appear that consumers are already quite clear on the advantages, accordingly to a new study: “A majority (69%) of consumers said their smartphone was a critical tool …

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Google’s New Business Model – stratēchery by Ben Thompson

Google’s New Business Model – stratēchery by Ben Thompson There’s been a theme emerging with Google’s acquisition of Nest last week that this represents Google becoming more serious about the consumer device space. Ben Thompson illustrates why that might be and what benefits it has for Google. One thing is for sure, in acquiring Nest …

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Apple to refund $32.5m to parents

Apple to refund $32.5m to parents Apple settled recently with the FTC about refunding In-App purchases made by children on their parents’ accounts. Tim Cook said they settled because it was what they were planning to do anyway and he wanted to avoid a lengthy lawsuit. For background, in previous versions of iOS, there was …

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What’s really going on with the Starbucks mobile app information leak, and what you need to know

What’s really going on with the Starbucks mobile app information leak, and what you need to know With Starbucks’ app being the clear leader in mobile payments, any word of a possible lapse in security is bound to get news. Nick Arnott breaks down what really happened and what the real security risks are. 


One diabetic’s take on Google’s Smart Contact Lenses

One diabetic’s take on Google’s Smart Contact Lenses Not everyone is happy about the earlier linked Google smart contact lenses for diabetics. Om Malik, himself a diabetic, has a few reality checks for the potential product. After stating his admiration for the scientists at Google and how much he appreciates them working to help diabetics, …

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Introducing our smart contact lens project

Introducing our smart contact lens project Google with an interesting innovation – contact lenses that track blood sugar levels for diabetics. The constant need to check blood sugar levels, and the danger of not doing so, for diabetics makes this a potentially helpful product, if they can bring it to market.