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Flash Enhances Mobile User Experience

The new Flash Lite player lowers costs and development time, has a bigger developer community and is coming pre-installed on new handsets. Compared to WAP, it's a gift to mobile marketers seeking to develop richer mobile experiences says Gareth Evans...

Flash technology has created a great opportunity for companies to use handheld devices as marketing tools. Gareth Evans, Director of Technology at start-up company Pocket Marketing, explains why Flash Lite succeeds where J2ME and WAP have failed in creating a rich mobile experience.

By Gareth Evans

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Technologies such as J2ME and WAP have presented openings for brands to utilise mobile phones as marketing tools to promote their products, but disappointingly have failed to deliver what they had promised to the mobile marketeer. However, things have changed thanks to Adobe (formerly Macromedia) with the emergence of Flash Lite player, the cutdown version of Shockwave Flash software built specifically for mobile devices but with the same advantages as the desktop version.

Launched in February 2003 for mobile provider NTT DoCoMo in Japan, Flash Lite 1.0 provided an easy way to put Flash content on to mass market mobile phones for the first time. Now some three years on Flash Lite has shifted from creating basic wallpapers to become a core tool for the mobile content business. Indeed in April 2006 NTT DoCoMo passed the 2 million subscribers mark for their I-channel service which utilises the Flash Lite player.

Flash lite success borne out as it becomes pre-installed on new handsets

Its initial success in Japan over the past three years has resulted in Adobe announcing deals with the top seven handset manufacturers, which will see the current 1.1 version of the player pre-installed onto phones. The recently launched Nokia 3250, E 61 and N91 are the first in a wave of devices shipped with Flash Lite, with the figure expected to rise to around 216 million handsets by 2010.

So how is Flash Lite going to succeed where others have failed? Firstly let’s look at WAP. WAP has been proved to be slow, difficult to use and therefore does little to create a desirable experience. J2ME on the other hand is a real contender, it’s powerful, it has an estimated 20,000 developers, it’s got a few years on Flash Lite in the mobile arena and it’s the de facto for games development.

Shorter development cycle & lower costs

On the downside, J2ME has a very fragmented landscape, and has a long development cycle, which is where Flash Lite comes into its own as development times are typically three to five times quicker than using other applications resulting in lower costs. C++ is another option, but again the process is complex and the development cycle slow while a further possibility, PYTHON, is currently only available for 60 series devices.

Though not necessarily within the mobile space, Flash has an estimated one million developers, and after nine years has become a robust, mature development environment. Compared to J2ME, the ability to create dynamic, animated and rich graphics makes Flash Lite the perfect choice for creating sleek designs and superior sophistication for a truly engaging user experience.

Giving an edge to mobile marketers...

Other applications have their place, but for marketing Flash Lite has a real edge and opens the door to dynamic multimedia applications and user interfaces. Experience matters and in the fast moving world of mobile marketing if development times are shorter then costs are lower, and reaction time is increased.

Adobe is dedicated to generating the same ubiquity for the Flash Lite player, as it has with the desktop version of the player which is now available to 98 per cent of online viewers. At a time when we are constantly exposed to brands everywhere we go, mobile marketing can be a ubiquitous device for the marketing industry as it adds an interactive dimension that is unparalleled for immediacy.

Leverage for the upcoming mobile advertising industry

Consumers in the mobile market face an ever–increasing choice of devices and operator services. As a result, the need for handset manufacturers and network operators to deliver compelling user experiences that differentiate their products from those of their competitors is greater than ever.

Although it is in its infancy mobile advertising is set to become a lucrative source of revenue for both network operators and brand owners. The lower costs of Flash Lite means developers can offer content to a wider range of companies that would previously not been able to afford or justify the high development costs associated with mobile content.

With mobile phones continuing to exceed everyone’s expectations and mobile advertising set to launch into the mainstream in 2007, agencies need to realise that they cannot afford to ignore this marketing tool for much longer. The challenge for the marketing industry lies in finding ways to deliver a unique, high quality product quickly and cost–effectively and to many the answer lies with Flash.

About Pocket Marketing:
As the only specialist mobile phone marketing company in the UK with a core focus in FlashLite, Pocket Marketing leads the way in both technological developments and the creation of effective campaign strategies that excite, interest and produce a positive response in the target audience. Combining technology with creativity to unlock the full potential of mobile marketing, they can deliver a fully integrated end-to-end solution from the creation of initial ideas through to delivery and post campaign success analysis. The only UK mobile marketing specialists with a core focus in flash Lite, they combine technical and creative expertise; unique insight into the mobile marketing arena; and turnkey service provision tailored to individual brands www.pocketmarketing.net