Here's Who Made Gartner's 2016 Magic Quadrant For Mobile App Development Platforms

Vendors Doing Well With Mobile App Development

As mobile apps become the main driver of accelerating digital transformation in businesses, more vendors are coming out with cutting-edge mobile app development platforms.

According to market research firm Gartner, mobile app development platforms will become widely adopted in the near future: By 2020, Gartner predicted, more than 75 percent of enterprises will have adopted at least one platform to accelerate their digital business transformation strategies, up from 33 percent in 2015.

Gartner highlighted the major vendors in the mobile app development space this year in its Magic Quadrant. Following are the 17 vendors that made it into Gartner's Magic Quadrant for Mobile App Development Platforms.

Apple's iOS 10 Goes to Eleven

Apple on Monday kicked off its Worldwide Developers Conference with the biggest-ever release of its iOS mobile operating system.

CEO Tim Cook called iOS 10, coming this fall, "gigantic" and "the mother of all releases."

Among the new offerings in the upcoming version of iOS are more features in Messaging, all new designs for News, Music and Photos, and increased opportunities for developers to integrate their apps with Siri, Maps and Messages.

"Long term, the most interesting thing is the fact that Apple opened up Siri and Messaging and Maps to developers to add to those services," said conference attendee Bob O'Donnell, chief analyst at Technalysis Research.

"It reflects the way the world is moving. It's moving away from standalone apps and into integration with services," he told TechNewsWorld. "Apple is acknowledging that by opening these things up for other developers to provide add-on functionality for these services."

Snapchat Rolls Out Ad-Friendlier Design

Snapchat recently began rolling out its redesigned Discover page. It now displays images and headline previews of the content inside Discover channels and Live stories on the Stories page. It previously displayed only logos for publishers or events on those sites.

Publishers now can include an image and a headline to promote each day's story. Their stories will run beside user-contributed Live Stories on both the Discover and Stories pages.

The Discover page has a grid of tiles, similar to Pinterest. The Stories page combines the rows of static Discover channels into one scrollable row.

Snapchat users now can tap and hold to subscribe to their favorite Discover channels, instead of having to pull them up out of the entire Discover list as before. Subscribing will place unread stories below updates from users' friends on the Stories page.

The redesign "could help with the number of hits a publisher gets, since it will put the content in the same context as Live Stories," noted Mike Jude, a program manager at Stratecast/Frost & Sullivan.

How MBaaS fits into a mobile app development strategy

What are the benefits of MBaaS?

Developing custom apps from scratch is time-consuming and expensive. Developers need to know what data the app will access, how the app will access that data and how to keep that data secure. MBaaS takes the hassle out of the back end by connecting apps to the required resources, including the code for basic application features such as authentication. MBaaS also takes care of connecting mobile apps to company data, including databases and RSS feeds.

MBaaS sends the data to mobile apps through APIs, and developers do not have to modify any data sources to work with MBaaS apps. Developers can work with on-premises APIs they've already built or public APIs in the cloud to lay the foundation for mobile apps. And MBaaS has security and management controls in place.

What are the major concerns with MBaaS?

MBaaS comes with some issues to keep in mind when forming a mobile app development strategy. Version control can be problematic. If a company's developer used an MBaaS vendor's API and that vendor updates its API version, the update may not be compatible with the company's systems or a specific mobile app.

Apple to Boost App Store Money-Making Opportunities

Apple is planning a major overhaul of its App Store, including the introduction of a new subscription model for developers and the implementation of a paid search ad program, SVP Phil Schiller indicated in interviews with The Verge andThe Telegraph ahead of the company's Worldwide Developer Conference in San Francisco next week.

The move may help to offset flagging iPhone sales.

To encourage developers to sell their apps on a subscription basis, Apple plans to change the current 70/30 revenue-sharing structure. If a customer keeps a subscription for more than a year, the company will reduce its current 30 percent take to 15 percent, increasing the developer's share.

In addition, Apple will operate a paid search program much like Google AdWords' auction model. Apple will feature an ad inside a blue box that is based on the type of search terms the user enters. Advertising fees will be charged on a per-click basis.

World Patent Marketing Invention Team Unveils "Unforgotten", A New Mobile App Invention That Uses Technology To Remember The Dearly Departed

MIAMI, Fla., May 31, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- via PRWEB - World Patent Marketing, a vertically integrated manufacturer and engineer of patented products, announces the Unforgotten Application, a mobile app invention designed to provide access to the information about the deceased with the use of a bar code.

"The Funeral Homes market is worth $16 billion,"says Scott Cooper, CEO and Creative Director of World Patent Marketing. "The industry's revenue is projected to improve slightly during the next five years. As the population ages, the number of deaths is anticipated to increase."

"When a loved one passes on, people would naturally visit their loved one's grave to feel closer to them," says Jerry Shapiro, Director of Manufacturing and World Patent Marketing Inventions. "And in many cases, people desire to put in additional information on gravestones as a memorial to their loved ones. The Unforgotten Application will provide a bar code on a tombstone which can be accessed to gain information about the deceased individual."

The Unforgotten Application is designed to add more information on a tombstone. It is a mobile application software which provides access to a deceased person's memorial information in the form of audio, text, images, or videos. In order to access these information, a bar code is affixed to the surface of a tombstone or any physical object in a grave. This bar code can be accessed and scanned by a mobile device such as a Smart phone. Simply scan the bar code and gain access to the deceased person's memorial information.

"It has been our dream to make it possible for anyone to share the legacy of their lost with the world. We hope your loved ones are unforgotten," says inventor Mitchell C. "The Unforgotten Application is something that will provide a personalized way of remembering a deceased loved one. It makes uses of a bar code which will then provide access to photos, videos, audio and text about the deceased individual without having to install a separate electronic device on a tombstone."

Cancun debuts mobile app with maps

The Cancun Convention & Visitors Bureau and Smart Group have joined forces to promote Cancun and the Treasures of the Caribbean with the new Smart Map Cancun mobile app. The application, which offers an interactive travel guide, was designed to make a visit to Cancun easier.

The app is free and available on both Google Play and the Apple Store. It enable users to access maps of Cancun and the Treasures of the Caribbean (Puerto Morelos, Isla Mujeres and Holbox) that make it easy to find ATMs, shopping, markets, bus stops and taxi stands and more. Other features include local news, weather, local tips, videos, currency converter, coupons, directories and an events calendar.

Civic body creates mobile app to help 'Beat Diabetes'

In an attempt to spread awareness on diabetes, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC)-run LTMG Sion Hospital has developed a mobile-based application called 'Beat Diabetes' to guide diabetes patients and the general public. The app, which is available on Google play store for android users, is designed to help a person calculate the risk of developing type II diabetes by entering personal health information.

"It gives an overview of the magnitude of diabetes in India and worldwide. It aids in calculating the risk of developing diabetes mellitus by entering relative personal health information. The app also gives an idea of the available diabetes clinics in Mumbai," said Dr Seema Bansode Gokhe, head of department of community medicine, LTMG Sion Hospital.

Bansode said that in addition to this, the app will be a guide for prevention of diabetes mellitus and will control measures for the same. Doctors say that many people are ignorant of the disease, which can be dangerous to them and can lead to several complications. Diabetes is also one of the most common causes of kidney failure, accounting for nearly 30-40 per cent of the new cases.

"People with diabetes have an increased risk of developing a number of serious health problems. Consistently high blood glucose levels can lead to critical diseases affecting the heart and blood vessels, eyes, kidneys, nerves and teeth. In addition, people with diabetes also have a higher risk of developing infections," said Bansode.

Fed up of spam calls? TRAI's new mobile app helps tackle them

Telecom regulator TRAI introduced DND (Do Not Disturb) services mobile app on the Google Play Store and the Mobile Seva App Store to manage unsolicited commercial calls and messages. The app will soon be available for iOS users as well.

TRAI issued, “The Telecom Commercial Communications Customer Preference Regulations (TCCCPR), 2010’ in December 2010 with the objective to provide an effective mechanism for curbing Unsolicited Commercial Communications. The regulations have been framed keeping in view the interest of the customers and telemarketers while ensuring effective implementation.”

At the moment, consumers complain UCC messages and calls through 1909 (toll-free number) but the new app will make it easier to report unpleasant communications.

According to TRAI, there was a need to put in place a complaint mechanism which is easy to use by the consumer. Hence, they developed a mobile App for easy registration of UCC complaints to the service providers. The consumer can check the status of his complaint as well.

Chick-fil-A launches new mobile app

Chick-fil-A on Wednesday launched a new mobile app that allows customers to make custom orders and pay on the go.

The new app, called Chick-fil-A One, is “the customer’s remote control for how they interact with Chick-fil-A,” said Michael Lage, the Atlanta-based company’s senior manager of digital experience. The app, available on iPhone and Android-enabled devices, will let customers skip the line and pick up orders after checking in on a smartphone.

Lage said customers order, pay and check-in once they arrive through the app. The check-in signals the kitchen to prepare meals. Chick-fil-A staffers also will address app users by name, Lage said, as part of the chain’s commitment to customer service. 

Chick-fil-A One has a membership structure that allows users of the app to earn free food. As part of the app’s launch, customers who download the app or upgrade from the old version before June 11 can received a free Chick-fil-A original, spicy or grilled sandwich.

Chick-fil-A One replaces the chicken chain’s current app and can be upgraded through the Apple App Store or Google Play, Lage said.