News Round-up

Scotrail april 2014Lots going on this week, so here’s a quick round-up of some of the news not yet covered…

Train operator Scotrail has revealed that smartphone traffic to its website has overtaken desktop, a month after the company overhauled the site, deploying a responsive design to make it more mobile-friendly. In the first month since launch, session time on the site has increased by 10 per cent, while the bounce rate has reduced by 22 per cent.

So-net Media Networks is to launch a version of PubMatic’s Strategic Selling Platform (SSP) specifically tailored for the Japanese advertising market, accompanied by dedicated staff for support. PubMatic’s platform enables real-time bidding (RTB) across desktop, mobile, video and private marketplace. In addition, the partnership provides in-market consulting and support to build strategies to maximize revenue as programmatic advertising grows in Japan.

The PubMatic SSP has been tailored to align with the characteristics of the Japanese market. Market-specific features will include the ability to sell digital advertising in local Japanese currency and local time zone reporting. This will provide Japanese publishers with full transparency of real-time campaign activity in addition to the benefit of global platform features including brand control with global and regional support.
The PubMatic platform will be available broadly in Japan from 14 May.

Upstream Systems, which specialises in mobile monetisation in emerging markets, working largely with mobile operators on loyalty and reward programmes, has secured investment from private equity firm, Actis. The firm says the investment follows its strategy of investing in well-managed businesses in high-growth sectors, providing quality services to emerging market consumers.

Mobile tech company QikServe has announced a collaboration with PayPal that will see QikServe’s mobile ordering solution integrated into PayPal’s payment app. This will allow restaurants and bars in the UK to take orders and payment using the PayPal app on their customer’s smartphone.

The service is already available in several fast food outlets such as Armstrong’s Deli in Edinburgh, football stadiums including Hearts FC, Reading FC and Portsmouth FC, and in bars and pubs operated by TCG, like Henry’s Cafe Bar, in Covent Garden.

Businesses can set up a QikServe and PayPal account and begin taking mobile orders and payment in less than an hour. The collaboration also means that in all venues currently using QikServe for ordering and payment, customers can now use the PayPal app to order and pay.

UK mobile users are twice as likely to view advertising in apps as on the mobile web compared to the rest of the world, according to new data from Opera Mediaworks. The research, revealed in the latest edition of the company’s State of Mobile Advertising report, looks in detail at the UK market and highlights some key behavioural trends:
UK mobile users have a strong preference for app-based advertising, with 72 per cent of mobile ad impressions in the UK coming from apps, compared to just 31 per cent globally, according to the latest State of Mobile Advertising report from Opera Mediaworks.

The report also reveals that iOS is a clear leader in UK mobile ad traffic, with 55 per cent of impressions compared to 38.7 per cent globally. BlackBerry also retains a significant share of impressions, with 16 per cent of the market, compared to just 1.14 per cent globally.

News and information (30 per cent of impressions) is the top content type on mobile in the UK, with social media taking the lead globally (27.6 per cent of impressions). Mobile Devices, Food & Drink and Automotive are the top advertising categories by volume with Games, Mobile Services and Sports receiving the highest click-through rate (CTR). UK mobile advertising features video far more prominently than the global average, with 30 per cent of rich media mobile ads including video, compared to 2.5 per cent worldwide.
The data is based on an analysis of mobile advertising traffic across Opera Mediaworks’ global platform and is based on 65bn impressions it receives from 14,000 mobile websites and apps.

Digital marketing firm Satatel Communications has unveiled a cloud-based digital marketing solution. Clients upload their customer data to the Satatel Cloud, a secure virtual environment, and can then schedule and send SMS messages, emails and social media updates to that database.

The Satatel Cloud system allows accurate reporting and monitoring of ROI and the reporting suite. There are a variety of Satatel Cloud packages available and a dedicated campaign manager will be available to help clients find the best package for them and create a 12 month campaign based on an agreed increase in sales.

Digital Retail Apps has revealed in-market results from its shopper self-checkout app, SelfPay, launched on 6 December with retail partner LUX Beauty Boutique. Launch weekend saw 7 per cent of all in-store transactions flow through the SelfPay mobile app and higher-than-average transaction values when compared to purchases completed at the cash register. Reports also show that the self-checkout app attracts the majority of new users during times when LUX is busiest and lines are long.

On the retailer’s busiest shopping day this month, SelfPay transactions were 17 per cent higher than credit card transactions and 28 per cent higher than all digital transactions including debit and credit card transactions made at the cash register. During the same shopping day, SelfPay was used for 14 per cent of all in-store credit card transactions and saw a jump in new user sign ups.

Millicom and Facebook have launched East Africa’s first-ever free service for mobile customers using Facebook’s mobile site and apps. Millicom’s Tigo customers in Tanzania can now access Facebook and its Messenger app through their handsets without incurring any data charges. Tigo has 6m customers in Tanzania. The time-limited free service also includes the launch of a Facebook service in Kiswahilií, the language spoken by millions of people across East and Southern Africa.
The East Africa launch follows the launch of a free service by Millicom and Facebook in Latin America in December 2013.