By Dana Mattioli, Reporter, The Wall Street Journal Companies in recent months have launched a slew of photography applications for the iPhone and other smartphones, but many of these start-ups are still trying to figure out the best way to profit from their software programs. The apps, many of which are free to download, let users apply special effects to photos they snap with their phones. The apps also make it easy to share photos on social media sites like Facebook and Twitter. The apps have garnered millions of downloads in the past year, but building a business model has proved trickier. Some of the app makers are charging users for extra features; others plan to sell advertising or even prints of the snapshots. At least one start-up is exploring the idea of alerting a cellphone user to nearby advertisers once the person has snapped a photo. “It’s hard to monetize the apps right now because there are so many especially in the photography space,” said Thomas McLeod, president of app maker Imaginary Feet LLC. “It’s hard not to get lost in the oversaturation of the other apps.” Read the rest of this post on the original site
Read MoreGoogle’s Nexus S smartphone isn’t generating quite the same interest in Korea as its predecessor. Though Korea Telecom eagerly added the Nexus One to its lineup this past June , the carrier has greeted the debut of its successor with disinterest. “Currently, we have no plans to introduce Google’s latest Android handset,’’ KT spokesman Lee In-won told the Korea Times . Evidently, SK Telecom–the country’s largest carrier–holds a similar view, and the reason seems to be the tight control Google is exerting over the device’s local marketing and customization. SK officials, for example, say they’re having difficulty getting SK’s T-Map navigation service onto the Nexus S. With the S, Google has taken a dim view of the overlays and carrier add-ons that often mar the Android experience, adding little benefit while undermining its usability. Presumably, the difficulties to which SK refers are the result of this. If the Nexus S is to be pure Android, Google can’t allow its carrier partners to compromise by piling crapware and inferior pay services atop it, can it? As of this writing, Google has not responded to requests for comment.
Read MoreInternational News: Cinetech helps buyers and sellers connect -- While established film markets and fests are embracing digital technology, the Dubai Intl. Film Festival's Dubai Filmmart, the fest's trading and distribution platform, sports one of the most advanced digital video libraries around.
Read MoreInternational News: Cinetech helps buyers and sellers connect -- While established film markets and fests are embracing digital technology, the Dubai Intl. Film Festival's Dubai Filmmart, the fest's trading and distribution platform, sports one of the most advanced digital video libraries around.
Read MoreInternational News: Cinetech helps buyers and sellers connect -- While established film markets and fests are embracing digital technology, the Dubai Intl. Film Festival's Dubai Filmmart, the fest's trading and distribution platform, sports one of the most advanced digital video libraries around.
Read MoreAnimation: TransTale Entertainment finds success online with CGI fare -- A Nigerian animation team is winning international praise for a series of animated tales told from an African point of view.
Read MoreInternational News: Media outlets shut down by government as violence continues -- State media are caught in the crossfire in Ivory Coast, where tensions are rapidly escalating three weeks after the results of a controversial presidential election were announced.
Read MoreInternational News: Manish Pandey's doc "Senna" heads for Sundance -- Manish Pandey, the driving force behind Universal's first feature documentary "Senna," is a rare kind of multihyphenate -- a writer, producer and orthopedic surgeon.
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