Bored with iPhone OS?  Frustrated by Apple’s death-grip platform control?

Well David “planetbeing” Wong may have an answer for you. He’s successfully dual-booted Android on an iPhone. Yes, really! In IT Blogwatch, bloggers look on, in slack-jawed amazement.

It would appear that a way to run the Android OS on an iPhone has been discovered.  This is massive news for iPhone users waiting for the new iPhone OS 4.0 and all the features that are available with that platform.

Googles platform has been hard on the heels of Apple for quite sometime, and despite some good features has so far been shunned in favour of the iPhone OS.  Android however has seen a growing interest over the past few months with many predictng 2010 to be the year of Android.  The Android App sotre now has in the region of 30,000 apps with 9000 apps added in March alone.

News of a way to run Android on an iPhone will only fuel speculation that Android is becoming the must have OS for your smart phone.

For more information on this story visit http://blogs.computerworld.com/15980/android_on_your_iphone_theres_an_app_for_that?source=rss_blogs.

Apple announced Tuesday that more than three billion apps have been downloaded from its revolutionary App Store by iPhone and iPod touch users worldwide.

“Three billion applications downloaded in less than 18 months–this is like nothing we’ve ever seen before,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “The revolutionary App Store offers iPhone and iPod touch users an experience unlike anything else available on other mobile devices, and we see no signs of the competition catching up anytime soon.”

The news comes nine months after it hit 1 billion downloads, with the second billion taking a further six months.

When the 2 billion mark was reached, Apple also announced that 85 000 apps were available in the App Store at the time. This time, the company chose to stick to download numbers only.

However, in November 2009, Apple did say that 100 000 apps were published to the store.

Social news aggregator Digg.com has released its free iPhone app in the App Store. Packed with a slick, feature-rich interface, the app is a strong start for the popular website, though there’s plenty of room for it to grow.

Source: (Read More http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2010/03/digg-iphone-app/#ixzz0jIb7zwIa)

Launching the app, you’ll be able to immediately browse popular stories on Digg. You can also view popular stories by topic (e.g., technology, business, science, etc.) or upcoming articles that are about to go popular. You can search through stories by typing a keyword in a search field.

The best part of the app is it makes it really easy to Digg or bury a submission. Tapping a link launches the story inside an in-app browser, and a bar below contains thumbs up and thumbs down buttons to cast your vote. There’s also a button to save a story for reading later. The entire interface is snappy; from my testing on an iPhone 3GS, stories loaded quickly inside Digg’s browser.

With that said, there are some features missing that I’d like to see in version 2. One major minus is you can’t comment on stories like you would on Digg.com. You can view comments, but you can’t actually write any. According to Tap Tap Tap, which developed the app with Digg, the public Digg API doesn’t support adding comments yet. So hopefully we can expect this feature in a later version.

Also, there’s limited interaction between the Digg app and other apps. For example, if you’re browsing your Twitter feed in Tweetie and you tap a Digg link, it doesn’t launch the Digg app. Instead, you’re stuck with viewing the Digg link in the Safari browser. To be fair, you can hit a button to share Digg links through Twitter, Facebook or e-mail, but the inability to use the app to view others’ shared Digg links is stifling.

The free Digg app is downloadable now in the App Store. A video demo of the app is below.

News release [Digg]

Whats next for Social TV? Below Mark Groves from NDS talks about whats next for social tv and how this will be intergrated into our exisiting platforms
NDS will be exhibiting at the Social TV and Social Media World Forum on the 15th & 16th March, London 2010. http://www.social-tv.net meet them at stand number 15.

The Social Shindig party, the official networking party of Social Media World Forum will be taking place on the middle evening of the event.All conference pass delegates are invited to head over to the Archangel venue situated opposite the Kensington Royal Garden Hotel.  The venue is a10 min walk from Olympia & The Hilton Olympia Hotel – the official event hotel and 5 m ins from High Street Kensington Tube Station.

Please Note: Open only to full conference pass holders – wristbands will need to be shown to gain access Networking Party Partners

About Social Media UK

‘Social Media UK’ is a networking community based in London consisting of a LinkedIn group of 850+ members, a crowdsourced blog www.socialmediamonday.co.uk and a monthly networking event ‘Social Media Monday’ with presentations & plenty of ‘social’ till late… (follow @SocialMedia_UK & tweet about #SMUK)

We’ve grown tremendously over the last 6 months and we’re really proud to be continuing these talks in the Workshops at the Social Media World Forum 2010.

‘Social Media UK’ is organised by the Digital / Social Media recruitment specialists; Fresh Resources. We’re ridiculously passionate about all things digital and absolutely believe that being an active part of the community and contributing towards the industry we specialise in, means we’re poised to consistently deliver precision services to our much adored clients. 

#SMUK loves social media, that why even this description is wrapped up in 140 words!

Monterosa (www.monterosa.co.uk) have confirmed their attendance at the Social TV Forum Europe, (www.social-tv.net) taking place on the 15/16th March 2010 at Olympia, London.

Monterosa are a creative and technology company based in central London. We’re a team of experienced producers, project managers, software engineers and designers with range of backgrounds backgrounds in broadcast, advertising, games and software development.

Ooyala’s player has always supported sharing to popular social networks sites such as Twitter and Facebook. Ooyala now supports deep linking which allows a viewer to share only a particular video within a playlist or a specific scene within a video. These deep linking sharing options are available for its player embeds, its sharing links to social networking sites, as well as the newly released URL link, also available in the player. What’s great about this is that it does not require any custom development work. A publisher can easily enable the various sharing options in Backlot for all their viewers.

Ooyala is a leading video technology company, for details visit www.ooyala.com/blog

Buongiorno

Mobile Communication, like the printing press, personal transportation and the advent of mass media – is delivering new levels of personal independence, choice and opportunity. Through the most popular gadget in history, billions of people are beginning to interface with their world in completely new ways. More than 3 billion people now carry personal mobile devices, which can offer far more than just voice and text.

Social networking has clearly been an exciting, if unexpected, success on the web. This success has attracted hundreds of millions of users who connect to each other on their own terms, actively creating content and defining the links between this content. Social networking has proven to be the natural expression for the Web 2.0 movement, allowing users to wrestle the publishing power from established media to become both consumer and supplier.

Buongiorno believes the success of web social networking is but a pre-cursor to the explosion of mobile social networking. The mobile phone is the most prevalent social networking tool on the planet, combining media capture with always-on connectivity, portability, simplicity, personalisation and individuality. Quite simply, the mobile phone is the medium of friendship. From a business standpoint, aiming at a market of mobile community users that will grow by a factor of 10 by 2012, to 428 million[1], opens up a huge market where mobile devices will rapidly prevail over PC-based devices .

Mobile internet connectivity is now a reality , which, when combined with the ubiquity of devices, networks and internet “understanding”, will transform mobile behaviour. Research predicts the rapid growth of mobile broadband access, as users expect high-performance devices and faster mobile networks to deliver better user experience and data capacity – all amidst a cheaper pricing environment and the pervasive use of Web 2.0 services. A similar revolution is taking place on handsets, as users increasingly demand a rich experience based on seamless access to messaging, search, entertainment and content. These users are redefining their needs – needs built around “diversion” and ever-richer “connection.”

Clearly, existing web players understand this new and potentially game-changing opportunity, and will be offering mobile features to their services. Will they be successful? That depends on the nature of mobile social networking – will the future deliver social networking through mobile (the status quo) or true mobile social networking (the new)?

Mobile social networking will offer something new, and this offering will not come from a web incumbent. Instead, it will be a mobile native solution from a mobile specialist, a company which understands the power of the medium, the technical environment, user behaviour and the needs of consumers. The environment is now right for an explosion in mobile social networking; the devices, network capabilities, and user understanding and desire is all in place. Until now, what has been missing is a mobile-centric solution from a mobile expert.

To learn more about Mobile Social Media visit – Mobile Social Media Show (www.mobilesocial-networking.com)

The Cloud Computing Congress (http://www.cloudcomputingcongress.com/), has just announced a range of free to attend workshops on mobile cloud computing, co-located with the Mobile Social Media forum (http://www.mobilesocial-networking.com/).

The workshops examine why mobile and cloud computing are the perfect fit, and how this can be used to generate the next generation mobile experience. The workshops also cover practical demo of hybrid and mobile cloud computing, and how core functionality can be expanded to mobile devices for the cloud. View the free to attend workshops here: http://www.cloudcomputingcongress.com/exhibition/workshops.html

“Cloud computing technologies look like they will become a changing force in the mobile world, facilitating mobile solutions to be offered to a much broader audience of mobile subscribers.” commented Ian Johnson, MD, Six Degrees Events. “We are delighted to announce a range of free to attend workshops, and think that  the mobile social media event will help outline the next generation in mobile cloud applications, new business models, and the obstacles to be overcome.“

“In the mobile Web device detection, media adaptation, and optimized content delivery are challenging tasks as there are so many different devices out there. Mobile cloud computing gets all these hurdles out of the way. Using a web-based mobile publishing platform, it’s not only more cost-efficient, it also delivers much better quality output on a broader variety of handsets.” (Michael Neidhoefer, CEO, Netbiscuits)

“What if you could build applications based on web standards, move the processing associated with the applications off the mobile device to powerful, centralized platforms and then use the Internet to access the applications, in essence moving these applications into the cloud?” (Mark Beccue, ABI Research)

Additional workshops at the event include cloud application development, Microsoft Azure overview and more.  To register for the free to attend workshop please go to – http://www.cloudcomputingcongress.com/register/free-exhibition.html

Learn which mobile applications will lead the growth, the key technologies, players and initiatives involved, new business models that will be introduced, and the barriers that must be overcome. Additional free to attend workshops with Facebook and other partners are co-located @ the social media world forum, please see agenda – http://www.socialmedia-forum.com/exhibition/workshops.html

Cloud Computing Congress & Mobile Social Media is co-located with the Social Media World Forum (http://www.socialmedia-forum.com/) an event that encompasses the entire spectrum of Social Media.  It will take place at Olympia, London on the 15/16 March.

Speaker line-up announced at the London Social Media Events.  200 confirmed speakers across the conferences.  See our full line-up below.

Speakers @ Social TV & Mobile Social Media 15/16^th March  include – http://www.social-tv.net & http://www.mobilesocial-networking.com

• Robert Marsh, VP, Interactive & Telephony, Freemantle Media
• Peter Ward, Co-founder & CEO, WAYN
• Bob Rapp, Head, User Communities, Vodafone Group
• Rahul Chakkara, Controller of TV Platforms, BBC
• Angel Gambino, Vice President, Sonico
• Mark Watts-Jones, Head of Development & Innovation, Orange UK
• Yoel Flohr, Head of Mobile, Bebo
• Andrew Kearney, Vice President TV Products at UPC Broadband
• Richard Griffiths, Director TV and Entertainment, Eircom
• Nicolas Bry, Vice President, Orange Vallee
• Kevin Baughan, Head Technical Strategy, Virgin Media
• Ian Kegel, Head of Future Content Group, BT UK
• Triona Campbell, CEO, Campbell Ryan
• Pasa Mustafa, Head of Digital Studios, Endemol
• Damien Byrne, Head of Entertainment, T Mobile
• Miroslaw Smyk, General Manager TV Business Division at Romtelecom
• Matt Dicks, CMO, Flirtomatic
• John Cole, Managing Director UK, Adknowledge
• Claudio Venezia, Researcher, Telecom Italia
• Cian O’Sullivan, Editor in Chief, GoMo News
• Tim Hussain, Head of Mobile and Video Advertising
• Guillaume de Saint Marc, VP R&D New Initiatives, NDS
• Konstantinos Papamiltiadis, Head of Product, Mobile – EU, Yahoo!
• Paul Berney, Managing Director Europe, Mobile Marketing Association
• Adrian Drury, Principle / Media, Broadcast & Telecoms, Ovum
• Paul Berney, Managing Director, Europe, MMA
• Deborah Porton, Head of Mobile Development, Badoo Ltd
• Franco Beschizza, Head of Mobile, Interactive Services, COI
• Konstantinos Papamiltiadis, Head of Product, Mobile – EU, Yahoo!
• Martin Harris, SVP Corporate Sales, Bango
• Peter Ward, Co-Founder & Co-CEO, WAYN.com
• Stefanie Hoffmann, CEO Finance, Business Development, aka aki
• Simon Spanswick, Chief Executive, Association for International Broadcasting
• Dan Cryan, Head of Broadband, Screen Digest
• Paul Bristow, Vice-President of Strategy, ADB
• Dr William Cooper Founder and Chief Executive, informitv.com
• Justin Kan, founder and President, Justin.tv
• Aliza Beckett, Business Development, Web, Mobile & New Platforms, Channel 4
• Chi-chi Ekweozor, Director, RealFresh.tv
• Dick Rempt, CEO, Talents Media
• Richard Lindsay Davis, Director General, DTG
• Benjamin Schwarz, Owner, CTO Innovation Consulting
• Martin Jarrold, Chief, International Programme Development GVF

Speakers @ Social Media World Forum 15/16^th March – http://www.socialmedia-forum.com

• Lucas Herscovici, Global Marketing Manager, Becks
• Dr. Torsten Wigenter, Head of Social Media Marketing, Lufthansa
• Trevor Johnson, Head of Strategy and Planning, EMEA, Facebook
• Stephane Panier, Global Head, Bebo
• Nick Halstead, CEO, Tweetmeme
• Allison Wightman, Head of Marketing Systems, Virgin Atlantic
• Kerryn Dinsdale, Senior PR Manager, Barclaycard
• Muhammad Karim, Senior Brand Manager, Mars
• Peter Crosby, COO, Viadeo
• Dr. Helmut Becker, COO, XING
• Mark Schmid, Communications Director, Talk Talk
• Martine Edgell, CRM Specialist, Mercedes Benz
• Neal Sato, CTO, mixi
• Christian Schultz, Head of Communications, Mattel
• Michael Smith, Deputy Director of Interactive Services, COI
• Lorenz Bogaert, CEO, Netlog
• Jason Baker, Head of CRM and Digital Media, Ikea UK
• Justin Kan, founder and President, Justin.tv
• Guy Clapperton, Freelance Journalist, Editor and Broadcaster
• Penny Power, Author, International Speaker, Entrepreneur and founder of Ecademy
• Matthew Fraser, Senior Fellow at INSEAD & co-author of  ‘Throwing Sheep in the Boardroom
• Fred McIntyre, Vice President, Product, CBS Interactive
• Sienne Veit, Social and Mobile Commerce Development, Manager, M&S Direct
• Ricky Chopra, Digital Marketing Manager, Speedo International Limited
• Igor Beuker, Founder, SocialMedia8
• David Henry, VP Digital Marketing, Europe, Monster Worldwide
• Mark Watts-Jones, Head of Development & Innovation, Orange UK
• Lisa Mane, Head of Social Media, COI
• Mike Gamoroff, Owner & MD, Gamoroff
• Will McInnes, Managing Director, NixonMcInnes
• Michael Caselli, Editor, Online Casino News
• Adam Caplan, Vice President – Virtual Currency (Super Rewards), Adknowledge
• Neal Sato, CTO, mixi
• Fred McIntyre, Vice President, Product, CBS Interactive
• Oli Newton, Head of Emerging Platforms, i-Level
• Celina Maguire, Consumer Director, Gorkana
• Laila Takeh, Online Manager, British Heart Foundation
• Kristin Wadge, Director, Metrica
• Sam Barratt, Head of Media, Oxfam
• Craig Elder, Online Communities Editor, Conservative Campaign HQ
• Alex Aiken, Head of Communications, Westminster City Council
• Kerry McCarthy, Labour MP for Bristol East & New Media Communications Spokesperson
• Mark Jones, Online and Social Media Editor, Thomson Reuters
• Alex Miller, Head of Social Media, i-Level
• Markus Berger – de Leon, CEO, VZ Networks
• Angel Gambino, Vice President, Sonico

Speakers @ Enterprise Social Media & Cloud Computing http://www.cloudcomputingcongress.com – 15/16^th March

• Dion Hinchliffe, Editor in Chief, Social Computing Magazine & Web 2.0 Journal
• Geoff Timblick, Group Internal Communications Manager, New Media, Vodafone Group
• Helen Farrar, Head of Internal Communications, Virgin Media
• Martin Bellamy, CIO, Cabinet Office
• Adrian Steel, Head of Infrastructure Management, Royal Mail
• Thanos Kokkiniotis, Business IT Analyst, Shell International Ltd
• Eachan Fletcher, CIO, Sporting Index
• Simon Revell, Associate Director, Collaboration and Web Technologies, Pfizer
• David Wilde, CIO, Westminster City Council
• Per Rombouts, Project Manager Intranet & Social Media, ING Group
• Kenneth Verlage, CIO, DHL Express
• Paul James, CIO, Defence Science and Technology Laboratory, MOD
• Dominic Burch, Head of Corporate Comms and New Media, ASDA
• Sonia Carter, Senior Manager Online Communications, AXA
• Anthony Frost, Head of Corporate Communications, Santander
• Euan Semple, Independent Advisor/former Director of Knowledge Management BBC
• Alison Coward, Owner, Bracket
• Evangelos Kotsovinos, Vice President, Technology, Morgan Stanley
• Eachan Fletcher, CIO, Sporting Index
• Richard Ellis, Manager, UK & Ireland, Iron Mountain Digital
• Andrew Charlesworth, Director, Centre for IT and Law, University of Bristol
• Dr Bill Ashraf, Director of Technology Enhanced Learning, University of Sussex
• Adrian Davey, Head of IT, Tube Lines