The GSMA today announced that it is now accepting entries for its Brand App Challenge, a competition in which mobile application developers create “brand apps” for a select group of global consumer brands, including Coca-Cola, with its Coca-Cola, Coke Zero and Diet Coke brands. Winners of the Brand App Challenge will be named at the GSMA Mobile World Congress, which will be held 14-17 February, 2011 in Barcelona.
“The Brand App Challenge will create networking and business opportunities which benefit the brands, application developers and the broader mobile ecosystem,” said Michael O’Hara, chief marketing officer at the GSMA. “This competition taps the creativity and capabilities of the mobile application developer community to address brand and industry challenges, and we are thrilled to be working with Coca-Cola to help them maximise the power of mobile.”
Developers will compete by creating customised mobile apps for the participating brand sponsors based on the objectives and guidance provided by the individual brands. The apps will address a wide range of mobile operating systems including Android, Apple iOs, BlackBerry OS 6, HP webOS, Symbian and Windows Phone 7.
“With the smartphone revolution, app developers stand at the vanguard of mobile innovation,” said Tom Daly, Group Manager, Strategy & Planning, Global Interactive Marketing Group at The Coca-Cola Company. “Coca-Cola is proud to sponsor the App Challenge and we look forward to seeing how the world’s developers leverage the happiness our brands inspire via novel and powerful apps.”
Developers can sign up for the Brand App Challenge via an online portal and then upload a brief video demonstrating their proposed brand app. Each brand will select five finalists who will then compete to become the ultimate winner for the respective brands. Submissions for the Brand App Challenge will be accepted until 10 January and the finalists will be named approximately one month before Mobile World Congress 2011. The Brand App Challenge winners will be announced as part of the Mobile World Congress conference programme and will receive cash awards for their winning efforts.
The Brand App Challenge is an integral element of App Planet, the GSMA’s developer-focused programme at Mobile World Congress. Working with App Planet ADC partners such as Google, Nokia, Palm, RIM and Samsung, as well as with its Macworld Mobile partner IDG Expo, the GSMA will target hundreds of thousands of developers worldwide to encourage participation in the Brand App Challenge.
For more information on the Brand App Challenge, including criteria for participation, creative briefs from the participating brands, details on the submission process and more, please visit http://www.brandappchallenge.com
About the GSMA
The GSMA represents the interests of the worldwide mobile communications industry. Spanning 219 countries and territories, the GSMA unites nearly 800 of the world’s mobile operators, as well as more than 200 companies in the broader mobile ecosystem, including handset makers, software companies, equipment providers, Internet companies, and media and entertainment organisations. The GSMA is focused on innovating, incubating and creating new opportunities for its membership, all with the end goal of driving the growth of the mobile communications industry.
For more information, please visit Mobile World Live, the new online portal for the mobile communications industry, at www.mobileworldlive.com or the GSMA corporate website at www.gsmworld.com.
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