Karol Severin

The Rise Of Mobile Super-Short Form

Blog post by Karol Severin

30 Oct 2015

GIFs have been around since 1987, Vine popularised the feature case for super-short form content in 2013, but in the last few months it’s been raining super-short form innovation. Recent announcements…

Mobile Messaging Platforms
How Facebook’s Hedge Strategy Is Changing The Face Of Messaging

Cover image for Mobile Messaging Platforms

Report by Mark Mulligan and Karol Severin

30 Oct 2015

The 20,000 Foot View In just a few short years mobile messaging apps have become home to the largest group of digital audiences on the planet, with 4.8 billion cumulative monthly active users. Following…

Publishers Are Leading Fragmented Battles In The Ad Blocking War Against United Consumers

Blog post by Karol Severin

22 Oct 2015

There is one key difference between consumers and publishers in the ad blocking war: Ad blocking users are united by their actions (using adblockers) and fragmented by the ideology behind them (cost, time,…

Snapchat’s ‘Sponsored Lenses’ And The Power Of User Generated Product Placement

Blog post by Karol Severin

20 Oct 2015

Snapchat will launch a new advertising format which allows users to include popular branded content as a part of their message or selfie. Snapchat will help design stickers for brands and make them available…

Quick Take: New LinkedIn App Improves Its Business Via Extending User Experience

Blog post by Karol Severin

15 Oct 2015

LinkedIn previewed a new version of its mobile app , which will be deployed in the upcoming weeks. It took place at the company’s TalentConnect, an event focused on recruiters. Although the preview was…

How Telcos Could Become Gatekeepers Of Mobile Advertising

Blog post by Karol Severin

12 Oct 2015

Digicel in Jamaica is the first mobile network operator to roll out ad blocking of web and in-and app advertisement across it’s entire network as a default purchase option. If this scales across global…

Quick Take: Been Choice, Apple Happy To Eat Its Own Lunch With Native App Adblocker

Blog post by Karol Severin

7 Oct 2015

Up until now, the on going ad blocker discussion was confined to the web rather than apps. But now an upcoming VPN based adblocker Been Choice promises to block ads in native apps like Facebook or Apple…

How Game Apps Will Benefit From Amazon's Entry Into The Merch Market

Blog post by Karol Severin

2 Oct 2015

After the launch of Amazon Underground, Amazon continues its strategy to actively support the long tail of more budget-constrained developers and content creators. Merch by Amazon, launched yesterday,…

Why App Publishers Could Be The Winners Of The Adblocking Boom

Blog post by Karol Severin

24 Sep 2015

Less than 48 hours after the launch of iOS 9 multiple ad blocking apps already dominated the iOS paid app charts across key markets. The ad blocking boom has sent first shivers down the spines of the whole…

App Whales And Minnows
Segmenting Mobile App Buyers

Report by Karol Severin

23 Sep 2015

The 20,000 Foot View Despite being small in number, app buyers are the bread and butter of the current mobile app economy accounting for the majority of global app revenue. But their behaviour is too often…

Is Smartphone Dominance Slowing Down Innovation?

Blog post by Karol Severin

15 Sep 2015

In 2009, young prodigy Pranav Mistry introduced his SixthSense Technology Device at a Ted event. The possibilities seemed endless. If you don’t know SixthSense, please watch this video to understand…

Uber's Smart Routes and Recent Jeep Hack Hires: Two Milestones On A Journey To Becoming A Tech Giant Superpower

Blog post by Karol Severin

15 Sep 2015

Uber confirmed they are testing a new addition to their Uber Pool proposition. Smart Routes allow consumers to save even more money if they are willing to be picked up on one of Uber’s ‘hot routes’.…

Verizon's Go90 And The Impact Of Mobile-First Content Strategy

Blog post by Karol Severin

11 Sep 2015

Verizon’s free, ad-supported mobile video streaming service Go90 launches this week. The service will be available to all users, regardless of being a Verizon customer. The product is aimed at 18-34…

Amazon Underground Challenges Dynamics Of The App Economy

Blog post by Karol Severin

27 Aug 2015

Amazon has partnered with developers to make over $10,000 worth of games, apps and in-app items for free. Instead of traditional monetization models, Amazon will pay developers based how long consumers…

Decoding The App Buyer: Whales Vs. Minnows

Blog post by Karol Severin

4 Aug 2015

The global app economy is maturing and as a result, growth through scale will become increasingly more limited. Consequently, growth through ARPU will become more of a strategic focal point for app stakeholders.…

Mobile Market Country Profile: Germany
A Maturing App Superpower

Report by Karol Severin

2 Jul 2015

20,000 Foot View The mobile market in Germany is in the middle of a consumer behavior shift. Smartphone penetration and app usage have entered the mainstream and digital content consumption on mobile is…

Three Takeaways From The Noah Conference 2015

Blog post by Karol Severin

16 Jun 2015

Last week I got to peek-in on the last day of NOAH 2015 conference in Berlin. It was a great experience, which I strongly recommend it to everyone in the world of media, tech and investment. Hot topics,…

Mobile App Payments
Fishing For Whales And Minnows

Report by Karol Severin

12 Jun 2015

The 20,000 Foot View 78% of mobile app revenue is concentrated in 26% of app buyers with the majority of that revenue driven by in-app purchases. These ‘whales’ are the beating heart of the mobile…

Mobile App Economy Forecast 2015-2020
The Emergence Of A Mature Market

Cover image for Mobile App Economy Forecast 2015-2020

Report by Karol Severin

12 Jun 2015

The 20,000 Foot View The global app economy is maturing. This transformation will bring a multitude of headline-worthy power shifts in the next five years. At the top, the share of global revenue will…

Mobile Market Country Profile: Sweden
Sophisticated Swedes Set The Pace

Report by Karol Severin

20 May 2015

20,000 Foot View Sweden embraced the smartphone revolution like few other markets. Heavy investments in mobile and internet infrastructure led to one of the highest app user penetration rates in the world.…