Daily Marauder

WIRELESS

Verizon Wireless, under pressure to come up with an answer to the iPhone, is inviting application developers to a two-day conference in New York on March 19 & 20 to discuss ideas for its Open Development Initiative announced last November.

Mobile video services provider Transpera announced a partnership with male-focused video entertainment site Break.com to optimize its video content for distribution on major mobile carriers including AT&T, Sprint/Nextel and T-Mobile. The Break.com mobile web service will offer customization features and integrate Transpera’s targeted advertising platform to create an additional revenue channel for Break.com. Consumers can access the service on the browser of their mobile phones at http://m.break.com or via Break.com.

Disney, which shut down its U.S. cellphone service last year, is starting a similar service in Japan. But this time it is targeting adult women instead of children. The new service plans to offer content including ring tones, videos and games to female Disney fans in their 20s and 30s. (http://online.wsj.com/public/article/SB120103220301707421.html1/23)

RIM officials unveiled several new e-mail upgrades aimed at BlackBerry users during a recent business conference. RIM will phase in the new features, which include being able to edit documents directly from the handheld device and view messages in their original formatting, during the first half of this year. (The Wall Street Journal (free content)1/23)

Playyoo, a site we first reviewed in October and billed as a YouTube for mobile games, opens in beta today after 4 months in private testing. Playyoo offers free games for mobile phones, user-generated content, social interaction and personal expression. (http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/01/23/playyoo-youtube-for-mobile-games-goes-beta/1/23)