Android Market, Google’s official app market for Android, recently celebrated the milestone of ten billion total downloads. To commemorate the achievement, they released an infographic containing a slew of statistics about Android Market and its users.

Singapore, it turns out, is the fifth most app-crazed country in the world by downloads per capita. Asian nations are doing particularly well on this front, with the South Koreans coming out on top, followed by Hong Kong and Taiwan. The United States is the only non-Asian country in the top five.

NFC could soon replace your wallet. Photo: Tom Purves

Singapore may become one of the first nations in the world to see widespread adoption of near-field communication as a payment mode, if this report by Channel NewsAsia is accurate.

Up to 20,000 retail points and taxis may be NFC-enabled by middle of 2012, the result of a S$40 million (US$31 million) investment by the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore and seven other companies.

They are: Mobile operators M1, SingTel and StarHub, payment service providers Citibank, DBS and EZ-Link, as well as Gemalto, a digital security company.

NFC is a technology that functions like Bluetooth, except that it works almost instantaneously and does not require one device to be ‘linked’ to another.

By tapping an NFC-enabled phone with another similar phone or an NFC tag, which can be embedded into outdoor advertising and other media, users can send or receive content, play multiplayer games, exchange namecards, or pay for items.

IDA is still looking for more partners to come on board.

Merchants who are already accepting contactless payment cards from MasterCard, Visa, or CEPAS will be able to use the new technology.

Eager early adopters who want to try out the technology will need an NFC-enabled phone. Otherwise, they would need to install a bridging device. The iPhone4 and iPhone4S, which is the most popular smartphone in Singapore, has no NFC capability.

In the US, trail runs are already underway by Google Wallet to enable NFC payments.

So far, the technology, which has been around since 2004, has seen a rather slow adoption rate, mainly due to the infrastructure needed as well as buy-in from a large number of partners.

Nonetheless, all the crucial players are pretty much on board (except Apple), and all the technology needs to take off is mass adoption.

Personally, I’m pretty stoked that EZ-Link is involved — which means I may be able to take the train using just my mobile phone. I hope banks like OCBC would sign up as well, and also companies like Google Wallet, Visa, and PayPal.

Depending on how this trial goes, the next phone I purchase might just be an NFC-enabled Android phone.

More on NFC:

Near field communication support for Google+ mobile app
Sony Ericsson jumps onto NFC bandwagon
Swiff lets merchants accept credit card payments using their mobile phones

62 percent of the US$2.1 trillion will be spent on subscription-based services like broadband packages, online gaming, cable TV, as well as mobile, video, voice, and data services.

The remaining 28 percent will be spent on devices like mobile phones and PCs, while ten percent will go to computer software, video-on-demand, and pay-per-view content.

Mikako Kitagawa, principal research analyst at Gartner, predicts that the three technology areas with most potential for development are: Wireless broadband, location-based services (LBS), and operating systems.

Listen to chief protagonists in Singapore and Southeast Asia – government regulators, telecom operators, handset makers, platform providers and developers – at UNWIRED 2011 discuss the biggest issues of the day, as a new start beckons with the rollout of speedy LTE/4G networks.

Returning this year after an inaugural event in 2010, the show’s agenda include high-level strategies, as well as insider tips from speakers from Singapore, Indonesia and Thailand.

What will users do with all that bandwidth in the sky? Can telcos afford to bill differently from now? Which mobile OS will be the best for developers, users and the industry in the coming years?

Last year’s inaugural UNWIRED event drew 160 telecom executives, developers, academics, analysts and journalists, who participated in highly-interactive interactive discussions with panelists who shared their in-depth knowledge and experiences with the audience.

View Larger Map

Mr. Andy Zain and Dr. Tan Chong Hee, veterans in the investment and technology developments in the industry, will address the opportunities and threats in the Indonesian Market, with special focus on:

1. Why is Indonesia a promising market?
2. Which sectors are hot and which ones are not?
3. How does a Singapore-based company like yours break through the cultural barriers and make full use of the Indonesia opportunity?
4. Technology developments and investment landscape in Indonesia

Doing business in Indonesia is very different from anywhere else in the world, and equally rewarding. The speakers will guide the entrepreneurs in understanding the dynamics of accessing the Indonesian market, forging partnerships, and navigating the government organizations, which are absolutely critical for your success in Indonesia.

View Larger Map

Image Credit: Ahron de Leeuw

SINGAPORE, January 27, 2011: Smaato, the leading mobile ad optimiser and mobile advertising company, today announced the closing of a new institutional round of funding. Singapore’s EDBI led the $7 million round, with participation from existing shareholders including global private equity firm aeris CAPITAL. The new funds will help fuel Smaato’s international expansion, in particular to extend its presence in Asia from its Asian headquarters in Singapore.

Ms. Chu Swee-Yeok, CEO of EDBI highlighted, “Smaato is a leader in the mobile advertising optimisation space with its highly innovative advertising optimization platform. As a digital advertising hub, Singapore is an ideal base for Smaato to address the fast growing mobile ad market in Asia, given the high concentration of ad networks, media agencies, and publishers here. EDBI looks forward to working closely with Smaato to partner key industry players leveraging on our networks in the region, and executing the company’s ambitious expansion plans in Asia.”

More than 11,000 publishers have signed up with Smaato to monetize their mobile content, with Smaato managing close to 20 billion ad requests per month. Smaato will further grow its more than 55 staff worldwide and strengthen its leadership position as the largest mobile advertising optimizer.

“We have seen a tremendous growth in Smaato’s revenues in 2010. For 2011, we expect even more exponential growth by partnering with leading mobile publishers and app developers worldwide,” said Ragnar Kruse, CEO and Co-Founder of Smaato. “Singapore has proven to be an excellent location to expand our Asian business. This new round of funding will help us improve our reach, foster product innovation and grow the Smaato team worldwide.”

Further reinforcing Smaato’s leadership in the mobile advertising industry, the company has also recently been recognized for the third time on the OnMedia 100 Top Private Companies list for 2011. Smaato was selected from more than a thousand U.S. and international technology companies nominated by investors, bankers, journalists, and digital media industry insiders.

Mobile publishers and mobile app developers partner with Smaato to maximize mobile advertising revenues with the aggregation of 50+ leading ad networks. Working with mobile ad networks on a global scale, Smaato has a unique offering to the market with relevant local ads made available globally in a single sign-up process at www.smaato.com/signup.

About Smaato Inc.

Smaato is a pioneering mobile advertising company that operates the mobile ad optimization platform called SOMA (Smaato Open Mobile Advertising) and partners with mobile publishers and app developers. More than 11,000 publishers have signed up with Smaato to monetize their content in 220+ countries and Smaato is managing close to 20 billion ad requests per month.

SOMA’s unique feature is the aggregation of 50+ leading ad networks globally to maximize mobile advertising revenues. Through an open API and a wide range of SDKs, SOMA can be easily integrated with ad networks, ad inventory owners (publishers, developers and operators) and 3rd party ad technology providers.

Smaato Inc. is headquartered in Redwood Shores, California. The privately held company was founded in 2005 by an experienced international management team. Additional Smaato locations are based in Hamburg, Germany and Singapore. Smaato is an active member of the Mobile Marketing Association and the German Digital Media Association BVDW.

About EDBI

EDBI (EDB Investments) is a leading investment firm headquartered in Singapore with worldwide presence. EDBI invests globally in the innovative and dynamic sectors of Biomedical Sciences, Clean Technologies, Digital Media, as well as key industries in Singapore. As a value adding investor, EDBI works closely with its portfolio companies, leveraging on its extensive networks and experience to help bridge and drive the companies’ growth strategies for Asia.

• This Week in Asia is featured on TechCrunch.
• Event this Week: Pycon APAC 2010
• Apple WWDC 2010: What have we? The new iPhone 4, the iOS 4 and Face Time, and oh yes, the juicy war that is brewing between Google/Admob and Apple on mobile advertising with their new terms and conditions on the developer agreement.
• Gree to expand to US & China: Japan’s number 2 mobile social network is now moving into China and US. Of course, we talked about how Gree entice its customers with a semi-naked avatar when they sign up the service.
• Zynga Enters Asia With Acquisition Of Gaming Startup XPD Media; Opens Office In Beijing: The creator of Farmville sets up an office in where social gaming has originated – China. With offices springing in India and China, is Zynga heading towards a global domination of social games through the iPhone and other devices?
• Yahoo! Japan Search Now Provides In-TV-Program Products Info: How Yahoo! has integrated their services into TV with Japan and Korea makes us ponder how it might match up against Google TV if it ever comes to Asia.
• Is Silicon Valley state of mind and dying: Is that really true? With the optimism expressed by the writers from TechCrunch and Geeks on the Plane, is the web/tech scene in Asia finally coming of age? We express some pessimism and cautionary tale while
• Upcoming Events: (a) CommunicAsia happening from 15 to 18 June 2010 next week in Singapore and (b) OpenWebAsia – Southeast Asia in Kuala Lumpur on 13 & 14 July

As TechCrunch contributor Scott Merrill puts it “You can spend your time and energy and precious development resources to build a terrific platform-specific application, only to sit in frustration as it languishes in some opaque approval process. And then you get to do it all over again on the other major platforms, increasing your development costs and complexity. Or you can spend your time and energy and precious development resources making a terrific mobile-optimized view into your existing web presence.”

Mobile Web vs Mobile App Development

With the advancement and propagation of the mobile web, what will the future look like for mobile app development companies such as 2359 Media, Mobiquest and Omnitoons?

Objectively, the mobile web brings about certain advantages over mobile apps. Mainly, it enables site owners to have an opportunity to track user behavior on their sites. Once released, user behavior can be measured by analytics, tracked using social media and through forums. This instant feedback process enables owners to quickly determine problem areas and make the necessary corrections.

Moreover, a mobile website enables the brand owner, to refine the experience and publish changes to the entire user base without requiring user action. This means everyone will see the new experience upon their next visit. On the other hand, mobile apps require more action on the part of the user as they have to download the apps (even pay for it) and install updates frequently. Users who do not install updates are subjected to sub – optimal site experiences and this therefore results in less than desirable adoption rates.

Shift Towards Mobile Web App Development

As if testimony to the aforementioned points, local company Chlkboard, founded by SGE co – founder Bernard Leong and partner Saumil Nanavati, launched their location based service as a mobile web app instead of a a native app.

When asked in a previous interview with SGE on why Chlkboard chose to launch as a web app instead of a native iPhone app, Saumil said: “Primarily, we do not have to go through the occasional political rigors of formal approvals as experienced for native apps. It also allows us to rapidly iterate our offering without the cumbersome app-version-updates.”

Statistics taken for the first 10 working days after Chlkboard’s launch seems to affirm the duo’s decision: Chlkboard managed 11,500 impressions and more significantly over 35 retailers (inclusive of Arena in Clarke Quay, Otaku House and Standing Sushi) joining them as their champions all within this period.

Additionally, it also seems like more companies are moving from mobile app development to mobile web app development as handset functionalities become more and more web accessible with the advancement of HTML5 and Web App-centric SDK’s like Palm’s Mojo. Even Google has thrown their weight behind web app development with Vic Gundotra, Google VP of Engineering declaring during a panel at Mobilebeat 2009: “We believe the web has won and over the next several years, the browser, for economic reasons almost, will become the platform that matters and certainly that’s where Google is investing.”

Whilst we remain unsure of exactly when mobile web app will take over native development, the time might be soon and it will be prudent to take stock of which way the wind is going to blow.

Image courtesy of: Mike Baird

About Pratyush Prasanna from Xerox & SMS Gupshup: Pratyush Prasanna presently looks at technology related investments for Xerox in India. Pratyush was on the founding team of SMS Gupshup, India’s largest social network on mobile and was responsible for growing the application from zero to its first million users (today about 20M users are on the Gupshup platform). Since then he has worked in Microsoft’s mobile strategy team with special focus on the mobile productivity applications and emerging markets. With his background in startups, he looks at promising new ideas and research projects for Xerox to invest in India. Pratyush has hands on experience in running startups as well as managing software development teams at Microsoft. Pratyush has a B.Tech degree from IIT Kharagpur and is an alumnus of IIM Calcutta. He also writes for Pluggd.in, an Indian tech blog.

About Benjamin Joffe from CMUNE and +8* | Plus Eight Star: Benjamin Joffe was selected among the “China’s TOP 100 Mobile Industry Influencers” in 2007 and 2008 and frequently quoted in various online and offline media such as CNN.com, AdAge, Asian Business Leaders and many more. Joffe’s specialties are in Asian Innovation, SNS, Mobile and Internet industries, social networks Web 2.0 in Asia, 3G services and many more.