This week during CTIA, Smaato and Symbian announced the Smaato “Open Mobile Advertising” (SOMA) SDK for Symbian, allowing mobile developers automatic access to over 50 mobile ad networks worldwide to display ads within apps and mobile Web sites via the millions of Symbian-based handsets in use worldwide.
By using Smaato’s mobile advertising technology and sheer reach, developers can maximize their ad inventory and therefore ROI by running ads globally in more than 220 countries. Smaato’s most recent monthly report showed that Symbian had the highest click through rates of any mobile operating system during August 2010 (that’s globally, not just North America). Compared with other platforms, users of Symbian smartphones were 50% more likely than Android, BlackBerry and Windows Mobile users to click on mobile ads, while Symbian’s rates were about a third higher than those of iOS.
While technically that’s true, we’ve seen reports stating that Android receives the highest CTR of any smartphone platform currently available, so take these numbers with a grain of salt. Bottom line is this is a big deal simply because of its scale. One SDK to incorporate over 50 different mobile ad-networks will likely be a welcomed addition for Symbian developers. Lately it seems only Android, iOS and Windows Phone 7 have been in the spotlight.
“We welcome Smaato’s support for our developers through its creation and contribution of the SOMA SDK for Symbian,” said Tim Holbrow, Leadership Team member for Developer Programs at Symbian. “This is a great opportunity for current Symbian developers to realize the full monetization potential of mobile advertising on Symbian, as well as motivation for other app developers to engage with the world’s leading smartphone platform for their future app development.”