Mobile 'Superapps' Are the New Web Sites

The popularity of smartphones and bite-sized apps for devices such as the iPhone is redefining the Internet and giving rise to a 3.5-inch Web

By Christian Lindholm

Back in October of 2009, BusinessWeek reporter Douglas MacMillan argued here that although it was easy to dismiss the growing "app economy" as a fad, apps were in fact potentially powerful tools in the hands of entrepreneurs and forward-thinking business people.

The essential wisdom of MacMillan's analysis has been demonstrated over time: Nobody doubts that there is now a burgeoning app economy. More than half a dozen app stores have launched since Apple (AAPL) ushered in the era of the mobile app with its App Store. Developers of mobile apps have a large number of channels through which their programs can be brought to market.

The iPhone app model has affected the Internet in a more fundamental way, too. Its impact has been to create a world with two different Webs: We now have a "13-inch Web," that consists predominantly of sites designed for desktop and laptop screens, served by a mouse pointer, and a new kind of Web optimized for 3.5-inch screens and built around finger use. The 3.5-inch Web is rapidly expanding. According to Cambridge (England) based mobile-search-engine company Taptu, there are now about 400,000 3.5-inch, touch-optimized sites and another 200,000 or so apps.

Apple's iPhone operating system remains the most attractive option for potential developers. It's the sole platform among many—including alternatives from Google (GOOG), Microsoft (MSFT), Nokia (NOK), and Research In Motion (RIMM)—that developers cannot afford to ignore. Its appeal has been extended by the launch of the Apple iAd in-app advertising platform.

platforms for iPhone app builders

The appeal of iPhone OS goes beyond attracting those who want to remain relevant and make money from smartphone apps: The iPhone app is so ubiquitous that it is becoming a must-have item for any business, whether its interest lies in typically developing for mobile delivery or not. Digital marketing started changing with the iPhone—which dawned on me when I saw the iPint app from brewer Carling (TAP) spread like a flame among users enjoying virtual drinks in bars around the world.

Businesses are now being set up around the premise of providing platforms to iPhone app builders. Australian publisher Conversant Media, for instance, offers the popular Conversant Mobile "white-label" iPhone application development tool for bloggers who want a stylish, flexible way to display their blog content.Popular trend blogs such as Lost at E Minor and tech blogs such as Mashable and Techcrunch have long been available in iPhone app form.

While the content on offer is not always disruptive, the iPhone app model in general poses an interesting set of challenges for the industry at large. For one thing, iPhone apps differ from Web sites. Apps are richer experiences, unconstrained by limitations in such technical standards as HTML and CSS. They can be more easily monetized, too. More important, they leverage and work around mobile context and location while integrating with your phone and coping with interruptions in radio coverage via content caching and other techniques.

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