SPB recently sent me a flurry of releases relating to a product called SPB OnLine. As I never quite got the idea behind it, I decided to sit down with an SPB official and figure out what its all about.
Even though I didn’t manage to whip out 10 questions like I usually do, the answers below should answer most(all) open questions:
Please tell us more about yourself?
A bit official here: Spb is the global leader in the design of Windows Mobile applications. An international company, with offices in Hong Kong, Russia and Thailand, Spb combines a unique line of popular consumer products and cooperation with the world’s leading OEMs and carriers.
The popularity of Spb’s products is founded on their relevance to real customer needs and smartphone use cases, supported by superior technical implementation, stability, and quality graphic design.
Spb has recently launched a mobile entertainment division, targeted at helping mobile network operators reinvigorate subscriber enthusiasm for mobile entertainment and data, through delivering improved mobile content experiences on handsets.
SPB OnLine has been a bit of a mystery to me. Could you give me an elevator pitch describing what it does?
In short, the main goal of Spb Online is to do the same thing with online services, as what Safari did with mobile web. Popularize, make it usable!
As the product clearly is targeted at operators, why sell it to end customers? After all, it essentially is a glorified app store…
Working directly with end users was always the strategy of Spb, and even when we go to OEMs and MOs, one of the main reasons they work with us – is because we know how to make software and services that end users love. So all of our products always go to the consumers 
I would also disagree that Spb Online is an app store. The store is only one of the 6 services in the package: mobile TV, radio, news, weather, online games, all of when have nothing to do with the store.
For sure, we are working on getting more channels in, and on organizing sms payment for content in the store, and many other things, to make the online suite irresistible for end-users.
Do you plan to sell third-party programs via the portal?< ?i>
We already do.
Indeed we do not manage the app store part of Spb Online ourselves. This part is managed by Handster.com – an independent software reseller.
Looking at multiplayer games: how do you want to ensure that a minimal amount of users is always available?
Each days we have thousands of online game sessions played. Hundreds of new users join each day, and at any given moment about 20-30 people are playing online.
Our online games are a uniting factor. We think that it is awesome that people can share a game, regardless of what plan they are signed up for, with which operator, in what part of the world, or what language they speak. It makes no difference, you can still enjoy this service, connect with people in other countries, and just play.
Could you give us a hint in what way the program will evolve?
Our next step will be to provide access to more TV channels. right now we are working on a premium subscription that will give access to premium TV channels.
Microsoft obviously plans an App Store of its own. Do you think that your interests are threatened in any way by this announcement?
The reason we have included an App Store in Spb Online is because nowadays there is no good solution for WM to distribute software. And it harms both the end-users, who do not know where to get software and easily to buy/install it, and it harms the software developers/mobile operators, who cannot get additional income by providing good programs to end-users.
So we have developed a client that functions as a sort of a meeting place but if a similar, functional client comes preinstalled in the next version of WM platform – well then this problem is solved, it will be better for all of us, will finally be able to reach many new users out there.
As an ISV, will we will be the first who will benefit from that.
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