ABC launches mobile portal and iPhone and Android apps UPDATED

Stuart Corner
Monday, 16 March 2009 07:11

IT Industry - Market

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) has launched a web site optimised for accessing from mobile devices, and applications for the iPhone and Android handsets for accessing ABC content. (The iPhone app was not available when this item was posted. That has now changed and a link to it is included at the end.)

Managing director, Mark Scott, said the new mobile site (m.abc.net.au.) had been developed specifically for mobile phone screen sizes to make reliable and up-to-date ABC content fast to load and easy to navigate.

The site has launched with a text and image service to keep data charges low, but the ABC says that "users can look forward to ABC video and audio when more content is added to the site later this year."

Content to be provided will include news, sport and entertainment stories; localised information including weather forecasts and radio schedules; movie reviews and session times; TV guides for ABC1 and ABC2; music news from the ABC's popular music radio station, triple j and more.

The ABC has also launched a 'sophisticated' iPhone application and a news application for Android handsets. It says both applications are available online as free downloads. It also promises to soon have available a basic Java application for use on all other high end handsets.  The Android application will be available free of charge from the Android Market However the HTC dream is presently the only Android phone available in Australia.

Information about the site is available at http://abc.net.au/mobile. However it contains no mention of the iPhone application. The ABC's head of corporate communications, Sandy Culkoff, told iTWire that there had been an unexpected delay in making it available but said it would become available at Apple Australia's iPhone apps store in the Entertainment &
News section under 'Australian Broadcasting Corporation'. It is now available here.