BlackBerry MySpace application hits 400,000 downloads in a week

Social network MySpace and BlackBerry manufacturer Research In Motion have announced record download numbers of the 'MySpace for BlackBerry' application in its first week of availability. There have been more than 400,000 downloads since the application’s launch on 13th November, which apparently represents an all-time high for both MySpace and RIM in terms of first-week application downloads. In that first week, users have sent and received more than 15 million messages and published over two million updates. [Press release]

Global smartphone sales up 28%

More research from Canalys. These figures say smartphone shipments have risen 27.9% worldwide (from Q3 2007 to Q3 2008), hitting 39.9 million. This means smartphones now represent around 13% of the total mobile phone market, up 2% from the previous quarter. Nokia has retained its market lead, but its share has been eaten into by Apple and BlackBerry devices. [Press release]

Microsoft considering BlackBerry purchase?

Falling share prices are apparently raising the possibility of Microsoft taking over RIM, the maker of BlackBerry devices, according to Unstrung.com.

BlackBerry and Microsoft working together

Did someone mention another partnership with BlackBerry? Fresh from its MySpace announcement, RIM has said it's working with Microsoft to add Microsoft's Live Search to the BlackBerry. [Press release]

MySpace working with BlackBerry

Social networking site MySpace is working with Research In Motion (RIM) to create a MySpace Mobile program for BlackBerry smartphones. There's already a mobile MySpace service at http://m.myspace.com, which receives more than two million daily mobile visits. The new MySpace for BlackBerry application will enable BlackBerry users to receive MySpace updates instantly. [Press release]

Over 25% of mobile browsing is done on smartphones

The latest AdMob Mobile Metrics report, which analyses mobile advertising to produce a snapshot of browsing patterns, says internet traffic from smartphones now accounts for 25.8% of worldwide traffic. Worldwide internet traffic was up 12.8%. Nokia had 62.4% of worldwide smartphone traffic in August, followed by RIM (BlackBerry devices) in second place with 10.8%. In the UK, 9.2% of mobile internet customers were using the Nokia N95. [August PDF report]

New products launched

RIM has announced its first flip-open BlackBerry device - the much-rumoured BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220 smartphone - and Sony Ericsson has confirmed that its XPERIA X1 smartphone will be launched in the UK on 30th September. [BlackBerry; Sony Ericsson]

Smart phone shipments up 53% last year

New market data from analyst firm Canalys shows that 118 million 'smart phones' were shipped worldwide in 2007, up 53% on 2006. 67% of all devices used the Symbian operating system, followed by Microsoft with 13% and RIM (BlackBerry) on 10%. Nokia and RIM retained their number one (52.9%) and number two (11.4%) manufacturer positions from 2006, with Apple moving in to third place - despite its limited geographic coverage - with a 6.5% market share, putting it fractionally ahead of Motorola. [Press release]