Angry Bird is world’s most played mobile game and with its popularity it is attracting not just players but also other business to cash in on its success. And the latest one to get attracted is mobile accessories makers.

Gear4, a mobile accessories maker, has launched a new line of iPod, iPhone and iPad cases designed with Angrybirds theme. And it has not just stopped at that, it will soon launch a mobile speaker with Angry Birds’ design. The prices of the cases start at Rs 800 and go up to Rs 2,500.

The T-shirts are also available with Angry Bird pictures which will cost you Rs 300. Soft toys of Angry Bird characters are also available starting from Rs 1,300 to Rs 5,500.

With the success of the game continuing unabated, we are likely to see more merchandise designed to lure Angry Birds fans.

Mercedes-Benz India has launched a mobile-optimised website m.mercedes-benz.co.in for its tech-savvy customers which can be readily accessed through multiple mobile devices including smart phones, Androids and other feature phones capable of internet browsing.

Customised for mobile viewing, the website presents a summary of the brand’s corporate website, which is designed to function like a virtual car showroom with information on product highlights, technical data, picture galleries, pricing and details on local service centers.

The mobile website is served in multiple layout modes device specifically to ensure maximum quality output: irrespective of using HTML, xHTML or WML. Aimed at offering improved usability, better graphics and functionality, users soon will also have the option of redirecting themselves to the mobile website from the main website as well.

Manas Dewan, general manager, corporate communications and strategic planning, Mercedes-Benz India Ltd elaborated, “Our mobile optimised website will ensure that customers and enthusiasts of the Mercedes brand can enjoy far greater levels of interactivity as compared to any other manufacturer in India. Features like &#151 fast browsing, video and flash content, easy navigation and enhanced interface will further enhance browsing experience.”

Mercedes-Benz India has also upgraded its corporate website www.mercedes-benz.co.in. With optimised interface, easier navigation and features such as a full-screen viewing, bookmarks and downloads, the visitor experience has been significantly enhanced.

Microsoft has announced that its Windows Marketplace for Mobile website and My Phone services are to be shut down. Windows Mobile 6.x device owners will not be able to browse, buy and download applications from the Windows Marketplace for Mobile website from July 15 onward. Along with that Microsoft’s cloud-based My Phone service will stop saving content from Windows Mobile 6.x phones.

Last month we had reported about Microsoft’s plans to stop accepting new apps for the Windows Mobile platform. The software giant has officially started bidding adieu to its decade old Windows Mobile platform. Starting in mid July Windows Mobile 6.x users won’t be able to get applications from the Windows Marketplace for Mobile website

Users will apparently have to depend directly on respective application developers for support.

Microsoft had launched cloud server based data backup services for Windows Mobile 6.x devices, dubbed ‘My Phone’, back in early 2009. Starting August 7, the My Phone service will stop syncing and taking backup of content from Windows Phone 6.x devices.

However, the company will move all user data from My Phone to Windows Live SkyDrive, the free online storage service of Microsoft. Users will be able to access their backed up content, such as contacts, calendar entries, text messages, photos, documents and other files from SkyDrive using a Windows Live ID.

In a way, Microsoft is slowly shutting down the Windows Mobile platform. Current Windows Phone 6.x users will be left with whatever apps they have from the Windows Market, and they cannot expect to see new ones.

Windows Mobile 6.x users will be left with no option but to dispose with or sell their devices. After that users will have to choose from among Windows Phone 7, iOS, Android, BlackBerry or Symbian.

A whopping 95,000 applications that were once part of the Android Market are now no longer available. Android Market, which is now the world’s top app store with 300,000 apps, thus also has the distinction of having the highest attrition rate, of 32 per cent.

Appsfire, an apps discovery service which provided this analysis, said that Apple App Store has a better record in this regard. About 500,000 apps have been published on the Apple App Store so far but only 16 per cent were later pulled back from it.

It was earlier suggested that Android Market may soon eclipse the Apple App Store in terms of number of applications, but they perhaps failed to take attrition rate into account.

Apple itself said at the WWDC (Worldwide Developers Conference) that it had 425,000 apps in the App Store, whereas Google said at its own recent developer conference that there were about 200,000 apps in the Android Market. Android Market still has a long way to go before it overtakes Apple App Store.

Appsfire says in the blog post, “They may also be including beta apps or private apps that were never intended to be published in the Market. The Amazon App Store is one such “private” app that is not distributed in the official Market, but it is an exception to the rule. In any case, there are also a considerable number of “private” apps for iOS, distributed through alternative, jailbreak-only stores like Cydia that would also need to be counted.”

Android Market apps are more experimental in nature, says Appsfire. They are just intended to provide more experience to developers, thus they are easier to pull back as well. It’s easier to enter the Android Market therefore less committed developers may also enter it.

Apple App Store, on the other hand, has a development fee of $100 (about Rs 4,500), which means only serious developers who are committed to supporting their apps over the longer term enter the Apple App Store.

Nokia has come out with yet another update to Ovi Store, for its Symbian S60 ^3 devices. Confirming this to ‘The Mobile Indian’, a Nokia spokesperson said that this update is an optional upgrade to the existing application and Android devices will not be pushed this update automatically. However, looking at the number of features and improvements this update brings along, there will be hardly any user left who will not opt for it.

The V2.08.042 update brings update notifications for installed apps, a feature which brought a lot of fame to the Android marketplace. It notifies the user about updates in the My Account tab as soon as they are available. Users also have the freedom to update all their apps in one go or one by one manually depending on their convenience.

Some time back Nokia had released an update for the Nokia Ovi Store application but it was removed after a short while owing to bugs.

Another critical improvement with the new update is the optimisation of application search, and suggestions based on location and device type.

As mentioned earlier as well, this is a voluntary upgrade and users who wish to install it will have to download it from the Ovi Store. This update is a worldwide release but is only available for Symbian S60 ^3 devices at present. No information related to older or newer devices has been released so far.

Nokia has launched a new instant messenger client, which allows you to send messages to anybody else who has the same App installed as well as to people with Ovi Mail account, Google Talk, Windows Live Messenger, Yahoo! Messenger and MySpace IM.

The app, called as IM for Nokia, is currently
available on Ovi Store and will come pre-installed on new devices over the coming months.

To use this, all you need to do is to download the app from Ovi Store, load it in the applications menu of your Nokia phone and log in using your Ovi account username and password, the same one you use when downloading from Ovi Store. Press the menu button on the bottom left of the screen and add friends. Type in your friends Ovi email address to add them to your contacts list and when they’re online, you’ll see them added to your Friends list.

You can also log into the other accounts &#151 such as Google Talk &#151 by going through the same process, but selecting the appropriate account.

To chat with a friend you will have to find one of your friends in the list, press their name and your phone will open a chat window. Type your message into the text bar at the bottom of the screen and when you’re done, press the send arrow next to the text box. For smiley press the face button.

After you’ve finished your chat, press the options menu again, scroll down and press the Hideoption. This will keep this app running in the background so that people can still contact you throughout the day and vice-versa without having to log in again.

There is also a home screen widget, which reminds you that you’re online and if you’re chatting to anybody. There is also a Do not disturb button and an invisible mode.

On devices with S40 operating system, the home screen widget is available but do not come with option to change your chat availability.