Samsung IQ 2009 now open: £15,000 first prize

This year’s Samsung IQ competition is now open and full details have been published. At Sammi we’re using Samsung IQ 2009 to promote Samsung Mobile Widgets. These widgets reside in a dedicated widget tray in the Touch Wiz UI and run directly on the home screen area. The list below gives you the basics of these widgets and what you can do with them:

• Install to the widget tray on the home or “idle” screen
• Display iconified in the widget tray
• Can be dragged to the home or “idle” screen, can be launched on-drag or on-touch, and run directly on the home screen
• Can arbitrarily resize, can display multiple views, and can display live data independently of and simultaneously with other widgets
• Multiple widgets run simultaneously
• Are developed using HTML (UTF-8 encoding), CSS, and JavaScript
• Are packaged and deployed as ZIP format file archives (UTF-8 encoded pathnames recommended), with a WGT file extension, and are defined by config.xml, index.html, and icon.png files with arbitrarily many additional HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and image files, following W3C recommendations for directory structure
• Are recognised (on Symbian OS) by the application installer and loaded to a dedicated widget folder

By focusing on widgets we’re hoping to achieve two things during the course of the competition:

1. To get our current members, and the mobile development community generally, to think about the possibilities that the advent of web-runtime technologies on the mobile open up.
2. To reach out to new groups of developers who previously may not have considered developing for mobile, but who with the arrival of widgets on mobile devices, now have the ideal skills to capitalise on this opportunity.

As the entries are submitted this year we are hoping they will come from a range of individuals, including those who may not have considered themselves as mobile developers. For more information on the opportunities that widgets have opened up for developers, have a read of our latest Technical paper from Ben Morris.

While right now Samsung are giving developers the opportunity to Win big with Widgets, I can’t help but think that the widget story has only just begun…

Your widget on the world’s biggest screen!

Well for a mobile device anyway…

Today we started publicising this year’s Samsung IQ. Samsung IQ has always been an important program for Samsung. Prior to the launch of Samsung Mobile Innovator it was one of the main ways we reached out to the developer community and asked you to show us what you were working on.

With the arrival of Samsung Mobile Innovator, you now have a number of ways to engage with Samsung, including our discussion boards and Market.dev. Samsung IQ is however unique amongst our activities in that it has a competitive element and the opportunity to get cash instantly (provided you win of course).

What’s the theme for 2009?
This year’s competition is all about building Samsung home screen widgets. The only criteria is that your entry is a widget, and that it runs on the Samsung home screen. We’ve even relaxed our terms and conditions so that the IP is owned solely by you. So get ready to get creative.


The target device is our latest Symbian handset: the i8910 HD. This is the first Symbian device to launch since the Symbian Foundation was formed and to celebrate Symbian are co-sponsoring the event with us.


What’s up for grabs?
As with previous SIQs there are valuable rewards for the winning entries. This year, in addition to a large cash prize pool, we are offering a prime route-to-market for your widget. This means your work could end up on a huge number of devices.

How do I enter?
Anyone can enter. You will need to join Samsung Mobile Innovator first (this takes about two minutes and is completely free), and then submit your widget at www.samsungiq.com. Submissions open on Wednesday 24 June 2009.

Can I get started now?
Yes, there are no restrictions on the category of widget you create. Over the coming weeks we will be providing further information on how to target the i8910 HD, and you’ll also be able to perform your own tests in Lab.dev. If you already have a widget that you’d like to submit there is no problem, provided it doesn’t violate the SIQ terms and conditions. These will be published when the competition launches.

Any questions?
If you have any questions about the competition, or the technology behind Samsung home screen widgets, visit our discussion boards. We can’t wait to hear from you.

No Monday-blues next week…

Samsung Mobile Innovator is sponsoring demo night at MoMoLondon on Monday 15 June 2009. If you are keen to speak to us about anything, particularly the i8910 HD, this is your chance. We'll also be presenting briefly on a great initiative we are launching soon in partnership with the Symbian Foundation.

The event is being held at IPC Media's headquarters which is located near Waterloo.

The Blue Fin Building
110 Southwark Street
London
SE1 0SU

Door opens at 6pm with free food and drink and plenty of opportunity for networking with fellow mobile professionals.

Attendance is free, but you need to register. See the link below for more information.

http://momolo.org