Category: Apps

The popular social media application now boasts a range of new features for these smartphone users.

Vine recently announced the release of a tremendous batch of updates for the version of its mobile app meant for Windows Phone, bringing users brand new editing functions, loop counts, and messaging capabilities.

This particular update is available to users of the Vine app on Windows version 8.1.

Once the mobile app update has been downloaded and installed, users will be able to draw from videos already stored on their smartphones so that they will be able to share it over the social network. They will also have access to functions that will allow them to edit their vines, and they can save their works in draft files so that they can keep their progress until they are ready to actually post it. This update also features additions to the messenger feature of Vine, so that users will be able to hold private message conversations with their friends and privately send them their video clips.

There will also be some metrics that will become available to users through this mobile app, with loop counts.

The new loop count feature will make it possible for users to be able to see how many times a vine has been viewed. Metrics are always popular for individual users and businesses, alike, so this could end up being an appealing new option for users of this mobile application.

Beyond the specific function of the Vine app, the Windows Phone update also provides a range of different design improvements for the activity feed and gives users the chance to be able to select their own background color to their user profiles.

Furthermore, this update is also bringing users a new alert option when they hit milestones. For instance, if one of the vines happens to go viral, then the user will receive an alert. Notifications will also allow users to become aware when friends and other people that they know have joined the platform.

These updates were already made to the mobile app back in August 2014 for iOS and Android based device users, but they have now been added to include Windows Phone users, as well.

Around the world, these shops are starting to bring applications forward to provide customers a broader service range.

In Taiwan, two large convenience store chains are now working to launch their own mobile apps in order to offer a broader service range to shoppers, and to take advantage of what online shopping can do for their businesses.

Should they be successful, this could have a notable impact on the convenience store industry in the country.

That said, this trend toward mobile apps by convenience stores is not exclusive to Taiwan. Certain retailers in Japan and the United States have also revealed that they are working toward the development of various ways to provide their shoppers with a multichannel experience by bringing in-store and online commerce together. These have involved rather aggressive investments in mergers and acquisitions with various e-commerce businesses.

The natural place for the mobile apps trend to find its start is in Taiwan, due to the nature of its convenience store sector.

That country has the greatest concentration of this form of retail stores among all countries on the globe. The directions taken by its convenience chains frequently suggest the types of moves that will be made by other chains around the world. Now that it has placed such a serious and evident focus on mobile applications, it is easy to believe that others will follow suit.

The company behind the largest convenience store chain in Taiwan, President Chain Store Corp, has announced that it is currently developing a big data cloud and computing system, and that it will be incorporating multichannel payments solutions, as well. This will allow for a mobile payments and m-commerce experience at all of its 5,000 outlets, said the company.

The second largest convenience store chain in the country, Taiwan FamilyMart Co., has said that it is launching a trial for its mobile apps, which will be brought to its 2,929 stores, some of which have been equipped with iBeacons in order to offer a geolocation based component to its experience. This way, the iBeacons can detect when a customer with the app has entered the store and can send that individual mobile marketing communications such as information about promotions, coupons, and offers.