I think widgets for the iPhone are going to be phenomenal. Someone is bound to make some serious money with them. Your repository would be an awesome resource. However, you would need to compete against Apple's own iTunes because I bet they are going to have a section in it for buying these widgets.

Thanks for your comment fidoogle. I agree with your comment about the IPhone although i would like the repository to be wider in focus and include widgets and gadgets for multiple platforms and devices... but we can ride on the IPhone wave.

And a CH friend, cybercerberus, made a comment in a forum thread about java applets being able to offer the same functionality but be more platform independent and i think the repository could do well to include them also.

You are also right in that Apple i am sure has plans to release IPhone widgets via their distribution channels but there will always be competition and if they create a big noise then that in turn expands the market awareness and opportunities... and we would have a big advantage over them in one aspect and that is crowdsourcing!

Btw, i see you have some excellent IPhone widget mashup ideas in the idea pool too:)

Hey Doymarn

Do you know if the iPhone is open to 3rd party widget intergration or is it closed (i.e. only Apple can produce extensions)?

Cheers - JR

Hi JR

To answer your question i am going to post a couple of clips on articles i have read in this regard...

Clipping from: : www.arstechnica.com

"Macwelt, Macworld?s German Mac-loving cousins, spent some time talking to Apple Germany and managed to get some new details about the implementation of the iPhone and about what you will and will not be able to do with the iPhone....

cont.. Most people are hoping that, since it will be impossible to install 3rd-party software on the iPhone without Apple?s explicit permission, they will be able to access the myriad of web applications available online. Many people were unsure whether or not Flash and/or Java would be enabled on the build of Safari supplied on the iPhone. Macwelt has determined from Apple?s comments that there will be "as many plugins as possible" enabled and that "Flash and Java will be enabled for sure."

A clipping from: www.nytimes.com

"Software developers at Macworld Expo, the trade show where Mr. Jobs made the iPhone announcement, said they were taking a wait-and-see attitude about the phone. Several noted that much of the phone?s usability will depend on what added functions Apple decides to place in the version of the Safari Web browser that is part of the system.

If there is a Adobe Flash player available for the iPhone, and if it supports the Internet standards that are being widely used by the developers of a proliferating array of Web services, Apple?s decision to restrict software development may not matter."

My comment:

Now, as Jobs has said they will be providing Flash/Java in the Safari browser (see first clipping) then a web page can be fetched and displayed on the IPhone through its 2G or direct Wifi channel and the flash or java widgets delivered by the browser, for example, can provide the widget mashup functionality irrespective of Apples approval or not! They apparently are only going to be controling what apps can be installed onto the phone, they can't control what widgets are going to be accessed on an Internet page.

I think you will find before very long, market pressures, the pressure to reach other markets and the competition that will enter the market, will force Apple to relinquish its tight grip on apps installed on the phone itself but until that happens it doesn't stop the widget development designed specifically to take advantage of the IPhones capabilities or the other devices that will soon follow Apples technology lead.

And technology enthusiasts being what they are, someone will hack the APIs very quickly.

Also Apples relationship with Cingular is a limiting market factor and this will have to be broadened to reach other world markets which they dearly want.

Thats my 2 cents... hope it makes sense and thanks for the question JR

I like where your going with this. What you should look at is yahoo's widget gallery. They have a huge list of different widgets. The problem is that yahoo requires you to download a widget engine to run them. But included in their gallery are widgets made to convert widgets to universal web-based widgets. This is what you should be looking at. Though it would be nice to ride the iPhone train to the bank, it won't be long before other phones have similar capabilities for a cheaper price. Most likely these phones will be required to browse the internet just as we do on our desktops, but on a smaller screen (check out: bittybrowser.com) So I don't see integration being a future problem.

on another issue:
I don't think you should have them have to pay to download, rather charge companies to have their widget in, let's say a top 10. (this would require you to have a huge database of users)

I am seeing a future trend of web-based and non-web-based companies creating simple widgets, that still maintain usability, mainly to advertise
ie, coca-cola's music widget. (this can be found on yahoo's widget gallery)

that's what i think,

oh, and you web mini page brought me to this website. cheers!

how does a site like widgipedia fit into this idea? Is it along the same lines (currently without monetary reward).

Re: being a web-application - I could see this getting pretty expensive for people. It costs me $25 per month just for 3MB of transfer.

I was recently on vacation in Africa and for the most part out of contact then a quick visit to a cafe and wifi hotspot, browsing my emails informed me i was in the tournament but alas had no time to reply to your comments, so apologies all round for being quiet... now i'm back and connected again:)

So...

Mykol thanks for your constructive comments and nice to hear you joined from my yourminis.com public page! Thanks for the heads up on bittybrowser.com, i need to give it a looksy. I agree that there are a number of players in the widget/gadget field (yahoo being an impressive one but the desktop is a drawback in some respects but a plus in others). I see the opportunity in providing a repository of both widgets from development companies and individuals. I would like to see the distribution and pricing model work like ringtones where the price per unit is very small and therefore would not deter people from downloading and creating almost a use and throw away psyche without worrying about the cost... e.g. a $1 or $2 price tag... ringtones made some people very rich from this pricing model, i don't see why we can't do the same with widgets.

More sophisticated mini mash-up apps could command higher prices.

The idea would be to create the one stop widget/gadget co-op where various platforms are supported and costs are minimal.

Thanks for the reference to widgipedia PyschSplash, hadn't seen it before and it shows promise but i think in order to attract the best widgets one has to provide a monetary reward for the developers and this is critical. Also providing a Q&A comfort zone where the consumers are assured that they will not be downloading nasty components that record keystrokes and provide personal data to an unscrupulous developer. This is where i think we can differentiate this service.

Jonlam... don't know where you are but if you are paying this sort of service fee to use the net then most web apps will be costly for you by the looks of it. But data will get cheaper as more users use these services, i think.

Hope this answers your questions for the moment...

A directory of widgets and mashups is good, but I'm not sure people would buy these.

Having spent a lot of time in the widget space recently I tend to think you are right Maureen... lots of players out there and quality stuff id going for free.

Payment for widgets would not work, there would need to another way to monetise it... not sure about the viability at the moment.