Agence France-Presse (AFP), a news agency, and Handmark, a provider of games, applications and services for mobile phones, have partnered to launch a new mobile application, AFP Mobile News for BlackBerry smartphone users.
Reportedly, AFP Mobile News powered by the Handmark Mobile Publishing platform, provides users with one-click access to AFP content, including full news stories and photos.
In addition, the new application will be available for client customisation and will allow users to add their own feeds and customise the branding.
According to Handmark, the features of the new AFP application include: news stories and photos from a variety of categories; optimised content for reading on a mobile device; offline functionality for use when wireless service or an internet connection is unavailable; and My Feeds Tab to allow users to include custom feeds.
The new AFP application is available for all BlackBerry smartphones with a trackball or touch-screen, including the Tour, the Curve 8900, and the Storm in the Americas.
The AFP Mobile News application is an extension of the AFP and Handmark relationship. Earlier this year, Handmark released a new version of Pocket Express with AFP as a news provider to the mobile service.
Gilles Tarot, director of sales and marketing for Agence France-Presse, North America, said: “The AFP Mobile News app promises users a global perspective of news from the US and Canada as well as from around the world. In this app, users can expect compelling, photo-rich and up-to-the-minute news to help understand the stories that shape our world.”
