More than half (57%) of U.S. smartphone owners who see in-app ads find them interruptive, and only 20% think the ads are relevant to them, according to a new Forrester report on the future of mobile advertising. The smaller screen and user focus on utility means advertising content has to be immediate, simple and contextually relevant.

Amazon has long been rumored to be launching a smartphone, and it now appears it will actually do so in the second half of 2014. The e-commerce giant plans to announce the phone by July and start shipping units by the end of September, according to a "Wall Street Journal" report Friday, citing anonymous sources.

App.io has extended its in-browser app demo technology into ad platforms. Now an advertised game or app can be played from an expandable banner or interstitial before the user is prompted to download the full version.

Facebook on Thursday confirmed a TechCrunch report that it's pulling chat messages from its primary apps -- a not-so-subtle move to send users to its Facebook Messenger app. The move underscores the silo strategy the company has embarked on when it comes to launching more individual apps rather than adding features to its main app.

Facebook appears to be pushing the messaging function out of its main app and into the Messenger app exclusively. Gee -- Facebook forcing its constituency to behave in ways that may benefit the company before all else? Where have we seen this before?

Assuming Apple makes its entrance into the wearables market this year or after, reports from Chinese-language 'Economic Daily' and Taiwan-based electronics news site DigiTimes raise the question of what impact Apple will have on the emerging landscape. At least in the smartwatch and digital fitness segments, a host of competitors already await.

One takeaway that quickly emerges from a new Forrester report on the best and worst of mobile is that retailers and brick-and-mortar companies are clueless about mobile compared to their digital- or mobile-only counterparts.

Days after Amazon's Fire TV launch, leaked documents show what Google's "Android TV" will include. Search, cross-screen seamless experience and recommendations will be key differentiators. But how does Google distinguish this from Chromecast?

Eye-popping revenue growth and profitability were not enough to save King Digital from bombing in its market opening, with its stock closing below its opening price of $20.50. By contrast, Rovio Entertainment looks smart to have eschewed the public market so far. One might assume the "Angry Birds" creator would have already tried to cash in by now, capitalizing on the global success of its hit franchise and otherwise frothy market for IPOs and tech stocks.

Amazon's Fire TV is formidable competition for an Apple TV that looks more outdated by the second. Apple now has to play catch up on multiple fronts and has no clear advantage in content or customer reach.