Earlier this year, when Pandora began capping mobile content consumption, founder Tim Westergren admitted it was "a very unusual thing to do." Months later, the personalized radio service is still struggling to explain the move. "We're really clear about it," John Trimble, Pandora's Chief Revenue Officer, told OMMA Mobile attendees on Wednesday. Officially, however, Pandora still bills itself as "free, personalized radio" -- and that's how Trimble described the service on Wednesday. Well, "We've been clear that we need to be profitable," Trimble clarified. (Westergren has said publically that the cap was necessary because per-track royalties have increased over 25% …

Apple reportedly plans to give third-party social networks -- including Flickr and Vimeo -- a bigger presence on the next version of its iOS mobile operating system. That said, "Since the new software is yet to be even officially announced, there is a very real possibility that any feature in testing could be removed prior to the announcement," 9to5Mac reports. "Last year, Apple added Facebook integration to iOS, and in 2011, the company struck a deal to integrate Twitter."

Asked about whether Pandora would ever consider skippable ads, John Trimble, the company's chief revenue officer, speaking at the OMMA Mobile at Internet Week event, said not just yet.  "We continue to look at it," he said. "We just scratching the surface. I feel we are in second gear trying to evangelize how to interact with mobile. That feels more like fourth or fifth gear."   Trimble said Pandora  sponsors have wanted to buy the "thumbs up", "thumbs down" activity consumers use on the music platform, whether that could be adapted for their …

In an on-stage interview at OMMA Mobile, John Trimble, chief revenue officer at Pandora, said the company believes building its service into cars is a big part of its future. “If think of listening to music, 50% of all radio listening happens in the car,” he said. “So that’s what you go at. That’s what makes the business.” He noted Pandora has been working with all the auto manufacturers for the last five or six years to integrate the online radio experience into vehicles.

Despite the obvious opportunities, don't expect Pandora to unveil an ad network -- or any sort of programmatic ad buying play -- anytime soon... or at least not today. "There's no need for us to be a market mover at this point," John Trimble, Pandora's Chief Revenue Officer, told OMMA Mobile attendees on Wednesday. Pressed by Joe Mandese, editor-in-chief of MediaPost, Trimble demurred. "We're not going to give you much news, today." Regarding programmatic ad buying, Trimble did acknowledge: "There are a lot of valuable opportunities ... We're spending an awful lot of time thinking about it."

When it comes to the value of branded apps, Mondelez’s Ed Kaczmarek said an app isn’t always necessarily the answer. Discussing Kraft’s iFood Assistant app--one of the first prominent branded utility apps to come out in 2008—he said the key was focus on utility not the brand. “When you build something for customers, and you’re not just trying to flash the brand in their face all time, it has a magic about it,” he noted. Branding can be woven in, in a more subtle way.

Mondelez International made a splash last year when the company behind brands like Oreo, Cadbury and Nabisco announced it planned to spend 10% of its annual marketing budget on mobile. How does it plan to spend that money? Sitting on an OMMA Mobile panel on mobile brand strategy, Ed Kaczmarek, Director of Innovation and Emerging Technology, Mondelz, said mobile video will play a big role in the company’s plans, without offering further detail. He noted Mondelez is working with its agencies MediaVest and Aegis Media to plan …

Over the next year, Mondelz International -- the American multinational cookie and candy conglomerate (Oreo, Chips Ahoy!, etc.) -- is committed to spending 10% of its global marketing budget on mobile. "I like to think that we're very bullish [on mobile]," Kaczmarek told OMMA Mobile attendees on Wednesday morning. But, 10%?! How is that even possible, asked Anna Bager, VP and General Manager of the IAB's Mobile Marketing Center of Excellence. "Mobile video is playing a big role," Kaczmarek said, though he admitted that the channel presents many challenges of its own. (10% of what? Well, according to Kantar Media, …

Among lessons Anheuser-Busch has learned, Chibe stressed that companies should be fan-centric, not brand centric. Since no one gives more than a fleeting thought to your brand, you have to win their attention every day, every minute. That understanding should be built into an mobile initiatives as well. “If just becomes about the brand its going to be really tough to drive engagement.” Among other tips, he said brands in mobile should experiment early and often, drive constant creative iteration in campaigns, win over mobile-centric Latino users and advertise on platforms with scale. As an example of the last …

No matter what your CMO thinks, apps are not the be-all end-all of mobile marketing strategies. So Paul Chibe, VP of US Marketing and U.S. Chief marketing Officer at Anheuser Busch, just told attendees of OMMA Mobile. Regarding one recent app, Chibe said that, while successful, it could have gotten far more consumer traction if they'd made it available online. "Don't app if you don't have to," Chibe implored. "If it's something you can do online, do it that way." In another case, Anheuser Busch released an app that, as it turned out, wasn't compatible with Apple's iOS operating system. …