More details regarding the price-plan Apple intends to use upon the launch of its iAd platform came out today in a Wall Street Journal article, indicating the company will charge upwards of a $1 million for certain ad-buys.

To be among a select group of advertisers at launch, however, could cost $10 million or more, the article suggests.  Ad executives say they’re used to paying between $100,000 and $200,000 for similar mobile deals, but Apple is certainly putting a premium price on it’s so-called premium mobile advertising opportunities.

Apple is planning to charge advertisers a penny each time a consumer sees a banner ad, ad executives say.  When a user taps on the banner and the ad pops up, Apple will charge $2.  Under large ad buys, such as the $1 million package, costs would rack up to reach the $1 million mark with the various views and taps combined.

Read on at http://www.mobilemarketingwatch.com/apple-to-charge-a-premium-for-premium-mobile-advertising-6270/

Nokia releases iPod challenger N8

Nokia today revealed its latest iPhone challenger, the exciting Nokia N8 smartphone.

The multimedia focused Symbian smartphone features a 12-megapixel camera and HD video recording, obviously far superior on paper to anything an iPhone can offer. Beyond the hardware, though, the N8 is the first phone to feature the latest iteration of the Symbian OS.

One of the most exciting aspects of the phone is its HD camera, which offers Dolby Digital Surround Sound through plugging the handset into their home theatre system. The handset also enables access to local and global Web TV services that deliver programs, news and entertainment from channels like CNN, E! Entertainment, Paramount and National Geographic.

Social networking seems also to be one of the key focus points of the Nokia N8. Users can update their status, share location and photos and view live feeds from Facebook and Twitter in a single app directly on the home screen. The Nokia N8 also offers multiple personalisable homescreens which can be loaded with apps and widgets.

The Nokia N8 comes with free global Ovi Maps walk and drive navigation, guiding people to places and points of interest in around 70 countries.

Not much is known about Symbian’s new operating system, Symbian ^3, According to Nokia’s press release, Symbian ^3 introduces “several major advances” including support for gestures such as multi touch, flick scrolling and pinch-zoom. The new 2D and 3D graphics architecture in the platform “takes full advantage of the Nokia N8’s hardware acceleration to deliver a faster and more responsive user interface.”

Fans of Linkin Park who own an iPhone, iPod touch or iPad now have a new way to appreciate their favorite band.

Available today, Linkin Park 8-Bit Rebellion! ($4.99) is an old-school side-scroller featuring original and 8-bit remixes of Linkin Park’s biggest hits — including In The End, New Divide, One Step Closer, No More Sorrow, Crawling andHands Held High, to name a few — and an unlockable new song, Blackbirds, after the game is completed. (listen to a clip of the track in the game’s trailer here.

According to game developer Artificial Life, Inc., this is the first time an artist has released a new song through a mobile game app. In Linkin Park 8-Bit Rebellion!, players take on the personas of all Linkin Park band members — vocalists Mike Shinoda and Chester Bennington, drummer Rob Bourdon, guitarist Brad Delson, DJ Joe Hahn and bassist Dave “Phoenix” Farrell — as they fight to protect their idyllic 8-bit world against the evil PixxelKorp, whose malevolent agents have stolen the band’s music.

While combating enemies (and bosses) in each of the six unique districts, themed after a different band member, you’ll also find and collect all the stolen tracks.

The band was also “instrumental” in providing hand-drawn artwork in the game, character designs and fleshing out mission objectives. “The collaborative process with Artificial Life was exceptional,” says Linkin Park vocalist Mike Shinoda, in a company statement. “My bandmates and I grew up playing games like Metroid, Donkey Kong, Zelda, Space Invaders, Mega Man and Rygar. We wanted this game to have the feel of a vintage game, and a big part of it was the music.”

On the unlockable track, Shinoda says “we really liked the song and thought this would be a unique way to give it to our fans.”

Linkin Park 8-Bit Rebellion! is both an online and offline game. If players have a wireless Internet connection, they could pair up with other players to exchange in-game gifts, chat via IM, post messages to boards and battle for top spot on the global leaderboard. Gamers can also create and customize avatars, with hundreds of combinations, and also decorate the character’s virtual apartment from scratch.

Sold separately, the iPad version ($4.99) features high-resolution graphics and a tweaked user-interface to take advantage of the larger screen size.

Readers, would you pick up a game like this? Should more artists embrace the iPhone and iPad as a platform to connect with fans?