The heartening piece of news from last week?s Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain was that the wireless carriers finally got it: too many cooks in the kitchen. Hence the Wholesale Applications Community.

Cynics will carp that the carriers now want a piece of the applications pie, thus the sudden bonhomie across the oceans. Whatever.

If the various players within the mobile industry don?t quickly develop standards across hardware, software and best practice, marketers and advertisers will sooner or later shift their attention to other marketing channels with less complications and contentions.

As things stand today, phone manufacturers are busy suing each and so-called patent holders are taking both manufacturers and platform developers to court for alleged copyright infringement and what not. What a waste of time.

These companies should be battling each other in the marketplace, not in courts ? or else suffer the indignity of being overtaken by nimbler, less-legacy-encumbered outsiders such as Google.

Choice words
Time and time again, brands look at mobile marketing and see a thousand screens, a multiplicity of platforms and a paucity of metrics. They see the Promised Land, but fear the long trek through the desert.

Events such as GSM Association?s Mobile World Congress ? 49,000 delegates this year, way down from previous years ? have a golden opportunity to force the key mobile players to set their differences aside and sing from the same songsheet. What happened last week with the Wholesale Applications Community is a step in the right direction.

What marketers need to see is the portability and use of applications across platforms and carriers, just as is possible with most software for computers and laptops. Allowing applications to port to disparate mobile phones and platforms is a good first step.

The 24 carriers who are signatories to the new applications alliance, along with the handful of cooperating manufacturers, are taking a historic step toward the standardization of mobile marketing, media and commerce.

There is no doubt that most functions currently conducted on wired computers and the wired Web will eventually migrate to smartphones and mobile devices. But for a more reliable mobile ecosystem to sustain, rivals have to band together to at least ensure that the ball is kicked around in the same field.

Sizing up mobile
Another key step should be standardized screen sizes.

Most smartphones should have a maximum four screen sizes: the full-screen that is characteristic of the Apple iPhone and Google Nexus One, the half-screen as seen on BlackBerry and Palm devices with a hard keypad, the horizontal screens seen on several Samsung devices and the small window seen on basic flip phones or candy bars such as the popular Nokia models overseas.

That would be in an ideal world. But it would help tremendously so that developers, advertisers, publishers and retailers can optimize their Web sites and applications for those screen sizes.

And yes, it is entirely possible for some standardization in screen sizes. After all, the mobile industry ? through the Mobile Marketing Association ? has already standardized banner ad units, just as the Interactive Advertising Bureau has done in the wired Web world.

A third area that calls for standardization is operating systems. This will be harder to ensure. Yet it is absolutely key to the success of mobile marketing and content. Perhaps the market will settle the question once and for all in the next two or three years ? iPhone, Google Android, Windows Mobile, BlackBerry, Opera, BREW, Linux or Symbian.

It may just happen that the market will end up with three solid operating systems and maybe three mobile browsers. Again, that will help marketers work toward creating advertising and content that can travel across different systems and yet retain their character.

Marketers seek simplicity over options, while consumers seek simplicity through options. It is the mobile world?s task to reconcile the two and make sure that too many cooks don?t spoil this broth.

Messrs. Clayton, Litvack and Schwartz win IAB honors
The Interactive Advertising Bureau at its third annual leadership meeting yesterday in Carlsbad, CA, singled out three mobile executives for their industry leadership.

Of the 12 executives bestowed with the IAB 2009 Service Excellence Awards, The Weather Channel?s Cameron Clayton, The Associated Press? Jeff Litvack and Impact Mobile?s Gary Schwartz made the mobile industry proud. Congratulations to them for winning this gong.

Mr. Clayton is vice president of mobile and international at The Weather Channel. Mr. Litvack is general manager of mobile and emerging products at the AP. And Mr. Schwartz is CEO of Impact Mobile.

These three executives have long traveled the lecture circuit and made numerous trips to corporate offices to evangelize the value of mobile marketing, media and commerce. It is to the credit of their employers that they were encouraged in this endeavor.

Heavy hitters
If mobile marketing is where it is today, it is primarily due to the sweat equity of executives such as Mr. Clayton, Mr. Litvack and Mr. Schwartz ? and many others who feature regularly in this publication.

Mr. Clayton and Mr. Litvack were honored for their contribution to the IAB Media Buyers? Guide released last year. Mr. Schwartz was also honored for the same reason, as well as for his dedication as co-chair of the IAB mobile committee since its founding three years ago.

?It?s really a straightforward thing: We?re a trade association that depends on our members to do virtually all the heavy lifting,? said Randy Rothenberg, CEO of the IAB, New York.

The IAB?s 460 members are responsible for selling 86 percent of all online advertising nationwide. So, recognition from this body is also indication of the growing ties between the wired and mobile Web world.

?The integration of brand advertising and consumers via mobile marketing campaigns and devices is here,? Mr. Rothenberg said. ?It?s growing, the potential is showing itself everyday and that?s why everyone in media and marketing should be very excited about the future.?

What?s in the chit ?
The IAB service honor certainly excited Mr. Schwartz. In his words:

?This is a rallying cry for mobile.

?A few years back the IAB mobile folk were one table in a sea of online. Now the committee is 180-strong.

?Member companies such as Google, AdMob and Quattro have underscored the potential of the phone as an advertising channel.

?When I first stepped into the IAB office in New York, we launched mobile as another siloed vertical like gaming, affiliate marketing or search.

?For [IAB director of research] Joe Laszlo and others that work so hard with the team, mobile has now become a horizontal committee working across the IAB.

?In additional to publishing guides, case studies and holding leadership events, we are working on measurement standards and discussing Universal Ad Packages ? UAP or UMAP ? for mobile.

?The IAB is key to driving mobile dollars into the digital budget because the IAB was the organization that standardized and ramped revenue online.

?It can and is accelerating mobile seamlessly as an extension of all the work it has done online.?