Nokia Developer Manager Narenda Wicaksono let slip on his tweet showing off the new Lumia 820 and 920 that Windows Phone now has the much expected Blue Bird Group mobile app. Blue Bird Group is Indonesia’s premier taxi company and currently it is the only one that has its own reservation app for smartphone users. Its apps for iPhone, Android, and BlackBerry were launched a while ago to great success, shifting taxi orders from the overloaded phone booking system to a much more efficient and trackable app environment.
Ini tahun 2012 dan elo masih pakai yang B/W? #DevSwitchToLumia twitter.com/narenda/status…
— narenda (@narenda) December 3, 2012
For a long time, Windows Phone users had been left out of the taxi reservation club, but as it happens, not anymore. The app is here and ready. Nokia will launch the Lumia 820 and 920 in Indonesia later today at a media event in Senayan City in Jakarta and presumably will highlight the Blue Bird taxi app alongside several other key apps for Windows Phone as well as local apps made for Windows Phone 8.
At the moment there’s no details as to the app’s capabilities on Windows Phone but one would expect it to have feature parity with the existing versions on other platforms which include advance reservation up to three days ahead, multiple reservations, vehicle tracking, ability to call driver directly, notification on acceptance of order, and so on. Wicaksono hinted privately that it may have additional capabilities but is unwilling to disclose until the formal announcement later today.
Developer focus has been a great source of pride for Nokia, even more so in Indonesia where Nokia’s developer events have always managed to over subscribe, gaining far more interest and sign ups than any of the venues could hold.
While developers overseas have a strong focus on iOS and Android, it seems that Wicaksono’s strategy of going underground, seeking out potential developers in universities and independent developer communities, is working very effectively.
Additionally, Nokia’s international operations also have a strong focus on software development which has given consumers exclusive apps such as City Lens, Cinemagraph creator, Camera Extras, Creative Studios, Nokia Drive, and more. All as part of an effort in providing a compelling argument to drive more adoption of the Lumia range not only ahead of competing Windows Phone brands but mainly to provide assurance that switching to Nokia’s Windows Phone from any platform would be a great experience for consumers regardless.
As Lumia phones have made up about a third of Windows Phone sales over the past year, and according to Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer that Windows Phone sales have quadrupled over same time last year, Nokia’s efforts seem to be paying off somewhat, even though total sales of the company’s phones are still down at the bottom of the Mariana trench.
Fortunately for Nokia, the launch of the new Lumia series phones running Windows Phone 8 seems to be having the desired effect as it sold out it initial batch in many markets around the world including the all important United States. For its sake though, let’s hope it’s not because the company shipped fewer units than it should. Although, if you’re looking for the other side of the story on Nokia’s falling fortunes and market share, Tomi Ahonen never fails to deliver.
[Update] The Blue Bird taxi app isn’t currently available on Windows Phone Store even if your region is set to Indonesia and there’s no word on whether the app will work on Windows Phone 7.5. It wouldn’t be a surprise to have the app exclusive to Windows Phone 8 but considering that Nokia is still selling Windows Phone 7.5 devices and will do so at least for the next year as Windows Phone 7.8 gets released in early 2013, it would be a shame if the app doesn’t work on version 7.