Today we continue our #FollowFriday segment in which we follow the many excellent companies and individuals that make up the fast-paced mobile marketing and advertising industries.  If you have any suggestions for great companies or feel we’re leaving someone out, hit us up in the comments, tweet us at @mobileMW or shoot us an email at editor[at]mobilemarketingwatch.com.

Today, we turn our focus to individuals within the mobile marketing and advertising industries who represent thought leadership.  These individuals play an important role in the mobile segment through one capacity or another, so if you’re interested in learning more about what makes the mobile marketing industry tick — besides being a dedicated reader of MMW — do yourself a favor and follow the industry insiders and thought leaders we’ve compiled below.  Also, if you’d like us to feature you and/or your company, please add a comment below.  We’ll review the type of resources you publish and consider you in future posts.

Cantor Gaming @cantorgaming	Darren Withers mobileStorm @darrenwithers	Raster Media @rastermedia	Jason Goldberg Retail Geek @retailgeek
Hugh Jedwill Mobile Anthem @mobilebranding	Mack McKelvey Millennial Media @mackmckelvey	Jeffrey Sass Myxer @sass	SMS Industry News @smsindustrynews

mHealth: FDA approves incredibly cost-effective mobile ultrasound

By combining the computing power of Microsoft smartphones with a reasonably small hardware add-on, Seattle-based Mobisante is releasing what is perhaps the cheapest ultrasound system in the world -  and it has just been approved by the FDA.  MobiUS is the name of the product. When you buy it, you get a TG01 Windows Mobile smartphone. It comes with an ultrasound probe attached, and MobiSante’s software on-board. The entire system will cost less than $10k  – in an industry where the average ultrasound unit retails for between $20k and $100k.

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mHealth: custom-designed apps can help market healthcare professionals

Last week, we ran a story about ePractice.eu – the company predicts that hospitals and doctors will become the main distributors for mhealth applications, rather than app stores. Conveniently, this week sees a release from Pixineers – a company that develops custom-built mobile apps for medical professionals.  Pixineers got it’s start developing apps that show before-and-after results for cosmetic surgeons. Examples include Dr.90210 (an app for the Simoni plastic surgery in Beverly Hills) and the Dr. Nassif Rhinoplasty and Cosmetic Surgery app.

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Traditional healthcare channels expected to take over apps distributions

While online application stores still appear to be the top way to obtain and distribute m-health applications for smartphone use, the stores’ dominance could soon be shifting.

Instead, traditional healthcare channels–such as hospitals, physicians, or specialized healthcare product vendors–are expected to become the predominant distribution channels, according to a new global survey, “Mobile Health Market Report 2010-2015–The Impact of Smartphone Applications.”

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Virtualization, EHR-Linked Devices, Mobile to Lead Healthcare IT in 2011

As we move into 2011, the Obama administration’s meaningful-use requirements governing health care IT and EHRs (electronic health records) will continue to influence how health care companies adopt technology to improve patient care.

In 2010, companies began to purchase EHR applications, but in the coming year health care companies will enter an adoption phase for EHR or EMR (electronic medical record) applications, predicts IDC in an upcoming report.  ”While purchasing and selection will continue for many providers, early adopters will begin to struggle with the challenges of implementation and adoption of EMRs in 2011,” wrote IDC analysts Judy Hanover and Lynne A. Dunbrack.

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Home Health Monitoring Was A $10 Billion Market In 2010

The worldwide market for home health monitoring of “welfare diseases” was worth about € 7.6 billion ($10 billion) in 2010, according to Berg Insight.  The conditions most commonly treated via these remote monitoring services include diabetes, cardiac arrhythmia, sleep apnea, asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), the report found.  More than 200 million people in the EU and the US suffer from one or more chronic conditions where remote monitoring would be helpful.

Dell Acquires InSite One, Boosts Offerings For Healthcare Industry

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While Black Friday and Cyber Monday are traditionally the largest shopping days in terms of retail sales, eBay is proving otherwise.  The auction site said today that Sunday was the company’s largest day ever in terms of gross merchandise value (also known as GMV, the total sales dollar value for merchandise sold through eBay) via mobile devices.

eBay’s GMV grew 165% globally to $13M on Sunday alone, with $5M of that just in the US — up 127%.  Surprisingly, eBay’s mobile sales were up 38% over Cyber Monday, with its best performing products being clothing and accessories, followed closely by cars & trucks.

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