Yahoo! Announces its First Mobile App Developer Conference

Yahoo! continued its efforts to brand itself as a global leader in software development innovation by announcing its inaugural mobile app development conference. Officially known simply as the Mobile Developer Conference, Yahoo!’s event is scheduled to take place on Thursday, February 19, 2015 in San Francisco, California.

The move follows Yahoo!’s acquisition of Flurry, a mobile analytics company, which was purchased for a reported $200 million price tag. New Yahoo! president and CEO Marissa Mayer, poached from Google’s upper ranks two years ago, had led the company’s efforts to reorganize itself around the mobile vertical.

Specifics about the Mobile Developer Conference are scant at the moment, but sources have confirmed that Flurry’s Simon Khalaf will lead a “State of Mobile” session during the event. High-ranking Yahoo! employees and other guest speakers will deliver lectures, and attendees will be able to participate in a range of workshops and specialized sessions. More details are expected to become available in the weeks leading up to the event. Yahoo! has confirmed that it will post further information on the conference’s official Tumblr page as it becomes available.

Mobile app developers around the world should be taking notice of Yahoo!’s recent reemergence as a major player in the tech industry. After years of decline, it appears that Yahoo!’s efforts to invest its significant resources into a rebranding effort are starting to pay off. Numerous key indicators show that the company’s adoption of an aggressive mobile strategy are gaining traction.

Some industry analysts are predicting that the Mobile Developer Conference could be a watershed moment for San Francisco app development. Yahoo!’s mobile marketing share is already edging upward, and could be poised to surpass Twitter by the end of 2015 if current growth rates continue. Particularly optimistic outlooks suggest that Yahoo! could even pose a threat to Google and Facebook by the end of the decade.