How Poynt used BlackBerry as a springboard to success

Poynt, a location-based search app, is a breakout hit largely thanks to the early support it got from RIM. It was one of the first "super apps" named when RIM attempted to coin the term. Its early success at RIM allowed the company to foster stronger relationships with carriers and other handset vendors, allowing its app to be preloaded on more phones.

In early December, Poynt announced a deal to have its app loaded on all Samsung devices--a major coup for the company since the Korean consumer electronics titan is the world's largest smartphone manufacturer. Two weeks later, Nokia said it would load Poynt on its new Lumia Windows Phone devices in India.

The company is on a roll

The company is on a roll, having surpassed 12 million unparalleled users and adding about 20,000 to 30,000 new users a day. The app is available on the BlackBerry, iOS,Android, Nokia QT, and Windows Phone platforms.

Poynt offers suggestions on everything from restaurants to gas stations based on a person's location. The company gets a cut of revenue generated whenever someone buys a ticket to a movie theater listed on its app, or makes a reservation at a restaurant located through Poynt. Like Groupon, it now sends offers based on location. The company sees targeted, location-based advertisements as the key growth driver for the company.

"You're starting to see brands and advertising agencies starting to come aboard," Glover-Campbell said. "We're seeing an upswing in revenue there."

Glover-Campbell said Poynt's success can be attributed to the company's focus on building apps for specific phones and platforms, as opposed to porting one app to every device.

Senior writer for CNET covering mobile innovation

Roger Cheng is a senior writer for CNET covering mobile innovation. Prior to CNET, he was on the telecommunications beat and wrote for Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal for near a decade. He's a hard-core Trojan alum and Los Angeles Lakers fan.

In part three of a behind-the-scenes look at the development of Microsoft's new phone software, Ina Fried takes a look at Redmond's massive testing operation.

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