Samsung's Phones to Sport WeatherBug Widget

South Korean mobile phone maker Samsung has announced today that it has recently signed an agreement with WeatherBug, the leading provider of live, local weather information and services, for the inclusion of WeatherBug as the weather source for Samsung's new widget platform. The information from WeatherBug will come in the form of a widget that will be included on future mobile phones from the vendor, starting with the Samsung Omnia II, a device expected to become available on Verizon Wireless' airwaves within the next few months.

“We are very pleased to be working with WeatherBug on the development and worldwide launch of our mobile widget platform,” said Kenny Lee, vice president, Media Solutions Center at Samsung Electronics. “Given the popularity of weather information on mobile devices, we see this as a great opportunity to provide our customers with relevant information that can help enhance their daily lives and protect them from severe weather events.”

According to the handset maker, the new WeatherBug widget will offer users the possibility to access current weather information in a simple manner, by tapping an icon on the Home screen of their mobile phone. They will then be directed to WeatherBug ad-supported mobile Web site, where they will find live, local weather information that covers more than 45,000 locations all around the world. What users will receive includes access to detailed views of the seven-day forecast, along with radar and satellite imagery, not to mention camera images delivered directly from WeatherBug's proprietary weather network.

“We are thrilled to provide our live, local weather content to Samsung, a worldwide leader in mobile handsets. This is a great opportunity to bring the benefits of our weather network and unique content to millions of users around the globe,” Chris Brozenick, vice president and general manager of Mobile for WeatherBug, commented on the new agreement with the mobile phone maker.