| 12 July 2010

ShareBuilder, a subsidiary of ING Direct and part of the Dutch Global Financial Corporation ING (ING), announced it has decided to join the mobile trading world with the launch of its new iPhone and Blackberry trading applications. While we have wondered aloud whether mobile applications were really necessary (to much disagreement, we might add), it's great to see ING finally join the party.

The application itself is smooth and meticulously designed. Both the Blackberry application and the iPhone application offer similar features. Users have the ability to check the markets, the news, quotes, account balances, etc. The applications are also set up to handle your basic trading requests.

But with firms like E*TRADE (ETFC) already rolling cutting-edge applications to the iPad, and optionsXpress (OXPS) supporting more complex trading features (like the Dragon) on their applications, the ShareBuilder is nice, but certainly not cutting edge.

Which is why it strikes us as odd that they choose to position the application as the greatest invention since the lightbulb. Any time you lead off a marketing campaign with, "In the beginning..." you know you're in for it. But it doesn't stop there. Watching Sharebuilder's no-holds-barred 60-second spot dubbed with a witty, slam-bang cribbed version of Carl Orff's "O Fortuna" (you'll know it when you hear it) makes you salivate with anticipation. When they suggest that the ShareBuilder mobile trading app has "taken financial control to a new level" we gasp aloud and wonder -- what a wonderful world we live in! Why, what amazing contraption have they configured for us and where-oh-where can we get it?!

Imagine our disappointment when we learn that we can -- yes! -- check our accounts and -- sweet! -- get real-time quotes. Take that E*TRADE Mobile Pro with your streaming CNBC nonsense. Sharebuilder's application even lets you -- wait for it -- transfer money between accounts! Take that optionsXpress and your fancy-schmancy technical charting functionality!

Seriously, it's a fine app. But someone needs to take the Red Bull away from ING's marketing team. If they don't do it soon someone might find them guilty of over-selling and under-delivering. We're just sayin'.