Couchbase Releases “JSON Anywhere” Strategy Marked By First NoSQL Database For Mobile Devices

NoSQL document-oriented database vendor Couchbase announced a suite of NoSQL offerings dedicated specifically for mobile application development on Friday. Couchbase’s NoSQL offerings feature three products, namely, Couchbase Lite, Couchbase Sync Gateway and Couchbase Cloud. Couchbase Lite marks the highlight of the company’s mobile strategy insofar as it offers developers a JSON based NoSQL platform for mobile devices featuring compatibility with iOS, Android and REST/HTML5 platforms. Couchbase Sync provides an infrastructure that enables developers to synchronize data with the cloud while Couchbase Cloud provides a service which gives developers instant access to the Couchbase server platform.

Couchbase Lite represents the breakthrough innovation given that it marks the “first native NoSQL database for mobile devices” targeted at highly interactive, dynamic software applications. By using a NoSQL database for mobile development, developers can free themselves from the constraints of relational databases and more easily integrate and utilize data stored by applications residing on their mobile device. For example, a NoSQL-based data store may allow mobile developers to more effectively associate and enrich data from a user’s mapping, retail, gaming and social media applications. Couchbase Lite also simplifies mobile syncing by enabling developers to sync applications by using a few lines of code and thereby focus their efforts on core application development.

Couchbase’s three pronged mobile strategy is illustrated by the graphic below:

Couchbase’s JSON Anywhere strategy represents a bold move to capture market share in the increasingly hot mobile development space from competitors such as MongoDB and DataStax. The JSON Anywhere announcement was released in conjunction with news of its partnerships with mobile development platforms Appcelerator, Apperian, Adobe PhoneGap, Sencha and Xamarin. Xamarin CEO Nat Friedman remarked on the significance of the partnership with Couchbase as follows:

Xamarin is the new standard for native mobile app development. Over 400,000 developers use Xamarin to build fully native iOS and Android apps in C#, sharing on average 75% source code across device platforms. The Xamarin Component Store makes it easy to add high-quality, pre-built components to apps directly from the IDE, including dozens of beautiful UI controls, cloud services, and more. We see the integration between Couchbase and Xamarin providing a critical component that enterprises need today for next generation applications that require easy-sync.

Friedman highlights the potential for Couchbase’s mobile NoSQL platform to propel the development of a new wave of highly responsive apps where data synchronization is either required or highly desirable. As such, Couchbase’s native NoSQL platform for mobile devices promises to disrupt mobile development, particularly given that the platform is complemented by a data synchronization and cloud infrastructure designed specifically with the needs of mobile developers in mind. The JSON Anywhere announcement was released in conjunction with news of the release of Couchbase 2.2, and comes head on the heels of the company’s recent finalization of $25M in Series D funding and disclosure of 400% year over year growth. Expect Couchbase to continue consolidating its recent traction in the NoSQL space, particularly within the mobile vertical. We should correspondingly expect the NoSQL world to respond to JSON Anywhere with competing platforms tailored for mobile.