Business News Holding

Tag: mobile

  • Dialling INTO Your Smartphone To Get Easier


    Hundreds of millions of people have used Virtual Network Computing’s (VNC) remote access applications on their PCs.

    The Cambridge, UK-based company is now counting on the same success with its mobile version of allowing remote control both to and from smartphones.

    Speaking to smartphone.biz-news.com at the Smartphone Show in London, Andy Harter, CEO of VNC, said he expected the mobile edition to appeal to both IT departments and to consumers.

    With increasing numbers of employees now equipped with high-end handsets, he said the mobile viewer could be used for solving technical difficulties for staff in the field.

    The viewer could also give staff access to their office desktop machines if they needed to locate data not available on their handsets.

    Supporting all the major mobile platforms, including Symbian, Windows Mobile, Blackberry, iPhone and Mobile Linux, VNC Mobile provides cross-platform compatibility.

    Available in early 2009, no cost is yet available but Harter said the viewer would be priced sensibly.

    He said the applications could also be available on feature phones at some time in the near future.

  • Passengers Oppose Mobile Calls During Flights


    Seventy-five per cent of travellers would never use a mobile phone during a flight, according to a survey by Wanderlust Magazine.

    High in-flight charges and the irritation of having fellow passengers make irritatingly “pointless” calls in a confined space were among the main reasons for not allowing mobiles to be used.

    The poll comes as Ryanair announces that passengers will shortly be able to make mobile calls during flights.

    In March, Emirates became the first commercial airline to allow mobile calls during flights. The airline says the average call costs more than USD $3.50 a minute.

    The poll of over 1000 of the magazine’s readers, showed that three-quarters of respondents (76%) said that they would never use a mobile phone in the air.

    Only 2% of those questioned said that they would happily use their phone on a plane regularly and 17% said they might be tempted, but only if they were delayed.

    Dan Linstead, editor of Wanderlust said: “The message from our readers, who are all seasoned travellers, is loud and clear.
    “Planes are one of the last sacred mobile-free havens and they want it to stay that way – let’s hope the airlines start listening.”

  • Nokia dominates global smartphone ad traffic

    Nokia may lead the world in smartphone mobile ad traffic rankings but iPhone fastest growing device

    Smartphones accounted for 25.8 per cent of worldwide mobile ad traffic in August, up 3.4 per cent since May 2008, according to AdMob’s August 2008 Mobile Metrics Report.

    Nokia dominates globally, with a 62.4 per cent slice of the traffic in August and more than 50 per cent in every region except North America. In the US, where Nokia does not have a top 20 ranked smartphone, RIM rules the roost.

    The Canadian company has 31.2 per cent of US smartphone traffic and manufactures three of the top 10 devices.

    According to the report, the Apple iPhone was the fastest growing device in the world last month and ended August with more than 2.9 million ad requests per day.

    AdMob stores and analyzes data from every ad request, impression and click and uses this information to optimize ad matching.
    In the latest report, AdMob has highlighted the rapid and global growth of smartphone usage.

    The anticipated launch of new smartphones in the coming months, including the first of Google’s Android phones, the RIM Bold, and the Nokia N96, is a strong indication that this growth is likely to continue throughout the year.

    According to the report, the iPhone ended August with more than 2.9 million requests per day.

    The top five smartphones in the US – the BlackBerry Pearl, Palm Centro, BlackBerry Curve, Apple iPhone, and Samsung Instinct – generated 12.9 per cent of all US traffic in August, a 2.4 per cent increase over July.

    Other highlights from the August 2008 report:

    * RIM is in second place worldwide with 10.8 per cent of smartphone traffic with the large majority of that coming from North America.

    * Motorola and SonyEriccson have a large share of overall mobile traffic, but neither has a smartphone ranked in the top 20 worldwide.

    * Smartphones continue to increase marketshare in the US, accounting for 23.7 per cent of traffic in August, up 3.5 percent since May 2008.

  • Microsoft Follows Apple and Google With App Store Plan


    Microsoft is to create an online software store for its Windows Mobile platform.

    The move follows similar endeavours, first by Apple with its already launched iPhone App Store and then more recently with Google’s plans to set up an App Market for its Android smartphone platform.

    Microsoft’s version of an online store for mobile software – understood to be called Skymarket – was revealed in a job listing Microsoft posted at computerjobs.com for a Senior Product Manager to oversee a marketplace service for Windows Mobile.

    The platform is a software operating system used on smartphones, version 6.1 of which was launched earlier this year.

    With an updated browser it is meant to make the experience of surfing the web on a smartphone more like that of a desktop.

    Launch planned for 2009

    Skymarket will not be commercially launched until the release of Windows Mobile 7, expected in late 2009.

    However, Microsoft is hoping to recruit someone who can handle “driving the cross group collaboration for the initial launch of the marketplace offering to the developer community this fall”.

  • AT&T extends Navigator GPS coverage

    Navigator coverage now almost on a par with many standalone GPS units

    AT&T Navigator is now available in 20 countries after the service was extended to offer international coverage.

    It means that Navigator, which can be used on any AT&T smartphone with a built-in GPS chip, now operates in many countries in western Europe, North American, the US Caribbean, and six Chinese cities – Beijing, Shanghai, Qingdao, Shenyang, Tianjin and Qinhuangdao.

    Jeff Bradley, senior vice president, mobility marketing and operations for AT&T’s wireless operation, said the operator now gave customers the ability to use their mobile phones in more countries than any other US carrier.

    “They now can use our robust GPS-based navigation offering whether at home or abroad to easily get from point A to point B or to find and get directed to a local business or service,” he said.

    The AT&T Navigator Global Edition comes with voice turn-by-turn directions, or text turn-by-turn directions. Both of these come in different language settings including English, German, Italian, or Spanish.

    The service provides a level of coverage which almost on a par with many standalone GPS units.
    The Navigator Global Edition sports a business finder that searches business matches in the US and overseas countries from among more than19 million business and service database.

    Handsets capable of this service, which costs US$19.98, include AT&T Tilt, BlackBerry 8800, BlackBerry 8820, BlackBerry Curve 8310, BlackBerry Pearl 8110, BlackJack II and MOTO Q9h.

  • Ad targetting to US teens expected to boom

    Smartphone ownership among American teens will mushroom beyond current 20 per cent – presenting massive opportunities for ad targetting

    Research shows that American teenagers have at their disposal an estimated US$200 billion annually in discretionary spending.
    The marketing agency Fuse recently interviewed execs from companies like Sony, MTV Networks, Yahoo and Nokia to get their take on what the future of technology will look like for the teen market.

    Among the conclusions was that the mobile phone in the US will supplant the PC in terms of popularity for teenagers.
    While currently only 20 per cent of US youngsters own a smartphone, both mobile and content companies are certain this rate will rise dramatically.

    Bill Carter, a partner at Fuse, presenting his findings at this year’s YPulse Mashup convention in San Fransisco, said smartphones like the iPhone are just the beginning for multi-functional devices.
    “Uses of mobile devices will expand to include all kinds of bar code applications and prepaid debit card payment methods,” he said.

    This prediction is a large part of the reason why geographic ad targeting to teens is expected to increase dramatically in coming years.

    Currently, providers analyse about 4 billion Protocol addresses to provide what is called street-level targeting to consumers.

    Companies can then reach teens directly via their phone with ads and info on nearby places to go like nightspots.

    “When you combine this new technology with teens giving their permission to market to them, the growth could be exponential,” said Carter.

    He predicts that teens will end up buying subscription based music services, a lot like the cable TV model.

    Carter also feels that other tech platforms will actually save not kill TV networks.
    The analog-to-digital conversion will allow teens to watch live TV on their smartphones.
    This will then in turn help the TV networks to target their programming to specific audiences, which will maintain the cost of advertising.
    What it boils down to is “the device is inconsequential compared to the content,” he said.

  • iPhone users "unique" in their mobile behaviour

    Study shows that US iPhone users are five times more likely to access mobile internet than average mobile consumer

    The Apple 3G iPhone will change the mobile behaviour of users and alter consumer expectations for phone capabilities.
    That’s according to a report by analysts Nielsen Mobile which looks at the worldwide state of the mobile web.

    The study says that its growth is due to a combination of increasing numbers of user friendly handsets, higher speed networks and unlimited data packages.
    It then goes on to describe the mobile web as having reached a “critical mass” of users this year.

    But it singles out the iPhone – despite being the second most popular device among mobile users in the US after Motorola’s RAZR – for special mention.

    The report says the device’s impact is amplified by the increased awareness its marketing campaign and buzz has driven.
    “As a result, demand for advanced data services and more robust mobile media-focused handsets has increased.

    “iPhone users, a small but growing segment of the overall mobile audience, are unique in their mobile behaviour.
    “For instance, 82 per cent of iPhone users access the mobile Internet, making them five times as likely to do so as the average mobile consumer.”

    The report goes on to say that, so far, the iPhone population had self-selected through price point as early adopters, describing them as “über media consumers”.
    But it adds that as the price point lowers for this device and penetration increases to include more average consumers, the high data usage of iPhone users may be diluted.

    “At the same time, we expect that the powerful user interface and increasing network speeds will continue to change the behaviours of many iPhone purchasers.
    “Fundamentally, the iPhone, and competitive devices, will also affect consumer expectations for phone capabilities.”

  • Smartphones and low-cost mobile phones set to see most significant growth at expense of mid-tier handsets


    The top and bottom ends of the wireless handset markets are to enjoy the best growth rates over the next five years, according to researchers.
    This will be at the expense of mid-range models, commonly called “enhanced” phones. The enhanced phone sector is currently the largest in terms of shipments, with 854 million units shipped in 2007.
    But it will be overtaken by both other classes in 2013, with just 441 million shipping.
    Kevin Burden, a director of ABI Research and author of the report “Mobile devices annual market overview”, said: “As we see more user sophistication and demand for high-end features, handset manufacturers will continue to push functions of high-level smartphone operating systems further down their product lines.
    “Their smartphone portfolios will grow, and with them, the entire smartphone market.”
    The report said this was seen as desireable by operators as well, who wanted more smartphone users because of the higher average revenue per user (ARPU) they generated.
    It added that the operators also like phones with standard operating systems that are optimised for their content delivery platforms.
    At the other end of the market, demand will be driven by the huge emerging markets in countries such as China, India, and Brazil.
    Here, the ABI report said the low-cost and ultra-low-cost handset categories were set to become the largest classes of mobile phones by 2013 in terms of shipments, though not in terms of revenue.
    “While the unit shipments of ultra-low-cost handsets will be dramatic over the forecast period, the device class is only expected to account for 6 per cent of the market’s overall revenue,” said Burden.
    “But vendors will continue to pursue these markets for the sake of brand-building and the prospect of eventual upward migration by users.”
    Since no single mobile device will serve the needs of everyone, a number of other form factors will compete for users’ mobile computing cycles.
    In particular, MIDs (Mobile Internet Devices) and UMPCs (Ultra-mobile PCs) show promise for wider consumer acceptance.
    According to the ABI report, prices will be moderate (eventually under US$200 for many MIDs) and the devices wiill deliver a superior mobile Internet experience.

  • Mobile software set for rapid growth as inexpensive smartphones ring changes


    The mobile software market will be worth an estimated US$ 67.3 billion in 2013 – up from US$ 17.9 in 2007 – as the number of mobile devices grows and minutes of use increases steadily.
    This revenue growth will be fuelled by mobile carriers’ willingness to carry data apart from voice and the introduction of third-generation (3G) smartphones.
    That’s the conclusion of analysts at Frost & Sullivan in their report “World Next-Generation Mobile Software Market”.
    They say that with the expansion of memory, an increase in processor speed and the availability of better networks that allow for faster data transfer, mobile software is in for exponential growth.
    Daniel Longfield, research analyst at Frost & Sullivan, said there was a mass move towards mobile devices as people used them for tasks that a few years ago were performed on a desktop computer, a laptop, a MP3 player, an electronic gaming platform, or a digital camera.
    He said mobile software was key to placing mobile devices at the forefront of consumer habits by incorporating the applications and capabilities of other electronic devices into mobile devices.
    This, in turn, will benefit all members of the mobile value chain.
    “Over the next decade, the cycle of software development, where many mobile software products and applications were developed originally for other types of devices, will reverse,” said Longfield.
    “This reversal is likely because the number of mobile devices manufactured is expected to continue to outpace all other types of personal electronics and also due to smartphones possessing more processing speed and memory.”
    The report predicts that the mobile software market will grow at a faster rate than the total software market, thereby increasing its segment size.
    But it warns that as mobile carriers are extremely cautious about spending, mobile software vendors will have to prove the value proposition and return on investment of their products before clinching deals.
    Going forward, the mobile software market expects to witness greater standardisation, technological advances, and competitive changes. All these will further increase the mobile software market size.
    “Mobile software vendors are poised to receive large revenue increases from carriers and other mobile market value chain members,” said Longfield.
    “However, these spoils will not come without great effort to patch endless gaps in the current carrier service infrastructure and business models.”

  • T-Mobile Appoints New Chief Marketing Officer

    Denny Marie Post, the senior VP-global food and beverage at Starbucks is to move to T-Mobile as the mobile operator’s chief marketing officer (CMO).
    On making the announcement, Robert Dotson, president-CEO of T-Mobile USA, said in a statement: “Denny has deep and varied experience as a marketing leader in some of the most competitive retail environments in America.
    “We’re delighted she brings her extensive talents to T-Mobile to further drive our mission of enriching personal relationships.”
    According to tracking data from TNS Media Intelligence, T-Mobile spent US$607 million in advertising last year.
    Prior to working at Starbucks, Ms. Post has served as the Chief Concept Officer at fast-food chain, Burger King since April 2004.
    From 1995 to March 2004, Ms. Post served in various positions for Yum! Brands, including Chief Innovation Officer at KFC, Chief Marketing Officer for KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut in Canada and VP Concept Innovation for KFC.
    The previous CMO, Michael Butler left at the beginning of the year for HomeAway, which operates the a network of vacation rental websites. Robert Dotson has been acting CMO since then.
    Earlier T-Mobile revealed its plans for the iPhone 3G in Europe with the announcement that Apple’s new handset will go on sale in Germany from as low as EUR1.
    The company said the 8 gigabyte version will be priced from EUR1 to EUR169.95, depending on the customer’s rate plan.
    The 16 gigabyte version will be priced from EUR19.95 to EUR249.95.
    T-Mobile will sell Apple’s device exclusively and customers are required to sign a two-year contract when buying the iPhone.
    The 3G iPhone will go on sale in Germany from July 11. T-Mobile will also start selling the new handset in Austria and the Netherlands the same day.
    The company will sell the phones in Croatia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia later this year.