Business News Holding

Tag: wi-fi

  • Vonage Goes Mobile: Wi-Fi and Cellular Networks Low Rates Calls Available

    Vonage has launched Vonage Mobile, its first mobile calling application for smartphones. This free downloadable application provides seamless, low-cost international calling while on Wi-Fi or cellular networks.

    It’s available for download on the iPhone, BlackBerry and iPod touch.

    The app works with the existing mobile plans, what lets you keep your number, mobile device, existing contacts and mobile service provider.

    Vonage Mobile does not require any access numbers. You simply enter an international number or select a contact from the existing contacts on your iPhone or Blackberry, hit send and the app does the rest.

    When you dial an international number from your mobile device, your call is routed through the Vonage network. That way, you get their international rates and only use local minutes under your regular carrier’s plan.

    Obviously the app doesn’t support SIP calls over EDGE/HSDPA. International calls you make while being out of WiFi range but still having voice service, will be redirected to a local access number in the US – you’ll be then using your existing provider’s minutes while being charged Vonage Mobile’s discounted worldwide calling rates.

    "Our new mobile app is an important step in establishing Vonage as a software technology company that enables high-quality voice and messaging across any device in any location, providing great value over any broadband network," said Marc Lefar, CEO of Vonage.

    The company assures in the fourth quarter 2009, they will enhance the app to include the Vonage World plan that was introduced for home service in August. This enhancement extends the ability to make unlimited calls to over 60 countries for one flat monthly fee (at this moment – $25).

    According to Mike Tempora, Senior Vice President of Product Management for Vonage, when developing Vonage Mobile, the company focused on creating a more convenient alternative for customers who use calling cards or Wi-Fi only applications.

  • Nimbuzz Offers VoIP Calling Without 3G or WiFi


    Nimbuzz is partnering with Voxbone to offer its VoIP calling service using local DID access numbers – without the need for 3G or Wi-Fi connectivity.

    The arrangement means that users can make voice calls to contacts using most of the popular IM and VoIP services, including Gizmo5 and Skype, in over 50 countries.

    The Nimbuzz service, which runs on all Internet-capable mobile phones, detects when the handset is out of Wi-Fi or 3G range and steps in.

    It requests permission to automatically dial a local access number and route the call over the Internet.

    With most mobile plans, such calls are free except for a low charge (if any) to the local access number.

    The Nimbuzz software client determines the correct access number to dial from the user’s Nimbuzz profile.

    Headquartered in Brussels, Belgium, Voxbone provides worldwide local and toll-free phone numbers over its own private intercontinental VoIP network.

    Tobias Kemper, Nimbuzz head of communications, said the intention is to make Nimbuzz a truly mass-market application.

    "Not one limited to this mobile platform, or that chat/calling network, or a particular click sequence," he said.

    "By adding the DID numbers supplied by Voxbone, we can provide reliable mobile VoIP outside of Internet range and over 2G networks in over 50 countries, with any Internet-enabled handset and no change in user behavior."

    Currently growing at a rate of over 750,000 sign-ups per month and operating in 200 countries, Nimbuzz offers mobile VoIP, chat, location, file sharing and MMS services under one application.

    It works across popular communities and social networks, including Skype, Windows Live Messenger, Yahoo! Messenger, ICQ, GoogleTalk, AIM, Facebook and MySpace.

    Nimbuzz VoIP also reaches PSTN phones through Skype-Out, using any of 10 VoIP third-party VoIP services (including Skype).

    A full phone keypad is part of its interface, along with the multi-service buddy list.

  • Microsoft Confirms Zune HD with XBox Live Tie-In


    Microsoft is to launch the Zune HD this autumn and the device will have access to TV, movies and games through the Xbox Live Video Marketplace.

    Essentially being lined up as a rival to Apple’s iPod Touch, the new PMP will have a built-in HD Radio receiver, an OLED touch screen interface, wi-fi, a multi-touch UI for Internet Explorer.

    The new Zune will feature a 16:9 widescreen format display (480 x 272 resolution) and have HD video output to allow video to be played on an HDTV.

    While the new features are certainly an improvement on the original Zune, it will be interesting to see whether consumers like the fact a Zune dock has also to be bought for outputting HD video.

    The HDMI audiovisual docking station connects to an HDTV in 720p.

    The apparent lack of an app store also seems to be a potential stumbling block for the Microsoft device.

  • Intelecom Launches CoIP Handset Combo


    Intelecom has announced that it has obtained the rights to sell the 1World1Phone mobile phone.

    The VoIP communications provider will sell the handset separately as well as a package with the 1Button to Wi-Fi adapter.

    The latter is a consumer located, VoIP switching device developed by WorldTel Xchange that enables both fixed VoIP (Home phone) and cellular VoIP (CoIP) wireless calling for the individual and commercial enterprise consumer.

    Intelecom said the new phone is 3G, Quad Band compatible and has dual SIM cards and it functions like two phones with an unlocked GSM.

    It also features a removable back so that the batteries can be changed for longer usage when charging facilities are not available.

    1World1Phone is compatible with all the 36 carriers operating in the US. It can also work with all GSM carriers worldwide.

    The phone has a memory of 2 Gigs and the device is capable of supporting 4 Gigs, 8Gigs or16Gigs memory cards. The company plans to sell memory cards and also SIM cards suitable for 130 countries.

    Earlier this year, Intelecom entered into a strategic alliance with WorldTel Xchange which developed the 1Button to Wi-Fi COIP (Cellular Over Internet Protocol) technology which allows it to sell the product.

    It can be used on any cell phone, PDA, BlackBerry or Apple’s iPhone to convert it into a Wi-Fi phone for covering large areas.

    Customers will be entitled to five hours of international calling which comes with the adapter.

    Intelecom also announced its entry into the Web 2.0 and social network arenas by launching a fully monetized green social platform called My Social Income or MSI, where up to 50 per cent of the advertising revenue and the profits received from the sale of its 1 Button to Wi-Fi COIP, 1World 1Phone, Web 2.0 communications and marketing suites will be shared with all its members.

  • Truphone Improves iPhone Mobile VoIP App


    Truphone has launched a major upgrade to its free mobile VoIP application for the iPhone.

    The latest version of the Apple handset’s first-ever VoIP app boasts increased ease of use, speed of function response, intuitiveness and simplicity – along with improved voice quality.

    Truphone 3.0 also offers an integrated IM client which ties MSN Messenger, AIM, Yahoo Messenger, Google Talk and Skype compatibility into a single page.

    Calls to users of Truphone, Skype and Google Talk are free over Wi-Fi.

    Use over cellular data is also possible.

    Similar improvements to Truphone for the Apple iPod touch are expected soon.

    Geraldine Wilson, CEO of Truphone, said the upgrade dramatically has also improved its UI and account management tools.

    "We’ve eliminated the need for compression by utilizing new advances in signal processing, making calls crystal clear," she said.

    All in all, Wilson claims competitors will have a "tough time" matching Truphone 3.0 in terms of quality and performance.

    The improvements certainly make Truphone a viable alternative to Skype, which also faces competition in the form of Vopium on the iPhone.

  • Vopium Picks Up Innovation Award; Extends App to iPhone


    Vopium has become the latest mobile VoIP provider to introduce an iPhone application.

    The addition to its supported handsets comes as the company was named winner of this year’s European Mobile VoIP Technology Innovation Award by Frost & Sullivan.

    The annual award is presented by the growth consulting company to the company that has demonstrated technological superiority within its industry.

    Luke Thomas, programme manager with Frost & Sullivan, said that by offering a cost-effective service, Vopium was able to enhance customer loyalty and confidence in its applications.

    He said this had enabled the firm to create a sustainable competitive advantage over other mobile VoIP providers.

    "Considering that Wi-Fi is not as ubiquitous as cellular networks today, Vopium has also made provisions for users to automatically connect to a 3G network when Wi-Fi is not available within a particular location," he said.

    Vopium has expanded rapidly in the last six months, launching its free software programme using mobile VoIP and Wi-Fi technology to reduce the cost of international phone calls in 16 countries, including the UK, Germany, Switzerland, France and Spain.

    Tanveer Sharif, Vopium’s CEO

    The company also recently became the first mobile VoIP provider to offer mobile backup – a free service which allows Vopium customers to store their address book contacts and calendar securely online.

    Vopium’s iPhone app is now available in the App Store. Users will receive 30 minutes of free calls and 30 text messages to get started.

    Tanveer Sharif, Vopium’s CEO, said support was being extended to the iPhone to enable "millions of consumers and businesses to transform the powerful mobile device into the only solution they’ll ever need to call the world at a fraction of traditional mobile operator costs".

  • MobiTV Readies European Expansion As Momentum Grows

    INTERVIEW: Anders Norström, managing director of MobiTV Europe, talks about the company’s expansion plans and the growing consumer appetite for mobile TV

    While the uptake of mobile TV has been a slow process, it finally appears to be gathering pace.

    MobiTV, founded in 1999, was the first to bring live TV to mobile devices and remains at the forefront of a field that is becoming increasingly competitive.

    It is firmly established in North America where it was first rolled out via carriers such as AT&T, Cingular and Sprint.

    Now the California-based pioneer of mobile TV is looking to broaden its reach and is in the process of developing its services for the European market.

    Anders Norström, managing director of MobiTV Europe, told smartphone.biz-news that he strongly believed there is now a mass market for mobile TV – something backed up by his company’s rapidly growing subscriber numbers.

    It now offers content and primetime channels to over 6 million subscribers on more than 350 handset models on its managed mobile media service.

    In February it added the iPhone to the list of supported handsets (although Apple approval is still pending).

    Anders Norström, managing director of MobiTV Europe

    "The last million only took a couple of months. It’s really taken off," said Norström.

    MobiTV’s Media Distribution Platform has shown it’s able to deliver live streaming and on demand video content.

    In March, it was used in CBS Sport’s NCAA March Madness app for the iPhone and iPod Touch, which provided live streaming video and audio over a wi-fi connection from the 2009 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship.

    The massive popularity of MobiTv’s live airing of Barack Obama’s inauguration to its subscribers is another indicator of the way things are moving, according to Norstrom.

    "It was a huge usage of this kind of service. It’s really coming on," he said. "The network is becoming better, devices are becoming so much better and the back-end technology is so much better.

    "So we have an increased end user experience."

    Expansion Into Europe

    Norström said the US is currently MobiTV’s main market, followed by South America.

    But he said Europe is the next target. The company is currently in discussion with different customers and carriers.

    "Hopefully by the end of the summer we will be deploying our first services," he said.

    "The European market is huge. There are very good networks and really good content."

    The approach and strategy taken in Europe will be slightly different to that across the Atlantic, according to Norström.

    In the US, carriers are more interested in total managed services whereas in Europe he said media carriers often want to run them in-house.

    So MobiTV is giving them the opportunity to have either, or to begin with a managed service and transfer to their own network once they are up and running.

    Since there are very few pan-European channels – Bloomberg and MTV, being examples – Norström said most content was specific to countries and made in the local language (German, Italian, French etc).

    He said Tier 1 carriers largely did their own content deals, adding: "But we have contacts in the content and industry and can help them – we are an enabler."

    Hybrid Services In Future

    Looking ahead, Norström said the type of content likely to be made available on mobile TV services would be mixed between TV, video on demand and live broadcasts.

    It would also comprise hybrid services, which combine broadcast and unicast video on demand – a mix of content and technology.

    He said in the US this will take the form of joint ventures, providing free-to-air DVB-H/ATSC-M/H services as well as the unicast/VOD solutions.

    This is necessary for 3G carriers, which are short-cut by DVB-H, and want to be involved in the "action", according to Norström.

    MobiTV is also now offering localised services on top of its standard platform.

    Personalised Services "Essential"

    These include Mobi4Biz, a version of MobiTV aimed at the financial market which was launched recently for BlackBerry Bold handset owners on the AT&T network.

    Norström has no doubt that this more vertical, personalised approach to mobile TV is essential.

    "That is the way to go. We are starting to have some overflow of information, as happened on the Internet, with mobile channels," he said.

    "How many do we really watch? If you have 30 0r 40 channels on a mobile, does it really make sense?"

    Norström said MobiTV will aggregate the information by category – sport, childrens’, business, fashion and so on – and provide a back-end solution.

    Interactivity will also become an important ingredient of mobile TV, especially when it comes to ads.

    Last year, MobiTV did adverts for BMW that were tailored to choices viewers made while viewing.

    Personalised ads is something that Norström said will become part of a bundled package in the future.

    Interactive ads allow a profile of users’ interests to be created and allow advertising to be targeted based on individuals’ preferences.

    "It should be happening fairly soon in the US," he said. "But we are region agnostic and it will also happen in other markets."

    Too Soon For Ad-supported Model

    However, while advertising – and especially the targeted variety – has great revenue potential, Norström said MobiTV would not be moving to an ad-supported model any time soon.

    "For quite some time more it will be a pay model," he said. "It is realistic that some content will be ad-supported but it will not be the main model."

    Network overload is a common concern whenever mobile internet is mentioned, but Norström said he didn’t believe it was a problem at the moment.

    He said that even if it did become one, there were technological solutions available to ease the impact of congestion.

    These will undoubtedly be required if the way in which the iPhone has vastly increased data traffic levels is anything to go by.

    Especially as the Apple handset has spurred other mobile makers, such as Nokia, to replicate the iPhone’s end user experience.

    "We will see an increase in data traffic, but we are fully prepared for that," said Norström.

    Growth Affected By Downturn

    What is also certain is that the global economic downturn will have an impact on the growth of wireless video.

    But Norström said that, so far, there had been no increase in churn.

    "In the US, it seems people are getting rid of their fixed lines and keeping their mobile devices as the means of consuming content as well," he said.

    "But the economic situation will slow down the increase in subscription numbers."

    That may be so but improvements in handsets and technology are making the outlook for mobile TV look increasingly bright.

    Proof of this comes from growing subscribers – but also from the entry of the likes of Qualcomm in the US and Orange in France into the market.

    A healthy development – and one MobiTV appears well placed to deal with.

  • BBC Launches Live Wi-Fi TV Service For Smartphones

    The BBC has launched a service that allows UK viewers to watch live TV programs from suitable Wi-Fi connected mobile phones.

    BBC Live TV is available in a beta test form, offering a limited number of the broadcaster’s channels, plus its radio stations.



    Some smartphones already support use of the BBC iPlayer catch-up TV service over a Wi-Fi connection, but this is the first time the corporation has offered live streaming of programmes to mobile phones

    The service currently only works over a Wi-Fi connection and broadcasts a 176 x144 image, but the broadcaster hopes to extend Live TV out to 3G networks and to add more channels during the coming months.

    Live TV is thought to work with a selection of smartphones, including the Android G1 and Nokia N Series devices. It is also supposed to work with Apple iPhone soon.

    There is no need to install any applications in order to watch the channels.

    The service is only available to UK audiences and requires viewers to hold a current television licence.

  • Android Market Reaches 40 Million Downloads


    T-Mobile G1 customers have downloaded on average more than 40 applications from Android Market.

    With one million G1s sold that adds up to 40 million downloads in total since the first Android handset was launched six months ago.

    The stats, which come from an interview T-Mobile gave to mocoNews, also show that among T-Mobile customers who’ve purchased a G1 around half traded up from a basic handset.

    Other details include:

    • Approximately 80 per cent of T-Mobile G1 users browse the web on a daily basis
    • The majority of T-Mobile G1 owners use Facebook and Youtube at least once a day and access Wi-Fi on a daily basis
    • Four out of five G1 customers download applications at least once a week

    While the figures pall when compared to the iPhones 500 million plus downloads, but it’s early days for the G1.

  • Nimbuzz Bridges iPhone 3G VoIP Gap


    Nimbuzz has today released what it describes as the most comprehensive VoIP application for the iPhone after "quite a few" rejections from Apple.

    Building on its iPhone app launched in November, Nimbuzz users can now make international calls to mobiles and landlines at domestic rates by dialing a local access number available in over 50 countries.

    The Dial-Up VoIP 3G call is then connected to anywhere in the world via Nimbuzz VoIP servers.

    Other new additions include the introduction of a full dial-pad and the ability to make VoIP calls to landlines and mobiles via Skype-Out, and Nimbuzz’s major SIP provider partners including Gizmo5, Vyke, and sipgate over Wifi – effectively turning the iPod touch into an iPhone.

    Nimbuzz can also show users’ available credit on the dial-pad when using Skype Out for phone calls to landlines and mobile phones.

    Another new feature allows Twitter updates via the Personal Message option.

    Free Wi-Fi calls to instant messaging buddies were already available.

    Evert Jaap Lugt, CEO of Nimbuzz, said Nimbuzz’s rapidly growing user base is partly due to its already successful iPhone application.

    "We are a mass-market lifestyle application and are keen to ensure we keep up to date with the needs of the hyper-connected, so this update reflects initial feedback from our users."