Posts Tagged “talks”
Aug
23
2010
 
Mobile operators signal end of flat-rate data tariffs as app use growsPosted by in Mobile News
Application downloads are forecast to overtake revenue generated from voice services by 2013, upping the demand on network trafficFlat-rate mobile data tariffs look like an endangered species in the US and Europe. Mobile operators say that the all-you-can-eat model is damaging their ability to increase their revenues, and that the cost of building next-generation networks and providing the backbone capacity for the data is a “critical challenge”.In a survey for the law firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer by the Economist Intelligence Unit, the majority of mobile operators in the US and Europe also say they want to charge to prioritise the delivery of network traffic – which would do away with the principle of net neutrality on wireless networks.And, fearful that handset makers and companies such as Apple, Google, Nokia and BlackBerry maker RIM will reap all the benefits from selling downloadable phone apps, nearly 80% of mobile operators told the EIU that they would benefit from opening their platforms to independent software developers, with 45% believing they should open their own “app stores” to compete with those like Apple’s iPhone App Store and Google’s Android Marketplace and Nokia’s Ovi Store.Apps are becoming increasingly important to handset makers as a means of distinguishing themselves, but operators have seen little benefit from them. Instead, apps usually lead to greater data use from smartphones – but on flat-rate data tariffs, that simply means greater costs for the network operator.Ofcom figures from the first quarter of 2010 show that 18% of the UK population user their mobile handset to access the internet. That is expected to increase alongside purchases of smartphones.Executives expect the downloading of applications to outweigh income generated from voice calls by 2013, and 55% of those surveyed said they should be allowed to recoup some of the money invested in enabling this increasing usage of data.In the US, AT&T signalled the end of flat-rate data tariffs for iPhone users in June, shifting to a model where owners could get up to 2 gigabytes of data per month on standard contracts. In the UK, the four main operators this summer also ended flat-rate tariffs for iPhone owners which were introduced in 2007 when the device was launched.As the number of smartphones being used has grown, so have the demands on networks’ data backbones, which have struggled to keep up, while networks have been hampered by flat-rate data tariffs which they introduced to tempt people to use their services – and then found were taken up so eagerly that the systems struggled to fulfil demand.Current regulation stipulates that no preferential treatment is given to data carried over networks, but the increase in usage of applications, video streaming and internet-connected gaming has meant operators have had to invest in ways of delivering data to users.Proposals recently laid out by Google and US telecom Verizon left room for wireless, mobile networks to be able to discriminate in how they deliver content, saying that the future internet will largely be wireless and shouldn’t be bound to rules governing the internet of today.Last week private discussions were held in the US between lobbyists – thought to include Yahoo and Microsoft – to try come to an agreement on how to manage internet traffic, following the breakdown of net neutrality talks held by the country’s Federal Communications Commission (FCC).• One of the UK’s smaller internet service providers, Demon, today unveiled a new broadband package charging customers £3 extra per month for the prioritised delivery of gaming traffic over its network.Net neutralityMobile phonesTelecomsInternetInternet, phones & broadbandJosh HallidayCharles Arthurguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 Terms & Conditions Read Original Story…
Telecom provider Verizon is boasting of new performance benchmarks for its Read Full Story…
Telecom provider Verizon is boasting of new performance benchmarks for its Read Full Story…
Indian officials contemplate restricting email and messaging services on RIM’s BlackBerry smartphonesA meeting of Indian officials over the future of BlackBerry smartphones in the country has proved “inconclusive”, according to Reuters.Government officials spent Thursday locked in meetings with at least one mobile operator – state-run telecoms company BSNL – to decide whether to restrict services including email and messaging on the device.Security fears over BlackBerry services in the country are reported to spring from the 2008 Mumbai terrorist attack in which 116 people died. Officials suspect that the culprits used encrypted services on the device.But an official for the country’s telecoms ministry, who asked not to be named, said the talks with Blackberry manufacturer Research in Motion failed to resolve the issues.RIM’s devices, which have proved popular among corporate customers around the world, offer data protection services different from those on most other mobile devices, encrypting data and processing it in a variety of operational centres outside local jurisdictions.The Canadian manufacturer, also in similar talks with authorities in Saudi Arabia, is facing increasing pressure to allow security agencies access to some of the data passed through its devices.India is said to be seeking access to both email and BlackBerry Messenger functions, while Saudi Arabia is thought to be seeking access only to the latter.An Indian official told Reuters: “If they cannot provide a solution, we’ll ask operators to stop that specific service. The service can be resumed when they give us the solution.”RIM declined to comment.There are between 700,000 and 1 million BlackBerry owners in India, around 500,000 of which are privately-owned and do not incorporate the same security measures as enterprise customers’ devices. India is the fastest-growing wireless market in the world, and is one of the Ontario-based company’s fastest-growing markets.A deal struck between authorities and RIM will likely be seen as a concession, and could be precedent-setting for its operations in other countries.Although RIM declined to comment, a government regulator in Saudi Arabia said earlier this week that the company had successfully completed “part of the regulatory requirements” required to be granted a temporary reprieve from a ban on some services.An official for the country’s Communications and Information Technology Commission said RIM and other local telecommunications firms were testing transmitting data through domestic servers.BlackBerryMobile phonesIndiaJosh Hallidayguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 Terms & Conditions Read Original Story…
NEW DELHI (AFP) – India’s home ministry held top-level talks with intelligence services Thursday to discuss suspending BlackBerry services if the smartphone’s makers do not satisfy security concerns. Read Full Story…
Aug
07
2010
Saudi Arabia and BlackBerry agree deal to avert a ban on the smartphonePosted by in Mobile News
Saudi Arabia is conducting tests to find out how to install a Blackberry server inside the country to monitor messagesSaudi Arabia and the makers of the BlackBerry smartphone have reached a deal on accessing users’ data that will avert a ban on the phone’s messenger service, a Saudi official said today.The agreement involves placing a BlackBerry server inside Saudi Arabia to allow the government to monitor messages and allay official fears the service could be used for criminal purposes, the official said.The deal could have wide-ranging implications for several other countries, including India and the United Arab Emirates, which have expressed similar concerns over how BlackBerry maker Research in Motion Ltd, handles data.The Saudi official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he had not been authorised to discuss the details of the deal, said tests were under way to determine how to install a BlackBerry server inside the country.The reported agreement raised questions about how it would affect Saudi access to messages sent over BlackBerrys, but the Saudi official would provide no more details. RIM says its technology does not allow it – or any third party – to read encrypted emails sent by corporate BlackBerry users. The consumer version has a lower level of security.Canada’s international trade minister Peter Van Loan confirmed on Friday that Canadian officials were in talks with the Canada-based maker and Saudi officials in a bid to avert the ban. RIM has declined to comment on the talks.The kingdom is one of a number of countries expressing concern that the device is a security threat because encrypted information sent on the phones is routed through overseas computers making it impossible for local governments to monitor.However, critics maintain that Saudi Arabia and other countries are motivated more by the wish to further curb freedom of expression and strengthen controls over the media than by a fear of terrorism.The United Arab Emirates has announced it will ban BlackBerry email, messaging and Web browsing from October, and Indonesia and India are also demanding greater control over the data.Analysts say RIM’s expansion into fast-growing emerging markets is threatening to set off a wave of regulatory challenges, as its commitment to keep corporate emails secure rubs up against the desires of local law enforcement.Saudi Arabia’s telecommunications regulator, known as the Communications and Information Technology Commission, announced the imminent ban on Tuesday, saying the BlackBerry service “in its present state does not meet regulatory requirements”, according to the state news agency SPA.Saudi security officials fear the service could be used by militant groups. The kingdom has been waging a crackdown for years against extremists linked to al-Qaida.Saudi Arabia also enforces heavy policing of the internet, blocking sites both for political content and for obscenities.BlackBerry phones are known to be popular in the business world and among young people in the kingdom, where local media estimate there are some 750,000 BlackBerry users, who see the phones’ relatively secure communication features as a way to avoid attention from the authorities.Saudi ArabiaMobile phonesCensorshipguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 Terms & Conditions Read Original Story…
Officials and net giants unable to agree on compromise over the concept of faster speeds for websites prepared to pay a premium. Read Full Story…
Research in Motion (RIM) is reportedly in talks to brings its BlackBerry Read Full Story…
Signs Voda UK for heavy liftingTalkTalk is to launch its own mobile phone service, thanks to a deal with Vodafone UK.… Read Full Story…
How low do they go?Network operator T-Mobile has at last revealed its price-plans for the iPhone 4.… Read Full Story…
Jul
02
2010
Video: Google chief Eric Schmidt gives keynote speech at Guardian Activate 2010Posted by in Mobile News
Authors such as Iain Banks and Martina Cole are increasingly supplementing book releases with apps full of bonus material The way the books industry is interacting with digital media is developing faster than many had foreseen, with the latest example an attempt to offer fans of author Iain M Banks exclusive unseen chapters, his original notes and commentary for his latest novel. Mobile software company TradeMobile has worked with Banks’s publisher Little, Brown to develop the free application for the iPhone, which launches this Thursday (1 July). Readers who have bought the paperback of Banks’s latest novel, Transition, will be able to scan a unique barcode on their edition with their iPhone, and companion features for the novel will be transmitted to their screen. A best-selling author, the publishers also hope the new app may entice readers uninitiated into his complicated universe of difference worlds and civilisations. “For something as complicated as Transition it makes sense,” said Banks. “It’s very much like a DVD extras.” The app also includes character biographies; after a “slightly anguished” email from his German translator, Banks realised that a character called Bisquitine might need her language and cultural references explaining. “She appears toward the end of the novel and has an important part to play, and a very eccentric way of expressing herself,” says the author. “It took half a day to write and three to explain.” Kirk Bowe at TradeMobile says: “You’re able to tap in a page number and get back all the characters, scenes and locations which may be relevant to that page.” Beyond the iPhone TradeMobile is currently in talks with Little, Brown about extending the application to other handsets as well as the iPhone. “This helps people who aren’t particularly familiar with an author, especially an author like Iain whom they might not have approached before … it will fill in the blanks that may sometimes scare people away.” In March the number of books available as iPhone apps passed the number of games for the first time (www.guardian.co.uk/books/2010/mar/09/books-overtake-games-iphone-apps). “It was a tipping point,” says digital editor Dan Franklin at rival publisher Canongate. “The plan is now to be creating something you can only experience digitally” — something which, he admits, defies the instincts of a publisher. “It’s our next challenge [but] it’s difficult,” he says. TradeMobile’s Bowe feels the “companion” approach works particularly well for fiction. “Tolkien for example would be amazing,” he says. “Really for authors with rich, detailed characters and locations it’s great.” Banks agrees. “It works well for science fiction, especially when you have a universe or place you go back to. These places gradually build up. “It’s there if you want it – and that’s the beauty of it, it’s an opt-in thing. It’s not being forced down your neck; if you just want the story, you can have it,” says the author. “We’ll see how it does with the science-fiction stuff – if it’s successful it’s the obvious thing to do to extend it to my other novels.” Added value Little, Brown is part of the UK’s largest publishing conglomerate, Hachette UK, which has already launched a similar app for popular crime novelist Martina Cole, and has apps in development for authors including Stephenie Meyer, Patrick Holford and Ian Rankin. “Anyone can replicate the experience of reading a physical book in an app. Our feeling is that just isn’t very exciting,” says head of digital George Walkley. “With Iain Banks and Martina Cole we’ve tried to provide added value and extra material for authors who have very passionate followings.” At Canongate, Franklin is impressed with Little, Brown’s new app. “What is cool is that they’re getting it to directly interact with a print edition,” he says. “It’s very clever and something we’re looking to do.” Canongate is no slouch in the digital department itself, however, launching a (paid-for) enhanced iPhone app for Nick Cave’s novel The Death of Bunny Munro in September, complete with videos of Cave and an audio version synched to the text of the book, scored by Cave himself. The app won second place in MediaGuardian’s own innovation awards, the Megas, earlier this year. And in May, it brought out an enhanced app for David Eagleman’s short story collection Sum: Tales from the Afterlives, featuring videos of Eagleman discussing the book, and a synched audio version read by the likes of Jarvis Cocker, Stephen Fry and Noel Fielding. Like Walkley, Eagleman believes it is important for an app to be more than just an electronic version of a book. “An electronic version of a book merely grants portability. But a thoughtful app can open new inroads to explore the material, as well as ways to keep the material updated and fresh,” he says. “By having the option to explore a book beyond the original text — by dint of videos, living links, and so on — it becomes a living, breathing, updating organism, just like the rest of our technology.” Banks adds: “Everyone’s feeling around – no one knows what’s going to work. It’s quite a nervous time to be a publisher. They’re trying to do what they can to keep books interesting. We will just see how it goes.” Eagleman agrees. “We’re at an exploratory period now, and no one knows where it’s going. If you imagine yourself 100 years from now looking back, it’s clear that apps are in their infancy and just learning how to crawl. Once they become adults, they might offer such a different experience of the material that they will speciate into an entirely different storytelling animal — as has happened, for example, with movies.”
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Jun
02
2010
Steve Jobs talks Flash, ‘lying S.O.B devs’, sex, and GizmodocrimePosted by in Mobile News
iPad conceived before the iPhoneSteve Jobs says that Flash has had its day, work on the iPad began before work on the iPhone, the Gizmodophone may have been “stolen out of [Apple engineer Gray Powell's] bag”, more than one iPhone app developer is a “son of a bitch liar,” and his sex life is “pretty good.”… Read Full Story…
Apple and MS ‘still talking’Apple and Microsoft continue to negotiate the addition of Bing to the iPhone, according to a report citing sources familiar with the talks, but as things stand, this will not see the ejection of Google from Steve Jobs’ handheld status symbol.… Read Full Story…
• New name for merged Orange and T-Mobile Orange and T-Mobile have chosen the name Everything Everywhere for their merged company, though the two brands will still be used when dealing with customers. The new business plans to open some 100 retail outlets and increase its portfolio of Wi-Fi hotspots across the country. The merger will enable T-Mobile to launch fixed-line services, and Orange is considering adding TV to its existing residential broadband offering. As the year progresses, however, there are likely to be job losses among Everything Everywhere’s 16,500 staff as the merged business carries out a cull of middle management. The UK’s third and fourth placed mobile phone companies announced plans to merge last September and the plan gained regulatory approval following talks over its share of mobile phone spectrum, earlier this year. Chief executive Tom Alexander said they wanted a holding company name that was more than the cod-Latin names so many companies use, while not being a traditional telecoms name either. “What I wanted was a company name that did not distract or confuse from two very strong brands,” he said. “What I wanted was something that was additive. I love Everything Everywhere because it really does encapsulate the vision and the ambition for the company.” “We are going through this revolutionary step in the marketplace where people are getting iPhones, getting Google devices and we have Microsoft’s Phone 7 coming into the market soon. It’s not just about voice and text. It’s about everything else you can do on a mobile phone. People are even talking about apps down the pub.” “It’s not some bland name – Orange and T-Mobile Company Limited or something – it is encapsulating what the vision of the business is.” Everything Everywhere will be used in advertising by Orange and T-Mobile as a tag-line rather than merely as an explanation of the company behind the two brands. “Yes it will be on our pay slip and we will use it as a description of the holding company but we will also use it as a tag line appropriately. You will see it popping up occasionally,” Alexander said. It was developed by the merged company’s internal team with help from T-Mobile’s ad agency Saatchi & Saatchi and Orange’s agency Fallon, both of whom are part of Publicis. With 27,000 mobile phone masts across the country, Everything Everywhere has a larger footprint than rivals O2, Vodafone and 3, which already shares its network with T-Mobile. It has 713 retail stores and 20 concessions in HMV stores. At the time of the merger, Alexander said the company would rationalise its store portfolio but eight months on, it has decided to open several dozen more stores and add 50 new HMV concessions. As phones become more complicated, the company needs an increased local presence in order to help customers with their new gadgets. “We have looked at it long and hard and actually we are going to extend our number of shops. There are areas in the country where we will open new Everything Everywhere stores: they could be Orange branded; they could be T-Mobile branded or they could be a combination of both, especially in small rural towns. It is not just selling. We also want to provide service and help to customers on the high street not just over the phone. As people can do more and more with a mobile phone … we want to hold the hand of the customer and show them how they can get more out of their devices.” Alexander is also looking at increasing the 173 Wi-Fi hotspots that T-Mobile already owns – in airports and railway stations as well as on the Heathrow Express, West Coast mainline and London to Brighton route – as the merged company looks to benefit from the scale of its business. “We have the economies of scale to develop our capabilities, whether it’s hotspots, fixed broadband, better mobile networks. We want to have core capabilities that we can leverage across both brands,” Alexander said. T-Mobile, unlike rivals Orange, O2 and Vodfone, has never had a residential broadband offering, something which Alexander said will be rectified. “I think it is inevitable that we will be coming up with a total communications package for T-Mobile customers. It is not something that is going to be launched imminently but it is something that is in our vision.” Also in the plan but not facing an imminent launch is broadband TV for Orange’s 850,000 residential customers. “Television is firmly back on the agenda,” Alexander said, after it was originally slated back in 2007. As well as its new name, Everything Everywhere announced its senior management team yesterday, which comprises 13 former Orange executives and 10 from T-Mobile. Among the team are the three former Virgin Mobile executives who Alexander brought with him when he joined Orange: Virgin’s former customer relationship director Andrew Ralston is chief commercial officer, Virgin’s operations director Gerry McQuade is chief development officer and former journalist and Virgin Mobile press office head Steven Day is vice-president of brands and communications.
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Charlie Kindel tells ZDNet UK in a two-part interview how Microsoft will address the enterprise market with both its new Windows Phone 7 operating system and its legacy Windows Mobile 6.5 OS Read Full Story… |
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