WIN Wins Video Brief

WIN plc has announced the launch a full-service video streaming platform with T-Mobile Germany.  The service will make a broad range of streamed video content available to T-Mobile Germany’s 38 million subscribers. WIN says it will provide subscribers with a significantly improved mobile video experience, with a wide range of quality content. New services include a Bundesliga football video portal covering all games in the German top divisions.
WIN has worked with T-Mobile Germany for four years through its subsidiary Quattrocomm AG, providing WAP shopfronts and a variety of video services. WIN says this latest deal further strengthens the commpany’s international reach and and enhances its position with Europe ’s leading, Tier 1 operators."Ever more advanced handsets, and greater bandwidth at a lower cost, are driving mobile data usage across Europe," says WIN CEO, Graham Rivers. "Consumers are beginning to demand a wider variety of content, which they expect to be available at the click of a button and delivered in seconds. WIN’s video streaming platform is set to positively transform T-Mobile’s subscribers’ mobile video experience and therefore drive data revenues."

The Mobile Money Programme

Prizemo LLC, a participation media company that develops interactive entertainment for online, mobile, and TV audiences, has announced the launch of a new game show, ‘Show You the Money,’ that allows players to win cash and prizes for correct answers to trivia questions by sending text messages from their mobile, or playing online. Viewers can also play for free on the Prizemo website.
Prizemo says the show, which launched last Monday, is the first participation media show of its kind.
Winners will be randomly selected and announced on the website on a weekly basis during the game’s first phase. From 5 September, Prizemo will begin airing 30 promotional spots on MTV, MTV2, VH-1, and BET. Celebrity hosts, including Saigon, Memphis Bleek, Unique, Talia Coles and others, will appear on-air with call-outs to viewers to text correct answers to questions using the shortcode, 99799. 
Each mobile participant for Show You the Money will receive a free ringtone, or other mobile content, which can be redeemed via the Prizemo website. Players are charged $0.99 (£0.50) from all carriers for each text message. 
Prizemo says it is currently in discussions with major US and international broadcast and cable outlets for syndication of the show as a daily, 15-minute show featuring celebrity hosts from the worlds of music, film, fashion, and sports. 
“By combining music, TV, trivia and prizes into a mobile game delivered by your favourite artist, Prizemo has created the ultimate interactive experience for consumers, while providing a great vehicle for artist exposure,” says Jojo Brim, Executive Producer for Warner Music Group, who manages Talia Coles.
Prizemo owns digital content rights for various artists and produces participation media properties for multiple outlets. The company was founded by CEO Jakob Kuznicki as a vehicle for music licensing and promotion. Kuznicki, formerly Vice President of Licensing for Jamba/Jamster, which helped popularize the direct-to-consumer mobile content business in the US, has established a partnership with Munich-based firm, SEO Entertainment, to develop interactive platforms for shows, including Show You the Money.
“We are bringing the music and entertainment industries together with their audiences in a community environment that is exciting, and fulfilling,” says Kuznicki. “Everyone has a chance to win something through Show You the Money. We are leveraging the participation media phenomenon in a new way in the US for an audience that is passionate about music and popular culture, and wants to be rewarded for its passion.”

FoneStars in O2 Ireland Deal

In an exclusive deal which sees it becoming master content provider to O2 Ireland,  mobile content retailer FoneStarz Media has added the mobile network to its list of partners as it continues to rollout its multimedia content around the world.
O2 Ireland has revamped its entire portal to offer customers easier accessibility and improved choice. FoneStarz is the new master content provider for the ‘Pics & Clips’ service, which gives O2 Ireland’s subscribers a new, content-rich service
According to FoneStarz, the FoneStarz Pics & Clips service has been a success for operators around the world, offering network customers a huge range of branded downloadable wallpapers, animations, themes and short-clip video.
As the second largest mobile network in Ireland, O2 Ireland gives FoneStarz a new group of customers to provide its extensive range of services to. The O2 Ireland network has 32% of the Irish market, with 1.7 million customers.
“We are very excited to have been chosen by O2 Ireland to extend our services to its customers,” says FoneStarz Media CEO, Dave Moreau. “This partnership will help to enhance O2 Ireland’s range of content services, while enabling us to take another step toward increasing our offering around the world.”
FoneStarz hosts, manages and publishes multiple content formats for over 2,400 different handset types and currently licenses and aggregates content from more than 150 partners worldwide.
FoneStarz Media Group hosts, manages and retails wallpapers, animations, short-form video and Mobile TV, themes, Flash, audio, horoscope & personalisation products across 35 channels in 25 territories. FoneStarz exclusively manages these products on the portals of a number of major mobile network operators.
The company’s content management and distribution system Daius allows dynamic publishing and mobile web retailing from its portfolio of more than 150 licensed content owners. FoneStarz is currently working with global media brands, including Manchester United, Warner Bros, Bauer, National Geographic, IPC and Universal Music.

Vicorp Partners with SpinVox

UK-based Vicorp,  which provides technology and solutions for contact centre operators, has announced an expansion of its capabilities through a partnership with voice-to-screen messaging company SpinVox.  Through this and other partnerships, Vicorp says it is progressing towards its call resolution strategy. Vicorp is building its portfolio and aiming to offer 100% call resolution for organisations using xMP, its service creation and execution environment, in conjunction with products such as SpinVox’s best-of-breed voice-to-text offering.
“Our partnership with SpinVox gives mutual benefit,” says Vicorp CEO, Brendan Treacy. “Our experience in the contact centre market presents new opportunities for SpinVox while we benefit from adding the leading voice-to-text service to our portfolio.”   
Through the Vicorp-SpinVox partnership, contact centres will be able to ensure that no incoming calls are ever missed, as voice messages from customers who do not get straight through will be converted to an email only minutes after they have left the message. Such messages can be assessed promptly, prioritised and routed directly to the right person for action. The appropriate agent can then respond quickly with the most relevant information, improving efficiency and overall customer service.
SpinVox says the voice-to-text capability, which is already being used in the wider marketplace, has many possible applications that can streamline contact centre efficiencies and broaden customer service offerings. For example, offering customer satisfaction surveys through a voice application using natural speech, which will then be automatically converted into text for analysis, or conversion of conversations for training purposes. It is not the technology that restricts its potential, the company says, but the imagination of the developers.

FreeRange Launches Mobile Publishing Platform

FreeRange Communications has announced the commercial availability of the FreeRange Mobile Publishing Platform, which it says enables a major step forward for online publishers to seamlessly extend their content to mobile consumers.
In conjunction with the release, FreeRange Communications has also announced new customers The Wall Street Journal Digital Network, Fierce Markets, and PaidContent.org, who join NewsGator, Travelocity, and Portland Trailblazers in their  adoption of the platform.
FreeRange provides complete mobile coverage for publishers, delivering branded content to a wide range of mobile devices, including BlackBerry, Windows Mobile, Symbian, Palm, and iPhone handsets.
The FreeRange Mobile Publishing Platform removes the barriers typically present for effectively pushing web content out to the mobile device marketplace by leveraging existing web content, eliminating mobile content management system requirements and operating in a software-as-a-service model to create zero impact on customer IT resources. Content and ads are automatically delivered and stored on the reader's mobile phone, ready to be consumed on demand.
“With this release, FreeRange gives publishers the ability to grow their brand and extend their content to mobile consumers like never before,” says FreeRange Communications CEO, Jon Maroney. “Publishers are hungry for ways to give their readers instant access to content on the go with an addictive user experience that will grow their subscriber base. Combined with the additional opportunity to create new revenue streams through mobile advertising and marketing, FreeRange is an attractive solution.”
The Wall Street Journal Digital Network uses the FreeRange Mobile Publishing Platform to provide a WSJ.com-branded mobile application that automatically downloads optimized content to a user's BlackBerry device. Users receive immediate access to business, finance and technology news and analysis from WSJ.com as well as MarketWatch.com, Barrons.com and AllThingsD.com. Headlines, article summaries and previously downloaded stories are always accessible, even if out of wireless coverage, such as in the subway or on a plane.

Paragon Launches SlovoEd 7.0

Paragon Software Group, which develops software and provides content for mobile devices and PC desktops, has announced the release of the SlovoEd 7.0 engine for its dictionary series on Windows Mobile Smartphones and Pocket PCs, which it says brings mobile dictionary browsing to unprecedented levels of speed and accuracy while occupying a minimum amount of space on the device.
Developed specifically for each type of hardware, the rich functionality of the SlovoEd dictionary can be enjoyed equally on either the Pocket PC or Windows Mobile Smartphone without any loss of attributes, the company says. The SlovoEd series – from monolingual reference encyclopedias to bilingual translation dictionaries in 30 languages, including Chinese – offers a host of features and learning tools along with audio pronunciations for the most difficult words, which fits every learner’s level and learning style. Paragon’s technology makes it possible for mobile users around the globe to work and communicate in 30 languages more easily, the company says, and, with licensed pre-installed software, SlovoEd increases the value and attractiveness of mobile devices to end users worldwide.
The SlovoEd 7.0 engine means that the dictionaries' most comprehensive databases can now be browsed even more rapidly, making wireless translation for language learners of all levels effortless and extremely fast. The high compression capabilities of the engine minimize even the most comprehensive unabridged dictionaries, and can also be installed to memory cards in order to economize memory space on the device. The add-on sound module, pre-recorded by native speakers, makes full use of mobile audio, with the most difficult words in English, French, German, Italian, and Spanish, enabling the user to listen to pronunciations with live speech quality.
All SlovoEd dictionaries are based on the most reliable linguistic databases, which have been developed through years of extensive research, coming directly from the world’s leading publishers such as Merriam-Webster, Oxford UP, Duden, PONS and Harrap, to name a few. The multilingual on-screen keyboard layout for 30 languages enables users to enter and translate words and letters in different languages, even if it is not supported by the device. Users can look words up with wildcards ("*", "?", etc.) when the exact spelling is unknown, while the ‘Search History’ function saves a list of the last 30 translations. Special learning tools such as Flash Cards allow users to add new words to flash cards and test their knowledge as many times as desired.
The SlovoEd series is currently compatible with all Windows Mobile 5, 6 and 6.1 devices. All online content updates are free of charge to users who purchase SlovoEd programs. SlovoEd Deluxe retails for $59.95 (£32); SlovoEd Classic for $39.95; and SlovoEd Compact for £24.95.
There’s more information here.

Next2Friends Expands

Next2Friends, the mobile social media platform, has announced the availability of its ‘Live’ mobile video streaming application on the Motorola Q series and the Samsung Blackjack II. Previously designed for the Symbian S60 range of devices, Next2Friends has now completed development for the Windows Mobile 6 platform along with a number of other popular operating systems, in response to global demand for its services.
Both the Motorola Q range and the Samsung Blackjack II are among the top-selling Smartphones in the US. Samsung’s recent announcement that it has sold 150 million handsets in the US and Microsoft’s shipping of 4.5 million Windows Mobile devices in Q1 2008 are reported to have been supported by the success of these two stand-out models.
“Anyone owning these handsets knows they are feature rich and well-designed.” says Next2Friends CTO,Anthony Nystrom. “By bringing Next2Friends to the best mobile devices on the market, we will ensure that Next2Friends is the first choice for connected consumers around the world.”
Next2Friends Live allows people to share real-life moments from anywhere, be it through live broadcasted news developments, capturing major life events, or bringing happenings across the world closer to home. The application, soft-launched in late 2007 and officially released in June 2008, is continually being enhanced by the Next2Friends development team. New features recently incorporated include one-click streaming; the ability to zoom, pause or re-start live streams; and automatic quality selection, to guarantee the best streaming experience, independent of location, carrier or connection speeds.   
Next2Friends’ says its mobile-based applications have been designed so people can get the most out of life by vastly extending the capability and usability of mobile devices. Other applications in the suite include automatic ‘snap and upload’ of photos to the web; opinion polling on the move; and location-based social networking.
Next2Friends’ range of products and services are free to install and use, with members only paying for networked data traffic via their carrier. Advanced compression technology ensures that all content is reduced to a fraction of its original size, with no degradation of quality or delays.
Fully supported devices include most popular models from Nokia, Sony Ericsson and LG, as well as an ever increasing number of Motorola and Samsung phones. To install Next2Friends Live on your handset, fill out the 60-second registration form here, then go to the download page here.

The Price is Right is Mobile

Mobile games publishee Glu Mobile has signed a development and publishing deal with FremantleMedia Enterprises (FME), the brand extension arm for FremantleMedia, one of the largest international producers of entertainment brands in the world and a subsidiary of the RTL Group. The agreement gives Glu multi-year, exclusive rights to develop and publish mobile games based on the popular game shows, ‘The Price Is Right’ and ‘Family Feud’ in Europe, Australia and parts of Asia. In addition to the partnership in Europe, Australia and Asia, Glu Mobile and FremantleMedia also partner on The Price Is Right and Family Feud in North America.
“The Price is Right and Family Feud are regarded as heavyweight game show brands across Europe, Australia and Asia, and this partnership offers tremendous opportunities for both Glu and FME,” says Frank Keeling, Managing Director of Publishing at Glu EMEA. “Our development and marketing expertise in dealing with high value brands like these means the mobile games will compliment the brands perfectly, with massive appeal to their target audience.” 
The Price Is Right, most recently hosted by Joe Pasquale in the UK, first aired in the US in 1956 making it the longest-running game show in television history. Family Feud, known as Family Fortunes in the UK and hosted by Vernon Kay, has aired in more than 45 countries since its 1976 launch, and is one of the most successful game show formats in the world.

Nokia and NSN Power KPN Mobile TV Service

Dutch network KPN has introduced a Mobile TV service. Nokia and Nokia Siemens Networks (NSN) have joined forces to enable the service, which offers KPN customers across the Netherlands a choice of 10 television channels, including Nederland 1, Nederland 3, MTV Music, Discovery Channel and Nick Toons.
The ‘MobielTV’ service is delivered through a broadcast network based on the Digital Video Broadcast for Handheld (DVB-H), the European standard for mobile television, and can be watched on DVB-H-enabled mobile devices.
Nokia and NSN provided KPN with a turnkey head-end solution based on open standards to launch the broadcasts. This includes the Mobile Broadcast Solution, plus a broad range of supporting services such as consulting, platform integration, project management, support services and turnkey implementation.
“We are glad to be among the first to launch mobile television broadcasts in Europe,” says KPN Broadcast Services Director, Bart van Ierschot. “This timely launch has been possible thanks to our choice of partners – Nokia and Nokia Siemens Networks, who are market leaders in providing open standard DVB-H service  platforms.”
In March, the European Commission added DVB-H to the EU List of Standards, which serves as a basis for encouraging harmonized provision of telecommunications services across Europe. The move helps establish a single market for Mobile TV in the EU enabling all citizens to watch TV on the move. 
The solutions offered by Nokia and NSN are based on the open DVB-H standards. They allow short implementation time as well as end-to-end capability, combining the equipment, services and devices to create a unique solution for mobile TV service providers.
NSN leads the world in the number of commercial launches for DVB-H Mobile TV broadcasting, with deployments in Finland, India, Malaysia, Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia and, most recently, Switzerland.

O2 Handed Homeserve Brief

O2  has won a contract with Homeserve plc, the UK provider of home emergency insurance, to provide voice and mobile data services. The three-year deal will see approximately 4,000 connections transferred to O2 from incumbent providers Orange and Vodafone, using devices including BlackBerry and PDAs.
The deal will see O2 providing mobile solutions to enhance the efficiency and flexibility of the Homeserve workforce, ensuring its ability to respond to emergency calls as quickly as possible and maintaining the high levels of customer service it prides itself on. Homeserve considers mobile technology critical to the success of its business, with over 5,000 employees and sub-contractors remotely located across the UK. O2 says its excellent UK network coverage was a significant factor in its selection as a mobile partner.
Over the course of three years, O2 will work closely with Homeserve to provide various mobile solutions, including routing calls via a VPN (Virtual Private Network) to help reduce the overall cost to the business and enable employees to communicate economically and efficiently with customers. This is just one of a number of applications that O2 will offer to Homeserve employees and subcontractors to continue to assist and improve their business processes and efficiencies.
“Homeserve is committed to providing unsurpassed customer service,” says Homeserve CIO, Trevor Didcock. “We have thousands of tradesmen on the road and they all need to be in touch with our customers and offices 24/7. From real-time updates on PDAs to communicating with customers via SMS, this new partnership with O2 will support our future ambition to stay ahead of the pack and ensure we are delivering a first rate service for our customers.”

Mobile Broadband Numbers Hit 50 Million

The GSM Association (GSMA), the global trade group for the mobile industry, has revealed that the number of worldwide subscribers using Mobile Broadband (HSPA) networks has topped the 50 million mark, up from just 11 million one year ago. Global uptake of HSPA technology among consumers and businesses is accelerating, indicating continued traffic growth for high-speed mobile networks worldwide. The analyst Wireless Intelligence expects the number of HSPA connections to be growing by 4 million per month by the end of 2008.
The number of operators with commercial HSPA networks has reached 191 and there are now over 740 HSPA-enabled devices, including mobiles, dongles and notebooks, available from 116 manufacturers.
“These figures highlight the global success of Mobile Broadband and the fact that we are continuing to see greater and greater economies of scale,” says GSMA CEO, Rob Conway. “This is driving down the cost of devices and equipment and enabling more and more users across the world to enjoy easy access to media-rich services anywhere at any time.”
High-speed mobile access opens up a wide range of services for consumers, including interactive gaming, music and video streaming and the easy sharing of pictures and entertainment. Businesses can use fast Mobile Broadband to rollout advanced solutions for flexible working and to enable field workers to have quick and easy access to the company’s information systems. 
The most widely-deployed peak data speeds over HSPA are currently between 3.6Mbps and 7.2Mbps. This translates to an end user speed of more than 1Mbps, which is comparable to many of today's fixed-line broadband services.
“This is a significant achievement for HSPA and clear confirmation that it will be the dominant mobile broadband technology for the foreseeable future,” says Howard Wilcox, Senior Analyst at Juniper Research. “(We) can only see this growth increasing in the years to come, achieving an estimated 1 billion HSPA subscribers globally in five years’ time. We see HSPA as a real service enabler, essentially replicating the desktop web experience on handheld devices.”
Wilcox says that Juniper expects services such as social networking, music and video downloads and uploads direct to and from devices, and location-based services to flourish with HSPA.
“With the speeds being achieved, we also see HSPA as a realistic alternative for fixed broadband access, particularly in rural areas and amongst users who re-locate frequently,” he says. “In addition, we anticipate that growth will be driven by the sub-35 age range. 15 to 20 year olds now who have been brought up with a mobile for as long they can remember, broadband at home and digital multichannel TV – the digital generation – will expect mobile broadband as a given in future, when they enter the world of work.”
 

MoFuse Secures Funding

MoFuse, which gives bloggers and other content publishers the ability to publish their content to the mobile web seamlessly, has secured its first round of seed capital. The Slater Technology Fund, a Rhode Island-based early-stage fund that is backed by the State of Rhode Island, provided the capital. The companies disclosed no further terms.
Founded in August 2007, MoFuse (short for Mobile Fusion) released its first technology product privately less than two months later and opened it to the public on 1 November. The company says the intuitive ease of its platform, which enables anyone to create a mobile website in just a few minutes, has propelled the growth of the MoFuse Network. MoFuse closed 2007 with 2,200 mobile sites in its network, and that number has surged to nearly 12,000 sites today, making it, the company says, the fastest-growing mobile site publishing network in the world.
“The more we consume the web through our mobile devices, the more impetus there will be toward MoFuse’s growth,” says Slater Technology Fund Managing Director, Thorne Sparkman. “And while it assembles a burgeoning network of sites, MoFuse is building a talent and experience base that will be tough to overtake. Presentation is just the first in a series of hurdles that the blogosphere will need to surmount. We see this as a tremendous opportunity to enable a large, global publishing population to integrate with the mobile channel.” 
MoFuse’s growth has accelerated on numerous levels. Since January 2008, the company has increased its site portfolio by 240% and the number of page views by more than 935%.  The MoFuse Network, which includes many notable blogs such as: Mashable, ReadWriteWeb, PoliticalWire and HarvardBusiness, realizes more than 1 million page views per month and is growing by more than 25% every month.
“We’re thrilled at this validating investment by the Slater Technology Fund and we look forward to utilizing it toward continuing our growth,” says MoFuse CEO, Annette Tonti. “The wide adoption of our platform has necessitated more hires and of course, more investment.  So we’re especially gratified that it’s from such an important, local partner.”

mBlox Hires Elmer

Mobile transaction network mBlox has appointed Ken Elmer to the role of Chief Financial Officer. As CFO, Elmer will be responsible for leading the global finance, human resources, and facilities functions of the company.
Previously, Elmer was Senior Vice President of Finance and Administration for Tiburon, Inc., where he successfully aided the strategic focus of the management team on a product retooling, while driving the successful negotiation of two of the largest services contracts in the company’s history. Prior to Tiburon, Elmer was a division-level CFO at Pacific Bell and Pacific Telesis Group, and CFO at Visionael Corporation, The MapFactory and TCSI, Inc. At TCSI, Elmer stepped into the CEO position, working with the board, to pursue an exit strategy which resulted in a successful acquisition by Rocket Software in 2003.
“mBlox is experiencing tremendous growth as more and more businesses around the world are using SMS text messaging for their mobile marketing, mobile entertainment and mobile business needs,” says mBlox CEO Jeff Clark. “Ken has led finance teams in companies ranging from a small angel investor-backed private business to several large subsidiaries within a multi-billion dollar public entity. His proven skills will allow mBlox to continue to provide the highest level of quality and service to our global customer base.”
Elmer graduated magna cum laude with a bachelors in business administration from the University of North Texas and is a certified public accountant. 

ROK Signs Arabian Content Deal

Mobile entertainment company ROK Entertainment Group has revealed that its Finland-based mobile services development company, Geniem, has signed an exclusive mobile content delivery agreement with Rotana, the world’s largest producer and distributor of Arabic music and films.
Under the terms of the agreement, Geniem will build customised on-device portals (ODPs) for Rotana’s mobile partners to be deployed across the Middle East, enabling users to seamlessly access its diverse content portfolio from their mobile phones.
Owned by HRH Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Rotana has grown to become the world’s largest Arabic entertainment company, producing and distributing the latest Arabic music and films throughout the world. In addition, Rotana is the leading Arabic mobile content distributor in the Middle East, North Africa, the Gulf and Europe.
Rotana has amassed a portfolio that includes the leading Arabic music stars such as Amr Diab, Mohammed Abdou and Kazem Al Saher. In addition, Rotana has an extensive film library comprising more than 2,000 Arabic movies, ranging from classics to the most recent blockbusters, making Rotana the biggest private owner of Arabic film library in the world.
“This agreement represents a major milestone in our global deployment of mobile entertainment,” says ROK Group CEO, Laurence Alexander. “We are delighted to be providing Rotana our ODP technologies to offer the very best content for mobiles throughout the entire Middle East region.”

thelondonpaper Turns to Sponge

News International’s daily free newspaper ‘thelondonpaper’ has signed a year-long contract with mobile marketing solutions company Sponge. The partnership will see Sponge continuing to provide and run a mobile platform for thelondonpaper, enabling readers to respond directly to content in the daily newspaper and share opinions with other mobile users.
Launched in 2006, thelondonpaper targets commuters travelling to and around London, providing news, sport, style, entertainment and interactive features to readers. Distribution levels have been over 500,000 copies throughout 2008.
Londoners are invited to text in their thoughts and opinions through various SMS prompts. The opportunities to provide mobile comment are placed in the paper alongside topical stories, letters and competitions.
“Commuters are a busy audience to target. Offering quick and simple SMS interaction is appealing to readers in a rush,” says Sponge Chairman, Alex Meisl. “thelondonpaper has seen a great response to introducing SMS interaction; its response rates have tripled year on year. Sponge will continue to develop the use of mobile technology in thelondonpaper, encouraging readers to instantly connect with the brand on a daily basis.”

AdMob Report Shows African Growth

Mobile ad network AdMob has released its July Mobile Metrics Report. The report focuses on increasing usage of the Mobile Web in Africa and worldwide mobile browser market share.
The report shows that mobile Internet usage is growing across Africa, with particularly strong growth in Nigeria and Egypt. AdMob has seen traffic increase 21%  since the company began tracking the Africa market in Q1 2008. The report also notes that Nokia dominates device market share throughout Africa, with 50.6% of the market. Nokia is the most popular device manufacturer in the top five countries of South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, Egypt and Tanzania. 
Worldwide, Nokia and Openwave are the top browsers, with a 34% and 29% share, respectively. Windows Mobile, BlackBerry, Palm, and Safari (Apple) all had less than 5% market share around the world.
Worldwide traffic grew 18% and US requests grew 5.8% compared to June, while UK traffic was flat, with a decrease of 0.5% from June. Traffic from Smartphones continued to increase, with 25.6% of worldwide ad requests coming from Smartphones, up from 24.3% in June. The Nokia N95 overtook the SonyEricsson k800i to be the top device in the UK with an 8.3% market share in July.          
The Philippines has been added to the report this month, due to continuing strong mobile web growth in the country. The report shows that 34% of traffic comes from Smartphones, and over 20% from devices with extra-large screens, both metrics significantly higher than other countries. The Sony PlayStation Portable and iTouch are both in the Top 20 devices in the Philippines.       
The AdMob monthly metrics report is designed to provide insights into trends in the mobile ecosystem. The July report and all previous reports are available for free download here.

dotMobi in Video Content Move

dotMobi, the company behind the .mobi Internet address, has announced the inclusion of Mobizoft video content adaptation data into DeviceAtlas, the award-winning source of mobile handset information for mobile content developers.
The analyst Infonetics Research predicts that the number of worldwide mobile video subscribers is set to soar to over 46 million by 2010. To help content providers take advantage of this growth, Mobizoft, which provides mobile Internet-enabling products, is now contributing its device-level data to help DeviceAtlas users create content for the burgeoning mobile broadcast market.
“Adapting video content for mobiles has traditionally been difficult due to wide variations in device capabilities,” says Paul Nerger, Vice President of Advanced Services and Applications at dotMobi. “I’m thrilled to see Mobizoft join the growing number of companies providing bulk data to DeviceAtlas. Mobizoft brings unique capabilities in regards to media streaming, which is at the cutting edge of the mobile web. DeviceAtlas users will benefit tremendously from Mobizoft’s innovation.”
As part of the agreement, Mobizoft will gain licensed access to the DeviceAtlas database, which will also improve the breadth and width of its own device database and capabilities.
In addition to Mobizoft, many other mobile operators, handset manufacturers and developers from around the world, including Nokia, Vodafone and Telecom Italia, are working with dotMobi to collate and continually refine data on handset attributes so that developers can create device-aware content with the most up-to-date information available.
There’s more information on DeviceAtlas, including the free web-based version and the free, fully-licensed version for developers, is available at http://deviceatlas.mobi on mobiles, and here on the PC.

Voda Makes Gaming Easy

Wild Jack Mobile Casino has announced a deal which enables Vodafone UK customers to easily buy credits and charge them directly to their mobile bill to play Wild Jack Mobile Casino games.
Before anyone can deposit and play a Wild Jack Mobile Casino game, Vodafone UK will verify each user’s age through its customer records, a move that will help prevent minors from gaining access to the service. While playing, gamers can view their balance and, should they want to buy more credits, easily navigate to the banking section within the game.
Wild Jack Mobile Casino runs on Spin3’s award-winning platform, and works on more than 1,000 mobile handsets. It offers 14 games, from Roulette and BlackJack to the progressive jackpot slot Major Millions.

Nokia First With Zeemote Zeekey

Zeemote, which makes intelligent wireless controllers for mobile devices, has revealed that Nokia will be the first company to launch its Zeemote Zeekey application. Zeekey will enable the Zeemote JS1 Controller to work with N-Gage games and other S60 applications. The application will come pre-loaded on featured handsets as special gaming bundles and is also available for download on the Nokia website.
By combining the Zeemote JS1 Controller and the Zeemote Zeekey application, users can replicate the actions performed by the keypad of a compatible Nokia S60 mobile phone, whether browsing the Internet, cueing up a playlist or playing games.
With a thumbstick and four assignable trigger buttons, the Zeemote JS1 Controller, which weighs just 47g, offers analogue control over Bluetooth, enabling users to engage with mobile games and other applications residing on the handset.

mobilePeople Powers New Zealand Search Solution

New Zealand directory business Yellow Pages Group has launched its local mobile search product, ‘Yellow mobile’, which is based on mobilePeople's 'liquid LOCAL' solution. The service will enable New Zealand users to access a wealth of local information on their mobile phones, via their browser and/or two-way SMS.
The browser based solution allows search by business name, category or keyword and location. Users can view the results in a list, and also get maps and directions. In addition, the service also includes a text function, enabling users to text to search a business name, category or keyword and location. The text response includes one result and a deep link to the WAP solution for further results. There’s also a click-to-call function for immediate connection. Yellow mobile is accessible via both mobile network operator portals in New Zealand and so has 100 per cent reach across both islands.
“mobilePeople are best of breed suppliers,” says Yellow Pages Group Digital Media Director Blair Glubb. “We are very happy with what Yellow mobile will enable Kiwis to achieve on the move.”

Man Booker Goes Mobile

The Man Booker Prize for literary fiction is turning to mobile, making extracts from the shortlisted books available for download to UK mobile phones immediately following the shortlist announcement. The extracts will also be available via the Man Booker Prize website. 
The Man Booker Prize is partnering with mobile site GoSpoken to make the shortlist extracts available to download for free. GoSpoken is a mobile platform which can be accessed by anybody with a mobile phone or Internet access, enabling users to search, try, buy and enjoy books in audio and text versions.
This year’s shortlist will be announced on 9 September, at which point the public will be able to text MBP to the shortcode 60300 in order to download a free extract either to read as text or listen to as audio. If the reader enjoys the extract, they can use their mobile phone to buy a hard copy of the book, or download the full audio version, if available. The cost will be added to the reader’s mobile phone bill.
Bestselling author Andy McNab, who is also a Partner in GoSpoken, says:
“I’m a great fan of audiobooks and passionate about bringing them to a wider audience. The immediacy of the spoken word really transports you to another world through your headphones. GoSpoken will revolutionise audiobooks. Being able to download them to your mobile, wherever you are, means you will never be bored again.”

Find & Gone

It’s a Bank Holiday today here in the UK, so we’ve downed tools and headed for the beach, armed only with some suncream, a picnic rug and some raincoats. Before we shut down, however, we were amused to receive news of research from Vodafone, showing that the most common reason for partners to fall out is failing to agree on the route they should take when they are planning a day out, on a Bank Holiday, for example.
According to the research, 61% of British lovebirds admit to arguing because of ending up at the wrong destination or over which route to take. Over three quarters of couples have stopped talking thanks to in-car rows. The release doesn’t say whether they ever start again…
The research also shows that men can’t ask for directions when lost, but that women are even worse. Men will wait on average 10 minutes and 43 seconds before succumbing to having to ask a passer-by, while women will wait even longer: 12 minutes and 36 seconds.
But why should Vodafone care? Because, of course, Vodafone’s Find & Go service give Vodafone customers a satnav service on their mobile phone, putting an end to all those in-car rows. (Anyone who has ever used satnav, of course, will know that this is complete nonsense, as the bloke puts his complete trust in the satnav – it is a gadget after all - and ends up on a road barely wide enough for a bicycle, while the woman pulls it off the windscreen in a fit of rage and gets the atlas out.)
Having made the link between the research and the product, the rest of the release, of course, descends into a shameless plug for Find & Go, even including a quote from motoring TV presenter and “driving experience expert” (whatever one of those is), Mike Butcher, who explains how he can’t imagine travelling anywhere without his Find & Go anymore.
Whatever you’re doing this Bank Holiday, whether it’s working, relaxing, or putting together spurious press releases, have a good one, and don't forget to check back in tomorrow when normal service will be resumed. And if you’re in the UK and have nothing better to do this evening, tune in to Dragons' Den on BBC2 at 9pm, where among the businesses seeking investment will be The 3G Dating Agency. At the time of writing, we have no idea how they got on, but we wish them every success. Let’s hope it’s love at first pitch. 

David Murphy
Editor

Mobile Advertising Beyond the iPhone

KF Lai, CEO of mobile social networking firm BuzzCity, cautions brands not to become too fixated on the iPhone 

The mobile advertising industry is experiencing explosive growth, as more and more brands and content owners realise its potential. A recent report by Gartner predicts that the mobile advertising market will grow from less than $1billion (£535 million) last year to surpass $2.7 billion in 2008, and $12.8 billion by 2011. Many members of the mobile industry have been quick to position the iPhone at the forefront of this boom, but we at BuzzCity believe that this forms only part of the story. 
While the birth of the iPhone has certainly fuelled interest in mobile advertising among big brands in the Western world, the majority of mobile users in developing markets are still using simple mobile handsets such as the Nokia N73 for mobile Internet browsing. These users are prime targets for mobile advertisers in these regions, especially because the use of PCs is generally very limited, which makes it difficult to reach a more traditional online audience. Even in the UK, there is a large consumer sector which does not regularly access the Internet via the PC, but prefers to do so via mobile phone. This is particularly true for workers on the move, such as delivery staff or lorry drivers. 

Well Wadja Know

Wadja, the mobile web, media and messaging service, has launched SMS Plus, which it claims is the first service to enable people to contact large groups simultaneously, whatever social network they are on. The SMS Plus service enables Wadja members to manage communication and interaction from any mobile web device, anywhere in the world.
Wadja is the only social network to collate its members’ contacts from multiple online sources, email address books and mobile phone lists, the company says. As a result, members can manage their email, SMS and web communication from a single interface, reaching out across the divide of multiple social networks. SMS messages cost less than 5p to send using the Wadja SMS Plus service. One-to-one SMS  messages to friends using Wadja are free.
“This is a service designed for the social networker on the move,” says Wadja Managing Director, Alex Christoforou. “Using the SMS Plus service, users can now contact all their friends and family, across platforms from their mobile.”

Jamba in Opera Partnership

Mobile content and entertainment company Jamba, (also widely known as Jamster), has entered into a global partnership with Opera Software, which specialises in the development of web browsers for the desktop, device and mobile markets, to add the Jamba bookmark on Opera Mini's customized browser homepage. The service offers a wide range of mobile products, including music, games, video, graphics and applications.
As part of the partnership, the Opera Mini homepage now includes a Jamba bookmark, enabling users to access the Jamba mobile site with one click. Subscribers can subsequently view original web programming and discover a variety of entertainment content from major games publishers, as well as programming from Fox Mobile Entertainment Network, including ‘The Simpsons’, ‘24’, ‘Family Guy’, ‘NASCAR’, and ‘Dog Whisperer’.
“Users are not only becoming increasingly familiar with the idea of accessing the web with their phones, but also desire a rich mobile web experience, regardless of the device they use,” says Jamba COO, Kaj Hagros. “Our goal is to provide consumers the best branded and original mobile content across every conceivable platform, anywhere in the world. Opera Software is the only company that puts the web on any device, and was a natural partner for Jamba to extend easy, on-demand access to our premium content for customers across the globe.”
Opera brings full web content and images to any device, from computers and mobile phones to portable media players and game consoles, and has shipped more than 100 million installations since 2004. Almost 15 million people per month use Opera for web browsing on a mobile device.
“The web is going wireless,” says Tatsuki Tomita, VP of Consumer Products at Opera Software. “Our goal is to help everyone use their favourite websites or services, from any device. “Valuable partners like Jamba are crucial to this mission. The combination of our mobile distribution partnership with Jamba will ensure that mobile users get immediate access to their favourite content with the convenience of a simple click.”
The first phase of the co-operation covers Australia, Austria, Belgium, Finland, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal , South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and Thailand.

Jamba in Opera Partnership

Mobile content and entertainment company Jamba, (also widely known as Jamster), has entered into a global partnership with Opera Software, which specialises in the development of web browsers for the desktop, device and mobile markets, to add the Jamba bookmark on Opera Mini's customized browser homepage. The service offers a wide range of mobile products, including music, games, video, graphics and applications.
As part of the partnership, the Opera Mini homepage now includes a Jamba bookmark, enabling users to access the Jamba mobile site with one click. Subscribers can subsequently view original web programming and discover a variety of entertainment content from major games publishers, as well as programming from Fox Mobile Entertainment Network, including ‘The Simpsons’, ‘24’, ‘Family Guy’, ‘NASCAR’, and ‘Dog Whisperer’.
“Users are not only becoming increasingly familiar with the idea of accessing the web with their phones, but also desire a rich mobile web experience, regardless of the device they use,” says Jamba COO, Kaj Hagros. “Our goal is to provide consumers the best branded and original mobile content across every conceivable platform, anywhere in the world. Opera Software is the only company that puts the web on any device, and was a natural partner for Jamba to extend easy, on-demand access to our premium content for customers across the globe.”
Opera brings full web content and images to any device, from computers and mobile phones to portable media players and game consoles, and has shipped more than 100 million installations since 2004. Almost 15 million people per month use Opera for web browsing on a mobile device.
“The web is going wireless,” says Tatsuki Tomita, VP of Consumer Products at Opera Software. “Our goal is to help everyone use their favourite websites or services, from any device. “Valuable partners like Jamba are crucial to this mission. The combination of our mobile distribution partnership with Jamba will ensure that mobile users get immediate access to their favourite content with the convenience of a simple click.”
The first phase of the co-operation covers Australia, Austria, Belgium, Finland, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal , South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and Thailand.

Distribution Hat-trick for blue mobile

Blue Systems, the London-based provider of global financial information software, has secured distribution agreements with Emitac Mobile Solutions (EMS), G.I.T.NET and Winterbotham Information Systems to provide blue mobile, its real-time market data application for Smartphones, to users across four continents.
The three agreements deliver blue mobile to end users in the Middle East and sub-Saharan African markets via its partnership with EMS; to users in Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) countries in Eastern Europe through GIT.NET; and to Latin America and the Caribbean via Winterbotham’s business services operation in Montevideo, Uruguay and Nassau, Bahamas.
blue mobile provides professional and retail investors with a fast, smart way to analyse global stock market information in their offices, at home, or on the move, 24/7. The application is data-hungry and runs only on the latest phones. Network operators are able to increase revenue from the adoption and upgrade of data tariffs and device manufacturers have a compelling and ‘sticky’ application with which to generate smart phone sales and upgrades. 
“We are delighted to be working with EMS, GIT.NET and Winterbotham, leaders in their respective markets,” says Blue Systems CEO, Sulim Malook. “We recognise the mutual benefits of partnering and the value that blue mobile can bring to their customers.”
Nader Henein, Solutions & Architecture Manager at EMS, Research In Motion’s first strategic channel partner, based in Dubai, adds:
“We know the network operators we work with across the Middle East and Africa are hungry for applications which help them sell data and BlackBerry handsets. blue mobile is a great application for customers who need to view financial information in real time, providing the perfect marriage between an industry that never sleeps and a technology that is always connected. We are very confident of demand for this service, particularly because it is keenly priced and customised for the Middle East’s financial sector.”
With coverage of over 100 global exchanges, blue mobile™ delivers real-time, delayed and historic data across the equities, fixed income, futures and options, currency, commodity, metals, energy and OTC markets, plus company news and financial information. Users can also benefit from intuitive analytics and charting options for informed decision-making.
Blue Systems notes that the low price point of blue mobile packages opens up real-time financial markets to non-professional users, who can register and download the software direct from the Blue Systems website.
Users can select content options to form a pre-bundled data package, including Dow Jones newswires and company financials, or tailored content from the company’s extensive catalogue of real-time data. With online facilities for exchange permissioning and payment, the website enables users to seamlessly set up, install and benefit from professional-grade market data.

Synchronica Acquires AxisMobile

Synchronica, which provides mobile email and synchronization solutions, is acquiring consumer mobile email specialist AxisMobile for $4.9 million (£2.6 million) in new Synchronica shares. Synchronica has also raised additional funds of $10million, from new and existing institutional investors, which brings the total funding secured in 2008 to $18 million. The company says the additional funds will be used to accelerate product integration and fuel the growth of the combined business in emerging markets such as China, Africa, the Middle East, Eastern Europe and Latin America.
The AxisMobile acquisition aims to make Synchronica the leading player in mass market mobile email and synchronization middleware for mobile operators and service providers. The addition of AxisMobile’s complementary technology, customer base and routes to market, combined with the injection of $10 million of additional funds, will enable Synchronica to provide mass-market mobile email solutions that work on more than three billion mobile phones in the market today.
AxisMobile’s consumer mobile email platform complements Synchronica’s award-winning Mobile Gateway software by adding ‘email to SMS’ and ‘email to MMS’ gateways, as well as a client-less solution for WAP/xHTML browser access. AxisMobile’s patented Optimizer email transcoding gateway also adds the ability to display a large variety of attachments such as Word, Excel and PowerPoint presentations on standard feature phone handsets that would otherwise be unable to support such functionality.
Synchronica says that the AxisMobile acquisition will also enlarge its footprint in emerging markets, by adding a strong sales force and key customer contracts in the relatively untapped areas of Eastern Europe, CIS and Russia, to Synchronica’s existing sales presence in the Middle East, Africa and Latin America. Currently AxisMobile has eight live customer installations with major mobile operators, predominantly in Central and Eastern Europe and China. Customers include  MTS, the largest mobile operator in Russia and CIS with 84 million customers; Megafon, a Russian mobile network operator with 34 million customers across 88 regions of the Russian federation, including its Moscow subsidiary Sonic Duo; T-Mobile; and E-Plus, Germany´s third largest mobile network operator with 13.6 million customers. AxisMobile has also secured contract wins with a leading Ukrainian mobile network operator, a further leading Tier 1 Russian mobile network operator, and a leading Swiss mobile network operator.
Forecasts point to emerging markets as a breakthrough area for mass-market mobile email. Informa predicts that there will be 4.81 billion mobile phone subscribers by 2012, with the next billion subscribers coming from emerging markets, where PC and fixed-line penetration is low.
“The fundraising and the acquisition of AxisMobile is a dramatic acceleration for Synchronica and I believe that it will build value for our shareholders,” says Synchronica CEO, Carsten Brinkschulte. “We aim to build a world leader in the market of consumer mobile email and synchronization solutions, and this acquisition is a key milestone that will improve our competitive positioning and accelerate our commercial growth. It will increase our ability to sell to customers, particularly to those in emerging economies, where we see the largest potential growth for mobile email and synchronization. With the fundraising and the acquisition of AxisMobile, Synchronica now has sufficient mass and funding to take advantage of the outstanding opportunity to exploit the commercial potential of mass-market mobile email.”
Synchronica’s Mobile Gateway delivers push email and mobile synchronization of calendar and contact data targeting consumer and business users with connectors to mass-market mailboxes such as Yahoo or Gmail as well as business mailboxes such as Microsoft Exchange or Lotus Domino. Mobile Gateway does not require users to install additional software on the handset or behind the firewall and instead uses the dominant open industry standards push IMAP and SyncML to synchronize the built-in email and PIM applications pre-installed on more than 1.5 billion handsets in the market. With the injection of AxisMobile technology, even the most basic phones will be able to send and receive email, further expanding the addressable market for Mobile Gateway in the consumer sector and in particular in emerging markets where low-end devices are dominating the market.

Is eCRM The Answer to Mobile Churn?

Andy Wood, Managing Director of data marketing company GI Insight, discusses the results of research carried out by the company that found that the mobile scores poorly when it comes to using electronic marketing channels to attract new customers

The mobile phone industry has historically experienced high levels of churn. Research from Pitney Bowes Group 1 Software found that churn was rising. In 2007 it found that churn levels in the industry stood at 38.6% compared to 33.4% two years earlier.
Strong brands are evidently having an effect, with the issue of content provision likely to be a key factor in churn patterns. 3G provision initially disappointed consumers, leading to massive churn. And network operators use attractive handset ranges and call plans to persuade customers to switch. 
Mobile penetration in Europe now exceeds 100%, with 666 million connections. Over 50% of penetration in Europe is accounted for by prepaid mobile phones and prepaid churn is on average three times higher than postpaid. The sector is so volatile, however, that this situation could easily be reversed.
With these heightened levels of competition, in part as a result of the credit crunch and an impending recession, now is the time to for the sector to re-examine channel strategies, whether for cross-selling or for affinity activity, to stay ahead of the competition and retain customers.
Our latest research assessed the marketing merits of e-CRM (communicating via e-channels such as email). Respondents rated the mobile sector as below average at e-CRM. It also revealed a very clear opportunity for email marketing, while highlighting the dangers of over-reliance on this channel.
Email marketing continues to receive mixed press. There are those who sing its praises, highlighting the low cost, and there are those that are wary of its true efficacy, citing huge spam levels as a reason why many people may not be welcoming of marketing messages in their inboxes.

Fun Text Rolls Out Virtual Gifts

Mobile messaging service provider Fun Text has announced the roll-out of virtual gifts on its peer-to-peer messaging services in the UK and the US, extending the phenomenon of giving virtual gifts from web-based social networks such as Facebook to the mobile world. The exclusive content, commissioned by Fun Text from award-winning mobile production studio Mobstar Media, is now available on major operators such as Sprint, T-Mobile and 3.
“We were delighted to team up with Fun Text to create a new messaging product that hits the zeitgeist of how modern consumers communicate,” says Dan Price, Head of Global Accounts at Mobstar. “We’re sure that the gifts will be a great success.”
Fun Text’s aim is to enable the sending of professionally-created multimedia content on mobile, which covers more than traditional greetings cards.
“Mobile messaging needs to stay relevant to a generation growing up on social networks and IM (Instant Messaging),” says Fun Text Business Development Director, James Pycock. “With millions of virtual gifts being sent on Facebook through applications such as ‘The Bakery’, we felt it was time to move mobile on from so-called mcards.”
Fun Text also drives rich media messaging through innovative business models such as the $3.99 (£2.15) unlimited MMS sending subscription available on Sprint in the US. Later in the year, the virtual gifts service will be opened up to sponsors. Fun Text has a track record in delivering ad-funded peer-to-peer messaging campaigns for Coca-Cola, Target and Smirnoff.

NSN and Ubidyne in Base Station Partnership

Nokia Siemens Networks (NSN), a global enabler of communications network solutions and services, and Ubidyne, which specialises in digital radio technology for the wireless industry, have agreed on cooperation to enhance NSN’s market-leading Flexi Base Station solution with Ubidyne’s active antenna product.
The active antenna technology integrates the functionality of the active radio frequency parts of a base station and a passive antenna into one enclosure. It is connected to NSN’s Flexi Base Station, running an OBSAI (Open Base Station Standard Initiative) interface.
The solution, based on a platform capable of supporting multiple standards, including GSM, WCDMA, LTE and WiMAX, protects operator investment and reduces OPEX by decreasing installation, site rental, maintenance and energy costs. Moreover, reduction of power consumption and visible base station equipment benefit living environment ecologically and visually.
“Nokia Siemens Networks is a forerunner in providing innovative solutions that bring tangible benefits to operators in form of reduced OPEX and CAPEX and increased performance,” says NSN Head of WCDMA Product Management, Tommi Uitto. “Along with this, Ubidyne’s innovative technology will add value to our customers as part of our leading Flexi Base Station solution including future features like beamforming. With this innovation, we are moving towards future base station concepts, in which active antennas are one architecture option.”
The solution is targeted at operators rolling out new 3G or LTE (Long Term Evolution) networks or enhancing their existing 3G networks, and those planning to gradually phase out GSM to make space for WCDMA/LTE.

Case Study: Mobile Voting to Raise Money for Good Causes

The Better Ireland Program is part of Irish bank, AIB’s Corporate and Social Responsibility strategy. AIB introduced the Better Ireland Programme six years ago in order to tackle the issue of social exclusion at an early stage and focuses its resources into key concerns affecting children in Ireland.
In May of this year, AIB was looking to re-fresh the Better Ireland Programme, and asked Dublin-based mobile marketing agency Púca to handle a text voting campaign. 275 AIB branches were each invited to nominate three children’s charities to receive a donation from the bank.
The three charities nominated by each branch were then put to a public vote to win a prize of €10,000 (£8,000) per branch. To vote, members of the public simply had to text the Branch name e.g. DUBLIN followed by shortlisted charity A, B or C to the shortcode, 53099.
In total, 308,011 text votes were received and 185 deserving charities received a total of €1.85 million (£1.5 million) in funding.
“This was Ireland’s biggest ever text voting campaign and really shows the power of the mobile medium,” says Púca Marketing and Communications Manager, Gráinne Ryan.

PTCRB Approval for Telit 3.5G Module

Telit Wireless Solutions, the Italy-based M2M (machine-to-machine) mobile technology arm of Telit Communications PLC, has revealed that its UC864-G module has been awarded PTCRB (PTS Type Certification Review Board) certification. PTCRB certification is an industry operator requirement needed to be met in order to sell GSM cellular communication products in selected European countries and the Americas. This is Telit’s first UMTS/HSDPA module to receive PTCRB certification.
The UC864-G is a 3.5G wireless data module designed to be fully compatible with GSM/GPRS, UMTS/HSDPA and EDGE cellular networks. This enables integrators and developers to design their applications only once and take advantage of the global coverage and service flexibility afforded by the combination of the two most prevalent cellular technologies worldwide. The PTCRB-certified UC864-G module offers a radio structure comprised of dual-band support to GSM/GPRS/EDGE and dual-band UMTS/HSDPA.
“This certification is the first step to bringing our entire UMTS/HSDPA product line to the North American market,“ says Telit Communications CMO, Dominikus Hierl. “This module increases functionality, while maintaining Telit’s core features of compact size, reliability and durability.”
Telit says that with its ultra-compact design, and extended operating temperature range, the UC864-G is the ideal platform for medium-to-high-volume M2M applications and mobile data and computing devices. The UC864-G is also fully backward compatible to existing EDGE and GSM/GPRS networks through quad-band radios. As with other Telit GSM/GPRS products, the UC864-G boasts a range of functions for over-the-air maintenance, management of firmware and application software in the module, and Jamming Detect & Report.

Visual Voice Mail for Verizon Customers

Verizon Wireless has introduced Visual Voice Mail, a new application that lets customers manage their voice mail on their phones. Available on the LG Voyager, Visual Voice Mail provides an easy-to-use display screen with one-touch access to listen to voice mail messages. Customers can also delete, reply and forward their voice mail messages without having to listen to prior messages or voice instructions.
The service is powered by Alcatel-Lucent and Comverse.  The Alcatel-Lucent 5150 Messaging Applications Broker (MAB)  provides enhanced notification and content delivery services for voice, text and video messages through an intuitive visual interface. Alcatel-Lucent is also providing network integration services for Visual Voice Mail. Comverse is supplying its InSight Next-Generation Voicemail Platform.
Visual Voice Mail allows customers to see a list of all of their voice mail messages with important information, such as date and time of receipt, as well as message duration, in order to prioritise and efficiently manage their voice mail messages directly from their phones. When a caller leaves a new voice mail message, the Visual Voice Mail application pops up, alerting the customer that a new voice mail message has been received. From the phone display, customers can select from a number of options, including call back, reply, forward, add to contacts, and archive message (to internal or external memory).
Customers can store up to 40 messages for 40 days – double the storage capacity and nearly double the retention time of Basic Voice Mail. In addition, customers can create up to 10 greetings, as well as up to 20 distribution lists and 50 distribution members to receive messages.
“Verizon Wireless recognises that voice mail plays a large role in how customers conduct business and manage the balance between their personal and professional lives,” says Verizon Wireless Executive Director for Marketing, Mike Willsey. “With Visual Voice Mail, we’re able to offer customers more options to help them better prioritise voice mail messages from family, friends, colleagues, and business partners in a more timely and effective manner.”
Verizon Wireless customers can find the Visual Voice Mail application on the Messaging menu under option 6 on their Voyager handsets. Visual Voice Mail is available for $2.99 (£1.60) per month, per line, plus airtime or megabyte charges and messaging fees, depending on a customer’s plan. Customers can take their Voyager phone to any Verizon Wireless Communications Store to receive the free software update. Verizon Wireless expects to offer Visual Voice Mail on additional devices in the coming months.

Nuance Snaps Up SNAPin

Nuance Communications has announced a definitive agreement to acquire privately-held SNAPin, which provides mobile device and server self-service technology, for $180 million (£97 million). With the strengths and resources of Nuance and SNAPin, the company says, the combined organization can deliver innovative, highly-scalable mobile customer care solutions that transform the way mobile operators and enterprises interact with consumers in real-time on mobile devices.
SNAPin is a pioneer in the field of on-device self-service and customer care, with patented technology that provides mobile operators with solutions that help subscribers automatically resolve common problems directly on their handset. Additionally, the software delivers interactive offers and promotions in a relevant, context sensitive way based on how the handset is being used in order to help mobile operators boost usage levels, increase revenue and enhance loyalty.
With this acquisition, says Nuance, it is uniquely positioned to address the significant global opportunity in customer care as it converges around the mobile phone as the primary consumer access point. Companies worldwide will employ more than 6 million agents and spend more than $100 billion in customer care in 2008. In addition, says Nuance, estimates suggest that more than 200 billion calls are placed into customer service numbers around the world every year. An estimated one-third of those calls are placed from mobile phones and the number is expected to grow to two-thirds before the end of the decade. A Nuance and SnapIN combination can deliver effective care for cents-per-call compared to agent-assisted calls that approximate $4.50 per call on average.
“The integration of Nuance’s mobile solutions and enterprise speech solutions allows Nuance to sharply reduce the costs of customer care and improve the quality of customer experience for mobile operators and large enterprises,” says Steve Chambers, President of Nuance’s Mobile and Consumer Services Division. “Leveraging the proliferation of mobile devices worldwide, Nuance’s solutions, combined with powerful technology from SNAPin, enable Nuance to deliver the economies of web-based self-service to the growing expanse of mobile consumers.”
By combining SNAPin’s key intellectual property, mobile expertise and established device and operator relationships with Nuance’s capabilities in customer care and handset solutions and longstanding mobile and enterprise relationships, says Nuance, the combined company is positioned to deliver superior mobile care solutions and fulfil a significant global opportunity that has captured the interest of the world’s largest mobile operators.
“We are excited to join Nuance, a dynamic company that shares our commitment to deliver innovative technology and compelling user experiences for the world’s mobile consumers,” says SNAPin President and Chief Executive Officer, Robert Lewis. “Joining Nuance will help accelerate the adoption of our mobile care technology by providing us deeper relationships with carriers and every major handset vendor, access to expansive complementary mobile technologies, broad intellectual property, deep mobile talent and experience from thousands of successful care implementations worldwide.”
Vodafone is one of the operators using SNAPin’s software to provide its customers with the ability to automatically resolve common requests, diagnose and repair configuration problems, make account inquiries and solve problems, direct from the handset.
“Delivering a superior customer experience at all touch points for our subscriber is key to how we acquire and retain loyal customers,” says Adam Spence, Group Self Service Development Manager for Vodafone Group. “We are excited by the joining of Nuance and SNAPin, as it reinforces our strategy to offer our customers the most innovative and powerful mobile self-service experience across all of our established and emerging markets.”
Nuance expects the acquisition in fiscal 2009 to add between $29 million and $32 million in non-GAAP revenue; $19 million and $22 million in GAAP revenue after adjusting revenue lost to purchase accounting; non-GAAP earnings between $0.01 and $0.02; and a GAAP loss between $(0.05) and $(0.06) including amortization and stock-based compensation.
SNAPin solutions are delivered through the handset in a revenue model based on the value of transactions or calls served on the handset. Nuance has experienced rapid growth in its mobile business for the last several years and now anticipates combined mobile revenues in Fiscal Year 2009 between $260 and $275 million.
Under the terms of the agreement, consideration for the transaction is approximately $180 million in Nuance common stock. SNAPin’s shareholders will be eligible for additional earn-out consideration based upon the achievement of certain financial and operational milestones. The transaction is expected to close in October 2008, subject to customary closing conditions and approvals, and is expected to be accretive in fiscal 2009.
You can see a demonstration of SNAPin’s solutions here.

Femtocells Under Scrutiny in Informa Report

Informa Telecoms & Media has released its report, ‘Mobile Broadband Access at Home: The Business Case for Femtocells, UMA and IMS/VCC Dual Mode Solutions'.
The report includes detailed and granular market forecasts to 2013, and offers an insight into deployment scenarios of femtocells, and alternative technologies to support different mobile network technologies. It incorporates in-depth trend analysis, independent case studies, and detailed operator and vendor profiles.
In the report, Informa says it expects the number of femtocells deployed by the end of 2013 to exceed the 40 million mark, with 22 million net additions in 2013 alone. This installed base, it believes, could help operators to offload up to 8% of total mobile traffic to fixed networks via the end-user subscriber line.
Clearly, says Informa, this could allow mobile operators to make significant savings by reducing the need to create additional macro-cell capacity to cope with this traffic. However, whether these savings materialise depends on a number of factors: the nature of the operator, the mobile access technology involved, the value proposition to the end-user, the region targeted, and the level of investments the operator has already made in upgrading its mobile network.
To handle the same amount of traffic carried by the 22 million femtocell deployments in 2013 would in theory require a $13.8 billion (£7.35 billion) investment in macrocell capacity. This is the potential sum, taking into account capital expenditure related radio access infrastructure, operational costs and the mobile backhaul cost required for adding new macrocells to handle a traffic capacity equivalent to this carried over the new femtocell installed base.
However, says Informa, this theoretical figure assumes operators have no spare capacity in their existing networks and that they have to build this capacity from scratch. In practice, when operators invest in widening the coverage of their networks, they systematically create capacity redundancies, probably enough to handle a big part of this traffic anyway. Assuming that 33% of the required capacity is provided by the existing macrocell coverage, then macrocell infrastructure expenditure investment required to handle that amount of traffic is likely to be closer to $9 billion, Informa concludes.
By comparison Informa estimates the capital expenditure related to implementing femtocell networks to support 22 million new net additions would cost the industry about $3.7billion, 85% of which goes to femtocell access points (FAPs). Thus, the industry could save $5.3 billion or more in network infrastructure costs if femtocell solutions are properly deployed using meticulous geographic network planning.
Savings could be higher, says Informa, depending on whether these devices are fully subsidised or not. Also, while there are potentials of savings in network expenditure when deploying 3.5G, WiMAX or LTE, this saving is less obvious for GSM/GPRS networks and WCDMA to a certain extent. However, this saving of $5.3 billion or more could be undercut by the cost of marketing and promoting FAPs and femtocell services. 
“Deploying femtocells requires a good understanding of market segmentation of both mobile consumer and household markets, meticulous planning and targeted marketing campaigns, which mean operators will have to invest substantial amount of money if they want femtocell services to gain popularity” says Malik Saadi, Principal Analyst and author of the report. “In addition, if femtocells are sold to customers in sporadic fashion via traditional mobile operators' channels, then this may induce a huge scattering of femtocell deployment over large areas. Not only will this make it hard to manage FAPs and related networks, but most importantly, this would mean the operator will not be able to make any CAPEX or OPEX savings.”
In order for femtocell networks to effectively substitute the capacity of macrocell networks, Informa concludes, they should be deployed in clusters; otherwise their implementation could add additional burdens in terms of both capital and operation investments.
Whether operators make savings in terms of capital and operational expenditure will depend considerably on the individual operator, the mobile access technology supported, and on the region and type of area targeted. This means that operators will have to find ways of increasing both revenues and ARPU from femtocell services in order to make femtocells profitable.
The report costs for a hard copy, £3,743 for a single-user licence PDF, or £4,990 for a hard copy plus single-user licence PDF. There’s more information here. And a table of contents here.

Rock The Vote in Mobile Move

Rock The Vote, which aims to engage and build the political power of young people in the US, has teamed up with AT&T and FunMobility to launch downloadable mobile content to help encourage young people to leverage their voting power in the political process. Rock The Vote’s mobile campaign, in partnership with AT&T, brings together popular music, artists and mobile technologies to engage today’s youth with the political process.
FunMobility has created a catalogue of made-for-mobile downloadable wallpaper, branded with the Rock The Vote logo, for mobile users to demonstrate their support in the upcoming election.
Exclusive Rock The Vote mobile election campaign content can be downloaded from the FunMobility’s FunScreenz application, on AT&T phones within AT&T MEdia Mall or online here. New creative content will be added to the storefront up until the election on 4 November.
“We know mobile content, whether it’s wallpaper from a historical Rock The Vote campaign or a ringtone from a supporting artist, encourages today’s youth to engage in the political process and show their support for the upcoming election,” says Todd Slagle, Director of Promotions for FunMobility. “Mobile content becomes a way of expressing yourself wherever you go.”.
FunMobility is donating 50 % of net revenue from the campaign to support Rock The Vote.”   
FunMobility’s direct-to-consumer website, FunMo.com, will power the Rock The Vote mobile storefront.  FunMo.com enables users to create graphics and animations to personalize their phones, connect with others within the mobile community, share mobile photos, and browse thousands of original wallpapers and ringtones.

Search On Tap

I’m fresh out of a meeting with Taptu CEO, Steve Ives, in which he gave me the low down on the company’s mobile search engine. Taptu is a consumer site which aims eventually to be a universal mobile search engine, but which is concentrating initially on the music and entertainment sectors, on the basis that in the US at least, 60% of operator portal searches are for music and entertainment content. Taptu works on any network and on any phone with a browser, though inevitably, there is a custom interface for the iPhone.
Ives invited me to load up the Taptu site on my Nokia E61 and search for a band I liked. I chose Interpol, partly because I like them, partly to see how many music results returned were for the band, and how many for the international police force. Though the top result was for the cops, the rest on the first page were all for the New York band. What was also impressive was the way that some of the results returned were music or video clips that you could play on the handset. 
Taptu launched just a few weeks ago, after building the number of searches per month to over a million in the pre-launch period, almost all through word of mouth and a limited amount of viral activity. Ives told me the company is aiming for 15 million searches per month by “later this year”. The biggest markets for Taptu are currently the US and the UK, followed by France, Germany, Italy and Spain. Together, these developed countries account for 50% of the site’s traffic, with the balance coming from the developing world.
While results are currently all organic, a paid search model will launch in the next couple of weeks. Taptu is working with three paid search providers, including AdMob. Ives says that in tests, the company is seeing an ECPM (Equivalent CPM) of $6 (£3.20) nett, after paying the platform provider. (This figure is arrived at by multiplying the average clickthrough rate by the revenue per click.)
I’m always interested to hear how companies get their names. Ives told me that Taptu came from a 5-letter dotcom name-generating program on a PC. The fact that Ives was happy to reveal this was no surprise. A product of the Cambridge tech crowd who has already made one fortune selling his previous company Trigenix to Qualcomm for $36 million (£19 million), Ives is a quietly-spoken, unassuming character who, along with his backroom team, have created a very neat search solution. I’ll be interested to hear whether the viral effect the company has enjoyed to date is sufficient to see it hit those search targets.

David Murphy
Editor

Cloudmark Warns Of "Mash-up" Attacks

Cloudmark, which provides carrier-grade messaging security, has warned of increased risk for converged operators from the online attacker community and urged service providers to review their security strategies to counteract the growing prevalence of attacks across multiple media, including mobile.
Cloudmark has observed online attackers using new, advanced threat techniques that combine attributes of spam, phishing and malware into a single attack, which is then distributed across a variety of media. These “converged threats” look for coverage gaps in traditional security solutions that are designed for a specific type of attack, such as a spam or virus outbreak over a specific medium like email.  However, because these new, “mash-up” type of attacks blend elements of spam, phishing and/or viruses into a single attack that is unleashed simultaneously across e-mail, mobile, web and social networks, they evade traditional security solutions. 
In order to combat the threat, Cloudmark is strongly advising service providers to look for security platforms that are threat-agnostic and able to automatically identify and stop attacks across multiple platforms.
As part of Cloudmark’s continual analysis of global threats, it has identified several examples of these “converged” attacks. These include ‘Smishing’, a recent trend in mobile phishing attacks which usually involves the use of VoIP phone number accounts obtained through e-mail phishing attacks as the call to action; modern e-mail viruses, which do not distribute viruses as an attachment, but instead, host the virus on a website and distribute emails that link to the website; and ‘Crush’ attacks. In one such recent attack distributed via SMS, email and social network communications, users were enticed to login to a webpage and unknowingly opt in to a premium-rate SMS service through their mobile operator.
“Convergence is everywhere, including in the online attacker community,” says Neil Cook, Head of Technology Services EMEA at Cloudmark. “To combat today’s threats, the only truly effective security solution is one that can stop all forms of abuse, from spam, phishing and viruses to advanced ‘converged’ attacks, across all media, from e-mail and mobile messaging to social networking sites. Only by sealing all potential gaps can service providers deploy new converged services with the confidence of knowing that both the platforms and subscribers are protected against today’s known abuses and tomorrow’s advanced threats.”

Siano in the Money

Mobile TV chip maker Siano Mobile Silicon has secured a third round of funding amounting to $17.5 million (£9.3 million). DFJ Tamir Fishman Ventures (DFJTFV), led the funding round, and was joined by all of the existing investors from previous rounds - JVP, Star Ventures, Walden Israel, Bessemer Venture Partners, and Inventec Appliances. Siano has now raised $52 million in three rounds of funding.
Over the past 12 months, Siano has expanded its footprint in the Asian Mobile TV market, opening offices in Korea and Japan, and launching its SMS1180 receiver chip in China, in support of the Chinese Mobile TV technology that is currently making its debut at the Olympics Games. Earlier in the year, Siano launched its latest multi-standard chip, the SMS1130, which added the support of ISDB-T, the Mobile TV broadcasting standard used in Japan and Brazil, to the mobile TV technologies supported already in previous products: DVB-T, DVB-H and T-DMB.
“The consumer market is now starting to fulfil the vision that gave birth to Siano back in 2004,” says Siano CEO Alon Ironi. “Namely that within just a few years, practically every single non-tethered consumer device with a colour LCD would include digital TV function. We are witnessing massive embedding of our products into a surprisingly wide range of devices, from mobile phones and notebooks to navigation devices, portable media players and even boom-boxes and digital photo frames. The new capital will help Siano expand its sales and customer support facilities worldwide, build adequate silicon inventory to match the increasing demand for its products, and continue developing state-of-the-art solutions for the mobile TV market.”

wMobile Version 1.8 Released

W-Systems Corp has announced the release of version 1.8 of its wMobile Mobile CRM product. wMobile is a mobile phone client for the GoldMine CRM system. The new version adds team-based graphical monthly, weekly and daily calendars to the application, displays equally well on any phone from BlackBerry, Windows Mobile, iPhone to Palm and, according to W-Systems President Christian Wettre, has “pushed the envelope of what is possible in mobile application”.
With the latest graphical team calendars, wMobile users can now interactively access any team member’s calendar via their mobile phone and with new dynamic time zone support, any user can specify the time zone they are operating in and have schedule activities translated on the fly to display in the context of their current location. There’s a short demo of wMobile’s group calendar functionality here.
“wMobile 1.8 illustrates a leap forward in the usability of mobile web applications,” says Wettre. “By offering a parity in user experience across all major phone operating systems, we are enabling our customers to freely choose the mobile phone device most suitable for their users, without concern for model and operating system obsolescence.”
wMobile recently completed its 200th customer installation last month. One of these customers, Kevin Reichley, Vice President of Sales for Ticomix Inc., says:
“With wMobile we have been able to fulfill a need for our small to mid-size customers to mobilize their CRM processes. The product sales cycle is very short because wMobile is inexpensive and provides great value, and implementation is quick and easy. I use wMobile to access my GoldMine daily, so it's a pleasure to endorse and sell a product that I really believe in.”
wMobile provides wireless mobile access to the popular GoldMine Corporation Edition and Premium Edition, and is compatible with Microsoft IIS Server 5.0 or higher, Microsoft .NET Framework and most mobile devices, including BlackBerry, Windows Mobile, Palm Treo, iPhone and Symbian based phones.
The application provides wireless interaction without synchronization, meaning that no data resides on the phone should it be lost or stolen. wMobile includes a number of innovative features such Proximity Contacts, which offers the ability to quickly identify all nearby contacts, such as customers and prospects. wMobile reduces the burden on organization IT resources by deploying mobile CRM as a server based web application with no application or data synchronization between server and mobile client.

Spin3 Seeks Mobile Millionaire

Spin3, which provides mobile gambling solutions, has launched a promotion for its mobile casino operators that it says may usher in the world’s first mobile millionaire. The Major Millions progressive slot game is around the £975,000 mark, and should a player win it on a mobile casino powered by Spin3 before the jackpot reaches a million, Spin3 will add the difference to the operator, who in turn will top the player up to a cool million.
A three-reel progressive slot machine, the Major Millions jackpot is synchronized in real-time with Microgaming’s progressive jackpot network. By placing a game-high £3 wager, players stand to win the progressive jackpot, which is won when three Major Millions symbols land on the third payline.
“We are very hopeful that we will see the first mobile millionaire very shortly,” says
Matti Zinder, Head of Spin3. “The market is ripe and now is the perfect time to usher in a new benchmark for mobile gaming. To this end, we have decided to top-up an operator to £1 million should their player win the Major Millions jackpot before the progressive ticker hits the million-mark.”
Major Millions can be played at several Spin3-powered mobile casinos, including 32Red, 777Mobile and Crazy Vegas.

Bebo Says Kane is Able

Social media network Bebo has appointed Sean Kane as Global Head of Mobile. In his new role, Kane will head the development of relevant and compelling mobile experiences for Bebo's 45 million plus users worldwide. Kane joins Bebo from mobile social networking platform provider Intercasting Corporation. Prior to this, he served as Senior Vice President, Business Development for Vivendi Universal Net.
“Mobile is emerging as a core part of the Bebo experience,” says Kane. “By driving availability and adding compelling and unique mobile experiences, we hope to make using Bebo Mobile as natural for our global user-base as connecting on a personal computer. We will ensure that our members can connect and enjoy the content, media and community Bebo has to offer in a mobile-relevant way.”
In recent months, Bebo has partnered with mobile operators to introduce programs to engage and entertain users wherever they are. In February 2008, Bebo further expanded its mobile offering and partnered with Intercasting to give its users a new way to produce and share content on their mobile phones via ANTHEM, a platform which connects mobile carriers with social networking sites and entertainment companies.

Transfer Talk

Juniper Research has released its final report in its Mobile Payment Markets’ series. The report, ‘Mobile Payment Markets: Money Transfers & Remittances 2008-2013’, looks at the existing and future opportunities for money transfers and remittances in mobile payment markets, focusing on critical industry developments and 6-year forecasts projecting global mobile user transaction numbers and gross value data for eight key regions.
With 37 tables and full colour forecast charts, the report combines a thorough appraisal and focus on the current market status, with forecasts until 2013. It considers how many mobile users will make money transfers over the next six years, and which will be the leading regions in the market in 2013. It also looks at the early usage experiences of companies providing these services, typical  typical transaction sizes, and at how often users will make mobile money remittances.
There are also in-depth case studies from companies in the money transfers market, and up-to-date market sector insight with forecasts, split by national and international status across eight key regions for transaction traffic; transaction size; transaction value; service provider revenues; subscriber take-up; and remittance user data. The report costs £1,750 for a single-user PDF or hardback copy; £2,500 for a multi-user licence; or £3,750 for an enterprise-wide licence.
There’s more information here. And a free Whitepaper here.

The Mobile Olympics

Stephen Dunford, CEO of mobile idle screen marketing company Celltick, considers the impact of mobile marketing at the Beijing Olympics.

The numbers say it all: the Beijing Olympics are looking like the most heavily-branded event the world has ever seen. Between 8 and 24 August, the world is tuning into Beijing. An estimated 8 million consumers will pass through the city to see the sporting pinnacle and immense cultural show that the Olympics have now become. With each Olympic Games host country striving to outdo the last, nobody is quite sure what to expect, but they are sure to see a spectacle never seen before.
Advertising at the Olympics will be overcrowded, to say the least. There are over 60 official Olympics sponsors targeting the 8 million visitors that the city is expecting while the Games are taking place. The anticipated global audience of 4 billion will be tuning into digital media coverage via TV, web and mobile before, during and after the event, in addition to experiencing brand outreach through official merchandising.

Voda Rolls Out More Stores

Vodafone UK says it plans to open a further 50 stores over the coming financial year, taking the total to 400, as part of its continued commitment to improve customer service and drive revenue.
The new stores will enable consumers to try out services such as mobile email and web browsing before making a purchase, and thus stimulate revenue. The expansion plans build on Vodafone’s announcement in March that it would be recruiting over 300 more retail employees to ensure customers get the help and advice they need to buy and use Vodafone’s products and services. These new stores will create approximately 200 additional roles in retail.
The new stores will start to appear on the high street and in shopping centres from September, starting with Bristol Cabot Circus and White City London in September and Liverpool One in October. It is planned that the majority of the new retail locations will be found, and work completed to turn them into stores by spring 2009.
“Vodafone UK is focused on ensuring that our customers get the best customer service experience possible on the high street,” says Vodafone UK Director of Consumer Sales, Tom Devine. “To deliver this we need to make sure that our customers and potential customers can speak face-to-face with a retail advisor at a town near them. This multi-million pound investment will bring our total number of stores to 400 and ensure we can not only meet, but surpass our customers’ expectations.”
Most of the new stores will follow the new store design template introduced in June 2006, which incorporates defined zones such as a ‘self-service’ area at the front of the store for products including phone covers and top-ups, as well as online self-help, while at the back of the store there will be a ‘pharmacy for phones’ where customers can receive advice on a phone or service. 
There will also be a distinct area for business customers, as well as sales pods with working handsets so customers can try live services.

Don’t Mention the ‘VoIP’ word

You can perhaps understand mobile operators running scared from mobile VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol), offering, as it does, free, or almost-free calls over the web from a mobile phone via wireless networks. But in a meeting with Aaron Powers, Head of Business Development at VoIP company Vyke Communications this morning, he told me the operators have got it all wrong.
“The operators are failing to address the fact that market is changing at fundamental level,” Powers told me. “They should be pursuing a strategy of enablement. Instead, you have situations like the one where Nokia launched the N95 in the UK, and Vodafone removed its VoIP capabilities, claiming they could help terrorists. Limiting consumer’s choices and fighting technological progress has yet to work out well for anyone in the long term.”
Companies like Vyke, with its wi-fi-focused mobile VoIP service and its operator independent SMS service, FreeTxT, are already taking business from the operators, Powers argues. That being the case, he says, what’s needed is a constructive approach. He notes that 87% of Vodafone’s revenues come from SMS and voice, and says that it is important to remember that an average of 64% of mobile calling minutes are made from the home or office, both places where wi-fi is commonly found. He feels that failing to address such an acute threat to a primary revenue stream is an error on the part of the likes of Vodafone.
Operators, he believes, should instead move to a wireless ISP model, replicating that of fixed-line ISPs, where they provide these basic services, along with customer billing, and allow specialist providers to offer value-added services, such as, of course, VoIP. That’s probably not a model any self-respecting network operator is in any rush to embrace, and Powers says he’s not wasting his time talking to them.
“We are 100 people, and the opportunity cost of cultivating those relationships is just too high,” he says. “We did it when we started out, and I could not have been less impressed. There’s a very long pitch process, and then you find the people you were pitching to have moved on and you have to start all over again.”
He does have a good word for one operator, however, describing 3’s Skypephone as the first signs of a constructive response to the VoIP threat from any network operator. Powers concedes that current mobile VoIP applications are perceived as fiddly and says the company is doing all it can to make its own apps as easy as possible to use. He’s enthused by the growth in the number of wi-fi networks, especially metropolitan networks such as those popping up in cities such as London, Manchester and Amsterdam. Vyke has a deal with The Cloud, allowing users to access Vyke’s mobile VoIP calling service for free from any of its 10,000+ wireless hotspots in Europe.
The company is also launching a b2b offering, working through systems integrators to get Vyke Mobile installed on corporate handsets. In this scenario, any concerns about the ease-of-use, or otherwise, of VoIP, would be neatly sidestepped. Apart from the fact that businesses could offer training to their employees on how to use the application, the costs savings would be such that they would simply be told that they must use it.
“Revenues from the b2b side could dwarf what we make from the consumer side, there is high demand for a low cost alternative to enterprise-sized mobile phone bills,” says Powers. The network operators may not like companies like Vyke very much, but they have better get used to them, because they’re not going to disappear.

David Murphy
Editor

Adaptive Urges Mobile Broadband Rethink

AdaptiveMobile, which provides mobile subscriber protection for enterprises and individuals, is recommending that mobile operators carefully consider their international mobile broadband strategies.
This follows the European Union’s threat to impose legal measures to make operators cut the amount they charge their mobile broadband customers for roaming on overseas networks, which has made some operators consider banning all customers from downloading data through their mobile broadband service while abroad to avoid getting involved in a high-profile legal wrangle.
However, AdaptiveMobile argues that operators taking a simplistic view to blocking subscribers’ mobile broadband usage while abroad run the risk of losing the significant revenues promised by mobile broadband subscribers willing to pay for a high-quality roaming service.
“Whilst operators understandably don’t want to be perceived as trying to unfairly glean excess revenues from unwitting subscribers while abroad, taking a ‘one size fits all’ approach, blocking their usage while abroad will result in them losing very significant revenues, at a time when you would expect them to be looking to maximise their 3G network investments,” says AdaptiveMobile COO, Gareth Maclachlan. “Even though there is the suggestion that subscribers would be able to lift the block, for a high proportion, this would be too disruptive and operators would never maximise their average revenue per user (ARPU).”
Maclachlan believes that operators need to take better control of their network assets, so that they can offer a bespoke service to each user on a case-by-case basis.
“In this way, they can not only control subscribers’ mobile broadband usage in the UK and abroad, but also the type of content that is being delivered over their network to the user, in terms of blocking spam and viruses, and in the case of vulnerable users, inappropriate or intimidating messages and imagery,” he says. “They should also make steps to better protect roaming users from unnecessary data usage, such as application and operating system updates, which can be upto 500Mb in size and in many cases are downloaded without user knowledge.
“In a competitive European market, where operators are increasingly trying to differentiate their service and the many millions of corporate subscribers are becoming increasingly international, operators surely have no choice but to ensure they maximise all mobile broadband revenue opportunities whilst offering subscribers the best possible service,” he concludes.
AdaptiveMobile’s Policy Control Framework is used by Tier 1 mobile operators globally, sits on the network and protects subscribers against illegal or inappropriate content, unsolicited or unauthorised communications, preventing it reaching the network. It works across all mobile services (WAP, SMS, MMS, email), all forms of access (mobile, wi-fi, WiMax) and media, including mobile Internet, text, images, music, voice and video. Mobile operators globally are using the Policy Control Framework to respond to regulatory pressures, provide Parental Controls and extend corporate security policies through to mobile devices.

Airwide Engineer Recalls First Text

The engineer who was responsible for delivering the first ever text message in December 1992 has responded to Ofcom's ‘Communication Nation’ report, released today, which shows that people in the UK are spending more time using communications services than ever before.
The report shows that in 2007 we spent an average of 7 hours and 9 minutes a day using an array of communications services - up by 6 minutes from 2002. This includes watching TV, surfing the net, using our mobiles, talking on a landline phone and listening to the radio.
Mobile and Internet use has increased by the greatest amount. Between 2002 and 2007 the time we spent talking and texting on our mobiles doubled, up from 5 minutes to 10 minutes each day. Meanwhile, time spent on PCs and lap-tops has grown fourfold between 2002 and 2007 - from 6 minutes to 24 minutes per person every day.
By the end of 2007, there were almost 74 million mobile connections serving a population of 60 million in the UK. This was an increase of 3.7 million connections since the end of 2006. The total number of mobile connections increased by 48% in the five years from 2002.
Seven out of 10 people with a mobile phone and a landline use their mobile to make calls, even when they are at home. One in 10 people with a landline at home said that they never use it to make calls.
The report also found what most people already know: we are a nation of texters. In the UK, nearly 60 billion text messages were sent in 2007 - an increase of 36% since 2006 and up by 234% since 2002, when we sent 17 billion texts. The average mobile phone user sent 67 texts per month from each mobile in 2007, compared to 53 texts per month in 2006.
Back in December 1992, Neil Papworth  was working as a test engineer for Airwide Solutions, who sent that first text message, saying ‘Happy Christmas’ over the Vodafone network. Still employed by Airwide, as Principal Software Engineer, Papworth said today:
“I was a young engineer working on new communications technologies. We thought SMS was a clever way for a company’s staff to send simple messages to one another. I’d never have predicted that it would spread into the consumer world and become what it is today. At the time it didn’t seem like a big deal.”
Jay Seaton, Chief Marketing Officer at Airwide Solutions, adds:
“Text messaging has come a long way since 1992. What started off as a clever and innovative internal communications tool has become a huge revenue-generating tool for mobile operators worldwide.We are still seeing SMS volumes continue to increase, particularly in countries with developing mobile networks, such as the Middle East, Eastern Europe, North Africa and parts of Asia. Not only do we expect this growth to continue well into the future, but SMS will be one of the underpinning technologies that drives many new uses beyond person-to-person texting.”

Survey Highlights Mobile Content Issues

Valista, which provides digital commerce software and managed services, has released the results of a survey conducted at the Building Blocks 2008 conference held last week in San Jose, California. Over 86% of the industry insiders interviewed believe that it should take less than a month to launch new mobile content and services with an operator. This expectation is far from reality, however, as 80% of respondents stated that it actually takes three to nine months to introduce new mobile content and services.
The Valista survey also found that the mobile industry is not taking advantage of customer loyalty programs as a way to encourage consumers to buy more downloaded content. Surprisingly, none of the respondents said that they use any form of loyalty scheme as an incentive to increase content purchasing or encourage repeat buyers. Over 70% of those surveyed, however, use other promotional methods to entice customers to buy more content and services, including discounts, free trials and product bundling. The survey confirmed an increasing preference for putting charges on the mobile bill. Over three quarters of respondents believe that mobile customers today pay for content and services through their monthly bill, with 9% believing credit and debit cards are still widely used. Only 7% of those surveyed believe that Premium SMS is still the primary mode of payment for mobile content purchases.
Conversely, over 78% of respondents said that broadband customers today still use credit/debit cards and Paypal to pay for digital content and services. This figure shows that the market is still largely dependent on the use of credit/debit cards for broadband content and service purchases, with less than a quarter of respondents believing the monthly bill and ad-support are other methods used to acquire content and services in the broadband channel.
Regarding which channel will experience the highest growth for content purchases in the next two years, respondents were split almost evenly with 51% believing in the broadband/cable channel and 48% predicting mobile.
The survey also asked industry insiders for their views on payments via Near Field Communications (NFC). Those polled remain sceptical about NFC becoming a reality, with more than half of the respondents stating that it will take over five years for contactless mobile payments to be widely used. This is consistent with a recent report by Juniper Research, which said that NFC mobile wallet devices will remain limited in the next couple of years except in the Far East, particularly in Japan where the technology is already widely used. The Juniper Research report predicts that by 2013, one in five phones will have NFC. 
“It’s clear that the mobile industry is looking for more streamlined ways to manage content and services,” says Valista CTO, Fran Heeran. “It can typically take months to introduce new mobile content and services across all the carriers. This clearly needs to change, as content and services lose relevancy with each passing month and some content is never considered because of the production time. Mobile service and content providers need to be able to react to the market quickly and provision new mobile content and services in a more dynamic fashion.”