Categories
Close
Menu
Menu
Close
Search
Search

Featured Articles

Opinion

Last week at The Fonecast: 26th September 2011

Mark

Share:

Print

Rate article:

No rating
Rate this article:
No rating

Mark Bridge writes:

Welcome to a summary of last week’s mobile industry news from TheFonecast.com.

The biggest mobile-flavoured story from the past seven days was probably HP’s replacement of its president and CEO. Léo Apotheker is out after less than a year, replaced by former eBay CEO Meg Whitman. It’s not likely to affect the company’s plans for webOS tablets and phones… but it’ll be interesting to see what Ms Whitman does next.

More headline-grabbing news came from Facebook, which introduced a ‘Timeline’ feature that’ll let users display every aspect of their lives in a… well, a timeline, really. You’ll be able to fill your timeline automatically via ‘social apps’ on your desktop and mobile devices – from the music you play and the newspaper you read to the shopping you buy and the exercise you do. Somehow, I think a few people may be caught out by this.

Sticking with new products and services, Google Wallet went live (but only for US-based customers at the moment), Orange added a bada-powered smartphone to its 'Quick Tap' mobile payment service and Bambuser introduced a Google Map mash-up for its live broadcasts. Not quite so new was the introduction of MMS photo uploading to Twitter; the micro-blogging provider was very proud of it, despite Orange UK having introduced its own MMS tweeting service two years ago.

Under the ‘not-so-good’ heading last week we heard Ofcom say that complaint numbers from Three UK customers are rising. (No, not three customers but Three customers). The NPD Group revealed that 82% of smartphone users had no security products on their phones. UK virtual network Desi Mobile closed within a year of launch. And the Emporia Telme phone for older users was hit by a European injunction from rival Doro.

At the other end of the age range, internet security company Westcoastcloud had been looking at younger users. They reckon one in ten children under the age of 10 now owns an iPhone, with one in twenty children owning an iPad. Perhaps there’s an entire audience demographic we’re missing here at TheFonecast.com. Maybe we ought to ditch the podcast theme tune and replace it with Igglepiggle’s song instead.

Bye bye, everybody, bye bye.

Stay ahead of the crowd by receiving this weekly news summary from TheFonecast.com by email. Simply click the ‘register’ link at the top right-hand corner of our website and enter your details.

If you use an iPod, iPhone or iPad, it’s easy to find our weekly mobile industry podcasts on iTunes. Click here to subscribe... or search for ‘The Fonecast’ in the iTunes store.

Comments

Collapse Expand Comments (0)
You don't have permission to post comments.

Opinion Articles

ExclusiveRIM boss ignores the questions when asked about BlackBerry difficulties and competitors

Mark Bridge writes:

Live TV and radio interviews. They can be worrying things, even when you’re not expecting to be challenged too much. I know this from experience. So when your company is launching a much-delayed operating system, you’d expect a few difficult questions… and you’d be ready with a response.

The official response of RIM is apparently to ignore the questions.

ExclusiveMobile phones transform lives in Africa

Jennifer Lazuta of voanews.com writes:

Rene Mendy, a street vendor in Dakar, has never had enough money to open a bank account. But now, thanks to an emerging mobile phone banking service, he has access to many financial services.

ExclusiveLast week at The Fonecast: 28th January 2013

Mark Bridge writes:

I didn’t study economics at college, which is probably one of the reasons I have a very simple perspective on quarterly results. As far as I’m concerned, they fall into one of three categories: much as expected, better than expected or worse than expected. Anyway, it’s the time of year when some of the biggest names in the mobile telecoms industry publish their financial results – so here we go.

ExclusiveBringing personalised radio to your smartphone

Mark Bridge writes:

Targeted advertising on mobile devices is something we’re all getting increasingly familiar with. Visit a web site and there’s a good chance you’ll see an advertisement that’s aimed directly at you, perhaps using information about the sites you’ve previously visited, the type of smartphone you’re using or even your location.

Yet listen to the radio or stream music on your smartphone and that same level of personalisation hasn’t been aavailable. That’s all changing now, with help from a new service called UTuneMe.

Why Huawei should get out of the mobile handset market

ExclusiveWhy Huawei should get out of the mobile handset market

James Rosewell writes:

Huawei is a company one can’t miss at Mobile World Congress. They bring their own building!  Plus last year a wonderful “Pegasus” flying horse sculpture made using Ascend handsets was proudly displayed next to the main fountain to hail the launch of the Ascend series of handsets.

Huawei has been busy following MWC12. They now run major parts of Everything Everywhere, Three and O2’s network in the UK. On a less positive note they’re not welcome in the US.

But how has the devices side of the business performed?

RSS
First2324252628303132Last

Recent Podcasts

ExclusivePodcast from Mobile World Congress 2015

Mark Bridge learns about the mobile technology trends at Mobile World Congress 2015 by chatting to James Rosewell of 51Degrees, Dr Kevin Curran from the IEEE and Chris Millington of Doro.

They talk about wearable devices, wireless charging, mobile operating systems and much more... including some of their favourite products from the exhibition.

ExclusiveLooking back at February: from security scares to multiple MVNOs

We're taking a look back at the biggest mobile industry news stories from February 2015, including allegations that the UK's security service tried to breach SIM card security by hacking into one of the world's biggest SIM producers.

We also talk about the planned BT and EE merger, the creation of two new UK virtual networks, some acquisitions in the mobile payment arena and a new Ubuntu smartphone.

ExclusiveA month of mobile: O2 counts on 3, Microsoft counts to 10 and Apple counts its profits

We're back with a month of mobile industry news, including takeover talks and takeover rumours. O2 and Three are said to be discussing a merger... but is there any truth in the suggestions that BlackBerry could be up for grabs?

We also discuss Apple's record-breaking quarterly figures, the highlights of CES and the launch of Microsoft Windows 10, as well as saying farewell to the current version of Google Glass.

RSS
12345678910Last

Follow thefonecast.com

Archive Calendar

«May 2026»
MonTueWedThuFriSatSun
27282930123
45678910
11121314151617
18192021222324
25262728293031
1234567

Archive