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Ofcom helps protect customers against unexpected roaming charges

Ofcom helps protect customers against unexpected roaming charges

UK service providers must notify customers when they connect to a different network

New rules from UK telecoms regulator Ofcom will protect customers when they use their mobile phone on a foreign network. In addition, customers will be alerted if they are inadvertently roaming, perhaps because they're near an international border.
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Global smartphone market is set for recovery, says new forecast

A new forecast from research specialists Canalys shows the smartphone market is set to recover next year. Worldwide shipments declined by 12% last year but that decline is expected to slow to 5% this year.
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Vodafone and Three plan to merge their UK businesses

Vodafone and Three plan to merge their UK businesses

New Hutchison/Vodafone network would be biggest UK operator

Vodafone Group plc and CK Hutchison Group Telecom Holdings Limited have agreed to combine their UK telecommunication businesses, respectively Vodafone UK and Three UK. The merger will create a large new network operator to compete with Virgin Media O2 and EE.
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UK mobile payment service Paym to close in March 2023

UK mobile payment service Paym will close on 7th March 2023. The service, which allowed users to make and receive payments using their mobile phone numbers, was launched in 2014.
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Qualcomm legal action moves forward in the UK

Qualcomm legal action moves forward in the UK

Which? seeks payout for Samsung and Apple smartphone owners

Consumer protection organisation Which? has been given permission by the UK's Competition Appeal Tribunal to represent Apple and Samsung smartphone buyers in a legal case against chip manufacturer Qualcomm.
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Opinion Articles

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Never mind iPhone 5, it's the Apple iPad 3 that could change the world

Mark Bridge writes:

I like a bit of competition. It can encourage innovation, whether it’s NASA’s moon landings or Formula 1’s telemetry. And it can be entertaining to watch, from Premiership football to the Tour de France.

It’s one of the reasons the mobile industry still excites me. Although the frenzied growth of the 1990s is gone, there are still many competing forces.

iOS versus Android versus webOS versus BlackBerry versus Windows Phone versus…

Samsung vs Nokia vs LG vs Apple vs RIM vs…

Vodafone v O2 v Everything Everywhere v Three…

In the midst of this competition, Apple appears to be edging ahead. The company has just reported sales of over 20 million iPhones and profits that are up 125% from last year.

Despite this, I don’t think the future is looking good for the Apple iPhone.

Smartphone sales are increasing worldwide, which means Apple’s share of the smartphone market hasn’t increased as dramatically as you might think.

Google says it’s currently activating 550,000 Android devices every day. That’s the equivalent of 200 million in a year (or 50 million in a quarter, if you prefer). The iPhone may be racing up the smartphone sales chart but its operating system isn’t at the top.

Then there are the legal battles. Not only is Apple involved in legal action with a number of manufacturers, it’s also seeing its application developers coming under attack.

What can it do?

Let me offer a suggestion.

It’s not going to stop selling the iPhone. Nope, the iPhone 5 (or whatever the next-generation iPhone is called) will happen. It’ll be popular. But, as every phone starts to become a smartphone, the desirability of an Apple phone will wain.

Instead, Apple will focus on the iPad. The iPad is already generating more revenue for Apple than the Mac computer. It doesn’t have much competition. In fact, I’d suggest that rival devices - the Samsung Galaxy Tab, the BlackBerry PlayBook, the HP TouchPad - are also helping to sell the iPad.

And because the iPad isn’t a mobile phone, Apple may not face the same patent-related challenges it’s suffered with the iPhone.

Do I know what I’m talking about?  Not necessarily. But here’s what I’m thinking.

First came the iPhone. Next, the iPhone 3G - cheaper and faster, but not much smarter. Then came the higher-spec iPhone 3GS, followed by the iOS4 update and the fresh design of the iPhone 4.

The second-generation iPad wasn’t cheaper than the original, but it was slimmer and faster. Which makes me think iPad 3, along with iOS version 5, will be a significant upgrade.

Apple’s not a mobile phone manufacturer. It’s an innovator. And the tablet format offers plenty of opportunities.

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Recent Podcasts

Mobile industry predictions for 2015, from smartphones to spectrum

Podcast - 17th December 2014

The Fonecast predicts 2015: Iain Graham, James Rosewell and Mark Bridge gather round a sapphire crystal ball and make their forecasts for the next 12 months in the mobile industry.

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Takeovers, break-ups, national roaming, dubious advertising and the death of the landline

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BT talks to O2, Nokia and Jolla announce new tablets, Apple Watch developers get started... and Ofcom plans for more mobile capacity

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In this week's podcast we're talking about the potential purchase of the O2 UK mobile network by BT.

We also discuss new tablets from Nokia and Jolla, the end of a patent battle, mobile payments via instant messaging, app development for the Apple Watch and plans to make even more spectrum available for mobile broadband in the UK .

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The week's UK mobile industry news, including BlackBerry, TalkTalk, 4G data and much more

Podcast - 19th November 2014

Time for another podcast presented by Iain Graham, James Rosewell and Mark Bridge. They begin this week's programme by talking about the latest enterprise-friendly developments from BlackBerry.

Next comes a new survey from Ofcom about the UK's 4G data speeds, followed by news about TalkTalk's MVNO deal with Telefonica, the growth of WiFi in the home and a report from AVG about social media sapping smartphone performance.

Author: The Fonecast
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