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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

Monday, November 15, 2010

How we could use mobile technology to destroy personal privacy

Mark Bridge writes:

Head to any major city, look around and you’ll see tourists recording their visit. Some have cameras, some have phones, some are shooting video, some may even be writing postcards.

It’s the same kind of scene when you go to a concert. The performer on stage will be looking at a sea of blue faces, all illuminated by their smartphones. This, I reckon, could be the beginning of the end of privacy.

Once upon a time you needed to go home and upload your photos, video and audio to share them. Not any more. Phones can upload straight to Facebook and Flickr, while video sharing from Bambuser and Qik – along with audio sharing from the likes of iPadio – can put your life online almost instantly. However, there’s a catch. This mobile technology isn’t just sharing a single life. It’s sharing a little piece of everyone you encounter.

And d’you know what?  Most of us don’t care. We don’t care because we’re told this is normal. Google photographs our houses. They make the valid point that it’s public data, that anyone can photograph your home. It’s what the police say on TV’s Road Wars pretty much every week. “Ignore the camera, it’s a public place, they’re allowed to film us”. Facebook Places lets advertisers know where I am. I can opt out, so where’s the big deal?

The big deal comes when you start adding this together. The big deal comes when everyone does this.

Let’s say I have a mobile phone with unlimited UK calls. That could let me stream everything I say to the internet. Everything. And everything anyone says near me. An unlimited data bundle or a high enough allowance would let me do the same with images. A video camera on my glasses – or on my Bluetooth earpiece – and everyone I meet gets broadcast on the internet. Never mind “your calls are being recorded for training purposes”. Your conversation is being recorded simply because I can. Add some face recognition software – something like Google Goggles – and I’m tagging or mapping everyone I meet. You can opt out of online services but, unless you opt out of meeting people, you’ll still be all over the internet.

Not a particularly cheery picture, some would say. I’m inclined to agree. Fortunately, not unlike the aliens in HG Wells War of the Worlds dying after catching a cold, salvation for humanity may come from an unlikely direction. Most mobile phone batteries can’t currently handle more than a couple of hours of streaming. And even when they can, we just need to wear sunglasses to avoid being recognised. Or perhaps we’d avoid online embarrassment by suffering a little real-world embarrassment and wearing a clown’s nose. That would fool the face recognition software… and it might also make the world seem a much friendlier place!

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Recent Podcasts

Trends, tablets and training with Faisal Sheikh from Fone Doctors

Podcast - 22nd June 2012

Iain Graham visits Faisal Sheikh of London-based Fone Doctors in today's audio feature.

They talk about the recent Fone Doctors relocation to new offices near London Bridge and Faisal's plans for a franchise outlet at Liverpool Street station before moving on to discuss training, customer service, the rise of the tablet and the demise of customer service.

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Microsoft makes tablets while Nokia makes cuts

Podcast - 20th June 2012

This week's mobile industry news podcast starts with two very different stories from Nokia and Microsoft: one is announcing closures, the other is expanding its manufacturing.

We also find time to talk about roaming tariffs, mobile money, intelligent vending machines and a handful of recent mobile-related acquisitions.

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Apple previews iOS6, Vodafone goes roaming and Xbox gets mobile

Podcast - 13th June 2012

In this week's mobile industry news podcast we're looking at Apple's new mobile operating system, Vodafone's money-saving European tariff and Microsoft's plans to expand the reach of its Xbox gaming console.

There's also talk about network sharing, legal battles, mobile apps, mobile payments and mobile retailing.

Author: The Fonecast
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Over The Air 2012

Podcast - 9th June 2012

James Rosewell reports from Over The Air 2012 in today's podcast.

The event, which took place on 1st and 2nd June 2012 at Bletchley Park, attracted around 600 mobile developers and designers to celebrate all things mobile.

Author: The Fonecast
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Podcast - 6th June 2012

We're taking a break from the current mobile industry news headlines this Diamond Jubilee week. In fact, we're celebrating our own anniversary because it's six years since we first started recording The Fonecast.

Listen to this week's podcast and we'll take you back to 2006, a year in which 'mobile music' meant ringtones, the Nokia N95 redefined 'smart' and we reported rumours of a new Apple 'iPod phone' being prepared by Foxconn.

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