Latest Podcast



Featured Articles

Monday, December 3, 2012

Last week at The Fonecast: 3rd December 2012

Innovation, legislation and anticipation

Mark Bridge writes:

As the end of the year approaches, so the volume of ‘real news’ tends to reduce as it’s replaced by annual reviews and seasonal surveys. We’ll be joining in with our predictions for 2013 in a few weeks’ time... but first, here’s a look back at the biggest stories from the past seven days.

Nokia started the week by launching the Nokia Asha 205; a featurephone with a QWERTY keyboard and a dedicated Facebook button. It’s not the first ‘Facebook phone’ – I’d say 2008’s INQ1 took credit for that – but the presence of a physical Facebook key marks it out from the competition.

Musician, entrepreneur and technology lover will.i.am also had a product launch this week. The i.am+ foto.sosho (think ‘photo social’) fits on an iPhone 4 or 4S and offers a choice of different lenses as well as photo editing and sharing. Apparently the forthcoming iPhone 5 version will replace the camera sensor entirely.

In Spain, the country’s three main mobile network operators launched cross-network Rich Communication Services through the GSMA’s joyn brand, while Chevrolet in the USA planned to let Apple’s Siri voice-control technology link with its in-car entertainment system.

And dear old RIM maintained its “please wait for BlackBerry 10” campaign by releasing a new prototype device for application developers. Mind you, it also lost a patent ruling that could see Nokia blocking the sale of BlackBerry handsets in the UK, the USA and Canada. I’m expecting a licensing agreement before too long.

In addition, there was bad news for two men who’d run a UK marketing company called Tetrus Telecoms. Sending spam SMS messages resulted in them being fined a total of £440,000 by the UK Information Commissioner’s Office.

Finally to some of those end-of-year stories I mentioned. Business advisory firm Deloitte LLP has calculated that around £300 million of Christmas spending in the UK will be bought on smartphones, with a further £3.2 billion ‘influenced by’ smartphone use. Mobile search specialist Mobile Commerce has analysed the year’s top mobile search terms (Facebook, Google, YouTube) and the music tagging magicians at Shazam have used their technology to predict next year’s hits. Curiously, no-one from X Factor is on the list.

Receive a weekly reminder of the biggest mobile industry news headlines by email every Monday morning. Simply register at TheFonecast.com by clicking the link at the top right-hand corner of our home page.
Print
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Rate this article:
No rating

Leave a comment

This form collects your name, email, IP address and content so that we can keep track of the comments placed on the website. For more info check our Privacy Policy and Terms Of Use where you will get more info on where, how and why we store your data.
Add comment

Opinion Articles

Is Android losing its impact for Google?

Mark Bridge writes:

Recent figures released by ABI Research have prompted the market intelligence company to ask whether Google is losing control of the Android ecosystem.

At first glance, Android dominated smartphone shipments for the final quarter of 2013. ABI Research says 77% of the 287 million smartphones shipped in Q4 2013 were running Android.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

It’s time to prepare for the upcoming surge in signaling traffic

Robin Kent writes:

After initially suffering from slow pick up by consumers, 4G has begun to accelerate, and is now well on the way to the forecasted one billion subscribers by 2017. In fact EE, owner of T-Mobile and Orange, recently announced the addition of 493,000 new 4G customers to its existing base of 1.2 million.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

Mobile phone coverage: is this as good as it gets?

Mark Bridge writes:

A new report has highlighted the issue of poor mobile phone coverage in rural Sussex villages. BBC Sussex invited me onto their ‘Sussex Breakfast’ radio show to explain what could be done - and, as usual, I made enough notes for a lecture rather than a three-minute interview.

Here’s what I would have liked to have said if I’d been given a disproportionate amount of time to talk.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

Last week at The Fonecast: 27th January 2014

Expecting the unexpected

Mark Bridge writes:

Great news for mobile phone users. Ofcom’s new rules preventing unexpected mid-contract price rises came into force last week, which means UK consumers can no longer be surprised by their subscription charge increasing while they’re still locked into a minimum-term deal.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

Ofcom changes the rules for mobile phone contracts... and so does O2

Mark Bridge writes:

This week, new Ofcom rules came into force. They’re designed to avoid unexpected price rises during the minimum term of a mobile phone contract. Yes, just because you signed a fixed-term contract doesn’t mean the charges can’t increase. Networks said they needed this option in case of inflation or regulatory changes. Customers felt trapped.

Author: The Fonecast
7 Comments
Article rating: No rating
RSS
First567810121314Last

Recent Podcasts

Reviewing our 2015 mobile industry predictions... and looking forward to 2016

Podcast - 15th January 2016

Iain Graham, James Rosewell and Mark Bridge return to review their mobile industry predictions from last year. Which mergers, partnerships and developments did they forecast correctly... and which didn’t work out as planned?

Later in the programme, the team anticipates some of the topics that will be hitting the headlines during 2016.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

Podcast from Mobile World Congress 2015

Podcast - 6th March 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.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

Looking back at February: from security scares to multiple MVNOs

Podcast - 27th February 2015

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.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

Interview with Chris Millington of Doro about mobile retailing, wearables and technology for older consumers

Podcast - 24th February 2015

In today's programme Mark Bridge talks to Chris Millington, who's Managing Director for Doro UK and Ireland.

They discuss the state of mobile retailing in the UK, the future of wearable devices and - as you might expect - smartphones for seniors.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

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

Podcast - 30th January 2015

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.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating
RSS
1234567810Last

Follow thefonecast.com

Twitter @TheFonecast RSS podcast feed
Find us on Facebook Subscribe free via iTunes

Archive Calendar

«April 2024»
MonTueWedThuFriSatSun
25262728293031
1234567
891011121314
15161718192021
22232425262728
293012345

Archive

Terms Of Use | Privacy Statement