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Wednesday, January 19, 2011

What difference will the Amazon and LOVEFiLM deal make to the mobile industry?

Mark Bridge writes:

If you’ve read any of the tech press today you’ll have seen that Amazon.com is buying LOVEFiLM. Yes, that really is how the company writes its name. Amazon already had quite a collection of LOVEFiLM shares, so it’s really just buying the remainder.

LOVEFiLM, in case you’ve missed the TV ads and online promotions, does DVD rental by post and also streams video over the internet. Oh, and it does games rental as well.

Needless to say, both companies have issued statements saying how great it is for them and their customers. “We look forward to a productive and innovative future”. “We can significantly enhance our members’ experience across Europe”.

But what does all this mean to the mobile industry?

Well, Pocket-Lint.com has interviewed LOVEFiLM CEO Simon Calver and Amazon VP of EU retail Greg Greeley in an article headlined “Lovefilm and Amazon to bring movies to your phone”. Although neither man explicitly says they’re planning this, it certainly seems an obvious next move for the online side of the business.

In fact, if you’ve been following the LOVEFiLM Twitter feed, you’ll know that just yesterday the company Tweeted “We have a number of exciting developments underway for mobile devices in 2011, more news available soon” in reply to a question.

However, the idea of streamed movies on smartphones – as opposed to downloads – raises the usual questions about data. LOVEFiLM (the novelty of that lower case i is starting to wear thin!) says an average video stream over your home broadband will transfer approximately 500MB of data for a 90 minute film. That’s your entire T-Mobile ‘fair usage’ allowance for a month.

Is that realistic for mobile devices?  Well, US-based video streaming service Netflix – arguably one of the reasons Amazon decided to snap up LOVEFiLM – has an iPhone and iPad application. A quick look at various online figures suggests the ‘500MB per film’ figure sits somewhere towards the higher end of individual mobile experiences.

It’s possible to adjust video quality (and therefore data usage) based on connection speed and type, so the cost of video streaming needn’t be quite as scary as it first seems.

Yet without higher or truly unlimited mobile data allowances, it’ll still be a luxury to download full-length movies to mobile phones.

Will the Amazon and LOVEFiLM deal affect the mobile industry?  Almost definitely, I’d say. Will it make a big difference?  It’s much harder to answer that one.

With current tariffs, I’d say no. But just imagine a colour-screen Kindle with the same kind of inclusive mobile data deal available on the company’s current eBook reader. Watch out, iPad – the LOVEFiLM tablet could be on the way!

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Opinion Articles

Tablets aren't real computers... and that's why they're so popular

Mark Bridge writes:

As any Star Trek fan knows, Apple didn't invent the tablet computer. The crew of the Enterprise regularly used handheld devices that looked remarkably like an electronic clipboard... or an iPad. In fact, engineers in the 1960s were working on tablet devices as the original Star Trek series first aired.

Then there were the Microsoft Tablet PCs from around ten years ago. I bought one - an Acer TravelMate - as my main computer and loved it. I even loved the special pen that was needed to write on the screen.

Author: The Fonecast
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Mark Bridge - BBC News

James Rosewell writes:

For those that don't regularly watch the BBC News Channel at 5pm here's a rather hasty recording of an interview with our very own Mark Bridge concerning "Quick Tap"; a rather underwhelming new mobile payment product from Orange and Barclaycard.

Author: The Fonecast
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New sensors can turn your smartphone into a medical tricorder

Mark Bridge writes:

Dr 'Bones' McCoy moves an electronic device over a patient’s leg encased in a plaster case. The device immediately identifies swelling within the cast, alerting the doctor to take action.

But this isn't a medical tricorder being used by the doctor. It's a Google Nexus S mobile phone. And the situation isn't set in the 23rd century. It's now.

Author: The Fonecast
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The Council of Europe and its plans to 'ban mobile phones in schools'

Mark Bridge writes:

Europe's leaders want mobile phones and WiFi networks banned in schools. Well, that's what the headlines appear to say.

Except - as often seems to be the case with most mobile phone health warnings - things aren't that simple. So let's start at the beginning.

Author: The Fonecast
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DigiMo promises a fast, simple and smart mobile payment solution

Mark Bridge writes:

Almost everyone in the mobile telecoms industry seems to be looking for a perfect payment system that'll transform their mobile phone into some kind of electronic wallet. Yet despite many trial schemes – and a few commercial launches – cards and cash are still favoured by consumers and retailers in much of the world.

Author: The Fonecast
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Author: The Fonecast
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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?

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