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Ofcom says mobile contracts should ditch inflation-related price rises

Ofcom says mobile contracts should ditch inflation-related price rises

UK telecoms regulator Ofcom wants to ban inflation-related rises in phone and broadband contracts. Instead, it says any potential mid-contract price rises should be set out in pounds and pence.
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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, December 3, 2012

Will the networks' transformation into dumb pipes be followed by handsets becoming dumb phones?

Mark Bridge writes:

Dumb pipes. The phrase infuriates many people involved with mobile phone networks. But what does it mean – and could it be the prelude to phones becoming dumber, too?

What is a dumb pipe?

Describing a mobile network operator as a ‘dumb pipe’ or ‘bit pipe’ is a harsh way of saying the service is being used as a utility to transfer data between a customer’s mobile phone and the internet. The network’s brand doesn’t really matter because consumers are focussed on what they can do, not their choice of supplier. We’ve seen it in the electricity, water and gas supply industries... and now it’s time for mobile telecommunications.

Of course, things aren’t necessarily that straightforward. Mobile telephony is young; in the last 25 years we’ve moved from analogue to digital, from first-generation through to 4G. Our mobile networks are still evolving. As reporter Trevor Gilbert pointed out earlier this year, we don’t ask “Was this water delivered over old technologies or is this 4G water?”

But, as mobile coverage approaches saturation and network operators form partnerships, there are far fewer differences between networks than when things started.

Mobile phone trends: from dumb to smart

The first portable phones needed a carrying handle, leaving little room for decorative design features. However, as phones began to shrink, it wasn't long before phone manufacturers began to introduce idiosyncratic design traits.

Sony’s CM-H333 handheld mobile phone – the so-called ‘Mars bar’ with its sliding earpiece and rippled battery casing – helped move mobile phone styling from purely practical to personal. Motorola had the ‘flip’, Nokia had the ‘slide’ and the Siemens Xelibri range settled on ‘bizarre’ as a differentiator.

Yet touchscreen designs of recent years have seen mobile phones starting to look increasingly similar. Monolithic slabs are becoming a staple of every manufacturer’s handset range. This year’s Mobile World Congress was dominated by changes inside phones – faster processors, better cameras, thinner, bigger, tougher – rather than new designs.

Everything looks the same

We now seem to be at a stage where top-specification mobile phones are good enough for almost anything. Photos from the built-in camera are good enough to be published. Videos from your phone can be broadcast. The music software is better than many dedicated players. Microphones include noise-reduction features for professional quality recordings. If you pick a ‘flagship’ phone from any major manufacturer then you’ll probably be able to do everything you want… and more.

As well as all this, downloadable applications are removing more of the differences between phones. You can run Angry Birds on a Windows Phone device – or an Android handset – or an Apple iPhone – or even an eBook reader.

It doesn’t really matter which phone you buy.

Inside, phones are getting smarter, not dumber. So why should this change?

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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.

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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.

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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.

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

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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?

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.

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