Editor's Note: Welcome to our weekly feature, Analyst Angle. We've collected a group of the industry's leading analysts to give their outlook on the hot topics in the wireless industry.Why is the mobile user experience important?For many mobile service providers in developed markets, what...
In a recent survey of people from 11 countries, South Koreans were the second most likely to own cellphones with e-mail capabilities. Sixty-nine percent of the South Korean respondents had such phones, compared with 89 percent of Japanese respondents, who came in first.
Won't it take time to develop an open-source version of Symbian, giving competing open-source groups time to get their products out? One of the factors that sets our initiative apart is the promise of backward compatibility with Symbian Version 9 and S60 3rd Edition....
HELSINKI (Reuters) - The world's top cellphone maker Nokia said on Thursday it had signed a cooperation agreement with Norwegian telcom group Telenor for its "Ovi" Internet services platform.
T-Mobile USA Inc. asked the Federal Communications Commission to extend up to three months the public comment cycle for a controversial free wireless Internet plan, a request that would provide additional time for interference testing and likely delay a final decision until after the...
Speech recognition technology wins the "the most over-promised and under-delivered of all time award," according to vlingo Corp. CEO Dave Grannan. But the space may finally be delivering on its promise.
A relative newcomer to the field, vlingo made its first direct-to-consumer play last...
Two key House Republicans urged the Federal Communications Commission not to attach conditions to advanced wireless services-3 spectrum and to forgo approval of final rules for that band until after the 700 MHz D-Block re-auction. "We think your proposed rules could repeat this mistake...
Verizon Wireless finally rolled out its new full-track download service, coupling an all-you-can-eat subscription offering with a pay-per-download option.The carrier is teaming with RealNetworks and MTV Networks to offer Vcast Music with Rhapsody, a $15-a-month service that grants unlimited access to more than five...
Purple Labs has purchased Openwave Systems Inc.'s mobile-phone software business for $30 million in cash, the two companies said today. The sale, which includes browsing and messaging products and related personnel, will allow Openwave to pursue its stated goal of focusing solely on network-based...
The mapping company gets access to Google users' annotations in exchange for providing data to Google Maps, Google Earth, and other divisions of the company that could use a few maps.
Microsoft Corp. said it will acquire the Portuguese mobile software developer MobiComp for an undisclosed sum.MobiComp specializes in data protection and management technologies that allow the backup and restoration of data for mobile phones. The 8-year-old company boasts roughly a dozen carrier partners in...
PlayPhone Inc. is targeting Hispanic mobile users with a Spanish-language version of its online storefront.The San Jose, Calif.-based company said the site offers Latino-targeted content as well as wares from existing partners including the Cartoon Network, ABC Television, Sony Pictures Entertainment and Wal-Mart. Hispanic...
Loopt scored another carrier win, notching a deal to place its friend-finding service on Verizon Wireless's deck.The Silicon Valley-based startup offers a GPS-based service that allows users to locate friends and share information such as geo-tagged photos and comments from their phones. The service...
Speech-recognition startup vlingo Corp. launched a free downloadable application that allows BlackBerry users to navigate their phones using voice. Vlingo for BlackBerry users can speak commands into their handsets to initiate phone calls, send a text or e-mail message, find contacts or search the...
If desperation is the mother of innovation, Yahoo may just be the future of mobile.A pioneer in the Internet's youngest days, Yahoo may now be seriously wounded. Shares of the venerable company are sliding toward the $20 threshold - losing more than 20% in...
Editor's Note: Welcome to our weekly feature, Yay or Nay. Every week we'll review a new wireless application or service from the user's point of view, with the goal of highlighting what works and what doesn't. If you wish to submit your application or...
Editor's Note: Welcome to our weekly Reality Check column. We've gathered a group of visionaries and veterans in the mobile industry to give their insights into the marketplace. In the coming weeks look for columns from Tom Huseby of SeaPoint Ventures, Mark Desautels of...
Nokia Corp. added another social networking business to its portfolio, acquiring Plazes AG for an undisclosed sum.Operating primarily out of Berlin with 13 employees, Plazes offers a context-aware community that encourages users to post where they are and what they're doing. The deal is...
Kajeet Inc. last week slashed a "sizable" chunk of its sales force as it shifts from a brick-and-mortar retail strategy to an online model."We did restructure and let go a reasonable number of people," CEO Daniel Neal confirmed, declining to disclose the number of...
Airline travel is set to get even more unpleasant, as hapless airline passengers face being hounded through airports by online advertisers as well as security, customs and perfume touting duty free sales staff.
The Federal Communications Commission is seeking feedback on new options to auction a nationwide wireless broadband license with requirements to provide free Internet service, content filtering and open access to third-party devices and applications.While the agency's move is not apt to assuage fierce critics...
A viral mobile marketing effort for the feature film "What Happens in Vegas" generated more than 50,000 peer-to-peer user engagements, according to the firm that delivered the campaign.Celtra Inc., a Massachusetts-based startup that specializes in widget-based mobile marketing, said it delivered 15,000 widget embeds...
