Dear Industry Executive

Clouds on the Wi-Fi Horizon for mobile network operators?

This week's launch by The Cloud of an open Wi-Fi network across the City of London brings the prospect of internet rate mobile calls — and perhaps content downloads — to an estimated 350,000 workers in London’s ‘Square Mile’.

The move is significant because suddenly there is an almost ubiquitous, state of the art Wi-Fi network in one part of a major city, which makes the idea of mobile web-based calls a reality. Where Skype has gone on the PC — and the laptop of the international traveller — now urban   Wi-Fi networks such as The Cloud open up the possibility of making similarly cheap IP-based web calls only on a mobile.

Already companies such as Truphone, which runs a mobile VoIP service, is heralding The Cloud as the first step towards calling, texting and content access that by-passes the mobile network operators. Nokia’s latest series of handsets also come with Wi-Fi built in. So are we about to see a revolution in the mobile market?

In theory, yes. Suddenly the device in your pocket is a true internet connected gadget and all the things the web offers — particularly doing things cheaply or even for free — become a reality. Content no longer has to be sold through a mobile network operator’s network: it would well and truly be off-portal.

In practice, however, it is a major hurdle. Nokia and others may well be building Wi-Fi in to some handsets, but they have a vested interest in not letting too much happen over that Wi-Fi. Handset makers need to keep on the right side of the mobile network operators since the networks are by and large the handset makers biggest customers. If Nokia, say, looks to be encouraging users to by-pass a network and use Wi-Fi, the networks could, in theory, snub Nokia.

Even if Wi-Fi enabled calling and content access does come to pass, there is also the question of quality of service. As any Skype user will atest, it ain’t great at the best of times — this at least could well keep the Wi-Fi threat to the mobile status quo at bay for some time to come.

Yours

Paul Skeldon

paul.skeldon@contentfutures.com

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Leading telcos and handset makers join forces to turn mobile into a purchasing tool

Nokia and a further 10 mobile operators have thrown their weight behind a GSM Association initiative to enable the worldwide use of mobile phones for payments at retail outlets.

KPN, Maxis Communications Bhd, mobilkom austria, O2, Orange, SFR, SingTel, SKT, Vodafone and Wind have joined the 14 mobile operators that initiated the project in February. The handset vendors in the programme include Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics, which both plan to participate in the first trials scheduled to begin in October. Leading payment card company MasterCard is also participating in the initiative.

The GSMA’s 'Pay-Buy Mobile' initiative seeks to define a common global approach to using Near Field Communications (NFC) technology to link mobile devices with payment and contactless systems. Together with a SIM/Universal Integrated Circuit Card (UICC) card in a mobile handset, NFC can be used to enable a wide range of secure, interoperable and transparent services, such as credit and debit payments.

"After several fragmented initiatives, the mobile phone industry is now uniting around a single approach to enabling the mobile phone to be used, instead of cash or plastic credit card, at point of sale," said Rob Conway, CEO of the GSMA, the global trade association for mobile phone operators. "The support of the world’s leading mobile operators and handset manufacturers should ensure that Pay-Buy Mobile is adopted worldwide, enabling vendors to achieve economies of scale and consumers to eventually use their mobile phones to pay for goods and services wherever they travel." Mr. Conway is in Seoul this week to discuss the initiative with Dr. Young-Chu Cho, CEO of KTF, which is leading the ‘Pay-Buy Mobile’ initiative.

Read More: http://www.gsmworld.com/news/press_2007/press07_33.shtml

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LaNetro Zed gets investor boost as it looks to exploit UGC

Spanish multinational LaNetro Zed (Zed), a leader in the development and marketing of content for mobile devices and the internet with presence in 31 countries, has received a cash injection from Veronis Suhler Stevenson (VSS), a leading private equity investor in the media, communications, information and educations industries. VSS, headquartered in the US with offices in London, will now be represented on the Board of Directors of Zed. Terms of the transactions were not disclosed.

Javier Pérez Dolset, founder, Chairman and CEO of LaNetro Zed, commented, “VSS is well known – in the US and Europe – for its strong expertise in the media and communications industries and its successful track record of helping companies develop their full market potential.” He added “We are very pleased to have VSS as a shareholder, who will help us grow our business in the American market, a key objective for the company at present.”

Zed recently strengthened its market position by acquiring a majority stake in Montersmob, one of its competitors in the mobile value added services market headquartered in the UK. Zed has also been a pioneer in taking web 2.0 services to mobile, recently developing the world’s first social network that integrates mobile and web. With these new services, the member community participates in the creation of content which is then shared within the community, both through the PC and the mobile phone.

“We are very pleased to be investing in a company which has been a pioneer in the development of applications that have quickly become products and services widely accepted in the Internet and mobile markets,” says VSS partner, Marco Sodi.

“The mobile content industry is a fast growing industry and one where size and scale are essential to succeed. With its acquisition of Monstermob, Zed now has a truly global footprint. We believe that Zed is well positioned to succeed in this dynamic market,” adds VSS Managing Director, Morgan Callagy.

According to the 2006-2010 VSS Communications Industry Forecast, user-generated online media and social networking communities will continue to develop substantially over the next five years, gaining in popularity among consumers and evolving into revenue-generating vehicles for publishers and marketers alike.

Read More:http://www.vss.com/news/news_home.html

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Belgium telcos go live with mobile advertising

Belgium mobile users are poised to get their first taste of mobile advertising services as leading network operators Mobistar and Proximus select ScreenTonic to deploy the first advertising offerings on PlazZza, Belgium's mobile search engine.

As part of the deal, ScreenTonic will set up the first advertising offer on the mobile search engine and manage and deliver mobile ads with its STAMP platform.

Proximus and Mobistar are Belgium's two largest operators and rank among the very first European operators to offer advertisers ad-space on mobile phones. STAMP is the first platform specifically designed for managing and delivering ads on mobile phones and already broadcasts ads over the Orange World portal in the UK, as well as several independent mobile sites.

Didier Kuhn, CEO of ScreenTonic, explains: "We are delighted with this agreement, which comes just a few months after the launch of the new version of STAMP. It confirms our technological advance in an increasingly competitive market and our leading position in mobile advertising in Europe. Less than a year ago, we were announcing our European expansion. Today, the success of our recently opened UK subsidiary and the formation of a dedicated Belgium team underlines the acceleration of our development in the international arena."

ScreenTonic this week announced that it has just passed the 1 billion mark in the number of page impressions sold for mobile phones from an inventory of 80 million page impressions in France, Belgium and the UK with ads for Coca-Cola, Reebok, Citroën, Jaguar, EMI, Peugeot, BMW and Paramount Pictures.

Read More: http://www.screentonic.com/english/communique6.htm

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New tools and innovative partner programme to boost media agency use of mobile, says Wapple

Mobile wapsite specialist Wapple is lending a much needed boost to helping digital media agencies exploit mobile — and so develop more mobile advertising and commerce content sites — through an innovative partner programme. The company is also rolling out a new generation of web-based tools that make it simple to create and publish professional mobile internet sites.

“The mobile internet provides a unique opportunity to connect with millions of customers on a personal level,” says Rich Holdsworth, CTO and co-founder at Wapple. “With a mobile strategy fast becoming an essential requirement for any business, the new generation of Wapple web-based tools means that even without technical knowledge, anyone can create and publish a powerful and dynamic mobile internet site that is automatically optimised for any mobile device with internet capability.”

The new tools — part of Wapple canvas — will help enable this. Using simple point and click design and drag and drop for page layout and content, Wapple Canvas makes it possible to get a mobile web site up and running in hours, which can be accessed from virtually any device on any network and from any country. Wapple also makes it easy to add extended e-commerce functions, mobile advertising, interactive elements such as polls and user feedback, as well as rich media content including games, videos and music.

The Wapple Delivery Engine automatically customises and renders mobile internet pages to individual browser-based mobile devices including close to 5000 different handsets as well as PDAs and some hand-held games consoles such as the Sony PSP. It delivers rich WML, HTML, XHTML, CHTML content to 3G, iMode, GPRS and GSM networks as well as Wireless LAN

John Leftwich, Chairman of Wapple and formerly corporate vice president of Microsoft and widely regarded as one of the ‘founding fathers’ of the UK PC and Internet industry, believes that the mobile Internet is on the verge of becoming the next technology revolution. “It is likely that more people will access the Internet through their mobile phones than their PCs in 2007,” says Leftwich. “Tools like Wapple Canvas™ will help to accelerate this shift by making it easier to create a mobile presence and promise to do for the mobile Internet what products such as Dreamweaver and Frontpage did for the Web.”

Read More: http://go.wapple.net/index.htm

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I-play to use mobile video to develop new range of mobile poker games

Mobile gambling and entertainment company I-play is to use mobile video to develop a whole range of new mobile poker games and has signed up Daniel Negreanu, one of the most successful tournament player in poker history, as the face of its suite of mobile entertainment poker products. I-play's diversification into mobile video capitalizes on the huge opportunity this space presents while leveraging the company's partnerships and proprietary technology strengths.

In line with the company's strategic move into the broader mobile entertainment space, I-play and Daniel are creating 'made for mobile' streaming video clips which will unleash the potential Texas Hold'em champion that lies in every player. Shot at the Venetian Hotel & Resort in Las Vegas, over 100 clips spanning the basic fundamentals of the game right through to more advanced topics such as tournament play, no-limit strategy, tells/bluffs to Hot Tips are presented by Daniel himself.

I-play and Daniel are also creating a next generation mobile poker game, the Artificial Intelligence behind which is being tested against Daniel himself, and will therefore be the most sophisticated AI available on the market. The game will visually be the strongest on the market when it launches later this year. Daniel's enthusiasm for poker is insatiable, and having him by your side as your personal tutor, providing intelligent and in-depth analysis at each stage of the game is sure to make you winner.

Read More: http://www.iplay.com/article.do;jsessionid=

EA6296CFA0CADEC0EA1602C3DCC1F186.tomcat2_iplay1?NID=165

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Software deal could turn your phone into a Blackberry

Research In Motion (RIM), makers of the Blackberry, this week unveiled plans to expand its support for Windows Mobile-based devices with a new software application suite that will enable devices from third-party manufacturers to benefit from the popular BlackBerry software applications and services — turning other mobile devices in to de facto Blackberries.

RIM plans to begin offering the new software application suite later this year for select devices based on Windows Mobile 6. Once installed, the software will provide users with a virtual BlackBerry application experience, including support for BlackBerry email, phone, calendar, address book, tasks, memos, browser, instant messaging and other applications developed for the BlackBerry platform. Devices running the BlackBerry application suite will be able to connect to BlackBerry services via BlackBerry Enterprise Server as well as BlackBerry Internet Service.

"Extending BlackBerry applications to a broader range of devices is an important element of RIM's strategy to provide an open platform that supports industry standards and addresses the various needs of our customers and partners," says Mike Lazaridis, President and Co-CEO at Research In Motion. "This new software will provide a range of important benefits, including easier support of Windows Mobile-based devices within BlackBerry Enterprise Server environments, a consistent user interface for BlackBerry applications across various devices, and the ability to run third-party applications developed for the BlackBerry platform."

Read More: http://www.rim.com/news/press/2007/pr-23_04_2007-01.shtml

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VoIP World MENA 2007

Terrapinn,17th-20th June 2007, Dubai, UAE

VoIP has finally started to take hold in the Middle East and North Africa, creating an immense opportunity for competition across the region.

Equip your organisation with the tools you need to successfully leverage the VoIP opportunity at VoIP World MENA 2007. With an agenda is filled with regional and international case studies, expert presentations and insightful panel sessions, you'll leave VOIP MENA 2007 with a full understanding of how your oganisation can effectively leverage the VoIP opportunity.

Visit: www.terrapinn.com/2007/voipme

If you would like to promote your event in this newsletter please email: marketing@contentfutures.com

Telecommunications Senior Consultants

£Significant, London/UK wide

Softlab Group is creating two practices, CRM Consulting and Telecommunications Consulting.
The telecommunications practice will offer the full range of business consulting services, including performance improvement, BPR, change management and programme assurance.To support this growth, and following the appointment of experience Practice Heads, the company is now looking to appoint a number of Senior Consultants.

For more information please contact Jolanda Hagoort quoting ref EA-Softlab-SCTelco at consultant@huntress.co.uk

If you would like to promote your job in this newsletter please email: jobs@contentfutures.com

Ikivo collaborates with AMD to turbo charge rich media in mobile phones

Ikivo AB, the Swedish provider of open standards based rich media solutions for mobile devices has announced a collaboration with Advanced Micro Devices to demonstrate accelerated vector graphics for rich media applications.

The Ikivo application running on AMD's hardware leverages Ikivo's portfolio of Enrich Tools and Clients based on Mobile SVG (Scalable Vector Graphics) and the AMD Imageon(tm) media processor solution for OpenVG 1.0. The performance improvements achieved is expected to stimulate wider use of rich media in mobile services and improve the user experience in applications such as Mobile TV, 2D games, media players and On-Device portals.

For more information please visit http://www.webitpr.com/release.details.asp?ReleaseID=5681

Market Research Report: Mobile Gambling Markets Re-Assessed: (Post US Legal Changes) 2006-2011

Price: £7500 (Single User) £1250 (Multi User) £2250 (Enterprise Wide)

Following the US legislative action to make most forms of on-line gambling illegal in the USA, Juniper Research have taken the opportunity to re-assess its forecasts for mobile gambling, providing updated numbers on casinos, lotteries and betting.

ContentFutures.com is a publication of Juniper Research Limited

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