Blog | News & Information on Wireless Services & Telecommunications

Hulu’s mobile dance

Posted: 02/03/10 by Mobile Future Team

So you missed last night’s episode of “Lost”?  No problem.  Pretty soon, you’ll just stream it through your mobile phone.  Read more here.

More ways to green your life and charge your phone

Posted: 02/01/10 by Molly Kocour

Last week, we tweeted about a cellphone battery that would run on soda.  While the idea of a soda-fueled cellphone is still highly conceptual, the New York Times highlights another environmentally-friendly method to charge the electronics in your life.

"The technology uses a photosenstive dye to start its energy production, much the way leaves use chlorophyll to begin photosynthesis.  The dye-sensitized cells will be used to provide power for devices ranging from e-book readers to cellphones."

The cells are incorporated into panels that are sewn to a variety of accessories including: covers for e-readers, backpacks and sports bags, and will enable consumers to charge their electronics via a USB cord.  You can read more of the article here.

Today’s real wireless issue and it’s not the iPad

Posted: 01/27/10 by Mobile Future Team

The lights have dimmed at San Francisco’s Yerba Buena Center and for all the hype surrounding the iPad, the far more important issue involves the rapid impact that tablet computing will have across the wireless ecosystem.

If the iPad is a success, watch for hardware and software developers to respond in kind – and fast.  Take hardware development: By the fall of 2007, consumers had shown clear interest in mobile phone touch screens.  A year later, at least three other companies had unveiled touch screen phones.  Since then, even more choices have emerged.

That, in turn, spurred the current surge in mobile apps.  If tablet computers become a success, expect to see a huge amount of resources deployed for software development.  Earlier this week, The New York Times’ Jenna Wortham once again showed why she has a reputation for being ahead of the curve on tech trends.   On Monday, The Times published this article by Wortham on the broader implications of the iPad [Link]:

“Apple’s move to open up the iPhone to outside programmers in 2008 started a software-writing frenzy. [The iPad’s 10-inch screen and other features] could inspire developers to create new twists on apps, like games that two or more people can easily play at once on the same device.”

As with mobile phone apps, the growth of the “tablet app” market will continue to hasten America’s mobile adoption.

For policymakers, the importance of allocating enough wireless spectrum to accommodate consumers’ expected surge in mobile usage becomes even more important.  Fortunately, the U.S. House Subcommittee on Communications, Technology and the Internet recently approved a bill that’s a step in the right direction.

House Panel Approves Bill to Inventory Nation’s Airwaves

Posted: 01/25/10 by Mobile Future Team

A House Energy and Commerce panel recently approved legislation calling for an inventory of the nation’s airwaves, in an effort to identify how airwaves are being used, according to a recent Wall Street Journal article.

This is an important step toward identifying unused spectrum, which may be freed up or auctioned off to increase wireless spectrum.

"Additional spectrum for wireless services will be needed and will be needed soon," said Rep. Rick Boucher (D., Va.), chairman of the House subcommittee. An inventory of the nation's airwaves would be helpful in "revealing areas where relocations could occur or where spectrum sharing could be feasible," he said.

We are encouraged by these efforts to begin addressing our nation’s looming spectrum crisis and hope that Congress will continue to work quickly in passing this important bi-partisan legislation.

You can read the WSJ article here.

Have Phone Will Donate

Posted: 01/21/10 by Allison Remsen

The outpouring of mobile donations in support of disaster relief in Haiti has been phenomenal and unprecedented. Immediately following the earthquake, Americans began reaching for their cell phones to make donations via text message. In the first day of a mobile call to action done solely through text messages, and made viral on networking sites like Twitter and Facebook, more than $5 million was raised for the Red Cross's relief work in Haiti.

Seven days after the earthquake hit, a record $22 million had been raised by the American Red Cross for relief efforts in Haiti, a groundbreaking statistic. Within hours after reports first emerged of the 7.0 magnitude earthquake in Haiti, all major wireless carriers agreed to utilize the mGive software application to allow users to text SMS short code 90999 and type "Haiti." A user's account would be charged $10 for the donation on their next bill and a user could text up to two times. Cell phone carriers chose not to charge users to send the texts and some carriers fronted the donations to the Red Cross to speed up delivery of money that is typically held up until a user is billed and money from customers is received.

The post-earthquake, text-to-give campaign reflects the growth trends in mobile use and texting -- not just in the younger demographic but in the over-35 group. Text messaging has grown exponentially -- with texting volume increasing 600% in just the past two years; mobile internet traffic is expected to grow 100 times faster than wireless voice traffic over the next decade; and 1 in 5 Americans already connect to the Internet daily over their mobile device.  The ubiquity, power and reach of mobile phones make mobile giving a convenient and secure way to donate.  In fact, cell phone campaigns may be reaching people who might not otherwise have made the effort to get involved. 

This historical milestone in goodwill contribution is a hallmark of 21st century innovation and technology. For more information on how you can join the relief efforts please visit www.redcross.org

Dr. App

Posted: 01/20/10 by Mobile Future Team

Out of the devastation in Haiti have come extraordinary stories of survival.  One amazing first-person account is of Dan Woolley, a Denver-native, who found himself trapped beneath the rubble of his hotel in Port-au-Prince.  The tool that saved his life?  His iPhone.  Through his wireless connection he was able assess his injuries and diagnosis a broken leg.

Woolley used the light from his iPhone to show him his injuries and diagnosed it properly as a broken foot.  Then, he used the instructions from the app to treat the excessive bleeding from cuts on his legs and the back of his head. 

Furthermore, he was able to figure out his location within the building using GPS and find an elevator shaft—which lead him to safety.  A true testament of personal ingenuity in the face of catastrophe. 

Your Mobile Future

Posted: 01/20/10

The San Francisco Chronicle recently published an op-ed by Mobile Future Chairman Jonathan Spalter outlining the rapid growth of wireless and the need for sound public policy so that innovation and investment will continue.

As wireless connectivity takes on an even more central role in our economy and our society, we must acknowledge that we have come so far, so fast primarily because of the decisions of consumers and the vision of innovators, rather than the interventions of government. There is so much potential still to unleash, if we chart a constructive and balanced path forward.

You can read Jonathan’s op-ed here.

Mobile Future releases new report on network neutrality

Posted: 01/14/10 by Mobile Future Team

Today, Mobile Future released a new report assessing the implications of potential network neutrality regulations on wireless consumers and the networks which support them.

The report, "Net Neutrality Regulatory Proposals: Operational and Engineering Implications for Wireless Networks and the Consumers They Serve,” provides an important technical perspective on the impact net neutrality regulatory proposals will have on the wireless services consumers demand and operators provide.  Find out more about the release and read the report.

Texts for Haiti

Posted: 01/14/10 by Mobile Future Team

The tragic news coming out of Haiti today is almost unimaginable.  But it’s never been easier to send help.  For more information about sending donations to Haiti relief efforts through your mobile phone, please click here or here.

The 22.7 percent solution

Posted: 01/12/10 by Mobile Future Team

America’s love affair with wireless continues.  Federal figures released this week show that during the first half of 2009, more than one of every five U.S. homes (22.7%) had no landline and only wireless phone service.  This compares with 20.2 percent during the second half of 2008, reports the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC).

Yet the real measure of wireless’ success isn’t measured in households, but in remarkable innovations that are suddenly on the verge of reality thanks to wireless.  Last week’s Consumer Electronics Show showcased a number of wireless advances.  Coincidentally, Rex Crum has a spot-on article in today’s Wall Street Journal about how wireless advances and new apps may finally mean that consumers will have a user-friendly tablet computer:

“Analysts say that while it is too early to tell how much traction tablets will gain among potential buyers, the state of technology is such that there might finally be the right mix of applications, hardware and mobility available to make tablet PCs more than just a niche device in a market already crowded with gadgets….”

 As Crum notes, “The growth of wireless networking and Wi-Fi technology, along with easy access to digital content… are seen as reasons why [computer makers] used CES as a platform for unveiling their latest tablet PC efforts.”
 
Stay tuned as a company in Cupertino, CA is supposedly announcing its wireless tablet later this month.