Posted: 03/20/12 by Mobile Future Team
Today, the Government Printing Office (GPO) released the latest version of the Mobile Member Guide App which connects users with information on their lawmakers. According to The Washington Post, the app allows the public to easily access the biographies, contact information and websites of congressmen and senators.
To learn more, click here.
Posted: 03/16/12 by Jonathan Spalter
Wireless growth and usage show no signs of slowing as more Americans are increasingly using mobile to connect. In 2011 alone, wireless data traffic grew 133%, and with more wireless subscriptions than people in the U.S., it's no wonder. The hype around the new iPad and the reality of mobile video coming to a handset near you are yet two more confirmations that consumers, including a growing number of small businesses, continue to adopt mobile products, services and technologies at a record clip.
Looking ahead, Cisco predicts there will be 2 billion networked mobile devices in the U.S. by 2015. With exploding demand for new devices and services, wireless networks are shuddering under unprecedented usage. As wireless adoptions accelerate at a blistering pace, both network operators and policymakers are scrambling to make more spectrum, the radio waves that connect mobile devices, available to stay one step ahead of consumer demand for all things wireless.
Let's take a closer look at the numbers. Since the iPhone debuted in 2007, AT&T reports that traffic on the company's wireless network increased an astonishing 20,000%. Siri, the omniscient voice of the iPhone 4S, devours bandwidth -- using twice as much data as the iPhone 4 and nearly three times as much as the iPhone 3G. And it's not just the iPhone. Today, consumers can choose from over 400 smartphones on the market, with U.S. smartphone shipments now outpacing PCs.
The staggering reliance on wireless devices is leading to a massive spectrum drain. Tablet devices are redefining the wireless ecosystem, with one in three Americans now owning a mobile reading device. New generations of these ubiquitous tablets are further draining the spectrum inventory. The new iPad, for instance, supports faster 4G mobile networks that deliver impressive data speeds -- and suck up spectrum.
With one billion apps downloaded worldwide each month in 2011, consumers are doing more on their mobile devices leading experts to predict that wireless data traffic will grow 100 times faster than mobile voice traffic over the next 10 years. This is a thrilling future but only if our wireless networks have the capacity to handle the surge in consumer demand and usage. Here's a startling fact that causes us concern: North American mobile networks already are running at 80% of capacity, compared to the world average of 65%.
When you consider the blazing fast speeds needed for streaming video, accessing audio, capturing high-resolution photographs and downloading gaming apps, it is not surprising consumers are taxing mobile networks and the spectrum that fuels them, at unprecedented rates. Given the staggering demand, it is equally predictable that the finite resource that is spectrum is rapidly becoming a very rare commodity.
The FCC published its National Broadband Plan in 2010, followed by President Obama's National Wireless Initiative a year later, both calling for an additional 500 MHz of spectrum for mobile in the next 10 years as an answer to the spectrum crunch. Policymakers have since been at work trying to realize these goals. For instance, President Obama and Congress recently passed legislation authorizing the FCC to conduct voluntary incentive auctions aimed at reclaiming broadcast spectrum for mobile. The NTIA is also studying various spectrum bands used by the government that may be repurposed for commercial use. Secondary market transactions and efficiently maximizing spectrum use round out the work carriers are doing independently to deal with a potential spectrum deficiency, all with a goal of ensuring a quality wireless experience for all U.S. consumers.
Today, policymakers have an opportunity to transform challenges into opportunities by adopting policy prescriptions that make more spectrum available for mobile and enable robust wireless investment and innovation. Policymakers cannot keep pace with the innovation we see in the mobile sector but they must act swiftly and make freeing up more spectrum for mobile a top priority. Consumers deserve -- and will demand -- continued access to the latest and greatest technologies that place the power of information in the palms of their hands. To make the mobile future as bright as possible, the 300 million American wireless consumers and a growing chorus of small businesses now depend on Washington to answer their call.
This article was originally published on Huffington Post.
Posted: 03/13/12
Many thanks to our friends at MMTC for their recent forum, “The Looming Spectrum Crunch: How We Can Prevent a Crisis for the Underserved (and Why Communities of Color Should Care).” For a recap of the discussion and to learn more about the immediate need to make more spectrum available for US wireless consumers, click here.
Posted: 03/12/12 by Mobile Future Team
March Madness just begun and as Mashable reported, an interesting mobile app may help college basketball fans keep track of all the action. Thuuz monitors sporting events in real-time and alerts users when games get interesting by rating the excitement of each game.
To learn more, click here.
Posted: 03/07/12
As reported by AllThingsD's Ina Fried, today during the unveiling of the newest iPad Apple CEO Tim Cook announced that last year there were 315 million iOS devices sold, there are currently 585,000 apps in the app store and on Monday Apple surpassed 25 billion downloads.
To learn more, click here.
Posted: 03/06/12 by Mobile Future Team
As reported by the Los Angeles Times, the U.S. Air Force just announced its contract to buy 18,000 iPads for its pilots and navigators. The Air Mobility Command is making the departure from heavy flight manuals and navigation charts that can weigh up to 70 pounds of paper per aircraft to increase fuel efficiency and reduce space and weight on an aircraft.
To read more, click here.
Posted: 03/02/12 by Mobile Future Team
As GigaOm reported today, Asymco’s Horace Deiu predicts that tablets will outsell traditional PCs as early as Q3 of 2013. Also, earlier this week Business Insider reported that new data forecasts smartphone sales to be double that of PC sales this year and that there will be more than 1.5 billion units of smartphones sold per year by 2016.
To learn more, click here.
Tags: Consumer Awareness, Consumer Benefits, iPad , News, Smartphone, Tablets , Wireless Devices
Posted: 02/24/12 by Mobile Future Team
The final entry of CNN Money’s series on spectrum this week explores potential solutions to the spectrum crunch that is threatening mobile innovation and a high-quality wireless user experience.
The author came up with four fixes:
- Employing cell splitting techniques to reuse spectrum
- Utilizing existing spectrum more efficiently
- Relieving network congestion using Wi-Fi offloading and tiered service models
- Allocating more spectrum for mobile
Millions of Americans are embracing mobile broadband, as shown by the explosive consumer demand and more than 100% growth in data traffic over the past year. The mobile community has responded with continued investment and innovation, already employing many of the remedies mentioned in today’s article. Unfortunately, those steps won't be enough for long. Policymakers are working to reallocate more spectrum for mobile, but the spectrum clock is ticking and 300 million wireless consumers will be the ones possibly left in the lurch. We need to keep moving to ensure continued investment, innovation and vast consumer benefits in the mobile space.
To learn more, click here.
Posted: 02/23/12
As CNN Money continues its series looking at the spectrum crunch, today’s story highlights the incredible growth in mobile over the past year. According to Cisco, wireless data traffic rose 133% in 2011 alone. One thing is certain: American consumers are hungry for a high-quality, high-speed wireless experience.
A spectrum deficiency looms in the near future that could cripple this experience, but making more spectrum available for mobile quickly will help address this challenge. As today's CNN piece clearly shows, hundreds of millions of consumers are increasingly using mobile broadband. This rapidly growing demand is straining the networks of the mobile providers who will all need more spectrum in the near future.
For more information, click here.
Posted: 02/22/12 by Mobile Future Team
In Part 2 of CNN Money’s series on spectrum today, author David Goldman discusses the options for wireless providers as they navigate the dangers of a spectrum crunch. The piece says that without action, millions of wireless consumers could face limited access to the high-speed mobile Internet they demand.
According to Goldman, these options include acquiring new spectrum, building thousands of new cell sites throughout our nation, and consolidation. All three options would cost billions of dollars to implement.
A combination of them may provide the answer to solving the spectrum crunch, but one thing is clear: all wireless providers need more spectrum to continue meeting the explosive growth in demand from more than 300 million American mobile consumers. With a potential spectrum deficit as early as 2013 according to the FCC, the time to act is now and everyone must be part of the solution.
To learn more, click here.
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Tags: Applications, Congress, Consumer Awareness, Consumer Benefits, Innovation, News, Wireless Innovation