Blog | News & Information on Wireless Services & Telecommunications
Posted: 08/31/11 by Mobile Future Team
Farms across the country are rapidly integrating wireless technology into their daily operations to spur production, instantly communicate with retail grocers and the agriculture community and to stay abreast of weather patterns throughout the day. According to an Associated Press article, the agriculture industry is transforming as farmers are connecting to the Internet via numerous devices to conduct business and a recent USDA report found that more than half of all farms in the United States are wirelessly connected and about 41% of small farms are on the Internet as well.
To read more, click here.
Posted: 04/18/11
Mobile Future Advisory Board Member Diane Smith discussed how technology advancements have allowed entrepreneurs to live and work in rural America in The Flathead Beacon, “Entrepreneurship in the New Rural America.”
As Smith stated:
“So long as a rural area has the proper wired and wireless technology infrastructure, entrepreneurs can set up shop with no large cities nearby, enabling them to enjoy the quality of life that places like Montana offer.”
To read the article, click here.
Posted: 11/10/10 by Mobile Future Team
This Veteran’s Day, Mobile Future joins the rest of the country in saluting the men and women throughout history who have fought to protect America’s freedoms. At home and abroad, these dedicated service members continue to demonstrate the highest levels of commitment to their fellow citizens and the global community, and as Americans we could not be more thankful for their sacrifices.
With that, we’re proud to report that mobile innovation has in turn contributed to a greater quality of life among active and retired service members, from technologies that keep vet’s healthy to applications that connect service members to loved ones to wireless initiatives aimed at harnessing the power of mobile to keep our troops safe around the world.
mHealth
Advances in mHealth technologies provide immediate benefits to veterans no matter their physical location. To date, the Department of Veterans Affairs operates the largest telehealth program in the world, with a report out in this month’s Medical Care citing the organization’s widespread usage of information technology as one reason it continues to out-perform the private sector in patient care processes. But with an estimated 3 million veterans living in rural areas, in-house services are not always an option for necessary care. Telehealth and mHealth technologies allow health care professionals to download important data—like vital signs and physiological functions---onto PDAs and smartphones, allowing for remote monitoring of illness and chronic disease.
In addition, specific apps-- like the T2 Mood Tracker, developed by the National Center for Telehealth and Technology, the Hope for One PTSD app, and DOD’s iBreathe set to debut in January 2011-- let service members and veterans use their smartphones to track their emotional health after deployments, monitor trends and behavioral shifts elicited from therapy, medication, and environmental changes, and provide valuable resources for families of those suffering from PTSD.
Connectivity
Mobile technology is especially critical to help deployed service members stay in touch with home no matter where the call of duty takes them. Great applications like Jackson Fish Market’s A Story Before Bed let service members record videos of themselves reading stories that can be accessed anytime through an iPad, iPhone or iPod Touch application.
Quality of Life
Mobile applications continue to improve quality of life for veterans and active duty service members around the globe. In July, army.mil profiled the best iPhone apps for a military lifestyle, including US Army News and Information, Skype, BrainWave, USAA banking, and much more. And in August, AmVets released the first app of its kind, aimed at bringing its mission to assist veterans and promote veterans issues into the wireless space.
In addition, AnMarc Travel Technology’s MilitaryToGo application allows service members to use their smartphones to chat live with representatives to make discounted travel reservations and in-flight bookings. And successful competitions like Apps 4 the Army demonstrate developers’ dedication to harnessing the power of mobile to connect our troops around the world.
Philanthropic Efforts
Players across the wireless ecosystem remain committed to raising awareness surrounding veteran’s issues and finding ways to better serve those who have served our country. Initiatives like Cell Phones for Soldiers allow phone users to donate devices they no longer use and turn them into minutes for troops stationed overseas.
We are extremely proud and grateful for our veterans and active duty troops. Please join us in thanking them for their service not just today, but all year long.
Posted: 05/10/10 by Mobile Future Team
The Charleston Gazette in West Virginia recently published an op-ed piece by Mobile Future Advisory Board Member Diane Smith. The piece centers on the negative impact net neutrality regulations would have on job creation and emerging opportunities across the wireless industry.
While there is great promise ahead in communications, there may also be a looming threat to future entrepreneurship and new employment opportunities. A recent study by The Brattle Group examining the employment and economic impacts of network neutrality regulation found extensive controls would restrict technology advances, innovation and job growth. And a recent ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit rejecting the Commission's claim of authority to enforce existing Internet freedom principles adds even more uncertainty to the broadband ecosystem.
You can read the rest of Diane's op-ed here.
Posted: 03/16/10 by Mobile Future Team
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, the Federal Communications Commission released a National Broadband Plan, as directed by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, designed to stimulate economic growth, spur job creation, foster innovation and investment, and improve education, health care, energy efficiency, homeland security and more.
The following statement should be attributed to Jonathan Spalter, chairman of Mobile Future:
"We commend Chairman Genachowski and the broadband team at the FCC for demonstrating the vision and leadership required to tackle the challenging task of creating a National Broadband Plan. We are particularly heartened that the Commission recognizes the critical role wireless technology must play in charting a clear path forward and the need to identify additional spectrum to spur global competitiveness, innovation and sustainable high quality job creation.
We encourage the Chairman to remain steadfast in his commitment to encouraging a wireless ecosystem that holds the promise of fundamentally transforming our society and our economy. As the FCC moves toward the Plan's implementation, we urge the Chairman to continue along this bold roadmap to America's future by avoiding barriers that slow deployment, undermine investment, and stifle competition and innovation."
Posted: 01/04/10 by Mobile Future Team
The Duluth News Tribune in Minnesota recently published an op-ed piece by Mobile Future Advisor Diane Smith. The piece details Diane’s success as an entrepreneur in rural America, and the many ways that technology helps small business and promotes economic opportunity.
The wireless sector employs nearly 2.7 million Americans - from applications developers to retail store workers to network engineers - and contributes $100 billion annually to our nation's economy. In the last year alone, wireless companies have invested more than $20 billion in networks that are expanding opportunities for the next generation of connected businesses.
You can read the rest of Diane’s op-ed here.
Posted: 07/03/08 by Diane Smith
I recently had the honor of being profiled in a new Montana magazine called 406 Woman. The title of the article was "No Penalty for Paradise", reflecting an ongoing discussion between me and my fellow entrepreneurs in rural America about whether living in a desirable location was inconsistent with the idea of successful business formation. For many of us, transplants from urban life, when we first arrived in our new communities, we questioned whether building a business beyond a small sole proprietorship was realistic. We had the same concerns as any new business owner - staffing, funding, lines of credit, healthcare, and so forth. But added to those concerns were other worries specific to our locations - Can we hire qualified staff? Will they work hard? Do we have the necessary communications infrastructure? Can we get flights to required destinations? Will our infrastructure costs and capabilities allow us to remain competitive with businesses located in more accessible locations?
Question by question we figured it out. Staffing was the most pleasant surprise. Our employees want to live here, resulting in a highly qualified, truly dedicated team. Funding and lines of credit were a challenge because investors simply weren't familiar with investments in remote locations. But, even though money players would rather you were right next door, if the business plan works, the money will come. It's amazing the number of angel investor networks and strategic investors available to businesses in rural areas - never easy, but manageable. Healthcare costs were staggering no matter where we were located but not particularly higher here than elsewhere. Flights were and still are a problem. But, because flights were challenging, we relied even more heavily on our communications infrastructure. And the communications infrastructure is what truly allowed us to finally conclude that there is "No Penalty for Paradise".
For rural communities, distance has too often been a significant business challenge. But, as a result of advances in technology and infrastructure over the past decade, those of us living the rural life can now "reach out and touch" our colleagues nationwide and even internationally in a cost-effective and service-effective fashion. In my hometown in MT, we have great cell phone service with national calling plans. We have wireline DSL and cable broadband. We have more Wi-Fi'd coffee shops (all with free Wi-Fi) than I can find when I'm back in the city. We also have video conferencing facilities for hire if we need them. As a result, we can stay on-line, talk live, and stay in touch with our customers, employees, vendors, and the myriad of others with whom it takes to launch a successful business. It's truly remarkable the difference that our communications advances over the past decade have made for businesses - so much so that we are now planning for our next title - "Rural America, Open for Business".
Posted: 06/05/08 by Diane Smith
Building on Jonathan Spalter's blog from a few weeks ago, I would also like to discuss the application of cell phones to the dilemmas faced in rural medicine. When my family moved from Washington, D.C. to Montana, I realized that there was a lot more than just real estate to consider when moving from a busy metropolis to quieter community. When you live in large city, your healthcare options are numerous from different hospitals to alternative medicine and cutting edge technology. In many rural areas, it's not that easy.
However, advancements in cellular and medical technology and the expansion of network coverage have resulted in healthcare breakthroughs in rural areas that are applicable in the U.S. and abroad. Recent achievements include:
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Cell phones attached to EKG (electrocardiogram) devices that can continuously collect and monitor data on heart rhythms. If a patient's heart rhythm becomes dangerous, the cell phone calls the emergency room. Doctors are alerted by the phone call and can then begin to diagnose and prepare to treat the patient upon arrival at the hospital. This is critical for long ambulance rides to the hospital in which every minute counts and can literally be the difference between life, disability or death.
- The scanner mentioned in Jonathan Spalter's blog can spot simulated breast tumors and is field testing spotting internal bleeding, a frequent cause of post-childbirth deaths in developing countries.
- A speech therapy program, nicknamed Baldi, is a computer program that features an animated language tutor and has helped autistic and hearing-impaired children learn to talk. This program is currently being adapted for the cell phone screen and is hoping to aid Malaysian stroke victims. Forty-thousand Malaysians suffer strokes each year and a third of survivors have speech impairments. Cell phones reach about twice as much of Malaysia as Internet access so if the Baldi program is successful at virtual therapy via cell phone, the government of Malaysia has agreed to "help provide cell phones," according to the leader of the research team, Sri Kurniawan.
To learn more about these research efforts, you can read about them in this article from the San Jose Mercury news.
Additional medical applications of cellular technology are utilizing the text message feature on cell phones. With over 250 million wireless subscribers in the United States, many of whom take one or more prescription drugs, some companies have created applications that allow you to look up your prescription drug information and sends text reminders for when you are supposed to take your pills. These applications are particularly useful for avoiding negative drug interactions. For those of us who are extremely busy and/or forgetful, it's great for keeping track of dosages and following the prescribed schedule set by your doctor.
With all the advancements in medical and cellular technology, there are sure to be many more healthcare breakthroughs in the future, and this can only mean good things for rural healthcare in the U.S. and abroad.
Posted: 04/22/08 by Chris Parandian
I am attending the WCA conference in Washington DC this week. The WCA's theme this year is "capitalizing on the 4G Eco-system" and former Governor Mark Warner (VA) gave a keynote speech yesterday. As wireless networks go from delivering just voice to high-speed broadband to consumers it was fitting that Governor Warner could provide some insight on this evolution.
Briefly, Governor Warner was one of the original wireless pioneers (co-founded the company that became Nextel) and understands the business as well. He is currently running for the United States Senate in Virginia and hopes for the opportunity to help spur broadband efforts across the country.
As Governor of Virginia, Mr. Warner is familiar with the challenges of connecting folks in rural areas. During his speech he discussed the success of paving the way for "700 miles" of next generation broadband lines that connected "600,000" Virginians. Uniting folks across the party lines was key to making this happen and he hopes to bring "transformative" change to the Senate.
With regard to wireless, the Governor believes that facilitating the application process for RUS funds for small wireless providers and getting more spectrum available for providers is critical to our mobile future.
Stay tuned for additional updates from the conference....
Chris Parandian is reporting from the WCAconference, keeping us informed about what policymakers are sayingabout issues we care about. We’re not endorsing, just sharing theircomments.
Posted: 03/27/08 by Diane Smith
We are a three person home (two adults, one teenager). We have three laptops, two ipod touches, several wireline phones, DSL, two cable-tvs, multiple cd players, Wii, PS-2, you name it. So what's the most used appliance by all 3 of us? Our cell phones.
Some of you might be thinking that "appliance" is better used to describe the refrigerator, the stove or even the washing machine. When you think about it, all these devices were at one time new technologies that were considered luxuries when first introduced, but they made life so much better they are now indispensable to modern life - you simply can't imagine living without them. No one is going to use a wash board or cook over a campfire in the back yard. Heck, I'm not even allowed near a campfire without protective gear.
What does this have to do with my cell phone? When cell phones were first introduced, no one expected they would be adopted at such a rapid pace. They were considered luxury goods or supplements to what was the indispensable wireline phone. Now, my husband, daughter, and I all travel, work, play, and ski with our cell phones. Our move to Montana six years ago was, in large measure, a reflection of our belief that we could "drop out" of urban America and continue to earn a living and stay in touch with our loved ones - thanks to our cell phones! And, we've been right. From my 82 year old mother-in-law to all our East Coast based colleagues, we stay connected via texts, calls, and e-mails. In many ways, we are better connected today than we were 6 years ago when we all lived nearby.
Now, whether we are working, or skiing, or simply figuring out what time to pick up our daughter at volleyball practice, we simply couldn't do it without our cell phones. Take my microwave or dishwasher, I recently even gave up my laptop for repair for a week - all ok. But, lose my cell phone and my family and my business become hopelessly lost.
So, you see that not only are our wireless phones our most used device, but they are an appliance that we simply could not live without.
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Tags: Consumer Awareness, Consumer Benefits, Innovation, News, Rural access, Spectrum, Wireless Devices, Wireless Innovation