With many mobile phone users carrying their handset with them everywhere they go, the attraction of having a built-in camera for spontaneous picture taking is obvious.

A recent A. T. Kearney/University of Cambridge – Judge Institute of Management report found that camera phones are used by 15% of mobile phone users in North America, up from 5% in 2004.









Moreover, cameras are the most desired advanced feature among US consumers, above phones that allow music downloading and smart phones (those with PDA capabilities). According to Parks Associates, over 50% of US Internet users who intend to buy a phone in the next year expressed interest purchasing a camera phone.



But new camera phone users find that the devices are not quite what they expected. Notes David Chamberlain, analyst for market research company In-Stat, "People who haven't yet purchased camera phones are very enthusiastic about all the uses for their images. However, once they start using their new phones, they are turned off by perceived poor picture quality, slow network speeds, and the difficulty of creating and sending pictures."
As a Sprint survey indicates, camera phone users are more likely to use the pictures they take with their phone as a background image or for caller ID than to send them to other's phones. In-Stat found the latter percentage to be even lower — just 28% of respondents said they share pictures with friends through a messaging service, far less than the 60% who had hoped to do this before getting their camera phone. Only 5% print camera phone pictures or stores them on operator-sponsored Web sites. It seems likely that these patterns will remain until pictures become sharper and transferring them out of phones becomes easier.

A Wireless Line Is Crossed

It looks like 2006 will be a milestone year for the wireless industry.

According to In-Stat, this year — for the first time — US businesses will spend more on wireless voice services than on wireline.

The firm predicts that over the next several years, wireless data services will make significant gains as well.

"The transformation of telecom spending continues unabated," said Bryan Van Dussen, In-Stat analyst. "The relentless march toward IP-based networks, the unequivocal adoption of mobile solutions, and the pervasiveness of broadband have changed the face of business networks forever."

In-Stat expects that expenditures by enterprise-sized firms, with 1,000 or more employees, on wireless data will grow an average of 18% per year through 2009. But mid-sized and smaller firms are switching to wireless, too.
Mid-sized firms accounted for 12.4%, or $24 billion, of total US business telecom spending in 2005, and they are projected to reach $33 billion and 13% of the total US business market by 2009.










Small businesses are not about to be left behind, either. Spending on wireless data services will outpace all other categories in the SOHO segment, growing to nearly $2.2 billion in 2009, up from only $.47 billion in 2005.








No question about it, the wired office is giving way to a new wireless work environment all across the country.

Source: eMarketer

Mobiles get net home of their own

Net sites could soon be friendlier to use on mobile phonesSoon it could be much easier to browse the net on a mobile phone. Approval for a .mobi domain has been given by the organisation that oversees the net's addressing system. Websites that use the .mobi domain will be created specifically for mobile devices such as handsets and handheld computers to make them easy to find and browse. The first websites using the new .mobi domain are expected to appear by late summer next year.

Rick Fant, spokesman for the MTLD, the organisation behind the new domain, said motivation for .mobi came out of the realisation that use of the net on handsets is growing far slower than the rate of overall subscribers for mobiles.

"We know the potential is there because the mobile internet in Japan and South Korea is very prolific," he said. Handset haven The problem at the moment, said Mr Fant, is that few websites are designed with mobile users in mind.

Most websites are put together for viewing on a PC at resolutions of 800 by 600 pixels that connects to the net far faster than most mobile phones can do.

To get around this a condition of buying and running a .mobi domain will be adoption of basic standards and templates that ensure a "predictable" experience for phone owners.
The setting up of the .mobi domain would also make it much easier for search engines to find and catalogue sites so users can get at them easily when they go hunting for them. Such websites also need to take into account how people pay for their phone and bandwidth limitations.

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26 Million People Text Message in Support of Live 8

More than 26.4 million people around the world sent text messages on Saturday in support of the Live 8 campaign to clear the debts of the poorest countries, setting a world record for text messages sent, according to organizers. Prior to the event, the previous record for the most text messages sent on a single day for a single event was approximately 5.8 million for an episode of "American Idol" when viewers voted for a winner.

Source: Reuters

Amp'd Plans to Launch Content Rich Handset

Mobile Virtual Network Operator Amp'd plans to launch a menu full of wireless entertainment. The company reports its handsets will overflow with content and features more commonly associated with television and the Internet, allowing subscribers to view video of news, sports, concerts and other live events, as well as movie and television clips and music videos. Wireless handsets will be available through the company's Website with customizable features.

Source: New York Times

Mobile Music Expected to Swarm the Wireless Industry

According to an AFP report, digital music will soon heat up the wireless industry. Wireless phone manufacturer Ericsson expects mobile music to be the most important service the industry offers this year. With phones equipped to play high-quality music and featuring continuously expanding storage space wireless phone manufacturers hope to soon replace other portable music devices, such as iPods.

Source: AFP, Washington Post

Nevada to Launch Wireless Handheld Gambling

Nevada's Governor Kenny Guinn signed a law last month authorizing gamblers to play slot machines, video poker, blackjack and other games on handheld wireless devices in casinos' public spaces. Tourists will be able to play their favorite games from restaurants, bars, convention rooms and swimming pools. The wireless devices are expected to launch early next year.

Source: New York Times