Mobile Web News, Week of November 19, 2007

November 20, 2007 on 5:59 pm | In Mobile Web News |

Mobile Phones: America Slowly Emerging from Stone Age
The US is primitive when it comes to mobile phone usage. Most people just talk and email, whereas in the frontrunning company, Japan, subscribers read books and watch TV on their phones.

The heartening news is that in the third quarter of 2007, 165% more smartphones were sold than in the corresponding 2006 period.

One of these days the US will acquire modern mobile telecom, might take a while, but it’ll happen…

Source: intomobile.com

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AOL Subscribers Allowed Out of Walled Garden (A Little)
Are you an AOL mobile subscriber?
Hot-diggety, there’s a new web bowser you can download from the AOL
website. The browser makes it easy for you to place various AOL website
features on the browser’s page, and even will serve you banner ads from
people advertising with AOL! Aren’t you fortunate, now!

But in all fairness, the browser also allows you to type in any
web address and view that page. The web page being viewed will be
resized by AOL to fit neatly into your phone window. There are even
tabs to have several pages ready for viewing simultaneously.

The good thing here is that you are no longer limited to viewing
only the pages that AOL permits you to view. There’s nothing like
freedom… kudos to AOL for the move!

Source: bigmouthmedia.com

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Google and 700MHz: An Update
Google is gearing up to bid by itself on the 700 MHz wireless spectrum being auctioned in January 2008 by the FCC.

Only trouble is, Google isn’t a wireless carrier, and wireless is a separate kettle of fish altogether. Without pouring in an immense amount of money and attention, and consequently diverting its purpose significantly, Google will not be able to operate a mobile network.

The mobile carrier space is also domicile to several deadly inhabitants: Verizon, AT&T, Sprint and T-Mobile, to name a few. They will not, by any stretch of the imagination, allow their billions of dollars in investment be poached by a non-industry player.

Which is why the grapevine says that Google is trying o partner up with certain mobile carriers. Hope this is true, else the giant whom we know so well will be in for a hard time!