Archive for the ‘Mobile tech’ Category
Mozilla’s browser OS gets partners and a name: Firefox OS
Posted: 2012/07/02 in Education / Awareness, Mobile tech, New Business Models, Stats / reports, Tech EvolutionThe browser-based smartphone operating system, formerly called Boot to Gecko, has won over two hardware makers and six carriers
Karma: a 4G provider that rewards users for sharing their data plan with strangers
Posted: 2012/06/15 in Education / Awareness, Mobile tech, New Business Models, Stats / reports“Something is fundamentally broken in the market for mobile providers,” says Robert Gaal, one of the founders of Karma, a startup that just graduated from the TechStars NY accelerator program. “We want to give everyone a mobile, 4G hotspot that lives in their pocket. It’s open to everyone, and lets you pay as you go. Best of all it works no matter what carrier or what device you’re using.”
More:
http://www.theverge.com/2012/6/14/3078382/karma-4g-pay-as-you-go-clearwire-network
The demand for data on mobile devices is doubling year-on-year. Estimates suggest that demand will exceed supply by 2013
Posted: 2012/06/12 in Bandwidth Management, Education / Awareness, Mobile tech, New Business Models, Stats / reports, Tech EvolutionIn fact it’s an issue that’s troubling a lot of people: scientists are trying to work out how cram more data into the same spectrum; Congress is auctioning off TV spectrum to use for wireless data instead. But those developments will take years to come to fruition.
More:
http://gizmodo.com/5917643/how-mobile-data-can-keep-up-with-demand
Ericsson predicts over nine billion mobile subscriptions by 2017
Posted: 2012/06/06 in Education / Awareness, Mobile tech, Stats / reportsEricsson has published its latest mobile traffic report and is predicting the number of mobile subscriptions in 2017 will top nine billion, with the bulk of the growth coming in Asia and the Far East.
The world is going online, the report finds, but most people’s first experience of the internet will be on a mobile phone rather than via a PC or laptop. By 2017 there should be over three billion smartphones in circulation, and worldwide 3G coverage should reach 85 per cent of the population, with 50 per cent having access to 4G.
According to Ericsson’s predictions, around a third of laptops will have cellular connections by 2017, and around half of all tablets will be on the network all the time. This is going to mean a lot of subscriptions, and already the mobile subscription rate for Western Europe is equal to 126 per cent of the population.
More:
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/06/06/ericsson_mobile_data_report/
Study: A view of traffic management and other practices resulting in restrictions to the open Internet in Europe
Posted: 2012/05/30 in Bandwidth Management, Blocking, Education / Awareness, Enforcement, File Sharing, Filtering, Mobile tech, New Business Models, Public Policy, Stats / reportsFindings from BEREC’s and the European Commission’s joint investigation
Commissioner Neelie Kroes:
BEREC has today provided the data I was waiting for. For most Europeans, their Internet access works well most of the time. But these findings show the need for more regulatory certainty and that there are enough problems to warrant strong and targeted action to safeguard consumers.
For the first time we know that at least 20%, and potentially up to half of EU mobile broadband users have contracts that allow their Internet service provider (ISP) to restrict services like VOIP (e.g. Skype) or peer-to-peer file sharing.
Around 20% of fixed operators (spread across virtually all EU member states) apply restrictions such as to limit peer-to-peer volumes at peak times. This can affect up to 95% of users in a country.
At the same time, in nearly all Member States, most if not all ISPs offer fixed and mobile Internet access services that are not subject to such restrictions. According to the BEREC figures 85% of all fixed ISPs and 76% of all mobile ISPs propose at least one unrestricted offer. So the market is generally providing choice, but in some countries the choices are quite limited in some EU countries.
But are customers really empowered to choose well? Do they realise what they are signing up for? I didn’t read all the pages in my mobile contract and I bet you didn’t either! I believe we all need more transparent information.
Given that BEREC’s findings highlight a problem of effective consumer choice, I will prepare recommendations to generate more real choices and end the net neutrality waiting game in Europe.
First, consumers need clear information on actual, real-life broadband speeds. Not just the speed at 3 am, but the speed at peak times. The upload as well as the download speed. The minimum speed, if applicable. And the speed you’ll get when you’re also watching IPTV as part of your triple-play bundle, or downloading a video on demand via a premium “managed” service. Plus, you should know what those advertised speeds typically allow you to do online
Second, consumers also need clear information on the limits of what they are paying for. Clear, quantified data ceilings are much better than vague “fair use” policies that leave too much discretion to Internet Service Providers (ISPs). They allow low-volume users to look for deals that suit them. And they incentivise ISPs to price data volumes in ways that reflect costs, and so support investment in modernising networks as traditional voice revenues decline.
Third, consumers also need to know if they are getting Champagne or lesser sparkling wine. If it is not full Internet, it shouldn’t be marketed as such; perhaps it shouldn’t be marketed as “Internet” at all, at least not without any upfront qualification. Regulators should have that kind of control over how ISPs market the service.
More:
http://blogs.ec.europa.eu/neelie-kroes/netneutrality/
See also:
Study: A view of traffic management and other practices resulting in restrictions to the open Internet in Europe
http://erg.eu.int/doc/consult/bor_12_30_tm-i_snapshot.pdf
Cyber security: U.S. mulls blocking China Mobile license
Posted: 2012/05/17 in Blocking, Education / Awareness, Mobile tech, Network Security, Privacy / Data Protection, Public Policy, Stats / reportsConcerned about cyber security and possible spying, U.S. officials are considering denying China Mobile’s license for providing international information service in the United States.
Officials from the FBI, the Department of Homeland Security, and the Justice Department’s national security division are concerned that the license would allow China Mobile to build physical infrastructure in the American territory, as well as to monitor and route Internet traffic. This would pose a potential threat to government information and the intellectual properties of American companies, according to an unidentified source.
“The U.S. Internet and telecommunication market has always been tough on Chinese companies, and the government’s only explanation is security,” said Yang Haifeng, Chief Editor of Communication World Weekly. “As Chinese companies expand business overseas, some American counterparts are struggling. Blocking the Chinese companies is not only protectionism, but also a political move.”
Much more:
http://www.zdnet.com/blog/china/cyber-security-us-mulls-blocking-china-mobile-license/412
Government asks: when can we shut down wireless service?
Posted: 2012/05/08 in Blocking, Education / Awareness, Legislation, Mobile tech, Public Policy, Stats / reportsWhat’s striking about most of this discussion is that it takes place absent any mention of the free speech implications of giving government agencies more power to shut down wireless service in situations that they deem an “emergency.” A slew of advocacy groups want the FCC to nip that kind of power in the bud.
“The Commission’s authority to prevent wireless service interruptions is clear, and we ask that the Commission take this opportunity to issue clear rules confirming that the federal government will not, and that state and local governments cannot, interrupt wireless services as a matter of policy in an emergency, nor can the carriers themselves or any private party,” they write.
Signed—Public Knowledge, the Center for Democracy & Technology, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the Benton Foundation, Free Press, Minority Media and Telecommunications Council, the National Hispanic Media Coalition, and the New America Foundation’s Open Technology Institute.
“Practically every time someone uses a cell phone, he or she is engaging in First Amendment-protected speech,” they argue.
NSA: New Smartphones and the Risk Picture
Posted: 2012/05/07 in Education / Awareness, Mobile tech, Privacy / Data Protection, Stats / reportsNokia’s CEO Says Carriers Hate Skype, And Its Affecting Windows Phone Sales
Posted: 2012/05/05 in Education / Awareness, Mobile tech, New Business Models, Stats / reportsNokia CEO Stephen Elop told shareholders carriers are hesitant to sell the Nokia Lumia phones because Microsoft owns Skype, Tomi T Ahonen writes on his blog (via Asymco):
The second big news that came from the Shareholders’ Meeting is the issue about Skype. Elop was asked by a shareholder “Nokia seems to be having a problem with the distribution channel due to Skype” asking how will Nokia deal with this problem. Elop answered “If the operator doesn’t want us, it doesn’t want us. We will appeal to them with other arguments. We have more to offer to them. It is a good point to start the discussion from Skype.”
http://articles.businessinsider.com/2012-05-04/tech/31564637_1_skype-ballmer-nokia-deal
When “Everything Everywhere” Desire Takes Aim At Internet Infrastructure
Posted: 2012/04/21 in Education / Awareness, Mobile tech, New Business Models, Stats / reports, Tech EvolutionGive the people what they want
Local Dutch Vodafone Disruption Even Affects International Roaming
Posted: 2012/04/11 in Education / Awareness, Mobile tech, Stats / reportsEven when customers are outside of The Netherlands, Vodafone requires them to connect to one of the servers located at a Dutch datacenter that burned to the ground
Dutch language news article:
http://www.geenstijl.nl/mt/archieven/2012/04/belazert_vodafone_klanten_met.html
Previously:
http://vrritti.com/?s=vodafone
Major US wireless providers – Verizon, Sprint, AT&T, T-Mobile – are joining forces with the US government in an effort to combat phone theft
Posted: 2012/04/10 in Education / Awareness, Mobile tech, New Business Models, Privacy / Data Protection, Public Policy, Tech EvolutionThe Wall Street Journal reports the wireless companies will build and maintain a centralized database to track phones reported as lost or stolen. Phones on the list will then be denied voice and data service. Ideally, this makes the stolen phone virtually useless and drastically reduces resale value.
Corporate executives and other high value employees could even have their mobile phone compromised before they even disembark the plane
Posted: 2012/04/09 in Education / Awareness, Mobile tech, Network Security, Privacy / Data Protection, Public Policy, Stats / reportsA thirst for intellectual property and trade secrets, and a bugeoning market of sophisticated mobile surveillance tools means that executives need to begin thinking and acting like spies in order to avoid being spied upon themselves, according to a presentation at the OWASP AppSec DC 2012 conference in Washington DC on Thursday.
Among the common attacks used against high value targets are SMS messages sent to the phones that contain links to Web pages that compromise the mobile device, Morehouse said. It’s not uncommon for these attack messages to imitate the standard “welcome” text message that arriving visitors get from the local mobile carrier that informs them of the local mobile and data rates. The messages are highly effective because mobile users are familiar with them and, in fact, expecting them as soon as they activate their phone.
The likelihood of having your mobile device hacked overseas varies based on the country you are visiting, who you are, and how interested state- and non-state actors are in your work or your employer. And, while China and Russia are the two countries that are most-often mentioned, Morehouse said surveillance of executives and other VIPs isn’t limited to those two destinations.
Morehouse said countries in the Asia-Pacific region, in general, as well as countries in Africa should have executives on guard.
While a few governments – notably China – are known to work with the cooperation of local carriers, Morehouse said that the rapid growth of the spy tools industry has democratized wireless surveillance, and given state and non-state actors plenty of tools to work with to compromise mobile devices.
Morehouse said firms like the Israeli firm ABILITY have tools that can detect the location of a mobile device to within 30 meters. Others allow sophisticated nation and non-nation state backed attackers to target phones by the phone number, IMEI (International Mobile Equipment Identity) number and intercept all inbound and outbound communications from the device and, in some cases, even decrypt encrypted communications on the fly. ELTA Systems, another Israeli firm, even markets a miniature blimp that can fly over targets of interest and suck up mobile signals, he said.
Morehouse said his interest in mobile defense was borne of his own travels around the Globe.
More:
http://threatpost.com/en_us/blogs/executives-abroad-may-get-owned-they-re-tarmac-040812
Vodafone NL Disruption Allows Subscribers To Eavesdrop On One Another (Video)
Posted: 2012/04/08 in Education / Awareness, Mobile tech, Network Security, Privacy / Data Protection, Stats / reportsDutch man calls girlfriend. Having listened to a Vodafone notification arguing that he hasn’t got sufficient credit to make the phone call, he’s able to listen in to bits and pieces of other conversations
Dutch language news article:
http://www.joop.nl/show/detail/artikel/hallo_vodofone_doet_het_weerbijna/
Previously:
http://vrritti.com/?s=vodafone
Virgin Media Business Warns of Bottomless Pit for Mobile Data Use
Posted: 2012/04/07 in Bandwidth Management, Education / Awareness, Mobile tech, Stats / reportsVirgin Media Business has warned that UK Mobile Broadband operators are facing a “bottomless pit” as they attempt to adapt to rising levels of data usage, which has increased by 250% over the past two years alone, especially with superfast “4G” services being just around the corner.
The operator states that much of this demand is coming from popular video streaming apps (iPlayer and YouTube), which now come as standard on 83% of handsets, and by 2015 it’s estimated people will be using thirty times more mobile data than they were in 2009.
Vodafone Disruption Not Only Affected TomTom Live But Also Public Transport Card Terminals
Posted: 2012/04/07 in Education / Awareness, Mobile tech, Network Security, Stats / reportsMost of the terminals used to top up the public transport cards are not functioning currently. They probably make use of Vodafone SIMs and perhaps also the M2M network, similar to the TomTom devices
Dutch language news article:
http://buurtlink.nl/3223DB/hellevoetsluis/Bruggehoofd/4482121/ov+-chip+oplaadpunten+in+storing
Previously:
Some Dutch Vodafone Users Can Make Calls Again, But Only To Realize That Total Strangers Are Picking Up The Phone
http://vrritti.com/2012/04/07/some-dutch-vodafone-users-can-make-calls-again-but-only-to-realize-that-total-strangers-are-picking-up-the-phone/
Fire In Dutch Vodafone Data Center Shuts Down TomTom Live Connections In The Whole Of Europe
http://vrritti.com/2012/04/07/fire-in-dutch-vodafone-data-center-shuts-down-tomtom-live-connections-in-the-whole-of-europe/
Vodafone NL CEO Rob Shuter Turned To YouTube To Explain Network Outage Status Quo To Dutch Public
http://vrritti.com/2012/04/07/vodafone-nl-ceo-rob-shuter-turned-to-youtube-to-explain-network-outage-status-quo-to-dutch-public/
Vodafone’s Telecom Network in The Netherlands Partially Down Due To Fire At One Of Its Network Centers. Will Affect 40% Of Its Dutch Network Traffic
http://vrritti.com/2012/04/04/vodafones-telecom-network-in-the-netherlands-partially-down-due-to-fire-at-one-of-its-network-centers/
Some Dutch Vodafone Users Can Make Calls Again, But Only To Realize That Total Strangers Are Picking Up The Phone
Posted: 2012/04/07 in Education / Awareness, Mobile tech, Network Security, Stats / reportsVodafone users in The Netherlands report that they’re able to make phone calls again. However, several of them were calling friends and relatives, only to end up speaking to total strangers.
Even more bizarre was a test that a woman conducted, calling her husband who was sitting next to her. When she called him his phone rang, but still a total stranger was the one picking up the phone.
A mother called her son (in the same country), but ended up talking to a person in another country. Her son tried to call his mom but also ended up talking to a stranger.
Vodafone has confirmed that there are still issues like these and is working hard to resolve them.
Dutch language news articles:
http://www.rijnmond.nl/nieuws/07-04-2012/klanten-vodafone-krijgen-wildvreemden-aan-de-lijn
http://www.nu.nl/internet/2782557/klanten-vodafone-krijgen-vreemden-lijn.html
Previously:
Fire In Dutch Vodafone Data Center Shuts Down TomTom Live Connections In The Whole Of Europe
http://vrritti.com/2012/04/07/fire-in-dutch-vodafone-data-center-shuts-down-tomtom-live-connections-in-the-whole-of-europe/
Vodafone NL CEO Rob Shuter Turned To YouTube To Explain Network Outage Status Quo To Dutch Public
http://vrritti.com/2012/04/07/vodafone-nl-ceo-rob-shuter-turned-to-youtube-to-explain-network-outage-status-quo-to-dutch-public/
Vodafone’s Telecom Network in The Netherlands Partially Down Due To Fire At One Of Its Network Centers. Will Affect 40% Of Its Dutch Network Traffic
http://vrritti.com/2012/04/04/vodafones-telecom-network-in-the-netherlands-partially-down-due-to-fire-at-one-of-its-network-centers/
Fire In Dutch Vodafone Data Center Shuts Down TomTom Live Connections In The Whole Of Europe
Posted: 2012/04/07 in Education / Awareness, Mobile tech, Stats / reportsThe more expensive TomTom devices make use of Vodafone SIM cards and Vodafone’s machine-to-machine (M2M) network which normally updates traffic, location and speed related information
Dutch language news article:
http://webwereld.nl/nieuws/110113/vodafone-brand-nekt-tomtom-live-in-heel-europa.html
Previously:
Vodafone NL CEO Rob Shuter Turned To YouTube To Explain Network Outage Status Quo To Dutch Public
http://vrritti.com/2012/04/07/vodafone-nl-ceo-rob-shuter-turned-to-youtube-to-explain-network-outage-status-quo-to-dutch-public/
Vodafone’s Telecom Network in The Netherlands Partially Down Due To Fire At One Of Its Network Centers. Will Affect 40% Of Its Dutch Network Traffic
http://vrritti.com/2012/04/04/vodafones-telecom-network-in-the-netherlands-partially-down-due-to-fire-at-one-of-its-network-centers/
“Your Cell Phone Makes You A Prisoner Of A Digital World Where Virtually Anyone Can Hack You And Track You”
Posted: 2012/04/07 in Education / Awareness, Mobile tech, New Business Models, Privacy / Data Protection, Stats / reports, Tech EvolutionIn mid-October, Verizon Wireless changed its privacy policy to allow the company to record customers’ location data and Web browsing history, combine it with other personal information like age and gender, aggregate it with millions of other customers’ data, and sell it on an anonymous basis.
So who is buying this information?
Unfortunately, as our world becomes even more interconnected and even more dependent on technology, the amount of privacy we all have is likely to continue to decrease. A digital Big Brother control grid is being constructed all around us, and in the future that control grid could potentially be used for very malevolent purposes.
Vodafone NL CEO Rob Shuter Turned To YouTube To Explain Network Outage Status Quo To Dutch Public
Posted: 2012/04/07 in Education / Awareness, Mobile tech, Network SecurityOutage also affected government institutions and is now in its third day
Previously:
Vodafone’s Telecom Network in The Netherlands Partially Down Due To Fire At One Of Its Network Centers. Will Affect 40% Of Its Dutch Network Traffic
http://vrritti.com/2012/04/04/vodafones-telecom-network-in-the-netherlands-partially-down-due-to-fire-at-one-of-its-network-centers/
DoCoMo users hit 60 million, half Japan’s population
Posted: 2012/03/14 in Education / Awareness, Mobile tech, Stats / reportsBrussels Probes Possible Collusion: Vodafone, Deutsche Telekom, France Telecom, Telefonica And Telecom Italia
Posted: 2012/03/14 in Education / Awareness, Mobile tech, Public Policy, Stats / reportsIn The Netherlands T-Mobile, KPN and Vodafone are already suspected of price-fixing. Sources claim that the EU activities are aimed at meetings where the 5 operators where present, issues related to standardization of mobile technologies and activities that may be relevant in relation to antitrust legislation.
Dutch language news article:
http://www.nu.nl/internet/2763044/providers-verdacht-van-europese-prijsafspraken.html
