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January 28, 2007
Iraq: Disturbing picture ..
Sometimes you see a picture in a news bulletin .. and it sticks with you for the rest of the day(and probably will for a lot longer). Inspite of all the horrors we see in the news today, this was one such picture I saw today – no child should have to go through this! Very disturbing!
Inspite of being in Iraq, this girl looks almost ‘Indian’ to me from a typical Indian school – except for the surrounding settings.
I guess it shows that as human beings, we will empathise will people all over the world – inspite of the divisive forces of evil.
The logic of bombing a girl's school escapes me!
Source: Pupils killed as Iraq schools hit
Posted by ajit at 6:57 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
iPhone: A catalyst for Mobile Ajax
My optimistic views about Mobile Ajax are well known. However, last month Mobile Ajax has got an unexpected catalyst in the form of iPhone.
I have always favoured Mobile Ajax for reasons like:
a) I like the One Web (unified Web) theory.
b) I believe in Open standards.
c) Mobile Ajax fosters the adoption of Mobile Widgets and
d) Developers will adopt technologies which they are already familiar with
The story so far has been led by the Opera platform, with support from Nokia (who have introduced many devices with the full Web browser).
Soonr has been the best showcase application for Mobile Ajax.
However, an unexpected boost to Mobile Ajax has been provided by the iPhone.
I believe that the iPhone will always be a niche device and even Steve Jobs is very likely aiming for that (which is still a great/profitable business to be in).
However, like on the PC, Apple will end up raising the bar for many things – especially the UI.
On first impressions, the browser UI is great .. but even more so when you realise that the browser does not use either Flash Lite or Java.
So, it is good old fashioned full browser technology –aka – Mobile Ajax(and more).
This means legions of developers will try to create better UI emulating the iPhone
But the iPhone will never be a mass market phone! So, I believe that the industry will reap the benefits of the skills base from these developers.
Others like Eli Dickinson of Fierce wireless have also spotted this trend
I predict this year, Mobile Ajax will become much more common - although we not call it 'Mobile Ajax' - actually any full browser app could be potentially Mobile Ajax application and the iPhone UI will lead to developers adopting Mobile Ajax(and thereby benefiting the industry as a whole especially more mass market solutions like the Opera platform)
Image source: http://gizmodo.com/gadgets/macworld2007/the-iphone-web-browser-via-safari--has-tabs-227412.php
Posted by ajit at 1:42 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
January 27, 2007
Happy Birthday, Opera Mini
A year on from its introduction (with 3 billion page views and 10 million users), Opera Mini has transformed the Mobile Web experience for all of us and it is truly an OpenGardens experience. Truly as fantastic achievement! The full press release is on the Opera Site and below
Oslo, Norway - 26 January 2007
This week Opera Software celebrates the one-year anniversary of Opera Mini. Within its first year, Opera Mini has changed the way millions of people access and view the Web on their mobile phone. Designed to work with almost any mobile phone, Opera Mini is available free from www.operamini.com.
"This is a celebration for our users," said Jon von Tetzchner, CEO, Opera Software. "Thanks to the more than 10 million people who have downloaded and used Opera Mini, we've changed the way users and mobile operators think about the mobile Web. Because of the tremendous grassroots support, Opera Mini is now a movement."
Opera Mini lets you take the Web with you. Instead of limited WAP content, you are free to browse the Web the same way you would at home on your laptop or desktop computer. You can use Opera Mini to post pictures to MySpace, search the Web using Yahoo!, shop on Amazon or check Gmail.
"People want to communicate with friends, read their favorite blogs and check email; it's not sufficient to offer them limited WAP content," said Ajit Jaokar, CEO of FutureText and author of 'Open Gardens: The innovator's guide to the Mobile data industry'. "At the same time, offering full Web access to subscribers drives more revenue for the mobile operator. It becomes a win-win proposition for everyone."
Opera Mini Factbox
Numbers Behind Opera Mini
Opera Mini continues to generate substantial mobile browsing traffic. Here are a few facts:
• 3 billion cumulative pages viewed with Opera Mini
• 10 million cumulative Opera Mini users
• Opera's servers present 300 complete web pages to users per second
Interesting Revelations
• Brunei Darrussalam has the world's greatest penetration of Opera Mini users per capita
• Sudan, the Maldives, Cote d'Ivoire and Bangladesh have the highest concentration of Opera Mini users per mobile phone
• If you are in the U.S., you most likely run Opera Mini on a Motorola RAZR V3, BlackBerry Pearl or BlackBerry 8700
• If you are in the U.K., you most likely run Opera Mini on a Sony Ericsson K800i, Sony Ericsson K750i or BlackBerry 8700
• If you are in Russia, you most likely run Opera Mini on a Sony Ericsson K750i, Nokia 6230i or Sony Ericsson K700i
• If you are in Germany, you most likely run Opera Mini on a Sony Ericsson K800i, Sony Ericsson K610i or Sony Ericsson P990i
Posted by ajit at 1:01 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
January 25, 2007
Paddy Byers: Looking for new opportunities
By Dr Paddy Byers
Firstly, let me apologise for not having written much recently. I was travelling both before and after the holidays and had a load of personal things to catch up on. The Xmas break is a great time to step back and take stock of your personal and professional situation, away from the usual frenetic day-to-day activities of life.
So now, after 10 years at Tao I’ve decided it is time to move on. Tao has mature and proven technology and a very exciting future, but personally I’m now more interested in how the new generation of internet technologies and social media can be harnessed. This has always been the vision of this blog.
Therefore, I’m looking for new opportunities to work in this space, in the UK or elsewhere. If you read this blog regularly you’ll know my views on a number of things, and you can find more information about my experience on LinkedIn. I’ve got very broad as well as deep technical experience but, most important, I’ve been directly involved in growing a small early-stage technology company into a significant and successful business. I can be contacted directly at paddy.byers@gmail.com.
Now, I need to get back to some writing :).
Posted by ajit at 8:21 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
January 24, 2007
Digital culture blog's review of Mobile Web 2.0
I read the digital culture blog regularly and so its nice to see Haydn Shaughnessy's review of our book Mobile Web 2.0 on his blog.
Haydn says ..
Regular readers will understand that controversy is at least half the fun when it comes to picking out the right answers. Ajit Jaokar and Tony Fish, in their book Mobile Web 2.0, say “Content is King” is nonsense. A few years back, before the dotcom boom, financiers used to say Cash is King, and then they backed companies which made none, or very little, so we take industry dictums seriously at our peril. Jaokar and Fish though have an important point.
Read the rest of the review HERE
Posted by ajit at 7:23 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
I am in Dusseldorf this Fri and weekend ..
Hello
I am in Dusseldorf this Fri and weekend. If you want to catch up, please email me at ajit.jaokar at futuretext.com
Posted by ajit at 6:34 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
January 22, 2007
Tony Fish to speak at Fast Forward 07 ..
Hello all
Tony fish, co-author of Mobile Web 2.0, is speaking at Fast Forward 07
Considering Tony's co-speakers include Ray Lane, Partner, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, John Battelle, Founder and Chairman of Federated Media Publishing, Bill Inmon, Vice President, Published Author and Universally Recognized as the Father of Data Warehousing and Tim O'Reilly, Founder and CEO of O'Reilly Media, Inc - this sounds to be a very interesting conference.
If you are attending, please say 'Hi' to Tony
Posted by ajit at 6:30 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
January 21, 2007
My interview with Bloggingstocks ..
When I was in Raleigh/Santa Clara last year, Tom Taulli interviewed me for his blog: bloggingstocks , which is a part of weblogsinc (in turn is part of AOL Time Warner)
You can see the full interview at bloggingstocks. Thanks Tom!
Posted by ajit at 12:07 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
January 19, 2007
My session at 3GSM and meeting up at 3GSM ..
Hello all
I am speaking + moderating the session on Mobile Web 2.0 at 3GSM on 14 Feb 16:50 to 18:10 Technology Breakout Session
Other participants include Jon von Tetzchner Chief Executive Officer Opera Software, Alex Kummerman Chief Executive Officer Clicmobile, David Wood Executive Vice President, Symbian Research
You are all welcome to attend ofcourse!
I am also speaking at another conference organised by Ogilvy immediately following 3GSM.
So, I am in Barcelona from Sat to Sat (the whole week)
Happy to meet up
Ironically, inspite of speaking at 3GSM, this is the first time I am attending it :(
Hence, not very good at the logistics.
Happy to meet up/attend any events or parties you recommend. Please contact me on ajit.jaokar at futuretext.com
kind rgds
Ajit
Posted by ajit at 6:19 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
The launch of Horizon Channel: Video podcasting, Wikis and Mobile Video ..
For some time, I have been planning a start-up called Horizon Channel.
In October last year, I discussed the idea with Tomi Ahonen and Alan Moore. This will be my third collaboration with Alan and Tomi and the chance to work with these two clued on people is very appealing ..
They both loved it. So, we decided to go for it!
We have been working on it since October and it finally launches today!
In a nutshell, Horizon channel covers trends and technologies ‘on the horizon’. It combines Podcasting (audio and video) with Wikis
The name was inspired from the National Geographic channel. And in that sense, it is not ‘User Generated Content’. Thus, in spite of all the buzz around Web 2.0, I would not call Horizon Channel as ‘Web 2.0’. Yes, we have some elements of Web 2.0 (like unleashing of content i.e. our podcasts being accessed remotely on other partner sites and through RSS) and Wikis; but the content creation itself is very much traditional.
As bloggers, all three of us are familiar with content creation; especially with content created for the web (free, but likely to be advertisement sponsored).
So, the question we asked ourselves is: As content creators what should this venture look like? How would it be useful to our audience?
Here’s what it looks like:
a) We are launching Horizon Channel with two shows: Emerging Web and Mobile technologies with Ajit Jaokar and Communities Dominate Podcast with Alan Moore and Tomi Ahonen
b) What makes us different? In a nutshell, the content of our shows and the knowledge of our presenters.
And we have a great cast for the launch!
Rory Sutherland : Executive Creative Director and Vice-Chairman, OgilvyOne London and Vice-Chairman, Ogilvy Group UK giving us his views on the future of Digital communities
Jo Butler : Co-Director, Information Technology Research ISTG Group, Intel speaks to us about SOA/Web 2.0 and their applicability to Enterprises
Håkon Wium Lie : CTO Opera Software talks about the significance of Widgets
Peter Miles CEO SUBtv discussing youth, media and brands.
c) Our shows will always be free. They could be supported by advertisements or sponsored. We also syndicate our content at no cost to other sites which share our ethos.
d) We will also post the entire transcript of our podcast in a Wiki, which you can access from the site . You can comment on the transcript and interact with our show hosts
e) We are likely to have a European focus(but that may not be always the case)
f) Considering our background with Mobile technologies, we will be investing heavily into Mobile video podcasting : both creation using devices like Nokia N93 and also consumption on mobile devices.
We welcome your thoughts
Please see the Horizon Channel at www.horizonchannel.com or click on Horizon Channel.
Special thanks to Andrew Buonocore and Darren Michael of Podcast Generation for their hard work and support in making this happen!
Posted by ajit at 9:43 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
January 17, 2007
Meeting Korean companies at 3GSM ..
Hello all
As many of you know, I work with companies in South Korea and Korean development bodies, specifically ipark/kipa in london. Jim O'Reilly
Alliance and Partner Manager iPark EMEA is a good contact for all things Korean and also a good friend.
If you want to see any Korean companies at 3GSM, Jim is the person to contact(alternately post here or email me on ajit.jaokar at futuretext.com and I will facilitate an introduction)
Note from Jim including contact details and companies exhibiting:
As you know Korea is number a world leader for Wireless Data revenues with 28.6 % data ARPU and 3.5 million terminals on Digital Media Broadcast –Mobile TV in 2006 already to name just a few
If Europe is serious about closing the EBITDA gap from 35% to 45% as in Asia and Korea then 3GSM is the right place to reduce costs and risks and grow data revenues by partnering.
I am sure following last years successful intro - Spain will do us proud as a host again this year.
Once again on behalf of the Korean Government we offer a free service arranging Alliance and Partnerships for the Korean Wireless Industry in Barcelona and believe working together with your teams would lead to greater market opportunities and sales leads for your business.
In particular looking at the various portfolios I believe partnerships with Mobile browser applications and interoperable Music DRM solutions across many devices and formats would be of immediate benefit to many of your customers
At 3GSM, 12-15 Feb 2007, Hall 7,B42 . The iPark team can also give an end to end view of the Korean Wireless/FMC portfolio and accelerate customization of portfolio products and solutions as well as extensive Market and Industry Intelligence. We are leading partners for new services e.g. Mobile TV, DMB,VAS, WiMax/WiBro, FMC,IPTV and Digital Content.
If you are considering adding new services to your existing offer or creating new terminals or applications we can guide you to the right chipsets, operating systems, applications, devices and infrastructures proven in the most advanced Telecoms Markets Globally.
As well as iPark Managers that can customize the whole portfolio for your taste we will have Korean Portfolio specialists on Hall 7, 7B42 that include
Aromasoft – BREW,WIPI, Java VM, Middleware, SW Platforms –JSR Integration
Disys - Mobile Multimedia, Camera/MMS/ DMB Chipsets/Solutions
INKA Entworks - Interoperable DRM adaptors (very active with Music download for many terminals
Infraware - Embedded Solutions, Full Browser (80% of Korea Mobile Web Browser Market and very big in China now) , MMS, Email Viewers
Hutech21 – 3G Repeaters ( 3G Home/office broadband connectivity –attractive pricing ) , RF Passive components
Radio Pulse -2.4GHz ZigBee wireless connectivity chipset and solutions
Welgate – Mutli-functional Caller ID, Missed call notification Platforms, User interface development kits, Flash MCP
There will also be many other of our many Korean Vendors around in the FIRA covering handset customization and personalisation, Mobile RSS, core network solutions, 2D barcoding , Mobile Gaming Music downloads and more
I trust this makes sense and going forward in 2007 this could be a great service for product ,marketing and strategy teams .
Please contact me Jim O’Reilly (Black belt in Convergence :) before, during or after 3GSM on joreilly@iparklondon.com with name, preferred meeting date, location and time and possible/particular subjects of interest.
Best Regards
Jim O'Reilly
Alliance and Partner Manager EMEA
Korean ICT International Cooperation Agency
Meet us at Korea Mobile 3GSM >Feb 12-15 >Hall 7 7B42
Posted by ajit at 5:16 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Does anyone know a launch date for the Nokia N93i?
I am very keen to get the Nokia N93i. Does anyone know the launch date for this phone in the UK? Please contact me at ajit.jaokar at futuretext.com if you can help!
Posted by ajit at 5:05 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
January 16, 2007
Good site for SIP/IMS standards ..
If you are into SIP/IMS standards, have a look at this site which represents the standards in a much more user friendly way. I have found this very useful. The site is tech-invite
Posted by ajit at 6:00 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Rock on three! Free data roaming charges .. why this is significant and why other Operators STILL dont 'get' it?
My favourite operator just keeps getting better and better! The BBC says.. Mobile firm 3 scraps roaming fees
This is fantastic for the customer, for Three and ultimately (when the industry wakes up) - for the industry itself!
And also the reason why I yawn when other Operators talk of how well they understand their customers, Customer relationship management, new services, marketing etc etc!
Most of the press will focus on free roaming 'voice' charges.
BUT ..
The announcement also says ..
3 added that its UK customers would also be able to make video calls and access the internet at their usual domestic rate under the new service, which is called 3 Like Home.
In other words, free roaming data charges.
Why is this great?
Think about this ..
We all talk of 'mobile content being triggered by the moment of inspiration'
So, we want to capture AND SHARE the moment instantly
So, if we are on holiday in Barcelona, we want the poor folk sitting in cold England to know IN THAT INSTANT .. How nice the beach is ..
BUT ..
All the Operators make the right noises, but come up with data plans that CRIPPLE this moment of inspiration.
So, you DARE not send your holiday photo/video in an instant(because you will pay for it when you get home!)
Now, all that changes .. With fixed rate roaming data charges!
User generated content was the main driver behind Mobile Web 2.0, so this is a great boost for Mobile Web 2.0
Great stuff!
Posted by ajit at 8:22 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Carnival of the mobilists No 58: at Thomas Landspurg's blog
Don't miss the best writing in the mobility space at Thomas's blog . Tomi won the best post this time for his iPod blog
Posted by ajit at 12:09 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
January 14, 2007
A case for phone book 2.0? Part Two : FMC (Fixed to mobile convergence) cannot live by 'cost savings' alone!
Part One for this article is
A case for phone book 2.0? Part One : FMC (Fixed to mobile convergence) cannot live by 'cost savings' alone!
To recap, the question was
a) Whats the value proposition of FMC(fixed to mobile convergence)
b) Hypothetically, If I get a call from my Operator(O2/Vodafone/T-mobile) etc .. trying to 'sell' me FMC - what would it sound like? What exactly are they selling and why? Whats in it for me? cost reduction?
Please read Part One to get a big picture view. Here are my thoughts
a) FMC cannot live by 'cost savings' alone! - see what happened to 3G - A network alone cannot make money - you need services
b) Cost savings(or free) is not a business model for Opertors - The city will not accept it, the customers will not trust it and its financially not viable
c) Most Operators are driven to FMC only because they have little choice. The City wants them to increase subscriber numbers. Local markets are saturated. Overseas expansions have not proved profitable or manageable. This is a good reason for the Operator to adopt FMC- but not a compelling enough reason for the customer(yet!)
d) FMC itself is a very limited term. 'Fixed' and 'Mobile' are not the only two entities(other two being broadband and TV). In fact, Operators promote FMC only because thats the only element that they CAN do so far(for instance my real driver for an upgrade is to get the Discovery Channel - which no Operator really knows!)
e) It also leads to more questions in my mind: i.e. who will win in this game?
f) If you discount price cutting(no pun intended!), then customers need unified services.
g) The phone book discussions here are, to me, an indicator of a simple service which would be useful to me. Shane's examples of fring show a potentially useful service(to me) - although I dont see the business model for fring
h) If you then extend that idea of a unified phone book, by Jag's thoughts l(i.e. it is more than a buddy list i.e. should include the Pizza guy, local Chinese takeway etc etc), you have the makings of a potentially useful service.
i) If you extend that idea furthur to the other elements of quadplay, then you need maybe TV listings, song preferences, community to share your media preferences etc. In other words, once you have a list of contacts - and that list spans all networks - then you can build a whole community around that 'Phone book' - ofcourse it no longer remains a phone book as such
j) Finally, if you consider what we talk of in Mobile Web 2.0, i.e. the 'six screens' - (TV, PC, Cinema, mobile,portable screens such as in cars and planes, information screens like iPod and the 'mobile phone') - THEN the same phone book (now holding more than phone numbers) must be accessible from all these screens.
k) The next logical question is - what technology will be used to access this hypothetical phone book at a service level? To me, it is some form of browser - but then I am biased!!
l) Finally, the winner is likely to be the one who can 'sell' this phone book to the customer and NOT the one who builds the network. The one who builds the network only sans services risks being Pipe 2.0 smile The entity who builds the phone book will be the commercial winner.
Thoughts?
I have learnt a lot from this thread. Thanks espeicallty to Jag, Shane, Colin, Tomi, Dean, Jim, Peter, David and Kevin
kind rgds
Ajit
Posted by ajit at 5:28 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
A case for phone book 2.0? Part One : FMC (Fixed to mobile convergence) cannot live by 'cost savings' alone!
A case for phone book 2.0?: FMC (Fixed to mobile convergence) cannot live by 'cost savings' alone!
This blog comprises a series of two blogs. (If you want to see Part two it is
A case for phone book 2.0? Part Two : FMC (Fixed to mobile convergence) cannot live by 'cost savings' alone!)
It started off by one of my usual Gedankenexperiment :
If I salesman from my Telecoms Operator(O2/Vodafone/T-mobile) knocks at my door .. trying to 'sell' me FMC - what would it sound like? What exactly are they selling and why? What’s in it for me? cost reduction?
Ofcourse, they will not say FMC - not withstanding that Operators tried to sell me WAP :) - so I can't be too sure of that! (sorry I could not resist that! )
But question remains - as a customer - what exactly am I being sold by the FMC(Fixed to mobile convergence salesman? and what are its benefits?
The first part of this blog relates to the many answers I received at forumoxford alongwith people who contributed. The second part of this blog/article gives my analysis after understanding from these ideas
Here are some insights to the question(What is the value proposition of FMC (fixed to mobile convergence) to the customer?
a) Device convergence - Colin Campbell
It’s not to replace the landline; it’s to converge the device (as I understand it!). I.e. one device for mobile and fixed line use.
There are a number of advantages to having one device:-
The users data i.e. contacts/phone book are always available regardless of which type of communications you are using. (Landline or cellular)
End user experience is much more consistent.
The service provider/device manufacturer potentially gets more opportunity to control a bigger chunk of the end user experience. I.e. home and mobile.
The mobile operator is seeing a revenue stream from the home which they didn’t have before.
Also the device manufacturers can build in a wider range of subsidiary capabilities i.e. a set of applications targetted at the home environment, and some targetted at the roaming cellular environment. So they get two chances to up sell the device. egg. you could put applications on your mobile phone which integrate with your games console or set top box.
b) FMC is not necessarily about "converged devices", nor is necessarily about dual-mode WiFi/cellular phones. It is a catch-all term, the definition of which depends on who is speaking.
Dean Bubley
It could include fixed+mobile bundling of the type done by numerous operators, perhaps including "closed user groups" of 1 fixed + 3 mobile numbers for free intrafamily calling.
It could be a mobile operator selling you a broadband connection, perhaps with a PC softphone client sharing the same number (and services, eg SMS), to your mobile, enabling you to take mobile calls via VoIP on your PC while travelling.
It could be a mobile operator providing you with a broadband-connected femtocell base station to give you better 3G coverage at home.
It could be a combined fixed & mobile operator (and these days, there are few "pure" mobile operators about) offering a way to link gamers on mobiles, PCs and consoles. Or watching a video clip on your phone, and then pushing the complete movie down to your HDTV/set-top-box server.
Some users will want one devices, others will want five. Some users will want 1 number or identity, others will want multiple. FMC is a convenient catch-all term which encompasses many of these capabilities.
So... overall "value proposition" will be a mix of:
* Cheaper calls, or at least different types of tariff structure
* Better indoor coverage (especially 3G, which is lousy at 2.1GHz)
* As much convergence or divergence of devices, numbers, bills as appropriate for your needs
* Assorted clever ideas for multi-access content / entertainment services
* Bundling and hence perhaps lower total cost to the consumer vs. less churn for the operator
c) Brand convergence: What level of convergence have they reached: Kevin Evans
Yes, it depends on who is talking and if they're an operator to what 'level' of convergence they've reached. For example, convergence can mean:
* Brand convergence - one company offering multiple services, yet services remain more or less separate. Can be a reseller arrangement.
* Billing convergence - one bill
* Customer care convergence - one number to call
* Device convergence (or divergence - agreeing with Dean)
* Network convergence - one network (but Convergence at different OSI layers is possible further complicating things)
Convergence is an evolution and the end goal depends on the company's strategy.
My view is, by and large, FMC in the short term and perhaps even medium term is at the first stage - brand convergence.
Voda and O2's broadband aspirations are at this stage. Even NTL with Virgin Mobile is merely converged branding at the moment but this will change quickly when they complete the merger and integration. BT by contrast is a real leader in the FMC race. They're at device convergence with Fusion and 21CN will take BT all the way to network convergence.
As FMC becomes vital to survival and everyone "is doing it", I suspect the industry will split with some operators becoming converged network operators selling wholesale and retail telecoms services (this is where BT is headed) while others become more service brands.
d) Importance of presence: Shane Williamson
I concur with you on Presence as it is a key factor moving forward, but it needs to be converged with the online world too.
The problem with mobile today is it is still disconnected in a lot ways due to carrier control. So, there isn't a huge rush by carriers to implement products and services that allow users to easily churn (particularly in Australia).
Presence is paramount as it is the key driver for services such as IM use & online gaming in the online world. People can see or be notified that the person they want to chat with is available. This needs to extend seamlessly into the mobile world too. Presence needs to bring disparate services together too, like the calendar on my business desktop synchronises with the mobiles services so when people call, my calendar shares this data with the voice-mail system and it changes the message to state I'm in a meeting. It then states I'm in the meeting until a specific time giving the caller the ability to choose how to then contact me.
Presence is also about using the right service at the right time, for instance the presence system would switch over to a cheaper RF network if it is available, automatically activating products that can now take advantage of this new connection type. Like VoIp when in a WiFi hot-spot.
I was involved with putting forward a project whilst at Hutchison here in Australia a couple of years back for centralising mobile contact details with a 3rd party company's online service. The project was blocked as some senior managers were concerned such a service would allow customers to easily churn. They looked toward a more "stickier" solution for contact backup instead.
We are in a connected world now, so Islands of separated data and services must end. People should have 1 set of contacts, calendar, buddy lists, photo/music/video albums, personal/business files, digital rights management licences etc that are transparent across multiple devices and services.
I look forward to seamless roaming of data and services from my mobile world to my online (TV & PC) realms. Great to see we are getting there albeit slowly.
d) Enterprise segment Tomi Ahonen:
I think the most attractive proposition in FMC is the business customer (enterprise customer) segment.
I think the most attractive proposition in FMC is the business customer (enterprise customer) segment. There are a lot of workers who are explicitly "unmobile". We want them to sit at their desks 8 hours a day (eg calling centre staff) or their work necessitates them to do most of their work at the desk (eg typical design and programming work).
For these, it makes sense to combine their computer systems with voice (typically VoIP) and then can give some gains from wirelessness (eg WiFi) and we can bundle cellular (mobile phone) benefits to it. Here is where I see the big future of FMC. In the home it is a lost cause, as nobody wants to own the home phone as we all have our mobile phones, and we know if the home phone rings, it is "not for me".
Oh, and Ajit - in Finland already today there are more broadband connections than fixed landlines, so yes, broadband without a fixed line is a reality today already, starting with the cable modems obviously...
e) I think what the consumer wants is clarity, value and simplicity. And that means marketing the message is critical David Cushman
The services being offered become easily confused (do I want free internet calls from BT when I have skype?). Do I want 'reduced cost' capped broadband when you are about to offer me TV on demand?
Dean's point about a mix is critical, and it's not what is typically on offer.
Tomi will tell you how little people will want one converged device unless everyone in the household can have a personalised one each.
And, of course, the personalisation issue disappears in a work-at-your-desk environment.
I think what the consumer wants is clarity, value and simplicity. And that means marketing the message is critical.
e) Product bundling Jag Minhas
And herein lies some of the answer; it's unlikely that the industry term "FMC" would ever be "sold" to you at all. Rather, you being a customer of Sky, the call centre at Sky would call you and try sell you broadband. The proposition would be something like "if you buy our XYZ package" and you contract to it for "X" months then we can give you broadband for "£Y" (or free)"
And so there are many variations on theme involving telephone, TV, Internet etc. Product bundling is a great way of increasing spend, but without necessarily corresponding to value of all the components in the mix. For example, if you buy Microsoft Office, you get quite a few things in the bundle, but you might not value all of them. You will pay for the bundle because you think it's worth it as a whole rather than the sum of it's parts, even though you are just after the parts.
f) The vendor needs to know the most important piece for me. In other words, they need to know my preference" Peter Cranstone:
"I think to 'sell' me the service, the vendor needs to know the most important piece for me. In other words, they need to know my preference"
It's all about "Me". Who am I (my preferences), What are my current device capabilities and Where am I.
If I give the vendor access to that information everytime I log on to their web site they can sell me an incredible service. However without "Me" data as Ajit says, it doesn't go anywhere. It's simply to hard to continually type in this data on a dynamic basis. It has to be transparent to both the customer and the content/service vendor.
g) Jim O Reilly : Template driven Mobile RSS If you look at it from the mobile 2.0 aspect where you are getting your mobile RSS feed and other server/broadcast/Fixed/ISP content into your mobile client via browser or idle screen (e.g. like Intromobile Dynamic Communications Convergence solutions) then this is combined with the user driven template choices (available in handset or via browser) where customers choose exactly what type of content elements or packages they would like to see (customised by Operator) and in which part of the screen that they prefer then you have the link between what is being served and what you are interested in . Thus linking tradionally Fixed and Mobile content choices . Trust that makes sense.
h) Cheaper calls/product bundles Jag Minhas : But there are certain things that operators *do* know about customers very well - and that is that they like lower prices for the services that they use. e.g. cheaper calling. Give a customer a way to get cheaper calling (or even free calling) and I'm sure every customer would take it. smile
Doing cheaper calling as part of a product bundle might allow operators to get something back in return. A similar concept could apply to Internet access, TV etc.
By the way, have you studied the way that the Sky TV (TV-only) package bundles work? The product range is structured and cleverly optimised to encourage you to spend a lot in order to get at the relatively small bit you really value. I can speak from experience here myself. In fact it's even worse for me - I pay a lot of money every month to Sky, and I only end up watching BBC News 24 most of the time - which as you know is "Free To Air". Why am such a mug to do this? Why haven't I cancelled my Sky subscription?
You know why? I can't bring myself to doing it because of just in case there comes a day when I wish to watch Discovery ....
i) One device to rule them all (plus cash savings) Colin Campbell
Having now signed up for a no strings attached VoIP service which offers me free calls till end of March I can testify the value proposition for the consumer is raw cash savings. Throw in the fact that it seems to work seamlessly as I drift in and out of the WiFi zone with my favourite 'cellphone' (Nokia E61) and it seems there is the potential for major changes in the value chain.
In the last two days I've consigned the house fixed line and the Skype application to the archives! (excepting presence and IM from Skype).
Excellent voice quality, seamless user experience, one device, one phone book, free calls. That’s a hell of a proposition.
Ok. so free calls will not last forever, but everyone is entitled to some payment for providing a service. Even SIP VoIP service providers have to eat.
Its only two years since I adopted Skype. This shows to me the pace of change. How may revolutions can a man take in lifetime!
In 20 years in this country (UK) we have gone from a government institution (Post Office) running a bunch of copper cable, and taking 6 weeks to install a new connection, through a blue Mercury button mysteriously appearing on your fixed line phone which offered a marginal discount on long distance calls, to where we are now with a fistfull of service providers, hungry for business, offering me calls across the globe to almost 2 billion other subscribers for next to no cash.
That’s the value proposition. And that’s why this will have a massive impact, and why mobile and fixed line is one business that’s big business for the guys who build that loyal customer base.
And perhaps the most beautiful thing about it all is that its all running over the same copper we had twenty years ago. That’s magic!
(no pavements were harmed in the making of this movie!)
j) Free calling + unified phone book: Jag Minhas
I agree with you 100%. Free calling is something that people value. You don't need sophisticated customer behaviour modelling to determine this. And quite frankly, you don't need FMC,
... or VoIP
... or Skype
... or JahaJah
... or Truphone
... or whatever. You just need free (or cheaper) calls.
And if you can do all this from your mobile phone (which contains all the phone book that you have so carefully pruned over many years) then even better!
k) Who needs a phone book on the phone Shane Williamson
Check out Fring it access directly your Skype & Google talk directories on your mobile.
l) Phone books: by Jag Minhas
You have a point re phone book cf Skype and Google Talk, but the phone book is a long way off from being substituted by Skype/Google/Windows-Live buddy lists, and that is because:
1) E.164 identities (phone numbers) are not closed to any particular community. They are "open" in the sense that you can give anyone your phone number and you know that they can a) call you, b) message you, and c) refer to you using whatever friendly name they wish.
2) You can call or message someone using their phone number even if they are not present.
3) Buddy lists are usually built up over time from a series of person-to-person, relatively "intimate" relationships, either personal or professional relationships. Mobile phone-books often contain entries for "taxi", "pizza", "Chinese takeaway" etc.
I touched upon this topic, and the whole issue of presence etc. in a keynote presentation I gave to Mobile Instant Messaging conference in London in November. You can view the slides here: http://www.slideshare.net/route79/mobile-instant-messaging/1
Part two it is
A case for phone book 2.0? Part Two : FMC (Fixed to mobile convergence) cannot live by 'cost savings' alone!
Posted by ajit at 4:45 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
January 13, 2007
Safaricom: The power of mobile phones to foster social transformation in Africa ..
I have long been a fan of Mobile technology bringing about fundamental change to the people of Africa (see my post The Mobile Internet will do more for Africa than Live Aid ).
Thus, I was very keen to see Peter Holland's post about a BBC news story about Africa at forumoxford
The video of the story is Mobile continent Africa takes lead in phone transactions (BBC)
Note: link seems to work better if you cut and paste the following URL
http://www.bbc.co.uk/mediaselector/check/nolavconsole/ukfs_news/hi?redirect=st.stm&news=1&bbram=1&bbwm=1&nbram=1&nbwm=1&nol_storyid=6243527
The company launching this service in Africa is safaricom
Peter says over at forumoxford
I've just watched a BBC feature on technology/mobile phones.
7 million mobiles in Kenya, 1 in 3 of the adult population now owning a mobile phone - Africa being one of the fastest growing markets for new users of mobiles, etc - this is probably not "new" news to anyone here at ForumOxford.
So read on...
The BBC programme showed 2 people in the same room who sent credit/cash from one mobile to another - the credit/cash showed up within seconds on the recipients phone. I.e. a bank account on your mobile - while not unique as an idea, in a continent where the easy access to a bank account may not be as simple as for many of us, this is potentially a vital reason for owning a mobile.
The report stated that "within months huge volumes of cash will be flowing around Africa via mobile phones".
I hope that this service works and allows many the access to services many of us take for granted. This made me think that we should be looking further than we are so far (read this to the end).... We might assume that the new killer app will appear in "our" areas/markets - maybe we should be looking further. We already know that the next killer app may not be from our age group / peer group / style group - how many of us predicted (1-2 years ago) YouTube, MySpace etc Maybe we should be looking geographically not technically. If we don't, then we are potentially missing out on so much that our industry has to offer.
I totally agree with this!!
Maybe we should be looking geographically not technically. If we don't, then we are potentially missing out on so much that our industry has to offer.
Image source:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/spl/hi/picture_gallery/06/africa_election_time_in_congo_village/html/6.stm
Election time in Congo: There is no electricity but there is mobile phone coverage - at the top of this hill, so the villagers have cut steps into the hillside.
Posted by ajit at 11:30 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Flash Lite adoption ..
Note from Ajit:
Much has been said about my post, Flash Lite is not WICD, but it should be ! It got the best post in the Carnival of the Mobilists . I will do a follow on post on this soon .. But here are some thoughts from Simeon in his very first post here. Sim of course, knows a bit about Adobe/Flash and Macromedia since he was vice president of emerging technologies and chief architect at Macromedia.Sim’s post follows …
I agree with the basic premise that Flash Lite would get broader adoption if it was free but I don't see this as a viable option for Adobe at this point. The parallel you make to the way Flash grew on the Net doesn't work for three reasons:
1. Flash started on the Net as a cool animation engine, not a runtime UE platform. That's how it got its adoption.
2. Most of the mobile world is a closed garden and so comparing business
models + technology adoption curves is difficult.
3. Adobe is actually finally starting to focus on developers, e.g., hired a good developer relations person, etc.
One way to approach this is to broaden the discussion to the "right"
mobile stack. IMO, it is Linux as the OS, Java as the phone middleware
and FL as the presentation tier. I've blogged about this in the past at my blog The mobile stack evolves
Lets keep discussing this more ..
Posted by ajit at 8:26 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
January 11, 2007
Chetan Sharma in the New York Times ..
Very happy to see OpenGardens contributing blogger and prominent forumoxford member Chetan Sharma at the NY Times.
Great stuff Chetan!
Posted by ajit at 12:32 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
January 9, 2007
The iPhone is extraordinary not because of it’s UI but because it’s the tail wagging the dog ..
>>> An update and summary:
For our non English readers, a clarification and a summary. The expression 'Tail wagging the dog' implies the lesser entity(tail) influences the larger entity(i.e. wags the dog). Contrast this with 'Dog wagging his tail' i.e. the norm.
So .. What I am saying is
The iPhone is cool, sexy etc because it works closely with the one Operator where its launched(namely Cingular in the US). In that deployment, Apple seems to be the dominant partner rather than Cingular if you consider features like Visual voicemail (which is unlike the norm i.e. Usually, the Carrier is the more dominant partner in such relationships). The caveat is, as more Operators deploy the iPhone, either it becomes too complex or it becomes least common denominator. Thus, the jury is out still IMHO. Others like Disruptive wireless have also picked up on this Cingular centric aspect of the story
Long title of blog BUT .. The real title is even longer .. I wanted to say ..
The iPhone is extraordinary not because of it’s UI but because it’s the tail wagging the dog .. But the real question is: How many dogs can it wag?
Let me explain ..
It’s almost customary for bloggers to create a post today about the iPhone. I was actually not planning to do one because the OpenGardens blog is not about the latest news, but rather about independent analysis.
However .. This is an extraordinary announcement .. And not for the obvious reasons (yes, the UI is sexy .. but there is a lot more than meets the eye) .. as I hope to explain here ..
Firstly, let’s start with a hypothetical question: ‘Is a walled garden EVER good?’
Depends on what you mean ‘Good’ of course ...
But a walled garden can be good for consumers if the final user experience is VERY VERY VERY superior.
Not just marginally good .. But EXTREMELY good ..
This is where so many others (like most Mobile Network Operators) failed commercially BUT Apple succeeded commercially. In other words, the two biggest successes: The Mac and the iPod have been superior user experiences BUT very rigid walled gardens,
The two go together and all kudos to Apple for delivering a product in the end which the customers LOVE(and that’s all which matters at the end of the day). Yes, there are limitations – such as the PC was a far bigger success than the Mac etc etc .. but no one can deny that overall customers who buy these products, rave about them. (BTW, I own neither a Mac or an iPod! )
Which brings us to the iPhone
If you extrapolate that strategy of total control coupled with an extraordinary user experience on to the Mobile networks, : What do we get?
Two things can happen
a) Either Apple can’t control the whole environment (which naturally includes the Mobile Network Operator), and the product becomes a tepid, half cooked device OR
b) Apple indeed ‘walks on water’ and DOES influence the entire value chain!
I was always sceptical about the iPhone before I saw it because like most people, I expected the former to happen .. BUT this announcement points to the later ..
And that’s why it is extraordinary.
Here is what that means in practise.
As per Ed Burnette /Zdnet
The first supported carrier will be Cingular. What's the killer app? The killer app is making calls! It's amazing how hard it is to make calls on most phones. We want to let you use contacts like never before — sync your iPhone with your PC or Mac. Visual voicemail — wouldn't it be great if you didn't have to listen to five of them to list to the sixth? Just like email you can go directly to the voicemails that interest you.
Emphasis mine ..
Two amazing things here :
a) The first supported carrier will be Cingular. Supported carrier? Since when did devices support carriers? Carriers support devices. Not the other way round! Hence, is the tail now wagging the dog?(Not necessarily a bad thing IMHO!)
b) Secondly, I have always wondered – why don’t we have something like the visual voicemail? As a consumer, that’s EXACTLY what I want .. I hate trawling through old voicemail(and worse still – remembering keys to go next voicemail etc etc!). So, it’s fantastic to have visual voicemail ..
BUT guess what?
Supporting visual voicemail implies that the two (device and Carrier) are intimately in bed!
Else, it is not possible to provide such a service(because the voicemail is stored on the network and not the device) .
More significantly, the device(in this case is Apple) is calling the shots! This means, again, the tail(Apple) wagging the dog(Cingular) AND Apple’s influence stretches beyond the device and MUCH deeper into the value chain!
This is the stuff of dreams for device manufacturers i.e. a really close partnership where they call the shots. The closest anyone has come to this scenario is Nokia and that has been a limited in comparison
So, I say that the iPhone is extraordinary not because of it’s UI but because it’s the tail wagging the dog.
But ..
There is a caveat ..
The real question is: How many dogs can it wag?
And herein, could like a problem because as Apple gets into bed with more Carriers, the product no longer becomes a compact, sleek device but becomes one of two things
a) Either a least common denominator device(which means Apple loses it’s cool factor and becomes like any other phone in the marketplace)
OR
b) Something very difficult to manufacture because it varies by market, network technology and a range of other factors. In other words, the device may be Cingular centric, and that’s fine .. but as more Operators come on board, the device will become more complex
So, to conclude
The iPhone is extraordinary not because of it’s UI but because it’s the tail wagging the dog .. But the real question is: How many dogs can it wag?
Thoughts?
PS: The photo below(courtesy the BBC) shows Steve Jobs with the boss of phone network Cingular, Stan Sigman. Stan sounds bigger than Steve – but maybe it should be other way round!
Ipod photo courtesy Zdnet
Thanks Nicola Mattina for the feedback
Posted by ajit at 11:38 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
January 8, 2007
My post is post of the week at the Carnival of the mobilists
The Carnival of the mobilists is back in the new year and Carnival 58 is at wapreview. My post Flash Lite is not WICD - But it should be! - is the post of the week! Thanks Dennis
...
Ajit Jaokar at Open Gardens weighs the merits of two competing technologies for enabling dynamic rich mobile content - one proprietary, the other open - in Flash Lite is not WICD - But it should be! which is my pick for the Post of the Week....
Posted by ajit at 7:32 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
January 5, 2007
Linkedin answers v.s. Ecademy Green stars: A tale of two networking business models aka 5% v.s. 300% ..
This week, linkedin announced a feature called Linkedin answers . Check it out. It’s truly revolutionary. Like many people, I have been a member of Linkedin, but its closed approach meant I was using it for very little. Yes, I have a ‘network’ on linkedin – but accessing it was not easy since it always meant you had to go through another contact
All that changes with Linkedin answers where you can access your network directly (but at the same time it protects the basic integrity of your introductions). The possibilities of this are immense and are truly global.
In contrast, for a UK based network called Ecademy membership is divided into ‘stars’; with ‘Black stars’ who pay the most. With uncanny timing, it has dropped ‘Green’ stars – almost at the same time that Linkedin has ‘opened up’ with Linkedin answers
I have learnt a lot from ecademy but have been critical of this ever changing stars model because it effectively reduces the size of your network and by extension, the value of your subscription fees. For instance, with Linkedin answers, I can now communicate beyond 100% of my direct network (since it allows me to contact people who are separated upto two degrees). With Ecademy stars, it is 5%(if you include only the Power networkers and the Blackstars).
300% vs. 5% is a very simple maths to figure out!
Notes: 300% is you consider rather casually contact up to 2 degrees i.e. direct network plus two degrees. In reality, the useful size of a network is always less than the accessible size of the network because you don’t want to network with all the people you can potentially network with – so linkedin is less than 300% and ecademy is less than 5% if you exclude life coaches etc.
The open approach of Linkedin has thus made it more valuable to me. The closed approach of Ecademy in contrast, continues to baffle me since it is predominantly an offline model bolted on to an online network.
This gets even more valuable, when you consider mobile search. I have been bullish about Yahoo answers in relation to mobile search because the answers model lends itself so well to mobile search i.e. ‘search on the go’ (who else to help you better find the nearest Italian restaurant – than your ‘network’). This model has been very successful in South Korea (Naver search engine ).
So, this is great news for us as a whole i.e. if Linkedin introduces a mobile service, I would be the first to sign up because my entire network is there and my entire network is accessible!
In late 2006 and early 2007, with the announcement of the 3 network opening up and now Linkedin opening up, this is truly a year for the Open model(OpenGardens!)
I have been critical of linkedin in the past and have always said that the simple homogenous approach to networking will work best both for the members and the network(see the Mathematics of Web 2.0) , but this is a time to invite all my network to linked in and search for ‘Mobile Linkedin’.
I will continue to watch the two business models with interest!
Posted by ajit at 8:51 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
January 4, 2007
Mobile Content Interoperability
Earlier today, IDC announced their study identifying 10 emerging players to watch in 2007. The companies that IDC has chosen to highlight as emerging players to watch for 2007 are (in alphabetical order) Dexterra, Firethorn, GoGoMo, GrandCentral Communications, InnoPath, iSkoot, JumpTap, mFormation Technologies, Sonic Branding Solutions, and TeleNav. I have talked to many of them in the past and have also written about some.
Yesterday, I sat down with Jeff Davis, CEO and founder of GoGoMo to talk about Content Interoperability - a significant problem in the mobile content space that needs to be solved quickly. First, let's address what "content interoperability" means. Currently, most operators operate in content silos, i.e. ringtones, graphics, video, songs, etc. this is how the industry evolved and people just slapped another storefront or database to sell the goods. Very little was done to cross link these databases or pieces of content. As such it has been quite difficult (and a missed opportunity really) to cross-promote, cross-refer across different types of content silos. This is when we are talking about the same carrier. What if, i want to send a ringtone that i like to my friend who happens to be on another carrier. Taking this further, what if i want to send a song that i just listened to on my phone to a friend who is on a laptop. How do you keep track of content across carriers, networks, devices, and channels without inflicting complexity on the user and honoring digital rights? I dealt with this issue quite a bit in my work in 2006. There are a number of approaches one can take to resolve the conflicts across different dimensions but really the solution needs to be agnostic of any variables and just worry about content. Several companies are also trying to address the superdistribution issue, a way to tie all applications and services so that i can share any piece of content with anyone across the board.
GoGoMo has been working on the content interoperability problem for past few months and they have a digital content registry system that allows for maintaining a tag in their meta-data framework that allows to track the lifecycle of the content piece for a given user(s).
(Source: GoGoMo)
Of course, it takes two (or more) to tango. The value of this registry depends on how many (heavy weights) use it. It is something that carriers need to promote and come to an agreement amongst themselves on format, standards, rules, etc. Instead of deploying point solutions, one needs to take a more holistic and long-term view of the problem or else, we would be designing the solution again in a few months.
Mobile Content Interoperability will be a key issue to resolve in 2007 and we will be tracking it closely.
Posted by ajit at 11:06 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
Girl with a one-track mind
I saw this post in Susan Mernit’s blog and after reading it a few times and looking at the links there in, I have decided to cross link her post here about (Please note the following links to a blog with some adult content) about Sunday Times acting news editor Nicholas Hellen
There are four reasons for doing this
a) An individual’s privacy should be respected – especially a journalist threatening to publish details about a person’s address, their mother’s profession etc is not acceptable. It is this sort of behaviour that gives journalism a bad name and victimises individuals(who have little resources against the might of big media).
b) Blogosphere can act as a counterpoint to big media – and I hope the Zoe Margolis, aka Abby Lee(the author of ‘The Girl with a one track mind’) will benefit from this
c) I respect Susan Mernit views as well. I see this as a form of activism from Susan’s side – and I support that
d) This blogger activism may be a part of a larger trend and I support want to support that trend ; for instance Robert Scoble’s involvement in the John Edwards campaign. By empowering blogosphere and bloggers at the expense of big media, lawyers, Governments etc, I believe society and individuals (who are often defenceless against onslaughts of media, government etc) can benefit. That’s the same reason for supporting Boing Boing (Xeni ofcourse does fine on her own - but it was still a means to show support!)
In fairness, If I see an official response from Sunday Times, I will link that here as well.
PS: I have not read the book Girl with a one track mind. I will probably not get coverage for my own book in the Sunday times (Mobile Web 2.0 ) after this! But still, the point needs to be made!
Posted by ajit at 8:40 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
January 3, 2007
Impact of decline in newspaper advertising ..
Yesterday, the print edition of the financial times contained an article about how media groups are being affected by the decline of advertising revenue (which is migrating to the web)
Two interesting stats:
Merrill Lynch expects a 2.6% gain in overall US advertising spend this year BUT anticipates that newspaper advertising will decline by 1.5%. Lehman brothers are also pessimistic, expecting a drop of 4% this year
But there are two interesting caveats
a) They feel that the US television market is still not affected so far. In contrast, the UK, where commercial television advertising is a much smaller market, a bigger portion of the advertising pie had gone to Google. According to the BBC
Google’s 2006 UK revenues are expected to surpass Channel Four's predicted £800m ($1.5bn) returns. Google will then overtake ITV1 within 18 months. (ITV1 is UK’s largest advertising network)
b) Another interesting trend the same article mentions is: the perception that local newspapers are more valuable than their more geographically larger versions. For instance, the interest in Los Angeles times (local: especially, local to film and media folk) as opposed to its parent the Tribune (the second largest newspaper in the USA)
Ironically, if I look at my own newspaper buying trends, then the FT is practically the only newspaper I buy. The rest is all web!
Posted by ajit at 8:14 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
January 2, 2007
Seeking guest bloggers for the OpenGardens blog ..
Hello all
In 2007, I have some big plans for my blog.
Much to my surprise last year, it has become a runaway success
Alexa ratings of 67,000 odd and growing, syndicated on the W3C, Top 20 fierce wireless blogs, Top 20 mobile blogs by technorati links etc etc ..
It also has some industry experts like Simeon(general partner of Polaris ventures), Dr Paddy Byers and Chetan sharma blogging on it.
This year, I am looking for more bloggers who want to contribute occasional articles. This means, your article / post would have your photo against it and would be edited by me(and of course authored by you)
You can get a general ethos of the blog by looking at the blog (essentially web 2.0, mobile web 2.0, Open Gardens etc).
You can talk about your own expertise/company.
For instance, see this blog -
Yes, we are talking about a specific company - but also its of general interest to peopleand its unique and it fits with the broad ethos of the blog.
Ideally, I would like you to contribute a series (for instance a set of five posts on a theme) etc.
I can work with you to edit etc.
If you are interested, please email me at ajit.jaokar at futuretext.com giving me an outline what you want to write etc etc
kind rgds
Ajit
Posted by ajit at 6:08 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Apologies for mis-spelling Steve Rubel’s surname!
Just realised that I misspelled Steve Rubel ’s surname in the post Inspired by Chicken Run: Google Reader, One Web, Mobile Web 2.0 and Metadata.
My apologies Steve. I always say that with a name like Ajit Jaokar, I should be careful of how I spell other people’s second names :)
Wish you a Happy New Year.
Posted by ajit at 12:25 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
January 1, 2007
LBS : Could the 5o9inc approach be a solution to the privacy problem for location based services?
If you read my books, I have been sceptical of 'Location'. In fact, I remember starting a talk with a slide called 'Location, Location, Location?'. The '?' is not a typo. It’s to say - 'Where is Location?'(Considering all the hype around it!)
Location based services(LBS) are one of the most useful and intuitive mobile applications. Everybody understands ‘Find my nearest’ and everyone agrees that it is useful to know your nearest restaurant/gas station/ATM etc when on the move.
Understandably, LBS apps have been hyped almost from the very beginning and regrettably, location based services are still(largely) not here with us as mass market applications.
The main inhibitor to LBS is privacy and security.
In the context of LBS, privacy and security has many facets - for instance statutory and legal, working with trusted third parties, encryption of security information etc.
Due to my interest with LBS, I have been having long discussions with Peter Cranstone CEO of 5o9inc - who has been outlining me their product.
I am now fairly convinced that it fulfils a gap within the LBS value chain.I outline their solution(as I understand it) below and I seek your thoughts and feedback.
Leaving aside the legal issues for the moment(which are being addressed by the relevant regulatory body in each country - for instance - laws about protecting minors), there is still the problem of protecting the location information especially in the context of GPS(which is now driving LBS services) : for instance phones like the Nokia N95 now have inbuilt GPS
The problem 5o9inc is addressing is: how to keep the location information(and for that matter any other private data elements) secure between the phone (where that information resides) and the web server(where that information is typically processed).
This is a very real problem which we will hit as GPS and other location based solutions become mainstream
Peter is an expert at security/encryption based applications, having co invented co-invented mod_gzip(in fact, I think the approach they have taken below mirrors the mod_zip approach but in the wireless context)
The solution could work in a number of scenarios:
a) Consumer: between the device and the web server
b) Enterprise with a mobile work force and
c) The Enterprise with mobile customers hitting their web site (search, retail, ecommerce etc).
It works as follows: The client’s data is held in an encrypted database on the mobile device. Every “field of data” that he/she wishes to transmit to the content provider remains under their control. The client side app allows the user to check or un-check the data field that gets transmitted. For instance they can share name, address, phone number, email address and current real time GPS location. If they wish not to share the GPS location simply disable the field. When the data leaves the mobile device and 5o9 applies encryption to protect it during transit. It’s transparent to routers, firewalls, Carrier portals etc. The data then shows up at the web server. It’s unencrypted and then is available for back office applications.
Thus, it functions like a tollgate between the device and the web server.
Physically, the application is a mobile browser plug-in and a web server module
I can see applications for this service both at the enterprise and the consumer level.
For consumer uptake, it is designed to work with parties like device manufacturers, browser vendors or Operators because it does not change the underlying infrastructure (again mirroring the approach they took with mod_gzip).
Thus, it appears to solve a very real problem taking a relatively pain free approach (i.e. not changing the underlying architecture).
Seek your views and feedback on this approach?
Posted by ajit at 11:16 PM | Comments (6) | TrackBack
Welcome to the EU Bulgaria and Romaina ..
Considering one of the contributing bloggers on the OpenGardens blog is originally from Blugaria, (Simeon Simeonov), I am especially happy to welcome Bulgaria and Romania to the EU.
A good day for us here in Europe ..
Posted by ajit at 2:45 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack