Have you ever been on the go and needed to print something you left behind? In today’s fast moving world it is easy to forget something as you scurry out the door. Road warriors need not fear anymore, as Hewlett-Packard has come up with an application that allows you to print documents worldwide via your mobile phone. This innovation is called Cloudprint.
Cloudprint is a free service that allows a user to share, store and print documents through a mobile phone interface. Here is how it works: a user “prints”, i.e. sends, documents to Hewlett-Packard servers that are connected to the Internet. Cloudprint assigns the user a document code and then transmits that code to the proper mobile phone so the documents can be printed. To retrieve a document, enter the user’s phone number and document code on the Cloudprint Web site. Any documents are retrieved as a PDF, ready for printing.
All this may sound good, but suppose you are in a strange part of town and don’t have a printer available to you. What then? Cloudprint uses Google Maps to point the way to publicly available printers. Almost any printer, any where in the world, that is a Windows-connected printer allows you to publish your documents. (A Macintosh friendly Cloudprint is under development.)
Why would Hewlett-Packard provide such a great service for free? It seems they are doing this to sell more ink. The company’s printing division profits from this year’s third quarter are up 11% over last year’s third quarter. By embracing a strategy to make printing easier and more accessible, Hewlett-Packard hopes to sell more supplies. Environmentalists may be concerned about an increase in paper use created by Cloudprint: but old documents can be recycled.
Rumor has it that Hewlett-Packard is soon to announce a partnership with a major retailer. The as yet unnamed retailer will offer a variety of Internet-connected printing services at hundreds of locations around the United States. It shouldn’t be long before this type of service sweeps an ever-increasing mobile globe.
CloudPrint
When I first heard the term hip-hop, I thought it had something to do with Peter Rabbit and the Easter Bunny. It turns out; Hip-hop is one of the most lauded forms of popular music today. Hudson Entertainment is taking advantage of this trend by teaming up with Slip-N-Slide Records, and providing customers ring tones, ring backs, and voice tones that feature popular artists.
Big names like Trina, Trick Daddy and Rick Ross can pulse through your mobile phone creating an instant dance party. Several of Slip-N-Slide’s artists have gone Platinum, and Hudson Entertainment’s new service will include Trina’s most recent album, “Baddest Chick Part 2: Reloaded.”
“The massive catalog of hits Slip-N-Slide Records possesses has been absent from the mobile world – until now,” said John Greiner, President and CEO of Hudson Entertainment. “We’re committed to bringing the music hip-hop fans love to a market that, without Hudson and its partners, would still be sorely lacking.”
I don’t know if it’s still hip to bling-bling, but those cats at Slip-N-Slide can sing-sing.
Hudson Entertainment
Slip-N-Slide Records
Zagat Survey launches an advertising supported (free) Web site, ZAGAT.mobi. Zagat Survey is known the world over as the “burgundy bible.” If you are in a strange city and want to get information on restaurants, hotels, shopping and entertainment, Zagat Survey has up-to-date ratings and descriptions of all these amenities. Major cities around the world are listed and ranked by over 300,000 surveyors. Now this can be gotten on your mobile phone.
ZAGAT.mobi works on any web-enabled mobile phone. Zargat Survey teamed up with Starcut to design and develop the ZAGAT.mobi, and has licensed the Starcut Media One platform to deliver the “burgundy bible” to any mobile device. Third Screen Media and Winstar Interactive will manage and sell advertising on ZAGAT.mobi.
“We pioneered the concept of ‘consumer generated content’ almost 30 years ago,” notes Nina Zagat. “As the media landscape has evolved, we’ve taken a ‘platform agnostic’ approach to helping consumers make smart decisions by making our content available to them however and wherever they’ve needed it.”
Forecasters say that in the next five years the fastest growing segments of media will include the “third screen” (mobile websites/content), and ad budgets are shifting accordingly. Companies like, Visa Signature, are increasingly adding mobile web into their marketing strategies that target affluent consumers.
I know personally, I could use a service like Zagat Survey, no matter what color of wine it is. Ever since the Concord stopped flying, I haven’t had time to make it over to London for a night on the town. (I am too busy to bother with a seven hour trans-Atlantic flight). If Zagat Survey will let me, maybe I can rate the amenities on the International Space Station. I leave in a few weeks. I hear the pea-soup paste is very delicious.
Zagat Survey
Nokia’s new N-Gage platform, which launches this fall, will feature game entertainment from the fun people at I-Play. The first available games from I-play will be, World Rally Championship, and Super Mah Jong. As the importance and profitability of games gets realized in the mobile industry, more device launches are bound to be tied with entertainment software.
“I-play brings a diverse games portfolio to N-Gage, and we’re excited to have them on board,” said Gregg Sauter, Director, 3rd Party Publishing, Nokia. “The N-Gage toolset provides the opportunity to deliver new features and richer experiences to consumers through I-play’s strong portfolio of content. We look forward to this cooperation.”
I-play games are known for their ease of play, while taking it easy on your thumb and keys. But these games are no pushover. It takes wits and skill to master these gems.
I-play
Nokia
The Washington Post reported that Corey Taylor of Chicago was sick of his wireless provider’s poor service. He didn’t want to pay the $175 early termination fee so Taylor’s sickness became terminal. With the help of a friend, his mobile phone provider received a forged death certificate. “I thought, ‘What have I got to lose, besides a cell phone I despise?’” The ruse didn’t work, and Taylor had to pay the $175.
“In the end, I forked over the money,” Taylor said. “But I bet I sent a definite message about how much people hate being strapped to a cell phone that doesn’t work.”
Many mobile phone contracts have a two year duration. If a customer wants out of the contract, a fee of up to $250 is required for termination. This is generally cheaper than a strait breach of contract payment, which would force consumers to pay the remainder of the contract price after the breach. Some contracts do take into account the length of time the consumer has honored the contract, and will pro rate termination fees accordingly.
Many people are unhappy with their current mobile phone service. Poor connections are often sited as the reason for dissatisfaction. Some people learn that other carriers provide more mobile applications, and want to switch. The American Consumer Satisfaction Index shows that the wireless industry ranks below fast-food restaurants and airlines. According to the CFI Group, poor customer service is the main reason people switch to another carrier.
Lawsuits challenging termination fees have been filed in California and Florida. The suits claim that the fees are illegal because they punish customers for moving to another provider. To get around this, wireless carriers have asked the FCC to regard termination fees not as penalties but as rates companies can charge for service. Congress is looking at the issue, and legislation may be introduced this fall that would give states more authority to regulate wireless fees.
I would hate to see the Federal Government get into the job of regulating cell phone costs and contracts. At the same time, I want to get the best mobile connectivity I can get for the least amount of money. The wireless industry is so competitive these days, I would think that in the near future cancellation fees will be lowered or outright done away with. The bad faith such fees cause a customer will drive that person away from the offending company forever. Service providers need to stop thinking about short-term profits, and consider doing the things that will keep someone with their brand of service for a long time.
“Cellphone Contracts” [Washington Post]
Domino’s Pizza has made it simple for the British to order pizza from the 470 outlets in the country: text it. There is no need to search for the nearest Domino’s in a directory. By texting your order, the nearest Domino’s will find you.
Before this service is available, a customer has to register with Domino’s Pizza online and set up a “favorite (favourite) meals” list. These safeguards are intended to keep unauthorized people from texting for a free meal. Once the order is placed Domino’s texts back, confirming the order and identity of the customer. Over 2000 have already registered for this service.
If you are in Britain and hungry for pizza, a link is provided below. If this service works well in Britain, other countries and restaurants may deliver similar text services. Keep reading MobileCrunch to stay ahead of the technology curve.
[Domino's Pizza]
The world’s largest mobile phone maker, Nokia, has asked the United States to ban imports of chipsets made by Qualcomm Inc., along with phones and other products made with those chipsets. Nokia has told the International Trade Commission that the San Diego based company Qualcomm has not properly compensated Nokia for its technology.
As the mobile phone industry grows and provides more services than Dick Tracy could have imagined, legal disputes over money are more likely to occur. Once lucrative royalties may not look so good to patent holders, as their technology is used to deliver services that a few years ago didn’t exist.
Nokia and Qualcomm had a 2001 licensing agreement that lapsed in April of 2007. According to Paul Sagawa, an analyst for Sanford C. Bernstein & Company, in the past few years Nokia has paid Qualcomm around $100 million a quarter to license its chip technology. Nokia feels that it should pay a lower rate for Qualcomm patents because it has patents that control some of the new technology.
If this type of dispute escalates in the mobile phone industry, we may see all-out-war as patent users and patent holders fight for the lucrative fees that customers worldwide pay for new innovative services and technology. International trade lawyers may be able to rack up hundreds of millions of dollars in legal fees, while service remains in limbo. In the end, it’s the consumer who pays for these fights with increased fees for new patent agreements and lawsuits. Why can’t Nokia and Qualcomm play nice?
[Via New York Times]
If you can’t get enough of CBS’s show, Big Brother 8, now you can get all there is on your mobile phone. The last four weeks of the show, from August 19 through September 18, will be broadcast live on V CAST Mobile every hour of every day. This is the first time a major U.S. primetime show will go 24/7.
“We are thrilled to provide Big Brother’s passionate and digitally savvy fans with yet another way to keep connected with the show 24/7,” said Cyriac Roeding, executive vice president, CBS Mobile. “CBS Mobile is about innovation and creating truly made-for-mobile experiences. This Big Brother channel is both – a first in the U.S., and the most mobile entertainment possible – allowing you to ‘live’ with the Big Brother houseguests on your phone 24/7.”
Big Brother 8 is a show where players live together in a house outfitted with dozens of cameras and microphones that record the guests 24 hours a day. One by one, players vote each other out of the house, until there is only one guest left.
Big Brother 8 24/7 is available to V CAST Mobile subscribers at no additional cost.
Big Brother
If you plan on going to the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing next summer, or you want to curse out the people who put dangerous chemicals in your toothpaste, you may want to learn Mandarin. For those non-linguists out there, Mandarin is a group of closely related Chinese dialects that are spoken in most of China.
Fluenz is a company that provides interactive language learning software that utilizes video and sound, not just text. Lessons can be downloaded onto your Windows Mobile smartphone so that you can study anywhere you have some downtime. The Fluenz Web site even provides a free demo if you are interested in learning the language of the Dragon State.
Fluenz
Bling is defined as, “flashy jewelry worn especially as an indication of wealth.” The good people at Bling Software have a wealth of knowledge about the mobile phone business through their following of MobileCrunch.
Bling Software was founded in January 2007 by CEO Roy Satterthwaite. In just eight months, the company has delivered the first Ajax-based (Asynchronous, JavaScrip and XML) Web client for the mobile phone, called the Bling Player. This innovative software makes it easier and quicker to author a mobile widget or application, and provides consumers easy control functions.
Living up to its epithet, Bling Software has signed some flashy customers including, Jay-Z 40/40 Clubs, Barry Bonds, Ninja Mobile and Go TV Networks. If you want your phone to sing, its got to have bling.
Bling Software
In the information age, small startup companies are able to compete in the marketplace through innovative thinking. Giants like Apple and Google started as great ideas that were backed by little capital, but grew into huge successes. A young company, Textango, may have found a market with huge possibilities.
Textango is a mobile billing and music delivery platform that lets customers purchase music by sending a premium text message on their mobile phone. The music download is charged to the customer’s mobile phone bill, making credit cards unnecessary.
In the Untied States, many young people have a mobile phone. (One source claims 80% of 12-18 year olds in the U.S. have mobile phones.) But they don’t have credit cards which allow them to download music legally. Textango allows those of us without plastic to enjoy our music, while compensating the artists for their work.
Musicians are paid 50% of the retail for each purchase. Textango keeps 4% and the rest goes to the mobile phone provider. Most credit cards charge a fee of around 4% for each transaction, so Textango is charging a reasonable fee.
Because Textango is trying to break into the market, its number of artists is limited. I counted around 630 albums. This limits the consumer base. But Textango allows artist to signup for the service, so new musicians can make their songs available to the public without having to go through a record label.
Some parents may see Textango as a bad thing. They have control (or should) over a child’s credit card use, but paying for music through the phone bill is one way a child can get something the parents don’t want to pay for. Oh well, with every innovation there are bound to be new problems.
Textango
One of the stresses when I go on a business trip, especially overseas, is that I will be out of touch. I like being able to call the office and checking in with my family. Vacations are no different, and in a recent trip to Europe earlier this summer we bought cheap mobile phones just because we’re the kind of people who need that mobile handset tucked away in our pockets. But we also found that a mobile phone bought in London doesn’t work so well in Paris!
On our next trip I’ll have to give letsroam a trip. The company just launched its new global SIM card, which operates in more than 90 countries and provides free roaming in more than 50 nations. The service requires that users replace the SIM in their unlocked – and unlocked is the key – GSM wireless phone. This then allows you to move between countries, where the service should work seamlessly.
Now we haven’t tested it, so we can’t make any promises but so far this sounds like a good alternative. The rates vary according to the country you’re in, so check the company’s Web site for a list. There seems to be a bit of fine print, such as you can receive calls for free in some countries – but not all. And the cost of calls also varies. While letsroam says it costs around 80 percent less than some other mobile plans, they give examples such as calls from the U.K. to the United States costing around $0.40 a minute, but neglect what it might cost to use the phone with the SIM to make local calls while in the U.K.
“letsroam was created as a direct result of customer enquiries for a low cost wireless service when traveling,” said Shane Siggins, the managing director of letsroam. “Customers are not happy paying high hotel phone or roaming costs. It’s a natural evolvement to our highly acclaimed ‘Card4anywhere’ product which was launched back in 2001. This new service allows customers to make cheap calls directly from their cell and dramatically reduce their roaming costs when abroad, not just in Europe but many other countries too. We are really excited about the potential reach of the new product, not just to individuals but to businesses too, for which we have incorporated conference call functionality into the letsroam service. We hope to offer other value added services to businesses in the next few months.”
So this might be a good service for checking in with the home office when compared to rates from hotels or even payphones. Plus it will let the home office check in on you, but you still might need to get local SIM cards if you’re planning to see the sights and will talk locally.
letsroam
If the glow of your iPhone is starting to wear off, it’s time to accessorize. “Project Runway” season two winner Chloe Dao teamed up with Pacific Design to create designer cases for the iPhone, a few Motorola handsets like the RAZR, and some generic bags. The designs are basic, but the fabrics are bold and eye-catching. The line also includes iPod cases, laptop bags, and other accessories.
Press Release
Advertisers looking to deliver the mobile video ad campaigns can now use the Click-to-Video landing page service from Nexage, a mobile video solution provider. This service will make ad campaigns accessible to 550 million mobile phones, including 450 phone models operating on more than 350 wireless networks worldwide. This self service tool enables advertisers to create mobile Web pages and include videos. The service is based Nexage’s PhoneCast platform, which offers wireless operators and content providers a way to launch mobile video services over 3G networks.
Among the companies already on-board to use this service is ipsh!, a mobile marketing agency that is part of the Omnicom Group. ipsh! Will use the Nexage solution to help advertisers promote their new products, movies and television programs. “The mobile channel has become very important for Advertisers wanting to reach a younger audience,” said Dev Gandhi, CEO of Nexage. “We are providing a mobile advertisement solution along with ipsh! that makes it possible for advertisers to reach mobile users on most phones on most operators worldwide.”
The question remains whether users will want to click through to see videos, which are essentially just ads. But already marketers are learning that the right elements can make compelling ads that people will actually want to watch. And with movies and TVs Web sites such as YouTube have proven that people will line up to see those promos!
Nexage
According to breaking news from the Belfast Telegraph, three prisoners have been sentenced to one month for unlawful use of a mobile phone while in custody. On May 1st of this year, the Irish passed legislation that makes the possession or use of a mobile phone by inmates a criminal offense. Six men are currently under incitement under this law.
Other countries should consider following Ireland’s lead in this. Prisoners lose certain civil rights while incarcerated, one of which is an expectation of privacy. Mobile phones make it difficult for prison officials to monitor an inmate’s outside communications. Phone privacy allows prisoners to conduct criminal activity while still behind bars. I don’t know if an extra month is enough time to deter this activity, but the basic idea is a good one.
Three jailed for a month for mobile phone use in prison [Belfast Telegraph]
The combo I-play and IPA World Pool Championship have knocked in a crisp bank shot with, World Pool Championship 2007. Big name pool sharks like Phil Harrison, Neil Raybone and Chris Melling are featured in this latest mobile phone game. Developed by, Blade Interactive, this game will have you practicing your ball-racking skills while remaining on the go.
David Gosen, CEO, I-play commented: “The official IPA World Pool Championship license has huge resonance amongst fans around the world. This, together with the most visually stunning and authentic Pool Championship experience on mobile, featuring top tournament players and the actual tournament structure, is a winning formula for pool players.”
David is right when he says, “around the world.” I-play offers entertainment to over a billion people over a network that has 120 carriers plus. More than 12 languages are accommodated for, giving World Championship Pool 2007 a planetary audience.
I-play
Mobile phone sales to consumers in the United States reached 33 million units in the second quarter of this year, a decline of nearly 17 percent compared to the unit sales during the previous quarter according to The NPD Group, a consumer and retail information company. However, reports NPD Group, the second quarter is typically a slow sales quarter for mobile phone retailers… and there was that iPhone thing on the horizon, which may have further slowed sales. Regardless of these numbers for the second quarter of 2007 consumer sales totaled $2.4billion, which is a 14 percent increase over the same period from 2006.
“Despite seasonal slowness, the industry showed healthy year-over-year unit and revenue increases,” said Ross Rubin, director of industry analysis for NPD. “Consumers are seeing value in moving to handsets that offer data-driving capabilities. It’s not unusual to note a decline in mobile phones purchased, since it has traditionally been a lackluster quarter for consumer mobile phone sales.”
Consumers are also buying their phones from traditional mobile phone stores as well. Carrier stores accounted for 62 percent of sales, followed by big box retailers and department stores with nine percent of sales, while other electronics specialty stores accounted for five percent. Figures for online purchases were not released. The top five handset manufacturers remained the same for the second quarter as the first. The breakdown of top sellers was Motorola (32 percent), Samsung (18), LG (17), Nokia (10) and Sanyo (4).
We’ll be very curious to see how the iPhone’s release affects the third quarter sales number for mobile handsets.
NPD Group
Who needs a personal shopper when you can save the trip to the mall, and browse on your mobile handset instead? Dialogue Communications has just announced the launch of 2shop4, the U.K.’s first mobile shopping mall, where users can buy products through the mobile Web using simple text codes. Send a keyword or code to 84777 and you can receive a Buy-Now WAP advert, which will allow you to select a product and pay for it securely on your phone. Payments can be made with various credit cards and even PayPal.
“2shop4 is pushing mobile shopping into a whole new area,” says Guillaume Peersman, U.K. managing director of Dialog Communications. “Before this service launched, buying on mobile was very limited and this service will bring a whole new dimension to mobile shopping. Dialogue is very excited about being involved in such a forward thinking project, as we pride ourselves on our innovative attitude in the mobile market and 2shop4 most certainly is that. Working with Evevoy, we believe 2shop4 will provide shoppers with a truly unique shopping experience.”
OK, so don’t plan on boycotting the mall just yet. 2shop4 will be launched in the U.K. in October and there are plans to bring the service globally in 2008. Until then you better plan on waiting in line like the rest of us.
2shop4
Apple’s iPhone is now an iBook-reader, as HarperCollins Publishers announced that it will make digital book content available for the iPhone platform. There will be an initial 14 new titles, which will debut throughout August and September, and will be made available online in an iPhone-compatible format.
“Reaching consumers on mobile devices and the Internet is increasingly important for publishers,” said Brian Murray, president of HarperCollins Publishers Worldwide. “Our digital warehouse gives us the unique opportunity to quickly offer access to our titles on the newest technology, and we encourage people to provide feedback about their experiences.”
There is catch; there is always a catch. This “Browse Inside” application allows consumers to sample pages of the HarperCollins titles online. iPhone users can view the first 10 pages of chapters one and two of the 14 books, and users can buy or pre-order the book from a list of retailers. So far no go on the whole book option.
It seems to us at MobileCrunch that offering a sample doesn’t really do the reader, or would be reader enough of a service. While it might help spark interest, this is only a step towards truly making the iPhone an iReader.
Read More
AG Interactive began a new e-card service today. Users can send e-cards via mobile phone over most U.S. wireless carriers. The innovative people at AG Interactive and Image Semantics have fine-tuned the e-cards so that they correspond to the parameters of the receiving device and destination carrier. This greatly increases the chance that full-color, animated greetings will be properly received.
During the initial launch, this service is free to all U.S. AmericanGreetings subscribers. And as we all know, free is good. Unfortunately, the receiver may get charged between 10 and 30 cents, depending on the receiver’s messaging plan.
Currently, twenty mobile e-cards utilize this service. But AG Interactive is working on new e-cards, some of which will be available for Halloween and Christmas greetings.
American Greetings Mobile
