Networks

At GigaOm Mobilize 2011 Conference, various experts from telcos, middleware, and infrastructure providers joined in to share their perspective on the evolving mobile ecosystem, the cloud, new opportunities in the space and mobile payments. Despite the complex nature of the space, the panels and fireside chats were thought provoking and gave a unique insight into areas consumers and application developers should be aware of moving forward.

Join Baratunde Thurston (left), The Onion’s Director of Digital and author of How to Be Black, for an entertaining look at creative social media campaigns in our Social Media Marketing Boot Camp starting February 16. Other speakers include Morin Oluwole (Facebook), Tim Devane (bitly), and SocialTimes' writer Devon Glenn.   Register now.

The major mobile carriers in the U.S. all charge $60 per month for 3G wireless data generally limited to 5GB in a month. These plans generally require a 2-year commitment. There are also very expensive limited period 3G plans. AT&T charges $25 per month for 2GB of 3G data for the iPad 3G. This plan is month-to-month and does not require a contract.

IntoMobile reports that Virgin Mobile is getting ready to break this pricing and contract logjam.

Exclusive: Virgin Mobile changing Broadband2Go plans — $40 a month for unlimited data

They report that Virgin Mobile’s prepaid Broadband2Go plan will be different from plans from the other carriers three very important ways.

1. No two-year contract
2. True unlimited data. No 2GB or 5GB per month limit
3. $40 for 30-days of service instead of $60 per month

Sprint’s 3G network is the transport underlying Virgin Mobile’s service. So, customers should be able to get service anywhere Sprint provides 3G service.

You can find Virgin Mobile’s current broadband plan information at:

Virgin Mobile Broadband2Go

I haven’t shied away from some of Microsoft’s recent questionable (IMHO) marketing attempts (remember the Jerry Seinfeld – Bill Gates commercials?). But, this Bing marketing campaign sounds like a good one to me…

Microsoft Bing Gives WiFi Users Free Search

Here’s how the campaign works according to MediaPost’s article above…

JiWire’s opt-in Ads for Access program at various hotspot sites around the U.S. will give you free WiFi access at that hotspot in exchange for performing one search using Microsoft’s Bing search engine. This sounds like a pretty good deal to me. Microsoft’s Bing search engine is pretty good (I’ve been using it regularly, though not exclusively, since its launch).

So, where can you find JiWire’s opt-in program? I was shocked to see the large list of high profile access areas in the…

JiWire Partner Showcase

It includes what looks like most of the U.S.’s largest airports (JFK, Denver, Atlanta, O’Hare, etc.), hotels (Hyatt, Westin, Marriot, Sheraton, Hilton, etc.) as well as Starbucks and Barnes & Noble. It looks like this marketing program should be easy to find.

It seemed like we were on the verge of a golden era of free or, at least, inexpensives city-wide municipal WiFi networks a few years ago. This never happened for a mix of business-political, technical, and financial reasons. There are probably a few pockets of municipal WiFi networks out there. But, I can’t think of the last time anyone I know talked about using one. Another WiFi related topic we used to hear a lot about but rarely do these days is mesh networking. While conventional WiFi networks required wired connection to many (most) of the WiFi access points, mesh networks can wireless route data between the access point themselves.

Motorola just announced a new access point product that creates a fash 802.11n wireless network that is compatible with slower but widely deployed 802.11b and 802.11g products as well as the efficient but rarely deployed 802.11a products.

Motorola Takes 802.11n Technology Outdoor with Powerful Mesh Wide Area Network Solution

If you are a Qwest High-Speed Internet (DSL) subscriber, you now have a very nice free addition to your service in the form of…

Free Wi-Fi Takes Qwest High-Speed Internet Value Beyond the Home

Hotspot access is enabled by using AT&T Wireless’ existing hotspot network. This means that Qwest DSL customers can use hotspots in 17,000 locations throughout the U.S. including Starbucks, Barnes & Noble and McDonalds. The SSID for the Qwest WiFi hotspots is QwestWiFi. Qwest DSL customers can find these hotspot locations by pointing their browser at:

http://www.qwest.com/wifi

As part of the restructuring plan Sprint unveiled in January, the carrier intends to get rid of 8,000 jobs by the end of the month. According to mocoNews, this massive layoff will include about 40% of Sprint’s content group, some 500 employees. The mocoNews report says that all areas within the company will see some cuts when the layoffs occur, with the possible exception of customer-facing jobs.

Although it’s the third-largest mobile carrier in the US behind AT&T and Verizon, Sprint has historically been ahead of the competition when it comes to content. It was the first to market with a music download service and the first with mobile TV. Sprint also has the exclusive rights to NFL content, including the rights to broadcast regular season football games that appear on the NFL Network. There’s also the long-standing Nextel connection with Nascar.

The cellco lost more than 1.2 million customers last year, which leaves a lot fewer consumers to buy the content. For Sprint’s sake, here’s hoping that its exclusive deal for the Palm Pre starts heading it towards a turnaround.

Keynote Systems has added a number of the most popular smartphones to its global, on-demand network for testing and measuring the performance of mobile applications, content and services.

The company has installed iPhone, BlackBerry, LG Dare, Samsung Instinct and Nokia N95 devices at its network locations in New York, San Francisco and London. Plans to add other smartphone models are in the works.

Using Keynote’s Mobile Device Perspective service, companies can test and monitor how their content and services work using actual devices running across various carrier networks around the world. MDP allows companies to see the true end-user experience, from content availability all the way through delivery and accuracy, and make sure that it’s not timing out or delivering a version that’s not compatible with the user’s handset.

Here’s a new one: University of Utah researchers have created a car ignition key that prevents the driver from talking on a cell phone or sending text messages while behind the wheel, Cellular News reports.

“The university has obtained provisional patents and licensed the invention—Key2SafeDriving—to a private company that hopes to see it on the market within six months at a cost of less than $50 per key plus a yet-undetermined monthly service fee,” the report said.

Ronn Hartman, managing partner of Accendo LC, said in a statement that the company plans to license the technology to cell phone carriers as part of their service plans, instead of selling it to customers directly.

Oh, and a personal note after the jump…

Read more

It’s official: European Union telecom leaders officially endorsed a plan introduced by EU Telecommunications Commissioner Viviane Reding to cap mobile data retail prices, FierceMobileContent reports.

In July 2009, pending the expected approval of European Parliament, all 27 EU member nations will adopt a limit of 11 euro cents (14 cents U.S.) on retail charges for cross-border texting, which is a substantial cut on the current European average of 29 euro cents (36 cents U.S.), the report said, in a move that is obviously good for wireless subscribers in the region.

In addition, the plan includes a cap of one euro per megabyte ($1.26 U.S.) for data roaming, with a switchable shutoff valve if the charges exceed 50 euros ($63.10). As expected, European mobile operators “fought tooth and nail against Reding’s proposal,” according to the article.

(Image credit: Clipart.com)

Clearwire and Sprint Nextel have completed the combination of their wireless services in an effort to deploy a next-generation, 4G network across the country, PC Magazine reports.

“The deal closed according to the terms laid out in May, which includes a $3.2 billion cash infusion from Comcast, Intel, Time Warner Cable, Google and Bright House Networks,” the article said. “Sprint contributed all of its 2.5 GHz spectrum and its WiMAX-related assets, including its XOHM WiMAX business, to Clearwire.”

The mobile version of the service begins at $45 per month, and works primarily in Baltimore for the time being, with plans to expand further in the coming months.

(Image credit: Clipart.com)