Wireless Federation

EU asks Google to delay consolidation of privacy policy (Europe, USA)

On 02.08.12, In Mobile, By Editor

European regulatory group, Article 29 Working Party, has reportedly asked internet search engine Google, to postpone its plan to consolidate its privacy policy in a letter addressed to Larry Page, CEO, Google. According to reports, Google had announced that it plans to consolidate over 60 privacy policies into one universal policy that will govern its entire product range.

Google planned to launch the new policy from 1 March 2012; however, the regulatory group has reportedly asked the internet giant to pause its changed policy in order to ensure that there can be no misunderstanding about Google’s commitments to information rights of their users and EU citizens.

In response, Google claimed that they will continue with the scheduled date as they have maintained that there will be no changes in the privacy policy. Further, the firm also said that they had briefed most of the members of the working party in the weeks leading up to the announcement and none of them expressed substantial concerns at the time.

Filed under:Mobile Tagged with: CEO • consolidation • EU • Google • Larry Page • privacy policy

Motorola files lawsuit against Apple over patent infringement (USA)

On 01.27.12, In Mobile, By Editor

In another patent infringement battle in the telecom industry, US based communications corporation Motorola Mobility, has filed a legal case against iPhone manufacturer Apple Inc, for violating its technology patents.

According to reports, Motorola has claimed that Apple has violated six of its patents as seen in the launch of its recent device range, including the much hyped iPhone 4S. As per sources, the patents are related to wireless antennas, software management, data filtering and messaging.

Reports reveal Motorola has claimed that Apple’s infringing activities have caused and will continue to cause Motorola Mobility irreparable harm, for which it has no adequate remedy at law, unless Apple’s infringing activities are enjoined by this Court.

Motorola Mobility is currently awaiting approval by the European Union regulators for acquisition by Google. The takeover, if approved, will provide Google with access to over 17,000 patents held by Motorola.

Filed under:Mobile Tagged with: Apple Inc • European Union • Google • iPhone • iPhone 4S • Motorola Mobility • patent- infringement

EU to deliver verdict for Google-Motorola deal on Feb13 (Europe, USA)

On 01.23.12, In Mobile, By Editor

The European Union is reviewing Google Inc’s proposed plans to purchase Motorola Mobility and will announce its final decision on 13 February 2012. As reported earlier, the EU regulators had halted their review earlier claiming they required additional information.

According to reports, the takeover will give Google access to over 17,000 patents of Motorola Mobility enabling the firm to better compete with its rivals such as Apple Inc. As per sources, the EU Commission has said that Google has provided them with the required documents supporting the deal.

Industry analysts have a positive outlook on the deal with many expecting the formalities to be completed by the first half of the year.

Filed under:Mobile Tagged with: Apple Inc • European Union • Google • Mali • Motorola Mobility • Patents • Takeover

Apple wins patent battle against HTC (USA, Taiwan)

On 12.23.11, In Mobile, By Editor

Apple Inc has emerged victorious in its patent lawsuit against handset manufacturer HTC, as the International Trade Commission has reportedly ruled that HTC has infringed on one patent held by the iPhone maker. As per reports, any of HTC’s phones using the technology which has been infringed will be banned from sales in the USA from 19 April, 2012.

According to reports, industry analysts believe that the ruling is not expected to have a major impact on the company’s sales as the ruling gives them enough time to come up with another feature to compensate for the infringed feature.

As per sources, HTC has said that the feature in question is a common user-interface function which enables smartphone users to access information such as contact numbers and e-mail addresses from apps and other sources, and use them by simply tapping on the text.

The victory will be well received by Apple, after losing out to Korean giant Samsung, on a similar patent infringement case in Australia last month.

Filed under:Mobile Tagged with: Android • Apple • Australia • Google • HTC • Patent • Samsung • smartphone • USA

European Commission postpones review of Google-Motorola deal (USA)

On 12.16.11, In Mobile, By Editor

The European Commission has reportedly asked Google to provide more information regarding its proposal to purchase Motorola Mobility for US$ 12.5 billion before it gives the approval for the same. According to reports, the ruling which was initially scheduled for January 10 has been postponed to a later date, as the Commission has asked Google to provide certain documents critical to the evaluation process.

As reported by Wireless Federation earlier, industry sources claim that this deal will further empower Google to expand its market share as well as better compete with rival Apple Inc. Further, this deal is expected to bring over 17,000 patents that can be used by Google to protect the Android software platform.

Filed under:Mobile Tagged with: Android • European Commission • Google • Motorola Mobility • Patents

AOL to increase revenue from mobile-advertising (USA)

On 12.02.11, In Mobile, By Editor

American global internet services and media company, AOL, is working towards increasing the revenue share from mobile advertising in the next 18 months. According to reports, Tim Armstrong, CEO, AOL has said that currently advertising on mobile devices accounts for a tiny percentage of sales which he hopes to increase to 10 percent or more of overall ad sales.

As per sources, the company’s revenue from advertising went up from 52 percent in the previous year to 60 percent this year. The CEO also said that with increasing number of users switching to smartphones and companies focusing on mobile advertising as a source of revenue, the M&A activity in this sphere is expected to rise.

Further, strong competition from Google and Facebook have caused a decline in the internet business of AOL, which reported a net loss of US$ 782.5 million in the last year, causing the CEO to look for better ways to target customers.

Filed under:Mobile Tagged with: AOL • Facebook • Google • Mobile Advertising • smartphones • Tim Armstrong

Mobile payments to see major growth in coming years

On 12.01.11, In Mobile, By Editor

With the increasing demand for mobile payment services, mobile operators along with big companies such as Google, Visa and PayPal are reportedly working towards establishing themselves in this market. According to reports, mobile operators in the US, AT&T, Verizon Wireless and T-Mobile are spending large amounts of money in an attempt to strengthen their foothold in the mobile money market.

Further, sources claim that while Google launched its mobile wallet service in the US this year, enabling consumers to use a NFC (Near Field Communications) enabled handset to make payments; Visa and PayPal are expected to offer their services by the next year.

As reported by Wireless Federation earlier, Spanish mobile giant Telefonica announced the trial of its mobile wallet service, in collaboration with BlackBerry maker Research In Motion (RIM). Further, industry analysts believe that in the next five years, mobile payments are going to become the norm and may replace a large part of the traditional payment methods.

Filed under:Mobile Tagged with: AT&T • Google • mobile money • NFC • PayPal • RIM • T-Mobile • Verizon • Visa

EU regulators work towards improving mobile payment services (Europe)

On 11.28.11, In Mobile, By Editor

European Union regulators are reportedly working towards improving the mobile payment services within Europe, as large corporates such as Google Inc, Apple Inc and Visa Inc have shown major interest in entering this business segment.

According to industry reports, the market for mobile payment is expected to be worth $ 50 billion globally by 2014, largely supported by the near field communication (NFC) technology. As per sources, the European Commission believes that the region lacks a concrete European framework that would enable customers to make financial transactions using their mobile phones. Further, sources claim that the number of m-payment users in Western Europe were 7.1 million as compared with 62.8 million users in the Asia-Pacific region.

As per reports, Visa and Visa Europe Ltd. had agreed to license mobile payments technology to Google, which could be incorporated into its new range of smartphones.

Filed under:Mobile Tagged with: Apple • European Union • Google • Mobile payment • Near Field Communications (NFC) technology • Visa

Facebook may launch its own phone with HTC (USA, Taiwan)

On 11.22.11, In Mobile, By Editor

Social networking site Facebook may be looking to launch its own mobile phone in the next couple of years. According to reports, the mobile phone codenamed ‘Buffy’, will be manufactured by HTC and will be powered by a customized version of Google Ins.’s Android software.

As per sources, the phone will work on the HTML5 platform better suited for Facebook applications. The social networking major has worked with HTC and Motorola on smartphones that include a ‘facebook’ button, providing users with easy access to the site from their mobile device.

Sources claim that a Facebook spokesperson has reportedly said they believe every mobile device is better if it is deeply social, adding that they have been working with operators, hardware manufacturers, OS providers, and application developers to bring powerful social experiences to more people around the world.

Filed under:Mobile Tagged with: Android • Buffy • Facebook • Google • HTC • Motorola

Telenor combines with Google to enhance Android adoption (Asia, Europe)

On 11.16.11, In Mobile, By Editor

Telecommunications giant, Telenor has entered into an agreement with Google in an attempt to increase Android adoption. According to reports, Telenor’s Android users will be able to access an updated range of apps on the front page of Android Market, pay for them apps via their mobile operator. This will also benefit local developers by increasing the accessibility of their apps while helping them increase their revenues.

As per sources, the deal is expected to be launched initially in Thailand, Sweden, Hungary, Malaysia and Denmark, early next year, and subsequently cover all of Telenor’s international markets. The deal comes as a result of the ever-increasing demand for mobile content across the European and the Asian economies.

Reports suggest that Jon Fredrik Baksaas, President & CEO, Telenor Group has said that this deal between Google and Telenor is designed to inject even more energy into the Android ecosystem. Most importantly, it means that millions of Telenor customers will experience easier access to more and richer mobile content, as well as flexible payment solutions.

Filed under:Mobile Tagged with: Denmark • Android • Apps • Google • Hungary • Malaysia • Sweden • Telenor • Thailand