Topaz to take the Centre Stage at WIMA 2010
WIMA 2010, the 4th Global NFC Business & Technical Developers Summit which brings together industry leaders, NFC developers, standards bodies and research and academic institutions will witness Innovition Research & Technology’s Topaz NFC tags playing a central role. The event which takes place on 20-22 April at the Grimaldi Forum, Monaco also witnesses Innovision as the official sponsor of the event.
According to Innovision VP Marketing, Stephen Graham, it’s interesting to see how far NFC has come since they provided their tags to the very first NFC Competition winners back in 2007.
In his opinion, understanding of NFC technology has evolved and the competition has quickly evolved with it, to the extent that the entries are becoming increasingly advanced, wide-ranging and relevant in all aspects of life.
Mobile apps to generate $1.6 billion revenue this year: Study
According to a new study conducted by the Yankee Group, mobile applications are expected to generate nearly $1.6 billion revenue in the United States in the year 2010.
There are several factors in the report which show the increase in the shipments of smartphones, and more application stores including the expensive ones. Though Apple iPhone users and AT&T subscribers download more applications than anyone else, the research organization has predicted that Android will be the next breakout smartphone application platform.
According to Carl Howe, director of anywhere consumer research at Yankee Group, Boston, MA, two factors drove the company to increase their forecast, the first one was an increase in the percentage of apps that consumers were willing to pay for- up from 18 percent in August to 30 percent in January- and an overall increase in average paid application price from $1.99 in August to $2.85 this year.
The 2009 forecast of the company was $343 million, but that was using the prior paid app ratio of 18 percent with an average price of $1.99.
TATA india to offer SIM cards on its CDMA network
Oberthur Technologies the world’s second largest provider of Smart Card based solutions today announced the commercialization of its OMHTM (Open Market Handsets) SIM cards for CDMA (Code Development Multiple Access) networks. OMH SIM cards contain subscriber, network and service configuration data that allow subscribers the freedom to easily change and upgrade their handset, but maintain their network configuration.
Oberthur Technologies collaborated with Tata Teleservices Limited, one of India’s fastest growing private telecom service providers, and Qualcomm Incorporated, a leader in developing and delivering innovative digital wireless communications products and services based on CDMA and other advanced technologies, to introduce OMHTM SIM cards into the India market.
Olivier Leroux, Head of the Mobile Product Line for the Card Systems Division at Oberthur Technologies said, “Oberthur Technologies is the first to commercially launch OMHTM SIM cards. We are pleased to partner with industry leaders such as Tata Teleservices and Qualcomm who are enhancing the subscriber experience for Indian consumers.”
The OMHTM SIM card, referred to as a removable user identity module (R-UIM), is a state of the art smartcard that stores operator and subscriber specific configuration parameters, separate from the handset memory. By having this configuration parameters located on the OMHTM SIM card rather than the device, subscribers can more easily switch or upgrade their handsets. These cards allow CDMA network operators to increase the selection of devices and services while lowering distribution and inventory costs.
“These are exciting times in the Indian telecom space where innovation, research and development are the key to success and remain competitive in the business. In our constant effort to redefine the telecom space keeping customers at the central point, Tata Teleservices decided to partner with Qualcomm and Oberthur Technologies to further develop the Open Market Handset initiative and offer more choice to customers”, said Lloyd Mathias, Chief Marketing Officer, Tata Teleservices Limited.
“Qualcomm is pleased to work with Oberthur Technologies for its leadership as one of the first companies to develop OMH SIM cards,” said Nakul Duggal, Senior Director and OMH Project Lead, Qualcomm Corporate Engineering Services. “The OMH initiative is focused on increasing device variety by offering new channels and distribution options within the CDMA ecosystem to provide greater subscriber flexibility.”
About Oberthur Technologies
With sales of 882 million Euros in 2008, Oberthur Technologies is a world leader in the field of secure technologies. Innovation and high quality services ensure Oberthur Technologies’ strong positioning in its main target markets:
– Card Systems: The world’s second largest provider of security and identification based on smart card technology and associated services for mobile, payment, transport, digital TV and convergence markets. – Identity: Leading international supplier for the manufacture and personalization of secure identity documents such as passport, identity card, driving license or health care card – traditional and electronic – and associated services for both governmental and corporate markets. – Security printing: World’s third largest private security printer specialized in high security for the production of banknotes, checks and other fiduciary documents in more than fifty countries. – Cash protection: World leader in the emerging market of intelligent systems to secure cash-in-transit and ATM.
Close to its customers, Oberthur Technologies benefits from an industrial and commercial presence across all five continents.
Oberthur Technologies S.A. is a limited liability company (societe anonyme) registered in France with its registered office at 50 quai Michelet 92 532 Levallois Perret, France. Oberthur Technologies S.A.’s corporate registration number is 340 709 534 R.C.S. Paris.
Website: http://www.oberthur.com
About Tata Teleservices Limited
Tata Teleservices Limited is one of India’s leading private telecom service providers, having a pan-India presence across all of India’s 22 telecom Circles. The company offers integrated telecom solutions to its customers under the Tata Indicom, Tata DOCOMO, Photon and Walky brands, and uses both the CDMA and GSM technology platform(s) for its wireless networks. Tata Teleservices Limited, along with Tata Teleservices (Maharashtra) Limited, operates in more than 325,000 towns and villages across the country. In November 2008, Tata Teleservices entered into an agreement with Japanese telecom major NTT DOCOMO, and this transaction marks a key step in the strategic evolution of Tata Teleservices Limited. Tata DOCOMO has so far launched GSM services in eight telecom Circles, and the remaining part of the country is also expected to be covered shortly. In December 2008, Tata Teleservices announced a unique reverse equity swap strategic agreement between its fully-owned telecom tower subsidiary-Wireless TT Info-Services Limited-and Quippo Telecom Infrastructure Limited, thereby becoming the largest independent entity in this space. Tata Teleservices’ bouquet of telephony services includes mobile services, wireless desktop phones, public booth telephony and Wireline services.
For details, visit http://www.tatateleservices.com, http://www.tatadocomo.com or http://www.tataindicom.com.
About Qualcomm
Qualcomm is a registered trademark of Qualcomm Incorporated. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
Motorola one of the most trusted wireless brands in U.S.
What kind of cellphone do you use? If you’re in the majority, it’s a Motorola handset. Motorola now has — by far — the largest share of the handset market in the U.S. and appears to be making a global run at Nokia to try and regain the top global spot for the first time in a decade. The jury is still out on whether Motorola can do this, but if the ultra-popular RAZR phenomenon continues — and it does almost two years after release — then Motorola will continue to make headway. It’s rare that a single product carries a company like this, but just like Apple’s iPod, Motorola’s RAZR re-defined the category.
But it does not stop there. According to Forrester Research, Motorola is one of the top trusted brands in the wireless market, which includes hardware manufacturers and wireless carriers alike, from Motorola and Samsung to Sprint Nextel and Cingular Wireless. Samsung and Sprint Nextel rank among the least-trusted brands in the U.S., while Motorola and Verizon Wireless coming in at most-trusted levels, with Cingular Wireless and T-Mobile also pulling the same score. Just slightly off was Sprint Nextel, but that slightness was enough for a “least trusted” rating.
How about wireless handset manufacturers? In what I consider more perception than actual reality, handset makers Palm scored 4.3 and a B+ overall, while Motorola — maker of the RAZR and other popular offshoot handsets, scored 4.2, for an overall grade of B. LG Electronics and Samsung fared the worst, both scoring 4.0, for overall grades of C- and D-, respectively. The “aura” around the Treo line of smartphones and the RAZR line of phones is probably due to the enormous loyalty customers have to both brands when such a subjective topic of “trust” comes along.
Samsung and LG and other makers have wireless handsets that topple the Motorola RAZR and other phones in terms of features and ease-of-use, but the sheer popularity and loyalty Motorola users have cannot be underestimated. If you create the market — like the RAZR did for slim phones and the Treo did for on-the-go productivity — then customers will always have “trust”. MOT shares seem happy these days as a result.
Source- http://www.bloggingstocks.com
Technorati : LG, Motorola, Samsung, USA, Verizon Wireless, operator
