Opera Launches Mobile Accelerator
OSLO, Norway – On June 9, Opera Software introduced another tool in its mobile arsenal: Opera Mobile Accelerator, a new proxy-based solution that increases rendering speed on mobile devices up to 250 percent. Opera Mobile Accelerator also reduces the amount of transferred data traffic, thereby potentially reducing users' cellular phone bills.
Opera Mobile Accelerator requires that all Internet traffic pass through an Opera server, where the Web pages are compressed, stripping out all unnecessary elements before they are downloaded to the handset.
"For Opera, extreme speed has always been treated as essential for a good Internet experience," said Opera CEO Jon S. von Tetzchner. "Opera Mobile Accelerator is an optional service that further improves the browsing experience on handsets, reduces strain on operators' stretched data networks, while also saving users money on their monthly bills."
Opera Mobile Accelerator is available for Sony Ericsson P800 and P900 handsets, most recent Nokia handsets, Siemens SX1, and Sendo X. The accelerator automatically configures itself when users browse to www.opera.com/proxy.
Opera Mobile Accelerator is available by subscription. Users can sign up at www.opera.com/buy. A 14-day free trial is offered.
Cellular carriers that want to offer subscribers fast and cheap Web browsing, while simultaneously reducing the impact of Web browsing on their data networks, can license the Mobile Accelerator directly from Opera.
Wireless Revenue Not Living Up to Expectations
CYBERSPACE – Even though their wireless revenues are expected to be $1 billion each this year, two U.S. cell phone giants say they are disappointed with the pace at which Americans are buying wireless products and services.
Verizon Wireless and Sprint say although revenues this year are significantly improved over 2003's levels, consumers are not adopting the newest technologies like it was predicted they would. Still, they are hopeful that the rise in popularity of inexpensive data services now offered means consumers are ready to spend money in the arena, especially when wireless broadband and third-generation data services become widely available later this year. Carriers are investing billions of dollars nationwide to upgrade their networks for 3G.
So far this year, Verizon said it has seen an average of 20 billion text messages a month and sold more than 34 million ring tones, games, and business applications offered under the company's Get It Now program. The figure nearly matches last year's overall tally. Sprint said its data revenue has risen 33 percent within the past year, primarily due to game downloads. During the first quarter of 2004, Sprint customers purchased 3.5 million games priced from $3 to $15 each. The company sold only 5 million during all of 2003.
Siemens Invests in Ring Tone Startup
LOS ANGELES – Xingtone Inc. announced June 8 that it has secured a first round of institutional financing lead by Siemens Mobile Acceleration. The funding demonstrates confidence in Xingtone's revolutionary content delivery system, which uses the Internet to deliver content to mobile handsets.
Xingtone's application bridges personal computers and mobile phones, empowering Internet users to utilize their MP3 and CD libraries to create custom ring tones and upload content, such as images and games, to their own wireless handsets
"This investment is a significant development both for our company and the burgeoning mobile entertainment industry," said Xingtone CEO Jonathan Schreiber. "We are honored to be receiving funding and support from a leading investor specializing in wireless applications and technologies, such as Siemens Mobile Acceleration."
Said Xingtone Chairman and President Brad Zutaut, "The investor's backing accelerates our efforts to transform the thinking of the industry. Xingtone is proof that an open market model affords a greater consumer experience, making it easy for them to merge their digital and mobile lives. Content does not have to be bound to a single medium; it can follow you wherever you go."
Sven Weber, Vice President of Siemens Mobile, and Ovid Santoro have joined Xingtone's board of directors. Mr. Santoro has been an investment banker and venture capitalist for almost 20 years.
Xingtone's PC client supports some fifty different handsets and supports nearly a dozen carriers in the United States and Canada.
Texas Offers Free Wi-Fi Access at Rest Areas
AUSTIN – Texas, the second-largest state in the U.S., has become the first state in the nation to provide free wireless Internet access at its safety rest areas, the Texas Department of Transportation announced.
TxDOT began experimenting with wireless Internet service last fall, when the department provided the capability at twin rest areas on U.S. 287 in Donley County. Free wireless service also is available at two rest areas on the same highway in Hardeman County.
"The feedback we've received so far has been very positive," said Andy Keith, Safety Rest Area Program Manager for TxDOT's Maintenance Division. "Texas' highways are seeing an increasing number of business travelers, truckers, and Rvers, and access to email is important to them. They have really responded favorably to our four 'hot spots' on U.S. 287."
TxDOT has taken the first step to expand the service to all of its 84 safety rest areas and 12 Travel Information Centers by issuing a "request for offer" that seeks vendors able to provide free wireless Internet service and pay telephone-like Internet access at kiosks.
Keith said he envisions computers in the kiosks being available in 15-minute increments by swiping a credit card through a reader. But wireless access will be free for anyone with his or her own equipment.
"Over 50 million people a year visit our rest areas," Keith said. "When we get this program up and running, anyone with wireless-equipped laptops or other devices will be able to send email or browse the Internet for free at our safety rest areas and travel information centers. People not traveling with wireless equipment will be able to connect to the Internet at kiosks for a reasonable fee to be collected by the vendor.
"We think this will be a huge win-win for Texas' travelers," he continued. "Knowing free Internet service is available at our rest areas will get drivers to make regular stops. Since fatigue is a factor in 1.5 percent of all crashes, anything we can do to get people to pull off the road and take a break is going to make our highways safer."
An estimated 1,500 people die in fatigue-related crashes each year in the United States, according to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration statistics. An additional 77,000 are injured.
Any firm in the business of providing wireless Internet service has until 3 p.m. June 25 to make an offer to TxDOT for evaluation. TxDOT will review the offers and award a contract. Interested vendors can find more information about the program by downloading the request for offer or by calling (512) 374-5444.
"The safety rest areas are there to make the roadways safer for today's traveling public," Keith said. "Wireless Internet access meets the modern traveler's needs so we want this to happen as quickly as possible."
Orange to Debut World's Smallest Smart Phone
EUROPE– Motorola, Nokia, LG, Sony Ericsson, Sagem, Alcatel, HTC – and for the first time Samsung and Siemens – all feature in the H2 2004 Orange Signature phone portfolio. Orange has been working with the manufacturers to design and develop the hardware and software of its new Signature phones, in order to create a series of unique handsets that offer easy access to advanced mobile services and the best possible customer experience.
More than 20 Signature phones are expected to be launched during the second half of 2004 across the Orange group. Other manufacturers are also expected to be included in the catalogue at a later stage.
Signature phones have proven to be the most successful Orange handsets in terms of usage and revenues. The Treo 600 and SPV E200 phones have both delivered more than double the revenue of the average non-Signature phone due to their simple functionality and one-touch access to Orange voice and data services.
The latest Orange Signature phone is the SPV C500. It combines the power and familiarity of a PC with the form factor of a pocket-sized mobile phone. It weighs just 100 grams and, with its compact 108mm x 46mm x 16mm frame, is the world's smallest Smartphone, but still allows for a 65k color screen and an easy-to-use versatile keypad. The phone is due to be launched by Orange in seven European countries – the UK, France, Switzerland, Denmark, Netherlands, Poland, and Slovakia – starting in the summer. Pricing details will be available upon launch.
Showcasing the SPV C500 for the first time at the World Handset Forum in Amsterdam, Holland, Martin Keogh, Vice President of Global Product Management for Orange, said, "The SPV C500 is a marvel of miniaturization. It's a third smaller than the last version of the SPV and targets a specific, as-yet-untapped segment of the Smartphone market: the professional consumer who wants to keep their world in their pocket, not their briefcase.
"Our customers told us that they loved the functionality of previous SPV phones – the familiarity of their desktop PC, simple Internet access, Outlook on the move – but they wanted a smaller form factor," he continued. "So we've worked with our partners to maintain that experience, but shrink the components inside. However, despite its smaller form-factor, we haven't compromised on performance. In fact, we've enhanced the performance of previous SPVs, offering a new homescreen, video content and messaging reminders."
As with all Orange Signature phones, the SPV C500 gives customers a unique Orange experience on their phone, providing them with a range of exclusive applications and services. The SPV C500 boasts a new home screen (offering instant access to key services), Orange Backup (which allows customers to store their personal and business data on the Orange network and restore those details when required), Packet Video player (offering Packet Video's innovative progressive download service for smoother access to video content) and Orange Update, which allows customers to trial and download new applications such as ring tones, tube maps, and games. Orange Help is also included as an electronic user guide stored directly on the device.
Each SPV C500 will also come with an Orange "Try" card – a mini memory card that can be slotted into the phone allowing customers to access content such as a real-time currency converter, interactive city maps and office applications. The Try card allows customers to sample new applications for free and then purchase them directly through Orange. It also has active links to both voice and data services, designed to stimulate usage.
"By marrying some of the most trusted and respected household names and providing the quality of the Orange network, ease of use and exclusive Orange Services, our Signature phone series gives our customers access to some of the most exciting products, first," Keogh said.
