Audiopoint Provides Personalized News and Information Services to EarthLink's Subscribers

Audiopoint, a speech applications company developing products for businesses that reach consumer markets, and EarthLink, one of the nation's leading Internet service providers (ISPs), announced an agreement that will give EarthLink's subscribers the ability to define their own News and Information Services leveraging Audiopoint's latest product release and speech application service. The popularity of EarthLink's Email By Phone has demonstrated that people want access to a wider range of information on the go. News and Information Services combines the existing functionality of Email By Phone with natural voice-enabled Web content. Popular content such as Local News, Weather and Stock Quotes, amongst other personalized services are now available from any telephone using simple voice commands.

uVuMobile To Provide Mobile Streaming Video And Advertising Service For Action Engine

uVuMobile announced that it has signed a licensing agreement with Action Engine, The On-Device Portal Company to provide an integrated multimedia services platform that gives media companies and wireless operators a user-friendly experience for streaming video and audio content on a wireless device. This agreement will enable Action Engine customers to enhance their on-device portals with rich, on-demand multimedia options that can be advertising enabled.
Mobile multimedia continues to be one of the fastest growing services in the wireless industry. According to Research and Marketing, streaming media enterprise markets were at $230 million in 2006 and are anticipated to reach $2 billion by 2013, uVuMobile’s flexible and scalable platform for streaming video and audio can provide a presence that extends far beyond the traditional video on-demand services being offered today and provides for advertising insertion, including pre-roll, mid-roll, and post roll video commercials.
“This licensing agreement with Action Engine is another example of how uVuMobile is leveraging its mobile platform within the mobile video and audio delivery industry. Through this partnership, Action Engine will be able to deliver its customers streaming media and video advertisements and services across a wide variety of devices. This agreement also makes Action Engine the first company to integrate streaming video, mobile advertising and on-device portal technology into a single platform – offering a single source for delivering, managing and monetizing mobile multimedia services for its customers,” said Bill Loughman, President and CEO of uVuMobile.

Wisair to Bring Wireless USB Functionality to Mobile Devices

Wisair announced that it is furthering its efforts to bring embedded Wireless USB technology to portable and handheld electronic devices with its new SDIO Wireless USB solution. Based on the Wisair WSR601 low-power single chip, the design enables vendors to embed Wireless USB into portable devices, such as digital still cameras, camcorders and smart phones, using the Secure Digital Input/Output (SDIO) interface.

"Wisair is committed to making the use of Wireless USB the ultimate experience for consumers. As part of this effort, we are enabling module vendors to implement small form-factor, low-power modules based on our single chip. These modules will be utilized by OEMs to integrate Wireless USB into mobile devices," said David Yaish, CEO of Wisair.

The Wisair WSR601 single chip has received regulatory approvals in Japan, the U.S., and Europe, and was recently certified by the USB-IF.

The Wisair design package includes a comprehensive platform for the development of embedded Wireless USB device solutions, based on the SDIO interface. Using the development platform, hardware and software, developers can implement an embedded small form factor module that is controlled by the device side application CPU via the SDIO bus.

modu is the World’s Lightest Mobile Phone

The Guinness World Record™ for the world’s lightest mobile phone has been awarded to modu for its tiny and sophisticated mobile phone. modu was awarded this prestigious honour after careful consideration by the Guinness World Records™ judges, who declared that: “The lightest mobile phone is the modu, which weighs 40.1 g (1.41 oz).” Guinness World Records added: modu’s dimensions are 72.1 mm (2.8 inches) x 37.6 mm (1.4 inches) x 7.8 mm (0.3 inches).”

modu launched its innovative mobile phone at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) event, held in Barcelona, Spain in February 2008. modu is the world’s first modular mobile phone, supported by a variety of ecosystem partners. At the heart of the ecosystem is modu - a tiny, sleek mobile phone that is fully functional and easy to use. modu can be slipped into a wide variety of modu jackets - stylishly designed phone enclosures and modu mates – modu-enabled consumer electronic products. modu's ecosystem offers boundless possibilities in a simple and affordable way.

Throughout the design process of modu, the emphasis has been on keeping the phone small, light and compact in order that modu’s innovative approach could be realized. The result is a phone that is not only miniature, but also superbly designed and minimalist, whilst offering all the functions and capabilities of a normal-sized handset.

Zack Weisfeld, modu’s VP Marketing, said: “The Guinness World Record™ is a great achievement for a team that has worked tirelessly to take modu from the drawing board to producing full working devices in less than a year. From the outset, modu’s tiny dimensions and super light weight have been fundamental to delivering the disruptive, modular communication concept that modu embodies.

“With modu, the mobile phone can now be added to the list of ‘invisible’ items that people carry with them wherever they go, such as a bunch of keys, their wallet and their watch."

China Mobile Phone Output Reached 594.4 Million Units

According to Research and Markets, in 2007, China mobile phone output reached approximately 594.4 million units, among which, 548 million units were legal products from official mobile phone producers and 46.4 million units were illegal products from official mobile phone producers. In 2007, sales volume reached 180.7 million units, amounting to 16% of the world total. In the same year, the global mobile phone output reached 1.141 billion units, of which 52 percent was from the Mainland China, exceeding 50% for the first time.

In the first half of 2007, the mobile phone output in the Mainland China totalled 266.8 million units, up 33.4% year on year and its combined sales revenue stood at CNY161.08 billion, up 29.6% year on year. Among the total output, 32.8 million were for CDMA mode, 234 million for GSM mode. Domestic sales volume reached 83 million units and exports arrived at 183.8 million. In the later half of 2007, mobile phone production reached 327.6 million units, of which 230.2 million units were for exports, and 97.4 million for domestic sales.

Kodiak Networks Announces Mobile Applications to Address End-User Demand for New Conferencing, Group Messaging and Contact Management Services

Kodiak Networks, a provider of applications for wireless carriers, announced a series of innovative clientless and client-based mobile applications targeted at business and consumer segments. The clientless applications provide end-users with the ability to assign a telephone number to a group of individuals that they can use for conferencing, text messaging, or voice messaging, directly from their mobile contact list. Both the group text and voice messaging applications allow recipients to reply to the originator or reply to all message recipients, directly from the message. This announcement also includes the first-ever client-based scheduled conferencing application, which allows users to set-up meetings directly from their mobile handset. All of these applications converge wireless and land-line calling functionality, that address end-user demand for integrated group communications and help operators increase revenue and retain customers.

Thin Multimedia to Showcase thinMobile Ad Advertising Solutions

Thin Multimedia, a developer and provider of mobile multimedia advertising solutions, will be showcasing thinMobile Ad™ at CTIA WIRELESS 2008. thinMobile Ad includes TMI’s best-in-class Banner Overlay which shows a banner advertisement while a user is viewing a video or listening to audio content. Along with Banner Overlay, thinMobile Ad can be utilized to insert video or audio advertisements when a user watches videos or listens to audio content on their mobile device. Visit TMI’s booth to see demonstrations of Banner Overlay and video ad insertion.

thinMobile Ad is the industry’s first advanced mobile advertising solution to effectively integrate banners and content overlays directly into a mobile video. TMI’s turnkey solution provides set-up, automated ingestion, integration with third party advertising platforms, monitoring and tracking of the delivery of ads. thinMobile Ad™ gives mobile advertisers unprecedented range of options to achieve their performance objectives. TMI’s cutting-edge technology allows content providers and wireless carriers to offer non-intrusive multimedia advertising for mobile devices.

Wireless Carriers Must Effectively Target Customer Segments

A new report from Diamond Management & Technology Consultants finds that wireless carriers in mature markets typically
are not marketing targeted pricing plans to specific customer segments
as effectively as they should. Diamond’s
paper, entitled “Targeted Pricing,”
explains that targeting can be performed on the basis of wireless
subscribers’ usage patterns or demographics,
but notes that pricing is just one element of a targeted value
proposition.

“Carriers looking to add new customers at
their competitors’ expense have little choice
but to develop differentiated offers—which
are often based on price,” said Hamilton
Sekino, a Partner in Diamond’s Telecom
practice and author of the paper. “The rise
of family plans has locked a larger portion of subscribers into group
contracts, which increases the barriers for many subscribers to change
carriers.”

Discounts on new phones for existing subscribers and other incentives
have added to carriers’ difficulty in
converting competitors’ subscribers, known as “customer
churn.” According to Diamond’s
report, these factors have largely contributed to a drop in monthly
churn rates from 2.5 percent in 2000 to 1.7 percent today—and
only 1.3 percent for postpaid plan subscribers.

“Companies run the risk of losing money if
they do not undertake adequate preparation when launching new pricing
plans,” said Sekino. “Wireless
carriers cannot afford to approach pricing plans blindly, and must
validate their targeted plans.”

For instance, carriers need to weigh the value of mass-market
advertising campaigns against the value of marketing specific pricing
plans through media outlets that cater to particular demographic
segments. While some companies have developed innovative pricing
structures, most wireless carriers adopt the mass-market approach for
pricing plan introductions—often not the most
cost-effective approach.

T-Mobile USA Launches BlackBerry 8820

T-Mobile USA announced the availability of the BlackBerry^® 8820 smartphone, featuring built-in GPS and support for T-Mobile's HotSpot @Home service for Wi-Fi calling. Available in a sophisticated midnight blue finish, the BlackBerry 8820 is RIM's thinnest BlackBerry smartphone.

With the T-Mobile HotSpot @Home mobile add-on plan, customers can enjoy the freedom of unlimited, nationwide calling over any Wi-Fi network at home, across accessible corporate Wi-Fi networks or at T-Mobile HotSpot locations nationwide. When connected through Wi-Fi, access to information continues to include all of the BlackBerry platform's security features. Customers can also enjoy faster Web browsing at Wi-Fi speeds.


Using the BlackBerry 8820 smartphone's built-in GPS and location-based applications, such as BlackBerry Maps, customers can navigate between meetings and locate the closest restaurant or use other advanced services such as TeleNav GPS Navigator <sup>to receive audible turn-by-turn directions to reach their next destination.

The quad-band phone also supports international roaming and is enabled for T-Mobile's popular myFaves service experience for quick, one-click access to five people byinstant messaging, e-mailing, texting or calling from the Home Screen.


"Customers want and need to stay connected to the important people in their lives," said Leslie Grandy, Vice President of Product Development, T-Mobile USA. "With unlimited nationwide calling using T-Mobile's popular HotSpot @Home mobile service, access to personal or business e-mail, and reliable GPS navigation services, the BlackBerry 8820 from T-Mobile provides unparalleled value for our customers at home, at the office and everywhere in between."

"The BlackBerry 8820 smartphone blends powerful communications, connectivity and navigation capabilities with exceptional ease-of-use and executive class styling." said Mark Guibert, Vice President of Corporate Marketing, RIM. "Together with the innovative T-Mobile HotSpot @Home service, the BlackBerry 8820 offers incredible flexibility and convenience for both professional and personal needs."</sup>

Samsung Electronics Signs Multi-Year Global Agreement with Nuance Mobile

Nuance Communications, Inc., a provider of
speech and imaging solutions, announced that Samsung Electronics
recently signed a multi-year agreement, renewing and expanding its
commitment to the full range of Nuance Mobile applications. With Nuance speech solutions for mobile devices,
Samsung will simplify and enhance the way its customers use mobile
phones, applications and services.


The global license agreement includes Nuance's VSuite,
Vocalizer, and VoiceMode speech-based services and interfaces,
which have collectively shipped on more than 160 Samsung models for the
last several years. The Nuance products are also shipping on Samsung's
top-selling devices, such as the SCH-U340 and SPH-M300 available from
Verizon and Sprint. Text-to-speech solutions, enabling capabilities
such as text message read-out, are also included in the new Samsung
contract.


VSuite is Nuance's ubiquitous voice control solution that enables
hands-free, one-step access to mobile device features from a simple
push of a button and a voice command. Nuance's speech-to-text solution,
VoiceMode, offers users a faster and easier way to input text on mobile
devices. Users can enter text in any application by simply pressing a
button and dictating words and sentences naturally and continuously.


"Samsung is at the leading edge of innovation and design for
mobile devices," said Steve Chambers, president of the mobile and
consumer services division at Nuance. "Nuance and Samsung share a
commitment to continually enhance the overall mobile user experience,
offering consumers a simple, safe and convenient way to interact with
mobile phones. By expanding its use of Nuance VSuite, Samsung can make
it easier than ever for users to control mobile devices and access
advanced mobile applications and content."