Industry's First Open Mobile Core for Service Innovation

Juniper Networks (NYSE: JNPR | PowerRating) today announced MobileNext, the industry's first open mobile core for 2G/3G and LTE networks that enables mobile operators to profit from the rapid increase in mobile data traffic from smartphones and other mobile device types. MobileNext is a suite of software that runs on Juniper Networks industry leading MX 3D Universal Edge Router and Junos(R) software platform. MobileNext delivers on the "Project Falcon" initiative with breakthrough products, solutions and business models that address the needs of mobile operators today.

MobileNext, with industry leading scalability of mobile sessions, set up rates and forwarding capacity, enables high-definition voice and video delivery with seamless handoff between 3G and LTE for non-interrupted user experience while integrating a rich portfolio of in-line IP services. These in-line services, including Deep Packet Inspection, Traffic Direct for Internet offload, Carrier Grade NAT, Firewall, Video Optimization, MPLS, and Application Load Balancing, provide deployment flexibility and dramatically reduce TCO to mobile operators.

MobileNext software offerings includes the following three key elements for 2G/3G and LTE mobile packet cores:

--  MobileNext Broadband Gateway: Providing GGSN and PDN/Serving Gateway

    functions in one platform, the MobileNext Broadband Gateway delivers

    scale and performance with uncompromised in-line IP services while

    enabling service creation with the Junos SDK for operators to innovate

    profitable data services.





--  Mobile Control Gateway: Providing SGSN and MME functions for 2G/3G and

    LTE mobile packet cores, the MobileNext Control Gateway delivers

    control plane functions for mobile networks including user

    authentication and mobility management to redefine performance for the

    smartphone era.





--  MobileNext Policy Manager: Integrating with the industry's leading

    subscriber management systems, Juniper is offering choice and

    flexibility for mobile operators to control network and content

    resources and rapidly enable and monetize new applications.

"Mobile operators are under pressure to scale bandwidth, offer new services and drive profitability," said Mike Iandolo, general manager and vice president of Mobile Business Unit at Juniper Networks. "With MobileNext, Juniper is providing a solution that delivers high-definition experience, investment protection and stronger economics. Our unique solution offers a programmable platform for operators to customize innovation that monetizes rich media data services."

MobileNext offers rapid integration of new applications through Junos SDK to help mobile operators accelerate service innovation. Leveraging the Junos SDK, Juniper worked with Openwave Systems to deliver video optimization and application load balancing for mobile operators to build IP services and expedite time to revenue.

By tailoring the performance and open APIs to the smartphone revolution, Juniper transforms the business model of mobile core networks. As the mobile industry moves to IP-based services and architecture, Juniper is also offering a simplified, "any G" subscriber-based pricing model that is independent of radio access type and strengthens the economics of delivering data services for mobile operators.

"The data tsunami coming from smartphones and other mobile devices will continue to increase, fueled by more powerful devices and a shift from 3G to 4G/LTE," said Phil Solis, research director, Mobile Networks at ABI Research. "Through its open Junos SDK, Juniper's MobileNext delivers the service creation and service velocity operators need in the smartphone era, and the consolidation of best-in-class services in a single platform can reduce operators' total cost of ownership up to 56 percent."

Availability MobileNext Broadband Gateway, Control Gateway, and Policy Manager will be generally available in mid-2011. IP services including Deep Packet Inspection, Traffic Direct for Internet off-load, Carrier Grade NAT/Firewall, MPLS and Mobile Video Optimization are available today.

For more information about today's launch, please refer to the following resources:

--  Juniper at Mobile World Congress - www.juniper.net/mwc

--  The Network Ahead blog - www.juniper.net/networkahead

--  Juniper.Net Community - www.juniper.net/community

--  Juniper's Social Channels - www.juniper.net/social

About Juniper Networks Juniper Networks is in the business of network innovation. From devices to data centers, from consumers to cloud providers, Juniper Networks delivers the software, silicon and systems that transform the experience and economics of networking. Additional information can be found at Juniper Networks (www.juniper.net).

Statements in this release concerning Juniper Networks' prospects and future products are forward-looking statements that involve a number of uncertainties and risks. Actual results or events could differ materially from those anticipated in those forward-looking statements as a result of certain factors, including those listed in Juniper Networks' most recent report on Form 10-Q or 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. All statements made in this press release are made only as of the date set forth at the beginning of this release. Juniper Networks undertakes no obligation to update the information in this release in the event facts or circumstances subsequently change after the date of this press release.

Juniper Networks and Junos are registered trademarks of Juniper Networks, Inc. in the United States and other countries. The Juniper Networks and Junos logos are trademarks of Juniper Networks, Inc. All other trademarks, service marks, registered trademarks, or registered service marks are the property of their respective owners. source

Analysts are not recommending Airtel, Idea and Reliance.

Despite a sharp fall in telecom share prices, analysts are not recommending Bharti Airtel, Idea Cellular and Reliance Communications to investors. Following the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India's (TRAI) recommendation of a steep hike in 2G spectrum pricing, wherein telecom companies have to shell out additional Rs 16000 crore to the government, the telecom stock prices took a severe beating. The telecom stocks were one of the biggest losers on Thursday's trade.

According to analysts, no fresh buying is recommended at the current level. With an estimated price earning ratio (PE ratio) of 26.1x in FY11, Idea is recommended for sell. For Bharti Airtel, investors can hold on with an estimated PE of 20.4x, as suggested by Emkay Share.

“Telecom companies would not agree to the re-pricing proposal by TRAI. The proposal does not seem reasonable. Unless there is clarity on the re-pricing issue, no fresh entry is recommended. Market has already factored in the re-pricing issue. However, there could be further down falls based on the final outcome,” said an analyst on condition of anonymity.

TRAI has sent a final recommendation for re-pricing of 2G spectrum. This was a further intimation to recommendations made in May 2010 for re-pricing of spectrum above 6.2Mhz. Re-pricing is recommended for the remaining period (7 years) of spectrum at the price discovered in auction of 3G spectrum.

If implemented then it would erode profitability of Bharti and Idea with yearly outgo of Rs 580 crore and Rs 230 crore, respectively for 7 years. Cost for Reliance Communication is expected to remain miniscule at Rs 2 crore, according the Emkay research note.

Shares of Bharti and Idea ended at Rs 322.80, down 2.81%, Rs 65, down 1.89% respectively. RCom, however, was at Rs 96.25, up 1.69% at the close of day’s trading on NSE. The stock prices Bharti Airtel, RCom and Idea have corrected 15% on an average in last one month.source

Can't call? Blame it on jail jammers

"Hello Papa don't worry. We have reached&.." "Hello&can you hear me?" "Your voice is not clear &"

If you come across such unfinished conversations at Khel Gaon and Mega Sports Complex like on Saturday afternoon, blame it on Birsa Munda Central Jail.

While thousands of players, technical officials and guests are finding it difficult to communicate with their family members in wake of poor mobile connectivity, a technical staff of a private mobile service provider said jammers fitted at the jail stone's throw away from the sports complex stop people to make uninterrupted calls.

Not just mobile phones, wireless data cards a useful tool for direct link to the cyber world from the sporting arena are also experiencing frequent drop in network speed.

Tamilnadu Taekwondo Association deputy secretary S Kothandan seemed perplexed over the repeated drop in internet network. "I have been trying to use this data card but the network is failing every now and then making it difficult for me to send mails and establish communication with the state office," he said.

Kothandan admitted that if the connectivity issue was not resolved, real-time update of results and event details would be a big challenge for the organizers and competition directors.

Sanjib Chatterjee, the technical official for swimming, said that he was using a couple of sim cards and still finding it difficult to make or receive a call. "BSNL is slightly better than any other services but there are pockets in the stadium where none of the connections uis working," he said.

The pinch is being felt badly by outstation players, some of them coming to Jharkhand for the first time. Karnataka volleyball player N Ganeshan said his parents were apprehensive about his coming to Jharkhand. "The place is known for extremist activities and my parents were worried about me. What has made the situation complex is network failure," he complained, saying that he is getting calls but no voice quality.

Carrying three sims of private service providers, Ganeshan is prepared to buy a local sim if he gets connectivity.

Players from Haryana complained about unavailability of recharge coupons near their place of stay in Khel Gaon saying that because of poor network they are losing money in roaming. "Everytime I am trying to receive a call instead of being able to talk I am losing 50 paise as roaming charges and there is no recharge facility here," said M N Kaur of the state's athletics team said. source

Agro SMS Service For Farmers

Lucknow, Feb 12 (IANS) From basic technical knowhow to information on advanced techniques in agriculture -- farmers from various states are registering for an SMS service through which their queries will be answered by scientists, an official said Saturday.
'It's been just over a month since the SMS service started,' Sanjay Kumar, a scientist with the Central Institute of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (CIMAP) Technology and Business Development, told reporters here.

'Today we have over 800 farmers from states like Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Bihar registering themselves for the agro advisory service,' he added.

'From basic technical knowhow to information on advanced techniques that can boost the production of aromatic and medicinal plants, are provided by us through the SMS service,' he said.

For availing the SMS service, farmers just need to register their mobile phone numbers.

'After the registration, any farmer can call on the helpline numbers - 0522-2718598, 2718595, with their query that is answered by a dedicated panel of CIMAP scientists through an SMS, later sent on the farmers' mobile,' Kumar said.

'As of now, the calls made by the farmers are not toll-free. Still, as soon we get a call from the farmers, we ask them to disconnect the line from their end. Later, we call them up and note down their queries,' he said.

'Thereafter, we respond to them through an SMS that is sent to their mobile number,' he added.

With the satisfactory response to the service, CIMAP officials said that in later phases the institute might introduce a toll-free service for the agro advisory.source

No More Cell Towers As Wireless Advances

As cell phones have spread, so have large cell towers — those unsightly stalks of steel topped by transmitters and other electronics that sprouted across the country over the last decade.

Now the wireless industry is planning a future without them, or at least without many more of them. Instead, it's looking at much smaller antennas, some tiny enough to hold in a hand. These could be placed on lampposts, utility poles and buildings — virtually anywhere with electrical and network connections.

If the technology overcomes some hurdles, it could upend the wireless industry and offer seamless service, with fewer dead spots and faster data speeds.

Some big names in the wireless world are set to demonstrate "small cell" technologies at the Mobile World Congress, the world's largest cell phone trade show, which starts Monday in Barcelona, Spain.

"We see more and more towers that become bigger and bigger, with more and bigger antennas that come to obstruct our view and clutter our landscape and are simply ugly," said Wim Sweldens, president of the wireless division of Alcatel-Lucent, the French-U.S. maker of telecommunications equipment.

"What we have realized is that we, as one of the major mobile equipment vendors, are partially if not mostly to blame for this."

Alcatel-Lucent will be at the show to demonstrate its "lightRadio cube," a cellular antenna about the size and shape of a Rubik's cube, vastly smaller than the ironing-board-sized antennas that now decorate cell towers. The cube was developed at the famous Bell Labs in New Jersey, birthplace of many other inventions when it was AT&T's research center.

In Alcatel-Lucent's vision, these little cubes could soon begin replacing conventional cell towers. Single cubes or clusters of them could be placed indoors or out and be easily hidden from view. All they need is electrical power and an optical fiber connecting them to the phone company's network.

The cube, Sweldens said, can make the notion of a conventional cell tower "go away." Alcatel-Lucent will start trials of the cube with carriers in September. The company hopes to make it commercially available next year.

For cell phone companies, the benefits of dividing their networks into smaller "cells," each one served by something like the cube antenna, go far beyond esthetics. Smaller cells mean vastly higher capacity for calls and data traffic.

Instead of having all phones within a mile or two connect to the same cell tower, the traffic could be divided between several smaller cells, so there's less competition for the cell tower's attention.

"If it is what they claim, lightRadio could be a highly disruptive force within the wireless industry," said Dan Hays, who focuses on telecommunications at consulting firm PRTM.

Rasmus Hellberg, director of technical marketing at wireless technology developer Qualcomm Inc., said smaller cells can boost a network's capacity tenfold, far more than can be achieved by other upgrades to wireless technology that are also in the works.

That's sure to draw the interest of phone companies. They've already been deploying older generations of small-cell technology in areas where a lot of people gather, like airports, train stations and sports stadiums, but these are expensive and complicated to install.

In New York City, AT&T Inc. has started creating a network of outdoor Wi-Fi hotspots, starting in Times Square and now spreading through the midtown tourist and shopping districts. Its network has been hammered by an onslaught of data-hungry iPhone users, and this is one way of moving that traffic off the cellular network.

Smaller cells could do the same job, but for all phones, not just Wi-Fi enabled ones like the iPhone. They could also carry calls as well as data.

San Diego-based Qualcomm will be at the Barcelona show with a live demonstration of how "heterogeneous networks" — ones that mix big and small cells, can work. A key issue is minimizing radio interference between the two types of cells. Another hurdle is connecting the smaller cells to the bigger network through optical fiber or other high-capacity connections.

"That's an impediment that we're seeing many operators struggling with right now as data volumes have increased," Hays said.

LM Ericsson AB, the Swedish company that's the largest maker of wireless network equipment in the world, is also introducing a more compact antenna at the show, one it calls "the first stepping stone towards a heterogeneous network."

Small cellular base stations have already penetrated hundreds of thousands of U.S. homes. Phone companies like AT&T, Verizon Wireless and Sprint Nextel Corp. have for several years been selling "femtocells," which are about the size of a Wi-Fi router and connect to the phone company's network through a home broadband connection.

The cells project radio signals that cover a room or two, providing five bars of coverage where there might otherwise be none.

British femtocell maker Ubiquisys Ltd. will be in Barcelona to demonstrate the smallest cell yet. It's the size of a thumb and plugs into a computer's USB drive. According to Ubiquisys, the idea is that overseas travellers will plug it into their Internet-connected laptops to make calls as if they were on their home network, but there are potential problems with interference if used that way.

According to Rupert Baines, marketing head of Picochip Ltd., a more realistic application for a tiny plug-in cell is to make it work with cable boxes or Internet routers, to convert them into femtocells.

A key part of the "small cell" idea is to take femtocells outside the home, into larger buildings and even outdoors.

Picochip, a British company that's the dominant maker of chips for femtocells, will be in Barcelona to talk about its chips for "public-access" femtocells, designed to serve up to 64 phone calls at a time, with a range of more than a mile. They could be used not just to ease wireless congestion in urban areas, but to fill in dead spots on the map, Baines said.

For instance, a single femtocell could provide wireless service to a remote village, as long as there's some way to connect it to the wider network, perhaps via satellite.

Analyst Francis Sideco of research firm iSuppli pointed out a surprising consumer benefit of smaller cells: better battery life in phones.

When a lot of phones talk to the same tower, they all have to "shout" to make themselves heard, using more energy. With a smaller cell, phones can lower their "voices," much like group of people moving from a noisy ballroom to a smaller, quieter room.

"Ultimately, what you end up with is a cleaner signal, with less power," Sideco said.source

India Examines Reliance Anil Ambani Group Officials

The Anil Ambani-headed Reliance Group said a few of its officials have been examined by India's top investigating body in a probe into irregularities of the allocation of mobile phone licenses and bandwidth.

The Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani group is "fully cooperating with the authorities in this regard," it said in an email late Friday.

It is the latest development in a deepening probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation into the government's 2008 sale of second-generation mobile phone licenses and bandwidth at far below market value, which it believes could have cost the government more than $4.88 billion in potential revenue.

It is investigating companies alleged to have benefited from the manipulation of bandwidth allotments, after arresting the then telecom minister and two of his former aides earlier this month.

CBI officials couldn't be reached for immediate comment.

The investigative agency hasn't named any of the Reliance ADA Group companies as having benefited. It has, however, named Swan Telecom Pvt. Ltd.—now called Etisalat DB Telecom Pvt Ltd.—and Unitech Ltd. as among the beneficiaries. Both companies have denied any wrongdoing.

The CBI's probe follows revelations by the Comptroller and Auditor General, a government auditing agency, late November that irregularities in spectrum allocation led to a potential revenue loss of nearly $40 billion to India.

The allegations led to the resignation of Andimuthu Raja as telecom minister in November. The CBI arrested Mr. Raja on Feb. 2.

The CAG report last November accused mobile-phone operator Reliance Communications Ltd., which is part of the Reliance ADA Group, of violating licensing regulations in 2008.

The CAG report contended that Reliance Communications—through wholly owned unit Reliance Telecom Ltd.—held a 10.71% stake in Swan Telecom, which applied for a license in March 2007. This would violate Indian regulations, which don't allow telecom operators to own 10% or more of any rival in the same service areas, the government auditor's report said.

Swan Telecom received a license in January 2008.

The audit report said Swan Telecom appeared to be a "front company" for Reliance Telecom while applying for the license.

Reliance Telecom runs global systems for mobile communications, or GSM, services in eight and of India's 22 service areas. Reliance Communications, India's second largest mobile phone operator by subscribers, is in 14 of the service areas.

The audit agency also said the introduction of dual technology—through which an operator could offer services using both the GSM and code division multiple access platforms—in October 2007 was done in a "hasty and arbitrary manner," which gave the "perception" of favoring some companies, including Reliance Communications.

Reliance Communications has previously denied any wrongdoing in any of the issues.

The CBI this month also named Swan Telecom among the alleged beneficiaries of the irregularities in bandwidth allocation.

It has since arrested Shahid Balwa, the founder of Swan and currently the vice-chairman of Etisalat DB.

Balwa has also denied any involvement in the matter.source

Mobile Medication Reminder Application

3G Technology Well Accepted among Hypertensive Patients in Underserved Communities.

3G handsets and the Pill Phone (News - Alert) mobile medication reminder application are well accepted among patients participating in George Washington University and Wireless Reach Pill Phone Research Study.

The announcement was made by George Washington University Medical Center, One Economy, Cricket Communications, VOCEL, and Qualcomm’s (News  - Alert) Wireless Reach initiative at a mHealth seminar hosted by the George Washington Center for Global Health and the Department of Emergency Medicine.  

“3G wireless technologies offer new opportunities to communicate with patients and the potential to improve health outcomes,” said Dean Brenner, vice president of government affairs for Qualcomm, in a statement.

Thanks to the grant from Qualcomm's Wireless Reach initiative and contributions from One Economy, Cricket Communications (News - Alert) and VOCEL, the George Washington University Medical Center conducted and analyzed a seven-month study to measure the efficiency of the Pill Phone application to improve medication adherence among hypertensive patients.

The Pill Phone study was aimed at analyzing how wireless technology can engage patients, improve health outcomes and reduce health costs. Subjects included 50 Medicaid patients who were recruited from the internal medicine, renal/hypertension and cardiology clinics of The George Washington University Medical Center in Washington.

Hypertension affects more than 65 million adults in the United States and the main reason is poor adherence to blood pressure medications. African Americans are two to four times more likely to have kidney disease than their white counterparts due to uncontrolled hypertension. Hypertensive patients have other issues requiring additional medications and this forces them to take up to 10 pills a day.

“High blood pressure and diabetes are the leading causes of kidney disease, and Washington, D.C. has some of the highest rates of end-stage kidney disease in the nation,” said Richard Katz, director of the division of cardiology at The George Washington University Hospital. “The importance of the Pill Phone Research Study is that it offers a model for disease self-management that can be applied to at-risk communities.”

Each hypertensive patient received a 3G wireless handset pre-loaded with the Pill Phone application. The Pill Phone provides visual and audible medication dosage reminders, tracking and storage of dosage records, image displays of prescription pills and information about potential drug side effects.

VOCEL announced the Pill Phone application in 2008 for three major U.S. wireless operators. Pill Phone enables healthcare providers to remotely monitor patient adherence through a secure Web site, according to company officials.source

3G rollouts could change dynamics

INDIAN TELECOM: MNP initial data suggests it is not a game-changer; 3G rollouts could change dynamics

Only 1.7m subscribers (0.23% of wireless subscriber base) requested for porting during the first fifteen days of MNP implementation.

Assuming post-paid ARPU is 5x pre-paid, 0.23% subscriber churn can result in no more than 0.5% revenue churn.

TRAI has clarified that certain port-in requests are being rejected due to non-fulfillment of required conditions or errors made by subscribers.

We continue to believe that MNP is unlikely to be a game-changer given largely pre-paid nature of Indian market (>96%) and high blended churn levels (48-120%)

3G rollout can impact MNP dynamics as 1) operator focus is higher on 3G rollout, 2) high-end subscribers could be awaiting rollouts before deciding to port.

On a circle wise basis Haryana circle has seen cumulative porting of 1.2% in more than two months. Number portability was test launched in Haryana effective 25th November 2010. Gujarat and Rajasthan recorded the highest no. of porting requests (~0.4% of customer base) in the northern and western regions. We believe that MNP induced churn is insignificant given the already high churn levels in the Indian market.source

3D movies on a 3G cellphone

Those clever chaps at Fraunhofer have found a way to put 3D on a cellphone by combining the new LTE-Advanced mobile radio standard with a video coding technique.

They've come up with a special compression technique for films in high-resolution HD quality, computing the films down to low data rates while maintaining H.264/AVC quality.

And what the H.246/AVC video format is to HD, they say, the Multiview VideoCoding (MVC) is to 3D.

"MVC is used to pack together the two images needed for the stereoscopic 3D effect to measurably reduce the film’s bit rate," says Thomas Schierl of the Fraunhofer Institute for Telecommunications. The technique, he says, can be used to reduce the size of 3D films by as much as 40 percent.

And this means that it's possible to receive excellent quality 3D films over a 3G-LTE mobile radio connection.

The key element is the radio resource management integrated into the LTE system, which allows flexible data transmission while including various quality of service classes.

"The 2D and 3D bit streams divided up by MVC can be prioritized for each user at the air interface to support different services, thus opening up a completely new field for business models," says colleague Thomas Wirth.

This could involve premium services, for example, where only the paying user can watch the 3D version of the film. It could also enable a 3D quality guarantee - even in unfavorable reception conditions such as in a moving car.

The team plans to show off the system at MWC next week.source

Alcatel-Lucent 'radio' reduces half of the mobile network energy

There is very little that we can do as a society to stop of the flood of mobile devices vying for wireless connections around the world. But what technology innovators CAN do is look for ways to minimize the environmental impact of the network infrastructure being deployed to support all those mobile phones, personal digital assistant and (now) tablets vying seeking to connect.

Enter Alcatel-Lucent, which has teamed up with Freescale and Hewlett-Packard to create a new, less power-hungry base station infrastructure technology called lightRadio. The architecture — which will be available in trials starting in the second half of 2011 (notably in China) — combines the multiple antennaes that currently support 2G, 3G and LTE systems, compressing them into a single multi-frequency, multi-standard Wideband Array Antennae.

There are a number of very green-techy reasons that lightRadio is pretty interesting:

1. It uses about half the energy that current radio access network equipment uses. In the press release about the new technology, Alcatel-Lucent cites data estimating that base stations currently emit about 18 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually.
2. The technology can be installed pretty much anywhere — poles, buildings, anyplace there is power and a broadband connection
3. Building on point No. 2, there are future innovations planned in terms of microwave backhaul and compression techniques that would make this infrastructure relevant in emerging markets where renewable energies (solar, wind, etc.) could be used as the source of power

This development dovetails with other Alcatel-Lucent and telecommunications initiatives seeking to make mobile networks much more energy-efficient. Here are some related articles:

• Tech pioneers test energy storage with solar-powered telco base station
• Verizon Wireless shores up green credentials
• Sprint CEO: Prioritizing greener wireless services, mobile gadgets

Realistically, it will be a long time before anyone picks their wireless network because it is greener than someone else’s. But as the demands on these networks increase exponentially, so will the electricity consumption — unless technologies like this one are embraced. If for no other reason, the wireless carriers will be scrambling to contain their exposure to electricity costs.

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OnMobile Inks Licensing Agreements In China; Launches Social Karaoke Service

Mobile VAS company OnMobile has launched Karaophone, as service that will allow users to, well, karaoke on social networks through mobile and landline phones. They can choose a song of their choice, create a karaoke version and share it with their connected friends, challenge them and get ranked against fellow players.

The application offers voice based real time updates, supports speech recognition for 30 different languages and has a scoring system based on melody and rhythm; the company feels the service can also be used as a promotional tool for media houses and record labels. Ratnesh Sharma, VP (Marketing) at OnMobile, told MediaNama that the service will initially be integrated with Twitter and Facebook. The company, according to Sharma, is in talks for OEM relationships and is expected to finalise a deal with an operator in the overseas market. In the past, OnMobile competitor Tanla Mobile has launched Karaoke applications – last year, with Reliance Communications, and Telescope Inc, as well as on iTunes.

Licensing

What readers need to keep in mind is that companies need to take a separate Karaoke license for music. Sharma wasn’t willing to comment on which licensing partners OnMobile has tied up with, and declined to comment on potential impact on content licensing cost for the company, or the revenue share details of the product.

Expansion In China; Licensing Agreements For Dilithium

Meanwhile, OnMobile has also announced expansion plans in China and has opened up a new office in the country. Representatives at the China office will support OnMobile’s handset software R & D team, the sales and technical support team for video products deployed in China, as well as provide support for Chinese OEMs. The office also features a fully functional R&D lab.

OnMobile has also completed an upfront deal that involves royalty stream to the company on handset shipments in the region. The company has licensed its Dilithium Video Calling software stack to several major handset, chipset and platform vendors, including a dominant operator in China. The licensees will be able to embed the company’s video calling software in different handsets, including ones based on Android.source

10 consumer Mobile Apps for 2012

Analyst firm Gartner has identified what it believes will be the most important mobile applications in 2012. Focusing on high-end devices with an average selling price (ASP) of more than $300 dollars, analysts have identified the top 10 cutting-edge technologies and trends for 2012.

Winning mobile apps will have unique features that cater to the mobile environment rather than act as a mobile extension of their online peers.

“Mobile applications will be a highly competitive marketplace that attracts the interest of many stakeholders," said Sandy Shen, research director at Gartner.

“Increasingly, mobile applications will define the user experience on high-end devices and device vendors that proactively integrate innovative apps and technologies at the platform layer will have the competitive edge."

Mobile apps themselves will not only generate good revenue ($15.9 billion in expected end-user spending in 2012) but will also drive hardware sales, advertising spending and technology innovation.

Gartner said it expects brand companies to increasingly shift their marketing budget to the mobile channel, and experiment with cutting-edge apps to capture marketing and sales opportunities.

Companies, as well as technology and service providers, that stay abreast of the latest developments could make their products stand out from the pack, enhance brand image and retain user loyalty, said Gartner.

Gartner’s top 10 consumer applications to watch in 2012 are:

• Location-based services (LBSs). Location is one of the main enablers that deliver services to users based on their context and, Gartner expects the total user base of consumer LBSs to reach 1.4 billion users by 2014. LBS strive to deliver features and functionalities in tune with the user’s context, taking into account the user’s location, personal preference, gender, age, profession, intention and so on, thus offering a more-intelligent user experience than basic location services can. Gartner analysts believe context-aware services are a key trend for mobile apps, and location is a key enabler of that.
  
• Social networking. Mobile social networking is the fastest-growing consumer mobile app category of the 19 tracked by Gartner. Social network platforms are sucking in increasing amounts of network traffic. They are becoming portals, transit hubs and cloud storage for increasing amounts of messaging and e-mail traffic, videos, photos, games and commerce. As mainstream adoption progresses, global social sites will be driven toward providing services in partnership with third parties using open APIs, and are likely to evolve to a role as infrastructure providers acting as data warehouses and providing user data and access to the more-consumer-facing brands.
  
• Mobile search. Visual search is usually related with product search to enable price comparisons or to check product information. To bring mobile search to the next level, the app would allow users to take actions based on the result, such as making a call or reservation, buying a ticket, placing an order, and so on. Gartner advises search providers to build the experience around mobile to allow users access to immediate results and to take actions, given the short time span users have. Mobile device vendors should partner with or acquire promising search providers to integrate the technology, preferably at the platform layer, to offer a differentiated user experience.
  
• Mobile commerce. Today, mobile commerce is more of an extension of e-commerce but in a smaller form factor and with a more-streamlined experience. However, over the next 24 months, Gartner expects the emergence of uniquely mobile functions, such as the ability to “check in" to a store to alert a retailer that you are there, or the ability to add items to a shopping cart simply by taking a photo of an item or bar code in the physical store. In the future, Gartner expects richer mobile commerce capabilities to expand from native apps to the mobile browser as HTML5 starts to be deployed, though this will happen at a much later stage.
  
• Mobile payment. Although near field communication (NFC) payment will be included in high-end phones from 2011, Gartner does not believe that it will become mainstream before 2015. In order to get consumers on board, payment solution providers need to address ease-of-use for users and ease-of-implementation for customers without compromising security. They also need to increase user awareness, extend the service coverage and address ease-of-use to appeal to end users.
  
• Context-aware service. Context-aware applications provide improved user experiences by using the information about a person’s interests, intentions, history, environment, activities, schedule, priorities, connections and preferences to anticipate their needs and proactively serve up the most appropriate content, product or service. Mobile carriers, along with handset manufacturers, should provide expanded location services to include, among others, directory assistance, mapping, advertising and privacy controls.
  
• Object recognition (OR). High-end devices have an increased sensor and processing capability that enable sophisticated applications to recognize the user’s surroundings, including specific objects of interest. Because OR provides an easy-to-use interface, more apps will come to the market with enhanced capabilities by 2012. Users will rely on the camera, as well as other device sensors as a communication tool when OR capabilities are combined with more-traditional app functions, giving users advanced search capabilities and a plethora of entertainment and productivity functionality.
  
• Mobileinstant messaging (MIM). Gartner expects MIM to attract consumers to new types of unified communication (UC) client, provided by over the top (OTT) service providers such as Skype. These service providers are threatening traditional communications service provider voice revenue. Companies that consider including MIM into new products should consider integrating it with other communications types, such as location and presence, but be cautious about developing other functionality, such as federation of social network activity.
  
• Mobile e-mail. Smartphones have begun to drive the mainstream adoption of mobile e-mail through a series of technology enhancements enabling low-cost mobile extensions to existing e-mail service. Gartner expects mobile e-mail users worldwide to increase from 354 million in 2009 to 713 million in 2014, to account for 10.6 percent of the global mobile user base. E-mail addresses are personal and potentially extremely sticky, thus provide carriers, e-mail service providers and OTT players with an opportunity to lock in consumers. Technology and service providers should consider how they can make it easier for consumers to use their affiliated mobile e-mail services as a way of ensuring long-term engagement with customers.
  
  Technology and service providers should consider how they can make it easier for consumers to use their affiliated mobile e-mail services as a way of ensuring long-term engagement with customers.
  
• Mobile video. Mobile phones with larger screens and media tablets offer the ideal platform for video consumption and with careful marketing and consumer education, Gartner believes that carriers and content providers would be able to drive mobile video usage in the coming years. Mobile carriers should partner with YouTube and other popular video providers, so that users can replicate their Internet behavior on their mobile phones, while mobile device manufacturers should integrate HD and 3D capabilities in their high-end devices and look to bundle content either as pre-loaded or as free downloads through an app store. source