I like the resonant phrase “With robots as friends, learning is play and play is learning.”

Ofcom had previously promised 3 and Everything, Everywhere – the UK merged T-Mobile and Orange brands – that they would both be guaranteed a share of frequency space on the 800MHz band, which at present is only being used by Vodafone and O2. As more space will be made available at 800MHz due to the switchover from analogue to digital TV in the UK later this year.

In 2000, the 3G mobile frequency auction raised £22,477.4 million for the government. The UK’s national debt is set to be approximately £1.2 trillion this year, so expect the new funds raised from 4G license bidding to only cover around 7.5% of the UK’s current economic problems, allowing for a little inflation.

By switching expectations from 95% to 98% UK coverage for 4G, operational prices for the networks will rise considerably; but more rural areas should enjoy fast mobile broadband and mobile phone internet access.

BBC story here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-16527490

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-16069217

Examples of Kyaraban and Oekakiban forms of Bento in an earlier post on the blog: Here

Google+ had a respectable 66 million unique visitors last month. While this may fall well short of the 150 million some forecasters were speculating, it’s still early days for Google’s site. Like many, I’ve invested so much content in Facebook, Twitter and my blog, that changing to Google+ seems irrelevant, even if it is possibly better, than the other options.

Read the article: Here

Comscore data below

Tech Crunch have added some commentary for the data.

1. The Slacktivism Co-Opt

As much a term of derision as global sociological phenomenon, slacktivism has emerged as social media’s way of making support for a cause as easy as a re-tweet or clicking Facebook’s “like” button. Critics insist that this “path of least resistance” mechanism for saving the whales/the earth/indigenous tribes or supporting the fight against breast cancer/prostate cancer/muscular dystrophy better represents an impulsive twitch of a finger than thoughtful commitment. But that doesn’t mean savvy marketers aren’t supremely well-positioned to embrace slacktivism as an innovative outreach to customers and communities alike. The growing desire of large organizations and global brands to align with — or be seen to be aligned with — causes that matter assures that we’ll start seeing market leaders seek a higher profile in making it easy for their communities of customers to show their support.

2. Counting on Self-Quantifiers for Growth

Mobile, digital and networked devices have created a global sub-culture of self-quantifiers — that is, individuals who rigorously count every step they take, ever calorie they eat, every minute they sleep, every email/text they send/receive and every schedule change they make. The even quantify how often they self-quantify. Some think of this as networked narcissism. But individuals hewing to Thales’ admonition to “Know thyself” believe self-quantification the greatest innovation in the history of introspection. Organizations like Weight Watchers and LiveStrong already offer calorie counter apps for overweight SQers but it’s clear that self-quantification offers a remarkable marketing opportunity for firms that want their customers to count on — and up — the value they get. Health care, nutrition and energy consumption are only the most obvious marketing opportunities for Innovative Self Quantification Marketing Opportunities. Transportation, mobile communications professional development and — yes — parenting are also rife with opportunity. Given ongoing trends, consumers will soon find self-quantification apps and options as ubiquitous as “Like” buttons and QR codes.

3. Gerontabletification

Demography is, indeed, destiny. The world — particularly the wealthy OECD countries — is growing older. This creates enormous fiscal strains for social welfare states but fantastic market opportunities for device-driven innovators. Mobile phones are too small; their screens too tiny and keyboards too minute. But tablets have emerged as ideal media platforms for those requiring larger fonts and bigger keys. The iPad — originally marketed as the hip & cool media consumption device — has ceased to be a symbol of youth and vitality. It’s now how silver haired executives — and 75 year old grandmas — read the news, manage their email and play games with the kids. When this reality is linked to emerging medical research indicating that mental exercise can delay the onset and impact of cognitive diminution, it’s clear that there are more reasons for the aged population to have tablets than not. Any company with older customers that doesn’t customize apps and offerings for their 60+ users are guilty of brand-destructive age discrimination.

4. Globalizing Grand Challenges

The X Prize Foundation has transformed commercial space entrepreneurship with its innovative X Prizes. DARPA — the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency — has transformed robotics, autonomous vehicle design and real-time social media network utilization with a series of provocatively produced “Grand Challenges.” Over the past decade, America has been a leader in the design, development and marketing of competitions and prizes for technical innovation. But it’s time the so-called emerging economies stepped up. Brazil is a vibrant, eco-conscious, increasingly entrepreneurial and innovative economy that has the money and the brains to design a Grand Challenge that inspires attention and excitement from innovators worldwide. Should it be Amazon or Flex Fuels related? Or might agro-biotech be the better offer? India desperately needs more innovative ways of handling education, health care and — especially — infrastructure. Which Indian state or ministry — or billionaire! — will design the right kind of stimulative competition or prize? China, of course, is China. Who is better positioned to exploit “not-quite-market” mechanisms to bring high impact innovation to the middle kingdom? China wants to spur innovation. This is one dramatically cost-effective way to do it.

5. Handheld Augmented Reality

Even in an increasingly virtual environments, physical space matters. The rise of accessible augmented reality technologies makes physical location matter more. Place-based social media like Foursquare have done tremendously well in attracting both users and attention. Who, or what, will be the Foursquare of Augmented Visualization and Interaction? Companies like Layar are taking an active stab at it. But Apple’s IOS and appstore ecosystem — as well as Android’s and Microsoft/Nokia’s new innovation efforts — now makes it far easier to link visual overlays, “enotations” and virtual Post-It notes to geo-spatial coordinates. In other words, don’t just read the Foursquare comments but “see” graffiti, sketches, maps and comments simply by peering through your tablet or mobile phone. Instead of “taking” pictures and images, it lets you “see” them as a function of the “augmented reality” layer of data and information stored in the digisphere.

A store like Macy’s or Home Depot could use augmented reality layers to let people see underlying details of clothes or tools that a simple tag or QR code might not. Indeed, expect a tussle between retailers and product suppliers over whose “augmented reality” deserves in-store primacy. We may see “augmented reality” fees replace stocking fees as part of physical retailing business models. But that’s a battle for beyond 2012. What’s next is the first wave of mobile devices becoming augmented reality viewers for their users. Expect to see QR code/augmented reality mashups as a 2012 investment to facilitate the virtual transition.

6. The Greenlash Arrives

The ban on incandescent light bulb sales in America is delayed. The costs — and unwieldiness — associated with energy efficient devices turn out to be greater than expected. BP’s solar shut down and solar power company bankruptcies in Silicon Valley and Berlin surprise. The failure of Spanish and Scottish wind farms to deliver disappoints. The economic opportunities from “tight” gas and oil finds in America and China impress. The rate of technical innovation in horizontal drilling and fracking continues unabated. The Chevy Volt is a hot car (but in the wrong way.) The economic growth debates around the proposed Keystone pipeline intensify.

Is there a Greenlash emerging that’s pushing populations worldwide to reconsider so-called fossil fuels as better, safer and more reliable than their renewable counterparts? There’s little doubt that they’re proving to be cheaper.

Vibrant innovation worldwide in natural gas and petrochemical technologies has come to rival — both in perception and reality — innovation associated by Greentech. Certainly, the global oil industry seems more excited by its most recent advances than the “green VCs” see in theirs. Instead of being technologically moribund and creatively dull, an established industry has challenged the eco-myth of “Peak Oil.” Conversely, the green promises of eco-tech are taking longer and costing more than many of its champions promised. As energy-dependent economies chug along with growth far lower than expected or desired, green options are looking rather gray. Fossil fuels are being rebranded as organic.

In summary:

Convergence Emergence. For a glimpse into how social will further integrate with “real life,” we can look at what Coca Cola experimented with all the way back in 2010. Coke created an amusement park where participants could “swipe” their RFID-equipped wristbands at kiosks, which posted to their Facebook account what they were doing and where. Also, as part of a marketing campaign, Domino’s Pizza posted feedback — unfiltered feedback — on a large billboard in Times Square, bringing together real opinions from real people pulled from a digital source and displayed in the real world. These types of “trans-media” experiences are likely to define “social” in the year to come.

The Cult of Influence. In much the same way that Google has defined a system that rewards those who produce findable content, there is a race on to develop a system that will reward those who wield the most social influence. One particular player has emerged, Klout, determined to establish their platform as the authority of digital influence. Klout’s attempt to convert digital influence into business value underscores a much bigger movement which we’ll continue to see play out in the next year. To some degree everyone now has some digital influence (not just celebrities, academics, policy makers or those who sway public opinion). But for the next year, the cult of influence becomes less about consumer plays like Klout and more about the tools and techniques professionals use to “score” digital influence and actually harness, scale and measure the results of it.

Gamification Nation. No we’re not taking about video games. Rather, game-like qualities are emerging within a number of social apps in your browser or mobile device. From levels, to leaderboards, to badges or points, rewards for participation abound. It’s likely that the trend will have to evolve given how competition for our time and attention this gaming creates. Primarily, gamification has been used in consumer settings, but look for it in other areas from HR, to government, healthcare and even business management. Perhaps negotiating your next raise will be tied to your position on the company’s digital leaderboard.

Social Sharing. Ideas, opinions, media, status updates are all part of what makes social media a powerful and often disruptive force. The media industry was one of the first to understand this, adding sharing options to content, which led to more page views and better status in search results. What comes next in social sharing is more closely aligned with e-commerce or web transactions. For example, Sears allows a user to share a product or review with their networks directly from the site. Sharing that vacation you just booked, or recommending a product, or service from any site to a social network is where sharing goes next. We probably don’t know what we are willing to share until we see the option to do it.

Social Television. For many of us, watching television is already a social act, whether it’s talking to the person next to you, or texting, tweeting, and calling friends about what you’re watching. But television is about to become a social experience in a bigger and broader sense. The X Factor now allows voting via Twitter and highlights other social promotions, which encourages viewers to tap social networks while they watch. Another way media consumption is becoming social comes from a network called Get Glue which acts as something of a Foursquare for media. Participants can “check-in” to their favorite shows (or other forms of media) and collect stickers to tell the world what programs they love. Watch for more of this this year as ratings rise for socially integrated shows.

The Micro Economy. Watch for a more social approach to solving business problems through a sort of micro-economy. Kickstarter gives anyone with a project, the opportunity to get that initiative funded by those who choose to (and patrons receive something in return). A crowdsourcing platform for would be inventors called Quirky lets the best product ideas rise to the top and then helps them get produced and sold while the “inventor” takes a cut. Air BnB turns homes into hotels and travelers into guests, providing both parties with an opportunity to make and save money. These examples may point to a new future reality where economic value is directly negotiated and exchanged between individuals over institutions.

HP saw their future in Palm

Palm had a track record of quality smartphones using their webOS and bet the farm in developing the Palm Pre range. While critics loved them, consumers gave them a tepid response and Palm achieved only a 1.5% global market share in 2009; posting a financial loss for 11 straight quarters up to April 2010.

In a bold move, HP announced its purchase of Palm for $1.2bn. The prize then was the webOS and HP believed this Linux-based OS would allow them to compete in the mobile device market worldwide.

Take two tablets

webOS 3 powered the HP Touchpad that launched in August 2011. While it’s possible to think that the tablet market has been buoyant, with the number of product launches since early 2010. Every launch has been a tale of just two tablets; new challenger versus the Apple iPad. The original iPad fuelled and defined the market; with iPad 2 simply improving the performance and versatility of the original. Nearly 40 million iPads have been sold since launch in April 2010, 11 million in Apple’s last financial quarter.

While Blackberry’s Playbook and Motorola’s Xoom have gained media attention, 75% of global tablet sales remain with the Apple iPad.

The HP Touchpad had a fast processor (1.2GHz dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon), memory to spare (1GB RAM and either 16 or 32GB HD) and a vibrant 9.7 inch screen. The HP compared favourably against the iPad 2 on many key comparisons, except the bulk of the Touchpad; as it weighed 20% more and was noticeably thicker.

But it was the price that was the Achillies’ heal. The HP Touchpad launched with prices from $399/£399, limiting the appeal of HP’s new tablet, as consumers were faced with the thought ‘I could buy an iPad 2 for that.’ Paying similar money, but not purchasing the Apple iPad simply wasn’t going to work. Particularly as so many consumers had already invested heavily in curating their own iTunes media library.

Further softening appeal

The underlying problem, beyond the high price of the HP Touchpad, was not the webOS software; but the lack of App support for it. Whereas the iPad2 has hundreds of thousands of Apps, many optimised just for Apple’s tablet. The Touchpad has a few thousand webOS Apps, only a few hundred of which are designed specifically for HP’s tablet.

While these Apps cover all the bases you’d expect; from Social Media (Facebook, WordPress, FreeTexting), to media content (Kindle, TuneIn Radio, HP MovieStore), to business productivity (QuickOffice) and games (Angry Birds, Need For Speed). This is flattery through the shallowest of comparisons and highlights a lack of breadth and depth in the HP webOS App portfolio.

Touchpad epilogue: Everything must go

In August HP announced that the Touchpad would be scraped and remaining units sold in a fire sale, priced from only $99/£89. It’s not surprising that the remaining stock was snapped up; but by whom? Were these the consumers who were previously waiting to pay several times this price for the HP tablet? Or were they tech bargain hunters, with more modest expectations in terms of future support or App development? Perhaps like the purchasers of the final Betamax VCR’s or MiniDisc Recorder? Buying a tablet at this low price represents great value, but little in the way of certainty for the future.

HP have tried to protect their brand by offering to refund the price difference for any customer who paid the original price in the few weeks before the fire sale. They’ve estimated they may lose $100m on clearing the final units at this low price. And they’ve suggested they may continue to try to licence webOS to other manufacturers.
But which manufacturers might be interested, and what might they really be interested in?

Patent pending

When Nortel, the Canadian telco giant, was put into liquidation in 2009, its portfolio of telco patents was hotly contested in bidding and then group negotiation. Eventually a consortium including Apple, Google, Microsoft, RIM, Ericsson and Sony bought the 6,000 patents for $4.5bn.

But controlling the look, feel and function of smartphones through their OS has remained contentious. In the last year Apple and Samsung have tried to counter each others litigation over patent infringements to smartphone OS. And HTC has used several of Google Android patents to litigate against Apple.

With Microsoft and Nokia now working closely together, Google, the owner of Android, recently purchased Motorola Mobility for $12.5bn. This leaves HTC, Samsung and LG among the major global handset manufacturers that own little OS intellectual property; as Sony and RIM participated in the Nortel patent purchase and both own larger portfolios of proprietary OS patents.

While HTC have previously hedged their bets against Apple OS, by offering both Android and Windows 7 OS smartphones; they are manufacturing smartphones under the respective competitive benevolence of Google and Microsoft.

Perhaps the review of whether HTC develop or acquire their own OS may provide appropriate future insurance, despite Peter Chou, their CEO, downplaying this option in August. As HTC’s Chairwoman, Wang Cher, mentioned it maybe worth considering purchasing webOS recently in September.

Patents may well shape the future face of competition in the smartphone sector. And HP may get back the money they lost in purchasing Palm and offloading the Touchpad, by selling the patent portfolio they hold.

Addendum

8th November 2011 – Microsoft pursue Huawei regarding patent infringement for using Android: Here

21st November 2011 – Intel show interest in purchasing webOS: Here