GigaOM says: Xero or Zero Mobile?

I have been expecting an ad-supported, free services MVNO. Indeed, a bit late, but I just heard of Xero Mobile.

Well, Goggle saves the day and I find this interesting collection of tid-bits from Om Malik (link below).

In short: if it’s too good to be true, it is. There’s a whiff of the scumbags from Gizmodo involved with this. Hoo boy, seems like some VCs were scammed again.

Link: GigaOM :  Xero or Zero Mobile?.

Back in February, Andy had pointed me to yet another MVNO, called Xero Mobile. Well, now Mike over at Tech Dirt has dug up some serious dirt on these guys.

Apparently some of the guys running this company worked at Gizmondo, a company that was going to be famous for its gaming device, and instead became infamous for a its CEO Stefan Eriksson totaling a million dollar Ferrari. (Sigh, if only cars could pick their drivers…)

Thanks Peter B again for the tip-off on Xero, which led me to Om.

New York Magazine on: I Want Your Text – Text Messaging Is The Latest Technology For Hooking Up

Here’s a cheeky article on text messaging that addresses a primal urge.

But, stop and think for a moment, where there’s a need, there’s a market.

🙂

Link: I Want Your Text – Text Messaging Is The Latest Technology For Hooking Up — New York Magazine.

It was only a matter of time before New Yorkers started getting hot and heavy via text message. We’re a little late to the game (those cheeky Europeans, masters of hand-to-phone coordination, have enjoyed the sexual benefits of texting for years). But all it took was a catchy moniker—you gotta love “sex messaging”—and a little time for people to develop thumb dexterity while drunk.

Nokia N91 supports iTunes (sort of)

Ooh, Nokia has come out with some software for the Mac.

You can use iTunes on the Mac* to manage your music for the N91 (shipping, finally). Catch is, you can’t transfer music bought at the iTunes store. Shame on you Apple. But, hey, it should work with iTunes Podcasts (or at least I hope it does).

The last software Nokia came out with for the Mac was the Nokia Collector for the Nokia 7280, about 2 years ago. And before that – who knows.

Thank goodness that Apple re-did iSync in Tiger and now many Nokia phones are supported.

Link: Nokia – Nokia N91 Support – Music.

  • Import music from your CD collection to your Macintosh hard drive
  • Transfer AAC and MP3 files from your Macintosh hard drive to your Nokia N91 and back again
    (2-way)
  • Select music automatically and manually
  • Create playlists on your Mac or Nokia N91
  • Access track info such as albums, artists, genre, etc. (with Nokia Music Manager plug-in)
  • Note: Music purchased from the Apple iTunes Music Store cannot be played on the Nokia N91

Yeah, I know I’m a few days late with this, but I’m behind on my reading. 😛

*But, what if I use iTunes on a PC?

Speed Demons

Business Week’s Innovation section has this great article on Speed, the need to quickly innovate and launch new products.

They talk about Virgin at first (comic books in India, how cool is that?), then cover other examples. Of course, they manage to throw in a reference to BW darling Ideo.

At the end, there is a list of some good advice for those wanting to speed up things.

One think I’d like to add: the need for speed requires companies to have the will to kill the things that are slowing them down, even if it’s a prized possession. That’s something that’s hard to do for anyone.

Link: Speed Demons.

Speed is emerging as the ultimate competitive weapon. Some of the world’s most successful companies are proving to be expert at spotting new opportunities, marshaling their forces, and bringing to market new products or services in a flash. That goes for launching whole new ventures, too.

Genuine VC on: “There’s Something Going On” in Boston

Just when I had given up, looks like things are waking up. David has a nice post (link below) on some recent happening. There’s even a Mobile Monday Boston!

I’d also like to point out that there have been some recent sales and investments in the mobile media area, Nokia has plopped down a lablet in Cambridge, and I’ve had great talks with Nabeel Hyatt from Everypoint (ooh, Nabeel, just noticed the new website, too).

Yes, things are picking up for the ol’ Bean Town since last time I whined. Anyone care to invite me over?

Link: Genuine VC: "There’s Something Going On" in Boston.

All of this activity was summed up nicely in a conversation I had with Mark Withington today, who organizes the popular Boston PHP group. He said, contrasting to just a couple years – and even months – ago, “There’s something going on in Boston.” I couldn’t agree more. A year ago, I lamented about some of the cultural dynamics in town, but I am now seeing a resurgence of excitement and a trend towards change. All of the groups mentioned above each aim at partially distinct constituencies with differently formatted events addressing different needs, but they all promote the larger tech community in Boston. And I am happy to be a part of it.

anti-mega: Flickr off – overview of Flickr uploaders

Chris had written a great overview of Flickr uploaders, and I am glad he has published it publicly.

Enjoy!

Link: anti-mega: Flickr off.

As Tommi was coerced into adding me into his links list, I felt that I should write about something to do with mobile for once.

If you’ve been paying attention to my Flickr stream, I’ve been playing with various auto photo uploaders, transferring pictures I take with my phone directly to Flickr at full resolution. MMS often downscales the pictures; direct email can work (I can’t be bothered to set up email on my phone), but you get at most a title or description attached to the photo.

The Register reports: Ollila warns wireless sector on emerging markets

Excellent article on Jorma’s keynote at CTIA yesterday. To me, there’s nothing new – voice is still king, pay attention to the emerging markets, and so on. Read it. It’s well written, covers all the key things we really need to deal with instead of ‘is it thin’.

Link: Ollila warns wireless sector on emerging markets | The Register.

Jorma Ollila used his CTIA Wireless 2006 swansong to tell delegates they need to address the needs of low-income and developing markets by providing phones and services that customers want and can afford, to achieve continued growth. Complexity of technology, in areas like DRM, must also be solved.

Here are some other similar articles by ZDNet and Forbes. Of course, Ollila’s impact is much greater than mine. 🙂 But, it’s good, nonetheless.

USATODAY writes: For CEO who remade Nokia, one bold departure deserves another

A nice article on Nokia CEO Jorma Ollila, who will be stepping down in June.

Link: USATODAY.com – For CEO who remade Nokia, one bold departure deserves another.

Ollila made Finland a world power in cellphones. Today, he gives the keynote at the huge CTIA Wireless trade show in Las Vegas as a last hurrah before stepping down as CEO of Nokia on June 1.

"It’s healthy for a company to have change," Ollila told me on the phone from Helsinki a couple of weeks ago. "And I’ve done my bit."

No kidding. Ollila is not just any old CEO who might tinker with strategy, play golf with retired sports figures and lend the corporate jet to politicians. Ollila made one of the more daring decisions in business history and spent the next 14 years making that decision seem brilliant.

One possible factual error: There are at least 2 billion mobiles out there, that’s how many subscribers there are.

And very good analogy to GM, who should really get out of the car business…

Thanks Peter for the link (and the following ones too).

Do you know The Pondering Primate?

This Mister Goriller has a vibrant site with plenty of excellent coverage of SMS services, mobile marketing, and a really good thread going on regarding physical to mobile links (like barcodes and stuff).

Read him.

But the main thing I want to point out today is that this guys is no plain vanilla gorilla. He’s a true silverback – an Ironman!

Kick some serious bananas, man!

Link: The Pondering Primate: Lots Of Ground To Cover This Week.

I leave for CTIA today and posting will be be spotty. I assure you that I will post my interviews and the neat mobile applications I see.

If you have a mobile story you want to tell, email me.

After covering the mobile world for a couple days, I fly to Phoenix to compete in IronMan Arizona.