| |
 |
|
13
Dec 2007 |
A Canadian man has been shocked to receive a mobile phone bill for nearly $85,000 (£41,000). Piotr Staniaszek thought he could use his new phone as a modem for his computer under his $10 unlimited mobile browser plan from Bell Mobility.
He downloaded high-definition movies and other large files unaware that this incurred massive extra charges.
Bell Mobility has since lowered the bill to $3,243, but Mr Staniaszek says he intends to fight the charges anyway.
'Nobody told me'
The 22-year-old oi... |
| |
|
|
12
Dec 2007 |
Telkom Kenya wants to increase the subscriber base for its wireless service by 40,000 in the next three weeks through the sale of heavily subsidised handsets, its managers said.
The Sh70 million sales promotion dubbed Shikisha runs on a reward model for both retailers and consumers.
“Connections have jumped to almost double the daily rate of 2,000,” said Peter Mugo, the chief commercial officer at Telkom.
Telkom Wireless has 160,000 subscribers and is hoping to ride on the promotion wave to reali... |
| |
|
|
12
Dec 2007 |
Handsets comprising plant-based plastics, 100 per cent recycled steel and a wearable strap made from solar cells could be the way forward for environmentally concerned mobile phone users.
The 'Eco Sensor Concept', dreamt up by researchers at mobile phone manufacturer Nokia, consists of two parts. A wearable sensor unit made up of solar cells analyses local environment, health, and weather conditions and is worn on a wrist or neck strap. Near field communication technology (NFC) then relays information fr... |
| |
|
|
11
Dec 2007 |
AUSTRALIA will now have at least three nationwide third generation mobile phone networks providing fast broadband speeds after number three player Vodafone said it would spend up to $500 million extending its footprint.
The company expects to make a decision soon on a network supplier for the so-called HSPA (high speed packet access) technology, beginning building by February and offering commercial services shortly afterwards as regional towns are upgraded with the technology.
“We're accelerating pl... |
| |
|
|
10
Dec 2007 |
A new study has revealed that Skype now accounts for 95 per cent of all voice over internet protocol (VoIP) activity.
The study by German internet traffic management systems provider, ipoque, claims that while VoIP only accounts for one per cent of internet traffic, 30 per cent of internet users do use VoIP technologies, with Skype being "by far" the most popular internet telephony application.
It continues to state that the popularity of instant messaging (IM) can vary "heavily" from region to regio... |
| |
|
|
3
Dec 2007 |
As the UK debates how and when to roll our faster broadband networks, we look at the huge divide between the speeds of some of the world's faster broadband nations and some of the slowest. There is also a big gap between the advertised speeds and the actual speeds users are getting.
UNITED KINGDOM
Currently in the UK the big issue is the gap between advertised and actual speeds, so while 10Mbps might be available from a few suppliers, very few actually get this speed. According to speedtest.net - ... |
| |
|
|
3
Dec 2007 |
The push for next-generation broadband could be premature, according to some senior industry figures.
Both regulator Ofcom and BT have expressed doubts about whether the time is ripe for rolling out what would be expensive fibre optic networks.
"We need significant evidence that such a network is required and I don't think it exists yet," said Peter Philips, Ofcom's head of strategy.
Network firms have also questioned if a faster net would make economic sense.
"The question is how to make mo... |
| |
|
|
3
Dec 2007 |
In a country full of BlackBerrys, cell phones and iPhones, it's really not surprising. Most Americans, whether rich or poor, now have wireless handsets, and pay phones have become increasingly scarce.
AT& T said that its pay phones will be phased out over the next year. A company spokeswoman declined to say how much revenue its pay-phone business generated, but the number is small and declining.
Although AT&T is exiting the pay-phone market, not every major phone company has done so. Verizon Communica... |
| |
|
|
30
Nov 2007 |
Google (NSDQ: GOOG) put months of speculation to rest today by officially announcing that it will bid in the FCC 700 MHz spectrum auction come January. It might eventually have its own mobile platform, offer all kinds of mobile services and have spectrum, but can Google feasibly run its own wireless network?
Google has been trying to move mountains of late, and so far it is succeeding. Over the summer it leaned on FCC Chairman Kevin Martin to attach all sorts of provisions to the upcoming spectrum auctio... |
| |
|
|
30
Nov 2007 |
Seven in 10 homes in the Netherlands had a broadband Internet connection at the end of the third quarter, with the total number of connected households topping 5.43 million, a survey found on Friday.
The Netherlands, with 16 million people, has one of the highest broadband penetrations in the world.
The Dutch broadband market grew by 1.7 percent or 89,100 connections in the third quarter of the year, continuing a slowdown that began end-2006, said research group Telecompaper.
"This slowdown in grow... |
| |
|
|
30
Nov 2007 |
AT&T says it plans to offer a version of an iPhone next year that runs on a faster wireless network so users can get speedier results when surfing the web.
The move would address one of the main drawbacks about the smart phone made by Apple and distributed exclusively by wireless carrier AT&T in the United States.
AT&T Chief Executive Officer Randall Stephenson spilled the news during his appearance at an event late on Wednesday at the Churchill Club in Santa Clara.
A spokesperson for Apple decli... |
| |
|
|
29
Nov 2007 |
Vodafone Australia has improved the value of its mobile broadband offering by launching a 5GB data plan for $39 per month. Touted by the company as "comparable to the price and speed of fixed line broadband", Vodafone's 5GB data offer comes with either a free Vodafone Mobile Connect USB modem or the new E800 Expresscard.
The offer is available on a 24-month contract.
Vodafone Australia data marketing manager Tim Cowan said the company has invested to build a mobile broadband network that provides co... |
| |
|
|
28
Nov 2007 |
Technology services group AccessKenya has increased its bandwidth capacity from 100Mbps to 250Mpbs in under a year. This is according to Jonathan Somen, MD of AccessKenya.
He says the company has upped bandwidth supplies in a bid to satisfy a growing demand for high-speed Internet access, most notably in the corporate sector.
The company recently signed a contract with its international bandwidth suppliers in order to secure the extra bandwidth. Three data uplinks and three data downlinks were instal... |
| |
|
|
27
Nov 2007 |
Solving the "last mile" problem is a goal both the telecommunication and cable industries have pursued for years without discovering a single, easily implementable solution. Now, researchers at the Korea Institute of Science and Technology think they have developed a new type of plastic optical fiber that could potentially be used to provide low-cost fiber connectivity from the consumer to the provider.
Plastic optical fiber isn't as fast as traditional glass, but its 2.5GB/s transfer speed still repres... |
| |
|
|
23
Nov 2007 |
Skype has informed some customers that the London telephone number they use for incoming calls will stop working next month.
Some numbers starting with "0207," the prefix for central London, will stop working on 20 December, Skype wrote in an email to customers.
"We're very sorry to tell you that we have to change your SkypeIn number," the email said. "As some of you may know, we get SkypeIn numbers from a variety of telecoms suppliers. Unfortunately, we have to return some of the 0207 SkypeIn numbe... |
|
