Archive for April 5th, 2008
Anti-virus firm Panda Security is reporting that Adware accounted for the most malware infections in the first quarter of 2008 - and it predicts a rise in mobile phone viruses.
Some other highlights include:
- viruses of note: SymbOS/Beselo and WinCE/InfoJack.A
- appearance of the first iPhone Trojan
- 90.34% of mobile malware targets the Symbian platform, 4.14% targets Windows Mobile, 3.35% targets Palm OS, and 2.07% targets J2ME
Panda's view is that popularity attracts malware (a fair enough statement) - but still the means by which they have the ability to reach mobile devices are more limited, due to the common barrier of the MNO's IP network before reaching the internet, and the typically-reduced complexity of devices.
However, Panda envisages this changing with the ongoing sales of devices like the iPhone:
“Given that there's but a single known iPhone Trojan, it's tempting to dismiss the idea of iMalware as iFearmongering. But check back after the sale of 10 or 20 million iPhones and Panda might well have the last laugh. Where there's a mass market, cybercriminals are sure to follow”
Hmm - is “iFearmongering” actually a word, or an example of horrific grammar abuse? I'll let you decide 
[Via: Information Week]
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I am sure you’re all familiar now with the debacle that was the launch of BA Terminal 5 at Heathrow - essentially over 20,000 bags were/are “lost” (temporarily or otherwise) during the ensuing chaos, after the terminal opened - and a LOT of passengers clearly were/are not very happy about it!
Silicon.com has aggregated a number of it's readers' comments in to one place, and being as it's a tech site, some are IT/Mobile-related in one way or another - you can read the full set here).
Of course, from a “Mobile” perspective, the are numerous stories about peoples' “Tech” or “Gadgets” going missing - one of the most high profile though, is that of DJ Calvin Harris. He has been working on new album for 7 months apparently, of which all his media was on a Laptop that has gone for a unexpected “luggage sabbatical” - his comment on the situation was as follows:
“We went over to Miami last Thursday to play some gigs, and the nice people/robots at Heathrow's Terminal 5 lost all our bags, including my hard drive, with all my f****** songs on.
“I have been walking in circles for a couple of days, and I’ll continue to do so until I meet the man/robot responsible and set him/it on fire. I shall overcome! Once he's on fire.”
Somewhat harsh you could state, but what a piercing turn of phrase - clearly the dude ain't happy!
[Via: Silicon.com / Quote: DigitalSpy.co.uk]
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 They are the success story of 2008 so far, and Mobile broadband dongles are now being predicted to potentially oust WiFi Hotspots as the preferred method of accessing the web in the next few years!
The market for USB dongles is on fire at the moment, with sales apparently set to incrase up to 4x in the next three years, as price erosion and settlement occurs in the market - of course there comes a point where the convenience of having truly portable world wide web access outweighs the hassle of having to find an available hotspot …..
The Infonetics Research “Mobility: Broadband, Phones, Subscribers and Services” report predicts that the mobile data card market will quadruple in size from 2007 and 2011, giving a predicted subscriber base of 144 million by 2011!
Apparently the keys to this becoming the case will be the accessibility of data plans to all customer segments, and the ongoin HSPA rollouts being managed by the networks.
Comment: my view is the expansion of this market will be driven by both early adopters (yes, you know who you are), but also those business users, who completely have to have net access wherever they might be (that would be the same group who have BlackBerries for their email, and speak very loudly in Starbucks, no?) - however with the dirt-cheap prices being offered (certainly in the UK anyway), then the transition to mass-market product has already begun in my opinion. Now, if they can just cure the problem of that little 20cm cable that plugs the modem in to the USB port, everyone will be happy 
[Via: Silicon.com]
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Now Dusan has mentioned vtap before (here), but Veveo has PR announcing what I assume must be the official launch of the service for UK users.
It is apparently a “new web video experience for mobile users all over the UK and Europe. For the first time video lovers will be able to search through over 150 million web videos via vtap, a one-of-a-kind mobile web video search service that allows consumers to quickly and easily search, view and save relevantweb videos from any source on the World wide web on any imaginable topic, tailored to their individual preferences on their preferred device(s)”
The mobile site is m.vtap.com, in case you are interested - I visited it via my Mobile Network Operator's (who shall remain nameless) APN, and despite an “all you can eat” world wide web package, streaming doesn't work! 5 minutes later and some WLAN configuration, and I’m pleased to report it works very nicely over WiFi. There looks to also be an option to download the 3GP videos as well as stream them, so readers who have the same MNO issue as me can at least get some video action! Certainly worth a look and a play 
[Via: 3G.co.uk]
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BMI has released projections for 2008, and is anticipating ringback tones will generate over $210 million in the U.S. retail sector - this would be an increase of 50% on the numbers they did in 2007!
It's not only Ringbacks that are predicted to be strong though - streaming video is expected to do well also. BMI has additionally predicted that ringtones themselves have had their day, and this market will decline, although still generating a healthy $510 million (projected) in FY08. Apparently this is equal to about a 7% drop (of a very large number!) on FY07.
BMI’s projections are based on it's extensive data gathering from over 200 million US Mobile customers' buying behaviour - whihc is believed to the the most comprehensive in the industry.
[Via: 3G.co.uk]
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BMI has released projections for 2008, and is expecting ringback tones will generate over $210 million in the U.S. retail sector - this would be an increase of 50% on the numbers they did in 2007!
It's not only Ringbacks that are predicted to be strong though - streaming video is expected to do well also. BMI has additionally predicted that ringtones themselves have had their day, and this market will decline, even though still generating a healthy $510 million (projected) in FY08. Apparently this is equal to about a 7% drop (of a very massive number!) on FY07.
BMI’s projections are based on it's extensive data gathering from over 200 million US Mobile customers' buying behaviour - whihc is believed to the the most comprehensive in the industry.
[Via: 3G.co.uk]
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A survey of US consumers conducted by Bamboo MediaCasting, Inc. has shown the Mobile industry needs to resolve problems with quality of media – common issues being image quality, bandwidth limitations and the overall user experience.
You might wonder why Bamboo were interested in doing this research - well their bread and butter is “scheduled, push delivery of subscription content to mobile customers” (i.e. the potential solution to the problem!) - does that make things a bit clearer….?
The company asked the following question to 1000 end-users: “What do you think is prone to be the most frustrating part about viewing video on a cell phone?”
According to the study, 51% thought that mobile video subscriptions will be too expensive. Of those that didn’t mention costs:
- 45.5% anticipate that image quality will be poor
- 27% anticipate speed will be an issue
- 17% state the process will be too complex
- 10% anticipate that content choices will be limited
(see above pie chart)
There were some other highlights from the research, which you can find here.
Comment: I don't know if this is one of those “obvious” kinds of reports, but it does state clearly issues which we've all experienced at one time or another. Regularly during my train ride in to London I get a mixture of 2G / GPRS / EDGE / 3G / HSDPA coverage, and of course all those switches affect the flow of any data I am consuming - I'm sure you've also had those situations where despite full 3G coverage, the mobile webpage you’re trying to view dribbles through on it's download! Question is, what is the solution - well for on-demand content, can we anticipate another solution other than network improvement? Bamboo clearly have another idea in mind - pushing the content at scheduled times (kinda background download) is one way around it…..
[Via: 3G.co.uk]
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3UK has done a feal with Sony BMG to enable customers to watch free music videos on their phones. The service, which is provided by Rhythm New Media, will expand the Ad-funded video inventory, launched in March last year.
SonyBMG has artists such as Alicia Keys, Mark Ronson, and the Tings Tings in their catalogue, and end-users will see adverts of up to 20 seconds before and after each song. The Ads are targeted according to the age and gender of the customer.
Stat-wise, as we’ve mentioned before, 3UK is an interesting fish - it has ~4 million UK customers, and apparently 1.4 million of those use its video services. Additionally, 3 is the second largest retailer of paid-for digital music after iTunes (in the UK)!
I don't mind Ads myself - but I wonder if 40 seconds of Ads over the course of a 240 second video could be considered intrusive? Presumably if you didn't like the Ad at the end of the video you could end playback? Any 3UK users out there with practical experience?
[Via: Guardian.co.uk]
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Posted by: admin in Videos
After half of an entire race is almost wiped out by a single piece of technology, a holy ritual must take place. The only ones capable are the holy priests.
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Posted by: admin in Gaming
In many ways, THQ’s Gamer’s Day that took place last night at San Francisco’s Terra nightclub remind me a bit of the “old” E3. I’m speaking about cramming too many people into a cramped space, lining them up to play games they couldn’t hear, and having developers yell at them about various features of said games. It’s not necessarily the ideal way to have a handful of gaming journalists experience some of your games for the first time.
But if it’s analogous to the videogame industry conventions of old, it’s only proper that I pick a game of the show, and that honor has to go to Red Faction: Guerilla. The third game in the Red Faction series brings players back to Mars fifty years after the events of the first game, where players will have to battle against (and ultimately overthrow) a militant Earth Defense Force. In a surprise turn, the game tosses out its first-person roots and goes the third-person open-world route, while taking its “destroy anything” GeoMod technology to the next level.
Believe me when I say this — the destructibility found previous Red Faction titles, or even the large destruction found in Midway’s Stranglehold, is kid’s stuff compared to what you’ll see in Guerilla. Put bluntly, you’ve never been able to f**k up a world like you’re going to be able to when Red Faction: Guerilla ships in 2009, and man … it feels great.
More details after the jump.
Via Destructoid
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