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buffet, focus: the subject is simply wavx and it's management's effectiveness, which has been very questionable to date. for all the "accomplishments" of PJS/SKS, they've (1) generated no meaningful revenue; and, (2) pending class action suits against them .... oh yeah, sorry -- they did stop their periodic and systemic insider selling and PJS paid back his loan, only following shareholder pressure.
so, buffet, maybe you ought to hold your tongue and acknowledge that some who've been here for years have patience that's worn thin by essentially useless banter regarding peripheral [to revenue] issues.
sure buffetdude -- get tough .... how long you been here?
unfortunately, Wave pays a "fee" for everything ... if their IP portfolio was so impressive and irrefutably pivotal, people would be knockin' down their door to be chums; clearly not the case -- so, here we sit pickin' at bread crumbs hoping for "realization" .... i'll be happy to even get my initial investment(s) in wavx back before 2010.
Reply To 'Wildman262':
Buffet, I think Dutton covering Wave is a given, but not necessarily on April 5th. I would not be surprised if it came the day of or the day after the next CC. Dutton says they are selective in whom they take on. They take on small companies whom they feel have promise to the upside. And, for a fee from the client company, do some research and make their reports available to institutions. Their reputation becomes enhanced if they are correct on the their recommendations.
AHEM, PJS's a NCR alum! e/
sure Pickle - believe it when you see it; wavx in the co. of OTC stocks must be diamonds in the rough!!!
"Those that can't see the future will miss it." -- will not the future palay out whether you one can "see" it or not?
xxxxcslewis, share price target's impossible until SKS provides hard numbers on $/widget and projected sales .... anyone remember last time wavx had "coverage", AND WHY IT DOES NOT NOW?!.... S.O.S. -- w/o solid basis provided by wave, analysts' share price targets will not be issued -- the SEC would scourge wave doubly hard if they started with the old SKS "cool" this and that shenanigans.
chances, acknowledgement of a technological contribution is what is it is, and it's valued accordingly per TCG's RAND licensing procedures.
IF wave's IP is IN IdentiPHI's solution, there's absolutely no reason why Wave's not reflected as a contributing technology.
screw the semantics -- IP speaks for itself, and removal of reference to Wave in IdentiPHI's literature is in fact irrelevant.
cash in the bank, pal. that's all that matters. this squabble about "powered" this and that is just wavoid chatter.
you're the best howardjoel -- did they snicker when they said wave-systems?... sorry, but the lime-light will not be wave's until it's proven itself with recurring revenue hitting it's accounts, IN EXCESS OF IT'S EXPENDITURES.
sure, "chances", AND EXPOSURE IS JUST TOO MUCH FOR LITTLE 'OLE WAVE TO HANDLE, SHY LITTLE FOLKS THEY ARE ..... GET A GRIP.
IF IT IS POWERED BY WAVE, AS ORIGINALLY INDICATED, THEN WHY WOULD CREDIT NET BE GIVEN?
A SMALL POINT THIS IS, ADMITTEDLY, AS THE ONLY THING THAT'LL MATTER IS "WAVE WIDGETS" SOLD & ACTIVATED .... BUT, LET'S NOT KID OURSELVES OR ANY UNSUSPECTING NEWBIE TO THIS BOARD -- THE TRACK RECORD OF WAVE'S PERFORMANCE IS ABYSSMAL WITH REGARD TO TO SUSTAINABLY MARKETED SERVICES.
bluz: typical wavoid-stealth-rationalization -- strategy behind the wave reference glimpse/disappearing-act is because TCG wants Wave to reamian anonynmous and agnostic... a.k.a., barge's best strip-tease avt ever.
IN FACT, IT APPEARS TO BE NOTHING MORE THAN EVOLUTION TO A "BUNDLE" THAT PERFORMS BETTER W/O WAVE'S TECH THAN WITH.
whatever zen. correlate this: shared info and opinions is only that. 10 days out? better that the good 'ole usa?
NOT-powered-by-Wave is all it means
Message In Reply To 'Da_Deven_Dolla':
IdentiPHI Datasheets no longer lists Wave at the bottom. These links were posted yesterday, and when viewing the datasheets, it said "Powered by Protocom and Wave." Now it just says "Powered by Protocom" and in some instances it shows a BIO-key logo and also a KSG (KeyOvation Security Group)logo. I wonder if Wave had them change it for some reason.
http://www.identiphi.net/Identiphi_SLSSO_Final.pdf
http://www.identiphi.net/Identiphi_SLAA_Final.pdf
http://www.identiphi.net/Identiphi_Overview_Final.pdf
Predictions 2005 - choppy waves to ride
Stuart Kennedy
FEBRUARY 15, 2005
http://australianit.news.com.au/articles/0,7204,12225217%5E15382%5E%5Enbv%5E,00.html
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THE most influential voices in the Australian IT industry draw up the roadmap for 2005. more..
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IF the IT industry was a surfer, the years 2001 and 2002 were wipeouts, 2003 was spent on the beach waiting for swell and 2004 brought some small, choppy waves to ride.
There won't be many booming barrels for those surfing the industry in 2005, but the swell is rising and becoming a little cleaner.
Australia's chief information officers report that this year they have stable budgets, a steady stream of small, carefully costed projects to work on and staff rosters that will either remain constant or increase to handle extra work.
The IT governance lessons of the wild years of the Y2K and dotcom cons have been locked into the psyches of CIOs and their boardroom masters.
As a result, the big, glorious IT project is mostly out, and only in if it passes long and serious scrutiny. This careful atmosphere is here to stay.
CIOs have some hard, long-term yakka ahead of them as they continue the process of digitising and linking their supply chains, extracting value from data warehouses and data marts and exploring new technologies such as radio frequency identification tags and voice over internet protocol networks.
Craig Garvin, CIO for Arnott's, is one IT chief spending up on systems to give his food business an edge over the next five years.
In line with analyst predictions from the likes of Gartner's John Roberts and S2 Intelligence's Bruce McCabe, Garvin is in the process of arming Arnott's with the latest SAP enterprise resource planning system and building in business intelligence capabilities that will enliven and speed up reporting and give his line managers the most transparent view of the business.
Garvin is also revving up his biscuit company's business-to-business systems.
Over at betting agency Tabcorp, technical services general manager George Mackey is struggling to fill his roster with the right people.
During the next 12 months Mackey needs a bunch of business-savvy techs to help with a bunch of projects, including ERP consolidation and mobility.
If some of the country's top IT headhunters are to be believed, Mackey may find his recruitment drive a bit tougher than it would have been during the lean employment times of the past few years.
Michael Page Technology hi-tech manager Stuart Packham says churn is back, which could result in a "war for talent" in mid-2005.
Ambition Technology director Jane Bianchini says churn could extend to the top end of town as CIOs, who have been very loyal since the tech-wreck, eye off new roles from early in the second quarter. Both report a graduate shortage due to the tech crash spooking young people away from IT tertiary courses.
Candle ICT national manager Trevor Taylor has a different view, saying the recruitment market is only in for a moderate uptick in 2005.
Salaries will rise about 5 per cent, with increases of up to 15 per cent in hot skill areas such as Linux.
Taylor nominates banking and finance, telecommunications and government as the main recruitment sectors.
Analyst estimates of how much Australian businesses will spend on information technology through 2005 range from about $25 billion up to $40 billion, and are clouded by different tracking methodologies. There is rough consensus, however, on the IT industry growth rate, which is tipped to be in the 4-7 per cent range.
Some vendors, such as Hewlett-Packard Australia chief Paul Brandling are positively bullish about the year ahead.
Brandling says the big end of town cranked up spending from the middle of last year and he expects no let-up through 2005.
"The top end of town has been the big swinger in recent months," Brandling says. "At the beginning of last year we had been predicting that enterprise spending would take off after a prolonged slump.
"The market was still subdued in early 2004, but we've seen an upswing that will continue through 2005," he says.
IBM Australia chief executive, Phil Bullock, sees enterprise attitudes towards IT shifting from an emphasis on cost control to investment.
As healthy profits and revenues continue to roll in for Australian businesses, Bullock says, his customers "are looking to maintain growth and transform their organisations".
"In transformation, business process is central, and that is driven by IT."
While a legion of IBM Australia bosses reaching back to the 1950s have said much the same thing every year, Bullock says the big difference with today's IBM is the input from its acquisition of global consultancy PricewaterhouseCoopers.
In good news for young job hunters, Bullock says Big Blue will swallow a large intake of graduates this year.
Microsoft Australia boss Steve Vamos, who spent much of his early career at IBM, is also hoping that business transformation projects will bolster sales of Microsoft products.
"About a third of productivity gains in the past 10 years are attributable to IT, and that trend will increase," he says.
Vamos is optimistic about 2005 as investment continues to firm up.
Microsoft has copped much criticism in the past 18 months over security holes in its flagship Windows operating system and spent up big last year on improving its responses to cyber threats.
Vamos says security will occupy many CIO minds throughout this year.
"Security requires a broad response aimed at making sure the right management practices are in place from the board down to operational level, to protect information, infrastructure and assets," he says.
Players in sexier areas of IT sneer at "snorage", but selling enterprise-grade data storage keeps EMC managing director Steve Redman awake at night.
After racking up a growth rate for Australia and New Zealand of 37 per cent last year, Redman reckons he can push EMC along at a similar rate this year and will hire another 25 people to help.
Compliance and disaster recovery projects have pushed storage into boom times, he says, with smaller businesses now kicking the tyres of smaller versions of enterprise-grade storage systems.
"Commercial organisations used to think storage didn't matter but even for a smaller organisation if email goes down it's real problem. So much revolves around email," he says. "Your email is only as good as your infrastructure, and your customer database is only as good as your infrastructure."
Computer services giant EDS had a tough 2004, coming under fire in the US over problems with a US Navy contract, while in Australia it went through several senior management changes and had to cope with many of the big, monolithic outsourcing deals it struck during the early 1990s unravelling into smaller, contestable deals.
This year, however, EDS Australia managing director Chris Mitchell sees better times ahead, with a juicy chunk of work shaping in replacing what he calls "hairballs" of old code hanging around many big business systems. "That slows down the creation of new systems, and you end up with a huge proportion of IT budgets being taken up just to keep the lights on, rather than investing in innovation and growth," he says.
The IT soap opera of 2004 was Oracle's stalking of takeover target PeopleSoft.
Many thought Oracle chief Larry Ellison had no hope of getting his desire to own PeopleSoft past US antitrust regulators and the target's board. Late last year, however, Ellison's detractors were laughing on the other side of their faces when, finally, the PeopleSoft prize finally fell into Ellison's hands.
Oracle Asia-Pacific mergers and acquisitions vice-president Brian Mitchell faces a tricky time fusing the local PeopleSoft operation with Oracle, and redundancy and job-change pain is in store for a number of employees.
However, he still sees 2005 as "much better" than last year..
The oversupply of IT infrastructure from the Y2K and dotcom frenzy has finally been sopped up and demand is seeping back into the market.
"The gap has now closed between the deployed infrastructure and the active use of commercial transactions for that infrastructure," he says.
As more heat and excitement return to the IT market this year, the pressure on CIOs will change, IDC Australia-New Zealand IT management program director Catherin Bennett says.
"I'm talking to CIOs responsible for library records, information management and even office equipment and asset management," Bennett says. "Anything that touches IT is starting to be the CIO's responsibility, so in larger organisations the chief technology officer is starting to reappear. After all the staff reductions of previous years, CIOs this year will be swinging into staff retention."
These new pressures, at least, should be a change from the gloom, doom and inertia of the the first half of the decade.
Telecoms analyst Paul Budde says there's a triple whammy coming as 2.5 million broadband customer make the "triple-play" of voice, video and data services a realistic proposition. "We have the unmet demand of 2.5 million broadband users and that will fill rapidly," he says.
More bandwidth will also drive convergence of the online and broadcast media environments. Voice over IP has gone from being a gee-whiz technology in 2003 to just another application on corporate networks. Take-up will be strong, he says.
It looks like the surf's up in 2005.
The predictions
NINE CIOs, 12 suppliers and five analysts detail their plans and predictions for 2005.
more
The Australian
Groove... has obtained more than $155 million in financing from Accel Partners, Microsoft® Corporation, Intel Capital, and private investors.
and, who financed Wave?
the frown turns upside down when there's cause ... fortunately, i'm a true optimist -- wave's track record on monetizing what otherwise seems like very compelling tech just seems atrocious... THAT makes me frown
Vacationhouse, i take no issue with demographics -- albeit, when does wave/wavexpress start doing licensing business with cos. other than OTC BB cos. .... i.e., Endavo Media and Communications, Inc. (OTC BB: EDVO)
and, Quadra Media LA?!
who are these dudes?! their website provides near nothing in terms of credentials, nor business framework .... another wave vapor-contract!!!!!!!!
http://www.quadramediala.com/index2.html -- FANTASTIC INTRO TO BOOT!!!!!!!!!
Quadra Media LA's managemet team are comprised of industry professionals having expertise in the fields of service development and deployment, aggregation and distribution of video products, marketing, and network engineering and digitization of various types of content.
Mario J. Pino
Director of Network Partner Relations
Phone: 1.888.348.1450 Ext. 80
Fax: 1.253.323.5196
E-Mail: mariop@quadramediala.com Jorge Tomassello
Director of Content Partner Relations
Phone: 1.888.348.1450 Ext. 84
Fax: 1.262.997.2783
E-Mail: jtomassello@quadramediala.com
Jayakumar Kozhikotte
Director of Marketing
Phone: 1.888.348.1450 Ext. 81
Fax: 1.253.323.5196
E-Mail: jayk@quadramediala.com Jon Ellis
Information Technologies Director
Phone: 1.888.348.1450 Ext. 83
Cell: 1.305.495.8524
Fax: 1.253.323.5196
E-Mail: jone@quadramediala.com
Orlando Mastrapa
Content Management Director
Phone: 1.888.348.1450 Ext. 83
Fax: 1.253.323.5196
E-Mail: orlandom@quadramediala.com
waverider, unless snack permits this board to become censored for remarks providing less than glowing praise for wavx, i submit i'm entitled to vent a little, just as many here do on many ocassions
sorry RWK; i'm in it too far to retreat now.
and a "tidbit" at best: licensing deals with "financial terms not disclosed" -- i suppose lee, mass. utilities apparently accept i.o.u.'s for monthly bills eh?
my apology RWK; just a battle-weary shareholder here w/too long a history of unfulfilled wave promises
o.k. Doma. when the Dell "holy grail" becomes reality, i'll concede .... since when does Dell put offerings on it's website that are not available for delivery?... guess now, that they're working with wave, Dell's going to learn about vapor-ware, demos and pilot programs
whatever eamon. i'll hike where i will and continue to be sour on wavx (after 5 years of fits & starts leading to nothing but disappointment), UNTIL WAVX MANAGMENT EITHER DELIVERS ON THE "PROMISE" IT SO BOLDLY SOLD -- WHICH, INCIDENTALLY, BROUGHT ABOUT NOTHING BUT A SLOUGH OF CLASS-ACTION LAWSUITS -- OR, SELLS OUT TO TH HIGHEST BIDDER 'CAUSE IT RAN OUT OF CASH FOLLOWING MANY YEARS OF MISMANAGEMENT.
'MEMBER WHEN THE SPRAGUES' REGULARLY SOLD SHARES "FOR TAX PURPOSES"?....
thanks GreenWavx; HOPEFULLY theres a "roll-out" with some real fanfare on 3/15!!!!
"back order and would ship out on the 15th" MARCH i presume?!
I ordered a Dell Latitude D610 on 2/25/05 with Dell ETS 1.0 software which was supposed to be available 3/01/05. My computer came in but without the software. My computer tech called Dell and was told it was on back order and would ship out on the 15th. Don't know if this is good news or not. Will let ya'll know if I find out anything else.
See Ya in Vegas!
yeah eamon, and i welcome any rational insights that make a strong case for expecting anything anytime sooner
snack, sellers @1.08 reap ~35% profit from .80.... not so bad and what the heck? wavx ain't going ballistic for a few more quarters anyway .....
BELIEVE we'd get WAVOID #s in '06?! old news! replace '06 with '05 with '04 with '03 with '02 with '01 with '00 ... NOW, WAKE UP FOR REAL, and know it won't be until MSFT is ready in '08, and it'll cede maybe a year or 2 of IP revenue to WAVX before the patent expires in september of 2010
if ONLY MSFT would finally bluelight WAVX!!!!!!!! oh well, better than nothin'....
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/050310/sfth025_2.html
Availability of Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005 Will Expand to 20 Additional Markets Worldwide
Thursday March 10, 12:01 am ET
- Latest Version of Windows Extends Microsoft Vision of Digital Entertainment Anywhere Around the Globe
Recent additions to Online Spotlight include TVTonic video on demand by Wavexpress Inc.,
good luck snack.
frickin' great. softie's gonna get his way after all!
Truly trustworthy computing is still a few years off, HP exec says...
'05 plus "a few years" = '08, leaving wave a whole 2 frickin' years to capitalize.... DRAG.
barge, WHO CARES, who masters the DRM Trusted Web Services game?! it all flows through Wave-land no matter who's IP ensures DRM compliance .....
excellent Armp. however, ONLY IF wave's IP valuation was irrefutably clear, could SKS comment on "XXX million $ opportunity" ... to date, there's been NO MONETARY QUANTIFICATION OF WAVE'S IP, VIA THE TCG RAND LICENSING POLCY OR OTHERWISE. so my point is, while your post is dead on relevant in speaking to potential investors, the fact remains that SKS is not currently able to proffer unsubstantiated revenue outlooks -- LEGALLY, HIS HANDS ARE TIED UNTIL THERE'S A DEFENDABLY REASONABLE BASIS FOR MAKING STATEMENTS, AND PARTICULARLY REGARDING REVENUE... REMEMBER THOSE PENDING CLASS-ACTIONS?... SKS HAS NO WIGGLE ROOM.
2nd 1/4 '05: TPMs en masse via Acer, Alienware, Asus, Dell, Founder, Fujitsu, Fujitsu Siemens Company, Gateway, Gigabyte Technology Co., Hitachi, HP, Lenovo (IBM!), LG Electronics, Medion, NEC, Packard Bell, Samsung, Sony, TCL, Tongang and Trigem !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
"activation rate" notwithstanding IT'S HAPPENING AS WE READ -- AND, WHEN WILL THERE BE PROJECTIONS WITH WHICH TO ESTIMATE REVENUE STREAM(S) FOR WAVE?!!!!
Family of Intel-Based Platforms Moving into Digital Home
Wednesday March 2, 12:45 pm ET
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/050302/25377_1.html?printer=1
SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 2, 2005--Intel Corporation today outlined its efforts to develop a broad family of PC, consumer electronics (CE) and mobile platforms and technologies designed to work simply and easily together inside the digital home. The company also disclosed additional branding and customer details about its first dual-core desktop PC processors and related chipsets, which will be available during the second quarter of this year.
In a speech today at Intel Developer Forum (IDF), General Manager of Intel's Digital Home Group Don MacDonald said Intel's imminent dual-core processors and family of feature-rich silicon technology innovations will help consumers get the most enjoyment from their digital content -- including games, music, photos and video -- on multiple devices throughout the home.
"Intel will not define the digital home by its shape, size or location, nor will we limit the opportunities of the digital home to a single device," said MacDonald. "Whether it starts with an Entertainment PC for graphic-intense gaming, an MP3 player for digital music, or a personal media recorder for recording TV shows, it takes just one device and one new way to use technology to open the door to more devices, uses and a whole new digital home experience."
MacDonald provided additional details of Intel's first dual-core desktop PC platforms, including the brand name for Intel's first mainstream dual-core desktop processor, the Intel® Pentium® D processor, formerly codenamed "Smithfield."
"Intel's multi-core plans address consumer needs and present the industry with a significant opportunity for innovation in the digital home," MacDonald said, referring to the Multi-Core Zone in the IDF Concourse, where more than a dozen dual-core processor-based, OEM-branded systems and technologies across desktop, mobile and server market segments will be demonstrated. Dual- and multi-core products are designed by including two or more CPU cores within a single processor, enabling the simultaneous management of activities.
The Pentium D processor will bring increased computing capabilities to PCs, including support for several users to enjoy simultaneous computing experiences. For example, a child could play a game on a Pentium D processor-based PC in the bedroom, while a parent in the living room uses a remote control to record or access stored music or video from the same PC using a digital media adapter and then routing the content to a connected stereo or display. The dual-core Pentium D processor will be coupled with the Intel® 945G Express or the Intel® 945P Express chipsets (both formerly codenamed "Lakeport"), supporting Intel® High Definition Audio, which will allow multiple audio streams to be routed to different users simultaneously.
The company expects several different designs based on the Pentium D processor and the new chipsets to be initially available in the second quarter and growing throughout the year by many computer makers, including Acer(1), Alienware(1), Asus(1), Dell(1), Founder(1), Fujitsu(1), Fujitsu Siemens Company(1), Gateway(1), Gigabyte Technology Co.(1), Hitachi(1), HP(1), Lenovo(1), LG Electronics(1), Medion(1), NEC(1), Packard Bell(1), Samsung(1), Sony(1), TCL(1), Tongang(1) and Trigem(1).
For PC computing and entertainment enthusiasts who crave computing power for audio, video, digital design and gaming tasks, Intel expects systems based on the dual-core Intel Pentium Processor Extreme Edition and Intel® 955X Express chipset to ship from many computer makers, including Alienware(1), Dell(1), Falcon Northwest(1) and Velocity Micro(1), all of which are demonstrating systems at IDF for the first time. The dual-core Pentium Processor Extreme Edition includes Hyper-Threading Technology(2), providing the ability to process four software "threads" simultaneously.
Intel's digital home efforts also include the development of scalable platforms that address the CE industry's need for greater ease of use and seamless access to digital media. MacDonald described the Intel silicon building blocks, reference designs and software stacks in development for CE platform devices, such as digital set-top boxes, digital TVs and digital media recorders. To complement Intel's offerings of standards-based silicon and software for the CE market segment, Intel recently entered into an agreement to acquire Oplus Technologies, Inc., a leading provider of video processor products and technologies for digital television and digital displays. MacDonald also outlined mobile handset and laptop platforms that will enable innovative form factors for the home and give consumers the ability to take their digital content on the go.
In addition to technology and platform development, MacDonald said Intel is working closely with content and service providers to extend their services to PCs and other devices in the home. For example, Disney and Intel are discussing ways to bring Disney's MovieBeam(1) premium content delivery service to entertainment and media center PCs in the future. Only currently available on set-top boxes, MovieBeam provides consumers with 100 premium, digital-quality movies out of the box and regularly pushes out new content via broadcasting technology. The next generation of MovieBeam looks to add high-definition movies to the service offering.
MacDonald described additional efforts to enable protected premium digital content for the home, as well as the company's work to drive strong adoption of industry-based specifications that ensure devices can work together. Intel continues to work with The Digital Living Network Alliance, which has doubled its membership size since last year and now has 213 member companies.
About IDF
The Intel Developer Forum is the technology industry's premier event for hardware and software developers. Held worldwide throughout the year, IDF brings together key industry players to discuss cutting-edge technology and products for PCs, servers, communications equipment, and handheld clients. For more information on IDF and Intel technology, visit http://developer.intel.com.
Intel, the world's largest chip maker, is also a leading manufacturer of computer, networking and communications products. Additional information about Intel is available at www.intel.com/pressroom.
(1) Other names and brands may be claimed as the property of others. Intel and Pentium are registered trademarks of Intel Corporation or its subsidiaries in the United States and other countries.
(2) Hyper-Threading Technology requires a computer system with an Intel® Pentium® 4 processor supporting Hyper-Threading Technology and an HT Technology enabled chipset, BIOS and operating system. Performance will vary depending on the specific hardware and software you use. See http://www.intel.com/info/hyperthreading/ for more information including details on which processors support HT Technology.
barge: KEY patents for DRM
barge, sony/philips/intertrust: i don't know for sure who may "OWN ALL the patents for DRM", but if the not-insignificant DRM efforts sony/philips lead them to pony up a serious amount of the cash for intertrust, i'm surmising that sony/philips have some of the KEY patents for DRM.
sorry for the alarm, BUT it didn't work for me -- under acessories, right?
the Wave tab remains; try buying the ETS "acessory", AND IT'S NOT OFFERED!
CellPhones: "next 5 years will be about secure, virus free, protected applications and services"
Cell Phone Makers Choose Between Style and Tech
Fri Feb 25, 2005 09:56 AM ET
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=technologyNews&storyID=7742211&src=eDialog/Get...
By Lucas van Grinsven, European Technology Correspondent
AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - After years of running in the same direction toward smaller mobile phones with color screens and built-in cameras, the world's handset makers need to find new ways to make their phones sell, analysts said on Friday.
Some go for fashion and design, other opt for style and many Asian vendors continue to rely on their technological edge to maintain or grow their share in the fiercely competitive 684 million units a year handset market. Color and cameras have become standard in most phones sold in developed markets such as North America, Europe, Korea and Japan, so now handset makers are placing new bets on what will sell.
Several handset makers, including Nokia, Sony Ericsson and Motorola, have chosen to make special music playing phones while design is also playing an increasingly important role in an attempt to stand out from the crowd.
Motorola has come out with the ultra-thin RAZR phone model which has won good reviews, and Nokia has introduced a range of "roaring 20s"-style phones.
"When the mobile phone technology starts to stabilize, you have to start thinking about other elements, such as design. Technology alone is not enough. At one point, the arms race of having a camera with 3, 5 or 15 megapixels becomes irrelevant," said mobile phone market analyst Ben Wood at Gartner research.
The fundamental challenge handset makers face is that the basic technology needs to be identical, because the devices must connect to the same wireless networks and mobile services.
"The consumer electronics place is scary, because it's an industry built on standards. At the end of the day differentiation has to be cosmetic," Wood said.
Cosmetics can be much more than a new curvy shape of a phone model, however, said Motorola Chief Executive Ed Zander. Good design allows easy and simple access to mobile phone and Internet services from any place.
"The next round is about software differentiation. Over the next five years it will be about secure, virus free, protected applications and services," he told Reuters at the 3GSM mobile communications trade show in Cannes last week.
Not technology, but simplicity is one of Motorola's four design rules.
"If I'd zoom up 10,000 feet, I see people lugging laptops who only need email, calendar and some Internet access. That about sums it up. Over the last decade we've become (computer) system administrators. It's unbelievable when the history about this period gets written," Zander said.
Miles Flint, president of rival Sony Ericsson agreed. "I also have a dream of leaving my PC at home," he said in Cannes.
SOME STILL BET ON TECHNOLOGY
Not all mobile phone vendors believe the technology race is over just yet. While Nokia, Sony Electronics and Motorola announced music deals with Microsoft, Sony and Apple, their South Korean rivals Samsung and LG bet on technology improvements by making sharper displays, better cameras and speakers and smaller phones.
Samsung, for one, showed off small models for third generation (3G) wireless data and voice networks and handsets with rotating displays for yet-to-be-launched digital TV.
"Even in the same clamshell, even in a slidephone you can see the difference. The quality of the display, the incredible surround sound. People recognize it and are willing to pay the premium. That's how we try to differentiate," Samsung's global handset marketing chief Chang Soo Choi told Reuters.
LG, the world's fastest growing cellphone maker, has also put most of its chips on innovation, like small 3G phones.
"We made a lot of investments in 3G. We're the latecomer in this industry. We do not want to compete in (second generation) GSM. We want to move to the higher ground, like 3G and mobile TV," James Kim, LG's European chief told Reuters at 3GSM.
So far, the strategy is paying off. LG's handset sales in Europe increased to six million units in 2004 from 1.35 million a year earlier. "More than half were 3G handsets," Kim said.
Analysts wonder what will happen if 3G becomes mainstream and competitors catch up with the Koreans.
"In the last few years the Koreans have established themselves as technology leaders, which has helped them win a lot of business. But that strategy is increasingly difficult," said analyst Neil Mawston at Strategy Analytics. (Additional reporting by Astrid Wendlandt in Paris)
Expensive Anti-Piracyware Threatens Open Standard
Fri Feb 25, 2005 09:45 AM ET
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=technologyNews&storyID=7742132&src=eDialog/Get...
By Lucas van Grinsven, European Technology Correspondent
AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - A handful of technology companies are overcharging for anti-piracy software needed for digital music stores on the Internet, preventing the emergence of open standards, electronics goods makers said on Friday.
Several consumer electronics makers balk at the $1 charge for anti-piracy technology proposed by the Open Mobile Alliance (OMA), they told Reuters. The OMA is a group of handset makers, wireless telecoms operators and other technology companies.
Mobile phone makers and consumer electronics makers said $1 per device is too high a price only to protect music and video against illegal copying. They will not be able to recoup that money through revenues expected from digital entertainment.
"This kind of price is certainly unreasonable. It's not in proportion to the economic value," said one senior executive at a top five mobile phone maker who declined to be named.
He points out that last year alone 684 million mobile phones were sold. If handset makers had put anti-piracy protection software in those phones, the $684 million in royalties would have exceeded total digital music sales on the Web last year.
A senior executive at a global top three consumer electronics maker agreed that "this is too expensive." Consumer electronics companies are keen to make devices interoperable with mobile phones, so consumers can play tracks stored on their phone on their home TV or stereo, or vice versa.
They are reluctant to sound too harsh, however, because the irony is that they desperately need the OMA's anti-piracy technology which is the first open standard that can be used by all electronics goods makers. Other technologies are owned and controlled by individual companies such as Apple for its iTunes Music Store and Microsoft.
The man in charge of the OMA's anti-piracy working group which has put together the open standard, stresses the technology itself has been accepted by all. The problem lies with the price charged by the companies which own the patents.
"The terms (for OMA DRM 1.0) have kicked up a lot of dust. People are debating if these are reasonable terms," said Jan van der Meer, chairman of the Digital Rights Management (DRM) working group at the OMA.
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"DRM is a hot item. There are many opportunities for an open (anti-piracy) system. There's a real need for it, but the terms need to be reasonable," Van der Meer added.
In order for an industry standard to be open, it should be available to everyone at fair and reasonable terms.
Electronics goods makers hope that MPEG LA will be willing to cut the terms, which it still calls "proposals."
MPEG LA is the organization which has pooled essential anti-piracy patents owned by five companies: InterTrust and ContentGuard, two very small but powerful DRM companies, plus consumer electronics giants Sony Corp and Matsushita Electric Industrial Co Ltd from Japan, and Dutch giant Philips Electronics.
Handset makers Nokia and Sony Ericsson and consumer electronics producers Sony and Philips declined to comment on the issue specifically. MPEG LA was not immediately available to comment.
Robert Ashcroft, senior vice president Sony Network Application & Content Service Sector, said in general terms that his company is on a "strategic direction to find ways of open and interoperable services and devices."
The issue is particularly delicate, because it emerges one week after a surprise opening up of music technology companies related to Microsoft's and Sony's online music stores. They would both support the OMA's standards for music compression and piracy-protection technology.
It was seen as an industry breakthrough, and a victory for consumers who would not be restricted to a small set of portable music players, such as Apple's iPods for iTunes tracks.
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