mobile internet

The Decline of Google

Below is an interesting article posted by Keith Woolcock on Seeking Alpha on May 17, 2010.

What has happened to Google (GOOG)? The stock has performed miserably this year. Meanwhile, Baidu (BIDU), its Chinese competitor, continues to soar. Google, of course, has retreated from China, but that alone is unlikely to explain its underwhelming performance.

A few facts which have been borrowed from Eric Qualman, a leading student of social networks, might help us understand what is going on:

* 96% of US millennials (those born after 1970) have joined a social network
* Facebook now tops Google for weekly traffic in the US.

Read the full article here>

“In the early days, email was the dominant application. Then it was portals, such as Yahoo (YHOO). Google dominated the next cycle, which was search. Now, it in turn is being brushed aside by social networking and the mobile internet”.

The observation by Eric Qualman is right-on and it is obvious that Apple is benefiting from consumers gravitating towards social networking and mobile internet.

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Is the iPad the future of newspapers?

Below is an article in The Guardian by Alan Rusbridger, who says that a block of wood that he saw sixteen years ago showed him the future. And that future was the iPad.

Michael Arrington at TechCrunch on July 21, 2008 some two years ago wrote “We Want A Dead Simple Web Tablet For $200. Help Us Build It”. Apple’s ipad may not fit the ideal web tablet as envisioned by Michael in term of price and functionality. But, over time  ipad will response to what the consumers want, and a truly mobile internet device will be made available to the public.

As to the question above, Michael commented on the Apple iPad and the challenges that newspapers are facing.

“All the pressures the Internet put on newspapers – crushing the business model, unlimited competition, no need for tree massacres – are just amplified by the iPad”.

You can read Michael’s post on Seeking Alpha “Can the iPad Save the Newspapers?”

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Can Steve Job make history a second time?

Below is an article by Erick Schonfeld, Co-Editor of TechCrunch (www.techcrunch.com) published in “Seeking Alpha” on April 11, 2010:

Is Steve Jobs Ignoring History, Or Trying to Rewrite It?

Very few people get the chance to make history. Even fewer get the chance to make it twice. Perhaps that is why it is so fascinating to watch Steve Jobs as he tries to usher in the era of mobile touch computing today, just as he ushered in the era of the personal computer three decades ago. But I wonder whether he is repeating the very same mistakes which relegated Macs to a niche market. Or did he learn from those mistakes so that Apple (AAPL) comes out on top this time?

Jobs is once again pitting Apple’s complete product design mastery against the rest of the industry, except this time he thinks he will prevail. Whether it is his repeated moves to keep Adobe’s Flash off the iPhone or his growing rift with Google (GOOG) over Android, Jobs is making the iPhone and iPad a relatively closed system that Apple can control. Read more…

How big will be the sales for iPad?

An blog post by Jason Schwarz published on Seeking Alpha dated February 25, 2010 outlined some interesting data on the potential market for Apple Ipad. Jason presented the following data:

• 75 million current iPhone and iPod Touch users who are familiar with the App Store and can’t wait to utilize the bigger screen.

• 33 million units of 2009 netbook sales showcasing the demand for a product like Ipad.

• there are 217 million online gamers worldwide, with total industry sales jumped to $23 billion in 2008.

• 9 million doctors worldwide, the 60 million teachers worldwide who are expected to be attracted to buy Ipad.

• 15.9 million U.S. college students, with an unkown number of college students world wide.

• approximately 5 million e-book readers sold by Amazon (AMZN) and Sony (SNE).

The iPad, essentially is a version of Apple’s ultra-successful operating system for the iPhone and iPod Touch, tacked onto a larger, more powerful device. Among the device’s many bells and whistles are Bluetooth , wireless and cellular network connectivity, multiple memory sizes to choose from at various prices and the ability to play all the applications currently available through Apple’s online store.

Internet Mobility

“Apple COO Tim Cook recently revealed that the goal of the Apple design team was to make the iPad invisible to its user. After six months of using the iPad, Cook mentioned that it feels like you’re holding not a device, but the internet in your hands”.

Wireless access with better and lower- cost data plan are boosting the sale of smart phones and mobile devices as network users are no longer desk-bound. More mobile applications and  accessibility of contents  using a device like ipad will attract more buyers to Apple’s ipad. The market for mobile internet is growing rapidly, and mobile internet is bigger than you think.

There are hundreds of millions of people throughout the world who are ready to get on to experience the internet mobility ipad has to offer.

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Ipad Review: a Carl Howe’s article on Seeking Alpha

Below is an article by Carl Howe, published on Seeking Alpha on January 28, 2010:

“I’ll be publishing a detailed analysis for clients about the Apple iPad and its effect on connected devices (i.e., it’s a big deal) in the next day or so. I have also posted photos that I took of the press, VIPs, and tablets we saw today for those who are interested.

However, I also had some takeaways from the event that fell somewhere between the immediacy of my tweets and the detailed analysis mentioned above. As I look toward the iPad shipping in late March/early April, I see some changes coming”.

Read the full article here>.

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5 Reasons to Wait for iPad 2.0

Written by Sarah Perez / January 28, 2010

With yesterday’s reveal of the iPad now past, we can finally put myth and speculation behind us and focus on the reality that is Apple’s entry into the tablet PC business. Whether the iPad is revolutionary or evolutionary is still hotly debated, but what we do know is that the computer, despite its elegance and blazing fast speed, is a decidedly first-generation device. Although one day after the product’s announcement may be too soon to discuss what’s coming in the next version of the iPad, we’ve already come across several reasons to wait… and some of those reasons are hidden away in the new iPad SDK (software development kit) itself.

Read the full article here>.

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Ipad as a mobile computing device

The best way to experience the the web, email, photos and video!

How the iPad as a mobile device can be used to improve productivity for entrepreneurs and businesses? A closer look at the features of ipad revealed the endless possibilities for small business people who spend a large part of their time on-the-road. Realtors, financial planners, insurance brokers, sales professionals and others will benefit immensely as a result of being able to connect their clients with their businesses from anywhere.

Data plan is not restricted to any wireless data service providers

A departure from Apple’s current designated data providers will open up more market and flexibility to users of iPad. A significant price drop in the cost for data services is most significant in attracting buyers for ipad.

AT&T Inc. is offering a new type of data plan for Apple Inc.’s iPad tablet computer, to go on sale in a few months. At $30 per month for unlimited data, with no contract, iPad owners will pay half of what data service costs for a laptop under contract, what the industry calls a “postpaid” plan. There will also be a $15 per month option with limited downloads. The price will include use of AT&T’s network of Wi-Fi hotspots, which offloads capacity from the cellular network.

Will WoIP be next on ipad?

A major change has happened in the landscape of the iPhone: You can now make VoIP calls over your data plan. It was announced today by the makers of the iCall app, an application that allows for VoIP (voice over internet protocol) calls, that a significant change was made to the developer agreement with Apple. Apparently in the latest release of the iPhone OS SDK (software development kit), VoIP calling has now been enabled for unrestricted free local and long distance calling over 3G data networks. This is a significant change as it had previously been restricted to only Wi-Fi connections.

The above change is a big boost and helps to propel iphone position as a top choice for smart phone buyers. The same service may be extended to ipad, and blue-tooth wireless devices will allow the WoIP connection with iPad.

The bottom line

IPad will improve productivity for small business people who are on the move and in the field. The adoption of these enterpreneusrs for mobile communication and their ability to response to their prospects and past clients almost instantly will help to increase their services, and revenues.

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