Apple Got 29% of Smartphone Sales Revenue in 2010

While Apple trailed Nokia in 2010 smartphone volume, Apple dominated the market in revenue, and took 29 percent share of revenue, according to Strategy Analytics. The top three device suppliers—Apple, Nokia and RIM—generated 64 percent of the revenue in the smartphone market.

Apple had just 16 percent of smartphone market volume in 2010. But Apple claimed 29 percent revenue share. Nokia followed with 20 percent and RIM with 15 percent revenue share. Samsung got nine percent of smartphone market revenue.

Apple Takes Lion's Share of Smartphone Revenue in 2010

FCC Members Say They Unanimously Favor USF, Carrier Compensation Reform

"When we voted unanimously to approve the USF/ICC Transformation NPRM last month, each of us made clear that we are committed to reforming the Universal Service Fund (USF) and the Intercarrier Compensation (ICC) system, and to doing so as soon as possible," all five commissioners say. "We must eliminate waste and inefficiency and modernize USF and ICC to bring the benefits of broadband to all Americans. We can’t afford to delay."

With the caveat that not everybody really wants reform, and that all attempts to reach a major reform have basically failed in recent decades, pressure seems to be mounting for fixing a system most observers would say is badly in need of reform. But that isn't universally supported by all participants in the market, it is quite safe to say.

Blogband-broadband.gov

Google Docs Blurs Line Between Document Collaboration and Email

Smartphones and Tablets Change Wi-Fi Usage Profile

Android, iPhone and iPad accounted for about 16.53 percent of total Wi-Fi connections studies by Meraki, in middle of March 2010. As of March 14, 2011, these three devices now account for about 33 percent of the total connections to network.

Wi-Fi used to be about connecting PCs. It now is shifting to include connecting phones and tablets.

% (3/14/2010)	% (9/14/2010)	% (3/14/2011)
Total Devices	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%
iPhone	15.96%	21.88%	23.53%
Android	0.57%	1.30%	5.19%
iPad	0.00%	2.08%	3.41%

Some Hard Facts About Wi-Fi and Its Future: Tech News and Analysis

San Francisco Wants to Tax Stock Options, and Has Statutory Authority Already

Few people are aware the San Francisco has had a tax provision in its municipal code since 2004 that requires companies to pay a payroll tax on gains from employee stock options, says Sarah Lacy of TechCrunch. No one pays it, she says, and San Francisco hasn’t enforced it to date, but companies are becoming increasingly agitated that the city may change that policy at any time.

San Francisco Wants to Tax Your Stock Options

San Francisco Bites the Hand that Feeds

Twitter and Zynga are threatening to relocate elsewhere if San Francisco imposes a new tax on stock options.

"San Francisco taxes startups like no other city in the world," says Michael Arrington of TechCrunch. Not only is there a 1.5 percent payroll tax, but the city also is trying to tax stock option gains. Some argue that level of taxation actually can chew up most of the money any startup might raise in an initial public offering.

Twitter, Zynga and other startups are threatening to leave the city unless the taxes are waived for a period of time. The stock option tax appears to be the biggest issue.

San Francisco Controller Publishes Candid Report On How Badly They Need Twitter

50% of Web Sales From Mobile in 2015

By 2015, companies will generate 50 percent of their Web sales using their social-media presence and mobile applications, according to Gartner analysts.

“By 2015, context will be as influential to mobile consumer services as search engines are to the Web and information about customers will no longer be limited to data stored in company-owned systems,” said Gene Alvarez, research vice president at Gartner. “Context information can be about identity, such as who you are and your calendar, environment, where you are and the device you use, process (things you do and what you allow and community), who is in your networks and who you communicate with. If used correctly, context information facilitates the move from e-commerce today to contextual commerce tomorrow.”

Gartner Identifies Eight Dos and Don'ts to Drive Sales Using Context-Enriched Mobile Applications

26% of Mobile Apps Get Used 11 or More Times

In a previous mobile application analytics study, Localytics found that while smartphone and tablet owners are very willing to give applications a try, 26 percent of the time they never use the same application again.

In its latest study, Localytics found that another 26 percent of people become very loyal, repeat customers, using a new application more than 10 times.

It is probably worth noting that both "loyalty" and "disinterest" have to be kept in some perspective. Some apps might intentionally be designed around a specific promotion or event, and might not be intended to have a long shelf life.

Some apps are games and users might tire of some games rather quickly. What the data seems to suggest is that a quarter or so of mobile apps are highly engaging or useful, another quarter are not, with half lying in between. But nearly half (48 percent get used three times or less), suggesting there also is a lot of experimentation going on.

read more here

Netflix to Create Original TV Series

Netflix apparently has won the right to a nre original series to be produced byMedia Rights Capital. The drama series "House of Cards" will be executive produced and directed by David Fincher and executive produced by, and starring, Kevin Spacey.

Netflix reprtedly got rights to the series by offering a relatively unusual commitment of two seasons, or 26 episodes. Given that the price tag for a high-end drama is in the $4 million to $6 million an episode range and that a launch of a big original series commands tens of millions of dollars for promotion, the deal is believed involve an investment by Netflix of more than $100 million.

Such a move is traditional for premium cable networks trying to increase value and add uniqueness to their services, and Netflix clearly is aware that unique content not available elsewhere will be a draw for its streaming service and subscriptions.

Netflix To Enter Original Programming With Mega Deal For David Fincher-Kevin Spacey Series ‘House Of Cards’ – Deadline.com

Maybe 7% of People Use Twitter, 92% Know of It

If people aren't using Twitter at the moment, it certainly is not because they have never heard of it. According to Edison Research, more than 90 percent of people surveyed say they are aware of Twitter.

Marissa Mayer, Google VP, Keynote at South by Southwest.

Marissa Mayer, Google VP, making her keynote address at South by Southwest. Mobile is clearly her focus, and a focus for Google.

Home Based Business Grows 11% in 2010

Home-based businesses grew an estimated 11 percent in 2010, analysts at AMI-Partners say, based in large part on people finding themselves laid off from larger enterprises, the research company says.

“What’s interesting is that 80% of those who became HBBs because of downsizing from a larger company,” says Jessica Efta, AMI-Partners manager. “They do not plan to return to the corporate workforce."

That should have implications for sales of products and services to small business customers, since the number of such entities has grown significantly over the past year.

Home Based Business a Growth Sector in the U.S.

Cable Nets ProtestTime Warner iPad Streaming

Time Warner Cable now allows its customers to stream some of their TV content to iPads inside their homes. Comcast, Cablevision and DISH Network also allow streaming of some content to subscriber iPads. Apparently some of the rights holders do not believe Time Warner Cable has the right to do so, under its current contracts.

“Distribution via any sort of third-party app is not addressed in our carriage deals with Time Warner Cable or any other operator,” said one network. “There is going to be a messy dissection of what the rights are, but our position is that [this sort of distribution] is not authorized by our affiliate agreements.”

It isn't clear how serious the disagreement actually is. Time Warner Cable doubtlessly would not have proceeded if it thought there was an issue. Other distributors are doing similar things and haven't been blocked by the networks. This sounds like a precedent-setting effort to assert rights that could be useful in some later negotiating or legal context.

It's just one more bit of evidence of stress in the video entertainment ecosystem.

Cable Nets Riled Up by Time Warner App

Mobile Broadband Grows, Both to Support Mobile Devices and Home Access

Parks Associates forecasts more than 68 million of the 126 million tablets sold worldwide in 2015 will have 3G or greater technology.

The research firm predicts that 29 percent of the 16.5 million tablets sold in 2010 featured embedded 3G technology, while tablets with 3G or 4G technology will account for over half of all tablets sold in 2015.

At the same time, it appears that more consumers are using wireless as an at-home access technology as well. Possibly 16 percent of U.S. respondents to a Parks Associates survey suggested they presently use mobile broadband. That doesn't necessarily mean those consumers are substituting mobile for fixed access, though that certainly will be the case in some instances.

It does indicate that mobile access is becoming much more pervasive.

Google Has Grown Up: How Soon Does it Become "Legacy"

In the lifecycle of a technology company that goes from being a start-up to a large enterprise, growth comes in three phases, says Om Malik.

1. Early days when the company is almost entirely focused on developing technology and figuring out a business model.
2. Phase Two is when it revs up its engine and starts to bring in dollars, and goes on a hiring binge to support the growth of the business.
3. Phase Three is when it starts to seek newer areas of growth in order to sustain its growth engine, and keeps hiring more and more people.

It's an odd notion that Google has grown up to become a mid-life sort of company.

Can Google Save Itself From Google?