Verizon Will Support Android Devices

Verizon Wireless CEO Lowell McAdam says the company will allow Android phones on its network, which is scheduled to open up next year to outside applications and devices, according to Business Week. Of course, that's what one assumes Verizon Wireless meant when it said it would open its CDMA network to all devices compliant with technical standards it has yet to release. Still, it is good to get confirmation.

"We're planning on using Android," McAdam says. "Android is an enabler of what we do."

It remains to be seen how active developers may want to get for devices and software on a network that Verizon has declared is not its future, however. Presumably Verizon has figured out that apps and devices compliant on the CDMA network can be authored in such a way that the air interface is not a problem as its planned LTE fourth-generation network is put into service in several years.

And, of course, some note that Verizon retains the ability to reverse course on LTE and choose some other air interface, in any case. It should be an interesting couple of months, as Google and Verizon dance around each firms' strategy for the 700-MHz auction.

More Cord Cutters

The trend of young US wireless users opting to disconnect their home phone lines in favor of wireless-only options is growing, reports In-Stat. The typical cord cutter is under 35 years old with a small household and a lower income than the traditional phone user, the high-tech market research firm says. This was a notable finding from a recent In-Stat survey of US telecom consumers.

“The largest number of current cord cutters—those who do not have a landline, but rely solely on their mobile phone—are those one might expect: young, single, living alone, or sharing quarters such as a dormitory or rooming house,” says Jill Meyers, In-Stat analyst. “In many cases, these are people who are the least-likely candidates to have a landline phone.”

Recent research by In-Stat found the following:

* Current cord cutter respondents use 22% more cellular minutes than the average survey respondent, and 40% more than those not interested in surrendering their landline.
* Some 24% of those with a landline would consider replacing it with a mobile phone.
* Potential cord cutters have the highest penetration of family or group mobile rate plans—they also have the highest spending, averaging $111.41 per month.

Mobile Browser Share: iPhone Surprises

Okay, just to be clear about this: Apple's iPhone browser has grabbed a 0.09 percent share, which might not seem like much until you compare it to the competition. Windows CE, which encompasses every Windows Mobile device shipped, holds a 0.06 percent share; Danger Research's Sidekick product family holds a tiny 0.02 percent share; and the Symbian S60 smart phone platform, favored by Nokia, has 0.01 percent, according to Net Applications.

Operating Systems Proliferate

What this market share data supplied by Net Applications doesn't show is the huge growth in specialized operating systems run by device such as the iPhone and iPod, among others. Does anybody else think it is shocking that iPhone, in months, already has zoomed past Windows CE, which has been in the market for years?

Windows XP 78.37%
Windows Vista 9.19%
MacIntel 3.59%
Mac OS 3.22%
Windows 2000 2.97%
Windows 98 0.76%
Windows NT 0.63%
Linux 0.57%
Windows ME 0.43%
iPhone 0.09%
Windows CE 0.06%
Windows 95 0.02%
Hiptop 0.02%
Series60 0.01%
Pike v7.6 0.01%
Web TV 0.01%
PLAYSTATION 3 0.01%
PSP 0.01%
iPod 0.01%
SunOS 0.01%
Nintendo Wii 0.01%
Mobile/1A543a 0.00%
OSF1 alpha 0.00%

Blockbuster, Netflix, Then What?

"Blockbuster" is almost synonymous with "rent a movie." But it appears "Netflix" is more nearly synonymous with "rent a movie by mail." What isn't clear is whether either of the two movie rental players will dominate the third phase of movie distribution, the download or streaming delivery of such material. Cable companies might have hoped to dominate that niche, but "pay per view" has not yet emerged as a truly significant revenue generator, with the exception of some sporting events and X-rated material.

Well, perhaps we should say that no sizable "legal" download business yet has emerged. There appears to be lots of illegal downloading going on. The fact that no name immediately jumps out as "synonymous" with downloading indicates the field remains open. There is no "category killer" yet in place.

at&t Internet Outage in former BellSouth Areas

Users are reporting outages in the former BellSouth territory on Monday Dec. 3, apparently caused by a Domain Name Server issue. IP services are really useful. They just aren't generally as reliable as the old public switched telephone network, though. These days, end users have to spend at least some time, and some money, creating backup systems for their crucial communications and information services.

Outage reports are posted from Georgia, Florida, Louisiana, South Carolina and Mississippi.

Comcast, Time Warner Won't Bid for 700-MHz Spectrum

Google is in, Time Warner Cable and Comcast are out, at least in terms of submitting an initial bid for 700-MHz spectrum. The big issue is how many of the incumbent wireless carriers will participate in the initial round. Verizon has been seen as a certain bidder, at&t a possible bidder, T-Mobile a potential bidder as well.

Cable companies have bid for spectrum in the past, in partnership with Sprint. So far, though, financial results from the cable-Sprint collaboration in the consumer market have been disappointing, though it remains unclear how much of the sluggishness is attributable to operational or marketing issues, and how much to "core competency" issues.

Up to this point, cablers have been most successful with products that can be delivered over their own plant. Wireless is outside that realm. Wireless might also be an area where telecom companies simply have more "core competence" capabilities that force cable companies to compete where they have few natural advantages.

For the moment, cable executives seem unwilling to acknowledge that wireless services are strategic.

Consumers really don't want a quadruple-play bundle, Time Warner Cable CEO Glenn Britt insists. "I don't think the quadruple play is a big deal," he says. "So far we've not seen a great demand for that." Comcast likewise only says it continues to study the matter of wireless services closely and continuously.