"Bulk Up or Sell" Key for Telcos, Media

The big global media and telecom companies face very similar business issues in some of their key lines of business. International calling rates are getting so competitive that only large players with scale will have the mass to make a go of it, says Stephan Beckert, Telegeography head of research.

Likewise, media comapnies such as like Vivendi, Time Warner and News Corp. are investing very heavily in gaming. In fact, some observers suspect that gaming will grow to be the biggest media business in time, and will and supplant older media to a significant degree. That is sort of the same position telephone companies find themselves facing with their core voice businesses.

Gaming is set to grow 40 percent in two years, many project. And bulk really confers advantages in game publishing, which has massive scale economics. A publisher that can guarantee over a million sales, with global distribution and quality marketing, has an immense advantage over a publisher that struggles to get to half a million sales.

Much the same sort of thing is happening in the U.S. competitive local exchange carrier industry as well, where scale has started to assume a key role as well. Basically, every executive has to decide whether to be a strategic seller or buyer.

Integrated Google Apps for iPhone

Google has launched a new iPhone application that ties together its various services, including search, Gmail, Calendar, Reader and Maps, into one interface. If you’re an iPhone user you can see the interface at Google.com.

700-MHz Auction: EchoStar to Bid; DirecTV Won't

EchoStar Communications will bid for wireless spectrum in the Federal Communications Commission's auction of cho8ice 700-MHz spectrum on Jan. 24. DirecTV won't be bidding. Though the opening bids are set at $4.6 billion, the final price could range between $10 billion and $15 billion, some observers suggest, making an EchoStar win an unlikely event.

The fact that both at&t and EchoStar are bidding in the auction prohibits both of them from discussing a potential merger, so it isn't clear where the rumored at&t purchase of EchoStar might stand. The only thing that is certain is that any such talks must be on hold at the moment.

No Rate Deregulation in 6 Verizon Markets

The Federal Communications Commission had concluded that there is not sufficient competition in six Verizon markets to lift rules regulating special access pricing. Essentially, the FCC concluded that the level of competition in those markets did not approach the threshold set by market conditions in Omaha, Neb. at the point Qwest was allowed to deregulate its special access prices.

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.