Mobile Accounts for 17% of European Mobile Connections

Mobile broadband accounted for 17.3 percent of the total number of European broadband connections in Europe at the end of 2009, " according to a new research report from the analyst firm Berg Insight.

The North American market has so far evolved at a slower pace, with mobile broadband accounting for just 7.1 percent of the total number of connections, says Berg Insight.

The number of HSPA/LTE mobile broadband subscribers (connected PCs) grew by 71 percent year-on-year in 2009 to reach 25 million and is forecasted to continue to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 21.6 percent to 81 million by 2015.

Berg Insight

More than 50 percent of applications are priced below or equal to $2.00 in all stores, with the exception of BlackBerry App World and Windows Marketplace for Mobile, says Distimo.

The average price of all paid applications and the 100 most popular paid applications in the Apple App Store for iPad ($4.65) is higher than in the Apple App Store for iPhone ($4.01).

Google Android Market has the largest share of free applications (57 percent) and Windows Marketplace for Mobile has the smallest (22 percent).

Ethernet Access Now Cheaper than SONET

Domestic access Ethernet circuits now cost less, in most case, than traditional SDH/SONET leased circuits, says Owen Irving, vice president, Commercial, Asia Pacific at Cable & Wireless Worldwide, CommsDay reports.

“10M Ethernet appears to have settled at approximately two times E1 pricing, 50 Mbps Ethernet is often a lower price than DS3, while 100M is often a similar price to DS3," he says.

Required Reading

IN CONGRESS, JULY 4, 1776

The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen United States of America:

When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

A citizen's required reading for July 4th: The Declaration of Independence (with music) | Top of the Ticket | Los Angeles Times

Required Reading

IN CONGRESS, JULY 4, 1776

The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen United States of America:

When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

A citizen's required reading for July 4th: The Declaration of Independence (with music) | Top of the Ticket | Los Angeles Times

European Commission Inquiry on Net Neutrality

The European Commission is looking into such issues as whether Internet providers should be allowed to adopt certain traffic management practices, prioritizing one kind of Internet traffic over another and whether such traffic management practices may create problems and have unfair effects for users.

The EC also will look at whether the level of competition between different Internet service providers, transparency requirements and whether the EU needs to act further to ensure fairness in the Internet market, or whether industry should take the lead.

The consultation will feed into a Commission report on net neutrality, which should be producedby the end of this year.

EUROPA - Press Releases - Digital Agenda: Commission launches consultation on net neutrality

Consumer Reports Says iPhone 4 Signal Reception Not a Serious Problem

All mobile phones can encounter signal reception problems when the devices are held, notes Consumer Reports "Your hand, your head, or any other part of your body that comes between the phone's antenna and the nearest cell tower will interfere with reception, and devilishly well."

"Humans are mostly made of water, and water is very good at blocking phone signals."

Consumer Reports Electronics Blog: iPhone 4's supposed signal woes aren’t unique, and may not be serious