Will Verizon iPhone Hurt Android Sales?

Will the launch of the Verizon iPhone 4 slow Android's growth? Some will say yes, others no.

Charlie Wolf of Needham and Co., and Shaw Wu of Kaufman Bros. both believe Apple's deal with Verizon will hit Android sales. The notion is that Android phones will suffer because Verizon users bought Androids in the past primarily or largely because the iPhone wasn't available on Verizon. Once it is, they will switch when they can.

The alternate view rests much more on the range of price points Android devices will be available in, at least on a global level. So the answer might well be "both of the above." It is conceivable Verizon will see at least a momentary dip in Android sales as iPhone sales begin. But on a global basis, the Apple deal with Verizon does not affect the overall dynamics of competition between Android and iPhone.

Analysts weigh in on Android and iPhone • reghardware

300% Increase in Mobile YouTube Viewing in 2010

YouTube now exceeds 200 million views a day on mobile, a 300-percent increase in 2010.

YouTube Blog

Mobile Payments $1.13 Trillion in 2014

Global Mobile Payments transactions to rise to $1.13 trillion in 2014, a CAGR of 94.8%
Mobile payments continued its stellar growth in 2009 with the total number of users increasing to 351.4 million

Globally, we are expecting the number of mobile payment users to rise to 1.06 billion in 2014 for a CAGR of 20.5 percent.

On the transaction value side, the gross value of mobile payments transactions was $37.4 billion in 2009. We expect mainstream take-up of mobile payments to happen in the 2011 - 2013 time frame. Our forecast is that in 2014, the gross value of mobile payment transactions will reach $1.13 trillion.

SMS accounted for 76.4 percent of mobile payment transactions in 2009. This is expected to decline to 58.7% in 2014.

Ease of use, ubiquity, and minimal network investments means that SMS will continue to be the transaction technology of choice for mobile operators and users, the report suggests.

3Q.2010 Global Mobile Payment Market Forecast, 2010 - 2014: Global mobile payments users to exceed one billion by 2014 with over $1 trillion in transactions taking place in that year

Jon Stewart on Verizon Getting iPhone

http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/tue-january-11-2011/verizon-iphone-announcement

Verizon iPad to follow Verizon iPhone | VentureBeat

Verizon Wireless will offer a version of the iPad which connects directly to its mobile broadband network, presumably the 3G network.

The current Verizon iPad (sold at Verizon since last October) requires a MiFi Mobile Hotspot, an additional device used to connect the device to Verizon’s network. The new iPad will be able to use Verizon's mobile broadband network, not just Wi-Fi connections.

In many ways, that might be a bigger deal, long term, than getting the iPhone.

Verizon iPad to follow Verizon iPhone

Personal Hotspot feature coming to all iPhones in iOS 4.3

The personal hotspot feature that debuted on the Verizon iPhone yesterday will, in fact, be making its way to all iPhones in iOS 4.3, Boy Genius Report says.

Confirmed: Personal Hotspot feature coming to all iPhones in iOS 4.3 | BGR | Boy Genius Report

763 Million Global Broadband Subscribers

The growing popularity of bandwidth-intensive applications, such as watching online video, using IP-based telephony services, and downloading music files, is directly spurring demand for higher-speed Internet connections, pushing the number of global subscribers to 763 million in 2010, says In-Stat.

From 2007 through 2009, there was a continued growth rate of 25 percent in broadband subscribers worldwide,' says Vahid Dejwakh, Industry Analyst.

Though this is expected to slowly decrease to 10 percent by 2014 as the broadband market matures, there are still some substantial gains to be made. The Asia/Pacific region will continue to see very high growth rates, along with Latin America and the Middle East/Africa regions.

The Need for Speed Pushes Broadband Subscribers to 763 Million in 2010, Says In-Stat