Typical Cell Site Backhaul 100 Mbps by 2015

The market for wholesale backhaul services in North America will grow from $2.45 billion in 2010 to $3.9 billion in 2015, with the majority of this growth coming from Ethernet backhaul, according to the Yankee Group.

Average macrocell backhaul requirements in North America were 10 Mbps in 2008 (seven T1s, five E1s). In less than three years, they have more than tripled to 35 Mbps in 2011, and by 2015, Yankee Group predicts they will demand 100 Mbps.

There were 2.4 million macro cell site backhaul connections worldwide in 2010, growing to 3.3 million by 2015.

Two of out every three rural cell towers already house at least two mobile operators. Suburban towers house up to six antennas, while urban towers can house 12 to 20. These may belong to multiple operators and represent different mobile service generations.

Google Wallet Launches

On Sept. 19, 2011, Google launched its mobile wallet system, called Google Wallet. Some refer to it as a mobile payment system, and Google Wallet does support use of near field communications and "tapping to pay" from the mobile phone. But Google makes no money from providing that functionality working with the existing card issuers and clearing networks for the payment function.

To the extent Google Wallet can create a revenue stream, it will come from other features, likely including advertising, offers, loyalty tie-ins and other marketing and promotion capabilities. Many observers will note that it is too early to predict who the "winners" will be in the payment or wallet spaces. Google faces Isis, the consortium of AT&T, Verizon Wireless and T-Mobile USA, plus PayPal and a host of others.

But all the contestants face the challenge of creating a value proposition strong enough to drive robust adoption by consumers and retailers.

Google Wallet Won't Dominate Mobile Payment

Mobile Broadband Will Drive U.S. Telecom Revenue 2011 to 2016

Mobile data will be the largest contributor to U.S. telecom service provider growth over the next five years, says Pyramid Research. That not-unexpected assessment is simple recognition of the fact that growth must be driven by services that have obvious demand drivers, fit network and other organizational capabilities are not already fairly saturated and highly competitive. Right now, in the U.S. market, mobile broadband to support smart phones and tablet devices is the only clear service that fits all the parameters.

Voice services are expected to dwindle, on both the fixed and mobile networks. There will be growth in the video entertainment, VoIP and high-speed access segments, but at modest rates. 

The U.S. telecom market generated $367 billion in service revenue in 2010, an increase of 3.1 percent over 2009.

"We expect the market to grow at a 3.1 percent compound annual growth rate over 2011 to 2016, reaching $443 billion in 2016. U.S. telecom revenue forecast

While it was the fourth-largest service segment in 2010 (after mobile voice, fixed voice and pay-TV), Pyramid Research projects mobile broadband will have a 12.7 percent CAGR over the 2011 to 2016 period.

That means that mobile broadband services will overtake mobile voice, fixed voice and entertainment video  to become the single largest revenue stream in the U.S. telecom industry by 2016.

As demand for fixed circuit-switched voice decreases, fixed VoIP will increase, growing at a 12.2 percent CAGR from 2011 to 2016. But VoIP still will be the smallest of all revenue streams over the forecast period. There might continue to be some small dial-up Internet access revenue, but it will be negligible. 

Social Media Background Checks: Another Case of Software Industry Bumping into Regulators

Social Intelligence sells a service that allows employers to check applicant social network data as part of a hiring process. The firm was investigated by the Federal Trade Commission earlier in 2011, in part to ensure that the service complies with the Fair Credit Reporting Act to ensure that its clients let job applicants know when something that turned up in a background check had an adverse effect on their getting employed, or rather not getting employed.

The FTC has since dropped its investigation into Social Intelligence’s practices, but some U.S. Senators continue to express concern about the company's software. Social Media Background Checks

Most employers already are checking applicant profiles on Facebook, and conducting Google searches. In surveys, most employers admit that they check out applicants’ Facebook pages, blogs, and Google footprint. The issue is whether such information could ultimately be viewed as a violation of the law if the employer gains knowledge of something that can not be the basis for a hiring decision  (like religion or sexuality).

The investigation and continuing concern on the part of lawmakers illustrates the growing extent to which the software industry is bumping up against regulatory bodies that shape the industry's future. Google's risk of antitrust review, AT&T's current antitrust review and Microsoft's decade-long antitrust reviews in the United States and Europe, are examples.

Company investigated

Where Walmart Is Headed in Social, Mobile Retailing

"The previous era was about taking the store and bringing it to the web," says Walmart Labs Senior VP-Global E-Commerce Anand Rajaraman . "We believe the next generation, one of the dominant themes is bringing the web to the store."

Walmart Labs the unit of Walmart trying to figure out how retail works in a more mobile and social world.

That includes evolving e-commerce on Walmart.com and how consumers use smartphones to supplement in-store shopping trips with such information as product features and reviews.

Where Walmart Is Headed in Social, Mobile Retailing

Associated Press on "Millionaire" Tax Rates

President Obama says he wants to make sure millionaires are taxed at higher rates than their secretaries. According to the Associated Press, they already are.

On average, the wealthiest people in America pay a lot more taxes than the middle class or the poor, according to private and government data, the AP says. “They pay at a higher rate, and as a group, they contribute a much larger share of the overall taxes collected by the federal government.”

The 10 percent of households with the highest incomes pay more than half of all federal taxes and they pay more than 70 percent of federal income taxes, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

Are there some “millionaire” filing units that pay taxes at rates lower than middle-income workers? a few.  In 2009, 1,470 households filed tax returns with incomes above $1 million yet paid no federal income tax, according to the Internal Revenue Service.

But that's less than one percent of the nearly 237,000 returns with incomes above $1 million.
This year, households making more than $1 million will pay an average 29.1 percent of their income in federal taxes, including income taxes, payroll taxes and other taxes, according to the Tax Policy Center, a Washington think tank.

Households making between $50,000 and $75,000 will pay an average of 15 percent of their income in federal taxes.

Lower-income households will pay less. For example, households making between $40,000 and $50,000 will pay an average of 12.5 percent of their income in federal taxes. Households making between $20,000 and $30,000 will pay 5.7 percent.

The latest Internal Revenue Service figures show that In 2009, taxpayers who made $1 million or more paid on average 24.4 percent of their income in federal income taxes.

Those making $100,000 to $125,000 paid on average 9.9 percent in federal income taxes. Those making $50,000 to $60,000 paid an average of 6.3 percent.

The claim about “millionaire tax rates” rests on  the fact that, for high-income families and individuals, investment income is often taxed at a lower rate than wages. The top tax rate for dividends and capital gains is 15 percent. The top marginal tax rate for wages is 35 percent, though that is reserved for taxable income above $379,150.

The Tax Policy Center also estimates that 46 percent of households, mostly low- and medium-income households, will pay no federal income taxes this year.

Associated Press refutes claims

American Express Buys Gaming Payment Provider

American Express has spent $30 million to buy Sometrics, a virtual currency company that works with social game providers including BigPoint, Nexon and OMGPOP.

The Sometrics platform will be integrated into Amex Serve, the credit card company's recently launched, PayPal-like online and mobile payment system. This integration will eventually allow Serve users to "purchase virtual currency for hundreds of games," and participate in loyalty programs from various merchants.

American Express also offers users of its Membership Rewards program to redeem their points for virtual currency and goods in Zynga's social games.

The long-running Membership Rewards program has previously allowed users to earn points when they use their American Express cards for purchases, then exchange those points for bonuses like free flights, electronics, gift cards, and more. Virtual currency

In an agreement that the two companies call "an industry first", American Express and Zynga have partnered to provide exclusive virtual goods (Amex Outdoor Fountain), physical game cards, and virtual game cards for Zynga titles to Membership Rewards participants.

Those game cards will be available in a variety of amounts and can be used to buy virtual goods in Zynga's popular Facebook releases like FarmVille, FrontierVille, PetVille, and Cafe World.

American Express also offers game-specific prepaid cards. Right now, one might argue that American Express can make a business out of allowing users to buy virtual game credits with real currency. But it is hard not to envision circumstances under which Amex might like to have the ability to operate a "cash in, cash out" virtual currency model as well.

American Express Buys Gaming Payment Provider Sometrics