Even Libraries Face Mobile Ecosystem Conflict

The 2012 State of America’s Libraries study illustrates the widespread nature of potential disturbances in the mobile, tablet and application ecosystems between ecosystem participants. 


Over 67 percent of U.S. libraries now offer downloadable e-books and 28 percent lend out e-readers “and other mobile devices” to patrons, but “when Random House increased its e-book prices by 100 percent to 200 percent” the “dialogue between the publishing and library communities concerning ebooks…moved to a front burner,” the report says. 


The report also notes that four of the big-six publishers offer no e-books to libraries at all. “No one is quite sure where the ebook–library relationship is going,” the report says.


Penguin, for example ,no longer provide e-books or digital audiobooks to libraries. 


In November 2011 when Penguin stopped offering new e-books to libraries, it also stopped offering e-books to library patrons using Kindles.


A few days later Penguin restored Kindle access, but also noted, “Penguin informed suppliers to libraries that it expected them to abide by existing agreements to offer older digital titles to libraries only if those files were held behind the firewalls of the suppliers.” 

Who would doubt that Penguin business interests with Amazon have much to do with that decision?


Such conflict is par for the course in virtually all business ecosystems affected by mobility. And that increasingly seems to include retail commerce, online commerce, banking, payments, online and mobile advertising, communications, music, video, movies, books and other printed media products. 


Changes in "who" makes money, "how" therefore now affect many products, processes and services that touch any consumer or business in the ordinary conduct of life, in other words.

Consumers Love Google, Even if Some Pundits Possibly Don't

Google and Apple are highly regarded by consumers, even if some pundits and technologists sometimes discount Google, a new ABC News/Washington Post poll indicates.


About 82 percent of Americans express a favorable opinion of Google overall, while 53 percent have a “strongly” favorable opinion.


About 74 percent of respondents view Apple favorably.  

What Impact Will Declining Smart Phone Subsidies Have on Penetration, Innovation?

It is a fundamental economics insight that when suppliers raise the price of any product, demand drops.


So it takes no particular insight to predict that if mobile service providers start reducing the subsidies they now offer to spur smart phone adoption, adoption rates will fall. And there is growing opinion that smart phone subsidies in the U.S. market are about to become less generous. 


Analyst Walter Piecyk of BTIG, in fact, already has cut his earnings projections for Apple, on the assumption that lower subsidies will lead directly to lower sales of Apple iPhones. The same will be true for suppliers of other devices that also are subsidized less.


 The subsidies can't last, he argues, in part because the ever-growing cost of the devices is putting a strain on operating revenue. 

In addition to fewer sales of smart phones, any abandonment of subsidies would slow replacement rates and arguably slow the rate of innovation for any application or feature that requires new handset functionality.


Any such change also would provide benefits for providers of lower-cost smart phones, as well. On the other hand, an end to subsidies would likely also mean an end to multi-year contracts, which would tend to increase customer churn. 


Hand set subsidies are a double-edged sword, in other words. As much as service providers would like not to provide the subsidies, there are negatives to be faced, including higher churn, slower smart phone adoption and a shift of sales toward less-expensive models. 

Global LTE: by 2016, Growth Will be in Asia-Pacific Region

Though the United States has dominated the Long Term Evolution market so far, other regions are poised to boom over the next five years, according to Signals and Systems Telecom. 


According to Signals and Systems Telecom, the Western Europe and Asia Pacific Regions will see the highest growth rates during the next five years.

Why There is No Need for "Interactive TV"

An overwhelming number of respondents surveyed by Nielsen suggests the reason why "interactive TV" not only has failed, but likely has little future. 


Connected device owners in the United States, United Kingdom, Germany and Italy overwhelming use their smart phones and tablets devices for interactions and multitasking while watching television.


In the United States, 88 percent of tablet owners and 86 percent of smart phone owners said they used their device while watching TV at least once during a 30-day period, according to Nielsen.


For 45 percent of tablet-owning Americans, using their device while watching TV was a daily event, with 26 percent noting simultaneous TV and tablet use several times a day. U.S. smartphone owners showed similar dual usage of TV with their phones, with 41 percent saying their use their phone at least once a day while tuned in.

Microsoft Buys 800 Patents from AOL, Issue is Why

Mircrosoft is buying 800 patents from AOL, covering online communications, browsers, search engines, multimedia, network routing, security and voice. The obvious question is "why," and less "why now?" 


The "why now" is simply that AOL was going to sell the patents to somebody, and Microsoft concluded that is was a reasonable way to spend about a billion dollars. The "why" isn't so clear, yet. 


One would have to assume Microsoft expects to be in some businesses, or to have a bigger role in some businesses, where such patents will ward off attacks based on patent infringement. In other cases firms also use patent portfolios to gain cross licensing of patents from other competitors. 


The point is that Microsoft would not be spending about a billion dollars without expecting some business use of the patents. 


The deal also includes Microsoft licensing of about 300 additional patents from AOL. Those presumably include patents related to advertising, search, content management, social networking and mapping. 


AOL has a license to use technologies covered by the 800 patents sold to Microsoft, as well. About 140 of the patents relate to online communications, with the majority of these patents focused on instant messaging and email technology.  These patents cover many features that are now standard in online chat, mobile messaging, and social in-network messaging applications.
  
For example, AOL has  patents covering contact list management, status indicators and visibility settings, group messaging, the use of avatars and icons associated with chat profiles, as well as interoperability technology between various online messaging platforms. 


Regarding email technology, AOL has a number of patents related to spam filtering, group message opt-in systems, and unified messaging (i.e., conversion of email to text and audio).  AOL has also patented technologies for cross-language communications, both via email and online messaging. AOL owns 81 patents related to browser technologies and user interfaces. 


 

"Why" an iPad "Nano?"

There are several questions that have to be answered, from Apple's perspective, about why it would want to release a smaller iPad, such as the rumored eight-inch device. 


Even if there is a perceived market,  there are some technology questions, such as battery life, or the ability to support Retina display. Perhaps the biggest issue is whether Apple believes there is a substantial incremental opportunity, though. 


The precedent is the iPod, of course. For all rival suppliers, it will matter greatly whether the tablet market develops on the iPod or iPhone model. If the former, Apple "owns" and "defines" the market. In the latter case, there is room for other suppliers. 


For everybody but Apple, the issue is whether competing with Apple is actually feasible, not in the sense of ability to produce and sell a tablet, but whether any other supplier will be able to displace Apple in the "tablet" market in terms of mind share or market share. 


Today, Apple has about 78 percent market share in the MP3 market.