Windows Challenging RIM in Europe

Windows now is challenging RIM for third place in smart phone share in Europe, as low-end devices such as the Nokia 610 drive sales in key markets such as Italy and France, according to Kantar Worldpanel ComTech.

“Lower end devices are driving sales of the platform as consumers seek value, resulting in growth rates of 6.6 percent in Italy, 3.5 percent in France and 2.3 percent in Great Britain, Dominic Sunnebo, global consumer insight director at Kantar Worldpanel ComTech, says. 

In Italy, Windows now holds a double-digit market share, 10.4 percent, a first in the European market,” Kantar Worldpanel reports. 

2% of India Mobile Subscribers Use 3G

Today just two percent of India’s 971 million mobile phone users are using 3G, Maravedis Rethink says.

Despite that, new Long Term Evolution networks are coming as well. Ironically, 4G introduction might be the trigger for 3G adoption. 

By the end of 2013 there will be 74 million 3G users, up from 18 million now, and Maravdeis expects active 3G subscribers in India to reach 371 million by the end of 2017.

How Enterprise Workers Communicate

Email remains mission critical for enterprise workers, even if email is considered outmoded by Millennials. On a daily basis, globally, an order of magnitude more emails are sent than telephone calls made, according to analysts at Gartner. 

Corporate Email: 82.7 billion
Corporate Telephone Calls: 5.4 billion ( over public PSTN and Cellular networks*)
Instant Messages: 26 billion

Businesses Think Cloud Computing is "Immature"

Cloud computing remains a developing science, a new survey has found. The poll included responses from 250 participants in nearly 50 countries, representing a global group of cloud users, providers, consultants and integrators from 15 industry segments 

Nearly one in four (24 percent) survey respondents indicated that there is no or limited levels of innovation in the market. Nearly all respondents said they felt cloud computing was far from reaching maturity, with only software as a service (SaaS) cautiously placed at the earliest state of growth level.

Among the top problems are:

1. Government regulations keeping pace with the market (1.80)
2. Exit strategies (1.88)
3. International data privacy (1.90)
4. Legal issues (2.15)
5. Contract lock in (2.18)
6. Data ownership and custodian responsibilities (2.18)
7. Longevity of suppliers (2.20)
8. Integration of cloud with internal systems (2.23)
9. Credibility of suppliers (2.30)
10. Testing and assurance (2.30) 

Mobile Network Optimization Can Increase Capacity 43%

[Source: Dialogic.com]

FreedomPop Launches 4G Service in Public Beta

FreedomPop, the U.S. 4G provider using a "freemium" pricing model, has launched its public beta offering, though initially only as a personal Wi-Fi hotspot service. The "sleeves" for iPhones and iPods will be available in a month or two. 

FreedomPop is offering 500 megabytes of free monthly 4G service provided by Clearwire on two devices, a wireless hotspot and a USB stick. Both devices will technically be available for free, though you’ll have to put down a refundable security deposit of $49 for the USB stick and $89 for the hotspot.

FreedomPop is also offering monthly plans starting at $17.99 for 2 gigabytes of data and $28.99 for 4GB.

Windows 8 Users Prefer Windows 7, Which is Trouble for Microsoft

More than half of early users of Windows 8 seem to prefer Windows 7, a poll finds. That could portend trouble for Microsoft. 

Forumswindows8, which claims to be the web's largest Windows 8 help and support forum, says it conducted a poll of 50,000 people using Windows 8 and found that 53 per cent voted Windows 7 as their favorite Windows operating system.

Windows 8 came second, with 25 per cent, polling just ahead of Windows XP on 20 per cent.

The new  Windows 8 user interface, sometimes referred to as "Metro" or "Modern,"  is one of the least appealing features, with just 22 per cent of those surveyed saying they liked Windows 8's touchy rectangle interface. 

Those results are not necessarily indicative of what the general base of users might think, but it isn't a good sign. Remember "Vista?" By most estimates, early Vista adoption by enterprises never exceeded 10 percent. Adoption later increased, most estimates would suggest. 

But Windows 7 arguably has been a more successful operating system than Vista ever was. So the issue is whether Windows 8 is more like Vista, or more like Windows 7, in terms of adoption. Visually, it is a sharp break.