Geographic

T-Mobile Web’n’Walk USB Modem
If you’re needing Internet access for your laptop when you’re out and about and the Wi-Fi’s nowhere to be seen, – and you haven’t been lucky enough to have been using the version that Vodafone has been exclusively offering for nearly a year – you might be interested in the T-Mobile web’n’walk USB modem.
As its name suggests, this wee little fella made by Huawei plugs into a USB port on your laptop, with a once-only auto-installation program getting you up and running in minutes. Two USB cables are included.
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10 July, 2007
Last.fm Signs Up With Sony BMG Music
The online music social network Last.fm have announced a global deal with SONY BMG Music Entertainment to make the record company giants vast catalogue of tracks available for streaming.
The deal will make Sony’s bumper-sized music catalogue available to the 20 million users of Last.fm’s online radio streaming service, with the option to buy the tracks via the music downloads store, 7digital, or through Amazon.
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10 July, 2007
Virgin Media Sign Mobile/Broadband UK Football Deal
As we all know Virgin Media and Sky TV have been having a little spat.
Now Virgin Media are taking a leaf out of Sky’s book and signing up rights to distribute sports.
The Football League have signed a deal that will see the Coca-Cola Football League matches will be delivered to Virgin Media’s broadband and mobile phone platforms for the first time.
Starting on 11 August and running for two seasons, the highlights of league 1 and 2 will be available to watch on-demand for up to one week after transmission.
No surprisingly, Malcolm Wall, chief executive officer of content at Virgin Media, earnestly sang, “We’re committed to investing in great content for our customers and this new partnership will give football fans a genuinely value-added service.”
The Championship, as it’s abbreviated to by those who follow it, is the step down from the UK Premier League, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t a load of cash involved with it. Deloitte are on record as finding that, in 2004-05, it was the richest non-top flight football division in the world.
Why?
No matter how poor, or not, football teams are, they do a very loyal fans, so much so that making their matches available on on-demand may encourage people to change their mobile or broadband provider. Or that’s the bet that Virgin Media are making.
Commercial terms were not disclosed.
6 July, 2007
Fake iPhone From China: Video
Darn clever those Chinese. Not only have they copied the iPhone, but they went and did it _before_ the iPhone was released – this video dates back to 10 May.
The branding it a little confused, sometimes tPhone, other iPhone, but it looks very similar, even down to the much-publicised ‘green balls’ wallpaper.
Now the actual iPhone is out, we can only imagine the quality of the copies that are being bundled into boxes and making their way over to all corners of the world.
With the change of approach to IPR from the Chinese government – they now see their future as a creative nation, so want to protect ideas – copy products like this will be a thing of the past.
Video after the jump
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6 July, 2007
4 Digital Group Gain 10 National DAB Licenses
The champagne corks have been popping in the 4 digital group offices this morning, as they hear from Ofcom that they have been successful in their bid to gain 10 national DAB radio licences.
The group, lead by UK TV network Channel 4, has the ambition of providing a serious competitor to the dominant national BBC radio services, to provide a “distinctive and different experience of radio.”
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6 July, 2007
MizPee For When You’ve Got To Go On The Go
Proof indeed that there’s still room for daft online services that you never thought you were needed, MizPee is a website for directing mobile users to the nearest khazi.
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5 July, 2007
T-Mobile iPhone European Deal? Official “No Comment”
Where does the insanity of the iPhone coverage go now? The US hoopla is over, so the media needs another hook, and today sees it heighten – the battle of the European operators to have the exclusive for the iPhone.
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4 July, 2007
Wii Sales 6:1 Against PS3 In Japan
Further news of the power of the Wii arrives, with Japanese data service Famitsu Marketing Data Service reporting that the Nintendo Wii outsold the PS3 again in Japan.
June saw another factor of one being added to the previous two months of PS3 thrashing with Wii outselling it 6.5 to one. The figure quoted are 270,974 Wiis against 41,628 PS3s.
April saw a ratio 4:1 of Wii to PS3 sales and May a 5:1.
Clearly these latest figures are just one territory, but we’ve been pointing out how much more popular the Wii was with the public since before its UK launch.
The Xbox 360 is relatively no where with a tiny 17,616 being sold, putting the Wii outselling it at 15 to one!
4 July, 2007
iPhone Give 55% Margin Say iSupply: Apple Share Rise
iSupply did one of their usual Teardown’s on the Apple iPhone, estimating that they are on a 55% margin for each 8Gb phone that they sell.
The Teardown involves taking new consumer devices apart, as soon as they’re released, and working out how much they cost manufacturers to build and therefore how much profit – or loss – the sale of each device brings.
Such is the influence of iSupply these days, the news of the very healthy margin appeared to cause a rise in the value of Apple’s shares, up 4.9%.
The bill of materials and manufacturing costs totalled $265.83, with the iPhone selling for $599.
Given the close-to-lunatic media coverage (you’ll have noticed that we’ve been rather restrained, if not a little dismissive of the madness), we suspect that there’ll be triples all around at Apple’s 1 Infinite Loop office and some big celebrations over the 4 July holiday in the US today.
iSupply
4 July, 2007
T-Mobile Launches Mobile Jukebox
T-Mobile has announced their new Mobile Jukebox service which lets roaming customers download purchased DRM-protected tracks to both their phones and their PCs for a quid a pop.
The service uses a mobile application which is available for downloading to a selected range of 32 T-Mobile phones, including 3G, GPRS, contract and prepay handsets.
Users can rummage freely through the 500,000+ track output of major record labels like Universal Music Group, Sony BMG Music, EMI Music and Warner Music International, and independent labels like V2 and Beggars Banquet.
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4 July, 2007