This graphic from VentureBeat puts a face on the connected future envisioned by Korean electronics giant Samsung. Believable? Given that there are 10-times as many mobile devices as there are desktop devices, it just might be.
Of course manufacturers like Samsung, Motorola, Nokie, and Apple are betting on the mix of devices and operating systems to favor them. The rest of us are just trying to avoid buying the next BetaMax player.
Today Richard McManus of the influential blog RreadWriteWeb (RWW) asked if we are in the midst of a technology bubble like the one that arose in the early 2000′s as copious sums of money chased the illusive dot-com IPO, driving prices ever higher in a cyclone of speculation. When that bubble burst it left thousands of businesses in ruins, threw tens of thousands of people out of work, and caused hundreds of millions of dollars to evaporate. Equally influential blogger Om Malike weighs in here on his blog GigaOm; and I’ve read several pieces around the Web in which authors are cock-sure that we are not in a bubble.
So, are you thinking what I’m thinking? That the the financial crapfest of the last few years makes the fallout from the dot-com hysteria look like a week in Cabo? Ole! As for me, I say we’re in the midst of an unustainable bubble that will hurt the economy even more.
Unless I can make some money speculating on up-and-coming companies. If that happens I’m sure we’re experiencing a true economic force for good.
Thinking of upgrading to one of those dynamite new 4G smart-phones? Well too bad. The International Telecommunications Union (ITU) says 4G doesn’t exist yet in the U.S. So why does every cellular carrier claim to be able to offer “4G” or “4G speed” (which is like offering processed pasteurized cheese-like substance instead of, you know, cheese)? The answer: it turns out that lying to millions of cellphone users is good marketing. The reality behind the hype is explained succinctly in this article from ZD NET, which explains that in order to reach the coveted 4G level, AT&T and T-Mobile just said they were. Way to display integrity, telecom industry. You’ve really earned my loyalty.
But since “real” 4G networks built for data and voice traffic won’t be here for nearly a decade, you might as well go ahead and get that upgrade. Just don’t believe the hype.
I’m a big believer in mobile: the mobile Web, mobile ads, etc. Mobile means activity and action: somebody doing something useful. It means commerce.
So I’m very gratified that my law firm has been selected to participate in the Google Mobile Ad beta trial.
If your business uses mobile ads, let me know or comment under this post. We should share experiences.
The mobile ads deployed by Google will reference my current listing on Google Local - now known as Google Places:
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