TIN CAN BLOG

I had the opportunity to attend 3G Americas forum on wireless broadband in DC today.  3G Americas is an organization comprised of telecommunications service providers and manufacturers charged with promoting GSM around the world.  They have hosted a few forums in the District of Communications, and I always find their briefings quite informative.  Today was no different with FCC Commissioner Meredith Baker, T-Mobile’s Neville Ray, Nokia-Siemens Networks Sue Spradley, and Ericsson’s Erik Ekudden providing their perspectives on the mobile broadband evolution and revolution.

Comissioner Baker kicked off the conversation and set the tone for the forum as she proclaimed: “I’m here because wireless is so important.”  She discussed the meteoric rise of mobile and how it will be a key component of the overall broadband plan that will be submitted to Congress in February 2010.  Commissioner Baker is excited about the explosion of wireless data but very concerned about “the spectrum pipeline drying up.”  She hopes that the Commission can identify additional spectrum for carriers but also do it in a timely fashion.  She noted how long it took to free up spectrum for cellular, PCS, as well as the DTV spectrum.  Overall, she wants to mitigate uncertainty in regulatory policies and acknowledged that such uncertainty can lead to higher prices for consumers – “this is something we can ill-afford in building a connected nation.”

Nevile Ray, Senior Vice President, Engineering & Operations (T-Mobile), provided the carrier perspective.  He echoed Ms. Baker’s comments regarding the explosion of data and was emphatic that operators are “not standing still.”  In T-Mobile’s case, they are evolving to HSPA+ as an interim step to LTE.  Mr. Ray believes that increasing spectral efficiency, increasing cell site deployments, and more spectrum will be critical to meeting the mobile broadband explosion.

Sue Spradley, President, North America (Nokia Siemens Networks), talked about the business challenges.  Ms. Spradley stated that “the real challenge as usuage goes up is revenue per user doesn’t necessarily go up” and that the whole “ecosystem is under tremendous pressure.”  She cited that the time it to for GSM to evolve to HSPA was long and that the evolution to LTE will “happen quicker because the ecosystem demand is driving it.”  She also urged regulators to take a “balanced approach” with “no sweeping regulatory changes” because it will cause the industry to “stop and wait.”

Erik Ekudden, Head of Technology and Industry (Ericsson), beat the drum for more spectrum and global harmonization in band allocations.  Mr. Ekudden predicts “everyone on Earth is going to want mobile broadband” and the ITU states that industry will need a minimum of 1,280 MHz by the year 2020.  

Overall, I believe the forum could best be summed up by the response to a question regarding cell site density and whether it could make up the difference for a lack of spectrum as consumers continue to utilize wireless broadband.  The panel addressed it by saying that reuse would only mitigate the problem but Ms. Spradley quoted Wayne Gretzky and said “a good hockey player plays where the puck is and a great hockey player plays where the puck is going.”  Thus, industry and regulators in tackling these issues need to plan where the “puck is going.” 

I had the opportunity to attend 3G Americas forum on wireless broadband in DC today.  3G Americas is an organization comprised of telecommunications service providers and manufacturers charged with promoting GSM around the world.  They have hosted a few forums in the District of Communications, and I always find their briefings quite informative.  Today was no different with FCC Commissioner Meredith Baker, T-Mobile’s Neville Ray, Nokia-Siemens Networks Sue Spradley, and Ericsson’s Erik Ekudden providing their perspectives on the mobile broadband evolution and revolution.

Comissioner Baker kicked off the conversation and set the tone for the forum as she proclaimed: "I’m here because wireless is so important."  She discussed the meteoric rise of mobile and how it will be a key component of the overall broadband plan that will be submitted to Congress in February 2010.  Commissioner Baker is excited about the explosion of wireless data but very concerned about "the spectrum pipeline drying up."  She hopes that the Commission can identify additional spectrum for carriers but also do it in a timely fashion.  She noted how long it took to free up spectrum for cellular, PCS, as well as the DTV spectrum.  Overall, she wants to mitigate uncertainty in regulatory policies and acknowledged that such uncertainty can lead to higher prices for consumers – "this is something we can ill-afford in building a connected nation."

Nevile Ray, Senior Vice President, Engineering & Operations (T-Mobile), provided the carrier perspective.  He echoed Ms. Baker’s comments regarding the explosion of data and was emphatic that operators are "not standing still."  In T-Mobile’s case, they are evolving to HSPA+ as an interim step to LTE.  Mr. Ray believes that increasing spectral efficiency, increasing cell site deployments, and more spectrum will be critical to meeting the mobile broadband explosion.

Sue Spradley, President, North America (Nokia Siemens Networks), talked about the business challenges.  Ms. Spradley stated that "the real challenge as usuage goes up is revenue per user doesn’t necessarily go up" and that the whole "ecosystem is under tremendous pressure."  She cited that the time it to for GSM to evolve to HSPA was long and that the evolution to LTE will "happen quicker because the ecosystem demand is driving it."  She also urged regulators to take a "balanced approach" with "no sweeping regulatory changes" because it will cause the industry to "stop and wait."

Erik Ekudden, Head of Technology and Industry (Ericsson), beat the drum for more spectrum and global harmonization in band allocations.  Mr. Ekudden predicts "everyone on Earth is going to want mobile broadband" and the ITU states that industry will need a minimum of 1,280 MHz by the year 2020.  

Overall, I believe the forum could best be summed up by the response to a question regarding cell site density and whether it could make up the difference for a lack of spectrum as consumers continue to utilize wireless broadband.  The panel addressed it by saying that reuse would only mitigate the problem but Ms. Spradley quoted Wayne Gretzky and said "a good hockey player plays where the puck is and a great hockey player plays where the puck is going."  Thus, industry and regulators in tackling these issues need to plan where the "puck is going." 

It is hard to believe but another CTIA IT & Entertainment Show is on the horizon!  This year’s show looks to explore "Mobile Business" and how wireless is transforming the world.  I’m personally looking forward to hearing FCC Chairman Genachowski’s keynote speech on Wednesday and participating in CTIA’s Social Networking panel later that day.  

With regard to Chairman Genachowski’s speech, this will be his first big industry keynote and it comes a few weeks before he plans to introduce a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) on Open Internet Regulations which would affect the wireless industry.  Mobile Future Chairman Jonathan Spalter provided his thoughts on the potential regulations last week.  Accordingly, it will be interesting to see if he adds any new insights or perspectives before the October FCC Open Meeting on October 22.

As futurists know, I’m a big believer in the power of social networks and how they have changed the communications landscape forever.  With that in mind, our panel will further focus on this topic and whether Social Networking is just "entertainment" or an "essential" service for consumers and businesses.

Hope to see YOU in SD and please swing by the Mobile Future booth (#218) near the Developer’s Pavilion!

I had the opportunity to attend Digiday Mobile last week in New York and check out the latest in the mobile marketing space.  There’s no question that this is a hot and growing sector.  With 127 million mobile users subscribing to the mobile web, it’s clear that mobile outreach should be a part of every great marketing program.

With that in mind, one of the most creative apps that I saw was one developed for Sherwin-Williams by the folks at AdMob.  Here’s how it works: say you really like the paint color you see at a local restaurant, office, or museum and want to consider using it in your own home.  Simply use your iPhone to take a picture of the color, and the Sherwin-Williams ColorSnap application will give you the code for the paint that you liked (and provide some similar color options).  But it doesn’t stop there.  If you enter your zip code, the app shows you the nearest stores where you can purchase your paint of choice!

This application has been a great success for Sherwin-Williams.  According to data provided by AdMob, the campaign ran for two days and received 11.9 million impressions and 129,000 clicks, accounting for a 1.08 click-through rate.  The application’s daily downloads went from Number 70 to Number 18 in the App Store during the campaign.

Mobile marketing, when done well, can bring the right mix of satisfying the consumer and helping the organization that put the time, energy, and creativity into the effort.

It was not too long ago that the hottest phone on the market was the Motorola RAZR.  As you may recall, it was very difficult to get your hands on one.  I remember how hard it was to get a pink one for my girlfriend when they launched that version around Valentine’s Day (2006).  In any case, those were the good old days at Moto and since that time the company has struggled to capture the hearts and minds of consumers.  They’re back!

Yesterday, at MOBILIZE, Motorola announced their comeback phone — The Cliq.  The Cliq looks to ride the wave of the mobile-social revolution and is even marketing itself as "The First Phone With Social Skills."  The Cliq looks to provide users with all of their various updates in a single stream (without logins to the various networks).  Check-out the video below and you can get a feel for Moto’s new device!

Om Malik recently stated that he was doing more writing on the mobile internet because "it’s one of the most dynamic parts of today’s technology ecosystem."  I couldn’t agree more. As you know, Apps and the various venues you can shop for them are a hot topic.  Apple’s App Store gets most of the coverage.  However, they have been open for business longer than BlackBerry’s App World and Google’s Android Market.  With regard to the Android Market, it is getting some new tweaks and will have some new features for consumers to enjoy.  TechCrunch covered some of the "Market modifcations" and the video below should provide you with some additional insights.Overall, this is a great time for wireless consumers.  The ability to choose how to personalize YOUR phone has never been better!

Om Malik recently stated that he was doing more writing on the mobile internet because "it’s one of the most dynamic parts of today’s technology ecosystem."  I couldn’t agree more. As you know, Apps and the various venues you can shop for them are a hot topic.  Apple’s App Store gets most of the coverage.  However, they have been open for business longer than BlackBerry’s App World and Google’s Android Market.  With regard to the Android Market, it is getting some new tweaks and will have some new features for consumers to enjoy.  TechCrunch covered some of the "Market modifcations" and the video below should provide you with some additional insights.Overall, this is a great time for wireless consumers.  The ability to choose how to personalize YOUR phone has never been better!

If you are keeping up to speed in the mobile-social space, which is not an easy task, you probably noticed a lot of chatter in the blogosphere and on twitter this week about foursquare.  It had nothing to do with a big media push or new product announcements by the company.  The catalyst for all the buzz was Ashton Kutcher joining the fun as its latest player!

We covered foursquare back in March, as it was one of the hottest technologies being discussed and utilized at SXSWi.  Once again, foursquare is an application that "not only helps you keep up with your friends, but exposes you to new things and challenges you to explore cities in different ways."  foursquare is succeeding in the location-based social networking space by being a game.  For instance, when you check-in from a cafe, museum, or restaurant you can find out which of your friends are nearby. You can also receive "badges" which are rewards for doing "interesting things."  On that note, if you are awarded "Mayor" status, you have checked-in to a venue more often than anyone else.  However, your reign as Mayor can be "stolen" once someone else trumps your number of checks-ins.

I’ve enjoyed watching foursquare organically grow over the last few months.  It is clearly the "Mayor" in the hot location-based social networking race and should get an additional bounce as other mobile-social companies have enjoyed with Ashton playing along. 

If you are keeping up to speed in the mobile-social space, which is not an easy task, you probably noticed a lot of chatter in the blogosphere and on twitter this week about foursquare.  It had nothing to do with a big media push or new product announcements by the company.  The catalyst for all the buzz was Ashton Kutcher joining the fun as its latest player!

We covered foursquare back in March, as it was one of the hottest technologies being discussed and utilized at SXSWi.  Once again, foursquare is an application that "not only helps you keep up with your friends, but exposes you to new things and challenges you to explore cities in different ways."  foursquare is succeeding in the location-based social networking space by being a game.  For instance, when you check-in from a cafe, museum, or restaurant you can find out which of your friends are nearby. You can also receive "badges" which are rewards for doing "interesting things."  On that note, if you are awarded "Mayor" status, you have checked-in to a venue more often than anyone else.  However, your reign as Mayor can be "stolen" once someone else trumps your number of checks-ins.

I’ve enjoyed watching foursquare organically grow over the last few months.  It is clearly the "Mayor" in the hot location-based social networking race and should get an additional bounce as other mobile-social companies have enjoyed with Ashton playing along. 

Thirteen. That’s the current number, as of yesterday, of fraudulent letters sent to members of Congress in an attempt to discourage support for a key energy and climate bill.

The letters were handiwork of a DC-based consulting firm, Bonner & Associates, which specializes in “innovative grassroots campaigns.” In case you’ve missed the string of players involved: the letters were manufactured by Bonner & Associates as part of their work for the Hawthorne Group.  It turns out the Hawthorne Group was working for American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity (ACCCE), an opponent of the climate legislation.

Bonner & Associates’ President Jack Bonner has blamed the forged letters on a recently-fired “bad employee” and proclaimed outrage.

He’s not the only one.

More than a dozen “senders,” organizational leaders whose identities were used without their knowledge or consent, are pretty upset, too.  So is Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA), co-author of the legislation at the center of the storm.  Markey has launched an investigation into the forged letters. (Though thirteen fraudulent letters have been identified, dozens more await verification.)

However, the most audacious expression of outrage came from a small band of environmental activists known as the “Action Factory.”

These brazen demonstrators stood, nearly naked, outside the Bonner & Associates office building on a recent afternoon. Wearing little more than handmade signs of protest, they took to the street to draw attention to a despicable PR tactic known as “astroturfing.”

What is astroturfing?

It’s a PR tool most commonly employed by the lazy, unskilled, and unconnected. It’s also an underhanded and unethical practice.

According to Wikipedia: “In American politics and advertising, the term astroturfing describes formal public relations projects which deliberately seek to engineer the impression of spontaneous, grassroots behavior. The goal is the appearance of independent public reaction to a politician, political group, product, service, event, or similar entities by centrally orchestrating the behavior of many diverse and geographically distributed individuals.”

The basic idea is to manufacture the appearance that a grassroots movement is taking shape. Some resort to paying troops to generate propaganda. Even more disgraceful, some simply invent these troops or enlist them without asking permission.

Bonner & Associates is not the firm to resort to astroturfing, just the latest to learn the key lesson of this tacit: In an effort to gain ground, astroturfing can result in considerable and devastating loss. In this case, some have lost jobs (the “bad” employee), others have lost their cools (the many “outraged” participants), and a bold few have lost their shirts (the Action Factory team).

Most concerning of all, however, is the loss of credibility that astroturfing inflicts on the entire PR industry — especially when most communications professionals conduct their outreach, grassroots organizing, and coalition building activities with integrity.

As the count of forged letters grows and news about this astroturfing incident continues, Bonner & Associates is not the only firm affected. Ethical communications shops and legitimate grassroots advocacy organizations also suffer.

Winning public relations fight is no easy task, but adhering to the rules of battle is a critical professional responsibility. Astroturfing undermines both the valuable work of the public relations industry and the most vital tenants of our democracy — open and honest pubic debate.

In launching his investigation, Chairman Markey stated,  “Democratic debate has been deceptively debased by fake facts and harsh rhetoric. We must return to an honest discussion of the issues, and ensure that this sort of campaign does not further poison the well of trustworthy debate.”

Let’s hope his words –  not the threat of his investigations — can inspire an end to astroturfing.

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