Android Devices Web Hogs?! Sprint CEO Said So

According to Sprint's CEO, Dan Hesse, the iPhones are less of a Web hog than Androids.  Does that make sense?  I always thought it was the other way around.  In fact, he said the iPhone is 50% more efficient than the Androids.

I am a bit surprised by this but Hess did give some reasons for this.  He attributed this to Apple's stricter app development policies - like accessing the network less frequent where as Android apps have a wider and freer playing field for developers.

Furthermore, he attributed the iPhone's better ability to offload data to WiFi hotspots better than its Android competitors.

What is interesting is that this could end up being a big deal when companies negotiate with carriers over cost of acquiring a smartphone.

At the same time, we have to wonder if this is a ploy being used by Sprint to bring to the negotiation tables in future smartphone talks with device makers.

Bloomberg TV+ Allows 24 Hour Streaming - Nice!

This is why it's so exciting to be alive now.  Those of you younglings who were not around or aware of the computer revolution in the early 1980s are now a part of another revolution - mobile computing coming of age. Not quite but here is another sign that we're trying to get to mobile nirvana as Steve Jobs envisioned it.  


Bloomberg TV+ is a new app for the iPad that allows users access to Bloomberg TV for free with 24 hour streaming.  I can tell you this already.  My service provider ain't gonna be too happy.  

I'm being lazy so I lifted some pertinent info from the iTunes page for the app:


Watch:
- Live TV: Bloomberg Television Live 24-hours a day
- Featured videos: The biggest business stories right now prioritized by importance
- Last 24 Hours: All the important business stories from the last 24 hours
- Exclusive interviews with the most influential people in business, finance and investment
- Original content produced for mobile
- Bloomberg's critically acclaimed shows on demand

Plus:
- Download videos for offline viewing
- Get extra content on people, companies and topics while watching
- Search our extensive library of video content
- Set and receive reminders for upcoming programs on Live TV
- Share videos via Twitter, Facebook and Email
- Customize your interactive scrolling ticker and get the latest news and market information
- Enjoy all of this in portrait or landscape; fully optimized for both

Who needs CNBC when you've got Bloomberg that provides more detailed and analytic news that isn't filled with analysts who rather be rock stars than financial stars?


There is no doubt that BTV for the iPad will be a huge success.  A vast majority of financial firms and Fortune 500 companies already deploy the iPads as a part of their IT arsenal.  They'll want this on the go.  CNBC charges for their live video and I'm not aware their iOS apps allow streaming.


Furthermore, other studios and cable channels should watch this closely.  The mobile market is a revenue stream that they cannot forgo.  I think Bloomberg already saw the cord-cutting as inevitable and going mobile now and ahead of everyone else is the way to go.

Mobile: Nintendo To Report More Over $1 Billion In Loss For First Half of Year

Nintendo is in a pretty dark place right now.  Sales are not going well and its products are no longer competitive.  It all started a few years ago when mobile gaming changed.  And certainly, I did not expect this.  Neither did the powers-that-be at Nintendo Japan.

And this was lead off by the iPod touch and now the weight whole iOS ecosystem is crashing down on Mario, Pikachu, and company's heads.

More at Greenjava.

Windows Phone: Though Not Impressive, There Is Plenty To Be Excited About Nokia's First Windows Phone - Lumia 800

There is plenty to be excited about with Nokia's first Windows Phone device.  Now, we have to be careful about this because it's not necessarily a winner in terms of sales because it's not on sale yet.  And when it does go on sale, it's limited to a few European markets.

Google To Original Nexus One Users: Thanks For Buying But No Ice Cream Sandwich (Android 4) For You

I don’t know about you but I find what Google is telling Nexus One users totally unacceptable.  If you’re using Nexus One, you’re stuck on Android 2.x.  You’re done.  Finished.  Enjoy it as it is because your device will not be getting Ice Cream Sandwich.

If you want it, fork over some more money for the Galaxy Nexus. Ordinarily, I would agree except for a couple of things.  One, the Nexus One is still being sold on the market.  So, basically, people who bought into it will never be able to enjoy the latest and greatest features.

Second, why won’t it work with Android 4?  Is this some sort of a revenue grab by Google?  It totally doesn’t make a whole lot of sense.

Just to put some of this into perspective, the Nexus One came out on January 5, 2010 and it was rolled out months after that over the world.  You’re got a device that is less than two years old.  Less than a year old for some users.  And you’re telling me it’s specs are so bad that it cannot run Android 4?

The Nexus One did not go on sale in Europe until April of 2010 and around July of 2010 in Asia.

Now, the iPhone 3GS is upgradeable and running plenty fine with Apple’s latest OS update, iOS 5.  It was released back in June of 2009.  Now, people will argue that the 3GS and even the iPhone 4 are not benefiting from features like Siri that the iPhone 4S has.  Granted.  Absolutely.  But other improvements like faster browsing and notifications are still available to iPhone 3GS users.  Wouldn’t surprise me if iOS 6 will still work with the 3GS since Apple is still selling this legacy mobile device.

I don’t know if you guys agree with me on this but like the 3GS, the Nexus has plenty of mileage left with the hardware that it has.  I know the CM guys will step and make sure the Nexus One is taken care of.  Nevertheless, Google just screwed over millions of Nexus users royally.

I think mobile platform providers should provide upgrades for up to two years at the minimum.

More at TmoNews.

What Does Record Blackberry Trade-Ins Mean?

According to Gazelle (Electronista), buyer of used gadgets and electronics, reported a record number of Blackberries were traded in last week.  And this was a record that broke another record number of Blackberry trade-in a month ago.

Amazon Had A Bad Quarter; Could Get Worse Long Term Once Apple Gets Into Payments

You know what's interesting about Apple's 30% cut from apps to movies to books?  It's 30% of someone else's money that it is taking for itself.  Now, Apple has said that the 30% take it's enforcing allows it only to operate its stores at around break-even point.  Still, as more people go digital, all that money is going to add up.

And this is even before Apple, with access to around two hundred million credit cards, begins to get into the mobile and online payment business.  I get the feeling that Apple isn't looking at credit card like transaction fees.  I think Apple wants a piece of the profit as well. Apple could leverage its considerable knowledge of its customers and move into deals with retailers in ways unlike anything we've seen before.

And Amazon, which has just reported its own Netflix-like earnings and missing expectations, expectations that were not unreasonable like those imposed on Apple, needs to be aware of that.

Apple will be working out deals with retailers not unlike one like its got for its app developers and the app store where it'll take a percentage of the transaction.  Probably not 30% but it'll want something in return.

Thus, it's unlikely that Amazon could come to some sort of a deal with Apple because of its already thin margins.  And with Apple and Amazon competing in the tablet and digital sales, Apple could possibly steal customers away from Amazon in areas where it will hurt Amazon the most.

How?  Essentially now, Amazon is uses profits from other areas to subsidize its digital content expansions and efforts.  Amazon is losing money on each of the Kindle Fire it sells, hoping to make it back through digital sales. At the same time, sales from other departments are allowing Amazon to make content deals like TV and movies for streaming or sale.

Once Apple gets into the payment business, one of two things or both will happen.  Apple will steal sales from Amazon because Apple will shepherd its iTunes users to its partners or Amazon will play ball and give Apple money.  And either way or both, Apple will wants its pound of fresh from Amazon.

Apple has built a large platform and with it a very lucrative ecosystem unlike anything we've ever seen before.  Even with Microsoft's desktop dominance, it is not able to extract the kind of money that Apple has been able to or will be able to.

The only way Amazon can escape this fate is if there is a wholesale departure of iOS and Mac users over to its Kindle platform.  Right now, Jeff Bezos and company, will need to convince investors that sacrificing  hundreds of millions, possibly billions today as it invests and builds out its digital future will bring in a lot of profits later on.

Of course, Bezos did it once just after the dot.com bubble in early 2000.  This time, Amazon will need to do it again against a vastly complicated and competitive Apple with $86 billion in the bank.