I have spoken of IMS applications many times in the past on this blog.

While an IMS application is an anomaly(as are concepts like 3G applications, Mobile Youth, WiFi applications, Wimax applications etc) – i.e. all these concepts tie a service or a demographic to a specific network type – when in reality a service/ application/ demographic is network agnostic i.e. not tied to a network(by net neutrality principles/edge of network thinking)

Having said that ..

If we were to investigate an IMS application(or for that matter IMS/LTE/HSPA i.e. NGN networks per se), then it must uniquely leverage a network asset

Such applications:

a) Uniquely leverage the network

b) Are potentially QOS and Differential charging oriented

c) May be session based

d) May not be person to person – at least initially – (i.e. video calling or Push to talk needs same or similar infrastructure at both ends of the session – which is not easy to achieve)

e) Will compete with the Web – and that means value will be abstracted up the stack – hence an even greater emphasis on uniquely leveraging the network

f) May need to be mass market. While this is not a mandatory requirement – it is how the Operators think – rightly or wrongly – it remains a prevailing viewpoint in many circles that the application needs to be mass market

g) May not have the Client as a phone

This last bit is significant since some of the biggest success of Mobile data in recent times has not been ‘phones’ – rather they have been PCs.

So, if we accept that precedence – then here is a thought for an IMS (and also HSPA/LTE etc) – A multimedia version of Amazon Kindle

The existing Amazon Kindle is a book reader with a network connection. But it can easily evolve into a session based? – multimedia(audio/video etc) version of a ‘book’

If it does, then that becomes a true Multimedia application which leverages the network uniquely and it potentially fits in with all the criteria above especially a mass market device and can be seen to extend the HSPA model which is already proven to work ..

Thoughts?

Following Nokia, Apple and Google, Sony Ericsson also enters the appstore fray ..

David Cushman’s blog has more details

Now Sony-Ericsson’s X1 is entering the fray with a competition for individual developers – and it’s one that’ll showcase your work (the winning panels will be installed on the next batch of X1s to ship) and land the winner an X1 of their own (worth a fare chunk of cash in itself).

More details on fasterfuture blog

I have known Bryan Rieger for a while now and he is pretty clued on with the design aspect of mobile applications. So, happy to recommend this initiative from Bryan

Bryan has now launched a new initiative called Mobile Design UK -

As per their site ..

Mobile Design UK aims to provide an open forum for UK designers working with mobile technologies to share knowledge, encourage exploration of technologies, tools and ideas, and showcase the UK as an influential hub of mobile design to the world.

More information about why can be found at the following link: Mobile Design UK – The Big Idea

Some ideas regarding the first meeting can be found from the Mobile Design UK yahoo group

A bit late since on holiday .. but Carnival of the mobilists No 147 at the VOIP survivor blog with an excellent post of the week from Mr Mace!

Happy Diwali to all the readers of the OpenGardens blog. After many years, I spend Diwali for the first time in India enjoying my mummy’s home cooked food

Image source: http://tawabangalore.wordpress.com/

The OpenGardens blog is supporting this event and it promises to be an interesting one. Full details and press release HERE

TechWeb’s Alternative Events Group Announces Mashup Camp Silicon Valley

Seventh Consecutive Event Showcases an Improved Format, Program and Web Site

Sep 05, 2008

SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 5 /PRNewswire/ — Mashup Camp, produced by TechWeb’s Alternative Events Group, today announced an enhanced format, new program elements and a revised Web site for Mashup Camp Silicon Valley, to be held November 17-19, 2008 at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, California. For more information please visit http://www.mashupcamp.com/.

The new Camp will showcase an improved format based on feedback received from the Mashup Camp community. The event is condensed to three intense days featuring new program elements like API Chalk Talks, as well as traditional favorites like SpeedGeeking and participant-driven unconference sessions. A revised Web Site reflects the renovations with improved functionality, design and navigation.

“The improvements we’ve made to Mashup Camp — largely based on what attendees have been telling us — stand true to the intimacy and attendee-driven content of our previous ‘unconferences’ for the mashup community,” said Alternative Events Group General Manager, David Berlind. “We expect Mashup Camp’s fresh program will be a driving force of innovation in what is becoming one of the most important software ecosystems.”

Mashup Camp Silicon Valley has proven to be fertile ground for VCs looking to invest in one of the richest mashup developer ecosystems around. Given how simple it is for non-developers to build mashups, Mashup Camp is also great for the general mashup-curious who want to come see how the mashup approach puts the power of software development into the hands of ordinary people.

TechWeb’s Alternative Events Group produces unconference-style and custom events like Mashup Camp where developers decide which application program interfaces (APIs) and development tools to use when building the next generation of Web applications. Such API and tool adoption ultimately determines which development platforms will succeed on the Web. The content of TechWeb’s Alternative Events Group is largely community-driven, with much of it created by the participants during the events, generating collaboration and idea sharing in an efficient and rapid format. Since the first Mashup Camp in February 2006, the Alternative Events Group has organized seven camps and has added a hands-on training component that allows vendors to present focused information about their APIs and other mashup solutions.

About TechWeb

TechWeb, the global leader in business technology media, is an innovative business focused on serving the needs of technology decision-makers and marketers worldwide. TechWeb produces the most respected and consumed media brands in the business technology market. Today, more than *13.3 million business technology professionals actively engage in our communities created around our global face-to-face events Interop, Web 2.0, Black Hat and VoiceCon; online resources such as the TechWeb Network, Light Reading, Intelligent Enterprise, InformationWeek.com, bMighty.com, and The Financial Technology Network; and the market leading, award-winning InformationWeek, TechNet Magazine, MSDN Magazine, Wall Street & Technology magazines. TechWeb also provides end-to-end services ranging from next-generation performance marketing, integrated media, research, and analyst services. TechWeb is a division of United Business Media, a global provider of news distribution and specialist information services with a market capitalization of more than $2.5 billion.

* 13.3 million business decision-makers: based on # of monthly connections

About United Business Media

Limited United Business Media Limited is a leading global business media company. We inform markets and bring the world’s buyers and sellers together at events, online, in print, and with the information they need to do business successfully. We focus on serving professional commercial communities, from doctors to game developers, from journalists to jewelry traders, from farmers to pharmacists around the world. Our 6,500 staff in more than 30 countries are organized into specialist teams that serve these communities, helping them to do business and their markets to work effectively and efficiently.

For more information, go to http://www.unitedbusinessmedia.com/

SOURCE: TechWeb

CONTACT: Natalia Wodecki, PR Manager of TechWeb, +1-415-947-6762,

NWodecki@techweb.com

Web site: http://www.cmp.com/

http://www.unitedbusinessmedia.com/

For $249 you can join the other mobile and web professionals at the 3rd Mobile2Event in San Francisco Monday 3rd November. The agenda and speakers are here www.mobile2event.com So far 140 are registered.

The annual event brings together those who are thinking about what will be big next year and a mix of those who are doing innovative stuff now, to hear, debate, chat, connect and share. As it is organised by people who are passionate about the topic, who are also leading the debate, it is priced to bring engagement, conversation and connection, not to profit a conference company.

Tony Fish (co-author of Mobile Web 2.0) will be there stirring and challenging the fireside chat.

I cannot resist this .. the phenomenal success of the Mobile broadband strategy points to the success of the ‘pipe’ strategy for Operators - where the carrier is mainly a conduit for a very good data connection.

Much as carriers hate that word, and much as consultants work to tell them that they can be more ‘value added’ – the revenue speaks for itself. It is easier for most companies, vendors and consultants to tell the Operators what they WANT to hear .. But the commercial realities can be very different and depend on what the CUSTOMERS WANT.

Apart from the OpenGardens blog, very few people like Dean Bubley of Disruptive wireless took a similar view .. i.e. the prevailing wisdom is to tell Operators to go for value added services and to ignore the edge of network issues.

There is nothing wrong in being a data connection as long as you are serving the customer – indeed in a market like this – it is a great asset to have PAYING customers!

Extending that concept, I believe that one way Operators can add value is by extending the SIM functionality and harness the edge of the network effects .. SCWS SIM as the Cloud computing client for the Mobile Network Operator – now that we have precedence to indicate that it works.

Image source: Barling pipes.

It is apparently a valuable, collectible pipe – just to show – not all pipes are cheap Ha ha!

http://fujipub.com/firehousetobacco/pipe26.jpg