Nokia Introduces the N97 Mobile Computer & New Ovi Services

Nokia today introduced the Nokia N97 mobile computer and new Ovi services, including Maps on Ovi and Mail on Ovi.   Nokia's global scope, assets such as NAVTEQ and a growing list of Ovi services, "uniquely position Nokia to transform the Internet to become a more personal and relevant part of our lives. And that's a claim no legacy Internet company can make."   Nokia N97: Making the Internet Personal The Nokia N97, unveiled today, is designed for Internet-savvy people. With integrated A-GPS sensors and an electronic compass, the device intuitively understands where it is. The Nokia N97 makes it easy to update social networks automatically with real-time information, giving people the ability to update their 'status' and share their location as well as related pictures or videos with approved friends.

Nokia's flagship Nseries device packs a large 3.5" touch display, personalized homescreen and a full QWERTY keyboard, providing an 'always open' window to social networking sites and Internet destinations.

 

Maps on Ovi: More than Just a Mapping Tool

Maps on Ovi is the first free service that allows people to pre-plan their journey at home on their PC and synchronize with their mobile, giving access to pre-planned routes and favorite destinations while on the move.  Over the coming months, Nokia Maps will become a destination for people to save and organize places, pre-plan trips and post-edit them. People can share their location and all their personally and socially meaningful content with friends, inviting them to join in activities.

 

Mail on Ovi and Nokia Messaging: Mobile Email for the Masses

Some 75% of the world's population has not yet used email. Many of these people will have their first email experience will be on a mobile phone, not on a PC. Mail on Ovi, together with Nokia Messaging which mobilizes consumer email and instant messaging on Nokia devices, brings mobile email to everyone and not just for a privileged few. With Mail on Ovi, users will be able to create and access email online portal as well as on their mobile device. Nokia Messaging, on the other hand, will give consumers access to their existing email and instant messaging accounts from Yahoo! Mail® and Yahoo! Messenger®, Windows Live Hotmail, Gmail and Google Talk, and AOL Mail as well as email solutions from thousands of ISPs around the world on the majority of Nokia devices. Nokia has shipped about 200 million devices that immediately enable the launch of its messaging solutions, including Mail on Ovi, Nokia Messaging and corporate mobile email (Microsoft Exchange Activesync and Lotus Traveler).

Nokia Lowers Mobile Device Industry Outlook for Q4 2008, Gives Outlook for 2009

Nokia lowered its forecast for mobile device industry volumes for the fourth quarter 2008. Nokia also presented forecasts for the company and the industry for 2009. At the event, senior company executives outlined how Nokia's strategy, robust financial structure and competitive product portfolio are expected to ensure the company remains in a position of strength in the more challenging economic times ahead.   Outlook for Nokia and the mobile device industry - fourth quarter 2008 The mobile device market slowdown has continued more rapidly than previously expected since Nokia issued an update on November 14, 2008. The industry continues to be impacted by the effects of a global consumer pull-back in spending, currency volatility, and decreased availability of credit. Nokia believes the slowdown is apparent in varying degrees across all markets, while the most recent incremental impact in the emerging markets has been more pronounced than in other markets.

As a result, and while noting the lack of visibility due to the factors cited above, Nokia is revising its fourth quarter 2008 outlook as follows:

• Nokia now estimates that fourth quarter 2008 industry mobile device volumes will be lower than the previous estimate of approximately 330 million units, which would result in full year 2008 industry mobile device volumes below the earlier estimate of 1.24 billion units.
• Nokia believes there is insufficient visibility in the marketplace to confirm its prior estimate for its fourth quarter 2008 mobile device market share, which was expected to be at the same level or slightly up from an estimated 38% in the third quarter 2008.

Outlook for Nokia Siemens Networks and the mobile infrastructure, fixed infrastructure and related services market - 2008

• Nokia and Nokia Siemens Networks continue to expect the mobile infrastructure, fixed infrastructure and related services market to be flat in euro terms in 2008, compared to 2007.
• Nokia and Nokia Siemens Networks continued cost synergy target for Nokia Siemens Networks is to achieve substantially all of the EUR 2.0 billion of targeted annual cost synergies by the end of 2008.

Targets and forecasts for Nokia and the mobile device industry - 2009 and going forward

• Nokia expects that the mobile device market will continue to be negatively impacted by the effects of a slowdown in consumer spending. Nokia also expects that operator and retail distribution channels will go through a period of destocking, resulting in lower sales volumes by manufacturers (sell-in) than purchase volumes by consumers (sell-through) for the industry in the first half of 2009.
• While noting the extremely limited visibility, Nokia expects 2009 industry mobile device volumes to decline 5% or more from 2008 levels.
• Nokia expects the four billion mobile subscriptions mark to be reached in the first quarter 2009.
• Nokia targets an increase in its market share in mobile devices in 2009 compared to 2008, including increased share in smartphones.
• As previously announced, Nokia has adjusted its Internet services market focus to the areas of music, maps, media, messaging and gaming. Nokia estimates these targeted portions of the Internet services market will be approximately EUR 40 billion in 2011. In December 2007, Nokia estimated that the total Internet services market would be approximately EUR 100 billion in 2010.
• Nokia targets Services & Software net sales of EUR 2 billion or more in 2011.
• Nokia targets its Services & Software business to have 300 million unique services users by 2012.

Targets and forecasts for Nokia Siemens Networks and the mobile infrastructure, fixed infrastructure and related services market - 2009

• Nokia and Nokia Siemens Networks preliminary estimate is that the mobile infrastructure, fixed infrastructure and related services market will decline 5% or more in euro terms in 2009, from 2008 levels.
• Nokia and Nokia Siemens Networks target for Nokia Siemens Networks market share to remain constant in 2009, compared to 2008.

Nokia financial targets (non-IFRS*) - 2009
Given the unprecedented environment, Nokia will not, at this time, be giving operating margin targets for beyond 2009.

• Nokia Devices & Services operating margin target to be in the teens in 2009.
• NAVTEQ operating margin targeted to be somewhat above the Devices & Services operating margin in 2009.
• Nokia Siemens Networks operating margin target to be in the single digits in 2009.

Nokia priorities for 2009
In addition to updating its financial targets, Nokia also outlined key priorities for 2009. These are:

• To ensure that Nokia's cost base is appropriately sized for a more challenging environment;
• To grow mobile device market share, to capture growth opportunities in NAVTEQ and device enhancements, and to capture value from adjacent markets;
• To build on the momentum in Services & Software by continuing to grow and focus its services portfolio;
• To mobilize consumer email and consumer instant messaging for millions of Nokia device users, and;
• To further integrate and simplify Nokia's web services user interface and device user interface.

* Non-IFRS results exclude special items for all periods. In addition, non-IFRS results exclude intangible asset amortization, other purchase price accounting related items and inventory value adjustments arising from the formation of Nokia Siemens Networks and from all business acquisitions completed after June 30, 2008. For the preceding periods, non-IFRS results exclude such items and adjustments arising from the formation of Nokia Siemens Networks only. Nokia believes that these non-IFRS financial measures provide meaningful supplemental information to both management and investors regarding Nokia's performance by excluding the above-described items that may not be indicative of Nokia's business operating results. These non-IFRS financial measures should not be viewed in isolation or as substitutes to the equivalent IFRS measure(s), but should be used in conjunction with the most directly comparable IFRS measure(s) in the reported results.

Virgin Mobile Announces Two New Game-Changing Features for Mobile Social Networking

Virgin Mobile USA announced today the official launch of two new first-of-a-kind features designed to empower its prepaid and postpaid customers with the latest mobile social networking technology. These new initiatives, both available at no additional cost beyond normal internet access charges, offer Virgin Mobile USA customers new and innovative ways to hook up: "Connect," a new social networking dashboard designed to give Helio By Virgin Mobile members quick and easy access to the latest updates from certain social media and networking sites; and "Mobile Lounge," a Virgin Mobile USA customer-exclusive mobile community now available on the VirginXL storefront. Connect:

Connect ushers in a new era of community integration for Helio By Virgin Mobile members, allowing them to display friend updates and activity from social media and networking sites such as Facebook, MySpace, Flickr, Twitter and YouTube in an easy-to-use, dashboard-style mobile interface which connects users directly to those sites. Launching first on Helio devices -- the Ocean, Mysto, Fin, Heat and Drift -- Connect will roll out to Virgin Mobile USA prepaid mobile phones during the first quarter of 2009.

Instead of logging out of a social networking site in order to access another one, customers can use Connect to conveniently aggregate status updates, invitations and requests, new photos and videos, comments, messages and more, all in one place, free of charge. Virgin Mobile USA customers can also use Connect's integrated standard RSS reader to stay up-to-date with their favorite news sites, blogs and e-zines.

Mobile Lounge:

"Mobile Lounge," the first mobile-only community exclusive to a single wireless carrier, provides a social network for Virgin Mobile USA customers to share ideas and opinions. Its robust user interface allows users to see which friends are online and features micro-blogging capabilities, discussion boards, chat rooms and profile creation and contests.

Virgin Mobile USA also continues to offer rewards to its customers. Members of Mobile Lounge can earn points for writing blogs, posting photos and winning contests, and then redeem those points for credits for wireless usage. This builds on the success of Sugar Mama and Studio V, an online community where Virgin Mobile USA customers create, share and sell their own ringtones and wallpapers for rewards.

Mobile Lounge is accessible on Virgin Mobile USA mobile phones such as the Shuttle, Flare, Slash and others from the VirginXL storefront, which provides members with access to all of the latest services, games, ringtones and news for just 15 cents per day.

Social Networking:

With these new features, Virgin Mobile USA has firmly established itself as a leader in mobile social networking. "Helio By Virgin Mobile is continuing to deliver mobile social networking in new ways, allowing members to interact with friends across their entire social universe and share experiences in real time directly from their mobile devices like never before," added Jeremy Wasser, Director of Media & Social Networking for Virgin Mobile USA.

The new 'Connect' and 'Mobile Lounge' services continue the tradition that Helio carved out as a pioneer in mobile social media and networking. With industry leading solutions for MySpace, Facebook, YouTube, Flickr and more from Virgin Mobile USA, members will always stay connected.

Cell Phone Internet Browsing to Generate $38 Billion in 2013

According to the Strategy Analytics Wireless Media Strategies service report, “Mobile Internet Forecast Update 2001-2013,” demand for popular content and services on the web, such as social networks, email, and news sites, while away from fixed internet connections, will drive consumer spending on mobile web access products from operators. As discriminatory charging for off-portal browsing disappears, data pricing for casual use is reduced, and the overall browsing experience on 3G feature and smartphones is improved, usage and spending on mobile web will increase. Handset browsing has been popular in Japan and Korea to date, but not so in Western Europe and the US. However, according to Nitesh Patel, Senior Analyst of the Strategy Analytics Wireless Media Strategies service and author of the report, “Prospects for mobile web access in Western Europe and the US have brightened over the last 12 months as the browsing capability and user experience on handsets improves, and as more operators introduce flexible low-cost monthly and casual browsing plans to suit both heavy and casual users.

Fundamentally, access to desirable content on the web, such as social networks, webmail, and infotainment, will drive demand for internet access products."

David Kerr, Vice President at Strategy Analytics, noted, "Although we have entered into an economic downturn, Strategy Analytics continues to forecast increased spending on mobile internet access products over the next few years. During this period we anticipate price competition on data access from operators, as well as greater consumer adoption of flexible casual browsing options that meet the needs of a broader base of cellular users, such as low-priced, daily capped rates."

Sprint Customers Can Now Access Work Calendar on Samsung Instinct

Customers of Sprint now can get mobile access to their corporate calendar on the popular Samsung Instinct. Today's launch of corporate calendar access on Instinct provides easy synchronization with Microsoft Exchange Server and IBM Lotus Notes account calendars. As part of Sprint Mobile Email Work, which already provides access to corporate email and contacts, the new calendar feature allows Instinct users to view and update their work calendar, create and delete appointments and more, right on their phone. The calendar feature is an extension of Mobile Email Work's existing access to business email accounts. Sprint worked with SEVEN(R), one of the leading providers of mobile messaging solutions, to create Mobile Email Work, which now allows Instinct users to access work calendars from Microsoft Exchange Server 2000, 2003 or 2007 accounts, or IBM Lotus Domino accounts.

Mobile Email Work with corporate calendar synch includes monthly, weekly and daily views of the user's calendar, along with an appointment view that displays the details about each appointment or meeting. Reminders bring upcoming appointments or meetings to the user's attention. Users can edit existing appointments, accept or decline meeting requests, or create new single-date, multi-date or all-day appointments. Users also can delete appointments and meetings. All changes made on the Sprint phone are automatically synchronized with the user's desktop calendar.

For Instinct users, the corporate calendar feature will be provided as a software update to customers with Mobile Email Work. Customers who are new to Sprint Mobile Email and want to activate the service can do so directly through the email menu - no software download is required. Once email is activated, customers will be prompted to accept the upgrade to enable corporate calendar access.

In addition to the Samsung Instinct, Sprint plans to extend corporate calendar synch to additional non-PDA phones in the future.

Mobile Email Work with the new corporate calendar feature is included at no additional charge for Instinct customers, including those on Everything Data plans starting at $69.99, Sprint's worry-free $99.99 Simply EverythingSM plan and Everything Data Family plans starting at $129.99 for two lines (taxes and surcharges excluded).

Customers interested in using Mobile Email Work and the new calendar feature can take advantage of Sprint's Ready Now program, which helps customers fully realize the benefits of everything the Now Network can do for them. With Ready Now, Sprint retail associates work with new or existing customers to explain, set up and demonstrate the features and applications of their phones. Sprint customers can choose how much or how little they want to learn about any phone features and applications. For additional customer convenience, customers have the flexibility to schedule appointments either in the store or online via Sprint's store locator tool. Customers can visit www.sprint.com/readynow to schedule an appointment and find the closest participating store.

About Sprint Mobile Email

Mobile Email provides easy access to personal and corporate email accounts, including Microsoft Exchange Server and IBM Lotus Domino accounts, along with accounts from AOL, Windows Live Hotmail, Gmail, Yahoo! Mail and more. Mobile Email is available on 56 Sprint phones at no additional cost to Sprint data subscribers. With Mobile Email, customers can:

Compose, read and manage email on their phone from anywhere, with the ability to work in off-network situations - even on airplanes.
Get alerts when new emails arrive.
Automatically synchronize email on their mobile phone with online mail accounts.
Look up online contacts and address books.

For more information on Mobile Email, please visit www.sprint.com/mobileemail.

Cellular South Debuts Affordable Family Plans

Consumers looking to save money in a tight economy while not sacrificing value and service can now turn to Cellular South for the most affordable family plans in the wireless industry. Cellular South is offering family plans that cost less and offer the best value when compared to similar basic plans for all other major wireless carriers. By switching to Cellular South and taking advantage of the new family plans, consumers can reap annual savings ranging from $120 up to $240 based on comparable rate and service plans offered by other leading wireless carriers.

By rolling out its family plans in time for the holidays, Cellular South is offering consumers an easy way to start reaping the savings from its industry-leading service right away.

The "Family Talk" plan offers families a choice of 700 or 1,400 minutes to share. The Family Talk plans include 700 or 1,400 nationwide minutes, plus unlimited mobile-to-mobile calling with other Cellular South customers. Starting at $49.99 a month, these plans offer options to fit any family size. Plus, families can add up to 4 lines -- for $9.99 each – on either plan to share in the minutes and take advantage of the unlimited mobile to mobile calling with their family members or other Cellular South customers.

Richmond said the Family Talk plans offer unprecedented savings for families when you consider that free nights and weekends – beginning at 7 p.m. each day - are included at no extra charge. "Comparing our plans to competitors, consumers can see right away which carriers are 'family-friendly' and how they can really stretch their wireless communications budget in a tight economy," he said.

Cellular South also is rolling out the industry's first "Text & Talk" plan aimed at families with youngsters or teenagers who mainly use text messaging as their primary means of communication. The $19.99 a month Text and Talk plan, the only plan of its kind currently on the market, includes unlimited nationwide text messaging plus 200 nationwide anytime minutes.

The new Family Talk and Text & Talk plans join industry-leading "Smartphone" and "Total Unlimited" plans in helping consumers get more out of their wireless devices and realize a significant savings at the same time.

The Smartphone plan, designed for the way consumers use their phones once they switch to a BlackBerry or othersmart phone, includes unlimited mobile web, e-mail, text messaging and mobile-to-mobile calls, plus 500 nationwide anytime minutes, for only $49.99 a month. The Total Unlimited plan includes unlimited nationwide calling, unlimited text messaging, mobile web and e-mail for $79.99 a month on most mobile phones and $99.99 a month for smart phones.

In addition to its new Family Talk and Text & Talk plans, Cellular South offers consumers the best value in wireless today, including:

• 3G high-speed data access in six times as many markets as other carriers in its primary footprint and - with its nationwide network of networks - no other carrier has a larger 3G high-speed data network.
• Special holiday promotions, including free activation, free first month of service and a free BlackBerry Pearl smartphone when customers sign up for a two year voice contract and a one year data agreement.
• Time and money-saving ways for customers to shop on their mobile phones anywhere and anytime - through mShopper™ and Cellfire®. mShopper™ provides access to more than 100 online merchants and 13 million products to track competitive deals and notify users of sales. Cellfire® offers customers valuable mobile coupons from such well known retailers as Kroger, Sears and Hollywood Video.
• Discover Center specialists in every Cellular South retail location to show customers how to get more out of their mobile phones, including helping relieve the stress of holiday shopping and providing access to rich news, weather, sports and retail shopping content on the mobile web.
• Through the wireless industry's first customized, co-branded mobile web content platform with Viigo, Cellular South offers smartphone users one-click access to real-time news, weather, sports, travel, stock market results, entertainment, blogs and other valuable information from over 5,000 of the best Internet content channels.

Betting on Cell phones Expected to Hit $3.6B in 2009

According to a recent research report by Juniper Research, gambling via mobile phones will perform strongly in 2009, led by the UK market, in stark contrast to much of the entertainment and leisure sector. The Juniper Research report found that total wagers on mobile phones are expected to more than double in 2009 to more than $3.6bn, where as user spending on mobile TV and mobile games will be adversely impacted by the global economic downturn. The Juniper report also noted that the overwhelming majority of leading European bookmakers now offer some form of betting service on the mobile, with several having partnered with leading network operators. However, the report noted that regulatory restrictions remained a key impediment to mass adoption, even in countries where mobile betting services were permitted, and argued that national and state governments needed to implement a clear and transparent framework governing all forms of mobile gambling services for the benefit of both consumers and service providers.

Other findings from the Juniper Research report include:

• Mobile betting will account for 75% of all gambling on mobile handsets in 2008, with casino-type gambling the second-largest sector
• The UK alone will account for more than 30% of bets placed in 2008, although this proportion will decline to just 8% by 2013 due to increased deployment of services elsewhere
• Global gross win from mobile betting services is expected to exceed $1bn annually by 2012

Juniper Research assesses the current and future status of the mobile gambling market based on interviews, case studies and analysis from representatives of some of the leading organisations in the growing mobile gambling industry.

Virgin Mobile Launches Virgin Mobile Festival's 2008 Streaming Videos

Virgin Mobile USA today announced the launch of Virgin Mobile Festival's 2008 Streaming Videos, available exclusively on the Virgin Mobile USA Shuttle and on Helio By Virgin Mobile handsets without an additional content charge* to Virgin Mobile USA and Helio customers.  The 2008 Virgin Mobile Festival's Streaming Videos, sponsored by Ford Sync, are the first performances from a major festival made available on a mobile platform. Virgin Mobile USA customers with the Shuttle handset and Helio customers using the Ocean, Mysto, Fin or Heat can access these videos using their handsets. Performances from the 2008 Virgin Mobile Festival are also available for viewing online onhttp://www.music.msn.com/inconcert. Performances by a wide variety of artists from the celebrated 2008 Virgin Mobile Festival are available on handsets including: Iggy and the Stooges, KT Tunstall, The Offspring, Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings and Rodrigo y Gabriella.

The debut of the 2008 Virgin Mobile Festival's Streaming Videos on both Virgin Mobile USA and Helio By Virgin Mobile cell phones gives customers a taste of the popular annual music event and marks Virgin Mobile USA's integration of new music content onto increasingly sophisticated mobile devices.

To access the videos, Virgin Mobile USA customers should visit the VirginXL menu, select "Video Player" and then choose "Virgin Mobile Festival." Helio members should visit to the video homepage and click on "Virgin Mobile Festival videos" or enter VMFEST (863378) on the handset. These complimentary videos will be available on the handsets through December 31, 2008.

Rogers Wireless Launches the HTC Touch Diamond Smartphone

Rogers Wireless, Canada's largest wireless provider, and HTC today announce the availability of the HTC Touch Diamond, an elegant smartphone that is as powerful as it is beautiful. Engineered to deliver outstanding performance on Rogers Wireless' 3G high-speed network, the HTC Touch Diamond features a one-hand touch-sensitive control experience and a stunning gloss black finish and faceted back for maximum style. Featuring HTC's hallmark TouchFLO 3D interface, the HTC Touch Diamond allows Rogers customers to easily personalize and arrange their favorite contacts, photos, weather, and music in a graphical, intuitive way. The device features include support for personal and work e-mail, an advanced Opera Internet browser for a desktop-like browsing experience and innovative multimedia features such as Mobile TV, wireless video calling for connecting face-to-face with friends and family, access to Rogers MusicStore, and more. Created to allow people to take advantage of the latest mobile services to stay in touch with the people and information that are most important to them, the HTC Touch Diamond boasts an extensive slate of features including:

• Wi-Fi (802.11 b/g) enabled
• 2.8 inch VGA touch screen
• 3.2 megapixel camera with auto-focus
• Integrated YouTube application
• Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional operating system

GPS enabled The HTC Touch Diamond combines sleek, cutting-edge design and broadband performance with a simple, yet powerful user experience, resulting in a sophisticated handset that is as capable as it is beautiful," said Francois Gravel, managing director of HTC Canada. "We are pleased to be working with Rogers Wireless to deliver the HTC Touch Diamond to customers in Canada."

In addition to game-changing Web browsing, the HTC Touch Diamond includes a customized YouTube application for easy access to user-generated video content and automatic screen orientation that changes the display from portrait to landscape view just by turning the HTC Touch Diamond sideways. For easily accessing a variety of digital content, the TouchFLO 3D interface offers graphical, animated interaction with up to 4GB worth of images, videos and music.

The HTC Touch Diamond is now available from $199.99 with activation on any combination of three-year voice and data plan with minimum combined monthly service fee of $45 per month from Rogers. Some conditions apply.

The HTC Touch Diamond joins the HTC Touch, HTC TyTN and HTC S621 smartphones in the Rogers Wireless lineup.

Visit http://www.htc.com/TouchDiamond to find out more.

 

HTC Touch Diamond

MySpace Mobile & RipCode Launches Streaming Video in Beta Globally

MySpace, the world’s premier social network, and RipCode, an innovator of Internet and mobile video infrastructure solutions, announced today that MySpace Mobile users across the globe will now be able to enjoy MySpace video content from their video enabled mobile devices.  The first social portal to launch video streaming for mobile, MySpace’s beta mobile video initiative is committed to ensuring the best user experience by providing the highest quality video for mobile viewing. Users will now be able to view videos they’ve uploaded or have marked as a favorite. The MySpace Mobile site receives approximately three billion worldwide page views per month from more than 10 million monthly unique users. Combining the popularity of the MySpace mobile site with its vast online video library creates a compelling and dynamic mobile environment.

In order to meet ever-increasing video demand, MySpace utilizes RipCode’s On-Demand Video Transcoding technology to optimize mobile video delivery and give users an improved mobile video experience. Real time transcoding enables MySpace to easily support several different handsets even though they require different combinations of codecs, bit rates, and resolutions.  For MySpace Mobile users,100 percent their video content is now available on mobile devices.  Because MySpace is transcoding video on-demand, there is no longer need to store the entire MySpace video library in multiple mobile formats, thus saving significant hardware, energy and storage resources.

 

According to Frost & Sullivan, streaming mobile video services constitute the bulk of current U.S. mobile video service offerings.  The MySpace mobile video service will be rolled out in beta globally, with support for the most popular streaming-enabled mobile devices. MySpace will continue to rapidly add support for more streaming-enabled devices.

Accessing and viewing video from mobile devices is a data intensive service.  MySpace mobile users are advised to consult their mobile data plan to avoid excessive fees. MySpace mobile video quality, as with all mobile services, is dependent on individual device capabilities as well as network speed and connection.

Sonim Tech Introduces Indestructible Cell Phone

Sonim Technologies, a US based mobile telecoms company today announces the European launch of the new Sonim XP1, an IP-54 certified, mil-spec approved, bluetooth and Push-To-Talk enabled GSM phone, by announcing the "World’s Toughest Phone Tour" beginning in Sweden. Engineered to meet the needs of people who work outside the office and outdoor sports enthusiasts, the Sonim XP1 works perfectly in harsh environments. Certified to withstand shock, water, wind, dust, dirt and extreme temperatures, the Sonim XP1 is the only certified phone designed specifically for the lives of people who work and play in demanding conditions. So confident are SonimTech over the durability of the phone, they are inviting bloggers and journalists across Europe to "torture test" the phone by sending them a new XP1m along with a illustrated how-to guide.

As well as being very shock water-resistant, the Sonim XP1 is backed by an Unconditional 3 year warranty - and a lifetime warranty for the phone housing with immediate in-store replacement if needed - the XP1 is the only phone that doesn't compromise on capability, durability or style.

The World’s toughest tour starts in Stockholm on December 3rd, and the tour will stop by Örebro, Eskilstuna, Västerås, Norrköping, Jönköping, Göteborg, Halmstad, Helsingborg, Malmö and Uppsala before it ends in Stockholm on December 23rd.

The tour will visit construction sites, DIY/building material stores and retailers to demonstrate, discuss and torture-test the phone. Facts, news, pictures and video clips of the World’s toughest tour can be found at the campaign blog atwww.sonimxp1.se

Motorola Announces the MOTOROKR EM35

Motorola Inc. today announced the addition of MOTOROKR EM35 to the ROKR portfolio. A device designed for supreme audio performance both as a mobile device and music player, EM35 delivers an exceptional audio experience for both music and talk. EM35 amplifies your conversations and helps reduce background noise with CrystalTalk technology, so virtually nothing comes between you and your call. From more superior voice quality to personalized noise adaptation, CrystalTalk makes a noticeable difference in the clarity and intelligibility of conversations while in a noisy environment. EM35 further enhances the audio quality with the addition of a second microphone, which helps eliminate more ambient background noise from the call. ROKR EM35 is a robust music player with a full suite of dedicated keys to easily launch and control music. Whether listening via the built-in dual speakers, stereo Bluetooth wireless technology1 or 3.5mm stereo wired headphones, the EM35 rocks. Users can quickly access content or search through an entire music library to find a song that suits the mood by simply moving a thumb across the FastScrollTM navigation wheel. Pressing or holding the dedicated “play” key launches shuffle mode.

Slide the device open to send a text2 or surf the web2 while listening to music, or to pause the music and make a phone call. Also, find pre-installed and downloadable2 widgets – third-party web applications – for access to real-time information such as weather, sports scores, stock tickers, flight information, social media, news headlines and more.

MOTOMUSIC player2, 6 is an exclusive application that enables users to listen to music while simultaneously being connected to the music store. Once connected, users can discover and access new music, preview and purchase music, retrieve artist information, share favorite tracks with friends, gift tracks from the EM35 and watch videos and free podcasts.

Compatibility with Windows Media Player 11 gives consumers the freedom to manage music on the PC and discover new music by downloading¹ it from a PC to the phone from more than 200 on-line music stores worldwide2, 3. ROKR EM35 has an integrated FM antenna that enables FM radio to be played over stereo Bluetooth or external stereo speakers without the use of a headset. FM radio with Radio Data System (RDS) technology4 makes identifying songs and artists easy by displaying available FM station information like song, artist and genre. SONGID technology2 completes the music experience and gives you new ways to discover music while on the go.

MOTOROKR EM35 is expected to be available later this quarter. For more information on technical specs, please visit www.motorola.com/motoinfo. 

Nokia Launches Nokia Messaging

Nokia today announced the launch of Nokia Messaging, which mobilizes consumer email and consumer instant messaging solutions on Nokia devices. Nokia Messaging will give millions of consumers access to email and IM accounts from Yahoo! Mail® and Yahoo! Messenger®, Windows Live Hotmail, Gmail and Google Talk, and AOL Mail as well as email solutions from thousands of ISPs around the world on the majority of Nokia devices. Nokia also introduced the online portal for Mail on Ovi, which will enable PC users to create and access Ovi email accounts as well as gain cross access to other Ovi services with just a single sign-on account.   Nokia announced the introduction of web access to Mail on Ovi, which gives users 1GB of storage space and spam filters to block unwanted emails. Creating a Mail on Ovi account will give users access to their email, as well as cross access to other Ovi services, both on the mobile phone and on the PC.

The beta version of Mail on Ovi will roll out globally in December 2008 in 12 languages, including English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, German, Hindi, Bengali, Tagalog, Bahasa Indonesia and Bahasa Malaysia on all currently shipping Nokia Series 40 devices, with many more languages to be added later. The web access version will launch in February 2009.
  
Nokia Messaging will launch commercially in the first quarter of 2009 in Australia, Finland, Germany, the Netherlands, Singapore, Spain, the United Kingdom and Venezuela, and in select countries later in the year. Agreements with key operators will establish Nokia Messaging as an operator supported service so that users who purchase a data plan that includes Nokia Messaging will be able to take full access of the built-in push email and IM access without additional service charges.
 
The Nokia Messaging push email service is available today for free as a limited-period beta trial. Owners of popular Nokia S60 devices such as Nokia E71 and Nokia N95 can immediately go to email.nokia.com and install the service on their devices. Nokia Messaging is an email application that's been designed from the ground up to support mobile email. The application makes it simple to set-up the email account - all users have to enter are their email address and password, and emails are seamlessly pushed to their mobile device. Nokia Messaging also makes it simple to read, send, forward and reply to emails, download and read attachments, and attach files to emails directly on the Nokia device.
  
Nokia Messaging is immediately available on a wide range of Nokia S60 devices to mobilize consumer email. Instant messaging and support for Nokia Series 40 devices will be enabled in the second half of 2009.
 
With Nokia Messaging and Mail on Ovi together, Nokia will enable consumers with and without email accounts to experience mobile email as a standard part of the Nokia device experience. To date, Nokia has shipped about 200 million devices that immediately enable the launch of its messaging solutions, including Nokia Messaging, Mail on Ovi and corporate mobile email (Microsoft Exchange Activesync). 

Nokia Acquires Symbian Limited

Nokia today announced that it has completed its offer to acquire Symbian Limited. All conditions to Nokia's offer to acquire Symbian Limited have been satisfied and it has received valid acceptance of greater than 99.9% of the total Symbian shares that Nokia did not already own. Symbian is the software company that develops and licenses Symbian OS, the market-leading open operating system for mobile devices.    The closing of the offer is a fundamental step in the establishment of the Symbian Foundation, announced on June 24, 2008 by Nokia, together with AT&T, LG Electronics, Motorola, NTT DOCOMO, Samsung, Sony Ericsson, ST-NXP Wireless, Texas Instruments and Vodafone. More information about the planned foundation can be found atwww.symbianfoundation.org.

All Symbian employees are planned to become Nokia employees on February 1, 2009.

Nokia 5800 XpressMusic Now Available in Select Markets

Nokia announced today that the highly anticipated Nokia 5800 XpressMusic is now, or soon will be, available in select markets globally, including Russia, Spain, India, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Finland, among others. The latest in Nokia's XpressMusic range, the Nokia 5800 XpressMusic delivers an affordable music device with a touch screen interface to the mass market.    Aiming to put music into the hands of millions, the Nokia 5800 XpressMusic offers all the music essentials including a graphic equalizer, 8GB memory for up to 6000 tracks, support for all main digital music formats, and a 3.5mm jack. Built-in surround sound stereo speakers offer the industry's most powerful sound.   Making the most of touch screen technology, the Nokia 5800 XpressMusic delivers easy and fast access to all music, video and photos through a one-touch 'Mediabar' drop down menu. The Media Bar also offers a direct link to the Web and to online sharing. Because the Nokia 5800 XpressMusic supports Flash content, individuals can surf the entire web.

The innovative 'Contacts Bar' lets people highlight four favorite contacts on their home-screen and, through a single touch, track a digital history of recent text messages, emails, phone logs, photos and blog updates.
 
For the best screen resolution available on a mobile phone, the 3.2" widescreen display brings photos, video clips and web content to life in vibrant color and true clarity.  With a 16 by 9 aspect ratio and 30 frames-per-second playback and recording, the device is ideal for VGA quality video recording and playback.  The Nokia 5800 XpressMusic also features a 3.2 megapixel camera with Carl Zeiss lens and, with a single touch, images or videos can be shared via a favorite online community, such as Share on Ovi, Flickr, or Facebook.

Nokia 5800 Xpress Music 

Ensuring a seamless music experience, Nokia 5800 XpressMusic also provides easy access to browse and purchase tracks from the Nokia Music Store, where applicable, while the newly updated Nokia Music PC software allows for easy drag-and-drop transfer of songs and management of any music collection.
 
The Nokia 5800 XpressMusic supports 60 languages worldwide and offers a variety of input methods including a virtual alphanumeric keypad, a virtual computer-style QWERTY keyboard, a pen stylus -- and for true music enthusiasts, a plectrum -- are all available.

Nimbuzz Launches Free Iphone Application

Nimbuzz, the most comprehensive mobile Instant Messaging, (geo) presence and VoIP provider launches into the Apple iPhone App Store. The free application lets users call, chat and message, for free, with their friends on virtually all major instant messaging communities and social networks, including Skype, Yahoo! Messenger, Facebook, MySpace, AIM, Windows Live Messenger, Google Talk, ICQ, Jabber, and more. Specifically for the needs of iPhone users, this will be the first complete messaging product available with landscape mode chat, IM buddy calling (including Yahoo!), and regional social network support – and it is free. Users turn the product on its side to use a wide keyboard for fast and easy typing. Furthermore, Nimbuzz is the first product to offer IM buddy calling over Wifi to Yahoo! Messenger as well as Google Talk, Skype, and Windows Live Messenger.

Nimbuzz supports chat for local social networks, such as StudiVZ, the biggest German speaking social network, Hyves for The Netherlands, and Gadu-Gadu in Poland.

Nimbuzz is a lifestyle application, designed to meet any communication need and is the only chat application to offer landscape chat and IM buddy calling. The centralized contact list aggregates contacts of the most popular social and IM networks, and offers superior VoIP call quality over Wifi.

Other key updates include Personal Message allowing users to broadcast real-time status updates to all contacts, presence information to see who is online and where, and emoticons for additional expression.

Nimbuzz currently grows at over 10,000 new users per day, with over 10 Million logins per day, and we are happy to welcome iPhone and iPod users to the community.

Nimbuzz Screen Shots 

Verizon Wireless Announces Availability of the Samsung Omnia

Motorola, Inc. has introduced the Motorola Hint QA30, a new device with several ways for consumers to keep in touch with their social circles. The innovative slider design reveals a full QWERTY keypad when open, making messaging and browsing easy and natural. Motorola Hint offers the conversation-like experience of threaded text messaging and instant messaging, combined with immediate access to email to always stay connected to friends and family¹. The device also features an intuitive dashboard interface, high-speed connectivity and optimized predictive text capabilities¹. Through pre-loaded, one-touch SMS access¹, important information, such as weather, stock prices, sports information, maps and directions, is at your fingertips. Motorola Hint allows consumers to easily surf the Web with a PC-like experience by rapidly scrolling, zooming in and out, utilizing data caching, bookmarks, cookies and history for an authentic Web experience. Motorola Hint sports a sleek and slim design with a generous, full-color 2.5-inch widescreen display for maximum multimedia enjoyment.

With the purchase of an optional removable memory card of up to 8GB, the Motorola Hint’s integrated music player features one-touch music keys, allowing direct access to songs and playback functions, even with the slider closed. Store favorite songs and pictures on the microSD memory card and transfer music quickly from a PC using a high-speed USB 2.0 connection. Motorola Hint also features the convenience of a 3.5mm headphone jack and simple menu navigation to enhance the mobile music experience. In addition, Motorola Hint’s 2.0 megapixel digital zoom photo and video capabilities allow for quick capture and sharing, so friends and family are always in the loop.

Motorola Hint QA30 will be available in Q4 2008. For more information, product specifications and images of Motorola Hint QA30, please visit www.motorola.com/mediacenter.

Motorola Hint QA30 

 

Nokia Introduces the Nokia 6260 Slide

Nokia has introduced the Nokia 6260 slide. The phone call is the most obvious way to use the new handset to connect with people, but it will also be used to share photographs and videos, check on a friend's social network status or be guided to a restaurant to meet up with a loved one. For this, the Nokia 6260 slide features quick access to search engines and points of interest straight from the home screen and the new 360° navi-key allows a great mobile Internet experience.   Uploading images and videos to websites, blogs and social networks is quicker than ever with Nokia's newest arrival, which features lightning-fast speeds over both cellular and Wi-Fi networks. The Nokia 6260 slide comes with the latest 3G technology, with high speed uploads (HSUPA) and downloads (HSDPA), a great camera, music player and web browser with a simple, instantly familiar interface. Combined with the range of Ovi services on offer, Nokia brings a compelling mobile Internet experience to a huge group of consumers.   A 5Mpix Carl Zeiss camera with flash takes fantastic pictures which can be easily shared and uploaded to Share on Ovi or other photo and video sharing websites.

In addition to the photo, music and sharing features that come packed in the Nokia 6260 slide, Nokia Maps and the assisted GPS provide a great navigation experience. The Nokia 6260 slide brings GPS into the Series 40 software platform for the first time, really signifying navigation arriving in the mass market.

Nokia 6260 Slide 

Nokia Introduces the Nokia 6260 Slide

Nokia has introduced the Nokia 6260 slide. The phone call is the most obvious way to use the new handset to connect with people, but it will also be used to share photographs and videos, check on a friend's social network status or be guided to a restaurant to meet up with a loved one. For this, the Nokia 6260 slide features quick access to search engines and points of interest straight from the home screen and the new 360° navi-key allows a great mobile Internet experience.   Uploading images and videos to websites, blogs and social networks is quicker than ever with Nokia's newest arrival, which features lightning-fast speeds over both cellular and Wi-Fi networks. The Nokia 6260 slide comes with the latest 3G technology, with high speed uploads (HSUPA) and downloads (HSDPA), a great camera, music player and web browser with a simple, instantly familiar interface. Combined with the range of Ovi services on offer, Nokia brings a compelling mobile Internet experience to a huge group of consumers.   A 5Mpix Carl Zeiss camera with flash takes fantastic pictures which can be easily shared and uploaded to Share on Ovi or other photo and video sharing websites.

In addition to the photo, music and sharing features that come packed in the Nokia 6260 slide, Nokia Maps and the assisted GPS provide a great navigation experience. The Nokia 6260 slide brings GPS into the Series 40 software platform for the first time, really signifying navigation arriving in the mass market.

Nokia 6260 Slide 

MySpace & RIM Announce Record Downloads

MySpace  and Research In Motion (RIM) has announced record download numbers of the MySpace for BlackBerry smartphones application in its first week of availability. Since the application’s launch on November 13, 2008 there have been more than 400,000 downloads which represents an all-time high for both MySpace and RIM in terms of first week application downloads.  Through the MySpace for BlackBerry smartphones application, users collectively sent and received more than 15 million messages and updated their mood and status over two million times in the first week.

The MySpace for BlackBerry smartphones application is fully optimized to deliver rich content and data to users on the go. MySpace for BlackBerry smartphones integrates MySpace’s primary social networking components with the BlackBerry platform to provide instant, push-based messaging to users. It is available for download atwww.blackberry.com/myspace or m.myspace.com from your BlackBerry Browser. The application is available for a wide variety of BlackBerry smartphones, including the BlackBerry Bold, BlackBerry Curve, BlackBerry Pearl and BlackBerry 8800 Series, and will be available to BlackBerry Storm users beginning November 24, 2008.

Verizon Wireless President and CEO Lowell McAdam issued the following statement recently: Employees Suspended for Accessing Obama's Cell Phone Account

Verizon Wireless President and CEO Lowell McAdam issued the following statement recently: “This week we learned that a number of Verizon Wireless employees have, without authorization, accessed and viewed President-Elect Barack Obama’s personal cell phone account. The account has been inactive for several months. The device on the account was a simple voice flip-phone, not a BlackBerry or other smartphone designed for e-mail or other data services." “All employees who have accessed the account – whether authorized or not – have been put on immediate leave, with pay. As the circumstances of each individual employee’s access to the account are determined, the company will take appropriate actions. Employees with legitimate business needs for access will be returned to their positions, while employees who have accessed the account improperly and without legitimate business justification will face appropriate disciplinary action."

“We apologize to President-Elect Obama and will work to keep the trust our customers place in us every day.”

Doro Launches HandleEasy 330 & 326i GSM Handsets in the U.S.

Doro, the IDEA award-winning phone design company from Sweden, announces the availability in the U.S. of mobile phones designed by experts in ergonomics and in communications technology to meet the needs of consumers seeking design simplicity and functionality in mobile handsets. Two Doro HandleEasy models available in the U.S., the HandleEasy 330gsm and the HandleEasy 326i gsm, are GSM-compatible, include large easy-to-view display screens and keypads, features that baby boomers and active seniors use most, and none of the complicated features that often go unused. The palm-sized Doro HandleEasy 330gsm features a high-contrast color screen, text messaging, FM radio, a variety of ringers, a speakerphone, and easy access to phone directories stored on the user’s SIM card. Doro HandleEasy 326i gsm features a conveniently larger keypad, four prominently positioned speed-dial buttons, a phone directory, a speakerphone, and a special coating that creates an easy-grip surface on the entire phone.

Jerome Arnaud, CEO of Doro, explained, “Many senior citizens still believe that mobile phones are difficult to use with complicated functions and therefore are reluctant to buy new ones. In contrast to other mobile phones on the market, we carefully design our phones according to the needs of active seniors and combine ergonomic demands with functions and simplicity. Baby boomers and active seniors don’t have to adapt their lives to our technology; we’ve already adapted it to their needs.”

HandleEasy 330gsm 

“Finally, a phone that is intuitive to use and uncomplicated,” declared John Donnelly, a 65-year-old business management consultant based in New York and a Doro HandleEasy 330gsm user. “I turned on the HandleEasy 330 and began using it immediately without having to read through the manual. From the first minute I turned-on the Doro phone, I could easily navigate through the large, brightly colored screen, look through my phone book without reading glasses, check voicemails, and I especially like the cool, sleek design. It’s much nicer looking, lighter, and easier to use than the three-year-old phone I was carrying around.”

Eighty-two-year-old Manuel Machado – who lives in Modesto, Calif., travels extensively in retirement, and has limited vision from a medical condition, macular degeneration – said of the Doro HandleEasy 326i gsm, “This is a phone I can actually use! I can read the screen, see the directory, and easily make calls. This is the first phone I’ve had in several years that I will use more frequently.” Dr. Steven A. Machado of Los Angeles, Manuel’s son, explains, “Macular degeneration can be especially frustrating for patients like my father because it puts a blank spot in the center of their field of vision, making it nearly impossible to see details right in front of them, like when dialing a phone. So, this phone from Doro is a godsend for Dad.”

HandleEasy 326igsm 

A fixture in most every household in Sweden for 35 years, Doro is well known for innovatively incorporating the latest technologies while maintaining simplicity of design and functionality. Consumers in over 30 countries already enjoy the inclusive designs and easy functionality of Doro’s phones. Doro HandleEasy 330 and 326i are the company’s first products available in the U.S.

Doro HandleEasy phones are currently available at all Centennial Wireless retail stores in six states (www.centennialwireless.com). “We are thrilled to offer Centennial customers Doro mobile phones designed especially for baby boomers and active seniors,” said Philip Mayberry, President of Centennial Wireless. “Doro’s long history of design innovation in Sweden is legendary in the telecommunications industry and now Doro’s user-friendly phones are popular all across Europe. Centennial is proud to be the first place in America that Doro phones are available.”

Doro’s U.S. Representative, Christopher Lundstrom, further explained, “Doro’s goal is to make its products available through a national delivery model in the months ahead, we want everyone to have the opportunity to enjoy Doro products. We are very pleased and fortunate to have Centennial Wireless offering our products in the U.S. market, Centennial created an excellent custom rate plan for the HandleEasy 330. This is a very attractive offering for both baby boomers and seniors alike, a tailored rate plan is key for this demographic and the overall customer experience.”

T-Mobile Uses Yahoo! oneSearch for Web2go Service

T-Mobile USA, Inc. and Yahoo! Inc. announced that, beginning today, Yahoo! oneSearch powers mobile Internet searches made through T-Mobile’s new web2goSM service. Web2go provides a better Web browsing experience on your mobile phone by making it easier to view and navigate the Web through a customizable home page, a simplified shopping and download experience, and Yahoo!’s award-winning mobile search experience. Yahoo! oneSearch provides customers who search through T-Mobile’s web2go with access to what they are looking for - from news, financial information, weather conditions, Flickr photos and Web images, to Web and mobile web sites. Yahoo! oneSearch will also display relevant ringtones, wallpaper, games and other content available in the T-Mobile Store® within search results.

Yahoo! oneSearch is designed for the needs of the mobile user, intuitively returning results grouped around the user's query intent. For instance, when users search for a sports team, Yahoo! returns the latest scores, schedules, team profiles, roster, news, images and a link to the team's Web site. Alternatively, if a user searches for a movie, Yahoo! returns show times at local theaters, reviews, news articles and information on the cast. Consumers no longer need to surf through a sea of links to find the information they want while on-the-go. Yahoo! oneSearch delivers relevant information on virtually any topic – including up-to-date airline flight details, integrated information from Wikipedia and Yahoo! Answers, and much more.

Also beginning today, Yahoo! will deliver mobile sponsored search results and in some cases display advertising within the search results presented through T-Mobile’s web2go. With a focus on creating the monetization engine for the mobile Internet, Yahoo! is enabling advertisers to reach their target audiences at large scale and with impact. Yahoo! is delivering a compelling consumer service via Yahoo! oneSearch that will help marketers connect with consumers on the go.