Cellular Phones: LTE-Advanced tests in Europe push wireless speeds - by Mikael Ricknäs

European operators Vodafone, Telefónica, and EE have all started testing LTE-Advanced, and are aiming to offer wireless connectivity speeds exceeding 200Mbps. But the hardware isn't as speedy: A lack of devices means commercial services will have to wait.

While LTE is still in its infancy in many parts of the world, operators have started to test LTE-Advanced, which uses a handful of technologies to increase speeds even more. Last week, Vodafone and Telefónica in Germany announced small-scale trials of the speedy technology in Dresden and Munich, respectively. The two join British operator EE, which announced a test in London's startup cluster Tech City earlier this month.

All three are taking advantage of a feature called carrier aggregation to improve speeds. It allows networks to devote more resources to some users by treating two channels in the same or different frequency bands as if they were one. The amount of frequencies used decides the maximum bandwidth. EE is using two times 20MHz to reach 300Mbps, while Vodafone and Telefónica are using one 10MHz channel plus one 20MHz channel for up to 225Mbps. 


Read more: LTE-Advanced tests in Europe push wireless speeds | TechHive

Smartphones Tap Into Your Conversations With Spyware; Wiretap - by Sid Kirchheimer

Your smartphone may be sharing your secrets. Using "spyware" that sells on the Internet for as little as $15, other people can hijack your phone. This allows them to hear your calls; see your text messages, e-mails, photographs and files; and track your location through constant GPS updates.

Your phone can even be turned into a surreptitious microphone. "When the phone is off — in a pocket, purse or on a table — it can remotely be turned on so conversations around the phone can be heard," says Tim Wilcox, owner of International Investigators Inc., an Indianapolis security firm.

The world now has about 370 million smartphones, according to ABI Research, an Oyster Bay, N.Y., firm that studies wireless communications. They include BlackBerrys, Androids, iPhones and others that easily accept apps and have ample processing power. Security experts say millions of them may already be infected with spyware; the risk for basic "dumb" cellphones is far less.
Mobile phone spyware is illegal in the United States but is sold by websites operating overseas. With at least 600 variations of the app out there, all it takes is a credit card to make an instant wiretapper. Often that person is a suspicious spouse, an overly protective parent or a jealous coworker. "But it's certainly possible for scammers to use it for identity theft," says Wilcox.

For more: Scam Alert: Smartphones Tap Into Your Conversations With Spyware; Wiretap - AARP Bulletin

Corporate Greed Out Of Control: Why AT&T’s takeover deal of T-Mobile is bad for customers and free market capitalism

..move to take over T-Mobile USA is disastrous news for customers. It will let AT&T shut down a competitor, jack up prices, and save on customer service.

The whole essence of the free market system lies in consumer choice and competition. That’s why companies can charge what they like, and offer the products and services they like. But ultimately, if the consumer is unhappy, they can take their business elsewhere. That at least is how old fashioned capitalism used to work. Today, specially in the utilities, energy, medical and transportation sectors the choices for the consumer are continuously being reduced as a result of mergers.

What’s going to happen to some of these great T-Mobile features after AT&T takes it over? If one listens to what AT&T chairman Randall Stephenson said this weekend "that AT&T “will look hard at whether to continue some of T-Mobile's services one can only wonder what that means?

History has proven now without doubt that these merger deals are always bad for the consumer. If you happen to think wireless and telephone companies are arrogant today, just wait till they’ve cut their cozy wireless communication club down to just three with the possibility of even more “merger misery” in that industry.

Remember the Sprint and Nextel or the FedEx and Kinko’s merger? Or look what happens if you want to book a flight on an airline these days, following the mergers in that industry. Sky high costs, little or no service, additional charges for food, baggage, seating, fuel, taxes, and just about everything else. Also, to make matters worse, one will find that in today's corporate worlds we find that most CEO's don't care. Why should they? They just have their mind on just three things: Stock options, stock options, and stock options.

You as a consumer in the US and the EU can take action if you care about freedom of choice and competition. Write to your local parliamentarian, or US congressman. Write to your representative in the European parliament or US Senator. Write to the European Ombudsman, US Federal Communications Commission or the U.S. Department of Justice. They are ones which must approve deals like the one between T-Mobile and AT&T or others.

EU-Digest

Facebook matters more than your company website - by David Clarke

In this era of social media supremacy, it's imperative for a business to maximize its social media presence by focusing on designing and developing a Facebook page that clearly communicates the company's brand messaging.

A well-designed Facebook page may be the key to increasing your brand awareness, driving traffic to your company's website and engendering your customers' loyalty.
For the five reasons to consider Facebook first and a company website second click on the link below.

For more: Facebook matters more than your company website - Business Monday - MiamiHerald.com

GIZMONDO: IPhone Apps: Skype For iPhone Now Available in the US, Has VoIP over 3G With 3.0 Firmware - by Jason Chen

Skype-Iphone

For the complete report from Gizmondo click on this link

IPhone Apps: Skype For iPhone Now Available in the US, Has VoIP over 3G With 3.0 Firmware - by Jason Chen

Apple's just about finished rolling out Skype for iPhone, and now US residents can go download the VoIP app for themselves. Our quick test showed that voice quality is quite good—definitely on par or better than actual 3G calling over AT&T's network—and connects rather quickly. It's unfortunate that 2.2.1 doesn't have background notifications, so there's no way somebody could Skype you unless you had the app open all the time.In an iPhone to iPhone Wi-Fi call test, Phone A heard Phone B perfectly clear, but the person on Phone A sounded like a robot with enunciation problems from Phone B's side. iPhone to Laptop worked perfectly fine, however.

Unstrung - Spectrum up for Grabs in Europe - by Michelle Donegan

For the complete report from Unstrung click on this link

Spectrum up for Grabs in Europe - by Michelle Donegan

Europe's wireless spectrum scene is set for a significant shakeup as new mobile licenses become available and regulators become more relaxed about which technologies license-holders can use.

The main benefit for reusing 2G spectrum is cost savings, explains Amit Nagpal, principal consultant at Analysys . Operators can get additional coverage by using lower frequencies, and fewer base stations would be needed. Also, the GSM frequencies provide better indoor coverage.

TelecomWeb : Hughes Quits Sea Launch For Arianespace European Space Agency

For the complete report from TelecomWeb click on this link

Hughes Quits Sea Launch For Arianespace European Space Agency

Arianespace will launch the Spaceway-3 communications satellite for Hughes Network Systems LLC. An August liftoff is scheduled aboard an Ariane 5 vehicle from the Guiana Space Center in French Guiana.

Hughes will operate the Ka-band satellite, built by Boeing Satellites Systems Inc., as part of its new broadband satellite network to provide multimedia services throughout North America. According to TelecomWeb news break sister e-letter Satellite Today, the bird had been scheduled to be lofted into orbit by Sea Launch before the end of July, but Hughes switched vehicles following that launch provider's Jan. 30 failure that destroyed the SES New Skies' NSS-8 satellite. That was the first of six Sea Launch missions scheduled for 2007; besides Hughes, Sea Launch's other customers include Thuraya Satellite Telecommunications Co., DirecTV, PanAmSat Corp. and EchoStar Communications Corp.

Spaceway-3 marks a second customer's switching from Sea Launch to Arianespace. SES Americom plans to launch its AMC-21 satellite in the 2008 second quarter aboard an Ariane 5 rocket. The satellite previously had been scheduled to be placed into orbit by Sea Launch's planned Land Launch rocket. The schedule for the remainder of Sea Launch's 2007 manifest remains uncertain. following the loss of a Zenit-3SL vehicle and the SES New Skies NSS-8 satellite Jan. 30.