In-Stat research reveals that cell phone users have mixed feelings about predicted new handset features -- "According to a proprietary survey of cell phone users by the high tech research firm, Wi-Fi- and Skype-enabled handsets, voice activation for text input, and mapping and traffic routing features resonate well. However, few respondents expressed interest in wireless phones that could be used as a wallet for purchases, or for watching TV programs. 42% of the respondents were very or extremely interested in voice activation for their wireless phones. More than 4 in 10 were very or extremely interested in buying a wireless phone with built-in Wi-Fi for voice and data. Just 12% had an interest in buying a wireless phone capable of receiving TV broadcasts. The report, Future Cell Phones: The Big Trends, 2005-2010, forecasts when new trends in mobile phone features and services are likely to take off."
Every executive who has approved a connected product roadmap has made a quiet assumption: the network underneath it will still be there. That assumption is about to be tested at a scale the automotive industry has never faced. The global connected vehicle installed base is heading toward a billion units, and the cellular technology most of those vehicles depend on is scheduled to begin its retirement before the end of the decade. For automakers, fleet operators, insurers, and the telecom carriers that serve them, the question is whether the recurring revenue those services promise can survive a connectivity layer with a shorter life than the vehicle carrying it. How Scale Meets an Expiry Date Omdia research forecasts that the global connected vehicle installed base will surpass 1.05 billion units by 2035, up from 473.7 million in 2025. Few installed bases of any kind more than double in a decade, and this one signals that connectivity is moving from premium differentiator to baseline e...