Nike+ for the iPhone 3G Will Support Google Maps, Leaked

The French-language iPhone rumor blog has published leaked shots of Nike+ for the iPhone 3G application. The Nike+ is a popular device which measures and records the distance and pace of a walk or run. For example, the Nike+iPod system consists of a small accelerometer attached to a shoe, which communicates with the Nike+ Sportband and/or a receiver plugged into an iPod nano.
If using the iPod, iTunes software can be used to view the walk or run history. Similar functionality is currently in development for the iPhone 3G.
In addition to tracking personal workout statistics, the Nike+ integrates directly with the Nike website. Workout data can be automatically uploaded to the website during an iPod sync with iTunes or through another program via the website’s public API. The iPhon.fr screenshots of Nike+ iPhone 3G app show fitness performance graphs right on the phone. Another feature improvement includes Google Maps support, which could be used to map training routes and calculate distance and other data.

War - Nokia N96 vs Apple iPhone

We realise that we have been going on and on about the iPhone and the Nokia N96, but thats all what we can do since this is our job and specially when the two iconic phones launched together in the same week in India.Price Comparision:The Nokia N96 will cost you around Rs. 36,000 while the Apple iPhone 3G with 8GB memory will cost Rs. 31000 and 16GB about Rs. 36,100. On price points even though they are hugely expensive we give them equal rank.SMS Forwarding, FM Radio:These two features are the darling of any mobile phone user in India. Since Texting messaging is really cheap in this part of the world forwarding SMSes is a very normal thing for all users. FM Radio is the life of people whilst traveling this is your one source of entertainment on the roads of the Indian metro cities. The lack of both these features on the iPhone is a big minus as far as its Indian market is concerned.Battery Life:Nokia N96 wins on this hands down. There have been lots of problems with the battery drainage of the Apple iPhone and these don't seem to stop. You will have to charge your phone everyday or twice a day for that matter if you are a heavy user.GPS:This is not a huge factor for the Indian market, but still a talking point. On the GPS front Nokia again wins this pretty easily.Video Calling:Video calling is not possible on the iPhone and the Nokia N96 is pretty good at it.Data Transfer and Bluetooth usage:A major , major talking point regarding the iPhone. The bluetooth on the iPhone can only be used for hands-free calling. No data transfer allowed between handsets or even with a computer with bluetooth enabled.Storage:You thought the storage factor will play in for the iPhone ? That isn't true. The Nokia N96 comes with 16GB of internal storage plus you have the luxury of adding a 8GB memory card giving you a whopping storage of 24GB. The iPhone again loses here.Design:There is no beating the iPhone, as simple as that!All in all, if you are looking for more bang for the buck, go for the Nokia N96. Lookwise and as a fashion symbol, we still say there is no beating the iPhone!

Reliance to roll out its IPTV service. IPTV will pave the way for personalised entertainment

Anil Dhirubhai Ambani promoted Reliance Communications plans to roll out Internet Protocol (IPTV) by the end of this year, a top official said. Reliance Communications president Mahesh Prasad told IANS on the sidelines of the BIG launch in Mumbai Tuesday, "With customers demanding personalised entertainment, IPTV service would allow subscribers more choice and control. We will launch this service within this year."

Earlier in November 2007, Reliance Communications announced a tie-up with Microsoft to use its software for IPTV and paid a license fee of $500 million.

IPTV will allow operators to deliver content to their subscribers using telephone lines through IP technology. So far this technology was being used to deliver voice over Internet telephony. The services on IPTV include video-on-demand and recording.

India, us ties up for moon mission......

Preparing to its first unmanned mission to moon, Chandrayaan-1, between October and December, India joined seven other nations to team up with Nasa for the future exploration of earth's only satellite. Confirming this, Isro spokesperson S Satish told TOI that a key pact was signed at a conference of International Lunar Users' Group at Nasa's Ames Research Centre last month. India was represented by Devi Prasad Karnik, space counsellor attached to the Indian embassy in Washington. The other seven countries are Canada, Germany, Italy, Japan, South Korea, France and Britain. Japan has already launched an unmanned mission to the moon. Germany, Italy and Britain had announced at International Astronautical Congress in 2007 that they planned their own lunar missions which would be independent of the European Space Agency. The international lunar agreement, which Nasa says a "landmark" one, will allow India and the seven countries to join hands with Nasa for developing new technologies and send robotic exploratory missions for a manned return mission to the moon. For Nasa, the lunar agreement is important as the eight countries, including India, are keen to send astronauts to the moon. Experts say the increased interest in the lunar science and the emergence of India, Japan and China as important space-faring nations will also help Nasa.

Reliance Big in US Content Market......

The Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG)-promoted Reliance Big Entertainment on Friday announced the US launch of Jump Games, a publisher and developer of mobile video games. According to a statement issued by the entertainment company, Jump Games is "aggressively looking" to acquire mobile content licences and brands for distribution to mobile phones worldwide. "We are keen on building a global enterprise that leverages the top entertainment content across the globe," said Reliance Big Entertainment president Rajesh Sawhney. "Our recent deals in the entertainment space convey our focus and commitment towards building global entertainment equity." Jump Games, which has set up its US headquarters in Chicago, expects partnerships and alliances with America's biggest firms will be critical.

"The idea is to expand the mobile entertainment umbrella for Jump in the mobile space, via strong and sustained growth, both organic as well as inorganic," said Sawhney. For expansion in the US, Jump Games has appointed Amit Khanduja as its executive vice president in America. Khanduja has previously worked with several leading companies like Sun Microsystems, HP and Tira Wireless. The company also has exclusive global licences to create and distribute games for some of the world's leading brands such as Manchester United Football Club, Virgin Comics, and Honest Entertainment (Fido Dido).

Setback for GSM players in dual tech case

The Delhi High Court on Friday dismissed a petition by GSM players that challenged the government’s decision to allow telcos to offer mobile services under dual technology (both GSM and CDMA technology platforms). GSM operators had told the court that the DoT was ‘attempting to pass off a second and new license to CDMA operators in the garb of dual technology’. The Delhi HC’s move is set to benefit existing CDMA players, all of which have applied for GSM radio frequencies under the dual technology licence. The DoT has already allotted start-up GSM spectrum to Reliance Communications, the Tatas and Shyam-Sistema for launching services on this platform. While dismissing the petition, the Delhi HC also imposed ‘a cost’ of Rs 50,000 each on six petitioners, including Bharti Airtel, Vodafone-Essar and Idea Cellular, and their industry association Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI). The telcos have been asked to deposit this sum with the court’s legal service authority. It is not known if GSM operators will appeal against the Delhi HC’s decision. The issue of dual technology licences is also being heard by telecom tribunal TDSAT. Industry observers say that the Delhi HC ruling could have an impact on the TDSAT’s final judgment on the issue. COAI, the GSM operators’ association refused to comment on the Delhi HC ruling. The Association of Unified Service providers of India (AUSPI), the body representing CDMA players welcomed the ruling: “This will allow our members who will soon launch GSM services to bring competition into the market. The consumers are set to benefit,” AUSPI’s secretary general S C Khanna told ET. GSM operators had approached the Delhi HC in December 2007 following the telecom tribunal’s decision not to grant a stay on allocation of spectrum and licenses to new entrants including dual technology license holders. The COAI had said that the allotment of crossover spectrum to rival CDMA service providers by the government was in violation of Unified Access Service License regime. It had also sought that the Delhi HC quash DoT’s policy announcements on October 18 and 19, 2007 which permitted the use of dual technology. Additionally, it had also asked the Delhi HC to turn down the DoT’s decision to endorse sector regulator TRAI’s recommendations for adoption of an enhanced subscriber-linked criteria for allocation of additional radio frequencies. The COAI had also questioned the events of 18/19 October 2007 (when the government approved the dual technology license) and had alleged that an “in-principle approval” was given to RCOM for launching GSM services even before the new policy on dual technology was publicly announced. However, CDMA players such as RCOM in their submissions to the Delhi HC had said that that GSM players after having got more than their share of required radio frequencies and were now trying to stop others from getting the start-up spectrum for operations in the same segment.

Hefty price tag spoils iPhone’s launch party

High price and lack of high-end 3G services seem to have dampened Apple’s iPhone launch party in India. Only a few buyers turned up at midnight launches done by both the operators across eight cities in India. The snazzy gizmo failed to draw crowds to the stores of Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Essar in sharp contrast to the international markets where iPhone lovers had queued up the whole night to buy the handset. The mood was subdued at the midnight launch of iPhone at Mumbai’s Infiniti Mall with Friday being a working day. The stage was set for a grand launch, complete with confetti and cheerleaders, but at the stroke of midnight, there were just 10 people who actually bought the high-end device. At a Vodafone store in Connaught Place, Central Delhi, journalists outnumbered customers by a huge margin. Only about 15 customers turned up to buy the phone. The Airtel retail store nearby wore a deserted look on Friday afternoon, with not a single customer buying the iPhone. In Gurgaon, Airtel unveiled the iPhone at Sahara Mall. Despite the frenzy, the D-day did not quite match the expectations with just about 35-40 people lining up to buy the coveted smartphone. Though the launch attracted hundreds of curious onlookers late at night, very few of them were convinced enough to shell out an exorbitant Rs 31,000 for the 8 GB version and Rs 36,100 for the 16 GB one. “The pricing is a little on the high side. I would have bought it if the price was around Rs 25,000. But at 31,000, it makes little sense. I’ll wait for the price to come down,” said one of the onlookers.

Rajkumar Kanojia, who landed up at the venue much ahead of the launch, was the first person from Mumbai to get his hands on the phone. “I am buying the 16 GB version because it’s not much expensive than the 8 GB version. Since I am into business, it’ll help me combine my work and pleasure into one compact device,” he said. Maharaja of Jaipur, Bhawani Singh, and football captain Baichung Bhutia were the first customers of Vodafone Essar in Jaipur and Kolkata respectively. In Delhi, Nishant Arya, owner of JBM Group, a Rs 2,500-crore auto components company, claimed to be the first legal buyer of iPhone 3G in India. Over two lakh users had pre-registered with Airtel for the iPhone, but only around 5,000-5,500 may have actually bought or booked the handset across the company’s stores in 65 cities, said sources. Bharti Airtel president (mobile services) Sanjay Kapoor brushed off the fear of iPhone turning out a damp squib because of high cost. “We are targeting the high-end user segment as well as the youth, which does not cares much about the pricing if the product is good,” he said.

Apple iPhone 3G Finally Launched for the Indian Audiences

After taking the whole world by a storm, the iconic 3G-enabled iPhone from Apple was finally launched for the Indian audiences at midnight on Thursday at glittering functions organized by the two leading mobile operators, Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Essar.

Bharti Airtel and Vodafone have priced the 8 GB phone at Rs 31,000, while the price tag on the 16 GB model is Rs 36,100. This might have put off many potential customers, who were expecting prices to compete with the US offer of USD 199 or roughly Rs 9,000.

Sanjay Kapoor, president-mobile services, Bharti Airtel defends this price proposition saying, "the US price comes with a two-year airtime contract, so it is not fair to compare these rates. We are selling these phones to enhance customer experience, not to make a profit."

He further added saying that, “we are offering an attractive bolt-on data plan, offering free 500 MB a month, for the first 12 months for all iPhone users, besides giving m-check e-commerce service and access to our portal Airtel Live.”

While Airtel claims 200,000 customers registered for the iPhone, Vodafone has reportedly registered half this number. Soon the Apple smartphone will be available in over 50 cities across India.

Nokia unveils N96 to take on iPhones

Ahead of the launch of Apple's inconic brand iPhone here, world's largest mobile phone maker Nokia today unveiled its new converged device N96 under its 'N Series' stable.
Apple and Nokia have not yet announced the prices of their models, but according to industry sources, both phones having 3G enabled features, which allow high quality net surfing, video and music download etc, would be priced in the same range.

The price of iPhones would also have an Indian component as it would be offered by the service providers Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Essar.

While iPhone is likely to cost about Rs 31,000 for the 8 GB version, N96, which is expected to hit the Indian market by September, is likely to be priced above Rs 30,000.

Though Nokia is quiet confident that the company's sales would not be impacted by the launch of the iPhone in the country, experts tracking the sector feels Nokia is hurrying the launch of N96 in India to counter the hype associated with the iPhone.

"Our sales will not be affected by the launch of iPhone in the country...There are different segments of consumers whose needs are different," Nokia India Director-Marketing Devinder Kishore told reporters here.

With a large 2.8-inch screen display, the phone packs 16 GB of internal memory, expandable up to 24GB.

"The memory of N96 can store up to 18,000 songs, up to 20,000 images and up to 60 hours of video or 20 full length movies," Kishore said.

Though the phone would be available from September, consumers can pre-book the phone from across 2,000 Nokia outlets across the country from tomorrow.

Intel in talks with telecom operators for WiMax rollout

Betting big on WiMax in India, chip giant Intel is in talks with telecom operators to enable the growth of WiMax ecosystem through its products for boosting the penetration of wireless broadband in the world’s fastest-growing telecom market.

The US-based company is working with ODMs (original device manufacturers) to evolve new products like WiMax USB dongle, mobile internet devices (MIDs) besides WiMax notebooks with an aim to have wireless broadband networks running by the first quarter of 2009 in India.

“The idea is to utilise existing telecom tower, power and fiber backhaul infrastructure of operators to ensure faster roll out of WiMax networks at the lowest costs and time-to-market. Like the USB dongle, a similar PCM express WiMax card will come from Intel’s ODMs. It’ll be a PC add-on card. Laptops will also evolve to have mobile internet,” Intel’s MD, emerging market, Wimax program office, C S Rao said.

“We are talking to operators to evolve good device partnership models with them. India is the market for Intel. If we are able to add even one-tenth of the 8million-9million subscribers being added every month, it will be huge. Volumes in this market are going to be significantly high,” he said.

WiMax or Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access is a wireless communication technology, which can offer high speed connectivity in about 50 km radius. Globally, 484 WiMax products are available for commercial use. While a customer premise equipment (CPE, which resides in the user’s premises) is available for around $100 (Rs 4200), a WiMax notebook from Taiwanese technology major ASUS can be bought for as low as $400 (Rs 16,800). An ecosystem of products and infrastructure is crucial for the success of any new technology and WiMax seems to be ready on these counts.

Right now, India has around 4.5 m broadband subscribers, mostly through copper wire. The targeted user base is 20 million by 2020. “With WiMax, the target may be achieved a little earlier because of high demand and existing ecosystem. Intel has strong distribution channels in India. All those will be used to proliferate WiMax devices,” he said.

In India, Tata Communications (earlier VSNL), Reliance Communications and public sector BSNL are strong proponents of WiMax. “Logistics of wireless broadband roll out are much more easier and cost effective. Telecom infrastructure, like towers can be used for WiMax, resulting in sharing of costs between more parties,” he said.

Comparing WiMax with 3G (third generation), which is a competing technology, Mr Rao said WiMax will offer three times more speed and will be cheaper. Operators like Bharti Airtel and Idea Cellular are betting big on 3G. While 3G-enabled handsets are already available in India, the launch of Apple’s 3G iPhone is expected to formally ring in the rollout of 3G in the country.

“3G has the capability to offer high-speed data services but doesn’t have the scalability. You need more base stations for offering 3G at the same capacity of total bandwidth and with this, the capex per subscriber goes up. And if you add more subscribers, the speed goes down. WiMax is a more cost-effective and efficient technology,” he added.

Google’s GPhone - A Phone Or An ‘Operating System’?

It’s been the buzz of the blogosphere for last few months - the much-awaited launching of a Google mobile phone - with industry watchers haunting over incessant hearsays and supposedly leaked effigies of the legendary phone.

Google has declined to reassert any further plans for the GPhone

But at the moment it looks that the so-called 'iPhone killer' could be one of the most hyped non-devices in record.

According to the recent information, the mobile phone Google engineers have spent two years secretly making is really not a cellular phone in any way but an operating system (OS), which is configured to bring all the tech majors’s online goodies comprising its highly productive advertising to mobile users.

Now the world's most popular search engine is in quest of extending its authority of internet marketing to the mobile phone market.

The company desires to redeem on what it considers as the speedily rising mobile internet advertising market that is comparatively small nowadays.

It is making a mobile phone operating system, which it desires service providers and makers to set up in their phones. The phones cost could even be subsidised by the publicity, which appears on their screens.

A declaration about the growth is projected soon with handset using the latest software available as early as 2008.

At present, mobile phones make use of a range of operating systems to access the internet consisting arrangements from Microsoft and London-based Symbian. The software is assembled into the phones by makers. Google is projected to present its software free without charging phone manufacturers a licensing cost.

Together with the operating system, Google is likely to originate a unique browser for cellular phones and modify some of its features to beat the search and mapping software presently offered on wireless phones.

In July, the company also said that it was thinking over bidding at least $4.6 billion for wireless airwaves at a US federal auction.

Smartphone with Google operating system set to rival iPhone

British chipmaker ARM has unveiled a prototype mobile phone that will use the operating system Android, launched by Google last November.

The unbranded prototype handset demonstrated at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona features an internet browser, map software, multimedia applications, text messaging, calendar functions, email and other cell phone functions.

Tipped to rival Apple’s iPhone, ARM's prototype uses Google as its web browser home page, Google Mail as its email application, and Google Maps for navigation.

Although the Android project is at a relatively early stage, the first Android-based mobile phones are expected to be launched in the market later this year, reports the Telegraph.

Experts at the research firm Strategy Analytics reckon that Android—which is being backed by an alliance of more than 30 mobile phone operators, handset makers, software firms and component manufacturers—will be installed on two per cent of smartphones by December.

Check your emails on mobile for free.

Adroit Claretdene Infotech has finally announced the launch of a new mobile email solution - email@mobile through out the world.

email@mobile is the first solution of its kind which allows users to register for new email ID through a mobile phone. The latest solution will allow worldwide mobile users to own a free mobile email ID which shall be accessed over any ordinary mobile phone capable of internet browsing.

With the introduction of email@mobile solution, users can now read text/ attachments, reply or compose new email, delete or send email, set up address book and avail other features of any web-mail program - from a basic mobile handset.

To use the service, users neither have to buy any smartphone/PDA nor install any software on their mobile phone. All that is required is a mobile phone capable of internet browsing.

Users can now use their existing mobile phone with WAP 1.2 & above browser to wirelessly access their new e-mail box as well as register for new email ID through their basic mobile phone.

At present, few companies are providing similar email solutions, but they are charging device compatibility and monthly subscription charges. But with the introduction of email@mobile, users can now check their emails for free and save a lot of money.

Users can sign up for this free solution at www.emailatmobile.com over a web browser or wap.email@mobile.com using a mobile browser on their mobile phones.

Now Create Your Website Through Cellphone!

Wanna create your website through your cellphone? Yes, it is now possible to create a website through the mobile phones.

From 15th of August this year onwards, Akmin Technologies, a Chennai
based company would start offering mobile website services that will
help users to create websites from their own mobiles in just few
seconds.

Moreover, the company will offer this service free of cost to its users.

But, to avail this facility, the users must have a GPRS enabled
handset, and this mobile based application will run from the domain
www.mobisitegalore.com.

According to a survey done by Telecom Regulatory Authority of India
(TRAI), there are 250 million mobile phone users in India of which 65
million have GPRS enabled handset. The number of people having access
to internet broadband connections is only 14 million.

Mr. Akmin CEO S Prashanth said, “We offer the technology free of cost
to the customers. Unlike the web version, the screen in the mobile
version will be customized and user-friendly to enable even lay persons
have their own websites. No technical knowledge is required and no
downloads needed. Mobile users can build, publish, manage and share
mobile websites.”

Experts feel that as the number of mobile users in India is increasing
day by day at a very fast speed there is a huge scope of creating
mobile based applications that would be of use to the large mobile
audience.

Apple faces growing list of problems with iPhone Customers complain of service, dropped calls; chipset could be the cause

Apple Inc.'s 3G iPhone has been a hot seller, a rash of service problems and technical glitches has left the company with a black eye that industry analysts say could buy time for its competitors.

The latest version of the iPhone has been a big hit, with Apple (AAPL:

Apple Inc

AAPL 179.32, +0.02, +0.0%) selling at least 1 million of the devices since it was released a month ago.

But in that time, a growing list of complaints has taken some shine off the wireless device. IPhone users have flooded Apple's online message boards with comments about poor support for the device and complaints about how calls placed over the 3G networks of partners such as AT&T Inc. (T:

AT&T Inc

T 31.12, -0.18, -0.6%) are being dropped or shifted over to slower networks.

The situation caused Apple to lock its discussion board on iPhone network coverage on Wednesday after the thread became too long for Web browsers to handle. A new thread was opened later.

The company did not return calls seeking comment on the matter. Shares of Apple closed trading Thursday up 2 cents at $179.32. The stock has risen about 14% so far this month.

The service issues follow on the heels of problems experienced during the first weekend of iPhone sales in July, when customers complained about excessively long iPhone activation times, or not being able to activate the devices at all.

Additionally, Apple has had severe problems with its new MobileMe service, which represents the company's move into "cloud computing," a service where information stored on a computer server can be updated via any device linked to the cloud. When one device updates information through the cloud, all devices connected directly or wirelessly to the cloud are updated. Apple sees MobileMe as one of its main initiatives to expand the reach of its 3G iPhone into the corporate market. See full story.

A problem with chips?

Richard Windsor, an analyst with Nomura Securities, says that the problems with the iPhone's 3G network coverage appear to be stemming from chipsets made for the device by Infineon Technologies (IFX:

infineon technologies ag sponsored adr

News, chart, profile, more

Last: 8.62-0.22-2.49%
4:02pm 08/14/2008

In a report earlier this week, Windsor said the Infineon chips haven't been tested much in the hands of consumers and are being used in one of their first, large-scale deployments in the iPhone. According to Windsor, part of the problem is the radio technology used in the chips to access the 3G networks.

A report Thursday on the Web site of BusinessWeek said Apple will likely try to fix the iPhone's problems through a software update that can be downloaded to the device. Citing unnamed sources, the BusinessWeek report said the service problems have affected 2% to 3% of iPhone traffic, compared with a dropped-call rate of about 1% for all of AT&T's wireless traffic.

Nomura's Windsor said in an interview Thursday that a software update is unlikely to fix the problem.

"The problem is likely with the low level software and the chipsets," Windsor said. "It's difficult to fix through [software] upgrades. Also, it's not enough of a problem to warrant a recall."

He added that while iPhone customers have a right to be upset, the device's problems need to be put into historical perspective. "This is exactly what happened a few years ago when the first 3G phones went on sale. It's something that will be worked out."

However, the problems with the new iPhone may be a help to rival device makers such as Nokia Corp. (NOK:

Nokia Corp

Sponsored by:

NOK 25.88, +0.01, +0.0%) and Research In Motion Ltd. (RIMM:

Research in Motion Limited

Last: 130.81+3.91+3.08%
4:00pm 08/14/2008
Delayed quote data

Sponsored by:

RIMM 130.81, +3.91, +3.1%) -- which makes the popular BlackBerry line of devices. RIM is launching new BlackBerry models later this year, possibly including a touch-screen version of the device.

It may also help other companies that make chipsets for wireless devices. Windsor said that if Apple is upset enough about the iPhone glitches, it may choose to dump Infineon for more proven 3G chipsets from the likes of Qualcomm Inc. (QCOM:

QUALCOMM Incorporated

Delayed quote data

Sponsored by:

QCOM 56.35, +0.96, +1.7%) or other companies.

Whatever problems the new iPhone is having, the issues don't seem to have put a damper on demand for the device. On Wednesday, Best Buy Co. Inc. (BBY:

Best Buy Co., Inc

BBY 45.82, +0.44, +1.0%) said it would start selling the iPhone next month.

On Thursday, Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster raised his estimates for iPhone sales during the current quarter to at least 4.47 million units from 4.1 million. Munster said he based some of his estimates on the Best Buy announcement, and information gleaned from spending 25 hours in Apple retail stores, where he estimates Apple sells an average of 95 iPhones a day.

The New Cuil Search Engine Sucks

If you are going to roll out a new search engine, please try to make one that has more going for it than a silly name and cheap, misleading PR. Thus we have Cuil, the search engine rolled out this last week by some ex-Google folks who see a market opportunity. While all the people involved seem competent and have great resumes, the site itself out-and-out stinks.

It's buggy. It's slow. It seems hand-tweaked in odd ways. Worse, it requires exact spelling. Use lower case on a proper name and it can come up empty (but not always).

But it's the apparent fiddling with the results that bother me the most. Here's where it gets funny. Type in "Sergey Brin" (the founder of Google) and you get back a whopping "250 results for Sergey Brin"; yes, 250. And they are mediocre hits, many dating back to his Stanford days in the 1990s. There is an "Explore by Category" box, which won't help me find out anything about Brin, from what I can tell. It's pathetic. On Google you get 1.5 million hits. And if you think that's because of Google bias, on MSN Search you get over 3 million hits.

This is pathetic, since Cuil founder Anna Patterson has 11,381 results for herself. And the top search hit is her glowing bio on the Cuil site itself. What a coincidence! Try finding a Brin bio. Then if you search for Louis Monier, the ex-Googler and go-to man at Alta Vista who is now working at Cuil, he gets over 13,000 hits, many with flattering pics that are of other people.

So I decide to do a vanity search on myself to find out where my current bio appears. It's on the Dvorak.org site. Low and behold, the Cuil engine doesn't seem to find my blog at all, let alone my bio. One version of the search using my middle initial comes close, offering up at least a Wikipedia entry. But subsequent uses of my middle initial come up dead altogether. So I go with "John Dvorak." My blog gets a million page views a month, but Cuil finds a bunch of other blogs and tired old posts or people grousing. The top hit was a CSS blog commenting on a two-year-old story I wrote (although Cuil never found the story itself); the next two were "Dvorak is an idiot" posts from even more obscure blogs followed by various entries about me that you find on speakers' bureaus' Web sites. Yeah, this is endearing. No mention of PC Magazine, MarketWatch.com, Cranky Geeks, or any number of things I'm doing.

So I go to page two. After waiting for an eternity, I get pretty much the same thing on page two: people who condemned me on their blogs. Hey, I can go to Technorati for this abuse! Page 3: still no mention of my own blog or PC Magazine or MarketWatch.com or even Mevio. In fact, some of the hits are redundant. OK, so how many times do I have to pound this thing to find my base Web sites—any of them? I gave up after page six and figured that this site was useless. I mean, if your search term has their own Web site, you'd think said Web site would be in the search results. If I was doing a search engine, it would be a priority. After all, Dvorak is in the URL!!

And, yes, I do have enough presence on the Web to use myself as a benchmark.

Now you're wondering if this site has any usefulness. When the site was actually reviewed by others, I didn't see anybody jacked up about anything. Here is an example from this BBC blog:

Search term: "Nikon d50 reviews problems". Plenty of articles on the D70 camera, but none on the D50 (which might suggest it isn't doing its job in terms of prioritising meta tags and headlines above freetext). Google however got a good review from a reputable independent source as first link.

So while I'm always hoping for something better or more interesting or uniquely valuable, I still end up having to use Google. This over-hyped product is just another dead-end as far as I can tell. Oh, and the name is stupid too.

Indian iPhone Will Be Not Be 3G

Is it okay to pay for iPhone 3G, which will not be 3G for at least a year or so?

Bharti Airtel and Vodafone, both are bringing in the iPhone 3G to India and have started bookings as well. But what no one is talking about right now is that there is actually no 3G in India. And if we look at the promises the telecom department has been making for the past few years, there is no deadline for when 3G will be available in India. So, in a situation like that is it fair for users to pay heavy amount to buy 3G iPhone which will not be able to use the power of the next generation network?

A Non 3G, iPhone 3G How justifiable are the claims of Vodafone or Bharti Airtel of bringing in the iPhone 3G to India? Should consumers fall for that and buy iPhone 3G, which will not be a 3G device? There was a dialogue in Matrix movie where Neo, when arrested by agents, asks for a phone call. Agent Smith says, "How good is a phone call, when you can't speak?'' As he had sealed his lips. So, here one can say, "How good is the iPhone 3G when there is no 3G network in the country?" Nathan Burley, an Australia-based analyst with research firm, Ovum, explains,"There is no other iPhone model to sell so that is the only model available. Apple is pushing the 3G model very aggressively. I think there are a lot of un-locked or cracked iPhone already available in India. But through this Apple will get the Indian market. Well, the iPhone 3G will run on 2G network as well, so you will be able to do a lot of things like the Internet access and other stuff, but the experience will not be that good as compared to running these on a 3G network. Still since iPhone is more about a style statement and the rich interface so at least people will be able to use it and flaunt that."When Will It Be 3G?So, iPhone it is, on papers and technologically. But it is going to take quite a while for Indians to reap the benefits of 3G that the device offers? Looking back at history, there has been more promises made than met. As we are aware that the frequency that 3G networks use was assigned to defence forces in India and it took quite a time to release that frequency as defence forces needed to build the infrastructure to migrate from that frequency. That was followed by the expulsion of the much adored minister Dayanidhi Maran due to some political issues. The change of minister further delayed the arrival of 3G in India. A. Raja, took over as the minister of communications and information technology and after taking his time to settle has started the 3G drive. The government is trying to put things in place by announcing 3G guidelines and policy. There will soon be an auction of 3G spectrum in India, as late as the end of September.Just few days ago Indian government approved the release of one block of 3G Spectrum each to BSNL and MTNL, the two Public Sector telephone service providers. The spectrum blocks released for the two companies have the size of 2x5 MHz in 2.1 GHz Band. “Besides this special consideration for BSNL and MTNL, 3G / BWA Spectrum would be allocated through an auction process to be conducted by a specialised agency. For the Spectrum blocks released to them, BSNL and MTNL will pay a price equal to the highest bid in the respective service areas,” a press statement says.If Your Operator Doesn't Get 3G SpectrumSo, the PSUs already get the 3G spectrum, which leaves the two major GSM players Airtel and Vodafone who have already have deals with Apple to bring the iPhones to India. Then there are CDMA players like Reliance and Tata, so there is going to be a tight fight for getting the 3G spectrum. Though, there are estimates that the two major players Bharti Airtel and Vodafone may get the desired spectrum. Still what if one of the two players, who already announced plans for iPhones don't get the 3G spectrum, how would they meet the promises they have made?"3G will do a lot more than just offering services on the iPhone and other 3G phones available in the market, so definitely there will be limited spectrum for the operators, and as you ask, if someone any of the operators don't get the 3G spectrum, then they will either go for some deals or acquisitions to acquire the 3G spectrum," says Nathan.But the guidelines and policy released by the government clearly discourages such deals or mergers. The press statement says, ”Mergers will not be allowed during the initial five years. No trading/ reselling of spectrum is allowed."The government also wants to ensure no hoarding or under usage of the spectrum, “There will be roll out obligations to avoid spectrum hoarding. If licensee does not achieve its roll out obligations, it shall be given one year to do so on payment of 2.5 percent of its successful auction bid (i.e. spectrum acquisition price) per quarter or part thereof. If licensee does not complete its roll out obligations even within this one-year, the spectrum assignment shall stand withdrawn. The roll out requirements, including rural roll-out, as well as stiff penalties for non compliance of the same has been stipulated,” further says the press statement.So, its going to be a tough time for players in not only getting the spectrum, but also rolling it out efficiently. We approached both Bharti Airtel and Vodafone, but they are tight lipped on the issue.Too Early To Be Too HappyBut don't think that the moment they get the spectrum, you will start using 3G services. It is going to take a long time to roll out 3G services in India. The infrastructure for 3G has to be suild. Ironically, the two PSUs who got 3G spectrum in advance have no prior experience of 3G services. On the other hand Vodafone and Bharti Airtel have good experience of 3G servies as they are already offering services in other countries, so that experience is going to help them build the needed business in India. And closer to home and before India, Airtel will be rolling out 3G in Sri Lanka later this year. So that will work as a testing bed for Airtel to roll out 3G in India. The sad think is if there will be iPhone in Sri Lanka, they will be ahead of Indians in teams of using iPhone 3G's full features. According to leaked reports in media, iPhones in India are going to be manifold costlier – between Rs 30,000 to Rs 36,000 -- than those available in US or UK. In some of the countries iPhones have been subsidised by operators which makes it cheaper. But Indian Indian telecom players are not known for giving subsidies on high-end phones. Now, the question is while international operators cover that cost through services, in India since these are not subsidised so will the services be cheaper? An expert who refused to give out his name says that Indian operators will keep prices higher as compared to international counterparts, even if the phones are not sold at subsidised rates so that will simply mean stealing away from the customer. Nathan feels, “But looking at the popularity of pre-paid services in India, I think there will be more pre-paid services and there can be subsidised iPhones as well in India. ”It took India quite a while to match the International calling rates, which were expensive compared to rest of the world, so it may not be a good idea to think that iPhone services will be cheaper in India, especially when the device is not being subsidised. These are the things we will keep an eye on. International Players Not InterestedThe bad news for auction is the government may not get the expected revenue from the auction as the international players are not interested in bidding for the spectrum, which would have raised the bid. “The worst think is currently no international player in interested in 3G auction of India, reason being the market structure. 2G is very strong in India and it will take up a lot of resources to build up the 3G infrastructure also the business model is not tested, so right now it will be interesting to see how current players take leverage of the infrastructure and presence and build the business. So, in the current situation it is easier for local players to build on top of that. Pricing and presence of many small players in various reasons is another reason for that," says Nathan. To reach to those areas, you need to tie-up with those small players and that can be a tricky business for international players. So many hurdles in the road to 3G. So, when you line up to get your iPhone, don't expect much except the cool device and interface “Yes, that will be a disappointment for users as there is no 3G in India and they will not be able to get the best out of iPhone 3G. They will have to settle with the current network which is of course slower than 3G. However the iPhone has been very very successful every where, owing to the interface and style so same is going to happen in India as well. Even if things will be slower on 2G, still people will be able to use some of the functionality of iPhone. ”Can we say iPhone for India will not be 3G, actually? Nathan laughs at that, “Well until there is 3G network in India, you won't be able to reap benefits of 3G, so in a way you are right. ”Despite the 3G machinery sitting inside iPhone will continue in the state of hibernation like the Indian mythological character Kumbhkaran did unless awakened by some drumbeats and trumpets of the arrival of 3G services in India. But looking at the record, 3G in India seems to be on the track of making and breaking promises -- keeping up that promise is still everyone is waiting for. So, those who do want to line up in front of exclusive stores to get iPhone, don't start feeling yourself part of the elite group of iPhone 3G owners. In India your iPhone will be 3G minus. The D-day, 22 August, is not far. It's just the coming Friday. So will you be going for first day first show or will wait unless prices fall further or the Kumbhkaran of 3G wakes up?

DoT clears air on 3G

The department of telecommunications (DoT) today ruled out any change in third-generation (3G) spectrum pricing rules and the time frame for an auction.

According to the current schedule, the auction for 3G spectrum will be held within three months, spectrum allotted by the year-end and services launched by mid-2009.

DoT officials said if needed, there could be more consultations with the finance ministry.

However, “3G policy is consistent with the 2003 cabinet decision on spectrum pricing”, they added.

The finance ministry yesterday alleged that the DoT’s announcement of the 3G guidelines without consulting it was inappropriate and contrary to the 2003 cabinet decision.

The cabinet meeting held on October 31, 2003, had decided that spectrum pricing would be decided mutually between the DoT and the ministry of finance to provide incentives for efficiency and discourage the sub-optimal use of spectrum.

Earlier this month, telecom minister A. Raja had announced the guidelines for 3G services — which offer high-speed downloads of data and voice such as movie and video clips — saying the government will auction five to 10 3G licences per service area.

Raja also issued 3G licences to state-owned BSNL and MTNL without waiting for the auction and said they would roll out their services within six months.

8GB iPhone to cost Rs 31,000

NEW DELHI: The wait is finally over. The pricing of the most-awaited gadget Apple iPhone, to be launched in India on August 22, is out.

Reports indicate that the 8 GB version of the 3G iPhone will cost Rs 31,000, while the 16 GB version will cost between Rs 36,000–37,000.

The prices are not inclusive of the plan the phone will come bundled with.

Last week Bharti Airtel and Vodafone announced that they will launch iPhone on August 22.

In a statement, Bharti said that millions of Airtel subscribers will be able to purchase the iPhone at Airtel's Relationship Centres from August 22.

"iPhone has been an iconic technological revelation of this year and Airtel has been at the forefront of innovation and customer delight in the Indian telecom sector," Sanjay Kapoor, President, Bharti Airtel mobile services, said.

iPhone is embedded with all 3G features and is twice as fast as the existing mobile phones. The phone also has in-built GPS system, which facilitates as navigation and positioning tool.

India world's 2nd largest wireless mkt

BANGALORE: Mobile telephony has grown rapidly in India, especially during the last three years, with India becoming the second-largest wireless market in the world, says a World Bank study. The number of wireless subscribers in the country has reached 250 million, making India the second-largest wireless market in the world, says the study, The Role of Mobile Phones in Sustainable Rural Poverty Reduction. Authored by Asheeta Bhavnani, Rowena Won-Wai Chiu, Subramaniam Janakiram and Peter Silarszky, the study says India is now second only to China, with tele-density already surpassing the 25 per cent mark. Currently, China is adding about 6-7 million new subscribers per month, India about 8-9 million and the US about 2-3 million, it notes. "The private sector is also active in India and there are a number of telecommunication companies providing mobile telephone services who have to compete for market share and meet consumer expectations," according to the study released recently. It argues that mobile telephony has a positive impact on economic welfare by generating GDP; job generation (both in the mobile industry and the wider economy); productivity increases; and taxation revenue with mobile operators usually being a sizeable contributor.

RIM's Bold move against iPhone

TORONTO: Push email major Research In Motion (RIM) has made a Bold statement in an effort to retain its edge in the smartphone battle with Apple iPhone. Like the iPhone , the BlackBerry Bold will also operate on the much faster, next-generation 3G network and has a built-in GPS. With a half-VGA LCD display and 480x320 resolution, the smartphone has 624 MHz processor and 1GB internal storage memory. The smartphone has a 2 megapixel camera and video recording capability, built-in flash and digital zoom. The new device also boasts of an advanced media player that displays pictures and slideshows quickly, plays movies smoothly in full screen mode and manages an entire music collection. The audio can be played over the handset's dual speakers in rich, stereo sound, and when using headphones or external speakers, the media player gives the user an equalizer with 11 preset filters -- like "Lounge", "Jazz" and "Hip Hop" -- that boost or soften audio ranges to create the perfect ambience. Though the Bold version has been designed to meet increasing requirements of business professionals during the day, the company said the new smartphone also 'indulges the consumer experience during lunchtime, evenings and weekends.'

IBM building Microsoft-free PCs

NEW DELHI: To give a further boost to its open source initiative, technology giant IBM has entered into an alliance with three Linux distributors, Canonical, Novell and Red Hat. The alliance aims to design a package of tools that will build Microsoft-free PCs. Seems IBM wants to cash on the tepid response to the Microsoft's latest OS, Windows Vista. The package, which will allow PC users to run their computers without Microsoft software, includes IBM's Lotus Notes, Lotus Symphony e-mail, desktop productivity suites and Linux operating system. Linux OS and Lotus Symphony are both available for free. IBM claims that the package will bring down users' TCO by at as much as 30 per cent as compared to Windows PCs. The open source suite is likely to hit the market in early 2009.

HP wants iPhone touch

NEW DELHI: Seems Apple iPhone has made touchscreen the tech flavour of the year, after a flurry of cell phone manufacturers scrambling to launch touchscreen mobile phones, now you may soon have a touchscreen laptop. According to reports, the #1 PC maker Hewlett Packard is working on several products, including notebooks that will use the finger-tapping interface popularised by iPhone. The company plans to bring the touchscreen laptop to the market in the next 18 months. The company's present touchscreen product portfolio includes Pavilion tx2500z tablet laptop and the recently-launched TouschSmart All-in-one PC. HP sees touch technology as one of the most preferred method for tapping in non-technical users. With Microsoft's next operating system, Windows 7 also expected to have touchscreen features, PC makers are gearing up to offer touch-enabled systems. Last month, Dell showed of its touchscreen products including LCD monitors and 12.1 inch Latitude XT tablet. According to market analysts, the Touchscreen device market is set to be double to 800 million by 2013.

Intel names new chip Core i7

SANTA CLARA: Intel Corp said it plans to sell its new generation of chips for desktop computers under the established ``Core'' brand, with the first chips of the new line to be called Core i7. The microprocessors are based on a design the company has code-named Nehalem and are expected to be in production the last three months of this year. Intel says the new design will deliver both high performance and energy efficiency. Santa Clara, California-based Intel indicated that the Core name, already used for other chips including the popular Core 2 Duo processor, will be its flagship PC processor brand. ``Expect Intel to focus even more marketing resources around that name and the Core i7 products starting now,'' Sean Maloney, general manager of Intel's sales and marketing group, said in a news release. The first chips in the new family of processors, including an ``Extreme Edition'' version, will carry an ``i7'' identifier. The identifier will be the first of several to come as different chips are launched over the next year, Intel said. Intel is the world's No 1 maker of microprocessors with about three-quarters of the worldwide market.

Bindra shoots first ever Olympic gold

BEIJING: Abhinav Bindra won India's first individual Olympic gold medal on Monday with a thrilling come-from-behind victory in the men's 10m air rifle. (Watch) Bindra had been fourth after qualifying but had a brilliant final round and the Indian, the epitome of tranquillity, hit a near perfect 10.8 on his last shot to pull in front of Henri Hakkinen of Finland, who fell to bronze with a poor final shot. That late stumble by the Finn allowed China's Zhu Qinan, the defending Olympic champion and heavy favourite, to salvage a bitter day with silver. Zhu sobbed uncontrollably on the podium and again at a news conference. "I can't describe how happy I am," the ever-calm Bindra told journalists. "It's the thrill of my life. That's about it. It's hard to describe. I just went for it. I knew I was lying in fourth. Thankfully it went my way and I just went for it." ( Watch ) Zhu suffered a lapse in concentration in the qualification earlier when he had to rush his final shots to make the time limit, dropping to second behind Hakkinen ahead of the final. "I was under tremendous pressure and at times I felt really agitated," Zhu said just before stepping on the podium and breaking down in tears. "But I tried my best." Moments later at the news conference Zhu was crying harder. "I've been through a lot of hardship and shed a lot of tears in the last four years, there have been successes and failures," he said. "After 2004 my only aim has not changed. I had so very much wanted to be a champion at the Beijing Olympics." He added: "In the last two rounds I made several mistakes because I had used up all my physical and mental energy." Bindra, who faced criticism for failing to deliver on the great promise he showed as a child, said he was not thinking about making history in India with a first individual gold medal. In fact, he said, he was "not thinking about anything". "I was just trying to concentrate on shooting," he said. "I wasn't thinking of making history. I was two points behind the leaders. I was just trying to shoot good shots. I wanted to shoot well and shoot aggressively. And that's what I did." His 10.8 of a possible 10.9 on his final shot sparked loud celebrations from group of fans from India. Hakkinen, who was even with Bindra before his mere 9.7 on his last shot, said that crucial shot felt like the nine before it. "It just wasn't my turn," he said. "It shows that shooting is a sport from the first to the final shot. Every one counts." Randhir Singh, Indian Olympic Association secretary-general and former shooter who was present at the range, was stricken by nerves as the competition reached its climax. "I haven't prayed so much in my life. With the second last shot they tied together and then he (Bindra) shot a 10.8. It couldn't have got better," he told Indian television. Bindra won the 2006 world championships and finished seventh in Athens four years ago.

DreamWorks deal with ADAG nearly complete: Report

A deal between Steven Spielberg's DreamWorks SKG and Reliance ADA Group to set up a new film company is on the verge of completion, the Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday.

The deal with Mumbai-based ADAG is the initial step in Spielberg's and DreamWorks co-founder David Geffen's plan to leave Paramount Pictures and set up their own studio to make films to be distributed by a soon-to-be-determined studio.

Speculation has swirled for months regarding the next probable move for the duo as their long-troubled relationship with DreamWorks parent Paramount, a unit of Viacom Inc, flared up publicly last fall.

Under the agreement, ADAG would invest about $500 million equity in the new movie venture and another $500 million in debt through JP Morgan Chase & Co, the Wall Street Journal said, quoting people familiar with the matter.

A Reliance ADA spokeswoman did not immediately return calls seeking comment.

People familiar with the situation say an agreement will probably be reached next week, allowing Spielberg and his DreamWorks team to leave Paramount as early as November, the paper said.

Spielberg is said to be looking closely at General Electric Co's Universal Pictures, where he started his career, to distribute the venture's films, though no agreement has been reached.

Tatas to invest Rs 6,000 cr in GSM

Tata Teleservices has said it will invest Rs 8,000 crore over the next 24 months to expand its telecom networks. Of this, about Rs 6,000 crore would go in building a pan-India GSM network, while the remaining Rs 2,000 crore would be used to strengthen its existing CDMA networks. Tata Teleservices managing director Anil Sardana told ET that the company would launch GSM services across India by March ’09. Tata Teleservices will also launch BlackBerry handsets for its customers by September. “The platforms are ready and the soft launch has already taken place. We are sorting out some minor issues in logistics before we launch it finally,” Mr Sardana said. The development assumes importance as the company’s plans to launch BlackBerry services have been held up since last year. The department of telecom has not cleared the proposal citing security fears. But the Tatas are launching Blackberry services as all major operators, including Bharti Airtel, Reliance Communications, Vodafone Essar and Idea Cellular, are already offering it. Tata Teleservices has a subscriber base of 27 million on the CDMA platform and the company is betting big on bagging a significant chunk of the new additions over the next four years. “We are targeting a customer base of 35 million plus by March ’09 and 100 million by 2011. By then, we expect to have 55 million new users on our upcoming GSM platform,” Mr Sardana said. He did not rule out the possibility of taking the acquisition route to meet the 100-million target. On the CDMA platform, the company offers services in 19 of India’s 22 telecom circles. It will launch CDMA-based mobile services in the remaining three circles — Assam, North East and Jammu & Kashmir — within the next couple of months. Tatas’ GSM foray may, however, be delayed as the DoT is likely to take time to provide the company with radio frequencies. “We are concerned about the delay as this will impact our rollout plans. We have paid for the GSM frequencies but the allocation has not happened yet,” he added. The Tatas also plan to leverage their ‘superior network quality’ and customer services in a bid to get customers from other operators when number portability kicks off in India. On the company’s plans to offload 49% stake in the hived off passive infrastructure and tower arm, Mr Sardana said the process was on. “We are looking at different business models and are yet to finalise a partner who will get a 49% stake in the company,” he added. Asked if Tata Teleservices planned to bid or acquire mobile licenses abroad, he said the company would continue to focus on the Indian market. “Expansion in the global markets will be through Tata Communications (VSNL). They already have mobile operations in Nepal, Sri Lanka and South Africa and will continue to evaluate other options,” he said.

GSM cos hampering entry of Rcom, Tatas in GSM telephony

CDMA operators association AUSPI today charged the GSM players with hampering their entry into GSM space as also defying the regulator's direction on dual technology by denying interconnection to RCOM and Tata Tele.

"The COAI has been trying to stop launch of fresh competition in the cellular market in every possible way. Its latest attempt to delay onset of competition by AUSPI members including Reliance Communications and Tata Teleservices... by denying them network on existing Points of Interconnections," AUSPI said in a letter to TRAI Chairman Nripendra Misra.

It said the move is not only illegal but also against the interest of consumers, as the full benefit of the competition will be delayed.

AUSPI has also submitted that COAI's representation is not the consensus view of GSM operators - a few members including Aircel and BPL have already opened GSM codes of member service providers.

The delay in interconnection is the handiwork of only few dominant GSM players with an aim to scuttle serious competition. It is a blatant attempt to defy DoT's and TRAI's directives, AUSPI said.

TRAI had earlier said the existing interconnections can be used for exchange of traffic for both CDMA and GSM technologies.

"On August 4, 2008, TRAI had again issued a fresh directive to the defaulting operators to open GSM levels allocated to our member service provider on existing PoI. COAI is contemplating to defy the fresh directive and questioning the TRAI's powers to issue this direction," it said.

Airtel, Vodafone have 3G edge over other players

Vodafone’s expertise in 3G and Bharti Airtel’s partnership with SingTel may them take lead over other operators. While Bharti Airtel will roll out its 3G services in Sri Lanka by year-end, thus having a six-month lead to test its services, Vodafone will look to bring its global 3G expertise to India.

While Bharti Airtel has already launched 3G in Seychelles, Jersey and Geurnsey, Vodafone is credited with rolling out 3G services in global markets like the UK, Germany, New Zealand, Australia, Spain and others. On the other hand SingTel, which owns a little over 30% in Bharti Airtel, is a major player in the 3G space as it has already rolled out such networks in several markets across Asia.

Bharti Airtel will also have a six-month advantage of testing its 3G services in the region as it rolls out services in Sri Lanka by December, 2008. Bharti Airtel plans to rollout 3G in India by mid-2009 only. Both Vodafone and Airtel may import their successful products and applications to India.

“We just gave the request for proposal to Ericsson and Nokia for 3G networks in Sri Lanka,” Bharti Airtel president for mobility Sanjay Kapoor told ET. “Most of the content will be Sri Lanka specific, but we can also share some content from our operations here. Over the last year, a bulk of the deals we have entered into with content developers have been done keeping 3G in mind. So most of this can be extended to our 3G platform easily,” Mr Kapoor added.
In contrast, Vodafone marketing head Harit Nagpal said that Vodafone has already rolled out 3G services in Egypt, parts of Africa and Turkey—markets similar to India. “With a global subscriber base of 280 million, Vodafone’s 3G expertise is unmatched. We have the capability of handling migration of customers from 2G to 3G in markets like Egypt and Turkey. We will also see such migration in India. Moreover a strong leadership presence in metro cities, will give us an advantage over others,” he said.

Interestingly, Vodafone and Bharti Airtel are competitors in India, but this has not stopped the companies from extending their alliance to markets abroad. Jersey Airtel and Guernsey Airtel, subsidiaries of Bharti Enterprises, last year entered into an agreement with Vodafone to jointly offer telecom services in Jersey and Guernsey (islands in Europe, close to UK). (Bharti was granted licenses to operate 2G and 3G mobile services in Jersey and Guernsey in 2006.)

While the two rivals have partnered globally, they may not replicate the same model in India. Meanwhile, Bharti Airtel and Vodafone will begin selling the new generation 3G-enabled iPhone from August 22. This will also give them an additional edge over other operators.

Bharti and Vodafone, which account for a significant number of the high ARPU (average revenue per user) subscribers in India, will have a further edge as a large segment of their high end users already have 3G compatible handsets.

Interestingly, the move to partner Airtel and Vodafone marks a major shift in Apple’s global strategy of ‘one country-one operator’. With India emerging as the fastest-growing cellular market, Apple wanted to maximize its exposure here as Airtel and Vodafone have a combined subscriber base of over 120 million.

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BSNL denies advantage in 3G field

Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) has denied any first mover advantage in the 3G arena, despite the award of 3G spectrum ahead of private sector players. Last week, telecom minister, A Raja, while announcing the 3G guidelines, had said BSNL/MTNL would be given 3G spectrum with immediate effect and would pay the eventual highest bid price only after the 3G auctions.

"Our system of processing orders is agonizingly long and cumbersome. This will nullify any head start on spectrum, which means we will not be able to launch services ahead of private operators", a senior BSNL official told TOI.

BSNL's statements seem to point at a potential 3G launch not before 2009-10 or closer to the end of the UPA government's tenure despite the head start in terms of spectrum allocation.

This apart, how BSNL/MTNL will embark on business case planning with no clue about the total project cost which depends on the final spectrum bid amount, remains a mystery. It is quite possible that in the case of 3G, the cost of acquiring spectrum could be as high as half of the total project cost, depending on the total number of blocks available.

However, BSNL has already placed an order for 3G and 2G equipment for 10 to 14 million lines with Ericsson. BSNL sources further confirm that an advance purchase order for 18 million lines has also been placed on ITI, which will be serviced by Alcatel Lucent in the west and Huawei in the south.

Earlier, BSNL chairman, Kuldeep Goyal had said BSNL plans to invest upto $3 billion per year over the next 3 years on overall capex. With the imminent allocation of 3G spectrum, it appears the company would want to expedite its equipment orders hoping to at least match if not beat the private sector to a 3G services launch.

While BSNL believes that it owes this priority allocation of 3G spectrum to TRAI's recommendations, this was denied by TRAI chairman, N Misra. "We did not even discuss the subject in our recommendations. We never made any distinction between public sector companies and the private sector," he clarified. Finally, whether DoT will be in a position to allocate this promised spectrum and whether this will translate into a competitive advantage for BSNL, remains to be seen.

Google Insights for Search, Another Google Trends

Google has launched an application called Insights for Search. Pascal Herbert, TomHTML and Tony Ruscoe already noticed this program lately but neither of us was able to log-in. You can provide a couple of terms and let Google show you the search volume for these mapped over time (from 2004 to this year), with search frequencies displayed on a world map.

Sounds just like the existing Google Trends program? Indeed it does, and you get to wonder why Google is rolling out a secondary product in this area instead of iterating the version number. (Google’s Marissa Mayer once talked about the San Angeles strategy to merge existing initiatives wherever possible to make it easier on the user – does that make this the Chicago Chicago approach?) Though perhaps in the future, who knows, these two programs may be merged.

At the moment, Insights for Search may be slightly more targeted towards advertisers with Google (it was announced in the Google AdWords blog). For instance, it contains categories (alternatively called verticals) to restrict your terms to. It also shows top searches and top rising searches in the neighborhood of keywords you enter. “Overall, this seems to be a huge extension to Google Trends, Google Ad Planner, and the tools available within AdWords to advertisers,” Search Engine Land’s Barry Schwartz comments.

Bharti Airtel to launch iPhone on Aug 22

Almost two months after Apple chief executive Steve Jobs’ keynote address featured the Bharti logo prominently alongside the likes of AT&T and O2 as mobile operators who will sell the iPhone 3G worldwide, Bharti Wednesday formally announced Aug 22 would be the launch date. Bharti in its statement did not reveal the price at which the phone will retail in the country. The iPhone is sold between $199-$299 (Rs.7,960-Rs.11,960) in the US.

The phone, which won Time magazine’s coveted ‘invention of the year 2007′ honour, and marked the Cupertino-based computer giant’s foray into the mobile phone arena, debuted in June last year.

Although Apple had then stated that India would get the phone by November 2007, it wasn’t until this May that Bharti made public the upcoming launch of the phone.

According to a recent survey, more than 150,000 iPhones (2G) are already being used in the country, which have either been imported by enthusiasts or bought in the grey market.

India is the third largest unofficial market for iPhone after Russia and China.

Ironically, China where the phone is manufactured, still does not feature in Apple’s roadmap for retailing the iPhone.

Wednesday’s announcement comes after rumours of Vodafone - the rival telecom company - launching its own iPhone on Aug 13.

Although Bharti did not state the price, Jobs’ statement in June said the “iPhone 3G will retail all over the world for $199 or less”.

His claim led to a flurry of speculations that the breakthrough device which features a 3.5 inch touch screen display might sell for as low as Rs.8,500; the original phone which retailed in the US market between $399 and $599 has been selling in India for around Rs.25,000.

However, the $199 price tag in the US and other countries comes attached with a fixed two-year contract with the service provider. In the US, the minimum monthly bill for an iPhone with the AT&T contract is $60.

Although a norm in the US, fixed contract plans have not picked up well in India.

When Reliance Infocomm launched its mobile services in 2003, it had initiated similar contractual services. The company later discontinued the practice.

“Customers will be able to purchase iPhone 3G at Airtel Relationship Centres, and will have the iPhone 2.0 software,” the Bharti statement said.

The 2.0 software was launched alongside the 3G and had major additions like Microsoft exchange mail server, Cisco secure VPN access, apart from the original 1.0 OS X software features.

Apple, a few days back released the 2.01 firmware update to fix minor problems and bugs in the 2.0.

Bharti Airtel to Bring IPhone 3G to India This Month

Bharti Airtel Ltd., India's largest mobile-phone operator, will introduce the iPhone 3G in the country on Aug. 22, part of a 70-nation rollout of the faster, cheaper upgrade to Apple Inc.'s mobile handset.

The handsets will be sold through the operator's customer service outlets, the New Delhi-based company said in an e-mailed statement today. Bharti didn't provide pricing details.

Bharti is trying to offer the iPhone before Vodafone Group Plc as Apple chose the two providers to tap the world's second- largest wireless market. Still, sales in India may lag behind other nations as India has yet to start third-generation networks needed to support speedier browsing and downloads.

``The extreme business user may not migrate from a Blackberry to the iPhone,'' said Soham Raninga, an associate editor with PC World magazine and head of the publication's product-testing lab in Bangalore.

India, which this year will auction licenses and spectrum for 3G services, added more wireless users in June than China, the only larger market by total number of subscribers. Apple's iPhone will compete with handsets from Nokia Oyj and HTC Corp. for an increasing number of business-phone users in India, who also want to take video, music and pictures.