Daily Marauder

WIRELESS by Marauder

WIRELESS

Amazon.com’s brick-and-mortar rivals have another reason to fear the Web: a new service that lets shoppers compare prices and buy things via cellphone. The new Amazon TextBuyIt lets people order products from anywhere their cellphones work — including from inside physical stores. (Iwantmedia.com 4/2, http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080402/ap_on_hi_te/amazon_text_message_shopping;_ylt=AuNy29mn8a0acQjdNOvxFEP6VbIF  4/2)

My first inclination to this product?  Sketchyville.  Remember back to the times of yesterday when audiences felt uncomfortable purchasing online?  Many felt that the online environment was less secure and that their personal information would be compromised.  If that was the case then, it’s bound to be the case here.  On top of this security concern, there’s the fact that this process is not easy.  Texting any number assortment involves number recall.  I don’t know about you, but I can’t even remember my best friend’s phone number.  Remember to text this number/word combination for one situation and this number/word combination for another situation does not even faintly feel like a solution.  Apple seems to have figured this out when they installed native applications on the phone’s home screen.  I’m more than excited about mobile purchasing. . .but this isn’t the method to turn the tide.

 
Sprint Nextel will release its answer to the iPhone in June, a touch-screen phone that executives hinted will cost less than Apple’s $399 device. The company has earmarked $150 million to market the Samsung Instinct, five times the amount it usually spends on a new product, executives disclosed Tuesday. (Yahoo!/Associated Press 4/1)

How do you say “blatant iPhone rip-off” in Japanese?

 
AT&T has introduced the first handset to support its AT&T Navigator GPS service. The quadband Motorola Z9 also marks the premier Motorola device that offers AT&T’s Video Share service. (CNET 4/1,  Chicago Sun-Times 4/1)

 
Here’s a study that helps explain some of the cynicism displayed by mobile content providers at CTIA this week. Nearly half of wireless phone consumers do not know whether or not their carrier offers mobile TV or video services, according to an online survey by QuickPlay Media. In a strong argument for the ad supported model, another 43% of respondents said perceived cost was the #1 reason they hadn’t tried mobile TV or video. (Cynopsis 4/2)

 
Looking to increase its digital presence outside the U.S., HBO has entered into a deal with Bell Canada to provide its mobile-phone customers full episodes of shows such as “The Sopranos,” “Entourage,” “Curb Your Enthusiasm” and “Tell Me You Love Me.” The service costs $9.75 a month and also includes stand-up comedy clips, bonus footage and ringtones. (The Hollywood Reporter 4/1) (

 
AOL rolled out a beta version of MyMobile, designed to give mobile users a much more sophisticated interface through which to access personalized AOL services including AIM, AOL Mail, AOL CityGuide, Moviefone, MapQuest, AOL Local Search, AOL News, Weather, AOL Sports and AOL Pictures. AOL also announced expanded availability of the new AIM TXT service, now available through all major U.S. carriers. (Cynopsis 4/2)

 
FCC chairman Kevin Martin told a CTIA audience the FCC should reject a petition by eBay’s Skype division to require wireless carriers to allow any device access their network. (Cynopsis 4/2)

 
Disney-ABC Television Group’s Disney Channel will be added to MobiTV’s subscription mobile TV offering as a 24/7 simulcast. (Cynopsis 4/2)

 
Those who watch TV over their mobile phones now have a TV Guide Web site of their own with TV-Guide’s  launch of M.TVGuide.com, the company announced. The site, which the company sought to optimize across platforms, contains most of the features found on TVGuide.com, executives said. (TWICE 4/1)

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