Alex Kinch

Link: 3D handset hits streets of Japan | Reg Hardware
Just when you thought mobile phone evolution was slowing down on the design/cosmetic front, check out this little beauty from NEC.
Just launched in Japan on the NTT DoCoMo network, the N704iu handset is not only the world’s slimmest clamshell (measuring 10cm x 5cm x 1cm), but [...]

Link: Housing Excellence – Text messaging service for Haringey repairs#
17,000 housing tenants in Haringey, London now have the option of receiving repair appointment confirmations by SMS.
The service, called ‘C u l8er Repair Service’, aims to reduce missed appointments by not only immediately confirming a booking, but also sending a follow-up reminder message 24 hours before the contractor is due to visit. [...]

Video ringtone sharing pioneers Vringo has announced the closing of a $12m funding round, led by private equity firm Warburg Pincus.
The Jerusalem-based company provides users with the ability to share video ringtones each time they make a phone call. The application brings ringtones to life by integrating video clips, avatars, animation, greeting cards or photos whenever users make [...]

Brand new mobile phone back-up service My Mobile Vault have just launched a beta test of their service – and are giving away free lifetime accounts to the first 1,000 people to respond.
The My Mobile Vault back-up service works on hundreds of different mobile phone models across hundreds of GSM networks.  My Mobile Vault works [...]

US mobile network AT&T (formerly known as Cingular, and then AT&T before that, and then something else before that) have launched a new mobile music service with eMusic, the world’s largest online retailer of independent music.
The service, imaginatively titled ‘eMusic Mobile‘, will give AT&T’s customers the ability to preview and purchase music via their wireless [...]

Link: The Jakarta Post – Government campaign against prize fraud
In Jakarta, it appears the classic Nigerian-style 419 fraud is moving onto mobiles. The best way to combat the problem, it appears, is not only to ignore the text, but also to shout at no-one in particular if you get one.
Ati, a resident of Manggarai, South [...]

Link: webitpr | India’s Largest Service Provider, Airtel, Deploys BubbleTALK ‘Voice SMS’ over Fixed Line
India’s largest telco Airtel has teamed up with voice SMS pioneer Bubble Motion to deploy voice SMS to fixed line and mobile customers.
To use the service, the customer dials * followed by the mobile number of the customer they wish to [...]

Link: 160Characters Association
The latest results SMS volumes grew by 15% year on year to 7.10 billion messages across the O2 group as revealed in the 2007 second quarter results.
Peter Erskine, Chairman & Chief Executive of Telefónica O2 Europe, said that ‘Against the backdrop of highly competitive European markets, O2 has built on its robust start [...]

Link: You might be paying $1,000 per MB for SMS at mobilejones
 We all know that mobile operators use SMS as a cash cow, and printer ink costs more per drop than melted gold. After some research and a bit of number crunching, mobilejones has very kindly worked out how much US carriers charge per megabyte [...]

Link: Half of European calls to be mobile by 2008 | The Register
Telecom and IT consultants Analysys are predicting half of all phone calls made in Europe will be made on our mobiles by 2008.
According to their report, Finland is the most mobile-using nation in Europe, with 74.6% of all phone calls made on the go [...]