PayPal and LG intertwine on Smart TV solution

It’s an interesting combination; a payment solution within your smart TV. Yet, for South Korean manufacturer LG and payments facilitator PayPal, it has only come to fruition this week. So is this a match made in heaven?

The latest feature is available on 2013 LG Smart TVs in Canada, the United Kingdom and United States, with Australia, France, Germany, Spain and Italy anticipating a rollout starting this month.

With the two companies in conjunction, paying for premium...

11 April 2013 | Telecoms

What are the effects for telecoms after Facebook goes ‘home’?

Facebook has this week launched ‘Home’, software running on Android which turns a user’s phone lock screen into a news feed and a user interface for the social giant. But how does this align with other Facebook strategy, and what are the wider implications for the telecoms industry?

The new Facebook skin for Android launched yesterday, called Home, is arguably the most ambitious mobile play from the social giant so far.

Home is a combination of Facebook apps...

5 April 2013 | Operators

How are US citizens using mobiles for financial services?

The majority of US citizens aren’t using mobile banking services because they simply don’t need it, and their banking needs were being adequately met without the use of mobile banking.

That’s the big takeaway from the Federal Reserve (FRB), who has brought out a mammoth 79-page document on how consumers interact with mobile financial services and found that the use of mobiles to access bank accounts and credit cards went up in the United States last...

28 March 2013 | Legislation & Government

Oracle snaps up Tekelec in an enhanced telecoms play

Larry Ellison’s company may be best known for its cloud portfolio, but Oracle has recently been looking to make a serious push towards telecoms, enhanced by the acquisition of Tekelec announced yesterday.

Tekelec, formed in 1971, is used by over 300 service providers worldwide and deals in network signalling, policy control and subscriber data management, giving providers the opportunity to monetise cloud, OTT and personalised services with the huge increase in data...

26 March 2013 | LTE

How telcos can take advantage of 4G

With the UK’s 4G auctions concluding, it is clear the early 4G land grab is set to take place in the corporate market; and the emphasis on quality of service, network availability and corporate specific data mining will become a critical component in service differentiation.

Tony Over, Operations Director, M7 Managed Services Ltd, explains that first mover advantage will be essential. The Telco that can swiftly gain...

25 March 2013 | LTE

Skype in trouble with France over not declaring operator status

The French telecommunciations regulator ARCEP (Autorité de régulation des communications électroniques et des postes) has informed the Paris public prosecutor that Skype has not registered itself as a telco, as per its obligation.

According to ARCEP, the Luxembourg-based video call service will be committing a felony, but only by not declaring itself, in line with Article L. 33-1 of the French Postal and Electronic Communications Code.

ARCEP states that...

13 March 2013 | Operators

Is China going to become the number one M2M power?

A new report from Pyramid Research has detailed how China is set to overtake the United States as the world’s largest cellular machine to machine (M2M) market in the coming years.

The report, entitled “Cellular M2M Connections: An Analysis of Growth Drivers, Market Segments and Operator Approaches”, revealed that China’s overall M2M device volumes stand at 45m for 2013, rising to 138m total subscriptions by 2017 – 8.5% of all cellular...

12 March 2013 | Research

Cellebrite introduces diagnostics tool designed to cut down phone repairs

Mobile forensics and data transfer provider Cellebrite has launched a multi-channel diagnostics tool, claimed to be the first in the wireless retail industry.

Debuted at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Cellebrite estimates that the tool will reduce the overall process of phone repairs and returns by up to 60%.

The solution systematically goes through all potential faultlines in a phone, including CPU and RAM performance, storage, memory and network capability. It also...

7 March 2013 | Security

Consumer willingness to purchase on smartphones goes up and up

A new report from performance marketers Intela has revealed that more than two in five UK smartphone users said they were more likely to purchase goods over mobile than this time last year.

Nearly one in two US consumers (44%) agreed that they were more likely to buy through mobile this year than compared to 2012.

The Intela Mobile Consumer Report 2013 found that m-commerce trends were on the increase, however overall m-commerce promotions fail to influence consumer...

22 February 2013 | Research

UK 4G auction results announced, revenue lower than expected

The UK telecommunications regulatory body Ofcom has announced the results of the 4G auction raising a less than expected £2.34bn ($3.59bn) in revenue.

The overall figures may be seen as disappointing given the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) had predicted a £3.5bn ($5.37bn) windfall from the auction. The UK 3G auctions in 2000 raised £22bn in comparison.

Yet the results show that the main players seem to have gotten a share of the spectrum, dealed out...

20 February 2013 | Legislation & Government