Mobile Update: The Pending Obsolesence of Handset Penetration Rates

So here's the skinny:   Mobile Market Overview, Q1 2010
http://is.gd/bq1ki



---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: GigaOM Pro
Date: Tue, 1 Jun 2010 17:07:27 -0400
Subject: Mobile Weekly Update: The Pending Obsolesence of Handset
Penetration Rates
To: elyssa.durant@gmail.com
Mobile Weekly Update from GigaOM Pro
Curated by Colin Gibbs

--- WEEKLY UPDATE ---------------------------------------------
Mobile penetration in the U.S. reached roughly 94 percent at
the end of the first quarter of 2010, according to analyst
Chetan Sharma, and the rate is 99 percent for users older than
the age of five. It’s no surprise, then, that we’re seeing
plenty of stories about how we’re approaching (or already at)
the saturation point of sorts. I referred to the phenomenon
myself last week in a piece on the rise of the
machine-to-machine (M2M) market.
http://is.gd/cyFND


--- WEEK IN HIGHLIGHTS ----------------------------------------

Tuesday, June 1 - Adobe may finally have taken a step toward
finding a way around Apple’s ban of Flash technology on the
iPhone. The company today unveiled new software that allows
traditional media publishers to port their content to the iPad
and other devices. Adobe has yet to disclose pricing info — or
even divulge an official name for the stuff — but Apple gave
the nod last week when it approved a Wired magazine app build on
the technology. Adobe still has a lot of work to do if it is to
fully solve the Apple problem, but this is a sign that the
company is working hard to do just that.

Friday, May 28 - Motorola is betting big on Android and Verizon
Wireless, the Wall Street Journal points out today, and it’s a
wise move for the beleaguered handset manufacturer. Yes, it’s
difficult to stand out on Android, which has become a favorite
OS of several handset manufacturers. But Motorola’s strategy
includes getting some big-budget marketing from Verizon, which
is key to the success of any handset (as evidenced by the
disappointing sales of the Palm Pre and Google’s Nexus One).
Motorola was resuscitated by the Droid, which VZW promoted
aggressively, and with Verizon’s help it is likely to become a
major player in the space once again.

Thursday, May 27 - Palm took another substantial hit today with
news that webOS designer Matias Duarte has left the company and
signed on with Google as user experience director for Android.
The departure of Duarte, who led the development of the user
interface for webOS, comes on the heels of April’s
announcement that former Palm SVP Michael Abbott is headed to
Twitter. This is very bad news for Dell, which has promised to
“double down” on webOS following the acquisition of Palm. If
I’m Dell, I’m opening up the checkbook for every key player
left on the webOS team to make sure there’s no more talent
drain.

Wednesday, May 26 - Roughly one-third of U.S. buyers who were
considering buying a netbook picked up an iPad instead,
according to data released today by Retrevo. That’s a
surprisingly large figure considering that the iPad doesn’t
offer a physical keyboard and is substantially more expensive
than some netbooks on the market. But I think it also
underscores my theory that both gadgets are complementary —
you’re not going to replace a laptop with either one. Like
I’ve said before, though, the iPad can replace a host of
lesser gadgets, including portable DVR players and e-readers. So
while netbooks might be the best device for real computing on
the go, the iPad will continue to eat into their sales.


--- OTHER FRESH CONTENT ---------------------------------------

The Long View:
M2M Is Taking Off From Kindle to Smart Grid
http://is.gd/cyFNE
Quarterly Wrap-up:
Mobile Market Overview, Q1 2010
http://is.gd/bq1ki
Research Notes:
Big Data Marketplaces Put a Price on Finding Patterns
http://is.gd/cp2Fv
Research Briefings:
Location: The Epicenter of Mobile Innovation
http://is.gd/bhEEj
The GigaOM Network
217 2nd Street, Floor 4, San Francisco, CA 94105



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