.
_-_-_-_-_-__-_-_-_-_-_-__-_-_-_-_-_-__-_-_-_-_-_-__-_-_-_
* Wifi*
_-_-_-_-_-_-__-_-_-_-_-_-__-_-_-_-_-_-__-_-_-_-_-_-__-_-_-_
.Wimax forcast : The next Irdium? if WiMAX delivers what it promises, says In-Stat analyst Daryl Schoolar, then cellular-data and Wi-Fi hot spot providers face serious competition for laptop users who want Internet on the road
Just as did the Iridium community before it, the WiMAX community is failing to take into account how established technologies will evolve and improve over time.”
If WiMAX delivers what it promises, however, it stands to win over a plurality of people, who want to connect their laptop wirelessly to the Internet when they’re on the go,
http://www.twice.com/article/CA6434761.html
.
.
T6 Commentary: Ah, Irdium. Such promise, so many rabid investors looking for the next bubble to ride. Unfortunately the folks at Irdium did not see the mass-market acceptance for lower priced multi function ubiqui-appliance cell phones. In a similar fashion, Sprint’s creation of the WiMax standard was born out of a desperate need to create a market for frequencies it owned; before the FCC decided to declare it unused and auction them off for public safety. A standard was born in embryo and grand promises of the next wave were pronounced. Much like a hopeful parent having visions of their child getting a full scholarship to Harvard –(then becoming rich and giving the parents the use of the 3k square foot pool house year round – Sorry, private joke with my dad. Hiya Pop! )- Sprint and investors are anticipating a great outcome for WiMax. Sprint has made great strides in gaining important partnerships and excellent coup’s by getting municipalities to agree to helping install | maintain WiMax infrastructures. Sprint gets help establishing a foothold; the municipalities get free public access to high-speed wireless networks.
.
There is a very real possibility those who revel in the vast possibilities WiMax may hold for delivery of Audio and video and the interoperability between mobile device and home media distribution are overlooking the VHS and Iridium lessons. Will greater numbers of consumers look to the cheaper and more established Wifi technologies? Wifi could not deliver the promise of WiMax but it is cheaper, readily understood by large numbers of ‘non-techies’ and is already in many homes.
.
.
**************************************************************************
.
.
Fon, Time Warner to Let Users Set Up WiFi Hotspots
.
.
Time Warner Cable has struck a deal with WiFi provider Fon that will let its home-based and business broadband customers turn their Internet connections into public wireless hotspots.
The access points are controlled by the subscriber's secure Fon router, which splits a WiFi connection into an encrypted channel for the subscriber and a public one for neighbors or passers-by.
The router can decide how much bandwidth to share with the public -- other subscribers can log on to any Fon router without charge and nonmembers can pay a modest US$2 or $3 for 24 hours of access.
.
.
.
.
T6 Commentary: I have always been divided on the value of ‘public’ wifi access points or free Ad-hoc networks. The altruistic netizens among us hail such as the great informational equalizer, given opportunity – I would not share. That’s me – the bastard that I am. So how do you get someone like me onboard? Share the wealth! This is exactly what Fon is built to do. You, the intermediary, get a cut of the non-member fee local users pay for access- all while reserving bandwidth for yourself. Time Warner gets a wide distribution network established and a nice ROI on the install with recurring income which requires little oversee or maintenance.
.
What I could see of great use is the ability for content providers to piggyback on this public backbone for everything from pirate radio to city wide broadcast distribution. For a lack of a better simile I would compare this to a giant mesh network system. Perhaps this is the cheaper, easier method to compete with the WiMax potential –(see above article).
.
.
_-_-_-_-_-__-_-_-_-_-_-__-_-_-_-_-_-__-_-_-_-_-_-__-_-_-_
* Automation*
_-_-_-_-_-_-__-_-_-_-_-_-__-_-_-_-_-_-__-_-_-_-_-_-__-_-_-_
.
.
Magnolia To Offer Global Caché Products
.
.
Best Buy’s Magnolia Audio Video subsidiary will now include Global Caché network-enabling devices in its stores and in its residential and commercial installations
More and more our customers are looking for automation and control solutions with carrying performance and economic requirements
.
.
http://www.twice.com/article/CA6434723.html
.
.
T6 Commentary: Best Buy is clearly moving to expand its home automation install base and move the Magnolia stores into some commercial projects. Home automation as a mainstream ‘must have’ for homeowners and small businesses with mass brand product recognition continues to show a strong growth potential. Box sale home electronic stores have begun to look at installation services and niche market applications as a way of regaining sales margins lost as flat panel margins continue to fall, even as sales of actual units rise sharply. (See T6 Issue 8 and 9 for expanded commentary on this movement). Providing several tiers of automation sale and install can provide a great deal of interflow traffic and sales between the main store and the magnolia. A customer buying a Mid range receiver, DVD Player and Plasma would be interested in controlling all the components with something more sophisticated then a pile of remotes.
.
I would keep an eye out for a move by Circuit City and its home theater and automation store within a store’ to be looking at Global Cache’ or perhaps floating relationships with the Insteon product lines to attract the entry level customer.
.
.
_-_-_-_-_-__-_-_-_-_-_-__-_-_-_-_-_-__-_-_-_-_-_-__-_-_-_
* Format Wars *
_-_-_-_-_-_-__-_-_-_-_-_-__-_-_-_-_-_-__-_-_-_-_-_-__-_-_-_
.
.
Sony enters blue-violet laser market . . |
Sony said it is capable of fabricating 5 million blue-violet lasers a month of devices are low-power playback diodes.
Sony failure to establish volume production for blue-violet laser diodes limited the initial shipment of its Playstation 3.
.
.
.
.
T6 Commentary: If anyone needed more explicit evidence that SONY is in the format war to win, then this should be it. Sony already has since the grey days of the first format war, bought complete or controlling interest in music and video production, recording, content creation, playback, storage and most importantly the distribution networks for each. The intent of each purchase was not to diversify the companies’ holdings (which has happened), but to establish a fail-safe platform to literally force victory in each and every format to come. Truth be told this has not worked so well with the relative lackluster success of DAT –(though used widely in recording studios for years), Mini Disc –(used by many project recording studios) to the belly flop of the CONNECT and KINOMA products.
.
Now Sony also wants to insure essential components will not be in short supply and therefore avoid market share loss based on long lead times for Blu-Ray players. As the article points outs (and I quote above) a shortage of blue-violet lasers diodes played a significant role in Playstation 2 being unable to meet initial demand.This PS2 shortfall gave HD-DVD positive attention, as X-BOX was able to ship more units early on. Sony appears to be taking on a modified version of Apple Computers manic overseeing of every stage of production. This can be a very good thing but also can raise the cost and therefore the final price of Blu-Ray devices. If Sony becomes the largest manufacturer of ‘Blu-Ray diodes’ its ability to shop the market for competitive priced suppliers is cut down.
.
.
**************************************************************************
.
.
Blu-ray outselling HD DVD? Arguments rage
.
.
There is an argument that Blu-ray sales are being somehow artificially inflated by sales of the new Sony games console PlayStation 3, which incorporates a Blu-ray player. While there is no doubt that PS3 sales are helping to get Blu-ray players into the homes of consumers, the Home Media data focuses on sales of movie titles not players. If the data is correct, then HD DVD could be on the ropes
.
.
http://www.itwire.com.au/content/view/11558/532/
.
.
T6 Commentary: Every week, nay, every hour there is a new report from some tech news service declaring unequivocal evidence that one format is completely clobbering the other. While the number of players based on this gaming system or that are bandied about- even those who purchased a system are left to wonder ‘who’s using the DVD players anyway ?’
.
The format wars has quickly degenerated into what TechNewsWorld has called, “…
.
.
_-_-_-_-_-_-__-_-_-_-_-_-__-_-_-_-_-_-__-_-_-_-_-_-__-_-_-_
* New Media *
_-_-_-_-_-_-__-_-_-_-_-_-__-_-_-_-_-_-__-_-_-_-_-_-__-_-_-_
.
.
Best Buy to sell HD Radio in all U.S. stores
.
.
Best Buy said on Monday it will carry the U.S. broadcast radio industry's high-definition radio technology at all of its stores nationwide, a move that could boost exposure for the nascent system.
.
.
.
.
T6 commentary: Best Buy along with Wal-Mart are jumping on board with HD Radio in an effort to push HD Radio into the mass market. Shortly before the Wal-Mart announcement a number of articles pointed out many manufactures were lowering HDR prices substantially. [Hey it looks like some one read Crossing the Chasm!]. I have tattered on here in T6 about the lack of creative content on HDR often paraphrasing the Bruce Springsteen line “…200 channels and nothings ever on”.
Recently I have begun to see some real progress with creative, niche market and some free form radio formats, it still feels a bit Clear Channel-ized.
.
What actually may be HDR’s salvation is the death of Internet radio. Yes, you read correctly. Internet radio is dead. I hold no hope that representative Inslee’s “Internet Radio Equity Act” will make any progress by May 15th. The recent ruling by the Copyright Royalty Board to hike rates to irrational heights by increasing rates AND tying those rates to a per stream\ per song formula will all but end a great run. The Clear Channels of the world now can get attention by brushing aside the carcasses of independents and regain control of all mediums for ‘cultural’ popularity. It is my opinion that this will hurt all labels but especially the independent small market outfits. (Too much diversity hurts ‘taste maker’ broadcasters by diluting the mass market – besides the independents could never afford the payola fees!)
.
Pet conspiracy theory warning: Is it any wonder that the CRB which is a branch of the library of congress and our intrepid senator Stevens from Alaska had oversight on this? (it made of tubes damit!)
.
.
**************************************************************************.
.
AT&T Launches Mobile Remote Access for AT&T U-verse TV
.
.
AT&T U-verse TV and Internet customers can use any compatible AT&T wireless phone or handset to search U-verse TV program listings, schedule program or series recordings, and manage or delete stored DVR content. The option to wirelessly access the U-verse DVR system adds to a previously available feature that gave U-verse TV and Internet customers Web remote access to their DVR on a PC using the AT&T Yahoo!® broadband portal.
.
.
http://www.att.com/gen/press-room?pid=4800&cdvn=news&newsarticleid=23702
.
.
T6 Commentary: Why did take AT&T to finally come up with a truly remote access and control for DVR recording and incorporate slingbox type functions? With a phone that is a remote and remote that is truly remote, could this be the stealth threat to the i- phone. The ATT website states limited availability currently. Does anyone have any experience with this product? I would like to hear you comments.
.
.
`````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
`````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
.
Check out T6’s ‘Culture Corner’ with links to bands you should know and Inspired technical links from those who inspire me.
.
Does anyone actually read the liner notes? Let me know, the comments section of T6 is now open. At the end of every issue find the Comments link.
.
All quoted material is the copyright of the respective sites and \ or authors- except were noted or comments are clearly mine.
.
All t6 commentary opinions expressed are mine alone and are not necessarily those of Crestron Electronics, its employees, associates or even their families. Just my big mouth
No comments:
Post a Comment