Comments on: Wireless industry going through its AOL phase

The mobile Internet industry very much resembles the fixed Internet industry of the mid-1990s: lots of promise, but the business models have yet to evolve.

[Mr. Dee]

Ubiquity still remains a problem and that is where I personally need to see some innovation. I live in Jamaica and the ISP Cable & Wireless is just lousy about moving technology forward for the masses. Wired broadband still remains a luxury, yes I know we are still 3rd/developing country. But come on, this is 2008 I shouldn't be paying sky high prices $47 US for a lousy 512 Kbps connection? Digicel is even worse, the number one mobile phone provider, they promised they would start implementing WiMax from early 2006, its 2008 and nothing has been heard.

Even if they were start, it would still not be available to ordinary folk like me since they want to get some higher margins by milking urban areas before they think about investing in developing for the rural area where I live. I have lived in a part of Jamaica near the south coast for nearly 20 years and there is no LAN line telephone system in place and Cable & Wireless has no interest in bringing development here, thats why everyone end up choosing Digicel cell phones instead, since Cable & Wireless is considered unreliable and ungrateful when it comes to their mobile services.

[Penguinisto]

Dear Heavens... they missed (entirely) the one thing they need most of all - a common means of interoperability (no, not one OS to rule them all, but a set of protocols). The Internet exploded in popularity because it had a set of simple, universal, and IP-unencumbered protocols: TCP/IP underneath it all, with HTTP, SMTP, FTP, and NNTP (*sigh*) atop them. Even Microsoft had to play nice with these protocols and comply with these, else they would've been consigned to oblivion ages ago. The mobile industry OTOH has a shedload of conflicting and often highly incompatible protocols for nearly every layer of action, from screen-top to data carrier signal (insofar as EDGE v. 3G v. ???). Until they can sort out a common set of protocols and stick to them, it's very likely that they'll be relegated to also-rans in the competition for overall network user marketshare.

[Penguinisto]

Dear Heavens... they missed (entirely) the one thing they need most of all - a common means of interoperability (no, not one OS to rule them all, but a set of protocols). The Internet exploded in popularity because it had a set of simple, universal, and IP-unencumbered protocols: TCP/IP underneath it all, with HTTP, SMTP, FTP, and NNTP (*sigh*) atop them. Even Microsoft had to play nice with these protocols and comply with these, else they would've been consigned to oblivion ages ago. The mobile industry OTOH has a shedload of conflicting and often highly incompatible protocols for damned near every layer of action, from screen-top to data carrier signal (insofar as EDGE v. 3G v. ???). Until they can sort out a common set of protocols and stick to them, it's very likely that they'll be relegated to also-rans in the competition for overall network user marketshare.