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Who Are The Most Powerful People In Mobile / Wireless? (FierceWireless)
Fierce Wireless ranks the top 25 most powerful people in the U.S. in the wireless industry, and this year Tim Cook grabbed the number one spot. He managed to beat out Jack Dorsey, Steve Ballmer, Jeff Bezos, Stephen Elop, and all the carrier executives. Here are the top 5:
- Tim Cook (CEO, Apple)
- Larry Page (CEO, Google)
- Lowell McAdam (Chairman, President and CEO, Verizon)
- Ralph de la Vega (President and CEO, AT&T)
- Dan Hesse (CEO, Sprint Nextel)
Don't worry, T-Mobile USA comes next. Cook's main job this coming year will be to defend Apple from competitors. That means innovation and new products.
Cisco's Supported Devices Might Outnumber Employees (Forbes)
You know how in New Zealand, the sheep supposedly outnumber the people? At Cisco Systems, the number of mobile devices could soon outnumber the number of employees. There are 50,538 smartphones and tablets in use at Cisco, which has 71,825 employees. Not only does that already comprise a ratio of one device per 1.4 employees, but the 50,000+ device figure is also an increase of 52% from just 12 months earlier. Some statistics:
- iPhone dominates (nearly 21,000 devices, up 10x in last 2 years)
- BlackBerries are treading water (in absolute terms, though their share of overall usage has fallen by more than half)
- Android usage is growing fast (driven by Millennials and other young people)
- Cisco might have the largest deployments of Cisco Cius tablets, with more than 2,000 tablets (fitting)
- The 8,144 iPads used by Cisco ranks them 7th in terms of the largest public iPad deployments
Another really interesting thing about Cisco’s deployment is that it is 100% Bring Your Own Device (BYOD). Employees have complete freedom to choose whatever device they want.
Still No Clear Leader In Mobile Finance (Corporate Insight)
Corporate Insight published it's 2012 Mobile Finance Survey Summary and found that finance firms' key mobile objectives remain the same as last year:
Most respondents are happy with their firm's mobile offering, with over half believing that their firm is the best in the industry. While there is no industry leader, the top rated firms are:
Since most firms are already mobile, 80% will be adding features while 66% will be launching new sites or apps. Check out the full deck for more insights.
The Great Mobile Debate: Native Apps Vs. HTML 5 (Target Marketing)
The cross-platform experience matured dramatically last year with the introduction of HTML 5. HTML 5 mobile web apps deliver richer user experiences and greater complexity of graphics with game-like interactivity. Marketers now routinely consider, "How will this app work on an iPhone or an Android or a Samsung tablet?" Ultimately, awareness of this critical engagement element leads to higher quality and more satisfying user experiences. Trends suggest the future lies in cross-platform development with HTML 5; however, mobile apps still make sense in many situations. Here are some key considerations to ensure the delivery of a high-quality user experience and the achievement of business goals when choosing to develop either a web or native app:
- Platform Integration
- Usage Location
- Cost and Availability of Resources
- Speed to Market
- Content Updates
And here's why the debate matters and who will win.
Mobile Marketing Matters (Search Engine Watch)
Google Analytics are making mobile measurement their focus going into the next year, says Product Marketing Manager Adam Singer. His team has just released the results of a recent research project on the mobile marketing opportunity by Google Analytics and ClickZ. Most of these metrics are available within the Google Analytics Mobile App, released in June, but thought we'd revisit anyway. Over the next year, marketers plan to use a mix of mobile tactics. The study found: 52% plan to create a mobile- or tablet-optimized website, 48% plan to increase engagement in mobile advertising, 41% hope to develop a mobile app and 39% are planning to market a mobile app. Despite the growing interest in mobile, many marketers struggle to capitalize on the opportunity: 59% of those surveyed consider themselves either novice or inexperienced in measuring mobile. Organizations that invest in training and education today have an opportunity to come out ahead of the curve tomorrow, said Singer.
Confessions Of A High School Geek: Desktops Are Toast (Locker Gnome)
I’m a high school student, and a math nerd. I have a Mac, an iPad, and an iPhone. I usually use my desktop computer when I need to do homework or when I need a physical keyboard. But over the past few weeks, I have barely touched my desktop computer. On a weekday, my desktop computer is usually never woken up. There really is an app for almost everything. As mobile hardware becomes more powerful, I can see us really losing the desktop machines. While I don’t think notebooks and Ultrabooks will be going away all that soon, one of Apple’s earliest ideas for a computer was: if you can’t pick it up, you shouldn’t have to use it. I tested myself to see if I could get by without a desktop computer for three days. I went five. The only reason I needed a desktop computer was to change my Twitter password. In a nutshell, I am going mobile.
Here Are The 12 Scams Of Christmas (McAfee and Harris Interactive)
One quarter of you plan on purchasing gifts from your mobile device. Just remember, "'Tis the season to be careful!" 
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