Cingular (A division of SBC) and Motorola will announce on Thrsday a new service being called “Live Ticker,” a new push data service that is always-on, even during telephone conversations. This is only possible with the new 3G technology, which is rolling out later than the original November 1st date touted by Cingular. 3G is necessary for voice and simultaneous data transmission via GPRS and UMTS.
A scrolling ticker of news headlines, stock updates, sports scores and the like are meant to be a way to lure the subscribers to the web who don’t already use it, and it’s not that many people that are using it. Of course, the early adopters and geeks of the world, like me, have been using the web on our phones for a long time now, and we think it’s great, but quickly get over the notion. With me, it’s all about enjoying the experience on a new handset, one that allows web surfing in a comfortable fashion. Without that, a regular cell phone does not do the web much justice.
According to the Associated Press,
The Live Ticker feature is seen as the latest incarnation of push technology, which was developed by PointCast in the 1990s for desktop computers. Though PointCast’s technology fell out of favor, the idea could work well on cell phones, analysts say.
“Live Ticker fits in well with how people use mobile phones,” said Mark Donovan, analyst at research firm M-Metrics. “The PointCast-type model makes a lot more sense on a mobile phone than it does on a (desktop) computer.”
I don’t forsee this will be getting the attention of the masses, as you can expect 3G services to become widely adopted, as the new handsets are pricey, much more pricey than the usual handsets of today. There will be great free offers flying around on 3G phones, just like they are today already at Verizon.
It’s amazing, while Cingular and T-Mobile continue to talk about 3G, it’s everywhere with the Verizon MVNO marketplace. It’s crazy, even MetroPCS has 3G service, and I used to poo-poo their $40/month unlimited plan.
Well, Cingular – it’s time to play catch up quick. The MVNO’s are already adopting lots of ways to utilize EVDO and 3G services and Cingular customers are going to want them – faster than it seems Cingular is able to deliver the service. AT&T took the leading edge when they released EDGE, but that was over two years ago.
It’s time for you to catch up before the competition eats away at your 52 million (and declining) customers.
