EU launches crackdown on rogue mobile services

Reuters reports today that the European Union’s consumer chief Meglena Kuneva has launched a crackdown on websites offering mobile phone services such as ringtones after a probe found most were ripping people off, notably teenagers.

Scams uncovered included:

- unclear price information where prices were incomplete, did not include taxes, or where customers were unaware that they were signing up to a subscription.

- large numbers of websites did not provide some of the required contact information about the trader.

- “hidden charges” where key information was hidden in very small print or hard to find on a website or the word “free” was used to mislead consumers into a long-term contract.

The investigation into 500 websites providing ringtones, wallpapers, news feeds or videogames worth hundreds of millions of euros found that 80 percent were “misleading” consumers.

The 3G Dating Agency is very concerned by the effects these scammers are having on consumer perception of mobile service providers. We ONLY offer prepayment and NEVER enlist customers into subscriptions or bill to their mobile phone bill.

Ultimately we’re glad to see the naming and shaming and hope the punishments of hefty fines and/or closure of sites are enforced.

Companies who were named and shamed included Jamba, VeriSign, Vodafone, Aspiro, Wiking Mobile. I only wish i had the whole list to post here!

User Generated Content - a legal minefield

This week saw a big UGC story hit the headlines.

Ever since YouTube was sold to Google the legal sharks have been circling to file damages as a result of the huge amount of content that is being illegally distributed.

Viacom have led these efforts and this week it appears they’re having success with their $1 Billion lawsuit - see the legal document at the Wired Blog. Google have been ordered to share with Viacom full details on all of YouTube user’ IP addresses and usernames plus the history of videos they’ve watched.

Google has also been ordered to hand over information on all videos that have been removed from YouTube along with the IP address and the username of the person who uploaded them.

Makes me wonder a few things:

> Why is Google keeping all this information in an user identifiable format?

> Why is personally identifiable information important to proving Viacom’ claim that YouTube is a hotbed of priated video content? Surely aggregate counts of views and users would be enough to prove this case?

> How many users will be directly prosecuted by Viacom as a result of this illegal uploading?

> Why does Viacom seem unconcerned with consumer backlash to their brands for this individual privacy infringement?

This also has an implication to an interesting fact I discovered this week at the Mobile Communities & UGC Conference I was speaking at in Amsterdam. 80% of ALL content uploaded to SeeMeTV (a premium mobile video site that charges customers to upload content) is deleted instead of being posted because it is “inappropriate”.

It seems certain that user generated content sites need a completely new approach.

Mobile Social Networking & UGC Conference, Amsterdam

This week I was in the beautiful city of Amsterdam speaking at Informa’s inaugural Mobile Social & UGC Conference. The event was very well attended and there was lots of evidence that communities of all shapes and sizes are going mobile!

I spoke about how brands should go about engagement with communities and used our recent work with Phones 4U to illustrate how it can add value to the user experience.

Check out the Conference website to see the full list of speakers and download the presentations.

MiniBar Mobile

Thanks to the MiniBar Mobile crowd down at the Truman Brewery in London for the great feedback, our first time attending but definitely not our last!

The event focused on what’s cool and hot in the mobile web space and also included presentations from Richard Vahrman of , Alexander Strub of Truphone, Roy Shelton of Next2Friends, Priya Prakash of Flirtomatic, Margaret Gold of Vodafone Betavine (GREATLY APPRECIATED SPONSORS OF THE BAR!), Scott Beaumont of Mippin, Stewart Townsend of SUN Startup program. Media Partners were TCUK and  Intruders TV.

MiniBar is a social evening in East London which offers people a chance to snaffle some free beer while discussing p2p, Creative Commons, web applications, social networking and general Web 2.0 (3.0) mayhem & fandango. 

Here you can find people who will help you making your next project work. The event is what we call ‘useful fun’. Usually there are 200+ of London’s - and beyond - finest web entrepreneurs, designers, programmers, tech journalists, bloggers, VCs, and technology freaks. Click here to sign up for news on future MiniBar Mobile events

Bhutan pips India in 3G race

Bhutan Telecom has commercially started the 3G network that will enable mobile subscribers in Bhutan to make video calls and enjoy high-speed internet on their mobile phones.

Managing Director of Bhutan Telecom, Thinley Dorji, said the launch of 3G service will revolutionise the country’s information and communication technology (ICT) sector, and 3G Project Manager ,Yeshey Tshogay, said to the Kuensel newspaper ”All services available on GPRS and EDGE are available on 3G, but the user experience on 3G will be different due to high speed and video call services available only within the 3G network”.

The launch occassion was commemorated by a 3G Video Call between Nandalal Rai, Information and Communications Minister, and  Yeshey Zimba, Works and Human Settlement Minister.

Read the full story at Business Standard

Text Appeal for Cyclone Victims hijacked by Scammers

SC Magazine has reported on how the recent natural disasters in Myanmar (also known as Burma) and China have led to various scams to steal money intended for donations.Reporter Sue Marquette Poremba reports that “not only are websites being hacked to redirect funds meant for legitimate organizations, as had happened during Hurricane Katrina relief efforts, but now scammers are also using text messages to ask potential donors to wire money to a certain account.

Other scams include SMS’ suggesting that recipients could help the aid agencies by just calling or sending a text message. When responding the donor may unwittingly be dialing up a premium rate number or subscribing to a premium rate SMS service that will persist in debiting money from their mobile account balance until they unsubscribe.

Mr Van Horenbeeck a security expert with Message Labs, said he thinks these types of attacks will increase “as the barrier to responding to a text message is very low, there will initially be quite a few people that may feel inclined to support the cause by sending a quick reply,” he said. “There’s a much lower investment in sending a message, and people are likely to react. The same goes for text messages, where requesting people to contact ‘for-a-fee’ numbers can actually constitute direct payment. Essentially, the loop for the attacker between sending his message and getting revenue shortens.”

Here is the link to the official Disasters Emergency Committee who really do need your support 

Donations can be made at any High Street Bank or Post Office quoting Freepay number:1643, by calling the automated donation line 0870 60 60 900 (24 hours a day). In the UK you can also text the word DONATE to 83696 to make a £1.50 donation.

Romanian Operator “ZAPP” Rolls out 3G in 15 of 19 Romanian Cities

Romanian operator, Zapp says that it has completed its 3G network roll out 15 of the 19 cities that will benefit from 3G coverage by end of June 2008 including: Brasov, Braila, Sibiu, Arad, Bacau, Satu Mare, Baia Mare, Constanta, Craiova, Ploiesti, Targu Mures, Cluj Napoca, Timisoara, Galati and Pitesti.

Zapp won a licence for 3G services in the 2.1Ghz bands in 2006 and last month, Chris Bataillard, CEO of Zapp, announced the decision to switch to 3G technology for its network as opposed to CDMA2000 which the company already uses for its 450Mhz network.

We look forward to welcoming Romanian singles to our Global 3G Mobile Community…

Juniper Research Forecast: Social networking will drive mobile web growth

A Juniper Research report out today predicts that the total global revenues for Mobile Social Networking and User Generated Content will rocket from $1.8bn in 2008, to $11.2bn in 2013, accounting for 50 per cent of the Mobile Web 2.0 market.

The prediction has surprised many industry thought leaders because it puts communities central to the growth of the mobile web whilst claiming that the impact of mobile search and mobile IM will be more measured.

The Nielsen Company: Social Networking is Going Mobile & the UK is leading!

Reporting on the growing number of mobile phone subscribers worldwide who are taking social networking to the streets, research conducted by Nielsen Mobile reveal that the U.K. leads Europe in mobile social networking on a percentage basis - with the U.S. just slightly behind boasting comparable numbers.

Already in the UKapproximately 810,000 mobile subscribers, or 1.7% of all mobile subscribers in the country, visited social networking websites on their mobile phones in the first quarter of 2008. That reach percentage was twice as high as it was in other major European markets-though similar to the USA, where 1.6 percent of all mobile subscribers (4.1 million in all) accessed social networks via their phones in December 2007.

Jeff Herrmann, Vice President of Mobile Media at Nielsen Mobile said:

“Social Networking is already a global phenomenon, and going Mobile is the next big thing!”

T-Mobile USA joins the 3G Club!

Yahoo news has reported that the company has begun the commercial rollout of its 3G wireless network in the USA.

Starting with New York City the company will continue to roll out the high-speed data network to major metropolitan markets, and by the end of this year it expects to cover those cities where most of its subscribers use data services.

Cole Brodman, T-Mobile USA Chief Development Officer, said that T-Mobile benefits from the extensive commercial experience of 3G in our European markets where the technology is more prevalent.

Sean Ryan, an analyst with industry research firm IDC, said that T-Mobile USA is “playing catch-up” with the other major carriers in the U.S. who already have 3G to some degree, including AT&T, Verizon, Sprint and Alltel.

Current Analysis’ Avi Greengart noted that the delay was caused, at least in part, by the U.S. government, which “stymied T-Mobile time and time again by holding onto the AWS spectrum” that is being used for the 3G network. Grespan has predicted that in six months 3G social networks would be showing major revenue growth.