Network access

With its large subsidies to Apple, AT&T doesn't break even on iPhone accounts with high data-usage until the 17th month of a 24-month contract, according to a new report from Yankee Group.

The report, titled "The Golden Subsidy Egg's Goose is Cooked: Welcome to the Brave New Subsidy-Free World," looks at the downside of subsidies paid to manufacturers by cell phone carriers. The report cites AT&T's iPhone contract with Apple as a prime example.

Subsidies have typically helped mobile carriers offer customers free or low-cost devices in order to lure them … Read more

SAN DIEGO--Executives from mobile chipmaker Qualcomm said Thursday at the CTIA Fall 2009 show here that more wireless spectrum is needed to sustain current trends in wireless data traffic. The father-and-son duo who serve as chairman and CEO of the company respectively also warned against stringent Net neutrality regulation.

Irwin Jacobs, Qualcomm's founder, former CEO, and current chairman, and Paul Jacobs, Qualcomm's current chief executive, took the stage at the event with CTIA CEO and President Steve Largent for a conversation about the past and future of the wireless industry. As part of the discussion, both Jacobses said … Read more

SAN DIEGO--AT&T's chief technology officer, John Donovan, is defending his company's wireless network, despite complaints about dropped calls and slow Internet access from frustrated iPhone users.

Donovan, who gave a keynote speech here at the CTIA Fall 2009 trade show Thursday, said that despite what people might be saying about problems on AT&T's network, his company is focused on providing customers with an excellent wireless experience.

"I'm not ignoring the criticism of our network," he told the audience. "I'm well aware of what's being said in the … Read more

Thanks to the hard work of Kent German, Bonnie Cha, and Nicole Lee, CNET's reviews of mobile handsets are unparalleled: we are the place on the Web to get in-depth evaluations of nearly every handset offered by the major carriers.

But we're not satisfied because we know you're not.

Judging a phone by its features, design, and quality is just half the story when determining whether it is worth purchasing. The other half of the equation is the quality of service provided by the carrier--and that's a factor we have not yet provided. After failing to … Read more

Apple's iPhone and Android-based smartphones have both seen solid growth throughout the world this year, says a report released Wednesday by AdMob.

The iPhone's worldwide market share jumped from 33 percent to 40 percent over February to August, according to AdMob's "August Mobile Metrics Report," which tracked smartphone usage for that six-month period. AdMob, which serves ads for mobile Web sites and apps, bases its numbers on data from ad requests, impressions, and clicks.

Phones running Google's Android OS picked up a 7 percent market share by August versus only 2 percent in February, … Read more

Internet attacks came from 201 different countries in the second quarter, up from 68 countries in the first quarter, according to a report released Thursday.

Akamai Technologies' quarterly "State of the Internet" report compiles data about the online world, from Internet attacks to average connection speeds across the globe.

Among the 201 countries now seen as the source of malware and other Internet threats, the U.S., China, and South Korea accounted for more than half of the attacks in the second quarter.

Blaming the Conficker worm on the majority of the assaults, Akamai discovered attacks on 4,… Read more

Following the finalization of the Wireless-N (802.11n) standard, the Wi-Fi Alliance, a nonprofit group that tests and certifies wireless products to ensure they interoperate, launched on Tuesday its new test program that supports the final specs of the standard.

This certification is still necessary because, according to Kelly Davis-Felner, marketing director of the Wi-Fi Alliance, the final specs include a lot of options and items that vendors could interpret differently, which could lead to products that don't work with each other. "Our certification program ensures that the product conforms with the final standard and interoperates with others.&… Read more

Most new smartphone users are now consumers, a dramatic change from just a few years ago when the gadgets were primarily in the hands of business types, according to a survey released Wednesday by research firm CFI Group.

The survey "CFI Group Smartphone Satisfaction Study 2009" found that smartphone users are no longer just reading e-mail or scheduling appointments but also surfing the Web, streaming video and music, downloading games, and snapping pictures. Smartphones are now seen more by consumers as minicomputers than as cell phones, according to CFI.

Predictably, Apple's iPhone is credited with igniting the … Read more

One in five households worldwide will be wired up to the Internet by year's end, according to new estimates from Gartner.

The number of households with fixed broadband connections is expected to reach 422 million across the globe this year, a jump of 10.5 percent over 382 million in 2008, the analyst firm said Friday. This number will further swell to an estimated 580 million by 2013.

Over the next four years, global broadband services revenue will also help offset declining voice revenue and account for 40 percent of the consumer fixed voice, Internet, and broadband services market … Read more