Kickaha, yeah. And I'm looking forward to long-range wireless internet access everywhere - including voice - so the whole cell business can be dumped like they deserve.
Okay, I think I have a better way of explaining my thoughts on this.
The cell industry is the new Compuserve.
There's a huge, ubiquitous system out there called the Internet, and billions of people are perfectly happy using it to send email, with video, pictures, audio... you name it. Email can be sent across any number of networking systems, physical infrastructures, and pipes. The endpoints don't, and shouldn't, care where it goes in the middle, or how it gets there. Only that it does.
Contrast this with what the cell companies have built - MMS connects to... other MMS clients. On their network. It's a walled community, in the same way Compuserve was when the Internet was taking off in the commercial and public space. Compuserve held on *so tight* to its domain... although it eventually opened up to sending mail to/from the rest of the internet, it kept the interaction at a minimum, and tried to entice users to stay inside the wall with content, some free, much not. "Why do you want to go out into the big bad internet, when we can get you whatever you need right here? For a low, low price..."
I see SMS/MMS as much the same - it's a closed community, with some minimal interaction with the rest of the electronic world. I don't see it doing any better in the long run.
And for those of you asking "Compuserve who?"... exactly. At one time, they were the largest online community, *the* way that individuals got onto the net. To many people, Compuserve *was* the net, for all intents and purposes. They predated AOL, who almost fell into the same trap, but figured it out just in time.
The cell companies are still in the same mindset: "If we just keep throwing content at our customers, and charge them for the privilege of downloading it, we can keep them happy, tied to us, and most importantly, paying us big bucks for stuff they can get cheaper elsewhere." Look at all of the overpriced ringtones, music videos, movies, etc, that play on these tiny postage stamped screens *and can't be moved anywhere else*, and tell me I'm wrong. I think they're about to be rudely awakened, however. Their walled community just got delivered a Trojan Horse.
++++
Very true. I don't think we realize yet the importance of whatever Steve worked out with AT&T, or indeed that he could "work out" anything at all.
Think about it-- he basically went to them and said "We have a phone that we have designed to gut your profitable walled garden services. No MMS, no overpriced insanely hard to navigate music store, none of your stupid "video on demand" schemes, no dicking around with computer syncing so people have to pay for your stuff to get things on their cell phones. We think you're better of driving increased subscription rates with this really cool device than you are continuing with your fake, limited functionality version of the internet. If you don't figure this out now, somebody else will pretty soon, and they'll eat you alive."
Or words to that effect. No wonder famously closed system Verizon didn't bite. But what happens when people know people with iPhones, and notice they can do all this cool stuff without the carrier tariff? How long can a Verizon holdout, selling a wildly overpriced, crippled version of what iPhone users are getting for free?
Somehow, Steve made the AT&T brass "get it". RDF and a handgun, is my guess.
So no word on if the final version will be able to record video?
I guess we will just have to wait till release day.
Let's hope it does. Given that Apple builds iSights into all their notebooks, video capabilities seem to be pretty important to them. Since most cell phones with a camera can do video, I have to assume that the iPhone will be able to as well.
Comments
Okay, I think I have a better way of explaining my thoughts on this.
The cell industry is the new Compuserve.
There's a huge, ubiquitous system out there called the Internet, and billions of people are perfectly happy using it to send email, with video, pictures, audio... you name it. Email can be sent across any number of networking systems, physical infrastructures, and pipes. The endpoints don't, and shouldn't, care where it goes in the middle, or how it gets there. Only that it does.
Contrast this with what the cell companies have built - MMS connects to... other MMS clients. On their network. It's a walled community, in the same way Compuserve was when the Internet was taking off in the commercial and public space. Compuserve held on *so tight* to its domain... although it eventually opened up to sending mail to/from the rest of the internet, it kept the interaction at a minimum, and tried to entice users to stay inside the wall with content, some free, much not. "Why do you want to go out into the big bad internet, when we can get you whatever you need right here? For a low, low price..."
I see SMS/MMS as much the same - it's a closed community, with some minimal interaction with the rest of the electronic world. I don't see it doing any better in the long run.
And for those of you asking "Compuserve who?"... exactly. At one time, they were the largest online community, *the* way that individuals got onto the net. To many people, Compuserve *was* the net, for all intents and purposes. They predated AOL, who almost fell into the same trap, but figured it out just in time.
The cell companies are still in the same mindset: "If we just keep throwing content at our customers, and charge them for the privilege of downloading it, we can keep them happy, tied to us, and most importantly, paying us big bucks for stuff they can get cheaper elsewhere." Look at all of the overpriced ringtones, music videos, movies, etc, that play on these tiny postage stamped screens *and can't be moved anywhere else*, and tell me I'm wrong. I think they're about to be rudely awakened, however. Their walled community just got delivered a Trojan Horse.
++++
Very true. I don't think we realize yet the importance of whatever Steve worked out with AT&T, or indeed that he could "work out" anything at all.
Think about it-- he basically went to them and said "We have a phone that we have designed to gut your profitable walled garden services. No MMS, no overpriced insanely hard to navigate music store, none of your stupid "video on demand" schemes, no dicking around with computer syncing so people have to pay for your stuff to get things on their cell phones. We think you're better of driving increased subscription rates with this really cool device than you are continuing with your fake, limited functionality version of the internet. If you don't figure this out now, somebody else will pretty soon, and they'll eat you alive."
Or words to that effect. No wonder famously closed system Verizon didn't bite. But what happens when people know people with iPhones, and notice they can do all this cool stuff without the carrier tariff? How long can a Verizon holdout, selling a wildly overpriced, crippled version of what iPhone users are getting for free?
Somehow, Steve made the AT&T brass "get it". RDF and a handgun, is my guess.
And for those of you asking "Compuserve who?"...
Not me.... 72727,???? reporting for duty....
Gee why on earth do I still remember that freakin number especially since I left CIS (compuserv information service) once I found the net back in 89.
Dave
I guess we will just have to wait till release day.
So no word on if the final version will be able to record video?
I guess we will just have to wait till release day.
Let's hope it does. Given that Apple builds iSights into all their notebooks, video capabilities seem to be pretty important to them. Since most cell phones with a camera can do video, I have to assume that the iPhone will be able to as well.