Google, which has a traditionally good relationship with IBM, has bought from Big Blue 1030 patents covering stuff “from the fabrication and architecture of memory and microprocessing chips, to other areas of computer architecture including servers and routers as well. A number of the patents also cover relational databases, object oriented programming, and a wide array of business processes.”

While some of the patents listed involve databases and search queries, which is connected to Google’s bread-and-butter search business, a lot of those will no doubt be used to fend off the number of lawsuits by Apple and others against El Goog’s Android mobile OS, after the saga with the failed bid for Nortel’s patents.

Microsoft already made HTC pay it $5 for each Android handset they make, and is on the way to bend the N1 Android maker Samsung as well. Should Apple succeed with its HTC lawsuit, it could actually earn a pretty good chink of cash from that stream as well. Cupertino already had a preliminary decision that HTC is infringing on two of its patents, and is engaged in a neck-and-neck battle with Samsung over the same patents, so Bernstein’s analyst Toni Sacconaghi thinks Apple stands a viable chance to cash in on its IP property:

• “We anticipate that Apple will push its legal claims hard and unrelentingly and believe that the company’s key goal is to upend Android’s momentum by forcing a work around on key essential features which, if successful, could have huge, positive financial implications for Apple. Given that Apple appears to have more to lose in any one legal case than they might gain (since Apple ships a much higher value of smartphones than any other player), logic suggests that Apple feels confident in its odds of winning patent disputes it initiates. Should Apple prevail in forcing Android to rework some of its functionality, resulting in market share shifts, it could have huge, positive financial implications for Apple: we note that a 10 percentage point shift in smartphone market share from Android to Apple (the current run-rate smartphone market share is 46% for Android vs. 18% for Apple) in 2013 is worth an estimated $30B+ in annual revenue and $10+ in annual EPS to Apple.

• Apple appears to have the strong upper hand in its legal battle with HTC, but we see the current rulings as only a warm up bout. A second Apple suit against HTC – as well as separate suits against key Android vendors Samsung and Motorola – involves its iOS multi-touch patents, which we believe are the key pieces of IP that Apple ultimately seeks to reaffirm at all costs, given their potential to undermine Android. While HTC (specifically, its recent acquisition – S3 Graphics) and Apple recently won preliminary judgments against each other at the US ITC, we view S3’s victory as limited in scope (unlike Apple’s claims against HTC) and not posing a credible threat to Apple. More importantly, however, Apple recently launched a second case against HTC claiming infringement of its key multi-touch patents. We believe this is the much more important battle, and one which courts have yet to rule upon. Apple’s legal suits against other key Android OEMs (Samsung and Motorola) also include claim violation of such patents. Consistent with the importance of this IP, Apple’s recent settlement of its patent dispute and accompanying licensing agreement with Nokia does not appear to involve these patents.“

Looks like Nokia might have made a wise decision to go with Windows Phone, after all, since going with Android might have invalidated the nice cash outlay and ongoing royalties it won against Apple recently, for infringing on its own patents – this kind of money is no small change for the troubled N1 cell phone maker.

via SEObytheSea & CNN

The latest quarterly report on the state of the smartphone business has been released by Gartner, and no surprise-the Android OS shows amazing momentum. First, a step backwards at the big picture shows that worldwide sales of mobile communication devices rose 19% in the first quarter of 2011 from the first three months of last year, to reach a total of 428 million units sold. Of that total, smartphones accounted for 23% which was an increase of 85% over last year. According to Gartner, smartphones could have turned in an even better performance except for the fact that many high-profile models announced in Q1 of 2011 did not ship until Q2. Roberta Cozza, principal research analyst at Gartner, said, “We believe some consumers delayed their purchases to wait for these models.”

The number one handset manufacturer in the first quarter of this year was Nokia with 25% of the worldwide cell phone market. The company shipped 107.6 million units in Q1 this year, but its market share dropped from over 30% in 2010’s first period. Despite selling 4 million more units year-over-year to 68.8 million phones, runner-up Samsung’s slice of the worldwide cell phone pie slipped to 16.1% from 18%. Rounding out the top 5 was LG (24 million phones shipped, 5.6% share), Apple (16.9 million, 3.9%) and RIM (13 million, 3%).

The second quarter could see Samsung cut into Nokia’s lead thanks to the overseas acceptance of the Samsung Galaxy S II. As we reported, it appears that the device will be available at 3 of the top U.S. carriers (all but T-Mobile) although a U.S. launch might not take place until Q3 or later.

When it comes to which OS was installed on the most smartphones in the first quarter- Android took home the prize with a stunning increase from 5.2 million units in Q1 2010 to 36.2 million phones in this year’s first three months. As a percentage of the worldwide smartphone market, Android flavored phones shipped went from a 9.6% share to 36%. Symbian’s share dropped sharply from 44.2% to 27.4% of the market although the number of phones installed with the software increased year-over-year from 24.1 million in  Q1 2010 to 27.6 million in this year’s first three months; that performance was good enough for second place. iOS saw shipments more than double for the quarter to 16.9 million from 8.4 million which resulted in a 16.8% slice of the market in 2011, up from 2010’s 15.3%. RIM and Microsoft were fourth and fifth respectively. Canadian based RIM had 13 million handsets with its OS ship in this year’s first quarter, up from 10.8 million in 2010. Microsoft had a small drop off to 3.7 million units shipped with Windows Phone 7 this year.

source: Gartner via AndroidandMe

Gartner's latest report shows a huge increase in phones shipping with the Android OS

Dear, Gartner, you just don’t learn do you? Seven months ago, the company was drawing a rosy future for Symbian, forenaming it the top mobile OS for 2014 with some 30% share. Well, now it has decided to peek into the future of the mobile industry all the way into 2015 and here’s what the analysts found: actually, Android is to dominate the market grabbing a nearly 50% portion, while at the same time Symbian’s share will shrink to 0.1%. Uh oh! On the other hand, Windows Phone, adopted by Nokia for its main platform, will outscore iOS by 2.3% with a share of 19.5% in 2015, according to the latest prognosis.

The forecast – of course – is no palm-reading, but taking into account that less than two months ago, such a prediction would have seemed wildly extravagant, we would take this one with extra caution. Even more so, given Gartner’s expectations for iOS, which the analysts expect to reach a peak next year and fall down to 17.2% by 2015. Gartner’s numbers come close to those in a recent report by tech oracle IDC, which foretold a market share of 45% for Android and of 0.2% for Symbian in 2015. So with that in mind, why don’t you bring out your own magic ball and give us your predictions in the comments below?

source: Gartner (forecast #1 vs forecast #2) via Mashable

Gartner's forecast

IDC's forecast

A couple of days ago we brought your attention to the 38th anniversary of the first phone call ever made, but since then a lot has changed. Well, nothing speaks better for that change than a motion picture! This one was put together by Vodafone UK using 3D Projection Mapping, which is one of the coolest three dimensional tricks out there. It also features landmark models starting with Motorola’s DynaTAC and ending with contemporary Android heavyweights.

Actually, DynaTAC is the exact cell phone used by Martin Cooper when he placed the first cell phone call on the streets of New York City back in 1973. It was to Cooper’s biggest rival Dr. Engel, heading research at Bell Labs, a telecommunication giant at the time and we can imagine his feelings about being beaten by the rather small company that Motorola was at the time.

You can tell it was a big handset just by the looks, but you’d be surprised that nowadays you could almost use it for your workout with its 2.2 pounds of weight. Not that you’ll be able to find it anywhere, though! The memorable first call happened in 1973, but this video managed to squeeze all those years into a three minute video. Can you name all the featured handsets? Check out the video below and let us know your guesses in the comments!

source: Vodafone UK (YouTube)

If you have followed phones in recent years, you know that Nokia were scoring big with their handsets roughly all the way until the iPhone came out. And if you’ve followed apps, you know that Sports Tracker was the ultimate sports app for your fitness-obsessed folk out there – giving you all possible stats about your walk, run or cycle. All of this beauty was available for Symbian – the hot platform of the time – and backed by Nokia. But as Espoo slowly shifted away from the platform, the engineers that are behind Sports Tracker decided to start their own company and now announced their decision to port the fitness application to iOS and Android.

So much for our retrospection, but a quick look at the actual functionality of Sports Tracker reveals that it basically transforms your cell phone into a GPS sports machine and also makes you a part of a bigger active community. One, which shares everything sports-related like interesting cycling or skiing routes. The app will be entering final testing stages soon, so expect to see it soon on the App Store and the Android Market.

source: Sports Tracker via Nexus404

You didn’t see that coming, did you? Ovum’s principal analyst Adam Leach came out with a bold forecast about the future of mobile platforms saying that Windows Phone will outgrow Apple’s iOS in terms of market share by the year 2016. Microsoft’s platform is to have a 22.6% share, higher than the 19% projected for iOS. Android is to be the leader in that yet uncertaing postapocalyptic future with a market share of 38.7%.

“We will see dramatic shifts in dominance for smartphone software platforms, with Android storming into the lead with 38.7% market share, compared to Apple iOS’ 19%, by 2016 in AP alone,” Leach noted. As uncertain as it all sounds now, the forecast takes into account Nokia’s adoption of Windows Phone and all of its reverberations:

“For Microsoft the deal provides a committed handset partner that has the potential to make Windows Phone a mainstream smartphone platform. The risk to Microsoft is that other handset makers may choose not to compete with Nokia and may turn their backs on Windows Phone,” Leach suggested. In any case, long-term predictions in the rapidly growing industry are risky business as RIM and HP have yet to strike back with new devices and updated versions of their operating systems, but what do you think, do you see a “three-horse race” in the future?

source: Ovum via WMPowerUser

The Galaxy S II Mini is probably the least miniature of handsets pretending to be “mini,” but we don’t really mind the 3.7-inch screen and powerful 1.4GHz processor, especially given its relative affordability in comparison to the Samsung Galaxy S II. Actually, the handset seems to be a close and cheaper copy of the dual-core Galaxy S II, both of which are coming on UK’s fourth-largest carrier Three. The S II Mini is also theoretically capable of delivering up to 21Mbps of data on the downlink. The whole package is baked in Gingerbread and getting ready for an April launch. Actually, that’s even sooner than the roll-out of the Samsung Galaxy S II in May.

Read the whole story at PhoneArena.com!

According to reports circulating overseas, before deciding to partner with Microsoft and its Windows Phone 7 operating system, Nokia attempted to work out a deal with RIM. And while it seems that Nokia was extremely interested in having its smartphones loaded up with the BlackBerry OS, RIM told the Finnish based firm that it was not interested in a partnership. And that left Nokia with two options-Android or Windows Phone 7.

With Android, Google refused to make a number of changes that Nokia wanted. For example, Nokia wanted Google Maps replaced with Ovi Maps and also wanted to change the way Google’s open source OS handled PIM data. Nokia also wanted changes in the way Android handled email, the calendar and contacts. Giving in to Nokia would have affected Google’s revenue flow, so the Mountain View based firm rejected the idea.

On the other hand, Microsoft was willing to make the changes to Windows Phone 7 that Nokia wanted. The latter will have some say into the future development of Windows Phone 7 and Ovi Maps will become part of the platform. And for Nokia, exiting the OS business means letting people go in R&D and software engineering. Spending on Symbian and MeeGo is expected to be close to zero next year. And the handset manufacturer plans on taking its integration of Windows Phone 7 to the U.S., specifically the Silicon Valley area from where it hopes to start gaining a larger presence in the U.S.

source: TechCrunchEurope via BGR

In his keynote speech today Eric Schmidt talked in Google’s usual frank way about the Nokia Windows Phone. “We would have loved Nokia to choose Android and we certainly tried… The offer remains open for the future.”

Now this is some straight talk. It’s been just a few days since Nokia announced its deep partnership with Microsoft, and most comments were pointing out how the old fox Ballmer planted Stephen Elop at the helm to drive Nokia right into his arms, exerting pressure on Nokia’s board through its largest American shareholders.

Whatever was going on behind the curtain at the time, one thing is certain now – Android definitely was an option for Nokia, but at the last possible moment (last Thursday, if you believe Stephen Elop), it went with the underdog Windows Phone.

For what it’s worth, Eric Schmidt also mentioned that they still consider Microsoft their main competitor. Not Apple, nor Facebook, but Microsoft. After all, despite all the hype, Facebook still hasn’t monetized its popularity, whereas Microsoft has established revenue streams and is getting big in cloud services.

Tying these together and placing them on a Nokia Windows Phone might be as disruptive as Google throwing a wrench into Apple’s quest for mobile dominance with the purchase of Android. The move is typical Microsoft – wait for a market to mature, and then go all-in, guns blazing, to take advantage of the already established best practices. Anyway, those Nokia Windows Phone renders from yesterday look cute as a button, and not formidable at all.

via MocoNews

UPDATED: It turns out that Myriad uses the Qt development framework as the backend for Alien Dalvik, thus potentially allowing for even tighter integration with the Nokia ecosystem, which is having Qt as development platform for both its Symbian and MeeGo devices.

Myriad AG is a software company, whose Java apps, browsers and such are found on some 2.2 billion phones worldwide. The company is a member of the Open Handset Alliance, so it has expertise with porting and creating for Android. What they’ve come up with now made us almost choke with our breakfast.

The software is called Myriad Alien Dalvik (Dalvik is Android’s VM for Java), and allows for running Android apps on non-Android phones. It is probably way more complicated that it sounds, but Myriad claims the majority of apps run unmodified, and app store owners can simply repackage the existing .APK files, then they are good to go.

What we immediately imagined was that this might be the end of Nokia’s mobile OS problems if they simply allow the Myriad Alien Dalvik on their handsets. Indeed, Myriad will be at the MWC, and showing off what Alien Dalvik can do, running Android applications on a Nokia N900 with MeeGo. Have a look at the video demo below:

We can’t wait, since we’ve always thought that the mobile OS war is a bit overblown – after all, they all run on the same hardware, so what’s the issue with creating some kind of an emulator to run more than one on your device. The issue is that closed ecosystems are real cash cows, and we can’t imagine neither Apple, nor Blackberry allowing this in the foreseeable future. Well, RIM has such plans, but not because they want it, but because they might have to, in order to stay competitive. They also plan to port their most popular services to devices different than Blackberry, too.

Android, on the other hand, doesn’t have these problems. Google wants it on as many devices as possible, and that’s what it will get with Myriad Alien Dalvik and the like. If this software is a harbinger of things to come, we’d say that Android will definitely have a shot at cornering the largest chunk of the market.

source: Myriad