Plus HTC and Nokia sign patent deal, Almunia warns Motorola and Samsung, routing round Chinese censors, and more
A burst of 10 links for you to chew over, as picked by the Technology team
*Seven reasons why the Year of Code is just Am Dram… >> Emma Mulqueeny*
Mulqueeny has been running the Young Rewired State program for some years, and has just resigned from the board of the "Year of Code":
IMHO this is damaging two very important movements:
• girls and tech: a PR girl who has no idea
• computational skills for young people
So I just do not want to know, and if the Year of Code becomes the *thing* that pivots this whole movement – I will celebrate its success obo the next gen, my daughters and yours (and sons too :))
And I do not support this government policy.
The Year of Code is turning into a car crash, and it's only been a week. (Via @adrianshort.)
--------------------
*Microsoft Live platform >> Flickr - Photo Sharing!*
Niall Kennedy's quite famous picture of Bill Gates in 2005 outlining the "Microsoft Live Platform". Nine years on, has Microsoft achieved this? And has it had any effect?
--------------------
*Ah, Microsoft! Should it give up Windows Phone, adopt Android, abandon Windows 8 "Metro"? No, and here is why. >> Tim Anderson's ITWriting*
This was pointed to by Steve Sinofsky, ex-head of Windows, so might have some clues to Microsoft thinking:
• Microsoft's remaining developer community would be broken irretrievably by yet another dramatic change of direction.
• Whatever the differences may be between the Windows Runtime or Phone Runtime, and Windows Desktop, the differences between Android and Windows Desktop are even greater. The synergy between the two would be lost. The strategy for supporting multiple form factors outlined above would no longer be possible.
(It's a response to this suggestion that Microsoft fork AOSP.)
--------------------
*Neither Microsoft, Nokia, nor anyone else should fork Android. It's unforkable. >> Ars Technica*
The main article by Peter Bright is a response to my suggestion that Microsoft should fork AOSP (Android Open Source Platform - the open source code that underpins Google's Android). In the comments, Dianne Hackborn, Android program manager, responds, starting with:
There is a good discussion to be had about Microsoft using Android, and a lot of good reasons for them to not do so... which makes it especially unfortunate that instead this was turned into yet another article here of increasingly specious and misleading claims about the "open-sourceness" of Android and Google's hidden plan to Control Android And Then The World.
The article and the comment definitely merit reading.
--------------------
*Nokia and HTC signed a patent and technology collaboration agreement >> Nokia*
Nokia and HTC have settled all pending patent litigation between them, and entered into a patent and technology collaboration agreement. HTC will make payments to Nokia and the collaboration will involve HTC's LTE patent portfolio, further strengthening Nokia's licensing offering. The companies will also explore future technology collaboration opportunities. The full terms of the agreement are confidential.
"We are very pleased to have reached a settlement and collaboration agreement with HTC, which is a long standing licensee for Nokia's standards essential patents," said Paul Melin, chief intellectual property officer at Nokia. "This agreement validates Nokia's implementation patents and enables us to focus on further licensing opportunities."
"Nokia has one of the most preeminent patent portfolios in the industry," said Grace Lei, General Counsel of HTC. "As an industry pioneer in smartphones with a strong patent portfolio, HTC is pleased to come to this agreement, which will enable us to stay focused on innovation for consumers."
Translation: don't think you can beat Nokia's lawyers over its patents. At a guess, money is flowing from HTC to Nokia.
--------------------
*Motorola Mobility faces EU curbs in patent clash with Apple >> Businessweek*
The company will get a "prohibition decision" for abusing key mobile-phone patents in its battle with the iPhone maker, Joaquin Almunia, the EU's competition commissioner, told reporters today in London. While such rulings typically include an order to modify behaviour, Almunia didn't specify whether the Google unit would face fines.
The EU is cracking down on possible patent abuses as Motorola Mobility, Microsoft, Apple and Samsung Electronics trade victories in divergent court rulings across the world on intellectual property. Almunia has said he's targeting the "rules of the game" to prevent companies from unfairly leveraging their inventions to thwart rivals.
The EU also plans to finalise a settlement of a similar case against Suwon, South Korea-based Samsung in April, Almunia said. Regulators have received "proposals that are good" from Samsung that could be made legally binding to end an antitrust probe without fining the company.
All relating to the use of standards-essential patents (SEPs) by Motorola Mobility and Samsung to seek injunctions - a no-no in the US and Europe. What's unclear is whether the relevant MMI patents will end up with Lenovo, or stay with Google.
--------------------
*The madness of HTC >> BGR*
Tero Kuittinen is astonished at HTC's "plans" to regain its position, as told to Bloomberg:
how is a new marketing blitz going to change anything? The phones have excellent quality but are sold at a high price. This is a combination that does not work in a handset market where the growth in the luxury segment has evaporated. There is no marketing message that can solve that problem. You can add both Scarlett Johansson and Jennifer Lawrence to those Robert Downey, Jr. ads and it won't do HTC one bit of good. I would not be surprised if they tried, though.
Mentioning smartwatches and wearables as a gamechanger is probably the most desperate Hail Mary pass I have heard in years.
HTC has a call with analysts on Monday with its quarterly results and forecasts, and will also announce January revenues.
--------------------
*Eluding the "Ministry of Truth" in China >> Nieman Reports*
Internet censorship in China is not simply matter of blocking foreign websites and deleting anything deemed harmful, nor is the state the only actor. The government delegates censorship to private websites, which face punishment, including closure, if they do not comply. On social media platforms like Sina Weibo, the Twitter-like site where about 100 million posts appear daily, censors block keywords to keep people from discussing politically sensitive topics. Chinese Internet users skirt censorship by using a variety of innovative strategies.
Great use of animated GIFs.
--------------------
*Should you build for tablet? >> Mixpanel*
From October 2013, but no less relevant:
*Must Build for Tablet*
If you are in the gaming, social, education, ecommerce, or media business and you don't have an experience–website or app–designed for tablet devices you're falling behind. Especially games which alone account for 22% of all activity on tablet. People are using their tablets to access your services and if you're forcing them to use a desktop site or a mobile app, odds are you are not keeping them happy.
*On the Edge*
If you are in the music, health, travel, or enterprise/B2B industries you should consider building a tablet experience. These verticals already account for a decent volume of the activity on tablet devices today and that's likely to increase over time. So depending on the size of their company and their available resources, they should get started on building a tablet experience.
*Don't Bother*
Companies in the photo & video, dating, or messaging business should not prioritize tablet highly on their product roadmaps.
The top five "verticals" account for 71% of all activity. (Phones are used more than tablets, of course.)
--------------------
*isaach: hacker news commenter in 2007 ... >> Twitter*
A Hacker News commenter in 2007 explains why Dropbox is lame. (You have to see it. Also, Dropbox has less space than a Nomad.)
--------------------
You can follow Guardian Technology's linkbucket on Pinboard
To suggest a link, either add it below or tag it with @gdntech on the free Delicious service. Reported by guardian.co.uk 2 days ago.
A burst of 10 links for you to chew over, as picked by the Technology team
*Seven reasons why the Year of Code is just Am Dram… >> Emma Mulqueeny*
Mulqueeny has been running the Young Rewired State program for some years, and has just resigned from the board of the "Year of Code":
IMHO this is damaging two very important movements:
• girls and tech: a PR girl who has no idea
• computational skills for young people
So I just do not want to know, and if the Year of Code becomes the *thing* that pivots this whole movement – I will celebrate its success obo the next gen, my daughters and yours (and sons too :))
And I do not support this government policy.
The Year of Code is turning into a car crash, and it's only been a week. (Via @adrianshort.)
--------------------
*Microsoft Live platform >> Flickr - Photo Sharing!*
Niall Kennedy's quite famous picture of Bill Gates in 2005 outlining the "Microsoft Live Platform". Nine years on, has Microsoft achieved this? And has it had any effect?
--------------------
*Ah, Microsoft! Should it give up Windows Phone, adopt Android, abandon Windows 8 "Metro"? No, and here is why. >> Tim Anderson's ITWriting*
This was pointed to by Steve Sinofsky, ex-head of Windows, so might have some clues to Microsoft thinking:
• Microsoft's remaining developer community would be broken irretrievably by yet another dramatic change of direction.
• Whatever the differences may be between the Windows Runtime or Phone Runtime, and Windows Desktop, the differences between Android and Windows Desktop are even greater. The synergy between the two would be lost. The strategy for supporting multiple form factors outlined above would no longer be possible.
(It's a response to this suggestion that Microsoft fork AOSP.)
--------------------
*Neither Microsoft, Nokia, nor anyone else should fork Android. It's unforkable. >> Ars Technica*
The main article by Peter Bright is a response to my suggestion that Microsoft should fork AOSP (Android Open Source Platform - the open source code that underpins Google's Android). In the comments, Dianne Hackborn, Android program manager, responds, starting with:
There is a good discussion to be had about Microsoft using Android, and a lot of good reasons for them to not do so... which makes it especially unfortunate that instead this was turned into yet another article here of increasingly specious and misleading claims about the "open-sourceness" of Android and Google's hidden plan to Control Android And Then The World.
The article and the comment definitely merit reading.
--------------------
*Nokia and HTC signed a patent and technology collaboration agreement >> Nokia*
Nokia and HTC have settled all pending patent litigation between them, and entered into a patent and technology collaboration agreement. HTC will make payments to Nokia and the collaboration will involve HTC's LTE patent portfolio, further strengthening Nokia's licensing offering. The companies will also explore future technology collaboration opportunities. The full terms of the agreement are confidential.
"We are very pleased to have reached a settlement and collaboration agreement with HTC, which is a long standing licensee for Nokia's standards essential patents," said Paul Melin, chief intellectual property officer at Nokia. "This agreement validates Nokia's implementation patents and enables us to focus on further licensing opportunities."
"Nokia has one of the most preeminent patent portfolios in the industry," said Grace Lei, General Counsel of HTC. "As an industry pioneer in smartphones with a strong patent portfolio, HTC is pleased to come to this agreement, which will enable us to stay focused on innovation for consumers."
Translation: don't think you can beat Nokia's lawyers over its patents. At a guess, money is flowing from HTC to Nokia.
--------------------
*Motorola Mobility faces EU curbs in patent clash with Apple >> Businessweek*
The company will get a "prohibition decision" for abusing key mobile-phone patents in its battle with the iPhone maker, Joaquin Almunia, the EU's competition commissioner, told reporters today in London. While such rulings typically include an order to modify behaviour, Almunia didn't specify whether the Google unit would face fines.
The EU is cracking down on possible patent abuses as Motorola Mobility, Microsoft, Apple and Samsung Electronics trade victories in divergent court rulings across the world on intellectual property. Almunia has said he's targeting the "rules of the game" to prevent companies from unfairly leveraging their inventions to thwart rivals.
The EU also plans to finalise a settlement of a similar case against Suwon, South Korea-based Samsung in April, Almunia said. Regulators have received "proposals that are good" from Samsung that could be made legally binding to end an antitrust probe without fining the company.
All relating to the use of standards-essential patents (SEPs) by Motorola Mobility and Samsung to seek injunctions - a no-no in the US and Europe. What's unclear is whether the relevant MMI patents will end up with Lenovo, or stay with Google.
--------------------
*The madness of HTC >> BGR*
Tero Kuittinen is astonished at HTC's "plans" to regain its position, as told to Bloomberg:
how is a new marketing blitz going to change anything? The phones have excellent quality but are sold at a high price. This is a combination that does not work in a handset market where the growth in the luxury segment has evaporated. There is no marketing message that can solve that problem. You can add both Scarlett Johansson and Jennifer Lawrence to those Robert Downey, Jr. ads and it won't do HTC one bit of good. I would not be surprised if they tried, though.
Mentioning smartwatches and wearables as a gamechanger is probably the most desperate Hail Mary pass I have heard in years.
HTC has a call with analysts on Monday with its quarterly results and forecasts, and will also announce January revenues.
--------------------
*Eluding the "Ministry of Truth" in China >> Nieman Reports*
Internet censorship in China is not simply matter of blocking foreign websites and deleting anything deemed harmful, nor is the state the only actor. The government delegates censorship to private websites, which face punishment, including closure, if they do not comply. On social media platforms like Sina Weibo, the Twitter-like site where about 100 million posts appear daily, censors block keywords to keep people from discussing politically sensitive topics. Chinese Internet users skirt censorship by using a variety of innovative strategies.
Great use of animated GIFs.
--------------------
*Should you build for tablet? >> Mixpanel*
From October 2013, but no less relevant:
*Must Build for Tablet*
If you are in the gaming, social, education, ecommerce, or media business and you don't have an experience–website or app–designed for tablet devices you're falling behind. Especially games which alone account for 22% of all activity on tablet. People are using their tablets to access your services and if you're forcing them to use a desktop site or a mobile app, odds are you are not keeping them happy.
*On the Edge*
If you are in the music, health, travel, or enterprise/B2B industries you should consider building a tablet experience. These verticals already account for a decent volume of the activity on tablet devices today and that's likely to increase over time. So depending on the size of their company and their available resources, they should get started on building a tablet experience.
*Don't Bother*
Companies in the photo & video, dating, or messaging business should not prioritize tablet highly on their product roadmaps.
The top five "verticals" account for 71% of all activity. (Phones are used more than tablets, of course.)
--------------------
*isaach: hacker news commenter in 2007 ... >> Twitter*
A Hacker News commenter in 2007 explains why Dropbox is lame. (You have to see it. Also, Dropbox has less space than a Nomad.)
--------------------
You can follow Guardian Technology's linkbucket on Pinboard
To suggest a link, either add it below or tag it with @gdntech on the free Delicious service. Reported by guardian.co.uk 2 days ago.