Device Arena

The Chinese MSN website has a rather extensive Sony Ericsson models list in their Downloads section for the Windows Live Messenger plus some that are not yet released. It seems the Chinese are ahead of everyone else when it comes to the latest upcoming models Sony Ericsson P3, Sony Ericsson M610 and also Motorola E9.

The Sony Ericsson handsets seem a long way from official announcement however we’ve already seen similar prototype photos of P3 six months ago. And it still looks fake enough with that fullscreen Walkman logo. No specs are known yet, however if there’s even a slight truth in those pictures, the next Sony Ericsson smartphones will again have the bar form factor plus the dreadful QWERTY keyboard first used in Sony Ericsson M600.

The Motorola E9 is also among the handsets spotted at the same website – it’s again a rumored handset that still hasn’t been officially announced.

GSMArena

Spb Software House pioneers in implementing Windows Mobile Marketplace technology in a real, consumer-market solution. Spb Catalog, an on-device mobile content catalog based on the Marketplace technology, is now shipped by such major device manufacturers as Fly, Gigabyte, and HTC.

“Our partner OEMs have recognized the opportunity of doing more for their customers with Spb Catalog. We all agree that Windows Mobile Marketplace is set to revolutionize the way people become aware of, buy, and install software; it might even change the way devices are generally used,” – comments Vassili Philippov, Spb Software House COO. “Spb Catalog can secure multiple benefits for all the parties involved. The end users get immediate access to the most up-to-date content, the device manufacturers are able to deliver fuller device experiences to customers, and the mobile operators get an additional means of differentiation,” Vassili concludes.

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Motorola and Marriott International announced they are teaming up to bring enhanced business and entertainment services to Marriott’s hotel guests around the world. As a core connectivity platform for advanced service delivery, Marriott has chosen Motorola’s PowerBroadband system. PowerBroadband has recently been deployed in over 15,000 Marriott-branded guestrooms in prestigious hotels including the Crystal Gateway Marriott in Arlington, VA, the Marriott Wardman Park in Washington, D.C., and the Orlando World Center Resort and Convention Center in Orlando, FL.

Motorola’s mT2a PowerBroadband product line was selected because its innovative design provides the performance levels required for next-generation, triple- and quad-play IP services while eliminating many of the frustrations often found with installing, using, and maintaining classic broadband systems. Hotel managers have seen the number of customer complaints and the number of system troubles decrease significantly after installation of PowerBroadband.

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Nokia Foundation has granted its 2007 award to Pekka Abrahamsson for his merits in researching and developing global software development and processes.

The EUR 10,000 award was presented at the Foundation’s scholarship awards ceremony on November 28, 2007, when the Foundation celebrated its 13th year of operation.

Pekka Abrahamsson is a research professor at VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland and currently head of the FLEXI-ITEA2 project, which aims to improve the competitiveness of Europe’s software development by accelerating and adapting global product development and innovations. There are 37 organizations from eight European countries involved in the project. Abrahamsson is a pioneer of agile software development in Finland, and his team designed Mobile-D, the agile approach for mobile application development. Abrahamsson has also coached several agile software development projects in industry and has authored more than 55 scientific publications on software development and processes.

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O2 today announced the launch of the UK’s first large scale pilot of NFC (Near Field Communications) technology on mobile phones. The trial of the O2 Wallet® paves the way for the mass market use of mobile phones to pay for purchases, access events or even be used as Oyster cards for travel around London, simply by touching the phone to a reader.

“Research shows that people are more likely to return home if they leave their phone behind than their wallet or keys,” said Cath Keers, Customer Director, O2 UK. “So why not have your wallet on your phone? We believe that NFC technology is going to fundamentally change the way people use their mobile phones.”

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