What is Microsoft getting out of the deal? According to the official press release in Redmond this morning, “the acquisition will increase the accessibility of real-time video and voice communications, bringing benefits to both consumers and enterprise users and generating significant new business and revenue opportunities. The combination will extend Skype’s world-class brand and the reach of its networked platform, while enhancing Microsoft’s existing portfolio of real-time communications products and services.”

Let’s do the math: The volume of international traffic routed via Skype is significant; in fact the company has become the largest international voice carrier with over 663 millions of registered user as of 2010 and a record of over 30 million simultaneous online users. The international call marketshare was 13% in 2010 and the increasing platform compatibility are a good way for further expansion. Last year Skype generated a revenue of $860 million US and with Microsoft’s implementation the revenue is destined to breach the billion dollar wall shortly.

Despite unobjectionable economic reasons and profitability, what made Microsoft purchase the company before Facebook, Google or even Apple?

More and more customers are switching to non-MS operating systems: Mac OS, iOS, Android etc. Even the next-generation, cloud-based OS, Chrome OS represents a major threat to the company’s business scope. Innovation is not Microsoft’s main strength. They rely on business customers, since for now companies all over the world find it expensive and irrelevant to move to a new platform. MS has failed to enter the music industry with its Zune MP3 player and Windows Mobile OS is not a hit – yet.

This is exactly what they are working on. Imagine a unified system – a perfect symbiosis of desktop computers and mobile phones. Cloud computing is indeed the keyword here, but the company lacks innovative ideas. Everyone knows Skype; it’s a good way for Microsoft to enrich its products and introduce new features. The Nokia-Microsoft deal is also a significant factor for the mobile platform fight against Google and Apple.

It’s convenient to purchase start-up corporations that have exceptional ideas at a low price, but implementing new und yet unknown features is always hard. Microsoft has not been able to stack up against Apple’s constant milestone-setting-strategy in the past years, but as half a billion of people actively use Skype, Ballmer and his team in Redmond have one last chance to avoid a not too unrealistic Cupertino-Mountainview duopolistic leadership.

There is a problem, though: Skype’s success was platform compatibility and cooperation with hundreds of companies (e.g LG’s SkypePhones). Many users fear that Microsoft is going to abandon their platform. There is not even an iPad version of Skype yet, why would Microsoft even care? They could stop working on iOS, Mac, Android and other platforms and concentrate on their own ones. Well, at least OFFICIALLY, they are willing to maintain Skype’s philosophy for a while and at the same time boost their product line thanks to this new acquisition.

Ballmer states that “Skype will support Microsoft devices like Xbox and Kinect, Windows Phone and a wide array of Windows devices, and Microsoft will connect Skype users with Lync, Outlook, Xbox Live and other communities. Microsoft will continue to invest in and support Skype clients on non-Microsoft platforms.”

Not only the iPad is cannibalizing netbooks, ebooks, gaming consoles and even the low-end-notebook range (basically everything Microsoft focusses on). As a proud iOS and Mac user, I am sceptical. Microsoft has indirectly challenged Apple to monetize FaceTime and I am pretty sure that Steve Jobs is going to take advantage of this situation and try – once again – to bulldoze existing paths and build big roads.

Is Microsoft finally stepping back into the game, or will Apple, Google & co. make the high-score?

Only time can tell.

Vor einer Woche hab ich folgenden Satz formuliert: “Ich bin bei Mediamarkt mindestens genau so gerne, wie Frauen in einem Schuhgeschäft.” Hiermit widerlege ich meine Behauptung offiziell. Aber bei Saturn schau ich gern rein!

Nun zitiere ich die Gesetze des guten Murphy, denen bisher noch nie widersprochen werden konnte:

“1) Wenn etwas schiefgehen kann, dann geht es schief.
2) Wenn etwas auf verschiedene Arten schiefgehen kann, dann geht es immer auf die Art schief, die am meisten Schaden verursacht.
3) Hat man alle Möglichkeiten ausgeschlossen, bei denen etwas schiefgehen kann, eröffnet sich sofort eine neue Möglichkeit.
4) Die Wahrscheinlichkeit, dass ein bestimmtes Ereignis eintritt, ist umgekehrt proportional zu seiner Erwünschtheit.
5) Früher oder später wird die schlimmstmögliche Verkettung von Umständen eintreten.
6) Wenn etwas zu gut erscheint, um wahr zu sein, ist es das wahrscheinlich auch.
7) Wenn etwas nicht schiefgegangen zu sein scheint, dann wurde der Fehler lediglich noch nicht entdeckt, wodurch alles nur noch schlimmer wird. Geht etwas nicht schief, so tritt sofort Regel 1 in Kraft.”

Wieso? Naja, zu Hause hab ich nach einem Monat immer noch weder Festnetz, noch DSL. Aber diesbezüglich könnte ich einen noch längeren Blog Post schreiben!

Google – google hat immer recht und mein fundiertes Wissen verdanke ich leider nun mal Google – bestätigt mehr oder weniger meinen Verdacht. Kein Problem, SMS gelöscht und Drohung ignoriert. Als aber komischerweise in den Minuten darauf keine SMS/Emails/Facebook notifications meine Aufmerksamkeit auf mein iPhone 4 gelenkt haben, hab ich selbst geprüft, ob auch wirklich niemand von “Single” zu “in an open relationship, and it’s complicated!” übergegangen ist, oder ob irgend eine Email Newsletter in meinen bereits überfüllten Posteingang für Unordnung sorgt.

Knallhart kam eine Meldung: “You are not connected.” Hmh… Zufall? Nach einigen Minuten reset/reboot und Einstellungsversuchen, bin ich zur Einsicht gekommen, dass die SMS vielleicht doch kein Fake war. Als dazu noch eine SMS nicht abgeschickt werden wollte (Frechheit!), war es klar. Ich versuchte danach meinen “Devil Bro”, Alias “Arijen Van Baast”  anzurufen, als eine nette Dame am Telefon nochmals den Preis nannte, um aus einem anderen Telefon den Kundendienst zu erreichen. Von den Umständen gezwungen, musste ich mein Backup 10€ Handy rausholen und tatsächlich fast 1€ für ein sinn- und informationsloses Telefonat bezahlen. “Die Leitungen sind besetzt, bitte warten Sie.”

Nun hatte ich keine andere Wahl, als zum Mediamarkt zu laufen, wo ich mein iPhone gekauft habe. Da wurde mir folgendes erklärt: Es liege an meinem Bankkonto, was höchstwahrscheinlich ungedeckt sei. Naja, so arm bin ich nun auch nicht. Zu Hause hab ich alles überprüft und keine Anomalie auf meinem Konto feststellen können. Ich musste nochmals Debitel  anrufen, diesmal 2€ für die Information, dass meine SIM gesperrt wurde, da der Betrag von x€ überschritten worden sei und ich mit unter 21 Jahren noch nicht bemächtigt sei so viel auszugeben. Kein wunder, der monatliche Grundpreis des Vertrags ist bereits über der Grenze! Ich habe außer dem Grundbetrag auch nichts weiteres zahlen müssen, da ich bisher nur die frei SMS und Minuten genutzt habe.

“Um Ihre Karte zu aktivieren, überweisen Sie bitte das Geld an unsere Bank” Also auf gut Deutsch: “Wenn wir in drei Tagen das Geld erhalten, kriegen Sie vielleicht am Tag darauf Ihre Nummer funktionstüchtig zurück.” Das kann doch gar nicht sein, oder?! Gesagt, getan! Mit der Bestätigung der Überweisung bin ich wieder zu Mediamarkt gefahren, in der Hoffnung, dass es durch den Kundenservice dort schneller gehen würde!

In der Tat schicken sie ein Fax ab und morgen um 18 Uhr dürfte meine Nummer wieder Anruf und SMS fähig sein. Aber jetzt kommt der Hammer: Der Typ vom Mediamarkt hat natürlich mein Problem begriffen und in der Zentrale angerufen, um es zu lösen. Dort wollten sie tatsächlich nicht verstehen, dass der Grundpreis, den ich monatlich zahle, bereits über der Grenze liegt, die bei Personen unter 21 automatisch für die SIM Sperre sorgt. Nach 10 Minuten Diskussion und Personal-Weiterleitungen war – zumindest hat es so der Typ behauptet – das Problem behoben.

Aber das Geld sei abgebucht worden. “Wie jetzt? Nicht im ernst, oder? Ich hab doch vor 20 min. eine Überweisung tätigen müssen! Die SIM wurde doch gesperrt! Ist das denn keine Sicherheitsmaßnahme, um zu hohe Kosten zu vermeiden?” Nein. Das Geld sei abgebucht, aber ich könne ja die Überweisung stornieren. Um so etwas zu tun, braucht man 1 Monat Wartezeit und ein Fax. Ich besitze leider keins von beiden. Zum Glück kam vom netten Typen der Vorschlag, dass das überwiesene Geld als Guthaben benutzt werden könne, sodass ich de Facto nächsten Monat nicht zahlen sollte. Als Beleg gilt die Überweisung. WENN DAS MAL GUT GEHT!

Darf ich denn nach diesem Geschehen der deutschen Bürokratie trauen? Nach 19 Jahren italienischer Bürokratie komme ich wahrscheinlich auch in China gut zurecht.

Moral der Geschichte: Google hat immer Recht. Mann muss nur besser suchen. Und immer schön auf Fallen wie “Sie haben nicht bezahlt, bitte überweisen sie hier, sonst…” hereinfallen! Das macht alles einfacher!

Nach 9 Stunden Vorlesung und der Mediamarkt-Debitel Odyssee, kann ich jetzt zufrieden zu Hause chillen, bzw. im Fitnessstudio meinen Stress rauslassen.

It features a 5 mpx camera with flash, HD video recording, a super sharp display, the Apple A4 processor, a gyroscope, a front facing camera, bigger battery and an all new design, which is really stunning.

The obsolete iPhone look is now gone! The iPhone 4 is the thinnest smartphone ever built and it’s made of glass and aluminum. The shiny glass back is incredibly epic and just beautiful.

Again, Apple confirms that “design is not only what it looks like, it’s how it works” (S. Jobs); in fact, the volume buttons on the side are also antennas to increase wifi, cellular and gps signal and performance. The new iPhone looks more serious and it’s damn elegant; even sexy.

I will buy the 32gb black iPhone 4 in september when I will start working in Germany.

I  just created a 1440×900 iPhone 4 desktop wallpaper and I’d like to share it with you.

Click here to download the file. (Right click ➞ Save as..) The thumbnail preview is below, I hope you like it!

CUPERTINO, California—April 8, 2010—Apple® today previewed its iPhone® OS 4 software and released a beta version of the software to iPhone Developer Program members. The iPhone OS 4 beta release includes an updated Software Development Kit (SDK) with over 1,500 new Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) and over 100 new features that will be available to iPhone and iPod touch® users this summer. New features include Multitasking for third party apps; Folders to better organize and access apps; improved Mail with a unified inbox, fast inbox switching and threaded messages; enhanced Enterprise support with even better data protection, mobile device management, wireless app distribution and more; Apple’s new iAd mobile advertising platform; and iBooks, the delightful new ebook reader and online bookstore recently debuted on the iPad™.

Let’s take a look at the “iAd” mobile ad service feature. Apple promises more interactive in-app ads for advertisers and to be deployed by developers in their (presumably free) apps. The ads will be created in HTML5 and allow for interactive media and games without leaving the application themselves.

What’s so special about iAd? iAd, Apple’s new mobile advertising platform, combines the emotion of TV ads with the interactivity of web ads. Today, when users click on mobile ads they are almost always taken out of their app to a web browser, which loads the advertiser’s webpage. Users must then navigate back to their app, and it is often difficult or impossible to return to exactly where they left. iAd solves this problem by displaying full-screen video and interactive ad content without ever leaving the app, and letting users return to their app anytime they choose. iPhone OS 4 lets developers easily embed iAd opportunities within their apps, and the ads are dynamically and wirelessly delivered to the device. Apple will sell and serve the ads, and developers will receive an industry-standard 60 percent of iAd revenue.

Thanks to iAd, thousands of applications could become free for iPhone OS users and still provide developers a highly profitable opportunity. As Steve Jobs suggests “Mobile advertisement sucks” and Apple’s contribution to implement ads in an exclusive and revolutionary way will “help developers keep their free apps free.” This could also be a very effective way for Apple to stop App Store piracy and software unlocks (Jailbreak). Many people don’t want to pay that “extra buck” for a good application and hack their device to get the app illegally and for free. With this solution, many apps will be free and people will definitively like this new type of advertisement that differs from actual banners that, I believe as well, really suck. To see what they look like, scroll down to the end of the article and watch Steve Jobs demonstrate some iAds.

So basically, Apple will be selling and hosting ads and giving developers 60% of the revenue. Jobs admitted they were still learning and referenced Google’s acquisition of AdMob: ”We tried to buy a company called AdMob, and Google came in and snatched them from us. We bought Quattro instead. They’re teaching us and we’re learning as fast as we can.”

However, during the Q&A, Jobs stated that developers were free to use other ad networks if desired. Indeed, the CEO of Apple, inc states: “We do not have any plans to become a worldwide ad agency.”

The fact that Apple will reward developers with 60% of the advertising revenue is a clear signal that the intention is not only to endorse developers or to provide iPhone OS users a new user experience, but Apple sees a huge profitable oppurtunity here. Until now, Apple has sold 85 millions iPhones and iPod Touches (and almost a million iPads after a few days in the US only!) and as Jobs said during the keynote, average statistics suggest, that the iAd will provide advertisers 1 billion ad opportunities per day. Since Apple takes 40% of the income, a large profit is to be expected.

Because of Apple’s iAd introduction, Google is even more forced  to take over AdMod that currently leads in the mobile advertisement segment. With the iPhone OS holding 64% of the total mobile internet presence marketshare, iAd will definitely change the mobile advertisement industry. But Apple is going one step further: The ads will be HTML5 only and anounces the end of Adobe’s Flash player era. The introduction of the iPad already made many newspaper websites such as NYTimes, USA Today and Washington Post switch to the HTML5 format that is built-in to the newest browsers and does not require plugins like the Flash player. This results in a greater browsing performance and less battery consumption of electronic devices like notebooks and smartphones.

What Apple did today

1) Steve Jobs’ clear statement that there will be absolutely no Flash support in future iPhone OS’

2) Block Adobe’s Flash-to-iPhone Compiler in Latest iPhone OS SDK Agreement. Daring Fireball notes a very specific change in the iPhone OS 4 SDK that will directly thwart Adobe’s efforts to directly compile Flash applications onto the iPhone. The new terms dictate the following:

Applications must be originally written in Objective-C, C, C++, or JavaScript as executed by the iPhone OS WebKit engine, and only code written in C, C++, and Objective-C may compile and directly link against the Documented APIs (e.g., Applications that link to Documented APIs through an intermediary translation or compatibility layer or tool are prohibited).

This seems to go directly against Adobe’s plans to release Flash Professional CS5 that would have allowed developers to export native iPhone applications from Flash. Adobe had hoped to provide this compatibility layer to allow their Flash developers to write once and then deploy to multiple platforms.

(2002) Peugeot 206, 1.4 HDI, 5 doors

This is indeed a sad day for all of us. We have lost such a great car. I think sharing our grief would help us ease our burdens.

206 may have meant something to each and every one of you, personally, he was my guardian angel. I remember on the rides to school he often got into fights because of me. People used to tease me and he didn’t want to see me get hurt so he tried to protect me. He is also the only person I could confide in. I could talk to him about anything because he never judged or scolded me.

206 was such a character. He knew how to be serious at times and he also knew when to joke around. He was not only a very loyal and kind vehicle; he was my friend. He was also very polite; he was the kind of man who always opened doors for ladies. He could be very immature at times but that’s just because he was still a child inside a young man’s body.

I know my car left lots of things undone and others that it never had a chance to start. But I promise I will continue what it has started and hopefully fulfill his dreams for him. This is just my small way of saying thank you for everything it did for me.

Let’s just be thankful for all the special moments that 206 has left us. And with that, I hope that he will continue to live on within our hearts and minds.

Peugeot 206, R.I.P.

The problem about rumorsis that they either come from analysts or from sources claiming to have seen the product. Since Apple likes to keep everything secret until the almost imminent product launch, stories start to make a product that won’t actually hit the market. Of course, everyone like to have several features implemented, without understanding that they are way too expensive for a product of a certain customer target or simply still science-fiction. Apple of course, has to satisfy the analysts who invest on AAPL and rate the company’s value, and is forced to present a very special, affordable and stunning device.

On January 27th 2010, finally the long-hyped device was announced at a keynote media event in San Francisco, held by CEO and co-founder Steve Jobs.

The results were obvious: AAPL lost about $10 in the following days, as the final device deluded many of those who hoped the rumors were true.

But let’s see what these delusions are about and why the iPad will still beat the competition.

1) The price: According to Apple, the price is “unbelievable” and “well within reach”.

Since the iPad fits the missing part in Apple’s product line, i.e. between a phone (iPhone) and the mobile computers (Macbooks), of course, the price has to be higher than an iPhone the and lower than a MacBook. Why? Hardware.

The price starts at $499 and tops at $829 (here the full list). What’s wrong with the price? Nothing. An iPhone costs about the same with an equivalent storage (16 and 32 GB). The high-end version at $829 has 64Gb and 3G connectivity.

Another fact is competition. How much do competitor tablets cost? The image below explains everything.

The iPhone is a phone, while the tablet is an enhanced version of the iPhone OS and features even more applications that are indispensable for a tablet device.

2) Multitasking: According to rumors, the iPad (or iSlate, iTablet, etc.) would have been capable of multitasking, i.e. being able to use different applications at the same time. The iPad has a sort of multitasking for the built-in applications.

The problem about multitasking is that it requires more processor power which results in a poor battery life. And since the battery is almost the only criticism to the iPhone, Apple prefers to ensure endurance and usability rather than a frantic user experience. Who needs multitasking on a cellphone or tablet? No one.

The tablet is not a computer, so why these requirements? They make no sense at all. Otherwise the more expensive computers become useless and the need for speed and processor performance (which keep the market flowing) in vane.

Finally, the competition. Some claim that other tablets and smartphones feature multitasking. What I can say is, get one and tell me how you like it. Don’t wonder if you notice that it’s, incredibly slow, unresponsive, buggy, too complicated and that it just does not work.

3) What’s the iPad for? It’s useless, it’s just a big iPod touch.

While it may look like a huge iPod touch/iPhone, the iPad is really more. First of all: Performance. You can never ever compare the performance of this device to an iPod touch. Actually you can’t compare it at all to the iPod touch. The only thing they have in common is the multitouch touchscreen technology and the AppStore. This is the best strategic move Apple could do. The AppStore statistics are impressive. Billions of application downloads, over 140K apps, there’s an app for almost everything! The AppStore is a major revenue source of AAPL.

The iPad is able to run the AppStore apps, but faster and on a huge screen. But the iPad offers more. Despite the new UI and the monster graphics and performance achieved by an Apple-made chip, the iPad has capabilities of a product in the middle between a smartphone and a notebook.

Apple ported the iWork suite to the iPad, representing a perfect mobile workspace and a good solution for travelers, bloggers and people like me who just can’t stay without. And not only iWork: In a blog post, Omni Group has committed to bringing five of their productivity apps to the iPad including OmniGraffle, OmniOutliner, OmniPlan,OmniFocus, and OmniGraphSketcher. And guess what: There’s more to come, very soon.

I am very positive about the upcoming iPad and I believe that like the iPod revolutionized the music industry, the iPhone the smartphone industry, the iPad will become a standard for the tablet market and represent the end of the netbook computer era, that -like CEO Steve Jobs says- are junk. They are better at nothing and are a just cheap piece of hardware.

President Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday “for his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples,” the Nobel Committee said in Oslo.

What is my view here?

Well, I could sum it up using these two comments posted on the NYTimes article:

1) “President Obama is presenting the same two wars in the exact same way as President Bush. These people showed disdain for Bush , but now show loving affection for Obama — though there is no difference on either front of war. This is straight out of Orwell:
“War is Peace, Freedom is Slavery, Ignorance is Strength”. ” – Janice Johnson

2) “The Nobel Peace Prize should be a reward for actual accomplishments, and not just talk. [...] Honestly, what has he done for world peace yet? His accomplishments are nothing but talk, and often the wrong talk. Grandstanding to the Arab world at the expense of Israel, for example, has only resulted in a hardening of Arab intransigence. Waffling on Afghanistan has yielded even more bloodshed. No concrete progress has been made by President Obama in the crucial areas of climate control and environmental protection. Even his healthcare plans have been stymied. In fact, Obama is looking more and more like Jimmy Carter (another Nobel Peace Prize laureate whose much praised efforts actually led to more belligerency and less peace) every day. Finally This kind of award will allow the President to rest on his laurels, instead of really getting down to work.” – Larry Abramson

As the Nobel Committee said in Oslo, “for his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples”, Obama has indeed made efforts to a world without nuclear weapons. (➞ embedded video)So, technically speaking, he completely deserves the price, as the USA resolution in the UN is the proof of Obama’s intentions to a shared commitment to the goal of a nuclear weapon-free world. It is still unclear whether the peace dove really will disarm the world, or the American troops will. Fact is, that still not all of the countries, such as China and Russia have expressed their commitment to this goal.

Alfred Nobel

On 27 November 1895, Alfred Nobel signed his last will and testament, giving the largest share of his fortune to a series of prizes, the Nobel Prizes. As described in Nobel’s will, one part was dedicated to “the person who shall have done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses”.

I think Obama is on the right way to do so, but only time will tell if he really is the man Alfred Nobel might have awarded.

First of all, I’d like to inform you that I succeeded in achieving an average page view of my blog of 9 clicks per day! Ok, it’s not much, but I recently started blogging and since I don’t offer any services and this is just to waste some time and entertain my friends and family, it’s obvious that my page is not famous. Anyway, my site had a visitor boom with the article about the spy-shots of the Mercedes-Benz I took on my vacation in Barcelona, Spain. In that week, this site got over 3.000 views! Incredible! I also posted a tutorial in two languages about a way to use the iPhone 3G as Internet source on a computer. That brought me about 300 views. I’m pretty satisfied, I must say!

So, finally I wrote again and it’s time to do some – what facebook and twitter call – ‘status update’. Well, on December 27 I’m going up north to a small village in northern Italy where I have friends and sort of parents. Then, on New Year’s Eve, I’ll go visit my girlfried who’s currently skiing in the French Alps. I can’t wait to celebrate the new year with her. Then I will snowboard there until my return to Rome in January 6, ’09. These are my plans – now unveiled to you readers. It’s time now to prepare all those christmas gifts, GOTTA GO and hurry!!! Have all a Merry Christmas!!! May your wishes turn real and all your problems fade into solutions, your sadness into happiness (wow, I feel poetic). If I don’t post anything this year, HAPPY NEW YEAR in advance!!!

Greetings from Rome

Fred

PS: why do they test a benz in barcelona, spain??

Mercedes-Benz spy-shot (Barcelona, 27/10/08)

BTW:

All rights reserved to me, Federico Lentini, who took the pictures on 27/10/2008. Faces and plates are blured for privacy reasons, I don’t know any of the persons in the photo. www.federicolentini.tk