Motorola Street Stories

Gizmodo reports on Motorola's series of short films, called Street Stories, "urban tales of romance, adventure and obsession", shot with their new V710 cameraphone.

"Gizmodo has taken a bullet for you, watching and digesting the ad-shlock (and mixing metaphors without gloves) to exhume these five core messages:

• Hot asian girls can be shallow.
• Bears hate your ringtone, as well.
• Dogs are awful at voicemail.
• Some people like cake.
• Socially unstable people usually marry within one week of writing a sad song."

Cell-outs and Phonies

'Cell-outs and Phonies', to be held at the L.A. Center for Digital Art in August 6-27 wants to demonstrate how camera phones have evolved into expressive art mediums.

Short films will be shown on LCDs and projected while other images are
printed, up-linked or never removed from the actual phone.

The opening reception next Friday will feature music composed with ring tones by German experimental group Super Smart --who had launched their last album in ringtone format for mobile phones-- and continuous screenings of cell phone videos. [via near near future ]

Photojournalism free for all

In an article published in South African News24.com, award-winning news and conflict photographer, Johann van Tonder reflects on how camera phones are redefining photojournalism and he gives an example that skipped my radar.

"In May this year Die Burger ran a photograph taken of John Travolta arriving in South Africa. The image was not taken by a professional photographer or photojournalist, but by a staff member at PE airport with a camera-equipped cellphone".

Camera phones to lead in digital printing

Mobile phones with built-in cameras are now outselling digital cameras by six to one, a leading Australian industry executive says. This means that mobile phones and not cameras will be the key growth area for digital printing in the future, according to Digital Connect News.

"Fujifilm Australia Digital Services General Manager Roger Crellin said there would be an explosion of people wanting digital prints from their camera phones as more units with higher pixel capacities hit the market."

Nokia and Fujifilm have announced a joint promotion to help boost consumer awareness of the ability to print camera phone pictures from Fujifilm Digital Photo Centers across Australia. There are now more than 700 Fuji Photo Centers across Australia in shopping centres and retailers, where customers can insert their camera or phone memory card and print out their shots.

Prints can be derived from xD cards, SD cards, PC cards, Memory Sticks and more. The Centers are also fitted with Bluetooth connections.

Crellin expects more of these centers to pop up around Australia from both Fujifilm and its competitors. He said the market could probably take 6000 to 8000 units nationwide".

Keitai Deka, The Cell Phone Detective

The hottest private eye in Japan fights crime with her cell phone, according to Wired

"The teen supersleuth is the protagonist of Keitai Deka (literally, "the cell phone detective"), a popular show on Japan's BS-i channel.

Every Sunday night, she unravels mysteries with the help of her superpowered DoCoMo smartphone. "

QR codes in Aquarium

Marine World, a major aquarium in the Japanese city of Fukuoka, uses 2D bar codes (QR codes) to deliver information to their visitors, reports RFID Japan.

"Visitors can get in-depth information about various underwater creatures by scanning QR codes using their camera phones. It is a bi-lingual (Japanese and English) service delivering information in the language of your choice. If you don't have a camera-phone you can rent one from the aquarium for a dollar."

Camera phones and Vegas

The gaming commission has always made it illegal to have cell phones in the sportsbooks because illegal bookmakers could be called with the casino's betting lines. But cell phone cameras are even more troublesome, according to klas TV.

"Keith Copher, with Nevada Gaming Commission enforcement, says, "By adding the ability to take a picture and pass the information on to an illegal bookmaker immediately, is a problem for us.

Many private establishments, including 24 Hour Fitness, have been proactive in banning cell phone cameras in places like the bathroom. But there is still no voyeurism law here in the State of Nevada.

Clark County District Attorney David Roger said, "It seems to me that if a voyeur is taking pictures without their knowledge, it's certainly offensive and should be a crime."

But technology has by-passed legislation and there are no Nevada laws on the book to protect residents from the publishing of cell phone camera images."

PixToPix camera phone picture exchange

Cellular phone providers' divide-and-conquer strategy has opened a window of opportunity for a Petaluma startup PixToPix is currently giving away, and will soon charge for, a service that allows camera phone pictures to be exchanged by subscribers of different brands of cellular phone services, reports The North Bay Business Journal.

"Only in the U.S. do cell phone makers and service providers adhere so stubbornly to different standards and protocols. In Japan and Europe, where standards are universal, camera phones are wildly popular and getting more so.

Americans are catching on to the craze, but AT&T Wireless, Cingular, Sprint, T-Mobile, Verizon, and others have so far limited picture swapping to their own subscriber bases. A Verizon customer, for instance, can only send a photo to a Cingular or other brand user by downloading the photo onto a computer and sending it over the Internet.

Paul Higgins, formerly an engineer with ClairVoyante, and Scott Nader, who operates the ISP Silicon Valley North, devised an algorithm to automatically change the format of each image and send it directly to another phone.

Most of the major U.S. providers are included, and PixToPix is adding Canadian providers as well. Since January, about 5,000 subscribers have signed up for the service, for which PixToPix intends to charge about $2 a month".

KTF to Decode Barcodes  

KTF, the nation's second largest mobile carrier, announced the launch of a “Product Barcode Recognition” service on August 2nd. The service enables users to get information of a product such as functionality simply by pointing their digital camera equipped cell phones at the barcode, reports Telecoms Korea.

"According to KTF, with the service, users just point at any barcode (EAN code) on commercial goods manufactured in Korea and get information of the goods through wireless Internet.

n April last year, KTF started “Hot Code” service, which decoded barcodes on printed media such as newspapers or magazines, for the first time in Korea.

The mobile operator said that it would provide a variety of information including book or music reviews as well as information of around 400,000 products in alliance with domestic online portal companies such as NHN and Interpark that have a large amount of product data. "

Flashlite 1.1 lauched in Europe with T-Mobile

From Macromedia Devnet via AdMblog:

"News Express is the first European implementation of an offline news and infotainment service that is regularly updated without user interaction and incorporates a unique user experience powered by Macromedia Flash Lite technology."

News Express delivers twice daily news reports to users' phones. These pre-configured reports cover general news, sports, show business, lifestyle, and weather information and include pictures, headlines, and more detailed stories that can be browsed instantly both on and offline.

This saves all the waiting and searching thatis typical of current offerings. The presentation of the news is enhanced andanimated with the use of Flash Lite 1.1 technology, creating an experiencethat has never before been seen on mobile phones."

Networks Embrace MobiTV

NBC Universal, Fox Interactive Media and Comedy Time are the latest networks to jump into the mobile television arena, thanks to a new deal between the networks and MobiTV, reports Wireless Week. 

"The MobiTV service, which was developed by Idetic, delivers real-time streaming content to mobile phones and is currently available to Sprint PCS Vision customers. The deals with NBC, Fox and Comedy Time will bring headlines and breaking news, sports news and highlights and stand-up comedy acts to Sprint MobiTV subscribers.

MobiTV features content from a variety of other TV channels, including MSNBC, CNBC, Discovery Channel, The Learning Channel, CSTV, College Sports Television, California Music Channel, CMC Beat Lounge, CMC-USA, Independent Music Network, CNET, Discovery Kids, ToonWorld TV Classics and Discover en Espanol.

In May, Idetic struck a deal with MLB Advanced Media to bring video of major league baseball game highlights and audio access of live games to wireless handsets.

Sprint rolled out the mobile TV service to its PCS Vision customers in November 2003."

Related articles on MobiTV:

-- About MobiTV

-- Well, It Ain't TV...

-- Bush's State of Union Speech, Live on Mobile

-- MobiTV Delivers First Live Television Coverage of Presidential Debate for Mobile Phones

-- Sprint's cell-phone users can get live TV

Videophones: The New Generation

Almar Latour for the WSJ looks into the hurdles and the promises of videophones and singles out one new device that will route video calls over the Internet, Motorola's Ojo. This videophone allows for calls to be made by Webcam or over the public Internet, so there is no per-call fee, only the cost of the broadband connection.

[...] " One new device that will route video calls over the Internet is the videophone Motorola, which will start distributing this year, possibly as early as September, called the Ojo, produced by Worldgate Communications Inc.

The Ojo is a phone equipped with a video screen roughly the size of a paperback. The handset looks and feels like a regular phone and can be used to make regular voice phone calls. But plug it into a high-speed Internet connection and you can make video calls to others who have an Ojo."

Framing The Future

The cellphone industry is encouraged by the potential of moblogging to spur camera-phone sales and use of higher-priced data activities such as picture messaging. One reason: Moblogging tends to be viral. Many users report that their picture posting has sparked interest among their friends in getting camera phones and joining moblogging sites. [ WSJ ]

"Many in the cellphone industry are even starting moblogging services themselves. Among cellphone companies:

-- Ericsson Inc. launched a moblogging site (experience.ericsson.com/moblog) in August 2003 where anyone can post pictures free. The site currently has more than 2,000 posts from more than 200 unique users.

-- Among carriers, T-Mobile USA launched a moblogging site called My Album (t-mobilepictures.com) in May where T-Mobile subscribers can post pictures and videos as part of the price of picture messaging (25 cents a message or a bucket of 20 messages for $2.99).

-- Sprint Corp. created a site called Picture Mail (pictures.sprintpcs.com) last year where users can post photos and videos as part of its PCS $15-a-month vision plan. As of March, the site had about 100 million photos posted, up from about 66 million at the end of 2003".

Why Mobog and not Moblog?

New York-based Mobog, founded in December by Internet entrepreneur Philip Kaplan, reports that nearly 16,000 users regularly send in pictures. Why Mobog and not Moblog? It was a typo made when registering the site. via the WSJ.

Moblogs in Numbers

The WSJ has pulled together the number of moblogs hosted by the biggest players.

-- Textamerica - One of the oldest moblogging sites, Textamerica.com counts about half a million users, about 110,000 who keep moblogs and about 400,000 who just view and comment.

-- Mobog - Mobog, run by Phil Kaplan, claims about half a million users, almost 16,000 of whom regularly send in photos (albeit many of them racy). Mobog says most of its users are in their 20s and 30s.

-- Yafro - Yafro, run by the same company that created dating site HotOrNot, is free and has more than 100,000 users. Yafro has a special section of "Pictures from the Frontline," featuring moblogs from soldiers in Iraq.

-- Buzznet - Buzznet reports more than 20,000 registered users, most of whom have posted photos, and plans to launch premium subscriptions.

-- moblogUK - moblogUK launched about nine months ago, has just under 1,000 users and features a forum where they can chat.

And interesting:

Most users of the sites, however, don't actually post. They just look at pictures. For example, Textamerica.com says it has a total of about half a million users, about 400,000 of whom just comment or view shots, and Mobog says about 95% of its half a million users don't have camera phones. [WSJ]

Euronews delivers news via Belgian I-mode

European television news channel Euronews has announced it is to launch an I-mode version of the service to Belgian mobile, according to DMeurope.

"The offering will deliver news video, photographs and text from its Europa, Agenda and Economia programming in English, German, French, Spanish, Italian and Portuguese.

Euronews launched its I-mode service via mobile operator Bouyges Telecom three weeks ago. A similar service is also available over the GPRS networks of Mobilkom in Austria and Orange Switzerland. "

Law May Curb Cell Phone Camera Use

Cell phone camera voyeurism will soon be a federal offense if the Video Voyeurism Prevention Act of 2004 continues its nearly unopposed march through Congress, reports PC World.

"The bill, designed to protect people's privacy from prying camera phones, needs only to pass the House of Representatives and to be signed by the president to become law. While Congress didn't consider it before recessing this week, proponents say chances are good the bill could pass this year.

The Video Voyeurism Prevention Act prohibits photographing or videotaping a naked person without his or her consent in any place where there can be "a reasonable expectation of privacy." Punishment would include fines of up to $100,000 or up to a year in prison, or both.

S.1301 was first introduced in 2000, two years before the first cell phone cameras appeared in the United States. Its original language focused mainly on privacy infringements using hidden video cameras.

After cell phones with cameras caught on here in 2002 and 2003, language was added specifically addressing their potential for privacy violations, and S.1301 then drew greater attention in Congress.

The Senate passed the legislation unanimously in September. The House Judiciary Committee approved it with very little opposition in May."

[...] "The road toward a federal video voyeurism law began with two cases, one in Louisiana and one in Washington state; in both, video technology was used to violate privacy.

-- In the first case, Susan and Gary Wilson of Monroe, Louisiana discovered a neighbor had installed hidden cameras in the Wilsons' master bedroom and bathroom.

-- The second case occurred in Washington state, where Richard Sorrells secretly aimed a video camera up a woman's skirt as she waited at an ice cream stand during a festival in 2000

In 2002, state lawmakers changed the law to give legal recourse to people whose privacy was violated in public. That was well in time to prosecute Jack Le Vu, the first known cell phone camera voyeur to be convicted in the U.S.

-- In July 2003, 20-year-old Vu was seen in a Seattle area Safeway using a cell phone camera to covertly snap pictures beneath the skirt of a woman shopping next to him. He was sentenced to 60 days jail time and forced to register as a sex offender.

"Unlike Washington and Louisiana, most states' criminal codes still do not protect a person's privacy while they are in public places. State privacy laws are primarily geared toward prosecuting "Peeping Toms" who spy on people in their homes, not in public places.

Oxley's Video Voyeurism Prevention Act would provide a remedy in the federal criminal code for exactly that problem, advocates say.

The bill also serves as model legislation for states that have not enacted their own laws, or for those that need to update existing laws in light of the rapid spread of camera technology, according to the bill's authors."

Mobile pictures spark violence

A wedding party in Saudi Arabia turned violent after a female guest was caught using her mobile phone to take digital photographs of other women at the celebration, reports The Sydney Morning Herald.

"The scuffle spread to the male section of the party. A number of guests were hospitalised.

Camera-equipped mobile phones are ostensibly banned in the conservative kingdom, where men and women celebrate weddings separately, so that women are at liberty to attend without wearing the all-covering black cloaks and veil that are obligatory in the presence of men".

Related articles:

-- Footage of an assault in Saudi Arabia through cameraphones - A rape scandal broke after the two men reportedly circulated footage of the assault through mobile phones equipped with cameras.

-- Woman fired over mobile snapshots - A Saudi woman has been expelled from her university for taking pictures of unveiled colleagues with a camera-equipped mobile phone osting them on the Internet.

-- Saudi Arabia and phonecams When the Saudi people finally rise up in revolt and throw out the House of Saud," fellow Saudi blogger, Alhamedi Alanezi says, " it won't be for democratic reform, and it won't be for an islamic republic. It'll be about mobile phones".

-- Saudi Arabia enforces ban on camera phones - The Saudi government began enforcing a ban on the sale of camera-equipped mobile phones.

-- Banned Camera Phones Selling Like Hot Cakes in Jeddah's Black Market - Mobile camera phones are hot sellers this Eid season - a celebration to mark the end of Islam's holiest season - despite a Kingdomwide ban and a significant increase in retail price.

Paddle for the Presidency

More than a dozen young people are spending the summer canoeing the Mississippi, and stopping along the way to register voters, reports the Quincy Herald-Whig

"They're hoping their natural enthusiasm will spread among their peers and get young people excited about the election. They're calling the project Paddle for the Presidency.

The paddlers carry laptops with wireless Internet for online journals and camera phones, courtesy of U.S. Cellular.

Readers Cameraphones solllicited by The Boston Globe for Conventions' Coverage

The Boston Globe's Web site will supplement hometown coverage of the parties, protests and proceedings by asking readers with camera-equipped mobile phones to e-mail photos, according to an article in The Ventura County Star on blogging the Democration and Republican National Conventions.

Cartoon Network introduces mobile TV in Italy

According to Indiantelevision.com, Italian mobile operator 3 will distribute Cartoon Network to its videophone subscribers.

"The arrangement will offer 3's users the opportunity to watch a daily block of Cartoon Network programming on their videophones.

3's subscribers will be able to enjoy episodes of The Powerpuff Girls, Dexter's Laboratory, Ed, Edd n Eddy - and many other Cartoon Network shows - wherever they are - whenever they want. Viewers will pay 0.90 Euro cents for every five minutes of viewing."

Student digital reporters to cover Democratic and Republican National Conventions

Armed with camera phones and access to Cingular Wireless service, graduate and undergraduate college journalism students will capture election news, events and activities surrounding the Democratic and Republican National Conventions.

These "digital reporters" will post pictures, audio and video to the moblog hosted at Cingular's Election Headquarters at rucingular.com/election .

The site powered by Textamerica, will go live on Monday, July 26 -- day one of the Democratic National Convention.

Cingular Wireless is sponsoring the students as a part of the Wireless Election Connection, a program encouraging young people to vote and play an important role in the political process, according to a company press release.

The teams of "digital reporters," directed by professional journalists, are comprised of students from the University of South Carolina, University of California - Berkeley, Emerson College, Northeastern University and Columbia University.

Flash Will Turn Every Mobile Phone into a Multimedia Device, Macromedia Exec Says

Macromedia Inc of the US, which offers the "Flash" series products that create and replay animations and other moving user interfaces, says every mobile phone will become a multimedia device, reports NEAsia.

"The company holds a market share of 98% of software products that can replay such moving user interfaces on PCs. Recently, Flash products have been used in mobile phone handsets sold by NTT DoCoMo Inc and KDDI Corp".

ABC to Offer 24-Hour News Until Election

ABC News will run a 24-hour news service available on digital cable, the Internet and some cell phones through Election Day in what may be a precursor to a service offered full time in the future, reports the Associated Press.

"The venture, "ABC News Now", begins operating at noon Monday, presenting gavel-to-gavel coverage of the Democratic National Convention, anchored by Peter Jennings.

The service will offer national and local news highlights and rerun material — "Nightline" the next day, for instance.

Sprint PCS Vision phone customers will also be able to see "ABC News Now" for $9.95 a month. "

Digital Broadcasts Go Mobile

Pocket-size devices such as cellular telephones capable of receiving digital terrestrial and satellite broadcasts may soon be a reality, judging from a number of prototypes unveiled here at the Wireless Japan 2004 Expo this week, reports PC World.com.

"The first that is likely to come to market is a prototype receiver being shown by Mobile Broadcasting (MBCO). The company launched a co-owned satellite with South Korea (news - web sites)'s TU Media earlier this year, and plans to begin beaming a seven-channel video and 30-channel audio service to subscribers in mid-October.

Unlike existing satellite systems that require large dish antennas, the MBCO service uses lower-frequency signals around 2.6 GHz, close to those used by third-generation (3G) cellular services, so it can be received by an antenna built into a portable receiver.

A similar service is expected to be launched in South Korea by TU Media. Samsung Electronics has previously shown prototype cellular telephones with embedded satellite receivers that will support that service.

Cameraphones used for prison escapes

New cell phones with cameras are creating problems for prisons in Norway as inmates use them to plan escapes, according to Nettavisen.

"Inmates at Norwegian prisons have found a new way to plot their escapes and use the new invention of cell phones with built in cameras. Several escape plans where MMS phones were used have been uncovered, according to Sigbjørn Hagen, prison director at Ringerike prison.

«They can send pictures of the locations of buildings and security equipment,» Hagen explained to the Norwegian television channel NRK.

The inmates often hide the cell phones on their bodies making them be very hard to find and Norwegian prisons are not allowed to block the signals".

How inmates around the world use cell phones is a recurring issue, cf The newest prison contraband: cellphones, but this is the first story I've seen where camera phones are involved.

The only mildly related cameraphone inmate story was the one that made the front page of Sydney's Sunday Telegraph in June 2003, when an illegall photo of flamboyant jailed stockbroker Rene Rivkin, serving the first 24 hours of his sentence for insider trading, was taken on a mobile phone camera inside the detention center.

BT develops 'face-to-face' technology for mobile vide

BT has developed a mobile video face-centring technology that not only guarantees a high-resolution image, but also keeps faces firmly in the picture, reports Netimperative.

"The new technology will enable people to conduct video conferencing even whilst on the move.

The company has also created other methods of delivering accurate, well-framed images over mobile phones including an indirect feedback view control, helping the user to position his or her face in the camera's image by distorting the image of the other person on the call. BT Exact is also working on smart black-and-white video conferencing that doesn't need the 3G bandwidth, but still lets you see the caller's expression."

NTT DoCoMo's I-Mode Clone Grows Quietly in France

Launches of the Japanese mobile media platform stalled elsewhere in Europe. But France's Bouygues Telecom successfully duplicated the Japanese wireless carrier's development and marketing strategies -- right down to the last pixel. via Japan Media Review.

FeliPo

FeliPo, a system announced by K Laboratory, enables users to "show" their RFID phones to posters in order to get relevant in-depth information, coupons... reports RFID Japan via near near future.

"The system delivers the information considering various attributes such as user's ocation, time, day of the week, and weather.

Similar systems (radio posters and radio mannequins) were developed by Dai Nippon Printing, Co earlier this year".

Existing Singapore laws adequate to deal with cameraphone misuse

Singapaore Home Affairs Minister Wong Kan Seng has said it is not an offence to take photographs of people in a public place, with or without their knowledge, using a camera-phone, reports Channel News Asia.

"But he said that it is already an offence to use a camera-phone in certain ways, for example, as a hidden camera in a changing room or to take photos up a woman's skirt. It is also an offence to take obscene photos of any persons.

He added that the existing laws are adequate to deal with such misuse of mobile phones.

Mr Wong was responding to Non-Constituency MP Steve Chia, who had asked during the Parliament debate on Tuesday if laws to prevent the abuse of camera-phones will be introduced to safeguard the privacy of individuals. "