Jim Machi : Industry Insight
Jim Machi

June 2011

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Mobile Backhaul and Revenue Prediction Curves

June 23, 2011

How come seemingly every revenue prediction curve I see has one of two forms – the “scary” curve which I show above, or the “hockey stick” curve which is the opposite of this?  There are options in-between, which in fact are probably more realistic, but people like to show extremes to make a point.  I write this because earlier this week, I attended Light Reading’s Backhaul and Core Strategies for Mobile Operators Conference in New York.  Telllabs put a chart like this up when talking about the mobile operators’ “profit crisis,” meaning that revenue/bit is declining faster than cost/bit. 

Mobile Money is Not a Port-o-ATM

June 20, 2011

In doing research for this blog, the first search that comes up when typing in “Mobile Money” is for a company that provides mobile ATM machines.  Well, let me be the first to tell you that port-o-ATMs are not the entirety of what mobile money is all about.

I have long been intrigued by the prospect of using your phone to pay for services – simply swipe your phone at something that’s near (or part of) the cash register and your phone acts like a credit card. 

Differences in Mobile Value-Added Services Around the World

June 14, 2011

Since I travel around the world quite a bit, I am frequently asked what the differences are in mobile value-added services in the different regions. First of all, there are many, many services and every time I go someplace, I find out about a new one.  Sometimes I write about them in this blog.

The Significance of the FCC Data Roaming Ruling

June 7, 2011

On April 7th, the FCC ruled that facilities-based providers of commercial mobile data networks need to offer data roaming arrangements to other commercial providers of mobile data networks on reasonable terms.  In other words, AT&T and Verizon need to offer data roaming connectivity to the other mobile data network providers, which would include the likes of MetroPCS, Leap Wireless, etc.  As you might expect, the Rural Cellular Association (RCA) gave this ruling a big thumbs up, because now they can strike deals with AT&T and Verizon to allow data roaming.  Marketing “data roaming” would theoretically draw more subscribers to them.

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