The N.Y.Times is reporting that T-Mobile will be the first carrier to carry a handset running Google’s Android platform. This phone is being developed and manufactured by HTC and will be coming out before Christmas - possibly even as early as October. The phone, which folks on the net have been calling the “Dream”, will have a touch-screen display and a full slide-out keyboard. A video of a supposed HTC dream handset appeared on YouTube recently - and sources to the NYTimes have confirmed this is indeed the phone coming out for T-Mobile.

Android based handsets (or smartphones) will directly compete against handsets such as the Apple iPhone, Windows Mobile handsets, and Research in Motion BlackBerry devices. Google is making the Android OS free to all companies part of the Open Handset Alliance as it hopes that Android will accelerate its penetration into the mobile market.

T-Mobile’s HTC phone is expected to be the only Android phone available in the U.S. this year. Sprint is also working closely with Google in developing an Android-based handset.

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Technorati Tags: T-Mobile, HTC Dream, N.Y.Times, Google Android

Soon.. very soon TiVo users.. soon you will have access to YouTube (assuming of course you have a Series3 box or a TiVo HD box.. which means, sorry Series2 owners - you’re out of luck here). As typical for their software upgrade process, TiVo will be rolling out their upgrade to these boxes over the next several weeks. With the new update, you’ll be able to log into your YouTube account directly on your television set to access videos, channels, and playlists on YouTube. All I can say is.. about time!

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Technorati Tags: TiVo, YouTube, Series3, TiVo HD

If you’re looking forward to a Google Android phone, your wait is going to be a tad bit longer. The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Google Android handsets will not be available until sometime in the fourth quarter and even that date is a bit of a stretch for some manufacturers. Some carriers and application developers are having a hard time meeting even that schedule. Carriers such as Sprint and China Mobile will probably not be able to launch Android phones this year although T-Mobile still claims that they will deliver a phone by the fourth quarter.

Does this spell trouble for Google’s mobile efforts? Not at all - many of the delays can be traced back to one of a few things including the upcoming launch of the iPhone 3G mobile phone, the fact that Android itself isn’t finished, and the sheer fact that developers have to deal with a whole new platform SDK. The real question won’t be whether handset manufacturers and carriers support Android - it’ll be whether consumers and business adopt Android based handsets.

[Check it out via News.com]

Technorati Tags: Google, Android, delays

Pictured above is a screen shot of the Google Android mobile phone software as shown at Google’s I/O Conference on Wednesday in SF. You can see a slew of screen shots over at CNET.com. Android is due to ship as open source software and the first phones to utilize Android are due to come out later this year.

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Technorati Tags: Google Android

Feeling a little lost with the whole Yahoo - Microsoft - Google - News Corp - AOL tangle? Don’t worry - a lot of other people are too. Yes Microsoft is still trying to get at Yahoo! and yes.. Yahoo! is still trying to sweeten the deal by 1) rebuffing Microsoft and 2) enticing other folks to be interested in the company - such as Google and AOL.

A flurry of activity happened over the last day or so but you can see a quick summary of it all over at News.com. Here’s the short end of it all.

1. Yahoo! announced that they were going to use Google for paid-search ads (which I find so damn ironic given Yahoo’s purchase of Overture.com several years ago - the ones who made paid-search work in the first place).

2. This was followed by reports that Yahoo! and Time Warner were doing the dirty dance.. and perhaps Yahoo! absorbing the AOL unit from Time Warner and TW receiving a 20 percent stake in Yahoo!

3. But wait.. there’s more! Now there’s word that Microsoft might be teaming up in a joint bid to purchase Yahoo!. The deal would supposedly bring together Microsoft’s MSN unit, Fox’s Interactive Media Unit and of course Yahoo!. Consider the possibilities there folks. MSN + MySpace + Yahoo! .. now that would be interesting eh?

While all of these combinations could definitely come to fruition.. I can’t imagine the sum of these parts being better than the original individual units. Microsoft, News Corp, and Yahoo! is a totally mish-mash of cultures. Imagine integrating the units? Combine folks in Los Angeles, San Jose, and Seattle into a cohesive unit.. oh yes.. have two different companies be the partners managing the unit. Yeah - that’s recipe for a working scenario eh? I don’t think so.

But what about Yahoo and AOL with a little help from Time Warner? Let’s be honest now. What does AOL really bring for Yahoo!?  As the years go by, AOL becomes less and less of a player and more of a has-been. Sure there are still millions of AOL subscribers now but it’s not a growing subscriber base. A synergy with Time Warner might be interesting from a content perspective for Yahoo but.. wait.. isn’t that what they’ve been saying for YEARS now with AOL and Time Warner? How is this different? Plus with Yahoo! trimming itself down by ridding itself of business units that didn’t make money - does it make sense to offer media services like this again?

IMHO - the best way to fight Google to be like Google. Be innovative. All of these companies are simply trying to play “catch-up” to Google and guess what? They can keep on trying and Google will keep on running ahead of them. Combing Yahoo! Search and MSN Search won’t create a bigger search property than Google Search. Combining the user communities of Yahoo and MSN won’t necessarily create a business that competes well with Google.

First and foremost, the companies need a singular vision of execution on the Internet. They need to make consistent service offerings, consistent product offerings, easy integration paths, and most of all - be innovative.

It’s clear that it’s possible to usurp a leader if you execute correctly. Having said all of this, I do believe that a Microsoft and Yahoo! combination COULD work. That deal makes sense because Yahoo! executes fairly well on the Internet (though not great obviously) while Microsoft’s MSN properties have been third rate for years. If the acquisition were to happen, the key to success would be execution and innovation. The ability to come out with compelling solutions - not just “me too” solutions, and the ability to execute on delivering them.

Ok.. I’ve said my peace. ha

Technorati Tags: Yahoo!, Microsoft, Google, News Corp, AOL, Time Warner

For those of you who own an iPhone and use it to check their Gmail, you will have noticed a small but important change to your account. With software update 1.1.3, the iPhone now accesses Gmail using IMAP access rather than POP access. This means that whatever action you take on your iPhone will be reflected on your Gmail web interface too. Thus, deleting a message via the iPhone will result in the message being deleted on the web interface as well. Reading an email message on the iPhone will mark the message as being read on the web as well.

This is great for those of you who are sick of having to delete messages on both the iPhone and the web (though I got used to just not deleting anything on my iPhone).

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Technorati Tags: Apple, iPhone, Gmail, IMAP

Google’s application for the upcoming 700 MHz spectrum auction was accepted by the FCC while other companies such as AT&T and Verizon Wireless ended up on the “incomplete” list and will need to re-submit their applications over the next several weeks. In total, the FCC received 266 applications for the 700MHz spectrum auction which will take place on January 24th of next year. 96 of the 266 applicants were accepted while 170 were found to be incomplete. For those of you keeping track of all things Google, they filed under the name “Google Airwaves”. Some of the companies that need to re-submit their applications include Alltel, AT&T, Cox Wireless, Qualcomm, and Verizon Wireless. Applications must be re-submitted with an upfront payment by 6pm EST on January 4th of 2008.

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Technorati Tags: Google, 700MHz Spectrum Auction, FCC

If you’re an avid fan of Google Maps - especially for the mobile phone - then you’ll be happy to hear about a new beta service Google is testing called “My Location” for Google Maps. With “My Location”, you’ll be able to see your current location on Google Maps using your cell phone whether or not you have a GPS receiver built into your phone. A blue dot on the map will correspond to your current location. How does this work without a GPS receiver you might be wondering? Google takes information broadcast from mobile towers near you to approximate your current location on the map. It’s not as good as GPS but it’s not too shabby too - if you need a rough idea as to where you are. The accuracy can range from 1/4 a mile to three miles but it’s better than nothing (unless of course you really do know where you are).

Worried about privacy? Google claims that the tracking system isn’t set up to collect a user’s phone number or any other personal information that would reveal a person’s identity. You can also turn off the feature at any time by simply clicking on a link in the help menu.

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Technorati Tags: Google Maps, My Location

Telecoms beware… As expected, Google announced on Friday that they would be apply to bid for rights to the upcoming FCC auction of the 700MHz spectrum. If Google should win the auction, it’s expected to either build it’s own wireless network or partner up with other companies to build an operate a wireless network. The 700MHz currently carries analog TV but as the television industry moves to digital TV, the spectrum will be freed up for other uses - primarily telecommunication uses. The auction will begin on January 24th and the deadline to participate in the auction is tomorrow. Should Google win this auction, the company could very well shake up the entire telecommunication industry which just might be a good thing folks. However, while we might think Google wants to provide choice to the consumer, let’s not forget that the company is also out to make money. Controlling a piece of the mobile spectrum will translate into billions of potential revenue for Google - whether through subscription fees, and/or advertising revenue.

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Technorati Tags: Google, FCC, 700MHz Spectrum

Curious to know more about Google’s mobile ambitions? Check out this article over at the Wall Street Journal entitled “Google Has Even Bigger Plans for Mobile Phones.” According to the story, Google is gearing up to spend at least $4.6 billion dollars (or more) for a piece of the 700 MHz spectrum. The company is primarily focused on the “C” block of the spectrum although it’s reported that they might be interested in other blocks too. Google is apparently working out a plan to either rely on it’s own cash or borrow some money to finance the bid.

So why bid on this spectrum? You only have to look at what Google is currently doing on it’s own campus. The company is currently running a test version of an advanced wireless network at it’s Mountain View headquarters which would give it some experience in knowing what it’s like to run a full scale national mobile service.

Google has consistently said that they would like to make mobile networks much more open than it is right now. The grand scheme according to Google is to give consumers choice in what services they can use and what applications they can use for that service. Mobile carriers are typically notorious about controlling their mobile networks and of course they have every right to do so. Their network and their customers are everything to their business. Open that up to the competition and it can easily threaten their existing business model. Of course, Google wants to change all of that - even possibly coming up with plans such as charging one time licensing fees for customers and no monthly access charges thereon after. So how would the company make money without subscription rates? Advertising of course.

It’ll be interesting to see how this all pans out for Google and ultimately the consumer. We’ll all know a bit more about Google’s ambitions for the auction by December 3rd at the latest.

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Technorati Tags: Google, FCC, Mobile Auction, 700MHz