51Degrees Visualises the Mobile World

Day three of the Mobile World Congress is usually light on announcements, which gives us the chance to catch up on some of the other news that has emerged over the event, such as the impressive display created by device detection firm 51Degrees and open source software company The Away Foundation.

The two firms collaborated to create a graphics rich image of the globe that demonstrated the relative strength of mobile handset manufacturers in every country around the world, collecting more than 3bn instances across more than 1.5m websites a month to generate the graphic.

“51Degrees has been looking for a way to visualise big data sets, to help illustrate the billions of data points that we collect,” said James Rosewell, CEO of 51Degrees. “Having seen the work that The Away Foundation has been doing in gaming and other industries, there was an opportunity to create a unique visualisation of big data.”

Telefónica Looking Into Sponsored Connectivity for Advertisers

Telefónica has revealed plans to provide users in emerging markets with free data in exchange for engaging with advertising from partners, or accessing services through branded portals.

According to the companys new global ad director, Daniel Rosen, plans are already underway for these new ad products and services, and the firm is exploring many different kinds of value exchange-based opportunities for advertisers and users.

“Telefónicas sponsored content trial will be interesting to follow in mobile first markets in Latin American and in China,” said Marco Veremis, CEO of Upstream. “Operators rolling out digital content to their users need to be careful how they implement it, especially in growth potential markets where a high number of users do not have Android or iOS smart devices.

“Telefónica must ensure that any content it shares is localised and relevant to the end user. Differences between markets can be marked and a one size fits all approach to content in growth markets will not be as effective as displaying sensitivity and knowledge of the local market.”

Summit Tech and Alcatel-Lucent Team for VoLTE Connected Car

Cross-platform rich communication services company Summit Tech and telecommunications equipment firm Alcatel-Lucent combined expertise to create a connected car with Voice over LTE (VoLTE) capability.

Operators are increasingly rolling our commercial VoLTE services using 4G LTE networks, and the solution created by Summit Tech and Alcatel-Lucent hopes to transform the car into a secondary device that complements a users smartphone, enabling drivers to call from a car without any need for a phone.

The system works with a heads-up display that enables motorists to view calls, messages and data while still keeping their eyes on the road, and employs gesture control to make interaction intuitive.

Telefónica Brings Smartwatches to Kids in Europe and Latin America

Plans for branded browsers wasnt the only thing Telefónica unveiled over the course of MWC. The mobile network also announced that it had partnered with Filip Technologies to bring FiLIP, a wearable device, to parents and children throughout Europe and Latin America.

The device, aimed at children aged four to 11, combines GPS, wi-fi and GSM technologies in a colourful watch that can be worn to school and while out and about. The devices features can be locked by parents, and they control the FiLIP through an accompanying app on their own smartphone, enabling them to track its location, call their child or send direct messages.

Parents can set five trusted contacts who the child can contact through the device, and can also designate SafeZones, with notifications triggered if a child enters or leaves designated areas.

“As a leading digital telco we are committed to helping families discover fun new technology while remaining connected and safe at the same time,” said Stephen Shurrock, CEO of digital services at Telefónica. “Filip Technologies is the perfect partner to make this happen and represents an important step forward in our digital peace of mind strategy.”