Rocky road seen for cell phone customers

Grok Headline matches for Rocky road seen for cell phone customers

One Solution for Angry Cell Phone
Customers

One Solution for Angry Cell Phone
Customers 06/20/2004 02:10 AM
Consumers are fed up with cellular phone companies, prompting legislative action in some states. Once company offers to buy back old phones that still work but are no longer in use to help consumers who feel “stuck” with old phones. [PRWEB Jun 20, 2004]

Customers rebelling against plan for
cell-phone directory

Customers rebelling against plan for
cell-phone directory 07/01/2004 10:23 PM
SiliconValley.com Jul 2 2004 2:17AM GMT

Afghanistan's rocky road to freedom

Afghanistan's rocky road to freedom 07/21/2004 10:53 AM
Nearly three years after Operation Enduring Freedom was launched, not much of the operation endures and many basic freedoms -- from insecurity, from fear, from poverty -- remain elusive.

Pride Communication Services, #1
Reseller of Krusell Leather Cell Phone
Cases, to Begin Selling Identity-Theft
Conscious Horizontic Plus Cell Phone
Case in April

Pride Communication Services, #1
Reseller of Krusell Leather Cell Phone
Cases, to Begin Selling Identity-Theft
Conscious Horizontic Plus Cell Phone
Case in April 03/29/2005 04:34 AM
To Better Accommodate the Needs of Today’s Identity Theft Conscious Cell Phone Users, Pride Communication Services (PCS), a Subsidiary Franchise of KaseIT and the Largest Reseller of KRUSELL Leather Cases, Announced Today that it Would Begin Selling the Horizontic Plus Cell Phone Case, KRUSELL’s Newest Offering, In its Online Store in April. [PRWEB Mar 29, 2005]

'Hit the Road, Jack!' Giving Difficult
Customers THE BOOT!

'Hit the Road, Jack!' Giving Difficult
Customers THE BOOT! 05/28/2002 08:58 AM

Iowa phone company tries to block
incoming cell phone calls

Iowa phone company tries to block
incoming cell phone calls 08/16/2004 05:48 PM
Iowa phone company plans to block cell phone call in a dispute with wireless carriers. The Iowa Utilities Board has prevented the plan for now.

Quick-'n-Dirty methods to determine
which competing label is better: "Cell
Phone" or "Mobile Phone"?

Quick-'n-Dirty methods to determine
which competing label is better: "Cell
Phone" or "Mobile Phone"? 04/28/2004 11:39 AM

On the SIGIA-L mailing list, Stephanie Berger recently asked: "My cohorts are not sure whether to use "cell phone" or "mobile phone". Any evidence that one is better than the other, or one is used more often than the other?"

This is a good example of the kind of labeling questions information architects face all the time. The answer to these labeling questions will depend on the target audience (a better label for whom?), on business requirements (maybe the business want to promote one term over the other) and on the context in which the label will be used.

I'll discuss the conversation that followed here and afterwards point to some useful tools for if you have a labeling question yourself.

Andres Sulleiro: "Without any empirical data I will go with my own opinion. [...] A quick survey of the phone carriers seems to suggest that "wireless" (as in "wireless phone", "wireless customer") is most common among US carriers, though you see some references to "mobile" as well. T-mobile, a European company, uses "mobile" which is more common in Europe as well as being the name of the carrier."

Method: check what other websites call it.

Jason Cho: "I think "cell" is more widespread in the US as Andrés noted. "Call my mobile" can sound pretentious to Yankee ears. But I would think everyone understands the term "mobile" on a business card."

Method: personal experience.

Peter Van Dijck (and others): "Google for "cell phone" (including quotes): 6,230,000, Google for "mobile phone": 6,360,000. Looks like a tie, assuming your audience is similar. Just pick one and make sure your search engine knows both terms."
Christina Wodtke: "Y ahoo for cell phone : 16,800,000, yahoo for mobile phone: 21,200,000. What does this really tell you? you'd have to know who each engine indexes, how much of the web, etc.. better to use a magic 8 ball. ;-)"

Method: check popularity of the terms on the web.

Peter Van Dijck: "My next step would be to find out what people search for on your site,
or if not available, on the web (assuming that's more or less your audience). Google adwords can help."

Method: Find out what people (preferably your target audience) search for.

Dave: "I like "mobile" for the reason that Christina stated (forward compatibility); USers and non-USers will equally understand it. Also, it is more interoperable w/ most of the vCard based addressbook programs out there. I don't know any that are using "cell" or "cellphone" ... I also like the clear and easy two word approach of "mobile phone" ... I'm always wanting to say "cellphone" where "cell phone" is really the more correct version. "cell" though just doesn't feel like a real word b/c the "cell" doesn't fit a meaning to me. I know what it means if I am forced to think about it, but it really doesn't mean anything to me at all."

Method: personal experience, check what software programs use.

Christina Wodtke: "> As can Ove rture's keyword tool (couldn't find URL straight away).

You also might consider some adaptation of the freelisting technique on a subset of your target. E.G., a write in survey: what portable electronics do you own, then analyze for use of "cell phone" and mobile phone".

Method: freelisting technique.

Eric Reiss: "Having worked closely with several telecommunications companies, including Tellabs (US), Nortel (Canada), ADVA (Germany), and NetTest (Denmark), this discussion is one I've heard before. Europeans generally don't recognize the term "cell phone." North Americans seem to accept both "cell" and "mobile." ATT insists on promoting the term "wireless." In most instances, we've agreed on the word "mobile" since it is understood by the widest audience. Nortel, for instance, used "cell" almost exclusively until the late 90s, but now leans toward "mobile." I think there is a trend here."

Method: ask the subject matter experts.

Pabini Gabriel-Petit: "There's also Wordtracker.
[...]
In this vein, you might try just walking up to people, holding up your cell/mobile phone, and asking them what they call it."

Method: Analyze what people search for.

Method: Find out what labels your users use.

Quick-'n-Dirty methods to determine which competing label is better.

So, as a review, here are some of the methods used to determine which label is better.

1. What do you think?
Method: personal experience/insights.

2. What do your users think?
Method: freelisting technique.
Method: Find out what labels your users use: show them the item you're trying to label and ask them what it is. (You could build an online tool for this).
Method: Find out what people (preferably your target audience) search for / check popularity of the terms on the web. Ove rture's keyword tool. Google adwords. Wordtracker. Google and Yahoo both list how often a term is used on the web (use quotes around your terms!).

3. What do the experts think?
Method: ask the subject matter experts.
Method: check what other websites/software call it.

Gotcha's: be careful when using these techniques. You are looking for a label that works for your audience and your business requirements. Most of these techniques use audiences that may be very different from yours, and most are indicative only (ie: they're not hard science). Use your judgement.

FreeHeadset.org launches program to
promote wireless phone safety by giving
away free cell phone headsets.

FreeHeadset.org launches program to
promote wireless phone safety by giving
away free cell phone headsets. 07/26/2004 02:22 AM
New laws that mandate the use of cell phone headsets have recently passed in several states. In response, FreeHeadset.org has developed a program to provide wireless phone users with a free cell phone headset. [PRWEB Jul 26, 2004]

Stem-Cell Cash on a Winding Road

Stem-Cell Cash on a Winding Road 07/23/2004 04:34 AM
Investors aren't exactly pumping big bucks into biotech companies, but they have put their money behind California's stem-cell initiative. By Kristen Philipkoski.

Cell Phone Users Interrupt Sex for Phone
Calls

Cell Phone Users Interrupt Sex for Phone
Calls 04/11/2005 08:07 PM
user survey reported

consumeraffairs.com/news04/2005/cell_sex.html
track this site | 3 links

The Keys to Keeping Cell Customers

The Keys to Keeping Cell Customers 11/14/2003 04:08 PM
Business Week Nov 14 2003 3:06PM ET

Net phone customers brace for 'VoIP
spam'

Net phone customers brace for 'VoIP
spam' 08/10/2004 06:59 AM
Internet phoning offers big benefits for marketers--automation, lower costs and potential regulatory loopholes.

Service Lets Customers Buy with a Phone
Number

Service Lets Customers Buy with a Phone
Number 04/07/2005 05:39 PM
Retailers in the Boston area are experimenting with a truly contactless payment method that uses a cell phone number to deliver payment, loyalty and CRM.

Cablevision gives new customers free
phone service

Cablevision gives new customers free
phone service 06/22/2004 07:13 AM
Boston Globe Jun 22 2004 11:48AM GMT

RCN joins fight for Internet phone
customers

RCN joins fight for Internet phone
customers 08/04/2004 06:07 AM
Chicago Tribune Aug 4 2004 10:46AM GMT

BellSouth Can Force DSL Customers To Buy
Local Phone Service

BellSouth Can Force DSL Customers To Buy
Local Phone Service 01/27/2004 10:59 PM
Just a few months after the Georgia Public Utilities Commission told BellSouth that they can't force DSL customers to buy local phone service, a federal court has ruled (in a separate case) that BellSouth isn't violating anti-trust laws by requiring DSL customers to have local phone service. The article doesn't have many details, but it sounds like those who filed the lawsuit did a very bad job explaining their case. The judge simply tossed out the case saying that "the customers lacked legal standing to pursue the lawsuit and failed to state any valid legal claims" against BellSouth. It would be nice if there were more details, because on the face of it, you would think the case would at least get heard. If BellSouth is the only way to get DSL (thus, a monopoly) and they're then forcing customers to buy local phone service (something they don't want), it certainly sounds like an anti-trust violation.

Verizon letting DSL customers cancel
phone service

Verizon letting DSL customers cancel
phone service 05/28/2004 10:46 AM

Verizon has gotten a clue and understand people are using their cell-phones as their primary telephone number are allowing people to cancel their landlines and keep their DSL. I am sure that they finally figured out that they where going to loose the customers otherwise. [engadget]

Analyst Claims Some Phone Companies
Intentionally Over-bill Customers

Analyst Claims Some Phone Companies
Intentionally Over-bill Customers 06/22/2005 02:30 AM
A telecom services analyst warns that he sees similar errors on phone bills so often that he believes some phone companies intentionally allow errors to continue, making adjustments only when a customer requests it. [PRWEB Jun 22, 2005]

Mobile phone software maker fails to
connect with customers

Mobile phone software maker fails to
connect with customers 12/13/2003 11:01 PM
Scotsman Online Dec 13 2003 9:35PM ET

You could have a 3G cell phone already

You could have a 3G cell phone already 04/11/2005 03:55 AM
Jakarta Post Apr 11 2005 5:22AM GMT

A Cell Phone in Every Pot

A Cell Phone in Every Pot 12/09/2003 02:39 AM

Ce ll Phones Sales Skyrocket

"The worldwide market for cell phones is outstripping even the most enthusiastic predictions from the beginning of the year, as consumers continue to snap up handsets at a dizzying rate, according to research released Monday by Gartner.

Handset vendors sold 132.8 million units in the third quarter of this year, up 22 percent from last year's third-quarter shipments of 108.8 million units, says Ben Wood, an analyst with Gartner based in London. Gartner calculated the figures using the number of units sold to end users, rather than units shipped into the channel.

'The total market is on fire,' he says. 'We had predicted about 470 million units for the year, but it's going to be about 500 million this year.'

Mature cell phone markets such as western Europe and the U.S. are going through a replacement cycle, as consumers with older black-and-white phones are trading them in for new models with color screens and cameras , Wood says.

'We're getting to a point where a mobile phone is as much about fashion as anything,' he says." [PCWorld.com]

It won't be much longer before purchasing a mobile phone will be as much about utility (staying connected to the internet) as anything.

Cell Phone Zen

Cell Phone Zen 08/16/2004 02:27 PM
My phone sucks ass! The voicemail has never worked properly since day 1. At least once a week I have...

The Souped-Up Cell Phone

The Souped-Up Cell Phone 06/15/2004 10:00 AM
Business Week Jun 15 2004 2:25PM GMT

Television On Your Cell Phone

Television On Your Cell Phone 08/21/2004 09:19 AM

Your Old Cell Phone = Cash!

Your Old Cell Phone = Cash! 05/25/2004 02:37 PM

We've all been there. You upgrade from one cellular service plan to another and your carrier says "Sorry... your old phone won't work with your new plan... you need a new phone." At CellForCash.com, our mission is to help consumers and businesses capture the value of their unused cell phones. Your old cell phone may be useless to you but of great use in a different market or even in a different country. We want to be the missing link in a broken supply chain.

Cell Phone Tombstone

Cell Phone Tombstone 04/18/2005 03:07 PM

This might be the saddest tombstone I've ever seen. If this isn't the inventor of the cellphone—something I'm not sure I'd want looming over me in the afterlife, anyway—then I'd really like to dig him up and steal all the moldering gadgets with which he was inevitably buried.

I'm pretty sure I've seen this in come corner of the internet before. Has anyone seen a better quality image? I want to read the inscription.

Israeli Mobile Phone Headstone [UnwiredNews via LiveDIgitally]

Get first aid instructions in your cell
phone

Get first aid instructions in your cell
phone 06/24/2005 10:03 PM
Finnish Red Cross has made a Java cell phone program ("midlet" for the technically inclined) which contains the most basic first aid instructions in an easy-to-follow format with pictures. The instructions are in Finnish only, but you can get yours by texting "LATAA7 SPR ENSIAPU7" to number 17116. You need to have WAP settings in place to make the download. I took a quick look at it and it certainly seems like something I'm going to keep on my phone for a long time.

(Though, be warned, the midlet costs 7€! Something that which Helsingin Sanomat completely forgets to mention (boo hiss, this is stupid), but that is declared on Red Cross's page...)

Just in time for the holidays, I would say.

(Via Helsingin Sanomat. Lisää tietoa Punaisen ristin sivuilta.)

Keep on rockin' with your cell phone

Keep on rockin' with your cell phone 04/10/2005 11:41 PM
CNET News.com Apr 11 2005 3:03AM GMT

New Cell Phone Tactics

New Cell Phone Tactics 12/03/2003 11:07 AM
How many of you have moved to a new cell phone carrier now that number portability allows you to take...

Wi-Fi Hot, TV Not for Cell Phone Users

Wi-Fi Hot, TV Not for Cell Phone Users 04/12/2005 02:45 PM
Cell phone users think Wi-Fi access is important, but scoff at features such as the capability to watch TV on their phones, according to a study on future cell phone features by research firm InStat. InStat found that Wi-Fi, mapping features and traffic alerts, and voice activated text input scored highest with users.

Cell phone lockdown

Cell phone lockdown 12/03/2003 07:32 AM
CNET Dec 3 2003 7:03AM ET

16 mln US teens have a cell phone

16 mln US teens have a cell phone 03/27/2005 02:33 AM
ZDNet Mar 27 2005 5:48AM GMT

Cell Phone Directory

Cell Phone Directory 07/28/2004 04:28 PM

Cell phone directory gets hoots, hollers: This seems like a no-brainer to me.

The days of searching in vain for someone's cell phone number are almost over. Starting early next year, you'll be able to call directory assistance to get a mobile number.

However, some people object:

"These devices are considered much more personal than landline (phones)," says Chris Hoofnagle of the Electronic Privacy Information Center. "People tend to carry them everywhere and answer them when they ring."

What's more, cell phone subscribers pay for incoming calls, even unwanted ones.

Such concerns prompted Verizon Wireless, the No. 1 wireless company, to keep its 40 million subscribers out of the directory.

Isn't it interesting how cell phones have made phone numbers personal? A phone number used to be associated with a family ot a business — a group of people. But now, everyone in my family can have a cell phone, and therefore a phone number associated with them personally.

Click here to comment on this entry

Cell phone users and sex

Cell phone users and sex 04/11/2005 11:25 AM
David Pescovitz: According to a new global survey, fourteen percent of cell phone users stop screwing to answer their cell phones. Just like Paris Hilton. From Consumer Affairs.com report on a subscription-only Ad Age article:

The highest incidence of cellular interruptus was found in Germany and Spain, where 22 percent of users interrupted sex to answer their cell phones; the lowest was in Italy, where only 7 percent reported doing so. In the U.S., the figure was 15 percent, the magazine said, citing a study conducted by BBDO Worldwide and Proximity Worldwide.

Link (Thanks, Carlo Longino!)

Cell Phone Booth

Cell Phone Booth 01/03/2005 10:33 AM

Another day, another artist complaining about the lack of respect/personal interaction from those pesky cell phone users. At least Nick Rodrigues bothered to wear a suit as he showed off his personal cell phone booth, designed to illustrate how disrespectful people are when they dare call their friends and family in public.

Remember the good ol' days, when people would go into Conversation Booths before speaking, preserving the sanctity of the commons' silence? No, I really don't either.

Performa nce Sculpture [SensoryImpact]

You CAN take your cell-phone number with
you

You CAN take your cell-phone number with
you 11/11/2003 10:17 PM
ZDNet Nov 11 2003 9:18PM ET

Your $600 Cell Phone Bill

Your $600 Cell Phone Bill 06/01/2004 12:02 PM
Family cell phone plans have a lot of hang-ups, especially when a teen's on the line.

Cell phone joins TV, PC

Cell phone joins TV, PC 06/10/2004 11:30 AM
Chicago Tribune Jun 10 2004 4:15PM GMT

Cell Phone Multitasking

Cell Phone Multitasking 01/17/2004 11:15 PM

My colleague Kate isn't at work today, but she just instant messaged me with a great story. Her daughter Clare is a college freshman who just started her first statistics class. On the first day, the professor announced they would be taking a basic math test, just to see where everyone was at, but that they could use their calculators.

Apparently every student whipped out a cell phone - not a calculator in sight....

Grok Description matches for Rocky road seen for cell phone customers
GrokA matches for Rocky road seen for cell phone customers

Rocky road seen for cell phone customers