This year’s Mobile World Congress proved to be a huge success for both HTC and Samsung who went home with two of the event’s top awards.

The HTC One picked up the Best New Mobile Handset, Device or Tablet at the 18th Annual Global Mobile Awards held last week at the Fira Gran Via in Barcelona.

The Taiwanese smartphone maker beat off competition from the likes of the Sony Xperia Z, LG Optimus G Pro, Nokia 105 and the Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0. Benjamin Ho, chief marketing officer for HTC, said: “We are delighted by the reactions from both consumers and the industry to the new HTC One. It is a device that has been years in the making and is one of which we are incredibly proud.”

Meanwhile the Galaxy S III was named the best smartphone of 2012 beating its main rival the iPhone 5 along with others including Nokia’s Lumia 920 and HTC’s Droid DNA.

It was a disappointing award ceremony for Apple as the American firm also lost out in the Best Tablet category to Google’s Nexus 7.

Other winners on the day included Samsung’s Galaxy Camera, which won Best Mobile Enabled Consumer Electronics Device, Facebook, which took home Best Mobile App for Consumers, and Evernote, which picked up the award for Best Mobile App for Enterprise.

Samsung also picked up the coveted Device Manufacturer of the Year award in addition to winning the Best Mobile Infrastructure and Outstanding Overall Mobile Technology.

To see first hand who wins at next year’s Mobile World Congress book your accommodation for 2014’s event now with EAS. We’ll find you the best hotels and rented apartments right in the heart of the city. Or if you prefer, why not try one of our luxury yachts – the choice is yours. Just click on this link to fill in our request form.

Nokia’s future is looking increasingly fragile as it announced it would be cutting 10,000 jobs on Thursday of last week and revealed its second profits warning in two months.

Since Stephen Elop took over as chief executive in September of last year the Finnish company has slashed 40,000 jobs as part of a cost cutting programme. Last week saw its shares fall by 18%, dropping below the €2 mark for the first time since 1996.

In a mobile world that is now dominated by ever changing smartphones, Nokia has pinned its future hopes on its Lumia range of phones which are operated by Microsoft’s Windows Phone interface. The problem is that between the lavish unveiling last November and March of this year the phone had only sold 3 million units compared with Apple’s iPhone, which had sold 72 million during the same period.

Nokia was the world’s largest mobile phone manufacturer until earlier this year when Samsung overtook it. In the last five quarters the company has burned through €2.1 billion, meaning that without a huge cost cutting programme its €4.9 billion reserves could vanish within a few years. In addition to job cuts, the firm announced it would be closing its last factory in Finland, closing research and development facilities in Germany and Canada and retreating from non-key markets so it can concentrate on America, China and the larger European economies.

Chief executive Elop stressed that Nokia’s misfortunes were down to bad marketing and promotions. “We have truly great products, but aren’t getting the traction that we would prefer,” he said.

The firm is hoping that the new operating platform Windows Phone 8 will boost sales. Microsoft is to release a test version next week, while actual Nokia phones running on the system will be available before Christmas.

To see first hand how well the firm is doing make sure you don’t miss out on the GSMA’s Mobile World Congress 2013, February 25-28 in Barcelona. Book now to avoid disappointment and arrange your accommodation through EAS, the friendly local travel agent you can trust. Based in Barcelona, we’ll find you the best hotels and rented apartments right in the heart of the city. Plus we can take care of all your transportation and entertainment requirements. Just click on this link to fill in our request form.

A court in the US has banned the sale of Samsung’s Galaxy Tab 10.1 as it continues to decide on whether the South Korean firm has infringed one of Apple’s design patents by copying the look of its popular iPad tablet.

The court case is due to begin in California on 30 July and follows a number of lawsuits Apple has filed against Samsung, HTC and Motorola, all of which use Google’s Android operating system. Apple is also trying to ban Samsung’s smartphone, the Galaxy S3.

Judge Lucy Kohn who granted the preliminary injunction in the US explained her decision saying: “Although Samsung has a right to compete, it does not have a right to compete unfairly by flooding the market with infringing products.”

Analysts consider Galaxy’s Tab 10.1 to be the biggest rival to the iPad and Apple have accused Samsung of “blatant copying” of its design and look. In return Samsung have accused Apple of infringing its patents on how phones and tablets connect to the internet. Just last week a Dutch court awarded Samsung damages from Apple for infringing this very patent. While in December 2011 a German court threw out a complaint from Apple about a different Samsung product.

The US ban, however, only applies to the Galaxy Tab 10.1 and not Samsung’s newer model known as the Galaxy Tab 10.1.2. This latter tablet was designed quickly to avoid expected bans, so the South Korean company does not think the injunction will have a large impact on business.

In the first quarter of this year Apple sold 13.6 million iPads, while Samsung shifted 1.6 million tablets over the same period.

For the very latest information on the battle between the world’s two largest smartphone makers head down to the Mobile World Congress 2013, at the Fira Gran Via in Barcelona. For the best in accommodation, entertainment and transportation services look no further than EAS, your friendly, local travel agent in the heart of Barcelona. We reserve some of the best hotel rooms in the most central locations, have an array of top quality rental apartments and villas and can even find you a luxury yacht or two. We’ll also sort out all your transportation and nightly entertainment needs. Click on this link for more information.

Christmas Day 2012 was a bonanza day for the mobile industry as more smartphones, tablets and Kindle-type mobile devices were activated than on any other day in history.

A report from Flurry Analytics claims that activations on 25th December rose to more than 17.4 million, a 332 percent increase from the former December baseline of 4 million per day and 2.5 times greater than Christmas 2011 figures.

This was the first year in which tablet activations outstripped smartphones, at a rate of 51 percent to 49 percent.

“The big winners were Apple iPads, Apple iPad Minis and Amazon Kindle Fire HD 7-in tablets,” the Flurry report stated. “In particular, Amazon had a very strong performance in the tablet category, growing by several thousand percent over its baseline of tablet activations over the earlier part of December.”

The volume of devices activated on Christmas Day had an impact on app downloads also. In total 328 million apps were downloaded on the day with 1.76 billion apps bought from Google Play and Apple during the Christmas week. This was up 65 percent on the weekly average for December 2012.

According to Flurry’s vice president, Peter Farago, one billion app downloads a week will become the norm in 2013. He said: “Following a year where Google and Apple drove unprecedented adoption of mobile devices, Facebook declared itself a “mobile” company, and Amazon and Microsoft both made significant investments into mobile computing, we look forward to continued record-breaking adoption of smart devices and applications.”

For more information on the global mobile industry don’t miss out on your chance to attend the GSMA Mobile World Congress 2013, February 25-28 in Barcelona. For the best in accommodation, arranged transportation, restaurant recommendations, and anything else you can think of to make your stay in Barcelona one to remember, look no further than EAS, the travel agent you can trust. With our expert local knowledge we can source rooms in the best hotels, find you the most centrally located apartments, organise airport transfers and other transportation needs, and even arrange yacht and aircraft charters. Click on this link for more information.

Netflix is looking to make acquisitions following its move to raise $400 million in new debt, the company said last week.

The online video service will use $225 million to refund $200 million of existing notes at lower interest rates. The rest will be used for corporate spending including capital expenditures, investments, working capital and potential acquisitions.

This money could also be used for more original programming if the company’s own political drama “House of Cards” proves to be successful. The series stars Kevin Spacey who plays a US Congressman bent on revenge after being passed over for the position of Secretary of State and cost a reported $100 million for two seasons. The Netflix difference, however, is that subscribers can watch all 13 episodes of the first series at once without having to suffer the usual week long suspense which comes with other network series.

In the fourth quarter of 2012, Netflix added 2.05 million streaming users in the US alone, meaning they now have 33 million streaming users worldwide. These strong results were mostly due to record numbers of consumers activating electronic devices such as tablets and smart TVs during the Christmas season.

This news led Netflix’s shares to surge to new heights two weeks ago as its stock climbed $43.60 to $146.86, the biggest single day gain since the firm went public more than a decade ago.  Despite this, Netflix’s video-licensing bills are piling up. By December 2012 the firm owed $5.6 billion during the next five years and many analysts are questioning whether such high share prices are justified.

For more information on Netflix and other leading companies in the world of entertainment content head down to MIPCOM 2013, Cannes, 7-10 October. If you’re looking for accommodation then book with EAS now. With our expert knowledge of Cannes we’ll find you the best hotels, rented apartments and even luxury yachts right in the heart of the city. We can also organise nightly entertainment, take care of your transportation needs and reserve you tables at the best restaurants. Click on this link to fill in our request form.

Huawei will be attempting to outdo the competition at this year’s Mobile World Congress with the release of two new smartphones. The move follows on from the unveiling of three new smartphones from the company’s Ascend series at last week’s International CES in Las Vegas.

After wowing the public with the Ascend D2 and the Ascend Mate, the latter with its whopping 6.1-inch display, Richard Yu, head of the company’s consumer business group, said the Chinese firm was planning an even more inspired showing at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona next month.

“Huawei will be launching two new products at the Mobile World Congress that are more innovative than these two phones,” Yu explained, clearly underlining the fact that the company is saving the best for the Barcelona event.

One of the phones, according to Yu, will be the successor to the Ascend P1 S, the phone that once held the title of world’s thinnest. Alcatel’s One Touch Idol Ultra now holds that crown with measurements of 6.45 mm, but it looks likely that Huawei’s new phone will reclaim the top spot.

It’s still not clear what the second release will be, although Yu did say to expect the release of an eight-core processor sometime this year as well.

Whatever the releases its clear that Huawei is out to make an impact. To see for yourself the latest offerings from the Chinese firm head down to the Mobile World Congress 2013 in Barcelona, February 25-28. If you’re after accommodation then look no further than EAS, your friendly local travel agents. We’ll find you the best hotels and rented apartments right in the heart of Barcelona, organise all your entertainment needs and arrange transportation. Just click on this link to fill in our request form.

Mobile owners are increasingly using their smartphones to access the internet in preference of traditional PCs and laptops according to a new survey carried out by Prosper Mobile Insights.

The company, which looked into the internet habits of adults from across the world, found that seven out of ten smartphone users complete at least one web-based activity on their phone in favour of a PC or laptop, regardless of whether they are on the move or at home.

More than half of respondents (51.1%) admitted to checking their emails using only a mobile device, while 45.3% completed mobile-only web searches and 42.3% used only their phone to connect to Facebook.

All this means that today’s leading brands have an increasing need to embrace mobile advertising. But as the survey shows, they need to be aware of which ads their customers will be most receptive to. Around 1 in 10 people said they pay regular attention to sponsored stories or links, ads that play before or during a video, and video ads in general.

Video ads are the most popular with 42.9% of respondents saying they are more likely to grab their attention than other forms of advertising. The most successful video ads are ones you cannot click away from, with 30.4% of people confirming that they pay more attention to this video format.

The survey made clear that marketers should make sure that ads are delivered to the right audience. 33.5% of people said they are more likely to pay attention if the ad is relevant, 24.2% claimed they are looking for informative ads and 23.9% are more likely to be responsive to eye-catching advertising.

The world of mobile advertising is still in its infancy and there are limitless opportunities for marketers to promote their brands to a global audience. For all the latest news on how to benefit from mobile marketing head down to the Mobile World Congress 2013 in Barcelona’s Fira Gran Via, 25-28 February. If you’re after accommodation then look no further than EAS, your friendly local travel agents. We’ll find you the best hotels and rented apartments right in the heart of Barcelona. Or if you prefer, why not try one of our luxury yachts – the choice is yours. We’ll also organise all your transportation needs and book you into the city’s best restaurants. Just click on this link to fill in our request form.

Andrew Seybold and the GSMA have announced a new educational session, Mobile Today and Tomorrow, to be held at the 2013 Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain. This session will be held on Monday, February 25, in Room CC2 starting at 10:00a.m.
Andrew Seybold, Inc. has been providing its Wireless University the day prior to CTIA Wireless for 17 years—more than 4,000 people have attended. Andrew Seybold, Inc. has provided education, consulting, and publishing services for the mobile industry for 20+ years and has an established worldwide practice.
Mobile Today and Tomorrow is designed for those within the mobile industry who need to know about the transition to next-generation mobile technology, devices, and applications. For the first time in the history of mobility, a worldwide standard is being deployed. Learn from the successes and failures of network operators that deployed this technology early. Learn what is happening around the world and steps being taken to enable world devices. Learn how and when voice will be migrated to this new technology, about the impact of adding voice to a data-first network, its effect on battery life, and what will come next with LTE Advanced.
For more information and to register for this session please go to (TK). Register early, seats are limited. Please note that this is a separate registration and you must also be registered to attend Mobile World Congress 2013 in order to qualify for enrollment.

The UK is now the world leader when it comes to mobile web use according to a new report by the country’s media regulator Ofcom. Brits now watch more television online, spend more on internet shopping and use tablets to access the web more than any other population.

The report, which compared data from 17 of the world’s leading economies, showed the UK leapfrogging Japan at the top of the list thanks to an obsession with Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and online music services. The amount of data Brits download per month on tablets and mobiles now stands at 424 megabytes, more than 60 percent up on a year ago. In total, 16 percent of all website traffic in the UK comes from mobile devices.

“Our research reveals that the UK leads the way in using the internet on the move. Increasingly, it’s mobile devices like smartphones and tablets that are driving this growing demand for data – and in the UK it seems to be social networking sites that are behind this in particular,” stated Ofcom’s director of research James Thickett.

British 18-24-year-olds are the world’s top mobile social networkers with 62 percent accessing their profiles from smartphones and tablets, a larger proportion than any other country surveyed.

Internet shopping in the UK also topped the charts with consumers now spending an average of £1,083 online, almost £250 more per person than second placed Australia. A total of 23 percent of Brits have visited a retail website on their mobile phones, the highest percentage in Europe.

According to Ofcom a cultural habit of catalogue shopping, high credit card take-up and the early arrival in the UK of internet giants such as Amazon and eBay are reasons behind the high level of internet shopping in the country.

The Ofcom report, known as the International Communications Market Report, is an annual survey, which compares data across 17 countries including the UK, France, Germany, Spain, USA, Italy, Australia, Japan, Brazil and China.

For more information on the use of mobile internet worldwide head down to the GSMA Mobile World Congress 2013, February 25-28 at the Fira Gran Via in Barcelona. For the best hotels, rented apartments and other accommodation choices contact EAS, your local travel agents. With our expert knowledge and experience we’ll make sure you have an unforgettable stay. And we’ll even organise your transportation and nightly entertainment too. Click on this link to fill in our request form.

Mobile phones have overtaken desktops as the most common way in which people in China connect to the internet.

The Chinese government announced in July that the number of web users in the country had now reached 538 million, meaning that nearly four out of 10 of its 1.3 billion people now use the web.

A report from the China Internet Network Information Center (CINIC) also reported that mobile internet users now number 388 million, which is up almost 10 percent since the start of 2012, while 380 million use computers.

The key cause for this growth has been put down to the fall in smartphone costs, which has seen an increase in the number of rural mobile users in China. More than 50 percent of the year’s new internet users were from China’s rural areas according to the report.

“Mobile phones are a cheaper and more convenient way to access the internet for residents in China’s vast rural areas and for the enormous migrant population,” the report said. “Meanwhile, mobile phone prices continued to drop – the emergence of smartphones under 1,000 yuan ($157) sharply lowered the threshold for using the devices and encouraged average mobile phone users to become mobile web surfers,” the report concluded.

China is now the largest smartphone market in the world with 33 million mobile phones sold in the country over the past 12 months compared with 25 million in the USA during the same time, with a growth rate at a stunning 164 percent.

Is this the beginning of the Chinese dominance of the world’s mobile phone market? Head to next year’sMobile World Congress in Barcelona to find out. For the best in accommodation, arranged transportation, hotel recommendations, and anything else you can think of to make your stay in Barcelona one to remember, look no further than EAS, the travel agent you can trust.

With our expert local knowledge we can source rooms in the best hotels, find you the most centrally located apartments, organise airport transfers and other transportation needs, and even arrange yacht and aircraft charters. Click on this link for more information.