SEATTLE - As promised, Microsoft on Wednesday shipped version 1.0 of the Kinect for Windows SDK and runtime and said partners have started selling the Kinect hardware.

The Kinect motion and voice sensor was initially designed for use with Microsoft’s Xbox gaming console. But it soon became clear that developers wanted the chance to build new kinds of applications using the sensor. Microsoft has been letting people build Kinect apps for PCs, but only for non-commercial use. This release of the SDK (software development kit) means that developers can launch commercial products using the sensor.

The SDK and runtime include a few improvements over the most recent beta version, Craig Eisler, general manager of Kinect for Windows, wrote in a blog post. They enable support for up to four Kinect sensors plugged into the same computer, include improved skeletal tracking of users and have a “near mode” for tracking movement as close as 40 centimeters in front of the device.

They also have the latest Microsoft speech recognition technology and an installer that developers can use in their application set-up programs.

Eisler wrote that the company expects to release updates to the SDK and runtime two to three times a year.

He didn’t name who is selling the Kinect hardware but said the suggested price is US$249. Amazon.com is selling it for that price. Microsoft plans to soon offer a special academic price of $149 for qualified educational uses.

At CES in January, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer said that the company planned to release the Kinect SDK and hardware on Feb. 1.

Late last year Microsoft kicked off a program designed to give Kinect developers a leg up. The company is selecting 10 people or startups who will spend three months in Seattle working out of the Kinect offices. They’ll receive technical training and support and have access to investors and Microsoft executives. They also get $20,000.

Microsoft has highlighted a wide array of applications that might be possible or are already in development for the Kinect. In one video, Microsoft shows people using the Kinect to play instruments without the instrument, a doctor in an operating room flipping through X-ray images without having to touch them, and a teacher controlling a display of the night sky by waving his arms.

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SAN FRANCISCO - Facebook filed papers Wednesday to become a public company, revealing financial information that attests to the social network’s phenomenal growth.

The IPO is the most anticipated public offering in a decade, with the company looking to bring in US$5 billion in investment.

Morgan Stanley, J.P. Morgan, Goldman Sachs and three other financial firms are underwriting the deal, according to papers filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

The publicly available version of the SEC filing does not give a proposed date for the IPO. Facebook has not yet released its expectations for the initial stock price.

The company had revenue of $3.7 billion in 2011, compared to $2 billion in 2010, according to the filing documents. Net income was $1 billion in 2011, compared to $606 million in 2010. The company had $777 million in revenue in 2009, with net income of $229 million.

Iconoclastic CEO Mark Zuckerberg founded Facebook from his Harvard dorm room in 2004. The social networking site passed the 100 million user mark in 2008 and now has 845 million users. The site had 483 million daily active users on average in December, compared to 327 million in December 2010, the company told the SEC.

Zuckerberg made $1.5 million in 2011, according the SEC filing. Sheryl Sandberg, the company’s chief operating officer, had a base salary of $296,000, but with a bonus and stock grants, her total compensation was $30.9 million last year.

Zuckerberg, in a letter enclosed in the SEC filing, said he didn’t originally create Facebook to be a company, but to be a service that connects people.

“Most great people care primarily about building and being a part of great things, but they also want to make money,” the letter says. “Through the process of building a team — and also building a developer community, advertising market and investor base — I’ve developed a deep appreciation for how building a strong company with a strong economic engine and strong growth can be the best way to align many people to solve important problems.

“Simply put: we don’t build services to make money; we make money to build better services.”

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FRAMINGHAM - Symantec has backtracked from assertions last week that 13 Android apps distributed by Google’s Android Market were malicious, and now says that the code in question comes from an aggressive ad network that provides revenue to the smartphone programs.

The security firm’s new stance was in line with that taken by Lookout Security, which on Friday questioned Symantec’s conclusions and instead said that the apps displayed the same behavior as others funded by 10 or more similar ad networks.

Symantec dubbed the code embedded within the 13 apps “Android.Counterclank,” and classified it as a Trojan horse, or malware. According to Symantec’s researchers, the malware was a variation on “Android.TonClank,” called “Plankton” by researchers at North Carolina State University, another Trojan first uncovered in June 2011.

The apps containing the Android.Counterclank code had been downloaded between 1 million and 5 million times, said Symantec, which used the Android Market’s own published numbers to arrive at that range. That made it the “largest malware [outbreak] on the Android Market,” Kevin Haley, a director with Symantec’s security response team, said in an interview last Friday.

In a blog post Monday, Symantec retracted its earlier allegations and said that the Android.Counterclank code comes from an SDK, or software development kit, distributed to “third parties to help them monetize their applications, primarily through search.”

Symantec declined to name the ad network that distributes the SDK responsible for the code it detects as Android.Counterclank.

Both Symantec and Lookout have noted that the ad network code used by the 13 apps is more aggressive than the norm.

“In general, it’s changing the home page of the [smartphone's] browser, adding additional shortcuts to the desktop, adding and even removing bookmarks,” said Haley in a follow-up interview today.

So, if the Android.Counterclank apps are not malicious, what are they? Adware, the name pinned to unwanted PC software in the last decade?

Haley wasn’t ready or willing to assign a label.

“It took a while for some consensus then about what was adware or spyware, and what wasn’t,” said Haley, talking about the intense debate five-to-seven years ago about those terms. “But eventually that consensus was reached.”

Symantec will still identify apps that include Android.Counterclank — a name it’s also continuing to use — but will not delete them, said Haley.

“We will come up with labels when it’s appropriate,” said Halley. “Now, we will make sure that we tell customers what’s going on on their phones. We’ll tell them what it does, and let them make the decision whether they want to make the trade-off and keep the app.”

That was essentially the same practices that security companies used initially during the debates over adware and spyware on Windows PCs. Eventually, most antivirus vendors moved to a more forceful approach, and started to automatically remove such software.

“This is an inevitable discussion on mobile,” said Haley. “We’re going to see app vendors experiment with how to monetize their apps on Android phones, more so on mobile than on the PC, because mobile apps are sold at very inexpensive prices or given away for free. It’s understandable that we’ll see some pushing the boundaries, or even going beyond them.”

Symantec said it reported the 13 apps with the Android.Counterclank code to Google, but that Google said the apps did not violate any of its policies, and would remain in the Android Market.

“We expect in the future there may be many similar situations where we will inform users about an application, but the application will remain in the Google Android Market,” Symantec noted.

Google has declined to comment on Symantec’s original malware claims or on the counter-arguments made by Lookout Security.

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SAN FRANCISCO - Facebook’s decision to become a public company is seen as a bellwether for Web 2.0 stock offerings, but what will it mean for the social networking giant’s 800 million users, and for the companies that build third-party apps for the site?

Facebook filed for its initial public offering (IPO) Wednesday afternoon, a move expected to raise it between US$5 billion and $10 billion. But it also means Facebook will come under greater public scrutiny, and it’s likely to face intense pressure from investors to keep growing its business each quarter.

Industry analysts point to a few key areas where Facebook will seek to expand, through either in-house development or acquisitions. The changes could appear in what users are able to do on its site, and in how Facebook uses their data to make money.

Facebook will almost certainly improve the mobile experience for users. It has been explicit about its intention to “invest in new technologies so you have a great Facebook experience no matter where you go,” as one company blog post put it.

Users can expect to see changes in the mobile experience sooner rather than later, said Brian Blau, a technology analyst at Gartner. “Facebook right now is a company that really has two experiences: desktop and mobile. Those experiences just in the past couple of months have started to look similar. You can see the direction Facebook is going.”

The money raised through the IPO will also empower Facebook to mount a more serious challenge to its wealthy competitor, Google. Facebook could look to improve its search function in particular.

Patrick Moorhead, the founder of Moor Insights & Strategy and a former executive at AltaVista, put it this way: “If Facebook had one of the better searches, why would you have to leave Facebook?”

The company already gets one in four page views on the Web, but it garners just 10 percent of Internet ad revenue, said David Greenbaum, the CEO of BoostCTR, a marketing firm that specializes in search and social media platforms.

A better search function could help increase its share of advertising dollars. Greg Sterling, of Sterling Market Intelligence, said the utilitarian nature of search platforms helps account for the greater success of their advertisements.

“Facebook is a great communication tool,” he said, “but in some ways it’s not useful like search.” When users go to a search site, he said, “they have tasks and they accomplish them. They’re making reservations; they’re buying things.”

Facebook will almost certainly continue to make itself a friendlier ecosystem for third-party apps, several industry analysts said. In August, the company earned the dubious honor of “worst API” in a developer survey conducted by Trove, a photo aggregation service. In September, Facebook started pushing its new open-graph API (application programming interface), linked to its new Timeline feature. For users, that could mean a spate of new apps, for desktop and especially for mobile.

The hundreds of thousands of companies that rely on Facebook’s APIs will see mostly upsides from the IPO, industry observers said.

“The money raised will be beneficial to the whole Facebook ecosystem,” says Rebecca Lieb, a digital advertising and media analyst at the Altimeter Group. Facebook will also likely try to secure more partnerships to ensure revenue growth, according to some analysts. Several analysts think Facebook will need to make its APIs more stable; otherwise, as a public company, it may have to disclose execution problems that in the past it might have been able to conceal.

Facebook has made fledgling moves into commerce, and some analysts predict it will move more deeply into that area to sustain future growth.

In advertising, Facebook’s chief selling point is matching sellers with potential buyers based on personal data. Facebook’s culture is “to push the envelope on privacy,” Sterling said, and as it looks to maximize ad revenue and offer new services, that tendency may intensify, he said. “But it’s kind of an Achilles’ heel for them, in that if they go too far they risk alienating users,” Sterling said.

Others think users may get a bit of a reprieve from Facebook eroding their privacy. Colin Zick, a partner at Foley Hoag, suggests the greater public scrutiny afforded public companies could force Facebook to play nicer with its users. The SEC requires risks of data breaches be reported, for example.

“Facebook already takes advantage of users way beyond what I’d consider acceptable,” said Gartner’s Blau. But, he said, “they’re in the business of making money, and they do that by exploiting all the private data that you and I dump into Facebook every day. I don’t think there’s any difference if they’re public or private.”

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NEW YORK - Hewlett-Packard has let slip some details on its website about its upcoming Proliant Gen8 servers ahead of their official launch.

The pages list basic details of single- and dual-socket BL, ML and DL Gen8 servers, which will be based on Intel’s upcoming Xeon E5 processors.

One system, the single-socket ProLiant BL460c, is a small-form-factor server based on Intel’s E5-2650L processor.

Some servers will have HP’s latest networking, I/O, storage and management capabilities, according to results that show up during a search of HP’s website. The pages the results are supposed to lead to have been removed from the site.

HP declined to comment about the servers or their potential launch date. The company is holding a big event in Las Vegas Feb. 13 to share news about “ground-breaking, new enterprise technology and services that redefine customer data center experiences and economics,” according to an invite. Dave Donatelli, executive vice president and general manager of HP Enterprise Servers, Storage, Networking and Technology Services, is expected to speak at the event.

The Gen8 servers will eventually replace the Proliant G7 family, which was introduced in March 2010 and is based on x86 processors from Intel and Advanced Micro Devices.

HP is trying to more tightly integrate components and software in its servers to make deployment and management easier, said Jean Bozman, research vice president of enterprise servers at IDC. The new servers could feature higher levels of integration, and there is excitement building around the systems, she said.

Like some other vendors, HP has been releasing servers in recent years geared toward specific tasks, in addition to its general-purpose products. For example, HP sells G7 servers configured with Microsoft or VMware software to help companies deploy virtualized workloads quickly. HP also offers servers geared toward cloud and database deployments.

In November, HP also announced server designs based on low-power microprocessors from ARM. The servers are due for release for testing purposes in the first half of this year.

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FRAMINGHAM - When an organization hosts an offsite event, whether it is a small meeting, or a massive industry conference, it also presents an opportunity for the security department.

“In these situations, security can really shine, or really stub its toes,” said William Besse, Vice President of Consulting and Investigations with security firm Andrews International. “These offsite events aren’t a time when security needs to be dozing. They need to be on their game.”

Besse, who at one point in his career was the director of global corporate security for cosmetics giant Mary Kay, became well-versed in the challenges of hosting large off-site events. Mary Kay annually holds incentive meetings for members of its huge global sales force and those events often include hosting as many 50 to 60 thousand people in a major convention venue.

“Security can either build a reputation as a contributor or enabler of these events, or as a department that wants to make it look bad and is an obstacle to making it happen,” he said.

In order to be one of those security departments seen as an enabler, Besse recommends several steps to take, before and during an offsite, to ensure the event goes off without a hitch.

[Also see the companion slideshow: Security for offsite meetings ]

Besse, along with physical-security consultant Dan Finger, offer these tips for keeping an off-site venue secure.

Get to know the venue, inside and out, well before the event.
If possible, Besse recommends security get involved in the process as early as choosing a venue.

“Have individual meetings with hotel management so you can get an understanding about their rules and regulations and what they can do to help you secure this event,” he said. “Get to know customer service.”

Once you’ve agreed on a site, before operations even begin, security needs to be well-versed on all exits, stairways and other access points. Knowing the building inside and out is crucial.

“Also you need to decide where to have your security center at the venue,” said Besse. “Where will sec-ops be conducted out of? Will there be phones, copiers, computer access in there? Will you need to augment the venue’s security with your own additional?”

[Seven deadly sins of building security]

Determine local emergency medical capabilities
The most likely unplanned event at an offsite meeting is a medical emergency, said Besse. Security should have a plan in place for handling this that includes a visit to the local hospital emergency room before the event.

Other considerations should include whether there will be attendees at the event with special medical needs and how should the onsite team be equipped to handle that, said Besse.

Know what proprietary information is at stake
In addition to the safety of your attendees, what else is at stake with this off-site? Is the organization going to present proprietary products or information that needs to be closely guarded? What are your plans for ensuring it STAYS guarded?

“Figure out what is being displayed and what happens if there is an evacuation,” said Besse. “What do we do with proprietary information or products in that scenario? Also, if it’s a highly-value consumer product on display, we might put up close-circuit TV surveillance on the product, on the doors, and bring in our own security systems.”

Have a solid access-control strategy
Perhaps the most important aspect of ensuring proprietary and sensitive information stays contained within the event is to ensure that those who have access to it are the ones you want to have access to it, said Dan Finger.

“A lot of it will start at registration,” he said. “Ask for ID. A lot of times at events I just give my name and I’m given a badge to enter. But if it is an event with proprietary information, have registration explain to folks there is proprietary information being discussed and we need to see some identification before we can let you in.”

Make sure credentials are visible and clear
The next step is actually getting attendees to wear their credentials, said Finger, and to keep an eye out for those wearing the wrong badge, or no badge at all.

“There may be another event going on in the same venue and people from that event might wander over to yours,” he noted. “It’s important to have security keeping an eye on the badges people are wearing to make sure everyone is in the right place and an outside party doesn’t gain access to information they aren’t there to see or hear.”

Figure out your signage
Many events will feature signs throughout the venue to direct attendees to the various meeting spots. But, in some instances, certain events may call for little or no signage.

“Depending on the event, I wouldn’t even put up signs because it attracts attention,” said Finger. “Sometimes, the less publicity, the better.”

Scope out possible hiding spots for recording devices
Plants, under benches and window sills are all places where recording devices could be hidden, said Finger. If proprietary issues and recording are both concerns, security should have a plan to regularly sweep such areas to check for such things.

But also keep in mind many attendees will have recording devices right in their laps. “Are people listening going to be recording with an iPad or other device? What are people allowed to bring in to the meetings in the first place?” said Finger. These are all things that need to be considered so the demonstration of your next beta doesnt end up on YouTube tomorrow, he said.

Check in on venue staff
Staff vetting may be necessary if you are concerned about the potential for spying or political statement.

[Social engineering techniques: 4 ways criminal outsiders get inside]

“You may want to check with the hotel on new hires in last few weeks,” said Finger. “Any new hire could be coincidental, but there could also be a plant going on. Are you bringing someone in who could be the target of kidnapping attempt, or an assassination attempt? If you are, you want to know about local staff.”

Decide on vehicle access
Depending on how politically charged the event may be, or how sensitive the topics are that are being discussed, the meeting could attract people looking to make a statement, said Finger. Although rare, a demonstration could include trying to drive a car into a building.

“Security may want to develop buffer zones, designated areas away from the buildings,” said Finger. “One idea is to set up some temporary bollards that would discourage people from trying to do something. Large concrete planters can be a deterrent, but also be aesthetically pleasing.”

Plan your parking arrangements
Parking is not always a significant issue, but if it is: “Do you have a plan?” asks Finger. If your venue is in an area with large parking areas, are you comfortable with attendees walking through them alone at night? If not, what will you do to ensure safety?

Some ideas include staffing extra lot attendants to ensure people get to their vehicles safely, or augmenting the existing lighting in the lots with additional lights that you provide.

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Avaya, a global provider of business communications and collaboration systems and services, today announced the availability of Avaya FlareCommunicator for iPad tablets. Avaya Flare Communicator broadens the next-generation user experience of the Avaya Flare Experience currently delivered on the Avaya Desktop Video Device, to include the market-leading consumer tablet. Avaya Flare Communicator provides mobile workers with secure, next-generation, unified communications and collaboration capabilities over both Wi-fi and 3G networks.

Avaya Flare Communicator for iPad tablets is enabled by the Avaya Aura unified communications architecture, which delivers integrated applications to a broad range of fixed and mobile devices. Today, Avaya takes secure mobile collaboration a step further by making the Avaya Flare Communicator a download from the Apple App Store. Additional consumer devices and operating systems will be supported later this year.

Customers with Avaya Aura 6.1+ can also take advantage of a new Executive User Add-on promotion that enables power mobile collaborators to have consistent access to all of their real-time communications as their day-to-day needs change. The promotion offers 60 percent savings on the regular US list price and includes: Avaya Aura, Avaya Aura Conferencing, Avaya Flare Experience on the Avaya Desktop Video Device, Avaya Flare Communicator for iPad and services. The promotion is available from February 6 through September 30.

Finally, for businesses that want to move quickly to provide advanced mobile collaboration capabilities on older or other vendor systems, the Avaya Mobile Collaboration Pack is a turnkey mobile solution package that includes Avaya Aura, Avaya Flare Communicator for iPad for 50 users, Avaya one-X Mobile for 50 users plus implementation, training, along with 1 year support and upgrade subscription.

The Avaya Flare Experience and ADVD recently received the 2011 Product Innovation Award for Global Videoconferencing Endpoints from Frost and Sullivan.

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CommunicAsia and BroadcastAsia, the most established infocomm technology (ICT) and media communications event of its kind in Asia, is poised to return with a large showing. Both shows have seen more than 85 per cent of their exhibition space taken up by exhibitors, with five months to go before the event – held from 19 to 22 June 2012 at the prestigious Marina Bay Sands and award-winning Suntec Singapore respectively.

As the premier global business networking platform and launch pad for companies to introduce cutting-edge technologies and solutions, CommunicAsia2012 and BroadcastAsia2012 will highlight pertinent industry developments and address emerging trends as well as provide enhanced networking opportunities for industry professionals from around the world. EnterpriseIT, held in conjunction with CommunicAsia, will showcase innovative applications and end-to-end solutions across the entire value chain and transform the way companies operate and communicate internally and beyond. And once again, the event will present Asia’s largest contingent of satellite companies witnessed at any single event.

“CommunicAsia and BroadcastAsia today are the only truly international shows in Asia where business professionals across a range of industries come together in one city for one week. Strong support and endorsement from over 20 leading trade associations including Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU), Asia-Pacific Satellite Communications Council (APSCC), Asia-Pacific Telecommunity (APT), Singapore Infocomm Technology Federation (SiTF) and others, helps to strengthen our mix of industry-leading exhibitors and visitors from across the globe,” says Mr. Victor Wong, Project Director of Communications Events, Singapore Exhibition Services (SES). “We are proud to provide an efficacious launch pad for our exhibitors to showcase the latest and best that technology has to offer. This exclusive platform continues to play a pivotal part in driving the conversation for development within the industry.”

Following the success of last year’s event, which attracted a total of over 53,000 professional attendees from more than 100 countries, attendees to this year’s shows can look forward to a myriad of the newest technologies, products and solutions from 2,000 multinational and small and medium companies.

Visitors can avail of opportunities to listen to industry luminaries, network with business leaders and government officials and forge business partnerships.

CommunicAsia2012 will feature breakthrough developments in NextGen Networks and satellite technology, as well as a sneak peek into the latest market-ready devices and mobile apps and solutions and dynamic industry deals set to alter ICT in Asia and beyond. Leading returning exhibitors include Falcon Interactive, FiberHome, Globecast, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Irdeto, Netop Technology, PCCW Global, Prysmian, Rosenberger, ST Electronics, Tektronix and Tata Communications; new participants include Anritsu, Aver Information, Hitachi Critical Facilities Protection and Novelsat.

This year’s show will provide more exhibition space and hospitality suite options for exhibitors. There will be more than 20 international group pavilions, including representation from Australia, Belgium, Brunei, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Israel, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, UK, USA and more. Five Techzones, focusing on ‘Fibre’ for NextGen Services, Cloud Services and Security, M2M, mCommerce and Telepresence – will feature cutting-edge products, technologies and solutions, presenting the most relevant and current solutions for businesses and enterprises across the value chain.

Setting the stage for global industry leaders to share their knowledge, the CommunicAsia2012 Summit will offer distinctly titled forums and workshops that address the most compelling issues and challenges for the ICT industry with the spotlight on mobile-driven trends this year. Extended sessions dedicated to mobile-focused topics encompassing m-Commerce, Mobile VAS, and Mobile Security issues will be added to the conference, alongside the latest tracks on Mobile Payments, Mobile Health, Customer Experience Management (CEM), and OTT Business Models.

In conjunction with CommunicAsia2012, EnterpriseIT2012 is expected to take up 40 per cent of exhibition space at Marina Bay Sands, with exhibitors comprising international software and IT systems providers, and companies offering enterprise solutions. These include key companies such as Consistel, CrimsonLogic, Emerson Network Power, Extreme Networks, Mindwave Solutions, NComputing, Planet Technology Corporation, Providence Solutions, SecureAge Technology, Starvision, Stellent Solutions and Terra Systems. In addition, the CommunicAsia2012 Summit sessions will also feature tracks dedicated to enhancing enterprises’ capabilities, especially towards mobile technologies and applications such as M2M, mCommerce, Cloud Computing and more. These topics will cater to companies in the healthcare, retail, hospitality and other sectors.

BroadcastAsia2012: Integrating Technologies, Experiencing Content Asia’s leading digital media, entertainment and film industry event, BroadcastAsia continues to move beyond broadcasting to highlight the convergence of technologies and solutions relevant to the fast-changing media landscape.

BroadcastAsia2012 will showcase a global array of the latest technologies, applications, equipment and solutions in Film, Audio and TV with a spotlight on Multi Streaming Technologies, Hybrid Broadcast Broadband TV (HbbTV), Playout Services, Pro-Audio Technology, Over The Top (OTT) Technology, Cloud Broadcasting and Digital Radio. Returning exhibitors at the show include ATG, Blackmagic, Evertz, EVS, Gospell, Grass Valley, Harmonic, Harris, Miranda, Salzbrenner Stagetec, Sennheiser, Snell, Tektronix, VSN and more. The exhibition welcomes some new exhibitors –Envivio, Hitachi Kokusai Linear, Ideal Systems, Nippon Electronics, NTT Electrics, Pliat and Toshiba among others - and locally-based companies Alphatron, AV Lite; Broadcast Professional, Cathay Photo, H Warta, Lemo, and more. Visitors can look forward to nine international group pavilions and a larger Cinematography/Film/Production Zone on the show floors.

International Conference and Creative Content Production Conferences return this year with a behind-the-scenes look at the latest technologies and techniques panning out in the market. With the growing momentum behind Smart TVs, Cloud Broadcasting, Multi-platform and OTT delivery and the challenges of managing an effective PayTV model as well as digital asset management, the BroadcastAsia2012 International Conference will offer more sessions to address the latest needs and technologies in the broadcasting industry.

In its 3rd instalment, the Creative Content Production Conference will return with two days of conference sessions and an add-on day of workshops this year. The conference will comprise a mix of topical issues, case studies and hands-on sessions to address the evolving challenges faced by production professionals from new media and visual effects to editing and IP rights.

For more information, visit www.sesallworld.com.

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Data from mobile analyst firm Juniper Research shows that Apple has overtaken Samsung again during the last quarter of 2011. Almost 25% of the 149 million smartphones shipped worldwide in Q4 were iPhones. While Apple overtook Samsung to reach no.1, the Korean giant has increased its market share four-fold since Q1 2010: from 4.7% to 21.7%. Samsung’s rise is forcing Apple to continue offering older models to keep ahead according to Juniper.

3GS + 4 + 4S = Success

While Apple sold 4 million iPhone 4Ss within three days of launch, the company’s return to top spot was partly driven by continuing to offer the iPhone 3GS –first launched in 2009 – at rock-bottom prices. Juniper believes this an effort to shore-up its defences again a bombardment of standard and premium smartphones from Samsung. Daniel Ashdown, Research Analyst with Juniper Research notes: “The scale of Samsung’s product range is saturating the market. Apple has had to counter Samsung’s products like the Galaxy Ace in order to maintain the visibility of its brand.”

Battle of the Brands Drowns Out Competition

While Apple and Samsung have traded places for the past three quarters, results of other OEMs were more muted. Taiwan-based HTC was the only other member of the top five to see significant year-on-year growth. Juniper estimates, prior to official data, that the company shipped 12.1 million smartphones in Q4.

Elsewhere troubled Blackberry-maker RIM’s woes will be soothed somewhat as shipments remained steady year-on-year at 14.4 million, down just 0.7%. 2012 will be an important year for Nokia as it looks to fight back with a full-year of Windows Phone 7 launches. The Finnish OEMs smartphone shipments were down 31% y-o-y in the fourth quarter.

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The next billion mobile connections will mainly come from remote rural areas in emerging markets, with most users in these areas willing to invest in the right device and service combination, according to Ovum.

The analyst firm states that while users in these areas typically don’t have access to basic infrastructure or utilities, they are aware of the transformative potential of mobile phones and are eager to invest in a convenient device.

Shiv Putcha, Ovum Telecoms Analyst and author of the report commented: “Emerging markets will account for the bulk of the next billion connections, and despite increasing awareness of smartphones, these users will primarily purchase entry-level and feature phones.

“Users from the next billion have a distinct hierarchy of expectations from their devices including durability, problem-solving features, versatility and connectivity. However, while connectivity is highly desirable, it is generally unaffordable, challenging to use and impractical for most users in rural and remote communities”.

Putcha also noted that the popularity of smartphones is rising sharply, and there are examples of strong smartphone sales in some emerging markets. However, Ovum doesn’t expect average selling prices to fall quickly enough for smartphones to be a viable option for the majority of users in the next billion.

Device charging solutions are as crucial to the next billion as the device itself. While mobile phone battery life has improved considerably in the last few years, access to electricity in remote and rural areas has not. As a result, users in these areas have to factor the cost of recharging devices into their total cost of ownership or value considerations when buying a phone.

Putcha concluded: “The business of charging devices is progressing, and several charging solutions are already available from device vendors, NGOs, and startups. These can be standalone accessories designed exclusively for mobile phones, or appliances that provide electricity for multiple functions such as lighting as well as charging a mobile phone.”

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