T-Mobile Claims Right to Censor Text Messages

T-Mobile told a federal judge Wednesday it may pick and choose which text messages to deliver on its network in a case weighing whether wireless carriers have the same "must carry" obligations as wire-line telephone providers.

The Bellevue, Washington-based wireless service is being sued by a texting service claiming T-Mobile stopped servicing its "short code" clients after it signed up a California medical marijuana dispensary. In a court filing, T-Mobile said it had the right to pre-approve EZ Texting's clientele, which it said the New York-based texting service failed to submit for approval.

EZ Texting offers a short code service, which works like this: A church could send its schedule to a cell phone user who texted "CHURCH" to 313131. Mobile phone users only receive text messages from EZ Texting's customers upon request. Each of its clients gets their own special word.

T-Mobile, the company wrote in a filing (.pdf) in New York federal court, "has discretion to require pre-approval for any short-code marketing campaigns run on its network, and to enforce its guidelines by terminating programs for which a content provider failed to obtain the necessary approval."

Such approval is necessary, T-Mobile added, "to protect the carrier and its customers from potentially illegal, fraudulent, or offensive marketing campaigns conducted on its network."

It's the first federal case testing whether wireless providers may block text messages they don't like.

The legal flap comes as the Federal Communications Commission has been dragging its feet over clarifying the rules for wireless carriers. The FCC was asked in 2007 to announce clear rules whether wireless carriers, unlike their wireline brethren, may ban legal content they do not support. The so-called "network neutrality" issue made huge headlines last month, when Google, along with Verizon, urged Congress not to bind wireless carriers to the same rules as wireline carriers.

EZ Texting claims it will go out of business if a judge does not promptly order T-Mobile to transmit its texts. T-Mobile accounts for 15 percent of the nation's wireless subscribers.

A similar text-messaging flap occurred in 2007, but ended without litigation, when Verizon reversed itself and allowed an abortion-rights group to send text messages to its supporters.

Supreme Court's Lack of Knowledge on Texting, Paging, & Cell Phones

During oral arguments today in the case City of Ontario v. Quon, which considers whether police officers had an expectation of privacy in personal (and sexually explicit) text messages sent on pagers issued to them by the city, the justices of the Supreme Court at times seemed to struggle with the technology involved.

The first sign was about midway through the argument, when Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr. - who is known to write out his opinions in long hand with pen and paper instead of a computer - asked what the difference was “between email and a pager?”

Other justices’ questions showed that they probably don’t spend a lot of time texting and tweeting away from their iPhones either.

At one point, Justice Anthony Kennedy asked what would happen if a text message was sent to an officer at the same time he was sending one to someone else.

“Does it say: ‘Your call is important to us, and we will get back to you?’” Kennedy asked.

Justice Antonin Scalia wrangled a bit with the idea of a service provider.

“You mean (the text) doesn’t go right to me?” he asked.

Then he asked whether they can be printed out in hard copy.

“Could Quon print these spicy little conversations and send them to his buddies?” Scalia asked.

It wasn’t just the justices who had technical difficulties. When Justice Samual Alito asked Quon’s attorney Dieter Dammeier if officers could delete text messages from their pagers in a way that would prevent the city from retrieving them from the wireless carrier later, Dammeier said that they could.

A few minutes later, Alito gave Dammeier another shot at that question.

“Are you sure about your answer on deletion?” Alito asked.

Dammeier admitted that he didn’t know. “I couldn’t be certain,” he said.

More on oral arguments in the case here on Lawyers USA Online.

Many teens send 100-plus texts a day, survey says

(CNN) -- As most parents of adolescents know all too well, text messaging has become the preferred method of communication for American teenagers, with one in three teens sending more than 100 texts a day, a new survey says.

The survey by the Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project illustrates the indispensable role that text messaging, and mobile phones in general, play in the lives of today's teenagers.

Three-quarters of 12- to 17-year-olds own cell phones, up from 45 percent in 2004, and daily text messaging to friends has increased rapidly in recent years.

The research, made public Tuesday, confirms that teens make and receive far fewer phone calls than text messages. They primarily use their phones for voice calling when communicating with parents, although they prefer text messaging when it comes to communicating with their peers.

Although teens make or receive about five calls a day, half of them send a minimum of 50 text messages a day, the survey found.

"Texting is so functional and efficient," said Amanda Lenhart, a senior research specialist at Pew, when asked to explain the survey results. "It's convenient and fits into those small spaces in daily life. You're not talking about much, but you're telling people you're connected to them."

How do teens manage to send so many text messages while spending the better part of Monday through Friday in the classroom?

Forty-three percent of teens who take their phones to school reported sending at least one text message from class a day, despite the fact that many schools have banned cell phones in class.

Lenhart said this just goes to show how important text messaging is to teens.

"Teenagers have been looking for ways to skirt around rules and defy administrators for millennia, whether it's passing notes in class or passing digital notes in class through cell phones," she said.

And teenage girls are doing most of the texting. Girls send and receive about 80 text messages a day, while boys send and receive only 30.

This is not a surprising find, according to Pew, as females also use other communicative tools more than males. Girls will text for social reasons more so than boys will, the survey found. For example, 59 percent of girls text their friends multiple times a day "just to say hello," as opposed to 49 percent of boys who do the same.

The fact that girls use their cell phones more than boys might be one reason that of the 64 percent of parents who have monitored their teens' cell phones, the vast majority are parents of 12- to 13-year-old girls.

"It's a historic relationship. ... Parents tend to regulate girls more than boys for a variety of social and gender reasons," Lenhart said.

Teens are using their phones to record and share their daily experiences, Lenhart said. In addition to texting, 83 percent of teens use their mobile phones to take pictures, and 64 percent of teens share their pictures with others.

During focus groups, Lenhart said, she asked teens what they liked to take pictures of with their cell phones. The most common answers: their pets, the people in their lives and the funny things they want to share with their friends.

Lenhart said the growth of wireless carriers' unlimited texting plans has made it easier for teens to communicate via text message.

"It's like the all-you-can-eat plan," she said. Teenagers "don't have to worry about cramming everything into 160 characters anymore. ... It doesn't cost 20 cents to send 'OK' to a friend."

The Pew survey was conducted last summer on landline and cell phones, and it included 800 youths ages 12-17, plus one of their parents.

For the original article, click here.

Case Study: The Cellular Telephone Business Model a World Away in Uganda, Africa

By Tom Sheridan

In February, I had the opportunity to travel to Uganda, Africa for two weeks to work on an expansion of an elementary school in Lukaya and to provide support in repairing a solar powered water system in a neighboring village called Kalungi. It was a wonderful, life-changing experience and a remarkable privilege to be able to go there. While on the trip, I saw the business of cellular telephones and wireless Internet in a completely new light. In an industry that more typically thrives on the confusion of an endless array of feature phones, complicated plans, contracts, bewildering line item charges and often poor customer service levels, I must ask, is “confusion” the best brand building approach?

In Uganda, cellular rules are all different. In fact, they’re deceptively simple. It’s fascinating to me how the business of cellular communications has evolved so well there in less than ten years. Excepting Kampala its capital, there are few wired telephone lines. I don’t remember seeing wired phones except in the hotels, and I’m not so sure you could even make outside calls with them. Cellular phones however have really caught on and the networks there are “3G” and reliable.

I cannot think of many businesses that could be started in Uganda that could charge enough to make a profit and recoup the original investment within a reasonable time. Uganda is most definitely a third world country, as it is in the bottom fifth of economic output per capita in the world. Average income per person is around $100 a month, so little disposable income remains for having a phone. Historically, I would imagine telephones weren’t needed much outside of the major populated areas. For most Ugandans, their world was quite local. In Uganda, cell phones are not registered to people, only to the networks. Phones are plentiful and you can easily buy them “reconditioned” or you can purchase a new one from a number of phone stores in Kampala. For service, a SIM card (a small computer chip) which costs 3,000 Shillings, about $1.50 US, is required. That activates the phone, provides a phone number, and the first five minutes of airtime. Additional airtime can be purchased in increments of as little as 200 Shillings, about ten cents. Except for the phone itself, all costs are included in the airtime charges as there is never a bill or a contract required. SIM cards can be interchanged between phones so your number and contact list can be “ported” to another phone in seconds.

Airtime cards are sold everywhere and the commission to the seller is just a couple of percent of the purchase price. They are about the size of a credit card and come sealed in a plastic wrapper. Open it and scratch away a strip on the back of the card to reveal an activation code. Airtime is added to your number by texting the code in a free message to the carrier. A reply with your new balance comes back instantly.

Receiving calls and text messages on cell phones is always free. As long as one has a working phone with a SIM card, they can be received without charge. That is the one aspect of their business model that supported strong market penetration and encouraged cell phone use at the outset. However, all calls originated are timed, and the calling phone is charged for the airtime used. By North American standards, calls are not expensive (about ten cents a minute), but when the average worker earns just a few dollars a day, making calls is a luxury. Most are quick exchanges of information and last just a minute or two. After each call made, a text is received providing the cost of the call in Shillings and the remaining balance. Pricing seemed to be variable, with some calls costing more than others for no obvious reason. Calls made during weekday hours are more expensive than calls at night and on weekends.

Since there are no plans or contracts of any kind required, there is no central phone directory or public registration of numbers. You cannot call “directory assistance,” as there is none. But there are about five competing cellular companies in Uganda with overlapping territories. Each company has a color, much like a team color. While there, I used “MTN” as my provider, the “yellow” team. If one calls a phone on another provider’s network the calls are typically charged at a premium, much like a roaming charge. In fact, there are even “two SIM card” phones available so that networks can be switched on the fly to help keep call charges more affordable.

Electrical power is irregular and frequently unavailable, and many Ugandan’s live without electricity altogether, so recharging of phones is often an issue. There are generator powered “recharging stations” available in the towns. Samsung recently came out with a “solar powered” phone, which is the model I purchased for about $50. Every hour of solar charging provides about ten minutes of talk time. That is not much, but enough to power the phone in an emergency. It was more of a novelty than a necessity for me. I ended up giving it in like new condition to one of the teachers at the school. Suffice it to say it was a most welcomed gift.

In the towns and villages, most storefronts need painting, but paint is expensive. Capitalizing on this, the cellular companies (particularly MTN) will send a worker and offer to paint it in their company color for free and emblazon it with their logo – so you see MTN just about everywhere. Where else can you buy nearly free billboard-size advertizing for the cost of paint and a few dollars in labor? No permits are required either.

Wireless Internet is a different story. “High speed” bandwidth costs a fortune or is unavailable. I purchased a wireless USB modem and a SIM card for about $90 and added a month of service (minimum $45) to get a whopping 238K of connection speed. The actual speed was slower than the most primitive dial-up connection I’ve ever used. In the pioneer days of AOL, access was frequently busy, but once you got on it was good enough for basic tasks. My experience with wireless Internet in Uganda made my AOL experience ten years ago look appealing.

Getting online was easy but once “authenticated,” the initial connection speed lasted just a few seconds. More often than not, sending a small file attachment (50K) would time out and fail. Connecting to an SMTP or POP server here in the States to send and receive e-mail was tedious, time-consuming, and usually failed as well. Before wireless Internet became available, “Internet Cafes” provided computers and Internet service where one would literally spend an entire day to do some basic e-mailing. Not surprisingly, they charge by the minute, too. Cafes are still around but the bandwidth has improved enough that a connection there can actually be productive now. Can you imagine a dozen or more computers simultaneously connected to the equivalent of a sporadic dial-up connection? That is what access was like before wireless Internet.

The big news is that fiber is coming to much of Africa. My understanding is that the continent has had a growing bandwidth bottleneck getting traffic to and from the rest of the world. New fiber has been installed on the ocean floor and that fiber is now being extended across the continent. In fact, fiber was being buried in conduit along the main road in Lukaya while I was there. Because labor is plentiful, Ugandans are installing it in a ditch across Uganda, dug entirely by hand. These laborers are paid 17,000 shillings a day (about $8) to dig a section of ditch 1 foot wide by 4 feet deep by ten feet long. This is about a day’s work and is considered good pay for “temporary work.” Digging is backbreaking work in the hot sun, yet the dedication to task of the laborers is remarkable.

My guess is that this fiber will be connected to the cellular infrastructure shortly, and since the 3G network is already in place, a quantum leap in Internet connection speeds and overall reliability will occur soon. Most of the 33 million Ugandans don’t have computers (or even the electrical power for them), so I don’t see this affecting the average person greatly in the near term. But I do see the commercial economy in Uganda and throughout Africa “blossoming” in the next five years. Labor is plentiful and raw materials seemingly abound, but being connected to the rest of the world has lagged behind most other places. I do believe Internet will benefit the business community and spur foreign investment once better systems are in place. To wit: I did not use my credit cards once on the entire trip. Credit cards are not accepted anywhere, as the banking infrastructure does not yet exist.

There is beauty in the simplicity of a “cash society” and participating in a diverse local business community comprised of small specialty shops and services. This is a leasure not easily found elsewhere. The headmaster of the school, a young gifted teacher, did not know about the Golden Arches or Wal-Mart. Why would he? Those giants would wreck havoc on the local economy and I do not believe there is nearly enough wealth to spark that kind of development anytime soon.

Cellular is a corporate anomaly in the Third World. No doubt, these companies invested tidy sums to build out their networks, and they have become a part of the daily lives of perhaps the majority of Ugandans by now. It’s become a big business. Yet, for most, communication by telephone didn’t exist ten years ago. SMS text messaging is also commonplace and each one costs 140 Shillings, about seven cents. Most phones I saw were more basic than the smartphones typical of Western business. Voice and text messaging worked consistently well. People there like their phones and use them.

Undoubtedly, reliable communications and improving Internet have added economic value to the local economies throughout Uganda even though the steady stream of Shillings spent on airtime disappears, perhaps for good. Despite their remarkable market penetration and apparent success, the cellular companies remain an automated industrial complex, a world away from the labor of the masses still digging in the trenches.

Grand Central Evolution to Google Voice

We've just started to release a preview of Google Voice, an application that helps you better manage your voice communications. Google Voice will be available initially to existing users of GrandCentral, a service we acquired in July of 2007. The new application improves the way you use your phone. You can get transcripts of your voicemail (see the video below) and archive and search all of the SMS text messages you send and receive.

You can also use the service to make low-priced international calls and easily access Goog-411 directory assistance. As you may know, GrandCentral offers many great features, including a single number to ring your home, work, and mobile phones, a central voicemail inbox that you could access on the web, and the ability to screen calls by listening in live as callers leave a voicemail. You'll find these features, and more, in the Google Voice preview. Check out the features page for videos and more information on how these features work.

If you're already using GrandCentral, over the next couple days, you will receive instructions in your GrandCentral inbox on how to start using Google Voice. We'll be opening it up to others soon, so if you'd like to be notified when that happens, please send us your email address.

Watch Video Here

Send Free SMS via Gmail Accounts

Wednesday, December 10, 2008 4:32 PM

Posted by Leo Dirac, Product Manager

How often do you try to chat with somebody and they don't respond because they just walked away from their computer? Or maybe you're in the middle of chatting with them just as they need to leave. But you still need to tell them something -- something really important like you've moved where you're meeting...or ice cream! We need ice cream! This is why we built a way to chat with your friends even when they're away from their computers. Now you can keep the conversations going with a new Labs feature that lets you send SMS text messages right from Gmail. It combines the best parts of IM and texting: you chat from the comfort of your computer, and your friends can peck out replies on their little keyboards.

A few weeks back, we ran into a few snags when we first started rolling this out, but starting today you can turn on text messaging for chat. Just click on Settings, and go to the Labs tab. Scroll down until you see "Text Messaging (SMS) in Chat" and select Enable and Save Changes.

We're just trying it out for cell phones in the United States right now, but you can send texts to your friends with US phone numbers from anywhere in the world. You can start by just typing a phone number into the search box in the chat window on the left, then select "Send SMS." You can also select the contact you want to SMS first and then add their phone number.



Once you give us a name for that phone number, you'll be able to start chatting.



We'll save your friends' numbers in your Contacts, so next time you can just type their name in the chat box and select Send SMS.

On the receiving end, when you get a text message from Gmail on your phone, it will come from a number in the 406 area code. (The l33t folks in the crowd will note that this spells G0O.) You can reply to this text on your phone just like you'd reply to any other text. The reply gets routed back to our Gmail servers and shows up in your friend's Gmail chat window. Each of your friends' messages will come from a different 406 number so you can reply to any message and it will get back to the right person. Messages from the same person will always come from the same number, so you can even bookmark it in your phone.

If you get a message from somebody you don't want to chat with from your phone, just reply with the word BLOCK. If you don't want to get texts from anybody using Gmail, reply with the word STOP and we'll leave you alone. Keep in mind that all these text messages count as part of your regular mobile messaging plan and might incur fees. So unless you know your friends have unlimited text message plans, please be sensitive to their phone bills.

Nationwide SMS Alert System

The FCC, in an effort to increase the ability to share time sensitive information, is expected to create a nationwide SMS-based alert system. The alert system will most likely be adopted by the major US cell phone carriers. Alerts, relating to natural disasters, attacks, child abductions, etc. will be sent to your cell phone or mobile device by text messaging. The time frame on this alert system is to be up and running within a 10 month timeframe. Additionally, details have been released stating that disabled users can get the alert via special vibrations or audible alerts. As of now an undetermined government agency will send a message to all voluntary message carriers, who will then forward the message to individuals.

“A nationwide alert system will use cell phones or other mobile devices to send text messages to Americans when an emergency occurs, the Federal Communications Commission will announce Wednesday, according to an FCC representative. The representative said cell phone companies that voluntarily opt into the system would send text-based alert messages to subscribers in response to three types of events:

- A disaster that could jeopardize the health and safety of Americans, such as a terrorist attack; these would trigger a national alert from the president of the United States.

- Imminent or ongoing threats such as hurricanes, tornadoes or earthquakes.

- Child abductions or Amber alerts.”

To read more on this topic, please click here.

Cell Phones Can Do More Than You Think

The days of expensive bulky mobile phones are long gone. Reception signal and customization were some major problems with the early cell phones. The uniqueness of an original mobile phone for making and taking calls has been far surpassed by even today’s most simple mobile devices. Today, most cell phone users have upgraded to a newer generation of cell phones multiple times. It’s nearly impossible to be in public without hearing someone’s favorite song set as their personal ringtone. Many cell phones come with an extraordinary amount of features and applications that could only be dreamed of with the original models. Phones now include text messaging, built in cameras, video recorders and music players. Additionally, smartphones provide wireless access to email, documents, calendars, internet access and even GPS location. Even if you are stuck in one of those 2 year contracts and can’t upgrade your phone or service plan until that ends, there is still a way for you to get the information you need from your cell phone. Also, if you want to avoid high monthly costs for data plans, what you may not know is that Google has provided a way to for you to get most of the same the information on your cell phone on demand for no additional charges.

Google SMS (Text)

The way Google provides this information is through text messaging. Google Text works very similar to the Google search on you desktop or laptop. Send a text message with your query to “GOOGLE” (466453) and within seconds Google will respond with the closest match. Here are some of the most common searches and examples. I have found using Google SMS very simple and the best part is how quick the responses are received.

• Directions: To get driving directions, enter your start address then 'to' followed by your destination address (ex: 94040 to 94043, pasadena ca to los angeles).
• Weather: To get weather information, enter 'weather' (or 'w') followed by a city and state, or zip (ex: weather 10013, w New York, NY).
• Local Business Listings: To get business listings, enter what you want to find and include a city and state, or zip (ex: pizza 10013).
• Movie Times: To get movie show times, enter the name of a CURRENT movie and include a city and state, or zip (ex: moviename 10013, moviename Boston, MA).
• Glossary: To find definitions on the Web, enter 'define' (or 'd') followed by the word or phrase (ex: define ubiquitous, d network).
• Sports Scores: For NBA/NHL/MLB/NFL/NCAA scores/schedules, enter a team name (ex: Lakers, Sharks, Mets, Jets, Duke). Available only for sports in season.
• Stock Prices: To get stock quotes, enter a SINGLE stock ticker symbol or the word 'stock' followed by a less obvious ticker name (ex: GOOG, stock DUCK).
• Product Prices: To get product prices, enter 'price' followed by the product name (ex: price dvd player, price camera), or enter the UPC/ISBN code directly.
• Airlines/Flights: To get flight information, enter the flight number to get gate times or the airline to get the phone number (ex: ua 14, united airlines).
• Translations: To get translations, enter 'translate' (or 't') followed by the expression, 'to' and a destination language (ex: translate dog to french, t new to german).

Listed above are some of the more popular searches Google offers through Google SMS. There are even more listed on their website. They even give you a chance to get a feel for how this works on the website before using your cell phone.

Google 411 (1 800 GOOG-441 or 1 800 466-4411)

For those that aren’t very familiar with text messaging or just prefer to speak with someone, Google offers a voice activated system of the same information, free of charge. There is no longer a need to pay additional fees for 411 information per call. Google’s 411 services let you search for businesses by name or category, anytime or anywhere. An added bonus, Google will connect you to the desired number or location free of charge. To save time, enter the Google 411 number into your cell phone as a contact.

SMS/Text Messaging at Your Answering Service

Have you thought about how you can use your cell phone to interact with your answering service? Imagine getting your messages sent to your mobile device via text message within seconds of us receiving the call. There would be no need to scramble around looking for a pen to jot the message down on paper. All the needed information would be sent directly to your cell phone. Also, receiving your messages via text messaging allows you easy access to your messages for future reference. Text messaging is a cheap and reliable source of receiving messages. Unlike pagers if you are out of a coverage area, the text message will appear immediately once you return to a coverage zone.

Better yet, you can even communicate with our agents through two-way text messaging. If you need to respond to a message, update your On Call status or just have a question, you can initiate a conversation by sending us a text message. This would allow you the quick, quiet and convenient way to interact with our CSRs. For more information on how using text messaging will work with your account, please give us a call today.

For those that are not clients of ours, check and see if your current answering service offers these features. If not, please give us a call or visit our website to see how we can better suit your needs.