The Mobile Marketing Blog - TellMyCell

How to Merge Text and Instant Messaging in Hangouts

 

To merge or not to merge text and instant message in Hangouts: that’s the question. On August 18, Google revealed a standalone website for its messaging and chat service, Hangouts. Now, users don’t have to go digging around through Google+ or Gmail and can instead use the new, dedicated URL to access IM, voice calls, video chats, and SMS.  

In addition to the new URL, Hangouts received a much-needed “interfacelift.” Users are now greeted by the same sleek design we’ve come to expect from Google, including fewer buttons on the screen and large landscape photography covering most of the background.

But back to the question: should users combine text and instant messaging? The verdict is still out on this question, and the move is likely going to be received with mixed reviews depending on how people interact with these individual features.  

On the one hand, it’s nice to jump around from SMS and chat, especially if you’ve got contacts that use the same technology for the same purpose. There’s also an advantage for users who may not check their Gmail inboxes often or rarely leave them open to check messages. 

However, things can start to feel clunky and disjointed if your contacts don’t use Hangouts frequently via mobile. 

 

Understanding the Switch

All of the fuss started months ago, when Google felt pressure to create a standalone page for its service, similar to Facebook’s messaging app Messenger, which already has a standalone page.  

The overhaul in version 4.0 includes updates for both Android and iOS, but appeals mostly to the already-loyal Gmail user who is most likely to use this free service.  

And if that’s a good fit for you, then you’ll surely want to make the mobile connection to various messaging tools within this service. To do that, simply download the latest Hangouts version 4.0 and get into your settings on the left side of the slide-out menu. 

From here, you can make Hangouts your default texting app by touching SMS disabled and selecting Hangouts in the list of texting apps. 

Next, you need to enable merges conversations, which will merge SMS and Hangouts conversation into one strand. Then you can select SMS, Hangouts, or Google Voice from the touch icon on the left side of the screen while texting. 

To enable Google Voice, you need to complete one further step by selecting your Google account instead if SMS under account settings. Then, you should be good to go.

How to Hack a Corvette with SMS

 

New research has shown that it’s entirely possible to hack a Corvette...with an SMS message. Four security researchers from the University of California San Diego recently presented a paper at the USENIX WOOT 2015 conference in Washington showing how they hacked a Corvette using mobile Telematic Control Units (TCUs). The units are more frequently referred to as tracking/insurance dongles. Researchers showed how these dongles, which are used by Uber and car insurance companies such as Metromile, are easily reversible and controllable via SMS.  

Such devices are connected to vehicles through the ODB-II port. This gives a person access to the vehicle’s CAN bus, which allows interaction with assorted features, such as brakes and windshield wipers. 

“We acquired some of these things, reverse engineered them, and along the way found that they had a whole bunch of security deficiencies,” said Stefan Savage, the computer security professor and project leader at University of California at San Diego. He noted that dongles “provide multiple ways to remotely…control just about anything on the vehicle they were connected to.”

 

What the Research Says 

Researchers discovered different methods of obtaining TCU details from online sources, such as the dongle’s correlating phone number and IP address. Once the Corvette’s number was found, researchers used special SMS messages to connect to the CAN bus. They then used the vehicle’s firmware vulnerabilities to control both the brakes and windshield wipers. And while these were the only two features tested, researchers could have easily accessed a slew of others, including door locks, transmission, dashboard data, etc.  

Unfortunately, TCUs are capable of receiving SMS messages while vehicles are in operation, resulting in serious risks to both drivers and passengers. The University of California security researchers subsequently recommended a number of actions, including improved key and password management, SMS authentication, and the disabling of WAN administration. 

"Metromile was concrete in its plans to disable all SMS access on its branded devices, consistent with our recommendation," said the researchers. 

The Corvette isn’t the only vehicle to be hacked successfully. Last month, researchers demonstrated how easily they could hack Jeeps featuring uConnect software. This means a staggering 471,000 US Jeeps are in danger of being controlled through IP addresses. Following the Jeep revelation, security researcher Samy Kamkar announced how a $100 gadget could be manipulated to control GM vehicle functions. 

Technological advancements may have helped vehicles and their drivers in regards to safety, however as with any advancement the opportunity to exploit vulnerabilities is present. The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) has created a group to analyze the “security and privacy of Web-related technology” utilized by the automotive industry.

 

The Emmys Have Gone Mobile

In anticipation of the 63^rd Annual Emmy Awards, the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences has developed an app. The app features several wonderful ways to have a fully integrated experience while watching the primetime awards show. Further, the Emmy Awards Official App contains premium user value with real-time content as well as ongoing mobile archival content for the end user. Historically speaking, this marks the first time the Emmys has attempted to create an app for the show. Below is a list of some of the features of the app that will enhance a viewer’s experience:

Search Award Nominees by Category

The application doesn’t just list the categories that are televised; it includes an exhaustive list of all the awards. Once a category is chosen, a sub-menu pops up to reveal actor bios, synopses of shows, clips, photos, and fashion choices of the nominees. As the Emmys unfold, data in each category are updated in real time.

Archival Media

Using the navigational bar at the bottom of the screen, an app user can access the Emmy Awards’ archival media. This includes recordings of past awards shows, salient footage of actors, interviews, and the like. Incorporating the history of television and the Emmys into the app is innovative and dynamic, and presents a whole new aspect of the awards show to app users (particularly those users who’ve missed the Emmys in the past).

Backstage Live

“Backstage Live” offers the behind-the-scenes premium content that Emmy lovers are looking for. Using ten cameras to record the action, and Jane Lynch as your host, Backstage Live promises to give exclusive coverage and access. The app feature shows actors’ entrances and exits, greenroom moments, interviews in the pressroom, and conversations with honored artists in the Winners’ Lounge. Finally, the Thank You Cam follows winners, allowing them to dovetail their acceptance speeches with their more off-the-cuff elations.

The Emmy Awards Phone App is a testament to the variety of ways consumers can enjoy integrated media in this day and age. It has plenty of high-value media, both past and present, and incorporates media from all of the Television Academy’s myriad events. With a robust social media presence as well, the Emmys is hoping to draw in a record-breaking number of viewers on the night of the show. In the end, it appears that the directors, creators, and actors won’t be the only individuals to win this September— we present the Emmy App for your consideration. 

China Clarifies SMS Marketing Rules

 

New regulations governing how SMS marketing can and can’t be conducted will take effect in China next week. 

The move - which reinforces several pre-existing laws surrounding commercial communications - was announced last month by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT). These laws require companies engaging in SMS marketing to:

 

1. Comply with express requests from consumers not to send communications
2. Disclose the identity of the advertiser in electronic advertising
3. Provide a way for consumers to refuse future electronic advertising

 

Banded together, these measures have been dubbed ‘the Administrative Rules for Short Message Service’; they will take effect on June 30. 

The rules define SMS messages as ‘communications used for introducing or promoting goods, services, or business investment opportunities.’ They state that, in the event of consent to receive commercial text messages being given, the company must specify what kind of information will be sent and how often it will be sent, and provide a time limit on the duration of future contact. In an interesting diversion from most international legislation, a ‘no reply’ to this follow up message must be considered the same as an explicit rejection. 

Further, SMS service providers are compelled by law to keep records of commercial text messages, including time sent, time received, codes for the sending and receiving terminals, and information regarding subscriptions and un-subscriptions for at least five months (even if the service relationship is terminated).

Failure to comply with the requirements could result in a fine ranging from RMB 5,000 to RMB 30,000 (between $800 and $4800 USD). 

China’s new rules are thought to be a government response to the public outcry regarding SMS spam - a major problem in the world’s fastest growing economy.

 

How One Bank is Tightening Security with Mobile

 

In an effort to combat growing security risks throughout banks and other sensitive institutions, one bank in Greensboro, N.C. turned to an out-of-brand authentication method, which verifies users though a channel other than a user’s regular log in.  

The $711 million-asset Carolina Bank began looking for better IT security when growth led to an increase in remote workers who required external access. The company’s Citrix and Outlook Web Access systems were particularly venerable; the CEO and IT department feared more security would make the log in process too cumbersome for most employees. 

However, the bank was able to solve this problem by utilizing an SMS based authentication technology, which works directly with a user’s cell phone to deliver a unique and time sensitive password to log in. 

The large data breach reported by JPMorgan Chase & Co. last summer is a good example of where this preemptive technology comes from. Eighty-three million customer records were compromised when a hacker was able to gain access through a computer being used by an employee working from their home office. 

Carolina Bank’s CEO Bob Braswell said this was not the only reason the bank needed to beef up its security. 

“We don’t know enough to know what our biggest worry is,” he said. “There’s a 15-year-old kid in Iowa somewhere who’s trying to hack into us. That’s our biggest worry.” 

The improved authentication process uses a text-message passcode sent directly to a user’s phone. The passcode is good for two minutes; otherwise the user has to begin again. This protection limits an intruder’s ability to save or pass off the information to someone else. 

There are other security feature including geofencing and adaptive authentication. People outside of the Carolina Bank’s market, those who would have little reason to gain access, can be denied or strictly monitored. The adaptive technology is able to maintain further levels of security by tracking logins from multiple devices. 

One distinct shortcoming is users will ultimately need their phone on hand to log in. Additionally, each company has to ensure that employee numbers are the only numbers being granted access to the authentication software. Should an ill-intentioned foreigner gain access this way, the technology would grant the foreigner’s mobile device the same privileges as a genuine employee. 

Despite these drawbacks, the Carolina Bank reports no problems thus far. It has been well received according to Braswell.

Australia Caps SMS and Call Fees Between Telcos

 

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has put a cap on fees telecommunications companies charge each other when handling calls and text messages from other networks. The consumer watchdog cut the telco fee by more than 50%, and capped the fee they can charge for receiving cross-network SMS messages. This decision comes on the heels of the 2013-14 inquiry into “mobile termination” prices.

Australia’s three major networks, Telstra, Optus and Vodafone, charge each other for connecting calls and text messages, such as a call from an Optus customer to a Vodafone customer. 

The ACCC proposed in its draft decision that the fee charged between operators for calls drop from 3.6 cents per minute to 1.61 cents per minute. They also proposed the price to receive a text be set 0.03 cents.

“The proposed rate reflects the cost of terminating calls on Australian networks and is based on benchmarking the costs of this service overseas,” said Commissioner Christine Cifuentes. “We would expect that the savings will be passed onto consumers either in the way of lower charges or through improved call and SMS inclusions in retail plans.”

A 2014 inquiry found major networks spent about 1 cent to send 100 text messages. Yet the consumer group Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (Accan) reported some telcos were charging customers about 15 cents per text. 

“This level of profit margin is astronomical,” Accan’s deputy chief executive, Narelle Clark, said at the time. 

High-cost SMS deals affect older and poor Australians the most, as many of these consumers don’t own smartphones and are therefore unable to enjoy relatively inexpensive data messaging services such as Viber and Whatsapp. This means older and poor consumers are left dealing with outlandish calling and texting prices.

“The proposed changes will have a positive effect on competition in the telco market which will also benefit consumers,” the team at Accan noted. 

The ACCC is expected to reach a final decision by July, and put the new cost into effect on January 1st, 2016.  

Not everyone is jumping on the bandwagon, however. A Telstra spokesperson said that while the company was “reviewing today’s decision and will be providing a response as part of the ACCC’s process,” the decision to regulate text message termination prices would “add unnecessary costs and complexity to our business.” 

“Mobile prices are continuing to trend down and the majority of mobile service plans now include unlimited SMS,” he said, noting “limited benefits” for customers. “Also consumers already have choice when it comes to messaging, with the emergence of smartphones, message applications and social media.”  

This range of choices combined with unlimited SMS plans is not cause for regulation, the spokesperson added. Telstra is Australia’s largest provider of fixed line services. 

Vodafone said regulations had to make certain Telstra put the money it saves into consumer wallets.

“Telstra has the highest fixed prices in the OECD. The standard price Telstra charges its customers to call from a fixed phone to a mobile has barely moved for a decade,” said Matthew Lobb, Vodafone’s general manager for public policy. 

Why is Tablet Growth Slowing?

 

A new report from IDC indicates a marked slowdown in tablet adoption in recent months. Once predicted to be a long-term prospect for continued growth, worldwide tablet shipments recorded a decline for the second consecutive quarter during the first three months of 2015.  

The figures - which cover tablets and 2-in-1 devices - show overall shipments fell to 47.1 million in Q1 - a 5.9% decline from the same quarter in 2014. Forecasters across the mobile tech industry have tempered their previous predictions accordingly. But what are we to conclude from the tablet downturn? 

One of the main reasons tablets don’t perform as well as smartphones is a much slower ‘refresh rate’ - that is, the amount of time customers hold onto their existing device before upgrading. It’s common to keep using the same tablet for more than three years, and in countries like the United States - where more than 50% of households own a tablet - the decline in sales is particularly keenly felt.

Tablets also fare worse than smartphones in the necessity stakes: smartphones are considered must-have items, while tablets are still regarded as luxury items. Factor in the availability of low-cost, high-performance smartphones that do everything tablets can and more, and it’s not surprising the iPad isn’t having a late surge in popularity.

Speaking of Apple, their introduction of larger displays has undoubtedly dealt a further blow to the tablet market. The iPhone 6 Plus has a 5.5 inch display; smaller tablets have 7 inch displays. There aren’t too many apps that would justify buying a tablet for the sake of an extra inch and a half. Larger smartphone displays have eaten into tablet sales.

It’s not all bad news for the large-display market, however. Cellular-enabled tablets are performing better than their non-cellular counterparts, so mobile operators are doing well from the market. Cellular devices are positioning the tablet as a genuine mobile solution, rather than a stay-at-home tool. If larger display smartphones continue to find a niche, it’s not inconceivable that tablets with cellular capabilities could meet them in the middle.

 

Text Messages Between Shakespeare Characters

 

 

 

To celebrate Shakespeare's birthday, we’ve unearthed a cache of hitherto unseen text message conversations between his most famous characters. 

Plus, a tense exchange between the Bard and his beleaguered wife after he blew another royalty check down the pub with his ne’er-do-well literary chums. Happy 451st Will…

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Apple Edges Out Samsung in Canadian Smartphone Market

 

The 2015 reports are in, and according to the international authority of leading internet technology company comScore, Canadians prefer Apple smartphones over competitors like Samsung and Blackberry. In comScore’s annual report, titled Canada Digital Future in Focus, the company outlines several metrics explaining how Canadian users navigate the digital world, and to what end. 

Like the rest of North America, Canadian users prefer smartphones to the feature phone predecessor. Eighty-one percent reported owning a smartphone; within that segment, Apple leads in market share at about 38%. Samsung follows in close second at 32.4%. What’s more, Canada’s own creation — the Blackberry — ranks third with less than 9%. 

In another mobile segment—the feature phone—Samsung leads the way with 36.8% market share; LG ranks second with a respectable 25%.  

As for the mobile operating systems, Android enjoys an incredible 50.5% market share; Apple’s iOS follows at about 38%.  

Among other findings, Canadians were shown to prefer mobile devices to desktops for nearly all online activities including: browsing the web, watching videos and playing games. Paralleling this data, tablet usage was shown to have increased as well.

comScore also reported on the activities of users and sited a few notable trends. From December 2013 to December 2014, social media interaction increased by 19% as a result of more smartphones and users increased daily usage of social networks. comScore reports 53% of Canadian users access social networking sites through their smartphones; 48% play games; almost 80% access and share photos; and 52% listen to streaming radio. 

Two notable trends of the report point to a large increase in app usage relating to retail and banking services. Canadians are also shown to use their smartphone or tablet while watching TV. comScore reports that 32.2% of Canadian smartphone users use their phone while watching television; 35% of Canadian tablet users do so while watching television.  

In December of last year, smartphone users equaled nearly 20 million users, a 19% jump from the year prior. But that’s nothing compared to the 56% increases in tablet subscribers, which is now estimated at just under 10 million users. From this critical information, insights and actions will be taken to maximize the digital investments of thousands of companies. But without digging too deep into the data, it’s plain to see that Canada is steadily increasing both its base of smartphone and tablet users. Further, both mobile devices are increasing the mobile access Canadians have to apps and social media.

If nothing else, the report shows clear indications that Canada users are wising up to the speed, ease and portability of mobile devices. 

 

Global Ad Platform Rolled Out by Chinese Mobile Firm

 

Chinese mobile ad network Youmi launched its first global platform last month. First announced at the 2015 Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona, Adxmi is leading the explosion in mobile internet services currently underway in China - and garnering international attention along the way. 

The MWC attracts the best and brightest from the international mobile web industry. With more than 200 countries represented by nearly 100,000 attendees, it is easily one of the biggest, most influential mobile events. 

Chinese companies are always well-represented, but 2015 marked the first appearance of Adxmi in Europe. They immediately made a mark, negotiating partnerships with developers and mobile service providers from around the world. 

Though Chinese hardware and games have long been a dominant force on the world tech stage, the past twelve months has seen rapid mobile development in China. Concurrently, the country continues to look increasingly outward, with a growing number of firms expanding their operations overseas. Adxmi plans to provide their countrymen with first-rate international services in mobile marketing and traffic monetization. 

Their prospects look good. Adxmi has already road-tested their expansion plans across Asia, opening up new markets in Hong Kong and Taiwan; they also have a presence in both North and South America.