Motorola contest yields 'mood' phone

Motorola's "MOTOFWRD" grand-prize winner from Duke University was awarded a $10,000 scholarship and a new Bluetooth-enabled car.

Designed to improve social interactions, especially for tens of thousands of people who suffer from a mild form of autism called Asberger's Syndrome, student John Finan's "Mood Phone" would light up in a spectrum of color -- from warm reds to cool blues -- based on the verbal patterns of everyday speech received through a phone handset. Seen through the corner of the eye, the visual stimulus would help users interpret the mood and inflection communicated through the words and phrases they hear.

The biomedical engineering Ph.D. candidate's concept was judged to be best among the scores of ideas presented through Motorola's first-ever MOTOFWRD competition that asked college students to envision the future of seamless mobility. Concepts ranged from the fantastic to the practical: mobile technology that could access information, contacts, music and video with the blink of an eye, to location-aware cell phones that could lead to new friendships, inspire public debate or help identify and book a vacant parking spot in a crowded downtown.

"I entered this competition because I thought Motorola was asking the right question with their theme of seamless mobility," said Finan, a Dublin, Ireland, native. "A new toy can entertain for a time but a new tool that really makes you feel closer to home and freer to move can change behavior, and that is how a revolution begins."

"The Mood Phone is a truly inventive technology solution to a problem most of us wouldn't assume could be answered with a mobile device," said Padmasree Warrior, Motorola's chief technology officer. "If the technology becomes reality, it would make all of our lives easier. But the most important idea here is that these college students who entered the MOTOFWRD competition have truly impressed us with their level of innovation and creativity."

Copyright 2006 by United Press International

Fujitsu USB 3.0-SATA Bridge IC Earns USB-IF Compliance Certification for SuperSpeed USB

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Fujitsu Microelectronics America today announced that its USB 3.0-SATA bridge IC has been certified as compliant with the USB 3.0 standard by the USB Implementers Forum, Inc.

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To complement the specification and enable measurement of compliance in real products, the USB-IF has instituted a compliance program that provides reasonable measures of acceptability. Products that demonstrate this level of acceptability are added to the Integrators List and have the right to license the USB-IF logo. To learn more about the USB Implementers Forum visit www.usb.org/developers/ssusb .

HDTV sales in the U.S. to grow 71 percent by 2009

Television manufacturers will see a surge in cumulative HDTV sales over the next few years, which will boost the overall market value to $65 billion by 2009, according to "Adoption of High-Definition TVs and Services," a new study from Parks Associates.

The report, which includes data from Parks Associates' "Mobile Entertainment Platforms & Services" study, finds consumers are growing less skeptical about HDTV, which is creating a gradual increase in demand for high-definition products and services. Nearly 47% of TV households in the U.S. plan to buy an HDTV in the next twelve months. This increase would boost HDTV sales by 30% and HD video services by 38% by the end of 2006.

"Consumers are beginning to see the true benefits of HDTV," said Deepa Iyer, a research analyst at Parks Associates. "Consumers who were once hesitant to spend huge dollars on an HDTV are now reconsidering this product category."

As a result, service providers, including broadcasters, cable, and DBS operators, are beginning to feel a push to expand their HD video services in order to attract more HD subscribers. Service providers, content producers, television and chipset manufacturers, and other solution providers are all working to bring more high-definition products and services to market, although Iyer warns that they need to ramp up their efforts. The overall market penetration for high-definition televisions and services is very low. The current subscription rate for HD programming is barely 10% among all digital video subscribers, while only 35% of total HDTV households subscribe to HD video services.

"It is a chain reaction," Iyer said. "An increase in HDTV sales will fuel the demand for other services including high-definition VOD, local content, primetime programming, and movies. However, this industry lacks a sense of urgency in its efforts to bring compelling HD services to consumers. It has to recognize that HDTV will become ubiquitous only if all collateral forces within come together to embrace the change."

Parks Associates will further examine the issue of meaningful content delivery at the upcoming executive conference "Fall Focus: Making Media Meaningful," hosted November 9-11, 2005, at the Fairmont San Jose. With sessions such as "Enhancing the Television Experience via Interactivity" and "The "Eyes" Have It: Video Content on Consumers' Terms," this event will feature analysis and discussion on the expanding paradigm for video services.

"Adoption of High-Definition TVs and Services" provides an analysis of the enablers, inhibitors, and opportunities for high-definition TVs and services in the U.S. It provides insight into service providers' strategies and consumer behavior patterns for next-generation services and applications.

Source: Parks Associates