1. Gatekeepers of the mobile Internet Carleen Maitland OASIS Workshop 2004

2. Diverse sources of content on the mobile Internet? Unlikely, given the current trend Unlikely, given the current trend Unlike fixed Internet Unlike fixed Internet Pros: payment mechanism, increased quality Pros: payment mechanism, increased quality Cons: possibly lack of diversity, possibly slower to innovate Cons: possibly lack of diversity, possibly slower to innovate

3. Why? Mobile network operators control access to consumers (limited # of licenses) Mobile network operators control access to consumers (limited # of licenses) Among the operators, there is a lack of de facto standardization Among the operators, there is a lack of de facto standardization Results in fragmentation that increases the cost of widespread information distribution due to the cost of coding for many different platforms. Results in fragmentation that increases the cost of widespread information distribution due to the cost of coding for many different platforms.

4. Content Provider Content Provider Content Provider Content Provider Mobile Network Operator Intermediaries Content Provider Content Provider Content Provider Consumer I2I2 I4I4 Mobile Network Operator Consumer I1I1 Content Provider Content Provider Content Provider Content Provider Content Provider Content Provider Content Provider I2I2 I3I3 Content Provider Content Provider Content Provider Content Provider Content Provider Content Provider Content Provider Mobile Network Operator Consumer

5. So what? Many expectations about mobile computing Many expectations about mobile computing Need to check these expectations against the reality of the market Need to check these expectations against the reality of the market No easy answer… No easy answer… Do defacto standards = Microsoft? Do defacto standards = Microsoft? Quality vs. quantity Quality vs. quantity Technical solution could reduce costs although unlikely to eliminate gatekeeper Technical solution could reduce costs although unlikely to eliminate gatekeeper