Roger Kay: The World According to Endpoint

Roger Kay at Endpoint Technologies Associates offers up his 2006 predictions at Technology Pundits. Here are his mobile-related ones:

• Blackberries will have more competition

Research in Motion's legal problems will have a lasting long-term effect in that users have become aware of the vulnerability of single-source supply and have begun to examine — and in some cases turn to — alternatives.

With Microsoft and others gunning for the high-value mobile email market, competition is likely to intensify with a concomitant pricing benefit to end users.

• Global Positioning Systems (GPS) will Begin to go Mainstream

An increasing number of GPS modules are being built into various devices. No one seems yet to have the holy grail in terms of which combination is right, and there may not be any such combination, but the elements include portable entertainment, gaming, navigation, and cell phone capabilities. The "right" combination could be simply a matter of preference. But with the advent of location-specific services, GPS capabilities are likely to turn up in more and more devices. Google, with a healthy database of geographic service data already in place, is likely to be a major player in this new market.

• Small Video Players and Related Services will gain Traction

Portable Media Players (PMPs) and Video iPods will lead a new generation of devices that offer entertainment on the go. While us old fogies are unlikely targets for these players, younger people already used to Gameboys and similar small systems that occupy the eyes, ears, and hands simultaneously represent a ready market for such toys.

A corollary to the rise of video devices will be a related growth in the availability of entertainment content. Hollywood will begin, slowly at first and then with increasing fervor, to release more premium content for users who want to download it and enjoy it on their own schedules.