It is hard to believe that three years ago, the mobile world was a speck in the acquisitive eye of Google. A lot has changed since then. The search engine and online advertising giant has begun to take mobile extremely seriously, announcing yesterday that it has elected to adopt a "mobile first" rule for all of its upcoming projects.
But can Google emerge as the market leader in the mobile field? The industry is already crowded with players such as Apple, Research In Motion, Microsoft and Sony, each company equipped with its own walled-off mobile ecosystem.
Judging by the reception that Google's chief executive received on Tuesday night during a keynote presentation at the Mobile World Congress here, the company may indeed be on to something.
Speaking to a standing room only crowd, Eric Schmidt gave the breathless audience a glimpse into what is next in the world of computing.
Mr Schmidt listed three development areas that Google believes will be of particular importance in the mobile world.
First, robust computing power. Today's hand-held devices have a level of computing power for which a gymnasium full of hardware would have been required 20 years ago, he said.
Second, the number of people connected to the internet. With more than 700 million mobile users around the world online, "we can literally know everything about anything if we want to", Mr Schmidt said.
Third, and perhaps the most important, is "cloud" computing - the delivery of hosted services over the internet. The user of a remotely hosted service needs only a computer and an internet connection.
The cloud can be used to complete a number of tasks using voice recognition and language translation to search the Web, Mr Schmidt explained.
As an example, a Google engineer demonstrated that a picture of a German-language menu taken with Google's Nexus One mobile phone could be sent to Google's servers for a translation to be returned to the phone in about 10 seconds.
In the cloud computing demonstration, the menu item "Fruhlingssalat mit Wildkrautern" was translated as "spring salad with wild herbs".
"Imagine talking to someone in a different language and your mobile translating it back to you in real time," Mr Schmidt said. "We're not there yet, but we're close." It certainly beats spending years learning German.
The big picture that Mr Schmidt neglected to explain is that putting Google into the hands of users worldwide through Google's own device or its Android operating system allows more people to see the online advertisements that the company carries.
Understandably, Google's rise in the mobile world has begun to draw the ire of telecommunications operators and rival makers of handsets.
"The fact that 80 per cent of the advertising online goes down one funnel is something that should be looked at in the future debate on net neutrality," said Vittorio Colao, the chief executive of Vodafone, during a keynote speech on Monday at the congress.
"I want to be clear: we use Google, we like Google. But it's more of a structural point; you can't develop a healthy data environment if you do not have healthy competition at all levels."
But it is hard to foresee any other company in the world developing a platform that will overtake Google's online advertising dominance. Yahoo and Microsoft may be making innovative strides in that field, but Google remains so far ahead that the only solution may be anti-trust regulators deciding to break the company apart.
Still, it is indeed the cloud that helps put Google on a different playing field from its rivals, notably Apple. Although the iPhone has become a wildly popular device, selling about 44 million units, many developers and critics have lambasted the company's policy of confining applications to a rigid set of rules, a practice that they say hampers innovation.
Apple probably does not care. While it is not present at this year's Mobile World Congress, its influence is felt by every company represented here at the Fira de Barcelona conference facilities. Not surprisingly, Steve Jobs, the chief executive of Apple, did not show up to receive the Mobile Personality of the Year award at the Global Mobile Awards on Tuesday in Barcelona.
Without Apple entering the mobile space three years ago, operators would not be witnessing soaring revenues from data services and the mobile application market would not be as robust as it is today.
Google's approach has been exactly opposite to Apple's. It has given away the source code for its Android operating system and it allows any developer to create any application without restriction. The result has been that more than 60,000 phones running on Android software are sold each day, Mr Schmidt proudly said.
While he appeared to be sanguine about the company's mobile prospects, Google's embrace of the cloud appears to be a winning solution.
The company has spent untold billions of dollars building data centres around the world to provide the fastest search queries on the internet. By doing so, it has already built the infrastructure required for mobile devices to perform the complicated tasks Google wants to be possible in the future.
With millions of people already using Google for searches on their personal computers, migrating to using the same services on mobile devices would be a natural progression. Although Apple paved the way for a touchscreen mobile world, Google has gone one step further and added enough features to make the internet more user-friendly than any iPhone application has done.
At the end of Tuesday's keynote session, as dozens of people digested Mr Schmidt's speech, two words were heard over and over in conversations - Google and Apple.
The mobile world may eventually come to a fork in the road where the two companies are concerned. Judging by Tuesday's presentation and reactions to it, the fortunes to be earned from the mobile Web are Google's to lose.
dgeorgecosh@thenational.ae
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The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
Federer's 19 grand slam titles
Australian Open (5 titles) - 2004 bt Marat Safin; 2006 bt Marcos Baghdatis; 2007 bt Fernando Gonzalez; 2010 bt Andy Murray; 2017 bt Rafael Nadal
French Open (1 title) - 2009 bt Robin Soderling
Wimbledon (8 titles) - 2003 bt Mark Philippoussis; 2004 bt Andy Roddick; 2005 bt Andy Roddick; 2006 bt Rafael Nadal; 2007 bt Rafael Nadal; 2009 bt Andy Roddick; 2012 bt Andy Murray; 2017 bt Marin Cilic
US Open (5 titles) - 2004 bt Lleyton Hewitt; 2005 bt Andre Agassi; 2006 bt Andy Roddick; 2007 bt Novak Djokovic; 2008 bt Andy Murray
500 People from Gaza enter France
115 Special programme for artists
25 Evacuation of injured and sick
Dhadak 2
Director: Shazia Iqbal
Starring: Siddhant Chaturvedi, Triptii Dimri
Rating: 1/5
Stage result
1. Pascal Ackermann (GER) Bora-Hansgrohe, in 3:29.09
2. Caleb Ewan (AUS) Lotto-Soudal
3. Rudy Barbier (FRA) Israel Start-Up Nation
4. Dylan Groenewegen (NED) Jumbo-Visma
5. Luka Mezgec (SLO) Mitchelton-Scott
6. Alberto Dainese (ITA) Sunweb
7. Jakub Mareczko (ITA) CCC
8. Max Walscheid (GER) NTT
9. José Rojas (ESP) Movistar
10. Andrea Vendrame (ITA) Ag2r La Mondiale, all at same time
The specs
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 502hp at 7,600rpm
Torque: 637Nm at 5,150rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch auto
Price: from Dh317,671
On sale: now
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F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
MATCH INFO
Juventus 1 (Dybala 45')
Lazio 3 (Alberto 16', Lulic 73', Cataldi 90 4')
Red card: Rodrigo Bentancur (Juventus)
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
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8 traditional Jamaican dishes to try at Kingston 21
- Trench Town Rock: Jamaican-style curry goat served in a pastry basket with a carrot and potato garnish
- Rock Steady Jerk Chicken: chicken marinated for 24 hours and slow-cooked on the grill
- Mento Oxtail: flavoured oxtail stewed for five hours with herbs
- Ackee and salt fish: the national dish of Jamaica makes for a hearty breakfast
- Jamaican porridge: another breakfast favourite, can be made with peanut, cornmeal, banana and plantain
- Jamaican beef patty: a pastry with ground beef filling
- Hellshire Pon di Beach: Fresh fish with pickles
- Out of Many: traditional sweet potato pudding
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
EMERGENCY PHONE NUMBERS
Estijaba – 8001717 – number to call to request coronavirus testing
Ministry of Health and Prevention – 80011111
Dubai Health Authority – 800342 – The number to book a free video or voice consultation with a doctor or connect to a local health centre
Emirates airline – 600555555
Etihad Airways – 600555666
Ambulance – 998
Knowledge and Human Development Authority – 8005432 ext. 4 for Covid-19 queries
More on animal trafficking
Indoor cricket World Cup:
Insportz, Dubai, September 16-23
UAE fixtures:
Men
Saturday, September 16 – 1.45pm, v New Zealand
Sunday, September 17 – 10.30am, v Australia; 3.45pm, v South Africa
Monday, September 18 – 2pm, v England; 7.15pm, v India
Tuesday, September 19 – 12.15pm, v Singapore; 5.30pm, v Sri Lanka
Thursday, September 21 – 2pm v Malaysia
Friday, September 22 – 3.30pm, semi-final
Saturday, September 23 – 3pm, grand final
Women
Saturday, September 16 – 5.15pm, v Australia
Sunday, September 17 – 2pm, v South Africa; 7.15pm, v New Zealand
Monday, September 18 – 5.30pm, v England
Tuesday, September 19 – 10.30am, v New Zealand; 3.45pm, v South Africa
Thursday, September 21 – 12.15pm, v Australia
Friday, September 22 – 1.30pm, semi-final
Saturday, September 23 – 1pm, grand final
SPECS
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The flights: South African Airways flies from Dubai International Airport with a stop in Johannesburg, with prices starting from around Dh4,000 return. Emirates can get you there with a stop in Lusaka from around Dh4,600 return.
The details: Visas are available for 247 Zambian kwacha or US$20 (Dh73) per person on arrival at Livingstone Airport. Single entry into Victoria Falls for international visitors costs 371 kwacha or $30 (Dh110). Microlight flights are available through Batoka Sky, with 15-minute flights costing 2,265 kwacha (Dh680).
Accommodation: The Royal Livingstone Victoria Falls Hotel by Anantara is an ideal place to stay, within walking distance of the falls and right on the Zambezi River. Rooms here start from 6,635 kwacha (Dh2,398) per night, including breakfast, taxes and Wi-Fi. Water arrivals cost from 587 kwacha (Dh212) per person.
Stage 2 results
1 Caleb Ewan (AUS) Lotto Soudal 04:18:18
2 Sam Bennett (IRL) Deceuninck-QuickStep 00:00:02
3 Arnaud Demare (FRA) Groupama-FDJ 00:00:04
4 Diego Ulissi (ITA) UAE Team Emirates
5 Rick Zabel (GER) Israel Start-Up Nation
General Classification
1 Caleb Ewan (AUS) Lotto Soudal 07:47:19
2 Sam Bennett (IRL) Deceuninck-QuickStep 00:00:12
3 Arnaud Demare (FRA) Groupama-FDJ 00:00:16
4 Nikolai Cherkasov (RUS) Gazprom-Rusvelo 00:00:17
5 Alexey Lutsensko (KAZ) Astana Pro Team 00:00:19
MATCH INFO
Championship play-offs, second legs:
Aston Villa 0
Middlesbrough 0
(Aston Villa advance 1-0 on aggregate)
Fulham 2
Sessegnon (47'), Odoi (66')
Derby County 0
(Fulham advance 2-1 on aggregate)
Final
Saturday, May 26, Wembley. Kick off 8pm (UAE)
RESULTS
6pm: Mazrat Al Ruwayah – Group 2 (PA) $40,000 (Dirt) 1,600m
Winner: AF Alajaj, Tadhg O’Shea (jockey), Ernst Oertel (trainer)
6.35pm: Race of Future – Handicap (TB) $80,000 (Turf) 2,410m
Winner: Global Storm, William Buick, Charlie Appleby
7.10pm: UAE 2000 Guineas – Group 3 (TB) $150,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner: Azure Coast, Antonio Fresu, Pavel Vashchenko
7.45pm: Business Bay Challenge – Listed (TB) $100,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner: Storm Damage, Patrick Cosgrave, Saeed bin Suroor
20.20pm: Curlin Stakes – Listed (TB) $100,000 (D) 2,000m
Winner: Appreciated, Fernando Jara, Doug O’Neill
8.55pm: Singspiel Stakes – Group 2 (TB) $180,000 (T) 1,800m
Winner: Lord Glitters, Daniel Tudhope, David O'Meara
9.30pm: Al Shindagha Sprint – Group 3 (TB) $150,000 (D) 1,200m
Winner: Meraas, Antonio Fresu, Musabah Al Muhairi
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
