Reportr.net

Are cellphones the platform of the future? They are, according to Eric Schwartz of Foneshow.

Talking at an ONA panel on the future of publishing, Schwartz went al evangelical about mobiles. He argues cellphones are the future because there are more cellphones than toasters on the planet - 2.7bn mobiles worldwide.

Cellphones outsold iPods 20 to 1 in the US, says Schwartz. To do news, you have to be a connected device and the iPod is not a connected device

The problem with cellphones is, says Schwartz, that mobile is where the web was in 1995, so it is full of potential.

Foneshow is trying to tap into this market by narrowcasting - delivering short, audio clips on issues you are interested in, to your mobile.

There is certainty an untapped mobile market. The problem is no one has quite figured out what works and what doesn’t. Do you want to listen to audio or watch video on your cell?

Perhaps the most valuable addition to the mobile, at least for me, has been wifi. Apart from being able to access the web quickly and for free, it also means I can make calls on Skype, bypassing the telecoms operator.

The key issue is whether we use the mobile primarily to comunicate, create content or consume content.