Is Mobile Internet Really Such a Good Thing?
Just about everyone I talk to is very excited about mobile Internet. In 2006, the Japanese government proudly announced that more people used the Internet through their mobile phones than through their computers. Online services are all talking about their “mobile strategy” and VCs are flocking to fund the latest “mobile start-up.”
I don’t think there is anything wrong with mobile or with some of the great new mobile applications and devices, but we have to be careful to remember that most mobile networks that actually work are built on infrastructure that is operated by a small number of mobile operators who use a lot of regulated and closed technology.
The reason that we have vibrant start-up-driven innovation is because the Internet is open by nature. Anyone can participate without asking permission and anyone can compete with anyone else at every layer of the stack. This DNA of open and free competition (except for the occasional semi-monopoly) is what allows start-ups like Google to come in and displace incumbents. If it weren’t for the Internet, I’m positive that the telcos would have determined that it was the most efficient that THEY design and operate the “online directories.”
