Archive for April, 2008

As the mobile phone industry moves from strength to strength we will soon be arriving at a point where landlines are not really required, but is that really the case? Should we be getting rid of our landlines and using mobiles around the home?

On the face of it there seems to be a very strong argument for ditching the landline and using a mobile phone around the home ? they are generally cheaper, offer you the chance to chat on the move with no restrictions, and can give you access to the worldwide web at the touch of a button. So what is the problem?

One of the main problems is competition and the fact that because the landline companies, such as BT, are still going strong they will always keep the mobile phone companies on their toes. If ever the landline companies were to fail then we would be depending upon the mobile phone industry for all of our future phone calls and internet access. History has shown that were a small number of companies hold control over any particular market, the opportunities for ?price fixing? are at their greatest. The landline network has been around for decades and while there is still much work to be done, the quality of the services they provide has improved of late.

Also, let us not forget about the potential health hazards associated with using your mobile phone for prolonged periods. In line with the great smoking debate which raged on for decades, the majority of us probably recognise that there are health risks associated with extensive mobile phone use, but most of us are prepared to take the risk. So what would happen if a report came out after the death of landlines and it confirmed our worst fears, what would the consumer do then?

If like me you find yourself logged onto the internet at least 10 hours a day, it begs the question ? ?Is the internet addictive??

The internet seems to be taking over our lives, we bank online, we buy online, we sell online and now thanks to sites like ?Second Life? we can now actually live online!

The internet reminds me of that Jim Carey movie ?The Truman Show? where Carey was taken by a studio as a baby and placed in a world which was full of actors. His life was filmed and shown everywhere around the world with millions upon millions of people watching him grow from a young child into a man, becoming a little more inquisitive everyday, until he finally realised that things were not quite right. Slowly but surely he began to push the boundaries further and further until he finally realised the truth.

Over the last couple of years it sometimes feels as though all of our moves are being tracked on the internet. We have Friends Reunited sites which let people known where we went to school, what lessons we attended (and the ones we did not!) and our friends as we progressed through school. Just lately we have seen the authorities loading up each and every consensus there has ever been onto the internet for all to see, meaning that much of our life is now public knowledge.

The latest twist has seen the likes of Google introducing Web 2 and adverts which are themed exactly to our surfing patters, with many suggesting that these new advertising programs will actually know where you are going next before you do. Now we are hearing that our surfing habits are actually being sold and there is a big court case looming about the possible infringement to privacy laws.

All in all the internet continues to progress at lightening quick speed but are we all being dragged into this new virtual world where all aspects of our life are on show? Are we entering the world of The Truman Show?