Yellow Pages in your Pocket
Rumors are swirling around that there will be a gPhone soon (the Google Phone).
Google is turning into an operating system company. Apple = = > Apple, while Microsoft = = > Google.
My non-inside prediction of what the third-generation phone they ship will be like:
(Relatively) free
(Relatively) open
Ad supported
So, any carrier can offer it (hence the free part), any developer can easily modify it/enhance it, and the thing is paid for by location-aware permission marketing. Anticipated, personal and relevant ads based on who you are, what you do and where you are. GPS-coded photographs from all over the world automatically appended to Google Maps. Free calls if you’re on a wifi network. And it won’t be nearly as design-wonderful as an iPhone. But it will be addictive and in many ways, better.
I’ve been wrong before, but my guess is that this is a huge sweet spot and an even bigger market than most people imagine.