Blog articles from 04/2017

Distracted driving is a critical and growing issue. IoT Peggy Smedley kindly invited me to join her show this week as she focuses on IoT and Transportation this month, particularly in regards to distracted driving. Listen to the full interview. Parks Associates research shows that 92% of U.S. car owners perform activities that require mobile or Internet connection while driving , and more than 60% do so routinely. These activities include making calls, accessing maps,...

Uber announced plans to debut a flying car network, called Uber Elevate, in the Dallas-Fort Worth area and Dubai by 2020. Parks Associates is based in Dallas, and I can’t believe our good luck at having been chosen to be on the forefront of this effort. Still, let’s assess the reality. First, Uber’s “flying car” is a misnomer. The initiative is designed to launch electric or hybrid aircrafts that take off and land vertically and are designed to fly short ranges....

The voice-first consumer market is rapidly changing. Stakeholders continue to announce new moves and product roadmaps. Integrations and partnerships are regularly being made. New entrants, seeking opportunity in the intensifying appeal of voice-enabled technologies, are placing their bets with their own offerings. Both devices and applications are now on market—primarily in the personal assistant space—that embrace voice-first; that is, they feature an...

Today Facebook will address the changing environment for consumers to communicate, including the introduction of AI, VR, social sharing models, and more, at its F8 Developer Conference. Companies in connected CE, smart home, mobile, and entertainment IoT spaces are watching the emergence of these new technologies and business models to determine their impact on device development, content creation, and consumer engagement. Companies need to continue to expand consumer familiarity...

Yesterday, Comcast officially unveiled its wireless ambition . It now offers a mobile service featuring unlimited voice and data starting from $45 per month (other non-unlimited data plan options are available). Our quick takes are as follows: 1.       It is a small step forward but may imply bigger moves in the future : right now, Comcast’s mobile plans are only for its existing customers, and it discounts heavily for its high ARPU customers—for...