Mozido Jamaica Limited and Mobile Payments - Plants and Zombies say the Gods must be Crazy

A man like that is hard to find but I can't get him off my mind

Ain't it sad

And if he happens to be free I bet he wouldn't fancy me

That's too bad

So I must leave, I'll have to go

To Las Vegas or Monaco

And win a fortune in a game, my life will never be the same

Lyrics to the song Money, Money, Money by the group ABBA

Telecom Provider LIME is launching the Apple iPhone 4 on Tuesday June 14^th 2011 as chronicled in my blog article entitled “LIME and the Apple iPhone 4 - The Young and the Restless Gone in Sixty Seconds”.

Kingstonians , more specifically the The Young and the Restless (TV Series 1973– ) crowd, may not be Gone in Sixty Seconds (2000) after all, if the next bit of analysis on my part is spot on.

This as an Austin, Texas-based company, Mozido Jamaica Limited, has decided that the US$2 billion estimated remittance market is too big to ignore as stated in the article “Mobile Money Provider Sets Up Shop In New Kingston”, published Wednesday June 8, 2011 by Avia Ustanny, Gleaner Reporter, The Jamaica Gleaner.

And they may be doing it using NFC (Near Field Communication) powered Google Wallet!!

Some interesting stats: The Director of the company’s parent, Mozido LLC, appears to be American business Executive Gregory Corona of Dallas (imagine a Texan in a 10-gallon hat, folks!!) and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Mozido LLC.

Mozido LLC came to life some five (5) years prior in 2006AD as Affinity Global Services. they changed their name to Mozido LLC in October of 2009 as stated in the article “Mozido, LLC INTERNET SOFTWARE AND SERVICES”, published June 12, 2011 7:34 PM, BusinessWeek.

“More foreigners”, you snort, struggling to read my blog with much incredulity, thinking of PayLess Shoesource, who came to Jamaica a la Vybz Kartel’s latest videos entitled “Vybz Kartel featuring Russian ‘Jeans and Fitted’” and his prior hit song “Vybz Kartel ft. Popcaan and Gaza Slim - Clarks”.

Textbook case of the positive benefits of a Dancehall Artiste being associated with products, more popularly know as the VyBz Kartel Effect as my blog article entitled “JDX and PayLess - First Dove of a Coming Recovery” noted in the case of Blue Power and PayLess Shoesource, post-recession!

Jamaica is an emerging market and foreign business stand ready to cash in our nascent recovery from the effects of the Recession that wafted to our shores in 2009AD.

But this company Mozido Jamaica Limited, specializes in Mobile Banking, mainly via SMS (Short Messaging Service).

This is all the rage on the African Sub-Continent, specifically Kenya, which pioneered the concept in 2007AD as stated in the article “Kenya sets world first with money transfers by Mobile”, published Tuesday 20 March 2007 by Xan Rice in Nairobi, The Guardian.

Since then Mobile Banking via basic Feature phones using SMS has been growing in leap and bounds, fueling the African adoption to Mobile Phones via this utilitarian service “Kenya's Mobile Banking Revolution”, published March 11, 2009, 5:30pm PT By Janko Roettgers, GigaOM and the article “Africa's Mobile Banking revolution”, published Wednesday, 12 August 2009 23:29 by Louise Greenwood, BBC News.

So speaks Mobile Money Africa of Mozido Jamaica Limited with, quote “solutions that enable easy and secure transactions such as, person-to-person money transfers; bill payments, international money transfers, retail purchases, purchase of airtime all from the convenience of the Mobile phone, and without the need of a traditional Bank Account”.

Initially Mozido LLC’s reason for coming to Jamaica appeared to be Mobile Banking. A lucrative VAS (Value Added Service) arena in which Telecom Provider Digicel in partnership with the Bank of Nova Scotia has already staked its claim.

This is both in Haiti as noted in the article “Digicel brings Mobile Banking to Haiti”, published Wednesday, November 24, 2010, The Jamaica Observer and in Jamaica as stated in the article  “Digicel, ScotiaBank Partner on Mobile Banking Product”, published Wednesday November 24, 2010 by Mark Titus, The Jamaica Gleaner.

But Telecoms Provider Digicel Platform is EDGE and WebApp driven, and is more suitable for Blackberry’s and other smartphones (note the Blackberry is not a smartphone!!) as stated in my blog article entitled “Supreme Ventures and Blackberry Gambling - Rihanna S&M on the Dark Side of the Moon”

Leaving me to wonder if this is the same angle that Mozido Jamaica Limited will be pursuing?

As that would put them into direct conflict with Telecoms Provider Digicel! Making Mozido Jamaica Limited’s September 2010 rental of five thousand eight hundred square feet (5,800 sq ft) of office space owned by Lasco Jamaica Ltd as confirmed by General Manager of Lasco Financial Services Jacinth Hall-Tracey appear to be an expensive miscalculation!

Thus the clues to Mozido Jamaica Limited true intentions here in Jamaica appears to reside in their descriptive take as per the Mobile Money Africa website, which hints at customer-based services “without the need of a traditional Bank Account”.

Noting that the article “Mobile Money Provider Sets Up Shop In New Kingston”, published Wednesday June 8, 2011 by Avia Ustanny, Gleaner Reporter, The Jamaica Gleaner makes mention of the Remittance Market, one thus comes to a rather strange but seemingly obvious conclusion.

Mozido Jamaica Limited may be nothing more than a front for Google Wallet.

This as the use of a SMS Based Service here in Jamaica for Remittances as is the case in Kenya is impractical, as the distances to the nearest Bank are not that far or branches to few for the size of our population.

Telecom Provider Digicel foray into Mobile Banking in partnership with Bank of Nova Scotia, suggesting that a critical mass of people have Bank Accounts and are relatively affluent enough to own a smartphones. Thus they seek to enjoy the convenience of Mobile Banking on their smartphones.

SMS Banking in Kenya is on Feature phones, not smartphones, indicating a clientele who may be self-employed or receiving their money from informal activity e.g. Higglers, farmers, etc.

Add to this economic grouping low-paying PAYE (Pay As You Earn) work with salaries subverted by Remittances from abroad and the difference between Mobile Banking by Telecom Provider Digicel and Mozido Jamaica Limited becomes clear.

Again please note, the Blackberry is not a smartphone – it bears repeating!!

Thus Google Wallet is the most likely product being rolled out by Mozido Jamaica Limited, as a Google Wallet Account does not require a Bank Account, but merely a third-party lender of funds.

In this case, Mozido Jamaica Limited, using it years of experience in the remittance game to enable Remittance Accounts powered by Google Wallet and combined with their proprietary SMS based Platform to allow customers to query their Remittance Accounts.

Purchasing power is literally in the palm of your hand, as unlike Telecom Provider Digicel and Bank of Nova Scotia Mobile Banking Platform you do not need to have a Blackberry or another phone which I can safely call a smartphone, such as the soon-to-be-launched Apple iPhone 4, for which lines may be forming…..

Rather, all one needs is a NFC (Near Field Communication) Sticker, which functions in much the same way as a RFID sticker, but far more secure due to its contact-based as stated in my blog article entitled “Google Wallet & Offers vs Square & PayPal - SME's International FlashDance”.

The user does not get the full benefits of NFC as would a phone with a NFC Reader built in, such as 4cm point-to-point 100Mbps Data transfers, but as the service is being used for the purpose of Remittances, NFC stickers programmed with your Remittance Account information will suffice  

SME and Merchants would also sign up to Google Wallet Accounts and receive a NFC (Near Field Communication) Reader, for which they would only have to have a SIM card from a Telecom Provider of choice that connects to a computer acting as a cash register, rented at a low fee of course.

This as the NFC Reader would do its transactions over the very same Telecom Provider’s Networks, only using EDGE.

Mozido Jamaica Limited service would effectively be a M2M (Machine-to-Machine) Service that is Telecom Provider Agnostic as stated in my Geezam Blog article entitled “NFC and M2M – Cashless Society and the Internet of Things”. No preference for Telecom Provider Digicel, Telecom Provider CLARO or Telecom Provider LIME, akin to SMS Platform Service  Provider CoreTalk Caribbean Limited as stated in my blog article entitled “Telecom Providers and SMS - CoreTalk, Raiders of the Lost Ark”.

This making it possible for people with an ordinary Feature Mobile phone to do Banking transactions without the need to encash or even convert their remittance money to Jamaica dollars!

You can then avoid carrying around cash.

Instead:

1. Customer carries Mobile phone with the NFC Sticker on it or whatever device has the sticker.
2. To purchase goods or services, the customer simply swipe the phone with NFC Sticker attached over the NFC Reader and purchases the item.
3. The SME and Merchant can then check all transactions for the day, week, month or year by going online and checking their Google Wallet Account.
4. The customer can query their Remittance Balance on Google Wallet Account from the comfort of their home via Mozido Jamaica Limited proprietary SMS Platform or on the Internet directly from their Google Wallet Account online!

But in the case where the customer wants cash, they can request their Remittance in good ole’ Jamaican dollars via Mozido Jamaica Limited kiosks, which are sure to pop up like sunflowers, once there is sunshine, Plants vs Zombies Style.

All the above is speculation, but with a crowded Remittance and Mobile Banking Market, the mass market is really Jamaicans who receive Remittance from abroad who have no Bank Account and desire the ability to safely spend their cash powered with the convenience of Mobile Banking as those in the upper echelons of society currently enjoy on their Blackberry’s.

Google Wallet promise that and more and Mozido Jamaica Limited is here to declare that The Gods Must Be Crazy (1981) [Banks, Telecom Providers] in having ignored this burgeoning US$2 billion market for secure Remittances spending via Feature Mobile Phones.

LIME and the Apple iPhone 4 - The Young and the Restless Gone in Sixty Seconds

Some circumstantial evidence is very strong, as when you find a trout in the milk

Thoreau, Journal, (November 1850)

Telecom Provider LIME had announced the coming of the Apple iPhone 4 on their 3G-capable Network as stated in the article LIME launching iPhone 4 in Jamaica published Thursday, May 26, 2011, The Jamaica Observer.

At the time the announcement in The Jamaica Observer was in a rather cut and dry manner, with no author and no official confirmation, save on LIME’s FaceBook Page.

Stranger still, calls to Telecom Provider LIME’s Customer Care revealed that they too were just as in the dark as The Jamaica Observer’s bland article left the reader, making many suspect the article to be yet another ruse by The Jamaica Observer to boost its circulation!

Kelroy, our resident Geezam Blogger, concluded correctly in his blog post entitled “LIME bringing iPhone 4 to Jamaica and the Caribbean” that the exclusivity contract between Cupertino, California Apple Inc and Mexico-based America Movil had effectively been broken, with Telecom Provider LIME bringing the Apple iPhone 4 to Jamaica and the wider Caribbean.

And now, for the big announcement!!!

Drumroll please……

Telecom Provider LIME will be launching said Apple iPhone 4 in Jamaica on Tuesday June 14^th 2011AD, this time reported in BOTH The Jamaica Observer and The Jamaica Gleaner as stated in the article “LIME bringing iPhone 4 to Jamaica June 14”, published Friday, June 10, 2011, The Jamaica Observer and “LIME To Offer IPhone 4 Starting June 14”, published Friday June 10, 2011, The Jamaica Gleaner respectively.

You can stop now……

Unlike out American compadres, The Young and the Restless (TV Series 1973– ) [Professionals and Brown-skinned uptown People] are more pragmatic and not a tech-crazed, so don’t expect to see any long lines snaking around the corner of the Telecom Provider LIME Corporate Building on Carlton Avenue off Half-Way-Tree Road in Jamaica.

Still, it is hoped that the marketing Machinery can do a better job of selling the Apple iPhone 4, preferably as a luxury phones, as Telecom Provider CLARO did a rather lackluster job of marketing the product!

So with the Apple iPhone 4 finally coming on Telecom Provider LIME’s 3G Network, one realizes that Apple Inc, via Telecom Provider AT&T, through whom the Apple iPhone 4 is licensed to America Movil, is facing very tough times indeed!

So Apple Inc’s breaking of the exclusivity deal with America Movil and by extension Telecom Provider CLARO, may not be a reflection of poor Marketing by Telecom Provider CLARO, but rather a realization of the coming reality of Apple’s Greatest enemy: Google Android.

This as Apple, anticipating a tough fight against Google Android, began hoarding components for the Apple iPad, Apple iPhone and other Apple gadgets as stated in my Geezam Blog article entitled “Apple iPhone and Google Android - Helms Deep Under Attack” and my blog article entitled “Apple and the WWDC in June 2011 - Space Above and Beyond Android”.

Now with innovation-less Apple’s WWDC (World Wide Developer’s Conference) five (5) day Conference ending today with no confirmed announcement of the details of the Apple iPhone 5 as noted in my blog article entitled “Intel and the UltraBook -  Stephen King's MacBook and iPad Thinner Hex”, one is expecting that Apple will pull out the big guns come the Fourth Quarter of 2011AD.

My fingers are crossed, for Apple’s sake, as Google Android will be taking up 50% of the Global smartphone Market by 2015AD based on analysts projections by Gartner and IDC as stated in the article “Nokia + Microsoft vs HP Web OS - Gartner's Ocean's Eleven Plan to Rob the Casino” and the follow-up article entitled ‘Apple + Android beat Nokia + RIM Globally - Regina Beaver's La Dolce Vita”.

Thus this development may be a part of Apple’s major push in into the Latin American Market, which the Caribbean is a part, to defend itself against low cost Google Android smartphone. Without realizing it, Jamaica is the beachhead for a re-enactment of Battle: Los Angeles (2011)!

This announcement of the iconic smartphone is in effect a follow-on, West Indies Cricket Style, of Telecom Provider LIME’s announcement on Tuesday May 17^th 2011AD, World Telecommunications and Information Society Day of a US$80 million upgrade of Telecom Provider LIME’s 2G Network to HSDPA+ Release 7 (High Speed Downlink Packet Access Plus) Network.

Effectively 4G as per the  ITU (International Telecommunications Union), the Telecoms arm of the UN (United Nations) as ruling handed down in my blog article entitled “LIME's US$80 million Caribbean HSDPA+ Release 7 Upgrade - Sonic the Hedgehog”!

This upgrade and swap (software and hardware changes!!) is to be done over a period of eighteen (18) months as stated in my blog article entitled “LIME's US$80 million Caribbean HSDPA+ Release 7 Upgrade - Sonic the Hedgehog”.

Telecoms Provider Digicel, of course, upstaged them, writing a letter of protest to the Media about Telecom Provider LIME’s claim of being the first to launch 4G as noted in my blog article entitled “Digicel's US$85 million HSDPA+ and WiMax 4G Upgrade - Wizards of Waverly Place Fast Five Showdown”.

Telecoms Provider Digicel also confirmed that they were also going 4G  in the Caribbean and Jamaica via the HSDPA+ Release 7 and WiMaX 4G mobile (IEEE 802.16d,e) one-two knock-out combo, later announcing it in the Press and making it official as duly noted in my blog article entitled “Of ATC Strikes and Digicel 3G+ Upgrades - Pushing Tin in Eerie, Indiana”.

This would be final as soon as they had completely acquired and consolidated Telecom Provider CLARO after that infamous swap of theirs with America Movil as explained in my blog article entitled “Digicel buys CLARO Jamaica - Jumanji Exchange is no Robbery” and as stated in the article “AT&T-T-Mobile and Digicel-CLARO Comparisons - Alice Through the Looking Glass The Day After”.

But unlike Telecom Provider LIME, Telecoms Provider Digicel is yet to make a big Press Conference or Hotel-themed-with-dancing-girls style Launch to announce it officially as duly noted in my follow-up blog article entitled “Of ATC Strikes and Digicel 3G+ Upgrades - Pushing Tin in Eerie, Indiana”.

Most likely, both are using the same Telecom Equipment Supplier Ericsson, based on my insider sources.

For those keeping score this 2011AD in terms of Caribbean-wide Products and VAS (Value Added Services) Launches:

1. Telecoms Provider Digicel – 2 (Cloud Backup, HSDPA+ Release 7)
2. Telecom Provider LIME – 2 (HSDPA+ Release 7, Apple iPhone 4)

Granted, to be fair, Telecom Provider LIME has LIME TV, which allegedly may be getting the exclusive broadcast license in the DTT (Digital Terrestrial Television) IPTV (Internet Protocol Television) Streaming Category of Broadcast Media for the London Olympics 2012 slated for July 27^th 2012AD.

Probably shouldn’t count that…rather unfair…..

Telecoms Provider Digicel has the Samsung P1000 Galaxy Tablet. This evens things up a bit, as it can be made into a Streaming Platform via their Tier III Cloud-enabled DataCenter as succinctly hinted at in my blog article entitled LIME TV vs Digicel's Samsung Galaxy Tablet - Call of Duty Black Ops,

This as the Apple iPad, albeit my suggestion back in April 2009 to a bunch of not-paying-attention Shurpower Generator Engineers, is a bit too rich for my blood, with even the Asus Transformer beginning to look as a more affordable alternative with its rather beguiling specs and price as stated in my blog article entitled “Asus Transformer vs Apple iPad 2 - X-Men First Class for Ludacris' Numba' One Spot”.

And yes, if you are wondering, I already have my Lounge Chair set up to watch the Sport Spectacle come 2012AD on my Google ChromeBook, soon to be purchased online using my Virtual VISA Debit Card via my over-protective Paypal Account.

Not to wait in line for an overdue Apple iPhone 4 though!! An I am predicting that even The Young and the Restless (TV Series 1973– ) will probably come to look and be Gone in Sixty Seconds (2000)!

Tuesday June 14^th 2011AD at 9:00am, Jamaica Time at Telecom Provider LIME stores…..beckons…..

Apple iPad vs “White Box” Tablet - Jason's Argonauts Home Improvement The Next Big Thing

Originality, I fear, is to often only undetected and frequently unconscious plagiarism.

Dean W. R. Inge, Wit and Wisdom, Preface

With the meteoric unchecked rise of the Apple iPad to prominence since  the first Apple iPad made its debut on Saturday 3^rd April 2010AD as stated in my blog article entitled “Apple iPad and the future of Mobile Computing”, comes plagiarists.

Statistics from analyst IDC indicate that the Apple iPad accounted for 83% of the total Global Market share of Tablets in the last Quarter of 2010 as stated in the article “iPad Market Share Stabilizes as Post-PC Apple Products Surge”, published March 10, 2011, 1:36pm PT by Charles Jade, GigaOM. 

Overall in the Tablet space, which now includes the Samsung Galaxy Tablets, the Blackberry Playbook Seventeen Million (17,000,000) of them were shipped worldwide in 2010AD.

Certainly explains Apple’s hoarding of Tablet components as noted in my blog article entitled “Apple and the WWDC in June 2011 - Space Above and Beyond Android”.

This is backed up by the article “IDC: Apple iPad secures 87 percent Market share”, published JANUARY 18, 2011 1:50 PM PST by Don Reisinger, The Digital Home - CNET News, which analyzed and touts IDC’s results that speak of the phenomenal success of the Apple iPad and the Tablets in the nascent Market Internationally, showing that it is not just a fad!!

With a projection of forty four million six hundred thousand (44,600,000) Tablets to be shipped in 2010AD and seventy million eight hundred thousand (70,800,000) Tablets to be shipped in 2012AD, Apple CEO Steve Jobs “post-PC era” is right on track as per my blog article entitled “Apple iPad 2 and PC future - Doomsday in the Battlefield” and chronicled in my Geezam Blog article entitled “Are we witnessing Laptop and PC Extinction?”.

Despite this, Tablet adoption in the US is still too slow for some PC makers to commit fully to what is still a growing but untried Market, the result of my suggestion of the Apple iPad by yours truly back in April 2009AD to a bunch of not-very-entertaining Shurpower Generator Engineers!

Thus, No. 1 PC maker Dell is looking to the fast growing economies recession-resistant of the People’s Republic of China, India and Japan and their thirst for technology to boost their lackluster Tablet sales thus far as stated in the article “Exclusive: Dell spurns U.S. in launch of Android Tablet in China”, published JUNE 8, 2011 9:34 PM PDT by Brooke Crothers, CNET News – Nanotech.

PC Makers appeared initially to be flummoxed and confused as to what to do next in face of the Apple iPad and the Apple MacBook Air onslaught as stated in my blog article entitled “Apple iPad, PC Makers and Battery Life - Lost in Space and The AppleByte”.

Intel, thankfully, has risen to the challenge, organizing the Intel and PC camp by first introducing the brand new 22nm Ivy Bridge Processors. This was touted as being more energy efficient and having improved transistors density and heat dissipation, effectively and Iso-linear Processor as stated in my blog article entitled “Intel & Poison Ivy Bridge Processors - 22nm in an Iso-Linear of Their Own”.

Intel then did one better by then defining new parameters for a new category of computing device, namely the UltraBook as stated in my blog article entitled “Intel and the UltraBook - Stephen King's MacBook and iPad Thinner Hex”.

This UltraBook will take its place alongside the Smartbooks e.g. the Google ChromeBook and the Tablet e.g. the Apple iPad, erasing all that existed before in your computer textbook.

Which, if all goes according to plan with the new Sandy Bridge Processors as stated in my blog article entitled “MacBook Pro and Intel LightPeak - Thunderbolt and The Fantastic Mr. Fox” and Ivy Bridge Processors slated to appear in devices by the Fourth Quarter of 2011, will revive the sagging Laptop sales by giving customers that which they desire: performance and great specs at prices mere mortals can afford.

I still have my sights on buying a Google ChromeBook this Christmas 2011AD as stated in my Geezam Blog article entitled “Digicel’s Cloud Backup Services – A Deep Analysis”, as I like the idea of a NC (Network Computer), a device I have dreamed of since hearing it discussed when I was but a Sixth former at Glenmuir High School back in 1997AD.

This as streaming the London Olympics 2012 starting July 27^th 2012AD is just around the corner!!!

So it is not surprising that yet another trend has begun to emerge, that being the rise of a “White Box” Market for Tablets as stated in the article “Beyond the iPad: “White-box” Tablet numbers explode”, published MAY 21, 2011 1:47 PM PDT by Brooke Crothers, CNET News – Nanotech.

This discovery of a Market for makers of unbranded Tablets from components similar to that of HP and Apple was based on discrepancies in component orders discovered by analyst DisplaySearch, which like iSuppli, tracks component statistics.

This as best expressed by DisplaySearch analyst Richard Shim, quote: “When we were doing checks for Q1 (first quarter), we noticed that for 9.7-inch, 1024-by-768 panels, there was a discrepancy in the numbers that were produced versus the numbers that Apple and HP were reporting. So, there were a couple million of these tablets produced”.

Not surprising that their may be a DIY (Do It Yourself) Market for Tablet in the Wild, as this is an essential part of any computer Market.

This as it improves the Biodiversity of the Tablet Market and ensures rapid increase in the Tablet Adoption. Akin to Chinese Dual SIM phones or even the purchase of PC Components to build your own PC, these initial devices are of a lower quality, thanks to the availability of free Google Android SDK.

This translates to costs for a “White Box” Tablet of US$199 – without contract. Alas, this is too good to be true, I am afraid!

Thus explaining DisplaySearch analyst Richard Shim prediction of their demise, quote: “So can we expect white-box markets to be a recurring influence on the Tablet Market? The verdict is still out, but what we're hearing in China is that many of the white-box players are regretting their foray into the...Market and are considering withdrawing their Tablet PC business”.

It appears that Apple’s push towards quality and user experience is the big winner here. But they [“White Box” Tablet] spur Tablet Adoption, which is the basis of my Biodiversity argument.

This as being that they are made from components by Third-Party Tablet makers riding on the success of the Apple iPad, like the Google Android-powered smartphones.

They are a techie’s dream in terms of ease of modification, as one can easily “root” i.e. go to the device Hard-Drive’s partition highest folder within which the sub-folders are contained, modify and reinstall the OS, if one so desires. Thus improving the products in terms of OS and specs, as a Market to supply components for repairing such devices exists, much as exists with Blackberrys and PC’s.

The latest report by DisplaySearch analyst Richard Shim indicates that the Market for “White Box” Tablets is on the rise as stated in the article “'White box' tablets surge, gaining on Apple”, published JUNE 7, 2011 5:45 PM PDT by Brooke Crothers, CNET News – Nanotech.

Apple iPad’s is in pole position globally, with 53.6% of the Tablet Market for the First Quarter of 2011AD. Samsung Galaxy Tablets are in a close second place finish, are ranging in with 26.8% of the Tablet Market for the First Quarter of 2011AD

But it is the “White Box” Tablets in Third Place with 19.6% of the Tablet Market for the First Quarter of 2011AD that is the filly to watch. This as initial sales of 567,000 units in the Fourth Quarter of 2010AD have jumped by 235% to one million nine hundred thousand (1,900,000) units in the First Quarter of 2011AD!

Certainly, this previously ignored Market segment is experiencing incredible growth, mainly thanks to:

1. The use of a common ARM design
2. Google Android, which significantly lowers the pricing.
3. The Tech Enthusiast DIY Market that likes to “root” and modify gadgets

Again, the words of DisplaySearch analyst Richard Shim put it in perspective, quote: “Price is a significant influence on any consumer product, and tablets currently carry a healthy premium on the cost of the hardware components. The emergence of the [“White Box”] Tablets Market is an indication that the Market is reacting to that premium and trying to give consumers a lower price to drive adoption. In the short term, the tradeoff will likely result in a less than ideal user experience”.

Looks like if I had to make a bet, I would not be surprised that, just as is the case with home built PCs, “rooted” Android Phones and Chinese Dual-SIM smartphones, these “White Box” Tablets may become the “hobby horse” of a DIY Tablet Tech Enthusiast as they root and modify the Tablets to their hearts content, Home Improvement (TV Series 1991–1999) Style.

The clever production house that is the People’s Republic of China is getting better and better at these designs, making the “White Box” Tablet Market the contender to watch, as opposed to the Brand-named offerings from RIM, Motorola or even Samsung!

As in the movie Jason and the Argonauts (1963), it is not about the goal at the end of the odyssey, but the adventure that this “White Box” Tablets may allow those tech enthusiasts dissatisfied with the overpriced walled-garden approach of Apple and the Tablet Gods, thinking that they can design The Next Big Thing (2001)!

Sparky's Homemade Cicada Ice Cream - Yendi Phillips in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom

{11:21} Yet these may ye eat of every flying creeping thing that goeth upon [all] four, which have legs above their feet, to leap withal upon the earth;

{11:22} [Even] these of them ye may eat; the locust after his kind, and the bald locust after his kind and the beetle after his kind and the grasshopper after his kind.

{11:23} But all [other] flying creeping things, which have four feet, [shall be] an abomination unto you.

Leviticus 11:21-23, King James Version

Most of the surprises from Apple’s WWDC Conference have been revealed since Monday June 6^th 2011AD, that being iCloud, iOS 5 and Mac OS 10.1 aka Lion in the live blog as stated in the article “Apple unveils Lion, iOS 5, and iCloud at WWDC (live blog)”, published JUNE 6, 2011 9:00 AM PDT by Josh Lowensohn, CNET News – Apple.

Most likely the rest of their time is being devoted to going into the finer details and Developers discussing the future, most likely discussions permeated by talk of Google Android ambitions as predicted in my blog article entitled “Apple and the WWDC in June 2011 - Space Above and Beyond Android”.

Ditto too for the E3 (Electronics Entertainment Expo) Conference, where the only thing new was the new name for the Nintendo Wii, which is called the “Nintendo Wii U” as stated in fellow blogger Kelroy’s Geezam Blog article entitled “Nintendo’s new console is called “Wii U”.

Detailed analysis of the potential of both will be coming in blog posts after all the hoopla has died down, as the giddiness of the News makes it hard to assess and project the future. But from where I am standing, none of this looks like innovation in any way, by ANY stretch of the imagination.

Are Apple and Nintendo losing their edge and instead, opting to play it safe? Look out for my blog articles on these developments soon….

So depressed as I am with the rains that appear not to be ending any time soon as stated in the article “VIDEO: Public must work together to reduce floods”, published Wednesday, June 08, 2011 by SHAWN BARNES Observer video editor, The Jamaica Observer, that I have decided to keep digging into the News.

And thus I came across yet another Pink Diamond, Bejewelled Style, given away in 2009AD.

KFC Jamaica CEO Tina Matalon, you thought my article on KFC teaming up with Rainforest Seafoods to serve Red Lionfish (Pterois volitans) Sticks and Fish Fillet as stated in my blog article entitled “Rainforest Seafoods vs the Lionfish - KFC iTwist in Yendi Phillip's Emerald Forest” was offending and rude, wait till you get a load of this!!

And it has attached financial benefits too, as this may be the next big thing that will be trending among Millennials [ages 13 to 28] come the Summer of 2011AD akin to their sudden adoption of Analog Cameras as stated in my blog article entitled “Analog Photography a hit with Millennials - Digital Cameras in Katy Perry's Teenage Dream”!

An Ice Cream Company in Colombia, Missouri named Sparky's Homemade Ice Cream that specializes in making Home-made Ice Cream, whipped up a batch of their great tasting Ice Cream loaded with Cicadas. As in the Cicadas, the chirping winged Insect, Eerie, Indiana (TV Series 1991–1992) style!!

That’s not the News part folks, as shocking as that may be!!!

Wait for it……

Now!!

Since its introduction on Wednesday June 1^st 2011AD, Sparky's Homemade Ice Cream with Cicadas has been flying (pun intended!) out of the freezers, being completely sold out within hours of its debut on the first day as stated in the article “Public health official bugs out over cicada Ice Cream”, published June 7 2011 4:31:35 PM ET by Ron Edmonds, AP, Today Show.

That is until the Columbia County Department of Public Health told Sparky's Homemade Ice Cream to cease and desist. This despite no FDA Guidelines specifically citing anything against Cicadas or any Insects for that matter in Frozen Dairy Products of the kind that Sparky's Homemade Ice Cream sells!

And (surprise!!), the sales of Sparky's Homemade Ice Cream, possibly minus the Cicadas, are STILL going strong, up to the time of reporting this story. Possibly you can STILL special –order them on the down-low.

Cash only please!!!

The original story, which was carried by Associated Press, is not a small town wonder. Neither is it small News either, as Forbes Magazine is carrying the story as stated in the article entitled “Missouri cicada Ice Cream seller told to cool it”, published June 7 2011, 01:47 PM EDT, Associated Press, Forbes Magazine.

Even BusinessWeek is all over the story like Rainbow sprinkles on a Vanilla Sundae with what is effectively a “re-tweet” of the Associated Press story as stated in the article “Missouri cicada Ice Cream seller told to cool it”, published June 7, 2011, 2:50PM ET, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS, BusinessWeek.

This publicity may explain the sales, which ironically is not yet reflected in Sparky's Homemade Ice Cream Facebook page membership. So Sparky's Homemade Ice Cream with Cicadas sales increases may not be publicity related, but may ACTUALLY be related to the product, which was hot before the Media caught wind of it nearly seven (7) day later!!

As my deceased SDA Audia Granston, a chatty NCTVET cosmetologist would chirp “Bway Lindsworth dat one gone pon’ kit a fly high, high, high”.

This, by the way, was a comment she reserved for males she often cursed for being high on smoking Marijuana (Cannabis Sativa) as even I noticed in my blog article entitled “Salvia, THC and Shared Dreaming - Altered States meets Inception”.

A habit Audia Granston connected to the proliferation of Marijuana songs in popular Jamaica culture as stated in the article “Many Angles To Marijuana Music”, published Sunday June 5, 2011, The Jamaica Gleaner!!!

Maybe there should also be a ban on Marijuana songs as well?

Yes Rasta, I agree!!

And for the record, getting people to eat Insect Protein by placing it in popular foods is another original suggestion from yours truly circa April 2009AD prophesied to a bunch of not-so-well-read Shurpower Generator Technicians in a vehicle on our way to fix some Generators for Auto-start. This while discussing the merits of the Seventh Day Adventist diet!!!!

Insects are allowed in the Seventh Day Adventist diet as my introductory bible verse quote of Leviticus 11:21-23 points out…..not that I have ever seen my SDA Princess Audia Granston ingest them deliberately!

Plus, there is a move afoot to get more people to eat Protein produced by Insects. This as ironically, it will help to reduce the production of the GreenHouse Gas Methane by inefficient grass moochers aka Cows as stated in the article “Save the planet: Swap your steak for bugs and worms”, published Tuesday Jan 18, 2011 6:02am EST by Ivana Sekularac, Reuters.

According to Professor Arnold van Huis of Wageningen University in the Netherlands, Insects:

1. Have more Protein than cattle per serving
2. Cost effective to raise and process in terms of food and water
3. Are efficient converter of Carbohydrates and Plant fibre into Protein
4. Do not produce Greenhouse gas emissions as is the case with cows, goats and Sheep
5. Contain 90% Protein by weight, compared with 40% for cows
6. Cattle are responsible for 18% of GreenHouse Gases in the Atmosphere, particularly Methane as noted in the article “Australia's burping cows more climate friendly than thought”, published May 27 2011 by David Fogarty, Reuters

He pointed out that the problem is really mindset, as children and by extension Millennials are more accepting of the idea of eating Insects, quote: “Children don't have a problem with eating Insects, but adults with developed eating habits do, and only tasting and experience can make them change their minds. The problem is psychological”.

He further pointed out that it is imperative that Europeans (and by extension the rest of the First, Developed and Developing World!!) begin consuming Insect Protein as, quote: “Meat consumption is expected to double from 2000 to 2050. We are already using 70 percent of our agricultural land for livestock and we cannot afford to spare more”!

So what explains this phenomenon of Millennials people buying Sparky's Homemade Ice Cream Facebook with Cicadas, knowing that it’s full of bugs, this time not the computer kind? Aside from the fact that eating Insect Protein reduces GreenHouse Gas Methane and may Save the Planet, Walt Disney Send It On Style?

To aid my explanation, please click on the YouTube link here for Vybz Kartel - Cake Soap and listen to this while reading the rest of my article below and it will become clear to you!! Or just listen to the Walt Disney Send It On, whichever you like!!!

It may have nothing to do with the taste of the Cicadas, which for the record, taste like shrimp (I tried chocolate covered Grasshoppers once at C&W Jamaica Ltd!!). It may have more to do with the product that the Cicadas are associated with and the demographic that it is associated with the product: Ice Cream.

Brand Association Marketing People, an example of my theory “A So Di Ting Set” as stated in my blog article entitled “Brown Dawg and A So di Ting Set - a API tool for user preferences and avoid backlash”!! Pay attention!!

Even more interesting, it may be another case of a trend among Millennials as it relates to trying out something which is unique and speaks something about your character: a Taste of the Orient!!

This as Insect Protein is widely consumed as a regular snack in the Malaysia and Thailand, not just as delicacies, as some may think from the movie Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984)!

This as most Ice Cream is, from an anecdotal point of view, consumed by Millennials. Older folks in Missouri may not necessarily like the taste of fresh raw Insects, Smoores-ed or not! But once the wings and pointed parts are plucked off, Pasteurized and Smoores-ed in chocolate, the little critters become tasty treats to the young un’s.

Professor Arnold van Huis of Wageningen University in the Netherlands, there’s you PhD dissertation right there!!

This as the typical target demographic, based on rather dated statistical data presented in the article “(Almost) everyone loves Ice Cream”, published Saturday, December 1 2001 By David Wellman, All Business is parents of teenagers and teenagers, the younger age range among Millennials.

And interestingly, new Ice Cream Flavours drives the Ice Cream Market in the United States of America. The more exotic the confection, the more popular your establishment will be as stated in the article “Ice Cream scene heats up with hot new flavors”, published June 2, 2011, 11:25AM ET, By MICHELLE LOCKE, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS, The BusinessWeek.

As usual, Statistics to back up my argument, this time provided by the International Dairy Foods Association:

1. One billion, five hundred and twenty million (1,520,000,000 gal) gallons of Ice Cream were produced in 2009AD
2. 90% of American households consume Ice Cream and related frozen desserts.
3. California, (where CNET News Editor Molly Wood lives!) produces (and most likely consumes!) the most frozen dairy desserts, coasting in at a decent one hundred and sixty nine million (169,000,000 gal) gallons in 2009AD.

Too bad the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) in the United States of America did not have a sense of humour about home-made Ice Cream with crunchy Chocolate and Sugar coated Cicadas!

Because Sparky's Homemade Ice Cream may be onto something VERY big here in terms of combining Insect Protein with such a popular product!!

It is good to note that the article does not say that the Columbia County Department of Public Health shut down the establishment, as apparently the preparation of the Cicadas does comply with safety regulations. Just that they were advised to stop selling the product!!

In fact, Environmental Health Chief Gerry Worley with the Columbia County Department of Public Health, was pretty much on the fence, stating that FDA regulations, quote: “doesn't directly address cicadas” and thus erred on the side of caution, forbidding their usage!!

So Sparky's Homemade Ice Cream with Cicadas were and still are possibly doing roaring business, which would explain why Forbes Magazine, BusinessWeek and the MSNBC’s Today Show caught on to this story, which I first saw and commented on Face book!

Nothing like a little bit of free publicity!!

This as the employees of Sparky's Homemade Ice Cream took care to only use Cicadas that were already dead out of their own backyards, enough security that they did from natural causes. Also, the wings and legs, where mites and ticks may live, were removed and possibly they were pasteurized to kill off any bacteria that may reside in the Insect’s gut.

Not much different from the removal of the poisonous fins of the Red Lionfish (Pterois volitans)! Fraught with the same dangers of Salmonella poisoning, except less so if pasteurized before being eaten!!

But this also translates to good News for the Big Three (3) Fast Food emporiums KFC Jamaica, Mother’s and Burger King. As it means that if this craze is an indication of a permanent trend as it relates to the consumption of Insect Protein, it may well work in Jamaica as well!

This as Seventh Day Adventists, whose influence over society’ dietary habits is evident from Jamaica’s low Pork consumption level of forty five kilograms (45kg) per person consumption as noted in the article “CB spent $400m to get more Pork eaters”, published Wednesday, April 06, 2011, The Jamaica Observer, have no objection to Insects.

Being as it is in enshrined within the Dietary Requirements that Seventh Day Adventists follow based on in Leviticus 11:21-23, that is! 

Insect Protein is cheaper to produce than Beef or Mutton as pointed out in the above article entitled “Save the planet: Swap your steak for bugs and worms”, published Tuesday Jan 18, 2011 6:02am EST by Ivana Sekularac, Reuters.

Thus selling it in Ice Cream may be the way to make the Consumption of Insect Protein go mainstream!!!

Bazinga!!

And as a final statistical salvo from International Dairy Foods Association, the Top Five (5) Most Popular Ice Cream flavours in the United States of America in order of most consumed are:

1. Vanilla
2. Chocolate
3. Strawberry
4. Chocolate chip
5. Butter pecan

Local Jamaican Grasshoppers or Locusts combined with the above Top Five (5) Most Popular Ice Cream flavours, which may or may not be popular Ice Cream flavours being sold in Jamaica at the above Jamaican Fast Food Chains mentioned.

Starting first with KFC Jamaica, who already tag-teamed with Rainforest Seafoods to launch the Red Lionfish (Pterois volitans) for Fish Fillets and Fish Sticks as stated in my blog article entitled “Rainforest Seafoods vs the Lionfish - KFC iTwist in Yendi Phillip's Emerald Forest”.

Mother’s could also round out the list of Guinea Pigs in a one-two combo punch to test out this idea locally in Jamaica. If successful, the Local Jamaican Fast Food Establishments may have a Summer of 2011AD hit on their hands!!

Not to mention a cheaper way of making Meat Protein for Patties, Seventh Day Adventist approved as per Leviticus 11:21-23!!

Just make sure it is an option, like those multi-coloured Rainbow Sprinkles I mentioned!!

The only problem I foresee is convincing Yendi Phillips, Miss World 2007 and Miss Universe 2010 to endorse it in a Television Commercial……..as she may not like Grasshoppers Chocolate Chip, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) Style!!!