2007 12
My First day with Ubuntu
Published by MartinVarsavsky.net in MV with No Comments
Around a month ago my Windows XP Lenovo had a major crash and left me without some of my data for 5 days and I was so angry that I swore never to use Microsoft Operating Systems again. In this video I described my experience using Ubuntu. It was a great one.
2007 11
Muni WiFi a la FON
Published by MartinVarsavsky.net in Fon with No Comments
LLeida is now the second Spanish FON city after Malaga and there are more coming. Yesterday I had an announcement with the mayor that went very well. I have met with many mayors since I started FON but never with a mayor who was also a tech geek. Lleida’s mayor is the former CTO of Madrid and Barcelona and he teaches Computer Science at the local University. It was a pleasure to announce that he had already FON enabled 40 public buildings.
Our method? Very simple, we give La Foneras out for free to the City Administrations and citizens buy their own La Foneras. We also give La Foneras for free to underprivileged citizens.
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2007 9
My Kids Don’t Download Movies Anymore…
Published by MartinVarsavsky.net in General with No Comments
Now they simply go to Alluc, they select the movie or TV series they want to watch (lately they are hooked on Heroes), and the show appears instantaneously on Daily Motion.
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2007 7
We Fear China For The Wrong Reasons
Published by MartinVarsavsky.net in International with No Comments
In this video I talk about my conversations with top Taiwanese and Chinese entrepreneurs and my own tentative conclusions. I describe paradoxes presented by the Taiwan/China situation. One for example is that presently many more people migrate from Taiwan to China, that is from democratic to undemocratic, than the other way around. Another paradox is that after talking to many people in Taiwan and China I have come to the conclusion that China should be feared more for its desire to be like America rather than its alleged desire to antagonize America. Many in the West are concerned that China will become a military power that will eventually clash with the United States. I used to think that as well. But after my conversations with different business leaders in the region I have changed my mind. I believe that it is unlikely that China will seek military confrontation and instead what worries me is not only China does not hate America but the opposite is true. The Chinese love America and especially the American way of life and that is a threat to the planet. China likes America so much that it is copying the American model. Unfortunately it is not copying what is good about America, democracy, but it´s copying what is bad about America, its unsustainable developmental model. By copying America´s developmental model China is making the planet already shaking from America´s incredibly high pollution per person, even less sustainable. To me the greatest risk about China has little to do with business, little to do with politics, even less to do with geopolitics and a lot to do with the environment. As Al Gore frequently argues America´s disregard for the environment is already creating the world greatest threat to our survival. Now that China has chosen to develop along the American model the damage created by these two powers combine will greatly accelerate the problems that European and Japanese among others are trying to manage.
2007 6
FON’s R&D Projects
Published by MartinVarsavsky.net in Fon with No Comments
In this video, driving around Taipei, I talk about FON’s new R&D projects.
2007 6
Free WiFi with Ads
Published by MartinVarsavsky.net in Fon with No Comments
At Fon if you get a Fonera (our social, WiFi router that partitions WiFi networks creating a private and a public signal) and you keep it on, you can roam the world for free connected to other people´s Foneras. With this simple proposition Fon has created the largest WiFi network in the world by number of hotspots or by number of countries. Our formula protects those who share from viruses, it protects their privacy and it reserves most bandwidth for their own use so foneros feel safe. Fon also protects ISPs or Telcos from the leeching that now normally occurs when people who do not pay for broadband roam by connecting to other people´s open routers (Linksys and Netgear come open) so ISPs and telcos prefer Fon to open WiFi that leads to less broadband uptake and higher churn. So Foneros can roam the world for free feeling safe. ISPs in turn, allow Fon because even though in theory it may violate their terms and conditions in practice it makes them sell more broadband and reduce churn (with Fon customers who travel a lot don´t churn). But what happens if you are not a fonero and you find Fon WiFi signal?
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Last night I was having dinner with C.J. Cherng, the very able CEO of Taiwanese ISP Seednet, a Fon partner. During dinner we were talking about how global the Internet is and yet how different local rules are for ISPs around the world. On one side, there´s the US, who invented liberalization and, after being successfully copied by the whole world, retreated into a duopoly situation that is hurting the US consumer. On the other, there´s Europe, which implemented unbundling to such an extent that now European ISPs are the most competitive in the world. ISPs, like another Fon partner Neuf in France, have a menu of choices that would make any American forget about French rudeness and want to move there. For around $40 you get free national and international long distance, up to 20meg download speeds, a TIVO like service, cable TV channels, storage, mail, etc. And if you are an Internet fan and you happen to live in Sweden, then Labs2 offers you 100MB both ways for 89 euros a month.
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2007 4
Investment in Sevenload
Published by MartinVarsavsky.net in Investments with No Comments
I invested in Sevenload, a European video platform. Some readers of my blog may not understand why I invested in Sevenload if I already invested in Vpod, but both services are great for different reasons. While Vpod is very good for video editing and mobile uploading, Sevenload is like the combination of a Flickr and a Youtube, which is something the internet space very much needed. But not only did I get involved with Sevenload because I love the site and how easy it is to use, but also because of Ibo, Axel and the fantastic team of developers they have.
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2007 4
If You Truly Hate Wireless Communications…
Published by MartinVarsavsky.net in Fon with No Comments
You can paint your home with this!
2007 2
Holidays in El Nido, Philippines.
Published by MartinVarsavsky.net in General with No Comments
My wife, my youngest son and I, are on holidays in El Nido, Philippines. Based on what I have seen so far, I don’t understand this country’s absence from the top tourist destination lists. El Nido is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been to and that includes comparisons with the Caribbean, Mediterranean and Polynesia. It is also the most affordable.
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