A local company, which has developed a file-sharing platform for cellphones, says users are being overcharged for mobile content, but competitors have raised concerns over copyright infringement.
Pogo, developed by Flavour Marketing, enables users to send 1c text messages, use a chat room at 1c an hour and share ringtones, music, games and videos on all Java and WAP enabled cellphones, says Jaysen du Plessis, MD of Flavour Marketing.
Since its release in May, Pogo has been downloaded over 1 000 times, Du Plessis says, and approximately 6 800 items, mostly music or games, have been downloaded by users, he adds.
The industry is, however, uncertain about the offering.
Legal implications
Dot Field, chief communications officer for Vodacom, says as peer-to-peer providers have no control over the content being shared, they might aid in the sharing of copyrighted or even illegal content.
The consequences of unauthorised sharing of content affects the profits of developers who invest valuable time to create this content, says David Muller, national brand manager of Gozomo, a mobile content provider.
Du Plessis emphasises that users are expected to share content they own, or copyright-free content. Flavour Marketing cannot be held responsible for actions of users who unlawfully share content that has copyright to it, he says.
Another problem Muller foresees is the user has to pay for Internet connection for the duration of the content download. An hour in a chat room on a wireless device ends up being much more than 1c, he says.
However, Du Plessis says the same principle applies when a user downloads mobile content from a content provider. He also argues that mobile content such as ringtones are shorter versions of the real thing, while the peer-to-peer sharing allows users to share the full rendition of the song.
Field notes that the platform has limitations, as text messages are not actually true SMSes and can only be sent among the Pogo users.
Increased vulnerability
Field also says peer-to-peer connections make a cellphone vulnerable to a virus attack and hacking in the same manner as when a PC is connected to the Internet.
There is also no guarantee that unknown applications loaded on a cellphone will not affect the inherent stability of the cellphone, she says. Tests on cellphones that have loaded a number of these applications show these have become unstable, requiring a number of cold restarts, she says.
"Vodacom is noticing an increase in the requirement from customers for cellphone software support, where the cost of such repair is billed to the customer as it falls outside of the cellphone warranty provided by Vodacom," she says.
Du Plessis says he expected the industry`s the lack of enthusiasm. He says mobile content companies are charging cellphone users exorbitant amounts for mobile content and operators are getting a slice of that. Pogo allows cellphone users who previously did not use mobile content to access and share content at costs they can afford, he says.
To download the application at a once-off fee of R30, send the word Pogo to 42030.
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