Carl Howe beat me to the punch on Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7 announcement, but having just played with a Phone 7 demo device and being briefed by Microsoft on the new OS, let me expand on three of Carl’s original comments:

- WP7S is focused on the consumer. Absolutely. In the words of Michael Chang, Senior Product Manager, “Microsoft in the past built for OEM’s – with this product, Microsoft built for consumers.” Consumers here means actual people, too, not office drones who need only productivity applications. Critics will highlight that WP7S doesn’t offer the most cutting-edge features, but Chang says this misses the point: “We don’t want to build a phone that does everything, but we do want to build phones that help you live.”

- WP7S is differentiated in its offering. Yes, but moreso through its integration with other Microsoft properties than in any unique aspects of the UI or consumer experience. For example, the way WP7S integrates social media is slick, but no more so than what Motorola offers through its MotoBlur streams. But the deep integration with Zune (for music content) and X-Box Live (for gaming) demonstrate how the scope of Microsoft’s businesses can be an a tremendous asset in mobility.

- Microsoft gave up on legacy code that was holding it back. Yes – and this is perhaps the most significant aspect of the 7 Series annoucement. Chang talked about how Microsoft, after some serious soul searching, recognized the need to make “fundamental changes” in mobile, and chose to “blow up” the engineering team and start from scratch. (Chang even used the word “humility” to describe Microsoft’s approach to new product development.) This was no doubt a painful and – considering how fast the industry is moving, and how quickly Apple and Google/Android are gaining device market and mindshare – costly decision, but ultimately should prove to be exactly the right course of action.

Since we’re still months away from seeing an real WP7S device, it’s probably not worth making too much of Microsoft’s new OS. (After all, Samsung also recently announced a new OS – Bada – and they’ve been showing off an actual phone at Mobile World Congress to demonstrate its capabilities.) But in an era of non-stop Google vs Apple media coverage, WP7S is a good reminder that there are more than two horses in the race for the future of mobile computing.

The economic crisis proved a major obstacle for consumers, enterprises and network builders, and each has had to evolve to survive. The changes from 2009 will create new opportunities in the Anywhere ecosystem, especially in the areas of cord-cutting, devices, cloud computing and network innovation.

Earlier today, I was joined by my colleagues Jon Paisner, Camille Mendler and Josh Holbrook to unveil Yankee Group’s top predictions for the 2010 communications industry. We discussed six of our eleven published predictions and took questions live from the audience. Check out the webinar replay below. You can also register as a Guest on the Yankee Group Web site to get the full report for free.

The webinar runs about an hour: audio (mp3) and slides (pdf).

Yankee Group predicted 2009 would be a watershed year that would drive profound changes to forever alter the communications landscape. Just six months into the year, dramatic shifts have already taken place amid economic anxiety, declining consumer confidence and widespread industry pessimism.

Phil Hochmuth, David Vorhaus  and myself hosted a webinar where we revisited Yankee Group’s 2009 predictions and explored the marketplace dynamics from the first half of the year.

The webinar runs about an hour: audio (mp3) and slides (pdf).

When Mark Cavendish crossed the finish line as the winner of the 3^rd stage of the Tour de France, he triumphantly struck a pose for the assembled army of photographers and video cameras: he lifted his index and pinkie finger to chin and ear, making the international “call me” sign. It was a great moment for cycling – and an even better moment for Cavendish’s sponsor, mobile phone manufacturer HTC.

Cavendish’s nod to HTC highlighted the importance of team sponsors to professional cycling, so it wasn’t surprising that one of biggest stories happened off the race course: Lance Armstrong’s announcement that he would race in 2010 with a new sponsor, wireless device retailer RadioShack. The announcement means that the top three professional cycling teams in the US will be sponsored by wireless and connectivity ecosystem players, or what we would call Anywhere Brands. (In addition to HTC and RadioShack, GPS and navigational device manufacturer Garmin is the third.) So why are so many Anywhere Brands sponsoring professional cycling teams?

I have a couple theories. One is that professional cycling has always had a strong following among “aspirational” consumers – individuals who aspire to have the best products and services available. Much in the same way that Telefonica sponsors a sailing team and AT&T sponsors professional golf, the Tour de France is a effective marketing platform to reach discriminating consumers. For companies like Garmin and HTC, who have both enjoyed modest success but are eager to generate demand for their higher-end devices, an elite event like the Tour can help build valuable brand association.

Also, it doesn’t hurt that there is less competition for sponsorship dollars. Sports marketing certainly isn’t limited to cycling, and some of the most profligate sports marketers in recent years – especially banks and media companies – are suffering. The relatively strong performance of many Anywhere Brands is a reminder of how healthy our industry is.

Finally, as mobility and connectivity become increasingly ubiquitous and commonplace, the companies providing connectivity – either as a manufacturer, service provider or retailer – have to seek out different sources of competitive differentiation. The technical features, or “speed and feeds,” that were once the focus of most industry marketing efforts have given way to traditional consumer branding efforts. In Europe, where both the maturity of service provider markets and the popularity of cycling far exceed that in the US, regional providers from France (Bouygues Telecom), Spain (Euskatel) and Germany (Deutsche Telekom) have all sponsored cycling teams.

Which brings us back to Lance Armstrong. After four years away from the sport, Armstrong returned to cycling this summer, and RadioShack’s decision to sponsor the rider next year is a shrewd move. Armstrong is one of those rare athletes that transcend his sport, and his professional success (7 straight victories in the Tour de France), personal backstory (a cancer survivor and now prominent cancer fundraiser) and reliance on technology (earpiece radios and GPS devices are de rigueur in cycling today, plus Armstrong personally is a strong advocate of social media) combine to provide an exceptional advertising platform for an aspiring Anywhere Brand. RadioShack – which was left for dead as recently as two years ago, but has rebounded solidly because of its current emphasis on mobility – is a great match. This certainly wasn’t lost on RadioShack’s Chief Marketing Officer Lee Applbaum, who said in a statement “RadioShack keeps people connected in a highly mobile world through innovative technology from leading brands … Lance Armstrong understands the power of keeping people connected and that’s why we feel he’s the perfect partner for our brand.” 

The 2009 Tour de France concluded yesterday, with Alberto Contador of Spain the winner and Armstrong placing third. The two riders don’t like each other, and the prospect of two former champions battling head-to-head again should make next year’s Tour de France one of the most exciting ever. As the 2010 Tour heats up, expect to see a lot of “Team RadioShack” jerseys on the backs of recreational cyclists next summer, and plenty of visability for cycling-savvy Anywhere Brands.

… and red all over?

Answer: The balance sheet of the New York Times.

I wish I could take credit for this zinger, but Jon Stewart and the Daily Show delivered this dig and many others when their cameras visited the Times last week. Carl Howe touched on how all media is struggling with changing distribution and business models in his post two weeks ago, but the decline of many of our biggest and best newspapers is the most devastating example of media’s brave new world.

Residents of Boston have had front row seats to this decline. The fate of the Boston Globe has been the focus of daily reporting in the Globe itself, the New York Times (which actually owns the Globe) and especially the Boston Herald (which is clearly enjoying the struggles of its longtime competitor). I’ve read all of these reports (online, ironically) and I have to say it’s pretty depressing stuff. One of the biggest sticking points has been the issue of guaranteed lifetime employment, which is emblematic of the belief that newspapers as an institution will survive forever, despite evidence to the contrary. (I’m not pointing fingers at either management or the union, but I think both parties were delusional to even discuss lifetime employment given current market conditions.)

Yesterday, however, there was finally something positive to report: the Globe and its union agreed to $10 million in wage and benefit cuts, “following three months of bitter labor talks that threatened to close the 137-year-old paper.” This is good news – for the city of Boston, for journalism in general, and for the employees and owners of the Globe who now at least live to fight another day. But the thing that stands out to me is the timing: the agreement was reached after three months of discussion, and that was only after both sides “retreated into nine months of silence,” despite ample evidence that immediate changes were necessary.

Contrast this with what is happening at college campuses across the country. I’m on the Board of Directors of the Heights – the student paper at Boston College, where many years ago I was an editor and columnist. (The Heights is independent, meaning it receives no school funding and has only nominal oversight by the University, so the directors – all former writers and editors, like myself – provide some modest financial and strategic oversight.) The Editor-in-Chief and Managing Editor called an emergency meeting of the board a couple months ago, because for the first time that anyone could remember, costs were outpacing revenues. Like any paper, the Heights sells advertising, and at both the national and local level, ad revenues were down. The editorial board made some simple projections and figured they could lose a lot of money if they didn’t make changes – so they immediately changed everything. They cut down the total number of pages, eliminated sections, moved some of the cut content to their website, renegotiated their printing contracts, and even struck an ad-revenue deal with Google. Without any outside prompting, the editorial board considered dozens of solutions, and then called the directors for advice and counsel.

That a little college paper run by twenty year-olds can respond faster and more appropriately to changing market conditions than a large company of seasoned professionals is actually not that surprising. In many ways, the editors and staff of college papers today have a big advantage over their counterparts at major metropolitan papers. They’ve grown up through – and are responsible for – the permanent displacement of numerous other entrenched communication tools (compact discs by digital music players, voice-centric landline phones by messaging-centric wireless devices, primetime television by timeshifting DVRs, and so on). Unlike the management and staff of the Globe, the editors and staff of the Heights can easily envision a world without printed papers. To them, the permanent displacement traditional newspapers is logical and likely, but not predestined. The editors and staff of the Heights want the paper to live on, not because of concerns about lifetime employment, but because they believe in the product. Instead of wasting time convincing themselves that “newspapers will never die,” they simply said “not on my watch” and worked hard to reverse the paper’s fortunes, if only temporarily. Sometimes it’s easier to save an institution when you don’t assume it will live on forever.

In the end, CTIA was as quiet as most people had feared / predicted. The absence of any blockbuster announcements, modest foot traffic at all but a few booths, and noticeably more subdued analyst and press events had the combined effect of dampening one’s enthusiasm. But despite of the quieter tone overall, most of the people and companies I spoke with expressed continued optimism, fueled by a steadfast belief in the innovative spirit of industry participants. In fact, innovation was a common theme here in Las Vegas. From CTIA chairman Robert Dotson’s kick-off keynote address lauding the efforts of garage developers everywhere, to the vast and empty Nortel booth – which served as a painful reminder that the failure to innovate has consequences – innovation was one buzz-word for a show short on buzz. Here are a few examples that stood out:

Innovative Devices - AT&T President of Emerging Devices Glenn Lurie spoke at lunch yesterday about how his door is open for all new devices, even those “cobbled together with duct tape” as the operator looks beyond traditional form factors. Verizon Wireless made similar statements, acknowledging that it had certified some three dozen non-phone devices, including wireless patient record tablets and smart grid energy monitors. Yankee Group has long been talking about the inevitability that nearly every device – from umbrellas to vehicles to appliances to dog collars (apparently Lurie’s favorite example) – will be a connected node on the Anywhere Network, and this week’s announcements suggest the largest industry participants are doing their part to make this happen.

Innovative Services - As connectivity percolates into every corner of the human experience, a number of compelling new mobile services were announced. A particular area of focus was healthcare, where keynote Dr. Eric Topol summarized some of the recent advances in wireless medicine, and a number of new solutions were announced for the first time – from patient monitoring tools to ‘virtual eye’ applications for the visually impaired. M2M services were another clear area of focus, as a host of companies offered remote monitoring solutions for just about everything under the sun. Even Ford got into the mobile services action, promoting a new line of connected trucks (with an in-dash touch-screen computer, pre-loaded with Opera’s mobile internet browser) and a suite of truck-based mobile applications tailored to the needs of field workers in construction and farming.

Innovative Pricing - As the number of connected devices and services explodes, operator business models will need change to keep pace. AT&T Mobility CEO Ralph de la Vega stated that future wireless plans would likely be exclusively data, and that per-minute voice pricing would soon be a thing of the past. De la Vega also acknowledged that data bundles – enabling a consumer to use multiple connected devices with one just one wireless plan – would have to emerge to support changes in consumer behavior. 

Of course too many of the innovations offered at CTIA were not ready for primetime; “we expect to launch sometime in 2010” was an all-too-frequent refrain from company presenters. But maybe that’s not such a bad thing: even as the rest of the world buckles down and prepares for a dismal 2009, wireless companies big and small are looking ahead.