Transport Strike threatens smooth run of 3GSM

With Spain facing a tough 2012 by all accounts, it was with great joy that the majority of businesses wiped their brow with relief when last summer, the World Mobile Congress decided to stay in Barcelona for its annual get together, rather than move cities as had been feared. The Congress injects a great deal of must needed cash into the city, and whilst the main winners are the hosteleria industry, it also goes a long way to promoting Barcelona on the world stage.

Each year, the congress has gone from strength to strength with keynote speakers for all of the biggest names in Mobile technology (actually over 800) as well as CEO of Google, for example. With 120 million Euros floating around to fund the congress, you can see the benefits outweigh the investment. Indeed, this year organisers are
expecting a 40% increase in visitors - surpassing the 60,000 mark.

The World Mobile Congress is held at the Fira de Barcelona

However, not everyone is happy about the arrival of the world's eyes on the Catalan Capital, and transport union along with TMB have decided to strike from the 27th February till the 1st March - the exact dates of the conference. There was a proposal to only strike for the 27th, but finally it was agreed to go whole hog and do the full confrernce dates. Some of the many complaints about the conference in previous years  - apart from security on the city streets - have been precisely about the lack of taxis to ferry people to and from La Fira. Last year saw extra taxis put on in an attempt to keep the flow of visitors running. Obviuosly this is a blow not only to the organisers of the conference but also the city council who have criticised the move claiming it will damage the brand identity of Barcelona - something the tourism board has been working on intensively for over two years.

I can completely understand both sides to the story and suspect the strikes will give rise to make people taking advantage of the situation in illegal taxi services for example, given the level of unemployment and opportunity. What do you think about the planned strikes? Can the city be held to ransom by TMB like the air traffic controllers a few years back?  Do you have anyone directly affected by the proposed strikes? Surely schools and work places will suffer as a result? Can an agreement be made before then? Let me know your comments, I'd love to hear.

Coming to Barcelona this cold spell? Check out these Barcelona apartments as a great alternative to city hotels. And for a quick flick through of what's to see and not to miss, check out this Barcelona Guide.

The State of World Mobile in 2011

This month, as always, sees the city of Barcelona as host to the most important minds and businesses in the Mobile Phone Industry. Growth of smart phones has increased enormously over the past few years alone, and the huge International companies showcase their wares in Barcelona from the 14th to 17th February (for those of you planning a last minute Valentine's Break, you may want to think again as Barcelona as the destination!).



Apple's iPhone, Google's Android, RIM Blackberry and Windows Mobile are all vying for your attention alongside Vodafone, A T & T, Telefonica, Ericsson, Yahoo, Twitter and many many more - the keynote speakers list this year reads like a who's who of current internet mobile technology. Facebook reaches millions upon millions of people: 500 million to be exact. And 200 million Facebook users are mobile, getting their Facebook fix from their Android, iPhone, and Windows devices. There's no doubting the market is huge.

Last year, much of the "wow" factor was taken by Google Goggles amazing translation tool and although that has quite possibly been bettered already, you can bet there will be another few rounds of applause in the App Planet this year, too.

The Congress has been injecting life into Barcelona's tourism industry since 2006, and is safe as host for the moment. However, with the bidding launched for 2013 onwards last summer you can bet that everyone involved with the congress is praying for a smooth running this year, given that the announcement is to be made "mid-20112 as to who will take the crown from then on. As usual with Barcelona, petty crime has been a problem in previous years, as well as hiked up hotel room prices (as of writing there was only ONE room available via the official website at the Barcelona W hotel at a cool 8,500 Euros per night!).

If you're coming to Barcelona this February, then consider apartments in Barcelona as a great alternative to hotel rooms. And for a quick look at the top sights, then check out this Barcelona On-line Guide.

Cool New Translation Tool Launched in Barcelona

This week lots of men and women in suits with funny pink name tags around their necks have been wandering the streets of Barcelona for the World Mobile Congress. Early reports suggest it's been another rip-roaring success and Barcelona has also secured the conference for another two years, keeping the mayor and the tourist office happy.

Some great things come out of the congress, such as Vodafone's launch of new very basic mobile phones which will cost as little as 15 Euros, and are planned to help connect poor countires such as Africa and other ciommunities which are not "connected" but need to be. There was also a funny alcohol breathaliser contraption you could attach to your mobile - allegedly marketed for "professional drivers" and not your everyday citizen who thinks they should be ok to take the car home after a few cheeky beers.



However, one of the best things I've seen for a long time was Google's announcement of the new translation feature through Google goggles. Google goggles is an image recognition service used through a mobile device's camera. At the moment, and as far as I can tell as I don't have it, you can point your camera to monuments like, say, the Eiffel Tower, and Google will tell you what it is. I know, I know - why do you need your phone to tall you what the Eiffel tower is? Bear with me.

So the cool thing is that Google showed an example of the goggles programme translating a German Menu into English - in real time - and by taking a photo of it. How cool is that, potentially?! I personally have been to cities in thw world and walked past restaurants that look great, but have no English menu (or any other language to try and guess) and always feel to silly to just sit down and hope the waiter can help me. This could spell the end for embarrassing orders from menus, and not even for restaurants, for example, the possibilities are endless. And obviously the potential for Google to cash in is huge, too, given that the application runs on Google's android system, and likely nothing else either.

Coming to Barcelona this month? Don't worry! The menus in the restaurants aren't that difficult to work out?! Also, check out these self-catering apartments in Barcelona, and cook in!! For a look at the main sights and help plan, check out this Barcelona Guide.

All Eyes on Montjüic This Month.

This month sees the World Mobile Congress return to the Fira de Barcelona at Montjüic. From the 15th to 18th February, some of the biggest names in Mobile technology take over the city for the 4th year running.

Anyone and everyone who is someone in the world of Mobile Phones and technology is attending this year. Of course, many are eager to see how Google will probably steal the show with the launch of it's Nexus One handset, as it did in Las Vegas recently. In fact, Google are obviously taking things really seriously by sending CEO and "Do No Evil" Eric Schmidt as a keynote speaker, alongside the CEO's of the likes of Ericsson, Huawei, Vodafone and many other big players.

It's said that the New Phone - technically not a Google phone at all as it's manufactured by HTC - will be the iPhone killer, which to be honest I'm a bit sick of hearing. This is about the 4th or 5th iPhone killer we've had launch on the market, isn't it? I don't care either, as I've got a BlackBerry!! The Nexus One is not even available yet in Spain, and if reports across the net are anything to go by, the customer service and after-care attention leaves a lot to be desired!! Do you like the look of the new phone? And are you queuing up to get one? Apparently Vodafone will have the phone, but they may not be the only one. We'll wait and see.

Are you looking for accommodation for the World Mobile Congress? Check out the apartments at BCN rentals on the above link. Amd for a quick and easy look at the main city sights, see this Barcelona Guide.

Mobile World Congress Arrives in Town.

The hospitality industry breathes a sigh of releief this week, as the Mobile World Congress (formerly the 3GSM) arrives in town - from the 16th to 19th February at the Fira de Barcelona at the foot of Montjüic. This is one of the biggest events in Barcelona, and past years have seen 100% occupation of hotels and tourist apartments for rent in Barcelona.

Press releases today have stated that, depsite the current economic downturn, and the fact that the recent fashion show Bread and Butter is returning to Berlin and leaving Barcelona, there is still a high attendance for the world's mobile phone conference. It's estimated that 55,000 people will attend the event, which although official stats say that's 5000 people down from last year, is still leaving the hospitality industry smiling.



Hotels have registered 95% occupancy and the self-catering apartments have an estimated 85% occupancy, compared with 100% from previous years.

This year sees the emergance of the android phones, as an attempt to break into the massive market share that Apple has gained with it's iPhone. Google (in conjunction with HTC) have their own android phone, which looks clunky, but may make people think again about opting for a Blackberry or Palm (both of which are also set to launch a new model).

I've noticed that this year there's not as much publicity for the big players. Ads have been confined to buses and taxis, where in previous years full buildings have been covered with billboard style announcments of a company's presence at the fair. Please comment if you're thinking of heading down to the Congress, I'd love to have some feedback.