Friday, May 30, 2008 -- 11:30 a.m. -- on my couch

I think Apple just changed the game by just changing a name.

You know that invitation Apple sent out with the twin bridge spans? The thing for it's WWDC conference on June 9? The one that reads "A landmark event. In more ways than one"?

For months now, people have been trying to figure out what the symbolism of the bridges is. Apple usually has some sort of symbolism.

They aren't easy to figure out. I think I may have.

Warning: Spoiler alert. Warning: This is long. Warning: Reading all of this is highly recommended.

If you've been surfing the AppleWebs this morning, you probably have seen references to big changes coming to Apple's .mac service.

While those rumors aren't new, there's new apparent confirmation -- that looks very, very strong to me -- that a change is imminent and even includes a new name.

Now let me back up a second, so please bear with me.

First, let me say that you don't have to pay Apple $99 a year for a .mac subscription to be affected by this. Love it or hate it, if what we see here is true, .mac will become something that no iPhone user can afford to be without.

Earlier this month, I did a little write-up on what .mac could be and what it should be. In a nutshell, I said that if Apple revamps it to be more like Outlook and makes it free that it could change the way Mac users communicate -- and more importantly in this case, change the way iPhone users communicate with everyone.

In today's rumors, which contain real screenshots from Apple's newest update to Leopard, 10.5.3, .mac is referred to as the old name for Apple's service. It's replaced by this variable, "%@" and that basically is a blank line that Apple can go back into and change in a quick software update to any name it wants.

The name that is getting the most attention is "Mobile Me," based on some other findings deep in Apple's software code.

But if you aren't familiar with Mobile Me, well, you should be. In a nutshell, because it could be the subject of a book. Apple filed the patent for Mobile Me in early 2006. I still have the word file where I jotted these notes down because I knew way back then that this would be amazing. I remember telling friends about it.

The filings covered these key areas, according to the U.S. patent site:

"Computer services; computer data recovery; data analysis being computer services; computer programming; updating of computer software; maintenance of computer software, computer and communications networks, and computer systems; research and development of computer hardware and software; website design, creation, hosting services;"

"providing digital music from local or global communications networks, including the internet, intranets, extranets, television, mobile communication, cellular and satellite networks; operating chat rooms; publication of electronic books and journals from local or global communications networks, including the internet, intranets, extranets, television, mobile communication, cellular and satellite networks; providing on-line electronic publications; electronic games services provided from local or global communications networks, including the internet, intranets, extranets, television, mobile communication, cellular and satellite networks; information relating to music entertainment, education, interactive entertainment and education, provided on-line from local or global communications networks, including the internet, intranets, extranets, television, mobile communication, cellular and satellite networks; music library services; organizing and conducting seminars and training courses relating to science, engineering, computer systems and business"

But it was the final two sections that got me buzzing about Apple creating an iPhone ... this is where my whole thing about mobile videoconferencing started:

"Portable digital electronic devices and software related thereto; handheld digital electronic devices and software related thereto; digital audio players, including digital music players, and software related thereto; digital video players and software related thereto; MP3 players and software related thereto; handheld computers, personal digital assistants, pagers, electronic organizers, electronic notepads; telephones, mobile phones, videophones; computer gaming machines; microprocessors, memory boards; monitors, displays, keyboards, cables, modems, printers, disk drives; cameras, digital cameras; prerecorded computer programs for personal information management; database management software; character recognition software; telephony management software; electronic mail and messaging software, paging software; database synchronization software; computer programs for accessing, browsing and searching online databases;"

"Telecommunication services; electronic transmission and retrieval of data, images, audio, video and documents, including text, cards, letters, messages, mail, animations, and electronic mail, over local or global communications networks, including the internet, intranets, extranets, television, mobile communication, cellular and satellite networks; electronic transmission of computer software over local or global communications networks, including the internet, intranets, extranets, television, mobile communication, cellular, and satellite networks; electronic mail services; facsimile transmission; web site portal services; providing access to databases and local or global communications networks, including the internet, intranets, extranets, television, mobile communication, cellular, and satellite networks; internet service provider services; message transmission services, namely, electronic transmission of messages; telecommunication services for the dissemination of information by mobile telephone, namely the transmission of data to mobile telephones; mobile telephone communication services."

Anyhow, back to 2008 -- The embedded code sees mentions of the name Mobile Me and that's why I think Apple is about to revamp .mac as Mobile Me ... and hopefully it comes with Apple's fantastic eye for great marketing in the form of big commercial productions. I point you to this link from MacRumors that talks about a 3G iPhone commercial. Maybe, maybe, but more likely a commercial for Mobile Me. Where else can you be mobile and be you than in the city that never sleeps?

So here's what we have here in this rather lengthy post:

1. .mac will likely change its name.

2. .mac will likely get a new focus

3. .mac or Mobile Me will focus on the link (bridging the gap) between your work and home worlds and your mobile world.

4. .mac will become Mobile Me.

5. Mobile Me will become mobile you, the iPhone user.

The opinions expressed above may or may not be correct, but I feel pretty confident about this one.

What do you all think? I'm anxious to read your comments and get one heck of a discussion going here.

Oh, and before I forget ... one last plea to Steve:

Steve ... to make this work ... you have GOT TO make .mac, Mobile Me (whatever it's called) FREE. Not $19. Not $49. Not $99. FREE. Or, at the very least, free with all new Macs and iPhones. The free component will make or break the entire concept. No one wants to buy an iPhone for $399 or more only to be told they need to pay $99 to bring out the functionality. Believe me ... and I know you've done this before ... don't make the same mistake.

Thanks for calling.

TrackBack

TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.typepad.com/services/trackback/6a00d83451600969e200e55290e7798833

Listed below are links to weblogs that reference 3G iPhone: Mobile Me, meet mobile you:

Not to rain on your parade, with all respect I hope your right, but I think the two bridges means two models of iPhones. Everyone has been wanting apple to diversify its soon-to-become flagship product in the same way they did the iPod, making a cheaper version. Personally, I kind of like the idea of a single model iPhone; that way it's more universal. But this is my prediction for the two bridges.

Here's hoping I'm wrong.

SCOTT'S REPLY: Well, I'm always open for other insight and your prediction makes just as much sense as mine. The only reason I didn't say what you said is because I've noticed that usually there's a deeper meaning behind these Apple things and I thought that 2 bridges meaning two models was too simple. But that said, Jeremy, Steve Jobs LOVES simple so perhaps you are on to something that I overlooked.

I think you are on to something. I believe that Apple is going to create something that will give you the power of your home Mac in the palm of your hand. Essentially, the iPhone is the input device and your Mac at home does all the work. .Mac (moble me) could be the bridge between the iPhone and your Mac at home. Imagine being able to access everything on your Mac via your iPhone just as if you were sitting in front of it!!! No other device could come near it if they were to do that. And, as we all know, if anyone could pull this off the right way, it would be Apple.

SCOTT'S REPLY: Exactly!! And thus the bridges.

Ooh, nice. Bridging that gap between personal and business world would be brilliant. We've already seen the push to get iPhones in the enterprise world based on the release of the SDK and the talk about integration with Exchange.

I'm going to push to get iPhones in our corporate structure once the new version is released.

SCOTT'S REPLY: I hope you have great success. That would be great.

The comments to this entry are closed.