"The New Barcelona Post" wanted to know the opinion of five journalists specialized in the world of technology who will cover the information about the Mobile World Congress 2018, which takes place from February 26 to March 1 in Barcelona.
They are Rosa Jiménez Cano (El País), Francesc Bracero (La Vanguardia), César Salza (CNET en Español), Angel Jiménez de Luis (El Mundo) and Albert Cuesta (AlbertCuesta.com).
All five will attend the Mobile World Congress these days to cover the event. We asked all five the same three questions with the aim of knowing what topics they consider most relevant in the current edition, what they would recommend from the program, and what person, company, product, or topic they believe will become the great protagonist of MWC 2018.
Below we reproduce all their answers and offer links to follow the information they will be publishing during the Mobile days.
ROSA JIMÉNEZ CANO
- Correspondent for the newspaper El País in Silicon Valley (United States).
- Twitter: @petezin
- Author page in El País with her articles
- Mobile World Congress coverage in El País
The 5G deployment plans seem to me the most relevant aspect of the event. Both in terms of devices, which are starting to be compatible, and in terms of infrastructure and possibilities in IoT and connected home. The next generation is being forged today.
What would you most recommend from the MWC program?
I would go to 4YFN, the startup zone in the old Fira. It's usually a way to see trends, ideas, and leave with enthusiasm from a more creative and less commercial event. Google's festive stand, focused on Android, allows for a relaxed testing of some of the search engine's new features.
What person, company, product, or topic do you think will become the main protagonist of the Mobile?
Before the fair even begins, there's already a winner, Samsung's Galaxy S9. The star phone of the Android universe makes up for the lack of high-profile speakers. For two years now, neither Mark Zuckerberg nor Sundar Pichai have attended. Last year, the founder of Pokemon Go or the CEO of Netflix were the icing on the conference program. This time, the level has dropped quite a bit.
FRANCESC BRACERO
- Section head in Trends at La Vanguardia and head of consumer technology.
- Author page in La Vanguardia
- The Mobile World Congress on La Vanguardia's website
In this edition -and in the next ones in the short term- one of the star issues will be the implementation of 5G and the advantages it will bring in various fields. In any case, the discussion topics will be very diverse. One that has entered strongly, precisely because of Apple, which does not attend the Mobile as an exhibitor, is that of biometric identification, which everyone is now signing up for. We must also count on some classics, such as connected cars, smart cities and, this time, also drones. It will perhaps be the first time that Artificial Intelligence is adopted as a major theme, because it can now begin to be applied to mobile phones.
What would you most recommend from the MWC program?
The Applied Artificial Intelligence cycle conferences, because it is one of the most unknown issues and one that can bring more surprises.
What person, company, product or topic do you think will become the great protagonist of the Mobile?
The Mobile has many protagonists, the list of large companies is inexhaustible in all areas, although something unexpected may then arise, as happened in the last edition with the Nokia 3310. Of course, manufacturers presenting new terminals, such as Samsung, Huawei and Sony, for example, will stand out, but the list of protagonists will be much longer. In the field of processors, Intel and Qualcomm also have a strong presence.
CÉSAR SALZA
- CNET en Español
- Twitter: @cesarsalza
- César Salza's author page on CNET
- CNET en Español's coverage of the Mobile World Congress
From the calls and events we are seeing, I believe that in addition to the usual mobile devices, we will begin to see more technologies for the connected home and, above all, a great commitment to the security of a house that you can enter by typing a password.
I also believe that a key trend in terms of mobile phones will not only be their design, but also the constant evolution of mobile cameras. This is something that Samsung will emphasize, but also brands like Nokia or Motorola.
What would you most recommend from the MWC program?
Understanding that so many connected devices will inevitably lead us to security problems and even banks are already facing them, probably "Cybercrime: Breaching Data, Humans and Reality" will be one of the most important of the official MWC program; "Transforming Communities with Internet of Things" will also be a high-level conference, especially if we take into account that 5G is just around the corner and that we will see tests of this technology at the congress.
What person, company, product or topic do you think will become the main protagonist of the Mobile?
Last year Nokia with the 3310 took over the MWC, and unless it does something similar this year, Samsung will probably steal the spotlight by re-launching its flagship phone at the event. As always, there are surprises that can stand out to make us change our minds, which is why we will be very attentive to CNET en Español's coverage, which will have a whole team running for a week through Barcelona so that we don't miss any details.
ÁNGEL JIMÉNEZ DE LUIS
What are the topics that you find most relevant or that catch your attention the most from this year's edition of the Mobile World Congress?After several years of talking about 5G technology, this will finally be the congress where we will have a clear vision of the deployment deadlines and the possibilities that will come with the new generation of telephone networks. This is a fair where the announcement of new terminals usually overshadows other news - and we will see some of that in this edition as well - but this year the inertia of 5G will be noticeable and I believe it will be the core of the conference.
What would you most recommend from the MWC program?
The speeches organized around the fair are always interesting and attract personalities that are otherwise difficult to see live. This year, for example, we have Jeff Zucker, president of CNN, on the list. Also Fernando Alonso, by the way, who comes as a representative of McLaren and as an example of the increasingly common marriage of the world of technology and automotive.
What person, company, product or topic do you think will become the main protagonist of the Mobile?
As I said before, at this fair the launch of terminals usually overshadows other news and this year we will possibly see it, as Samsung has decided to bring the announcement of the Galaxy S9 back to the fair. In recent years, the company used to announce its phones at a separate event. The Galaxy S is always one of the star terminals of the year, so it will have the strength to drive the conversation around the MWC.
ALBERT CUESTA
- Journalist, analyst and technology translator.
- Twitter: @CanalPDA
- Web: http://albertcuesta.com/
The final negotiations between operators, network providers, and regulatory bodies to define the definitive 5G standard. The proposals on business models that make the costly deployments of this new technology sustainable. And the applications of artificial intelligence, both to infrastructures and to end-user devices, among other aspects in cybersecurity matters.
What would you most recommend about the MWC program?
For industry professionals, the GSMA Innovation City space and the entire conference program, including the Women4Tech sessions. For the general public, the parallel program of the Mobile Week BCN on the digital transformation of society and the YoMo festival to promote technological vocations among children and young people.
What person, company, product, or topic do you think will become the main protagonist of the Mobile?
The only major brand that will present an emblematic phone is Samsung with the Galaxy S9. I also expect to see specific Internet of Things devices. I am curious to see to what extent the size of 5G phone prototypes and urban antennas has been reduced. The protagonists will be regulators like Ajit Pai (FCC) and politicians like Andrus Ansip (European Commission), although probably the headlines will be taken by the pilot Fernando Alonso, who will participate in a session on F1 technology.
Add The New Barcelona Post as your preferred Google source for free
Stay informed with the latest news.
