22.05.12
(CNN) -- For Americans who own cell phones or other movable devices (at least 85% of the adult population, according to a new survey ), 2011 ushered in a precipitous of news.
Some of the year's top mobile stories were mostly hype ( QR codes and cell phone shedding ) or vaporware (those persistent iPhone 5 rumors). But other developments were genuinely high-ranking to the U.S. mobile landscape.
Here's a quick -- and entirely subjective -- index of my picks for the 10 most important stories and trends for 2011 in U.S. sensitive news:
1. Goodbye (mostly) to unlimited data plans; hello throttling. The digital apportion between those with high-speed Internet access and those without remains a huge intractable in the United States and elsewhere, leading to significant inequities of opportunities and services.
High-minded mobile devices and networks can help bridge this gap -- if you can give them. For smartphones, the biggest part of the total cost of ownership is the data design, which in the United States typically requires a pricey two-year contract with a stiff early termination fee. When smartphones first came out, unlimited data plans were the type. But wireless networks couldn't keep pace with skyrocketing demand for materials, so most carriers took down their "all you can eat" signs.
Source: CNN