Google's first Android phone, T-Mobile's G1, has a "kill switch" that allows for remote removal of programs T-Mobile doesn't want you to use. Is this a good thing?

Everyone's all a-twitter over the so-called "kill switch" found in Google's first Android phone, the T-Mobile G1. Here's the thing, though: Not only is it not a big deal -- it's actually a good thing.

The story, in case you haven't heard, broke this morning when PC World sister publication Computerworld noticed a clause in Google's Android Market terms of service, linked to the new phone. The line states that if Google finds "a product that violates the developer distribution agreement," it "retains the right to remotely remove those applications from your device at its sole discretion." In other words, Google can delete stuff off your phone without your permission. At least, that's how a lot of people interpreted it.

That cursory explanation, while not entirely untrue, leaves out one important thing: the fact that the clause states a removal will happen only if a developer violates his agreement. But semantics, as we all know in this week of presidential debating, can be misleading -- so I turned to Google for a straight-talking explanation.

"The Android Market is designed so developers can make their applications easily available to users," a spokesperson tells me. "While we encourage that community aspect, we are also very careful with the safety and security of the user. In limited cases where an application has a malicious intent, we will remove it from the Market and potentially uninstall it from user devices to ensure the safety of the Android Market community."

Now, you might remember the maker of another unnamed phone, which happens to start with a lowercase "i," offering a similar explanation when someone found a remote delete function on its device a few months ago. You might also remember that plenty of people weren't too pleased with that revelation.

Here's why this one's different: First of all, Google's been up-front with its intentions, printing them in the terms of service and openly discussing them. (Apple, in contrast, quietly admitted the existence of its "kill switch" a few days after a hacker happened to find it; there was no prior disclosure.) But, more important, if Google is to succeed in bringing an open platform to a mainstream mobile environment, such a failsafe is needed -- and will only be beneficial to the end-user.

With Apple's App Store, content is carefully controlled-- perhaps too much so. With the Android Market, in contrast, its very nature allows anyone to create applications and publish them instantly, without oversight or moderation. That leaves carriers and their users no recourse if a nasty app makes its way onto the network and jeopardizes everyone's security. It would be irresponsible of Google not to have an option to pull the plug if something malicious were to pop up.

So go about your day, friends, and sleep soundly. Your new Android phone isn't under a dictator's rule, with random unexplained killings to come. It's under a democracy -- but, as with any democracy, a well-defined set of laws is needed to keep the community safe.

JR Raphael

It's well-known that mobile phones are revolutionizing communications across the globe, particularly in developing countries where landline infrastructure is lacking in many rural and urban areas. They are the only means of communication for hundreds of millions of people, and have opened up economic opportunities for their owners, who can use them to find out about job openings, advertise services, or operate complementary businesses such as charging phone batteries.

But mobile phones aren't everyone's friend. To dictators and leaders of oppressive regimes, mobiles are often seen as more of a nuisance, as disruptive and something to be wary of, to fear and control. These ubiquitous little devices have already been responsible for the downfall of a number of leaders, most noticeably Philippine President Joseph Estrada, who was forced from office in early 2001 following text-message-fueled mass demonstrations in Manila.

Where democracy is under pressure around the world, the mobile phone is increasingly seen as a tool that may help stop the rot. My interest in the subject centers on the use of a text-messaging hub I developed back in 2005, which has since been used by a number of human rights organizations, particularly Nigeria last year to monitor the presidential elections, in Pakistan during the recent state of emergency and now in Zimbabwe during the election crisis.

Media interest in the subject is also on the rise, with a recent article in The Economist examining the use of mobile technology in political activism. Its description of the battle between activists and governments as a game of "cat and mouse" could not be more accurate, and continues to draw parallels today with events in Zimbabwe and Tibet.

When oppressive regimes put a stranglehold on the local media, and actively engage in campaigns of misinformation, activists turn to whatever tools they can to redress the balance. Increasingly, these tools are mobile technologies: Camera phones that capture images of beatings and civil-rights abuses, and text messages coordinating and informing citizens, are just two examples of an increasing use of the technology as activists try to keep up with, and stay one step ahead of, their opponents.

Mobile technology is today playing a growing role in Zimbabwe, a country with a largely state-owned media and a president unwilling to relinquish power. The future of the country continues to rest on a knife edge, as it seems to have done for the past two weeks (or the past few years, depending on your perspective). Like many people with an interest in the country, and like many others with friends or relatives living and working there, I've been closely following events on TV and online. International news sites such as the BBC have been as good as ever, but I've also been spending increasing amounts of time on local sites, which, I feel, often give a 'truer', more personal sense of what's going on. One of the best sites for this has been Kubatana.net.

Back in the summer of 2006 I was fortunate to spend three weeks in Zimbabwe working with Kubatana. A local NGO (nongovernmental organization) seeking to promote human rights and good governance, it was the very first user of my FrontlineSMS software when it launched back in 2005, starting a trend that has seen the software used for similar activities in a number of other countries around the world. Kubatana has said that FrontlineSMS finally opened up the possibilities for text messaging in its workplace.

In addition to an election line that gives the latest news to citizens via SMS (short message service), Kubatana has been running a "What would you like a free Zimbabwe to look like?" initiative. Zimbabweans have been incredibly responsive, with many people saying that the question gave them hope in uncertain times. According to Kubatana:

"It's also been a real learning experience for us, reminding us that ordinary Zimbabweans have a wealth of good ideas to contribute, and our political and civic leadership must work on building a more participatory environment."

A combination of SMS and e-mail was used in the initiative, with text messages such as "Kubatana! No senate results as at 5.20 pm. What changes do YOU want in a free Zim? Lets inspire each other. Want to know what others say? SMS us your email addr" sent out to mobile subscriber lists. FrontlineSMS was used to blast the messages out, and then used to collect responses that were then distributed via an electronic newsletter and on the Kubatana Community Blog.

According to Kubatana, "Without FrontlineSMS we would not have been able to process the volume of responses we have received, and we would not have been able to establish a two-way SMS communications service in the way that we have."

In the event of a presidential run-off, Kubatana plans to produce a broadsheet with feedback received from Zimbabweans in order to remind them what each other wanted, and to inspire them to go out and vote (again). After the election, it hopes to produce a booklet with a page on some of these ideas and include an editor's comment, a cartoon or even a set of postcards carrying the most unique, original and practical ideas.

Unlike the Nigerian elections, where FrontlineSMS was used as a monitoring tool, in Zimbabwe it has been effectively used to mobilize and inform civil society during and after the election process. In both cases, the real success story has been the NGOs themselves-- NMEM in Nigeria and Kubatana in Zimbabwe-- that have demonstrated the power of mobile technology in civil society initiatives and what can be done when the right tools make it into the hands that need them the most.

Ken Banks

Texas Instruments Inc said on Monday it would demonstrate a prototype cell phone based on Android, the highly anticipated mobile phone operating system being built by Web search leader Google Inc.

The U.S. chip maker said the phone it will demonstrate at the Mobile World Congress trade show has "one button access" to key applications such as Web browsing, e-mail, messaging and video, making it easier for consumers to use such features.

The device will also allow for the integration of different applications, a capability mostly limited to desktop computers. For example, a real estate agent could combine information from its database with mapping software to let customers easily locate properties on the go, TI said.

The prototype handset will run on TI's OMAP850 phone processor, which includes Wi-Fi and Bluetooth short-range wireless connectivity.

Google had said on Friday that while a number of companies would demonstrate Android products at the wireless trade show, the prototypes would give no real indication of the actual devices customers would ultimately be able to buy.

TI is part of a group of about 30 companies that said they would support Google's operating system, which is based on Linux, an open-source software platform.

UK chip designer ARM Holdings Plc is also expected to show prototypes of devices based on Android at the show.

Service provider Deutsche Telekom's T-Mobile and Taiwanese phone maker High Tech Computer have both said they plan to sell phones based on Android this year.

Sinead Carew; Editing by Braden Reddall