Mobile computer users will have more say in Technologies and Designs that come to Market.

An ambitious, first-of-its-kind program called Reinvent Mobile aims to facilitate just that by aggregating a vibrant new channel of co-innovation, collaboration and customer engagement.

Developed by Phoenix Technologies and the Forum to Advance the Mobile Experience (FAME), an industry ecosystem group led by the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) Council, Reinvent Mobile will engage end-users in the design of next-generation mobile computers. The initiative includes a new, global online community, www.ReinventMobile.com, where users, experts and thought leaders can meet to exchange ideas and share experiences.

Mobility is driving the growth of today’s global PC marketplace. Research firm iSuppli Corp. expects the global notebook market to grow 20 percent next year to 155 million units, and predicts the ultra-low-cost netbook PC segment will grow more than twice as quickly, by 55 percent, to 13.2 million units. IDC predicts a worldwide unit growth of 39.2% CAGR from 2008-2012 for the “mini notebook” or netbook segment.

“It’s time that end users help redefine the design of mobile computers,” said Woody Hobbs, President and CEO of Phoenix Technologies, a global leader in embedded technologies that improve the PC user experience. “The market now includes a complex range of requirements — from power users who need greater levels of performance and personalization to emerging global consumers seeking more affordable solutions and services. Meeting these diverse needs requires more inclusive methods of market feedback and engagement. We’re excited about this opportunity to explore how to transform mobile computing.”

Mr. Hobbs added, “We look forward to bringing our PC 3.0 architecture to end-user markets with our products and services, and initiatives like ReinventMobile.com.”

The Reinvent Mobile Community will give the computer industry unprecedented ability to streamline the time and resources required for direct feedback and interaction with customers. It affords technology vendors and suppliers an always-on, real time listening, learning and leveling environment that can optimize the design, delivery and acceptance of next-generation systems and software.

“More active and immersive customer engagement and co-innovation will benefit all parts of the mobile computer ecosystem,” said Donovan Neale-May, executive director of the CMO Council. “Designing and building more usable and valued products and services will speed customer uptake, minimize selling demands, further loyalty, and reduce both product returns and after-market support.”

At the center of the program is a new landmark, social Web 2.0 portal — ReinventMobile.com, a content-rich destination that promotes ingenuity and new ideas in mobile computing. ReinventMobile.com enables visitors to:

* Interact and share mobile computing experiences
* Discover and submit innovative new ideas
* React to current and future designs/prototypes

ReinventMobile.com will embrace key industry stakeholders and constituencies, including industrial designers, engineers, ergonomics experts, market research analysts, journalists, bloggers, academicians, distributors, resellers and retailers, as well as manufacturers of hardware, software, peripherals and service providers.

The ReinventMobile.com site has gone live and is registering community members online.

Reinvent Mobile will combine input gleaned from online community participation in debates, polls, surveys and studies with the use of sophisticated agent technology, provided by Fractal Analytics that “listens” to what end-users are saying across the entire Internet, in blogs, user groups, message boards, and anywhere there is user commentary on mobile computing.

The program’s faculty board includes a wide range of mobility luminaries, including Shiv Bakshi, Director of IDC’s Wireless & Mobile Network Infrastructure program; Tim Bajarin, President of Creative Strategies; Rob Enderle, President and Principal Analyst of the Enderle Group; Michael Gartenberg, former vice president and research director of mobile strategy at Jupiter Research; William Halal, Professor of Science, Technology & Innovation at George Washington University; Alan Hedge, Professor at Cornell University’s Department of Design and Environmental Analysis; Michael Liebhold, Senior Researcher with California’s Institute for the Future; Gerry Purdy, Vice President and Chief Analyst with Frost & Sullivan’s North American Information & Communication Technologies Practice; Richard Shim, Research Manager with IDC’s Personal Computing Program; Michael Tchong, futurist and president of Ubercool; and Patrick Tucker, senior editor of The Futurist.

For more information at http://www.fameforusers.org>