PMN Mobile User Experience published their 2008 manifesto, a document they ask attendees at their annual mobile telecom conference to respond to. As with most manifestos, the overall content of them is not wildly innovative--they're based on trends--but it's interesting to read them stated in such start form. Here's the first point:

1. Content itself will be the interface of the future

We believe…

Icons are dead and the content itself is the new interface. By stripping away the confusion and clutter of traditional interface elements like menus and scroll bars we can put photos, music and video at the heart of the user experience.

The background

The Series 60 mutlimedia gallery, the CoverFlow system on the iPhone, Google maps... They are all examples of applications where the content itself is at the heart of the user interface. If a user wants to browse music, they should be able to flick through the album art as if they were exploring covers in a record store. Photos should fill the screen and pan and scroll when the phone is moved or tilted.

Photos, calls, texts, music and video should be merged into a single activity log, clearly visible from the home screen. Users think in terms of friends, tasks, days out, favourite songs and web-sites. By separating these elements into individual application silos, the industry is limiting how big a role they play in the mobile experience.

The interfaces of the future will be content-centric and context aware.

To get you thinking

Is it possible to rank photos and web pages on the same level of the interaction hierachy as voice calls and text messages? Can all objects be treated as equals within the mobile interface? Do these sort of icon-lite, menu-free interfaces work on key-driven devices or are they only suitable in a touchscreen environment? How can the user be prompted to explore the interaction possibilities without the traditional on-screen cues?

[via Putting people first]