BARCELONA, Spain - Cell phone manufacturers and network operators may be able to ride out the recession as consumers view their handsets as an essential rather than a luxury, but there's a potential dark cloud on the horizon for the mobile technology industry - the capacity crunch.

As our appetite for mobile internet and data services continues to grow, thanks to devices like the iPhone, mobile service providers are soon going to fiind that their networks won't cope with demand.

Too much traffic will clog the wireless highway and the networks know that they have to invest heavily in their infrastructures to head off the problem.

In the current economic downturn they'll find it hard to raise the required funds by borrowing and are reluctant to pass on the cost to consumers who are unwilling to pay more.

The most likely solutions, mobile advertising and peak time network congestion charging are also unpallatable. So there's no easy answer to this thorny issue, which is one of the main talking points here at this year's Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. Watch more about the capacity crunch

I've just completed my first two big CEO interviews planned for this week at the Mobile World Congress, and they couldn't have been more different.

First it was Microsoft's Steve Ballmer, who is here to launch an upgrade to the Windows mobile operating system (look out for my TV reports for details).

Steve's a cool guy and gave us a great interview, but before we could talk to him we had to negotiate the huge, highly efficient Microsoft media machine.

We were placed into the care of no less than four different minders before being ushered into the great man's hotel suite overlooking the conference venue for our 10-minute audience which was over all too quickly.

Contrast that with the welcome we got at RIM, the makers of BlackBerry devices.

I know it's a much smaller company, but the atmosphere at their show "chalet" was so much more relaxed and informal.

Joint CEO Jim Balsillie was his usual, cheerful and irreverent self and gave his time generously, even when I asked him awkward questions about stock options which have been getting RIM into the news for all the wrong reasons. (You can see both interviews throughout the week on CNN or here at cnn.com.)

Otherwise, it's been a crazy first morning here at the Congress. First job of the day was an early call on a company called Tellabs, which helps mobile operators get the best out of their networks.

They told us about a survey they commissioned in which they asked mobile consumers about their future plans. The results have given the mobile telecoms industry confidence it can weather the worst of the economic downturn.

It showed that while people may be reluctant to splash out on a handset upgrade in the near future, they aren't planning to cut back on the number of calls they make or the amount of data they use.

It would seem that we just can't live without our beloved mobiles and in a recession our phone bills will be considered by many as essential spending.

LONDON, England — I spent an enjoyable day going “back to my roots” for our report on how the UK’s commercial radio sector is coping in the current downturn.

I began my career in radio some 25 years ago and have a lot to thank it for (Heavens! Is it really that long ago? I feel so old. I reported from Stockholm recently and my CNN producer for the trip was born in the year I started working!).

As well as providing me with solid journalistic training and experience, it taught me many of the broadcasting skills I use today here at CNN. For instance, the apparent “effortless” ability to talk about nothing in particular, without a script, at a moment’s notice and for any length of time.

There are of course no pictures to disguise unintentional gaps on radio and, as silence is far from golden, the host has to talk. Thus I learned to think on my feet (in television we call this skill “filling.”). Or the ability to “fill” while someone is counting down to zero through my earpiece and to end a sentence just as the countdown reaches one.

I learned to convey emotion and warmth through my voice and how to read a script out loud without it sounding as though I was reading words on a page. People often remark about the rich quality of my voice, which I can assure you has not been acquired thanks to any of life’s “excesses.” Radio taught me the “singer’s technique” of talking from my stomach. I now do it habitually, which gives my voice the “warmth” that people seem to find attractive.

The UK commercial radio industry seems to be coping pretty well in the current “difficult trading environment.” Some networks, due to their aggressive acquisition strategies and the fact that they have paid a premium for licenses, are saddled with high levels of debt and are finding things particularly tough. There are others in the bigger radio markets like London that are struggling purely because they are competing against so many rival stations. But on the whole, the industry is optimistic that it can see the recession through. Radio advertising is relatively cheap compared with other forms of media and the fact that radio is a medium you use while doing something else means that it complements, not competes with, television, magazines or the net. All this makes it very cost effective from an advertiser's point of view.

We visited just two of Britain’s 300 plus stations for our report: London’s Magic. Flagship of the Bauer media empire’s 25 Magic branded stations and Hertbeat FM, which broadcasts to a small chunk of Magic’s territory to the north of the capital.

Magic is top dog in London with more people listening for longer than any other station. Big, high spending advertisers are keen to be associated with the brand which owes its success to a polished “more music, less talk” format of feel good hits linked by household name presenters. Every song, every ident, every link is planned for maximum impact. The studios are plush and hi-tech and have a very “big media” feel. It’s all very impressive, but somehow rather soulless.

Contrast that with tiny Hertbeat FM, broadcasting from a converted outbuilding at Knebworth House, a stately home famous for the rock concerts held in its grounds. The station gets only the crumbs of the national advertising cake and so relies upon the ad-spend of hard pressed local businesses for its living. But Hertbeat’s very “localness” is the key to its success … “Made in Hertfordshire, not in London” says one of its jingles. Listeners and advertisers alike appreciate the feel-good mix of music and talk about local places, people and issues.

Hertbeat FM’s zoo format breakfast show is the one that blasts my household awake each morning. The music and infectious chemistry between DJ Steve Folland and his co-hosts Chris Hollis and Dawn Easby are popular with the whole family (all three are up-coming stars and I dread the day when they’re snapped up by one of the big networks, as they inevitably will be. Breakfast just won’t be the same without them).

The morning after my report aired on CNN’s Quest Means Business there was a lot of on-air banter and gentle leg pulling about Richard’s larger than life personality. I quickly arranged for Richard to call the Hertbeat studio and there followed one of the funniest and most entertaining pieces of radio I think I’ve ever heard when a grumpy, never at his best in the morning Richard was cajoled into growling the word “sausages.” Afterwards Richard remarked how much he’d enjoyed his live radio appearance. And then he said that he envied the Hertbeat presenter’s freedom. I asked him to explain what he meant. “Their freedom to deviate from the format, dear chap”, he said. “I bet they have a damn sight more fun at work each day than anyone at Magic or the other big stations.”

And I think he’s got a point. Perhaps big is not always best and it’s the more agile, smaller stations with loyal local listeners and advertisers, and less rigid formats, that will come through the recession best.

LONDON, England - As the dust settles after an historic U.S. presidential election, the man chosen to be the next Commander in Chief cannot afford to pause and reflect upon the significance of his victory, let alone rest up after the most gruelling and expensive election campaign ever.

What advice would you give to anyone faced with the prospect of losing their job or their home?

The domestic and international goodwill that Barack Obama enjoys today will be short lived.

The millions who voted him into office as an agent for change and the hundreds of millions more around the world who see him as a figure of hope - the man to restore their faith in the United States - face an uncertain economic future.

While Obama doesn't officially take office until January, he will be involved in decisions taken right now, today, particularly concerning the economy and the implementation of the multi-billion-dollar bailout plan.

He faces a daunting burden of responsibility. People have such high hopes, but as recession bites and thousands lose their jobs and possibly even their homes, his "honeymoon" period won't last long.

So, while the president-elect appoints some of the best and brightest of minds to his cabinet and gets to grips with sorting out the mess we're in, we want to draw on the bank of experience that is the CNN audience. You.

Presidents and economic hard times come and go and yet the world keeps turning. Having lived through "downturns" in the past, what advice would you give to anyone faced with the prospect of losing their job or their home?

Many of the people who brought Barack Obama to power were voting for the first time, perhaps too young to have lived through a period of economic gloom such as this.

Just how do you cope with debt and the associated stress? With unemployment and foreclosure?

Watch CNN's Sasha Herriman talk with Occupational Psychologist Dai Williams about how best to survive the downturn

LONDON, England – Britain's Prime Minister Gordon Brown blames city bankers for the "age of irresponsibility" that ultimately led to the global financial crisis. While announcing the effective nationalisation of three big British banks he attacked the "excessive risk taking" of some financial institutions.

One thing is clear: the age of 'easy credit' is over. Banks, we're told, will be tightening their loan criteria.

Fearing that this new financial landscape could leave ordinary people unable to secure loans and mortgages, the UK government says that the newly nationalised banks will be required to restore lending to 2007 levels.

The opposition argues that this will lead to a return to the record lending levels we saw before the credit crunch began to bite, and that people will once again be able to rack up more debt than they can afford to repay.

Not so says finance minister Alistair Darling, who insists he "does not want a return to the irresponsible problems of the past."

So why did I return home last night to find a mailshot from my bank containing credit card checks at an "attractive interest rate" (almost double the rate available this time last year), which I am free to use for "unexpected bills, home repairs or even a holiday?" And why has my credit limit increased?

I'm confused!

LONDON, England - If, like me, you are one of the 350,000 British or Dutch nationals who have savings accounts with Internet bank Icesave, you're probably pretty angry right now.

Iceland's second-largest bank, Landsbanki, the parent company of Icesave, says that it has gone into receivership and that the Icelandic Financial Services Authority has appointed a receivership committee. The Icelandic government stepped in to take control of the bank on Tuesday to keep it afloat, just days after Icesave was posting messages on its Web site reassuring savers that the bank was solvent and immune to the worst effects of the credit crisis because it didn't have exposure to the toxic U.S. sub-prime mortgage market.

Today, Icesave's customers were greeted by a message informing them that the bank was unable to process deposits or withdrawal requests. If the company is liquidated thousands of customers like me, with deposits under £50,000, are likely to face a long and stressful wait to retrieve their money.

Lured by attractive Icelandic interest rates I had just under £10,000 of savings deposited with Icesave. We'd worked hard to put it by and intended to use the money for non- budgeted items like home maintenance and improvements, family holidays and car repairs. It's money that I don't need in the short term, unlike other Icesave customers who had pension funds and home purchase deposits invested there.

For many of the bank's customers today will have been their first taste of the effects of the global financial crisis. Let's hope we won't have to experience many more.

If you've been affected by the collapse of Icesave, I can't help you get your money back but I can offer you the opportunity to share your experience with us and vent your frustration. Were we foolish to be lured by the kind of interest rates that simply aren't on offer in the UK or the Netherlands? Who do you think is to blame? Hit the comment button below and tell me your story. Getting it out there just might help you feel a little less sore.

LONDON, England – To look at the skyline behind our live shot position in the city of London you could be forgiven for thinking that the credit crunch has left the construction industry unscathed. There appear to be more cranes than tall buildings on the horizon.

But a quick straw poll of contacts, friends and family working in the sector suggests that Britain's constructors are actually finding the going pretty tough. Hardly an exhaustive scientific survey I know, but I thought you'd be interested to read what they had to say.

The chief executive of a publicly listed, national builder told me recently that while he was confident his company was well placed to take advantage of any recovery, the next 18 to 24 months were going to be painful. The rising cost of raw materials had already hit the bottom line and the severe slowdown, some might say almost complete standstill in new home construction was particularly worrying. Under his stewardship the company has built enough of a cushion to weather the most severe economic downturn, but what pains him most, he told me, is the very real possibility that he will have to let go of some of his loyal, longstanding workforce if there's no light at the end of the tunnel within the next year. He also worries that the employees of long standing suppliers would face a similar fate if he was unable to continue putting orders their way.

My good friend Jonathan Rubins, a director at Stephen Howard Homes, a medium sized regional house builder says that concern over the availability of mortgages and the fact that people are worried for their jobs has led to a significant stagnation in sales to the general public. However, the rental market, he says, is enjoying considerable growth. Thus while ‘buy to let' mortgages have become more difficult to obtain for smaller investors, landlords looking to build a property portfolio are finding that mortgages are still available at good loan to value ratios and are bringing custom his way.  This, he says, is a regional phenomenon. If his company were based anywhere other that the South East, he fears his outlook would be far less positive. 

My brother in law, Jonathan helps to run Taylor and Stapleton Engineering, a medium-sized family firm specialising in heating and ventilation. The good news is that there has been no noticeable slowdown in business orders for him ... yet. He is by no means complacent. He says that the commercial sector of the industry in the south east of England is being helped along at the moment by the construction of the 2012 Olympic venues. He is braced for a slowdown if and when it arrives but is confident in the company's specialist expertise. Even if new build orders slow there should always be a market in refurbishments, which need to be completed regardless of economic circumstances. Jonathan has however noticed pressure in terms of wage demands as employees struggle to cope with the increased cost of living with food, fuel and especially utility prices rising fast.

Francis Biro is one of those rare finds - a local builder who is so good at what he does that he seldom needs to advertise his services. Word of mouth and recommendation are what brought him to our attention and that of many other local families. Francis says that while he's not short of work yet, he is concerned about the lack of new enquiries. Not long ago he was getting at least one a week and always had drawings on his desk, the next job lined up and ready to go. Now he finds himself getting to the end of one project with no new work in sight. Fortunately, he hasn't yet found himself idle but worries that it's only a matter of time before he encounters gaps between jobs.

Francis hopes that as the housing market slows and people find it harder to move home, they will instead turn to people like him to extend their current property. The problem there is of course that loans for such projects will in all probability be harder to come by and perhaps prohibitively expensive.

I doubt that even Hollywood could have come up a story line with as many nail biting, stomach churning twists and turns as we've seen in real life these past two weeks.

Could you see Bruce Willis playing Wall Street enforcer Hank Paulson?

I won't list every plot development in the financial thriller of the decade. If your nerves are anything like as jangled as mine you could probably do without yet another blow by blow account of all the highs and lows.

As I write cnn.com is reporting that negotiations over the proposed $700 billion bail out of the nation's financial system are on a knife edge. And so it goes on.

I don't know about you, but I could do with a little light relief.

So how about this? When Hollywood makes the inevitable blockbuster version of the events of September 2008, when superhero Hank saved the world from financial Armageddon, which of the world's celebrities would you like to see cast as the major players?

We had some fun with this in the office today. Let us know what you think and we'll read the best suggested cast lists out on air in a future edition of World Business Today.

Have a great, ‘restful' weekend!

LONDON, England – The party's over, the hangover is about to set in. Friday's relief at news at the U.S. government's bailout plan which sent stock markets soaring is set to be tempered this week by thoughts of what next?

Yes, Henry Paulson rode to the rescue of the world's banks by announcing that he was set to exorcize them of the toxic debts that were dragging them and us towards financial meltdown. BUT - and it's a big but - the devil will be in the detail.

Is Mr. Paulson going to pay the full write down cost of the bad debt when he takes it off their hands - at enormous cost to the U.S. taxpayer? Or will he play hardball for a discount to the market price - leaving banks to take more pain and reluctant to lend to each other and us? In which case, we're back where we started.

And of course Hank's plan still has to get through Congress. In an election year!

One thing is certain though: The banking industry is in the future likely to be subject to much tighter regulation - and tougher public scrutiny. That will impact growth and profits - and their willingness to lend us money. We're all likely to feel a little poorer in the years to come.

So, over five breathless days we escaped global financial meltdown by the skin of our teeth. With reality set to bite, the coming week is going to be a little less stressful, but no less interesting.

LONDON, England – If I had a pound for every time that someone has asked me to explain what "short selling" is over the past 24 hours then I'd be able to help the banks out of their "toxic" debt problem. I wrote at the start of the week when Lehman Brothers collapsed, despite frantic efforts to save it, that I'd never known a weekend like it.

Well, it's now Friday and I can firmly say that I've never known a week like it either.

Who'd have thought that in the space of just a few days we'd see two Wall Street icons effectively disappear; one of the world's biggest insurers being rescued by the US government; plummeting share prices; Britain's biggest lender forced into merging with a smaller rival; central banks riding to the rescue of a paralyzed financial system; a ban on "short selling" in Britain and the U.S.; and American authorities announcing a plan to rid banks of their debt?

I don't know about you, but this white-knuckle, thrill-a-minute week has left me completely exhausted.

But here's the thing.

Thanks to the relief inspired by news of the bailout plan - as I write at lunchtime in London - European share indices have bounced back to more or less where they were first thing on Monday morning.

Imagine this: a city trader has been away on a seven-day desert island vacation, away from phones and news media (unlikely I know – these people are permanently wired in, but bear with me on this.)

They will arrive back this coming Monday to find that colleagues are battle wearied and bruised, that associates have fallen by the wayside and that the financial landscape has completely changed.

But they'd also find that, eerily, share prices are pretty much just where they left them.

Surely they could be forgiven for thinking: "Did I miss something?"