MobileBizBuzz

March 1, 2010

How cell phones will change the world – CNN SciTechBlog

Filed under: Industry News,Mobile Apps,Mobile Devices — Chris @ 12:33 pm

Living and working in the high-tech mobility eco-system, we get to see and work with the latest technologies and applications. Some of the concepts we are working on today, both internally and with our clients, take mobility to a higher level in terms of usability, utility and even the desired ’coolness factor’. 

At the same time, we must remember that the latest in high-tech isn’t required to provide value. As John D. Sutter points out via an interview with Tero Ojanpera, a senior vice-president at Nokia, there is great utility in the simplest of apps. Interestingly, the interview ends with Ojanpera exclaiming the details of an upcoming high-tech mobile app that will “blow your mind”! 

http://scitech.blogs.cnn.com/2010/02/11/ted-2010-how-cell-phones-will-change-the-world/

February 24, 2010

Wireless Carriers as Dumb Pipes?

Filed under: Industry News — Tags: , — Mike @ 9:52 am

pipesFor those of you not in the wireless industry on a daily basis, I am sure you are wondering what the title of this post is all about.  What in the world is a dumb pipe?  Let me attempt to explain.  Over the course of many years, networking in general has used the term “pipe” as a metaphor for the network. The idea behind this is that networks move bits, much as pipes move water. If you have a broadband connection to your house, you have a fairly big pipe at least for your downloads.  At my house I get about 9.5 megabits per second on downloads.  Compare that with several years ago when I had a 14.4K modem that actually supported something more like 10 kilobits per second download speeds. That was definitely a little pipe…maybe even a straw by today’s standards.

OK, so now you get the metaphor of a pipe.  What is a dumb pipe.  Well, until the advent of the iPhone, wireless carriers offered a number of services to their users beyond just the network.  You bought much more from the carrier than just minutes, or bandwidth on a data connection. For instance, if you wanted an application for your phone, you bought it from the carrier. Need a ringtone? Buy it from the carrier. What about a wallpaper for your phone? You guessed it…the carrier. I could go on, but you’d get tired of reading, and I’d get tired of writing. I think you get the idea.  The carrier not only provided the network, but a variety of products and services around that. In other words, they had a smart pipe.  A network that not only provided the basics of moving calls and data, but also had a lot of extras you could purchase to enhance that network experience.

Enter the iPhone. Now you buy your apps, games, movies, music, and just about everything else, not from AT&T, but from Apple. AT&T, along with all the other carriers,  is effectively becoming a dumb pipe.  Dumb seems like a derogatory term, but it isn’t necessarily. It just means they provide the basic network service of handling voice and data, but not much in the way of frills beyond that.  Ironically, this is the way all of the carriers (wireless and landline) started out.  When I was growing up there was a rotary dial phone on the wall in our kitchen.  I bet many of you were the same. That phone did one thing, and one thing only. It allowed us to make and receive phone calls from virtually anyplace in the world.  No applications, no configurable ringtones, and no wallpaper, except for the funky chickens on the kitchen wallpaper. And no dropped calls by the way.

Now, after trying to make the move to smart pipes, the carriers seem to be willing to fill the roll of a dumb pipe.  What got me started on this post was an article in Fierce Wireless talking about Verizon offering Skype on their smartphones.  The article’s contention was that carriers would not become dumb pipes. I have to say that I disagree.  Skype is already available on the iPhone.  As an application, Skype really accentuates the concept of a dumb pipe, because using it, you essentially don’t even use the carrier for voice. Your voice gets turned into IP traffic, and then carried over the network as IP traffic, and turned back into audio on the other end. For you sticklers for detail who are more technically in tune with wireless networks, yes I know the Skype offering from Verizon actually uses the voice switched circuits, but my point is still valid. For those of you who have no idea what I just wrote about voice circuits…carry on.

My point is this: carriers seem to be embracing the role of a dumb pipe, in a way they have not in many years. They seem to be content to do what they do well…build and manage a network.  This opens the door for many others who can come in an focus on a specific application, or a specific service, or your favorite ringtone.  My personal belief is the carriers will do better allowing others to focus on these ancillary products and services, while they continue to focus on the network.  I think this will provide a much richer experience for all of us. After all, auto makers don’t worry about making gasoline, tires,  aftermarket stereos, XM radio service, or lots of other things that make driving our cars possible and entertaining.  They focus on making cars. That in and off itself presents enough challenges. I think the same model will continue to enhance our mobile experience in the wireless world.

August 5, 2009

Razors and Razor Blades

Filed under: Industry News,Mobile Devices — Tags: , , — Mike @ 10:55 am

Fierce Wireless had an interesting article about Verizon that I got a chance to read yesterday.  In the article, they note that Verizon has dropped the price on almost all of their smartphones to $99 or less with a 2 year agreement.  The speculation in the article is they are doing this to clean out their inventory in preparation for offering new devices that will be coming soon.  While I think there is validity to this claim, I think there is more to it than that.razorrazorshaving

After all, Verizon has been offering good deals on BlackBerry devices for several months with their buy one, get one free offer.  So why would they be doing this?  After all, each device they sell generally costs them more than what you pay for it.  Surprised? What many people don’t realize is that carriers like Verizon pay the manufacturer of the smartphone more than what consumers pay for the device.  They subsidize your purchase.  The iPhone was just about the only exception to this rule when it was first released.  If you recall, early purchasers of the iPhone payed $599 or $699 for the coolest smartphone on the market.  But later on, AT&T began to subsidize the price of the iPhone, and pricing to the end user dropped to $199.

Why do carriers do this?  It’s simple really, and it’s a model we are all accustomed to.  It’s all about razors and razor blades.  The maker of razor blades sell you the razor very cheaply, because they know you will buy blade refills and that is where they make their money.  It’s the same with carriers.  They subsidize the price of the phone so you have a lower entry price.  After all, on average people spend $50-$60 per month for each wireless phone.  The industry calls that ARPU (Average Revenue Per User), and it is one of a few numbers they watch very closely.  If they can make it easy for you to buy a new phone cheaply, they know you will sign up for 2 years at a run rate of $60 or so per month.  Not a bad model.

So, if you apply this same model to smartphones, you can see why it would make sense to lower prices on smartphones to get you to move to a smartphone.  It is also interesting to note that ARPU for smartphones is higher than for regular phones.  Carriers want and need us to consume more data plans, and smartphones provide a reason for us all to use more data, and not just voice.

If this whole idea sits wrong with you, like you are being tricked into something, it shouldn’t.  The more of us that use smartphones and data plans, the cheaper they become.  It’s like LCD displays.  When they originally were introduced on laptops, they were very expensive.  But as they produced more and more laptops, they refined the process and LCD displays became cheaper.  Now they are found everywhere including cell phones, GPS units, car stereos, TV’s, and the list goes on and on.  So in the long run, cheaper smartphones means more users of data services, and that means more powerful devices and more comprehensive data services for all of us.  And that’s a good thing.

June 16, 2009

Mobile Phones are Saving Lives

Filed under: Industry News — Mike @ 12:16 pm

I read a very interesting article over lunch today.  It was on cnn.com, and it covered one use of cell phones in developing countries.  Turns out some organizations are using cell third-worldphones to collect survey information about epidemics, such as polio.  In these underdeveloped countries access to computer technology can be extremely limited.  My company has been involved in a couple of projects in developing countries, and I can vouch for how limited access to technology can be.  In fact, the article points out that there are only a little over 300 million PC’s in all of the developing countries put together.  I can tell you that even if you can get access to a PC, there is no guarantee you can get access to a decent network connection.

However, as the article points out, there are about 2.2 billion phones in these same developing countries.  Let that sink in for a minute.  That means that over half of all the cell phones in use in the world today are in developing countries.  If we stop thinking of these devices as phones, and start thinking about them as small computers (which is what they really are), it opens up a world of possibilities.  Even basic cell phones are being used as data collection device to shorten data collection cycles from months or even years, to minutes.  That increased speed makes the analysis and treatment of epidemics much more effective, and saves lives.

Because developing countries have so many cell phones per capita vs. PC’s per capita, they are skipping over much of what has happened in the US over the last couple of decades.  They aren’t moving to desktop PC’s, then to laptops, and then to mobile phones as their primary computing device.  Instead, they are moving directly to the mobile phone as their primary, rather I should say their only, computing device.  And it’s having a direct, and positive, impact on the lives of people around the world.  As I have pointed out before, cell phones are moving beyond just phones, and into the realm of mobile computers.  The interesting thing is that this may be happening as quickly in developing countries as it is in the US…maybe faster.

June 12, 2009

Smartphone Shootout

Filed under: Industry News,Mobile App Dev,Mobile Apps,Mobile Devices — Tags: , , , , , , — Chris @ 11:43 am

pre-and-iphoneWell, it’s finally here.  Palm launched the Pre last Saturday, and they are now finally in direct competition with Apple and the iPhone.  So which one’s better?  For me, I think the verdict is still out.

By now, unless you live under a rock somewhere, I’m sure you know how successful the iPhone has been.  They have sold millions of devices in the two years the phone has been out, and users have downloaded over 1 billion applications in the year since the App Store was available.  Apple also broke a lot of long standing rules in the cellular industry by having the phone activated through iTunes instead of directly with AT&T, and also by funneling users through iTunes for content instead of through AT&T.  The iPhone was also ground breaking in that it introduced the concept of using gestures via a touch screen to interact with the device.  What they have accomplished is truly amazing.

Don’t count out Palm just yet.  Palm has traditionally been very strong with “prosumers”.  This is a term they coined to talk about their sweet spot in terms of users.  The demographic Palm originally catered to with the Treo was professional people who purchased their own devices and used it both for work and personal purposes.  Add to that the fact that they pioneered the whole smartphone segment 5 years ago, and you have a pretty accomplished competitor for Apple.  The new Pre has a slick little physical keyboard, a very nice touch screen, and a gesture base user interface.  Sprint says the Pre broke all of their sales records for new devices.  Sounds kind of like the iPhone, doesn’t it?

I think the real battle is still to come.  WebOS has some very interesting capabilities with it’s application platform.  It allows applications to integrate with the web, on device information, and across applications.  Of course there aren’t many applications on the device yet.  It will be interesting to see what developers come up with on the Pre.  Part of what has made the iPhone successful is the slew of applications that have been introduced by developers outside of Apple.  I’ll be curious to see how many, and what types of applications get introduced for the Pre.

June 10, 2009

Mobilizing America’s Pastime

Filed under: Industry News,Mobile Apps,Mobile in SMB — Tags: , , , , , — Clint @ 12:24 pm
Tulsa Drillers ticket scanning at the turnstyle.

Tulsa Drillers ticket scanning at the turnstyle.

While visiting our local minor league baseball park this past weekend, I noticed that mobile technology is becoming a part of the fan experience and club operations.  It started at the Tulsa Drillers turnstyle, where Leslee greeted me with a handheld scanner which captured barcode information off of the ticket. She said the information they capture helps them create a better product for season ticket holders and other fans.

After stocking up on food and drinks a young lady approached me and asked if I would participate in a quick survey.  She had a WiFi handheld device, asked a few questions about the wireless carrier I use and what attracts my family to the game.  She was using ReFormXT software which allowed her to check a few boxes on the device as I responded, and that information was immediately fed to a database in the office.

Once seated, everyone around me was texting between innings.  A friend of mine was using his iPhone to get stats on the visiting team’s pitcher.  A group of young ladies were taking pictures and forwarding them to friends and posting them on their MySpace account.  Almost everyone was connected.  The only person who wasn’t using a handheld device was the umpire.  At least I hope so.

April 13, 2009

CTIA Part 3 – 4G is Faster Than a Scalded Dog

Filed under: Industry News — Tags: , , , , , — Mike @ 2:59 pm

I’m not sure how much attention people in general actually pay to some of the terms those of us in the wireless industry use.  Let’s try this one for starters: 3G.  I’m guessing some of you probably have heard this and have a decent idea what it means, at least generally.  This knowledge is probably based on the likes of the new 3G iPhone.  3G is basically a general term used to refer to a set of faster wireless network technologies and protocols that have been in the market for the last 2-3 years.  If you have a cell phone with Sprint or Verizon, the incarnation you might be familiar with is EVDO or DO.  If you use AT&T, you may have heard the term HSPA.  I’ll spare you what the acronyms means, but in a nutshell the practical meaning of 3G is that each of us can get faster network access to our wireless devices.

For instance, if you have a 3G iPhone, you’re web pages will download faster (actually quite a bit faster), than if you have the original iPhone.  For those of you who travel like me, you might have an Air Card for your PC that lets you tap into one of the existing 3G networks.  It’s not as fast as your cable modem at home, but it’s way faster than previous wireless modems, and light years ahead of your 56K modem at home if you’re still stuck with that.

This year at CTIA many booths, and some of the speakers, featured the next generation of wireless network technologies: 4G.  4G, like 3G, comes in a couple of primary flavors.  You will begin to hear the terms WiMAX and LTE more and more over the next 2-3 years.  4G is the more generic term, and WiMAX and LTE are specific technology implementations.  Big deal, so what?  What does it mean to you, you ask?  The answer is simple: speed!

Let me try and paint a picture for you here.  If you currently have a cable modem at your home or place of work, you are probably experiencing on average somewhere aroundrunning-great-danes 4Mbit.  That means your computer is receiving 4 million bits each second from the network.  I average around this at my house, and I find this is fairly typical, though I do have friends that average closer to 7Mbit.  My point here is not to give you a specific speed, but to give you a frame of reference.  Now step forward with me into the world of 4G.  Imagine getting network access from your 4G iPhone (if it existed), or your 4G enabled laptop at something closer to 15Mbit to 20Mbit.  That’s somewhere around 4 or 5 times what you are getting in your home today, and it is what one presenter experienced in Portland recently when they did a 4G speed test.  That’s faster than a scalded dog, as we say where I’m from.

Think about it.  Speed like that really changes things.  From a personal perspective you could be riding down the road while your spouse is driving and watch a streaming TV show from Hulu.  You could even watch your favorite sport live through a number of on-line sites, all without jitter or delays.  From a business perspective that type of speed changes things dramatically.  Got a huge spreadsheet you need to review, or a large presentation you are updating?  No problem.  You’ve got speed that is as good or better than most of us experience in our offices.  Once that happens, we really will be able to do things any time, any place, anywhere.

April 9, 2009

What’s a Dell To Do?

Filed under: Industry News,Mobile Devices — Tags: , , , — Chris @ 1:54 pm

PalmDellLogoRumors have long circulated that Dell would be entering the smartphone market. As far as rumors go, that one seems believable. After all, they’ve gone from making personal computers out of a garage to becoming a massive manufacturer/distributor of desktop computers, laptops/notebooks, netbooks, monitors, servers, storage component, etc. They even had a (not so well receivied PDA, the Axim, in 2007). Why not get in the smartphone market now?

Well, it sounds like they have been trying to do just that. Unfortunately, the prototypes they’ve been shopping around seem to have been, well, boring. In other words, no iPhone killers. In fact, the only rumored iPhone killer that anyone is even talking about is Palm’s new Pre. So what’s a Dell to do? Wait…I have an idea! Dell should buy Palm! While that move wouldn’t guarantee Dell’s success, some analysts think it is a good idea. In fact, it may be the only reasonable way for Dell to enter the market this late in the game. Regardless, if Dell is serious about jumping in, they have one heck of a hill to climb.

What do you think? Should Dell go it alone or should they buy Palm? Here’s some more information to help you craft your thoughts:

palmdelllogoxsmallMichael Dell hints at smartphones, mobile Internet devices – InfoWorld
palmdelllogoxsmallDell’s iPhone Killer rejected by carriers as too dull – AppleInsider
palmdelllogoxsmallMore details on Dell’s supposed smartphone – CNet
palmdelllogoxsmallA Dell Smartphone Would Face Big Hurdles – Business Week
palmdelllogoxsmallPalm Pre a Bump in Dell’s Smartphone Road? – Pre Central
palmdelllogoxsmallHandoff: Why Dell Needs to Buy Palm Now – Fast Company

April 7, 2009

CTIA Wireless 2009 and the Watch Phone

Filed under: Industry News,Mobile Devices — Tags: , , — Mike @ 3:50 pm

I just got back from CTIA Wireless 2009 last week.  CTIA is the International Association for the Wireless Telecommunications Industry.  So what does that mean to you if you don’t work in the industry?  Well, it’s a chance to see what is going on the industry and what types of focus you’ll see out of providers throughout the 2009 calendar year.  We always send at least one person from MacroSolve to the show.  I was already traveling to see some of our partners last week so it was natural for me to stop in and see what was up.

I always find the show interesting, not for specific products or technologies that are displayed, but for the trends you can see if you just pay a little attention.  Since it’s been a couple of weeks since I posted, I thought I would write up a series of posts on some of the more interesting things I saw.

Let’s start it out with one of the coolest gadgets I have seen in a long time.  Any of you remember the Dick Tracy watch?  Well, it is alive and well in a new product from LG.  Take a look at the video below if you’d like to see more about it.  In a nutshell, it is a small, but very functional watch phone.  It has a full color touch screen, a speaker phone, MP3 player…the works.  It was actually announced at CES in January, but this was my first time to see it in person.

We focus on mobility in business in this blog, so why am I bringing the watch phone up here?  Obviously it’s a really cool device, but how does it apply to business?  I’m not sure it does apply specifically to business, but there is a reason for mentioning it.  That reason is miniaturization.  The more cellular, and related technologies shrink, the more pervasive they will became in devices other than just cell phones.  Check back in over the next day or so, and I’ll have some observations on how businesses will be impacted by cellular technologies making their way into a realm known as Machine to Machine.  Miniaturization is just one trend that is enabling the Machine to Machine world.

March 17, 2009

Blackberry: Rockin’ the Smartphone Market

Filed under: Industry News,Mobile Devices — Tags: , , , — Clint @ 8:18 am

Blackberry SmartphoneThe Smartphone market is one of the areas we closely watch as it serves as a bellweather for trends on how businesses are adopting mobility.  Within this market is Nokia, RIM/Blackberry, iPhone, Windows Mobile devices, HTC, Palm and others.  What makes these devices ‘smart’ as compared to a cell phone?  In simple terms they have an operating system that allows applications to be downloaded, a wireless data connection and usually a keyboard that accomodates a lot of typing.

A leading research firm, Gartner, just released its annual report on this market.  Of the 138 million devices sold in 2008, Nokia owns 40% of the market, followed by Blackberry (~20%) and then iPhone (~10%).  Nokia is losing market share, Blackberry is up 84% (quarter over quarter) and iPhone, a new entrant, is up 111%.   What is interesting here is that Blackberry is now a $12Billion company and this growth rate is incredible for a company that size.  Blackberry’s niche is serving the business customer, which are typically email fanatics.  iPhone serves a completely different segment, entertainment driven customers.

My take on this development is that businesses can cost justify a Blackberry as a business tool.  With a new application store called App World, we will likely see this trend continue.

If you would like more detailed information on the subject, Michael Mace’s blog has some very good statitistics and observations.

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