A quick follow up to yesterdays thoughts about the networks. I stumbled over Wired Magazine’s latest blog post, where they discuss 10 Reasons To Hate Cellphone Carriers. Obviously written from a US perspective, if I had read this last week I would have thought it was being a touch ironic with the humour. Now, I’m not so sure….
To me, coming from a number of European Conferences, CTIA was a bit of an eye-opener. Not because of the location (it’s hard to find fault with Moscone South in San Francisco), nor with the scheduled presentations and round tables put on by the organisers and attending companies at the event. The eye opener was the influence that the US networks have over their networks, the infrastructure, and the handsets available.
Every network, naturally, has to look out for the bottom line; but at the same time there should be a certain amount of respect for customer, developers, and handset manufacturers… basically the entire chain of the system. American networks, in my view were incredibly authoritarian – but I suspected that part of that was due to the distance I am from the US. After sitting through a number of presentations, and walking the show floor taking to every part of the chain, I have to wonder what the future of mobile messaging will be?
A quick example – the AT&T Tilt, a Windows Mobile smartphone that I’ve been spending some time with - has the usual set of applications and features onboard. But when I try to use the Instant Messaging client, I’m told that connecting via the built-in WiFi client is not allowed… why not connect over the air and use your cellphone’s data plan? You’re happy for IE to use Wifi but not the IM?
I’m sure the carriers will have a nice PR friendly answer as to why, but I’m also sure that the answer will come down to ‘we don’t want to loose a single cent from our SMS revenues.†And I think this ‘must… not… cannibalize…’ is going to be a big problem for any innovation that may occur in the space. When (not if) the next step comes along, I’m worried that it’s going to completely pass us by because it’s not going to be financially acceptable to a few companies with massive leverage on the system.
Twitter, driven by SMS, should be embraced. Where’s my option of a $5/month all you can twitter on top of a regular SMS package? Why, after being around for 18 months, and in the heavily trafficked world of widely adopted Web 2.0 services since Feb/March of this year, is this not available? I mean it does nothing to impact the network code, it’s just SMS, and it drives more traffic for the networks? It’s one isolated example, but I’m sure you can all come up with more. Maybe you can even come up with a service that has been amplified by the networks?
I think mobile messaging has a future, and I think that we will see a new form in the future. But in my opinion it will be in spite of the networks, not because of them.
It was just over twenty years ago this month that the deal was signed to build mobile networks based on GSM technology. Since then the success of the mobile phone has been phenomenal. It has transformed from being a simple communications device to an apparatus for gaming, photography and downloading music, a payments tool for content and services and more recently a distribution and advertising channel for brands wishing to interact with their customers.
Big brands face exciting opportunities to increase revenue and market share by deploying innovative mobile marketing techniques to demographically predetermined groups of potential customers. And more and more big brands are already taking advantage of this emerging opportunity and gaining early brand reinforcement and customer relationship advantages. To shed some light on the market and how it’s evolving, Airwide recently commissioned an independent survey of 50 global brand-name companies which revealed that 1 in 3 big brands have already launched live mobile marketing campaigns.
Among the other findings: brand experience with mobile marketing is increasingly positive as more brands are getting higher response rates from their campaigns. Brands surveyed confirmed that many recipients of mobile marketing campaigns requested more information as a result of receiving a mobile marketing message. Three quarters (73%) of brands answered that up to 10% of recipients subsequently undertook a financial action as a result of the campaign. Every responding brand agreed that their most recent mobile marketing campaign was successful in increasing customer familiarity of their brand.
However, according to the survey, despite enthusiasm for mobile marketing, barriers continue to hold back even higher growth rates; almost half of big brands (46%) are concerned that mobile marketing is too intrusive, with many feeling that customers will perceive messages as spam. Of these, 41% are unsure how to rectify the problem by targeting specific audiences. Over a third of brands (36%) would require detailed information on how the user responded to the message, and one in five want proof that the message has been received by the user’s handset (concerns mirrored by recent high profile issues with TV text voting).
The ongoing development of mobile messaging systems has paved the way for a range of valuable new marketing opportunities for brands, but mobile marketing will only reach its true potential when brands and operators recognize the need to confront the present lack of supporting information to manage and optimize marketing programs, and enhance the targeting and tracking characteristics of mobile marketing. It is essential that marketers target their campaigns specifically to gain the desired response rates, and enable opt-in mechanisms to avoid being perceived as ‘spammers’.
The good news is that there is help at hand: with reliable infrastructure in place and a means to control and measure campaigns, more and more big brands will be competing to create and deliver the most effective mobile marketing initiatives to subscribers. And consumers are set to benefit too; almost 60% of brands intend to send special offers via the mobile phone, and over a third (36%) will send discount vouchers. Other incentives will include digital loyalty cards, free gifts and preferential terms.
We hope you find the findings above of interest - we certainly did and hope you stay tuned for more info in subsequent posts. Also worth checking out: a mobile marketing roundtable Airwide recently convened to discuss the findings of the survey and further identify and investigate some of the dynamics that impact mobile marketing.
We’ll be releasing audio recordings of the discussion held earlier this month as well as video interviews with the attendees in the next week or two and invite you to listen in and add your own perspectives. Among those who participated: Nick Lane, analyst; Jonathan Bass, the chair of the UK Mobile Marketing Association (MMA); Anthony Reilly, head of mobile for Universal McCann; David Murphy from Mobile Marketing Magazine; Ian Williams of Vnunet.com; and Helen Keegan, a blogger on mobile marketing.
Jay Seaton is the CMO of Airwide Solutions
Airwide Solutions
I’ve been reading through a just-released IDC white paper entitled “Mobile Instant Messaging: The Next Major Mobile Opportunity.
(I’d give you a link but the white paper is firewalled)
Addressed to mobile operators, the 12-page white paper make the persuasive case that operators and carriers should view their Mobile Instant Messaging strategies from the needs of their mobile user customers.
I know that’s kind of a “well, duh,” but since at least one carrier I’d rather not name approaches these strategies from the point of view of advertisers than the end-user, this white paper should be required reading.
The four key goals, IDC advocates, are integration and flexibility, media sharing, presence information, and support of communities.
Since IDC mentioned integration and flexibility first, let us zoom in on their recommendations:
Mobile users want MIM that is fully integrated into their device contact lists and with other applications such as social networking sites and mobile browsers. In addition, they want MIM that has the flexibility to meet their evolving communications needs such as the ability to instantly share a picture or a media file with contacts who are participating in a MIM
session.
Well that sounds simple enough.
The second day at CTIA IT and Entertainment 2007 in San Francisco, and Debi, Paul and I meet up at the end of the day to discuss the major issues as we see them. In this podcast, we’re talking about the resurgence of voice, but in applications; the new forms that mobile messaging could take; monetisation and making mobile payments; why aren’t we talking about MMS as the new message?; Microsoft’s $240 million dollar deal with Facebook; what that deal means for Google and their opening up of mobile; and a few points about hype.
The news last week of Motorola’s purchase of a 50% stake in UIQ from Sony Ericsson led me to wonder what this meant for the telecommunications company’s longer term strategy. After some discussions with all the parties involved, it’s becoming clear to me that this is a long term strategic move on the part of the Chicago company.
While Motorola were already licencees of both Symbian and UIQ, buying into the user interface layer (UIQ) that sits on top of the kernel and operating system (Symbian OS) allows them to inject both a significant amount of capital in to the development of UIQ, and to help shape its future direction – naturally shaping it towards something more useful for Motorola.
It should also, indirectly, help bolster the UIQ ecosystem, providing developers and programmers with the confidence that UIQ is a good long term bet for third party applications. With the Sony Ericsson UIQ based devices shipping with a number of third party developed applications in the firmware as full applications, and even more as ‘try and buy’ on the retail packaged CD, you would expect Motorola to follow the same methodology – and the easiest way to find ten high quality applications is to get one thousand apps developed and choose the top 1% of them.
Are we going to see an immediate upswing in the American market of UIQ devices? I think this is unlikely – the penetration of UIQ in the US market, not counting any grey imports, is zero. I don’t see the regular end-user is not going to walk into an American mobile store and ask for a UIQ powered device. The investment required in marketing a specific UIQ device would be very high, and it would only make sense if UIQ and Symbian OS was the easiest way to overcome a technological hurdle – if a RAZR like phone needs to have (for example) support for the Blackberry Connect services, then it’s likely that Motorola would consider UIQ early in the development process, but to roll out a UIQ device just for the sake of it is unlikely.
Where we might see a push in 2008 on a European based UIQ device from Motorola – the kicker/slider Z8 RIZR phone being a recent example of both a new UIQ3 device and one which strictly remained a European phone, although it was certified for US usage by the FCC – and building both on the lessons from that device, and the stronger presence of Symbian and UIQ compared to the US market.
What is clear is that the purchase of a stake in UIQ, and the joint statement from Mototola and Sony Ericsson is a very visible and very load declaration that the two companies are strong supporters of UIQ as a platform. With the dominance of Nokia’s S60, an alternative UI that also sits on top of Symbian OS, ensuring that UIQ remains in the minds of the developers and the networks was always going to be high on the list of priorities.
This announcement clearly does that. I await what follows with keen interest, and with more confidence on Motorola’s role than I had at the end of last week.
Debi Jones, Paul Ruppert and I sat down after the first day of the CTIA IT and Entertainment Show in San Francisco to talk about the big themese and features of the day. Starting with a look at the control that the carriers feel they need to exert, we discuss the game-chaning nature that Apple’s iPhone has brought to the market; the (non) effectivness of mobile advertising; user generated conent and branding;and the impact of social networking on the smartphone.
Comments are, as always, welcome - and we’ll have a second in-depth podcast from CTIA tomorrow.
Steve Ballmer keynoted the first day of the CTIA IT and Entertainment conference, and one of his key announcements was the launch of System Center Mobile Device Manager. This is a set of tools for Enterprise customers that would allow Windows Mobile smartphones to be managed by IT departments with the same granularity as desktop and laptop based equipment in a company.
With between 100 and 150 million instances of MS-Exchange in the wild, compared to around 8-12 million mobile inboxes on smartphones, Microsoft must feel that the discrepancy is worth addressing. Leveraging the Enterprise space to push a product is arguably the same modus operandi used previously by Redmond, but it does make a certain amount of sense, especially as thanks to Active Sync, Windows Mobile devices are some of the most well connected smart devices out there.
Providing IT departments with a feature set they are already comfortable with; and one that should slide easily into corporate IT plans; should see the continued adoption of Windows Mobile devices in the Enterprise space – with security and firmware updates handled centrally, an easy workflow process, and the promise of an Out of the Box experience that has the same ease of use as a consumer device, this could be a good medium to long term move.
One of the main issues standing in the way is that smartphones are always on devices, and almost constantly carried. While workforces don’t have an issue having a laptop dedicated for their working life, and potentially a second laptop or other computer for their personal time, having to tote around two phones is not something that is going to be acceptable to the regular modern worker. The smartphone is an incredibly personal device, and that doesn’t match up to the demand of a locked down, totally secure corporate device. How that problem is dealt with – more than a smooth rollout and remote device management – I think is more important than making it easy for the IT crowd.
I’m also wondering why Microsoft have taken the keynote at CTIA and heavily pushed the enterprise area of Windows Mobile, with no counterweight announcement in the consumer space. Redmond wouldn’t be running scared of another consumer phone that’s the darling of the press in the Valley, would they?
I’ve been casting about at CTIA IT today trying to identify some themes and hot impressions from the buzz of the CTIA show. As a “here and now” guy whose forte is driving revenues, as opposed to over the horizons speculating, one thing that stands clear is the impact of the iPhone. In fact it is the only part of the show so far that has created it’s own real undercurrent. Not surprising–just look at ATT’s earnings report today announcing a 41.9% increase as compared to the Q3 006. My core impressions are as follows.
Milestone or Tipping Point
The iPhone in fact is both a milestone and a tipping point in the mobile ecosystem. The iPhone with the beyond just voice calls emphasis, towards a high degree of entertainment and fun, combined with the fact that it is the first consumer focused launch in the wireless world that was not directed by the carriers, makes it a real watershed event in the business. In the minds of consumers, it certainly provides a richer experience. From the commercial side it really opens up the value chain. Both positive effects on the industry, at least in the US.
This richer consumer experience will seed demand for ever more advanced services that will run on the iPhone platform, and the pressure on carriers is already starting to build. I’ve counted no less than 3 iPhone imitators from the OEMs STC, LG and Samsung. Let’s hope they have done their homework and aren’t creating a toaster oven—neither a real oven nor a good toaster. Apple invested tens of millions in consumer research and it shows. If there is a lesson for the carrier handset directors it is that consumers will pay a premium, and even sacrifice homogeneous, lowest common denominator functionality and trade it off for superior user interfaces and fewer, but killer, apps. Yea, yea, storage might be limited, texting isn’t very good, the camera isn’t 5 megapicsels, and the it runs a little slower on some networks, but it is a killer means to surf the web and have a full, rich mobile net experience while having a high degree of fun.
Game Changers make Rules Changes
The larger commercial impact is the game changing effect Apple has manifested in the mobile market. They are now an independent force in this space. It doesn’t strip the power of the operators, but Apple has definitely established a dialog with wireless consumers and the topic of conversation is something the carriers have never dreamed of. In the iPhone launch Apple controlled how prospects learned about the devices and how they bought the devices in a completely different context than carriers had in the past. It was a watershed event in the business.
Apple released the limitations that have previously existed in the market. Much like user generated content in the form of Utube has changed mass broadcasting, Apple has changed the dynamic in how consumers think, act, and do mobile. The iPhone essentially transcends what a mobile phone is. In the past carriers never thought a mass audience would seek to make a $500 handset purchase. The message is no longer the “phone on its own,†It is so much more than just that.
This doesn’t mean the carriers are are destined to loose loose loose. In fact this is an opportunity for them to open up themselves, free their minds, and much like the digital camera market has flourished (notwithstanding the advent of an additional 500 million mobile camera phones). It is incumbent on the carriers to step up their games, in order to compete. Open themselves to more innovative approaches. Will all new handset launches rival Apples? No, there will be many more like them, but focused to a precise and impactful market launch.
Hence, the iPhone is having a “here and now effect” on the mobile industry. Let’s see how the operators position themselves as Apple develops the second and third generation iPhones, as they have done with the iPod. It has changed the landscape.
Some readers at Mobile Messaging 2.0 may be aware that I live in San Diego. Fortunately, I am not there. I’m San Francisco to cover CTIA this week, however, I have received three public service messages from the city of San Diego on my mobile phone today.
The disastrous fires burning in San Diego have initiated a service used by the city and county government to inform and update residents. Mandatory evacuation orders have been communicated via reverse 911 on both landline phones and mobile phones. The messages are prerecorded and as I’ve said, three messages have been received on my phone. The first was an evacuation order. The next message was a notice that San Diego schools are closed until further notice along with the instruction to keep children inside and restrict their activity levels (smoke and ash is so thick in the air that keeping it out of your house is impossible during large fires). The third message was information on evacuation centers that were still open as several are already full.
Regulation in the US for Enhanced 911 or emergency service which incorporates location data has resulted in a number of emergency related services that are unique to the US market when compared to other geographical regions like Western Europe or Asia. The reverse 911 system isn’t specifically a mobile service, but that it does include mobile phones is impressive and to see this system work in the case of a disaster saving time and lives is an important development. To this point, 262,000 households have received reverse 911 calls.
There have also been a flood of messages via Twitter from those located in San Diego and those seeking information on the fire progress and the safety of friends and family.
Advisories have been announced on CNN and local San Diego TV stations asking people to limit their mobile phone use as the networks are saturated. This is a common problem during emergencies as we’ve seen over and over. The one component that continued to provide communication during the London bombings, post Katrina flooding in New Orleans and now in San Diego is text messaging. Twice today my mobile calls have been rejected with the network reporting, “all circuits are busy”. And yet, I’ve continued to be able to send out SMS.
One San Diego resident, Nate Ritter, is using Twitter which I’m receiving on my phone to broadcast updates on evacuation shelter openings and closings once they are full along with updates on the spreading of the fires. Five Hundred homes lost, so far. I learned on Twitter that an additional 50 K people have been evacuated in San Diego today bringing the total to 300 K.
The most up to date information, persistent personal communication capability and official notifications from the government’s emergency services have been delivered to my mobile phone. This is one more demonstration of how critical mobile communications have become not merely for entertainment and trivial time wasting, but as a critical and always-on resource when such capability can literally save lives.
This site on the future of mobile messaging is sponsored by Airwide Solutions. More info on the blog here.
Commentary from Airwide CEO Kevin Wood on Telecom TV
Worldwide, mobile operators are struggling to maintain their current ARPU levels as competition drives ever-lower pricing for voice minutes and text messaging plans. At the same time, operators are trying to determine what is the secret to developing the next generation of applications and services that enable them to attract new customers, reduce churn and to get more value from their existing customers.
But predicting the next "killer app" is not that simple. And the mobile industry is infamous for bouncing from one topic to the next in a desperate search for the next great app.
Predicting the future is the art of seeing the present logically extended. Given the degree of interdependency -- and invested capital -- among the key players in the value chain, changes in the industry will likely be evolutionary rather than revolutionary.
Hear Airwide CEO Kevin Wood highlight 4 key factors he sees in predicting the future of mobile messaging applications and services in this interview with Telecom TV.
Watch the video
Airwide Solutions, the sponsor of this site, recently published a white paper by Vince Kadar, their CTO, on their beliefs about how mobile messaging is evolving and why this next generation of infrastructure and applications merits the "2.0" moniker. Airwide invites you to read and react to the paper - it's eager to engage with and learn from those interested in the future of mobile messaging.
Read the white paper.
It is editorially managed and produced by Corante.
Global Messaging Conference, Monaco
