Strategy/The Narrative

Tomi Ahonen on: What happens when majority access web via mobile phone

Posted on by charlie

Tomi has a good take on some recent data from Ipsos Research. Very much in line with what I have been saying here (eh, a few points rub me the wrong way, but they balance out my prejudices). He does a good job of not only putting so much in one place, but of bringing up issues and answers (in the text and comments) related to the impending dominance of Internet access via mobile phones.

Go and read it.

Link: Communities Dominate Brands: What happens when majority access web via mobile phone.

Spotted a telling statistic by Ipsos Research, who reported that at the end of 2005 a total of 28% of all mobile phone users access the internet with their phones. Across the 2.1 billion mobile phone users, that works out to 588 million users. And obviously across the 1 billion internet users at the end of 2005, that means that almost 59% of internet users access the web via cellphone.

Great article, Tomi.

Strategy

Tom Hume ponders: SMS and IM

Posted on by charlie

Tom makes a brief comment on the nuances of IM and SMS. There are a few good comments, so go read them.

But, if I may extend what Enrique (CEO) mentioned: SMS and IM are similar and different. Much like the other ways we can communicate with a mobile, such as voice, email, MMS, even a posting client, SMS and IM are part of a continuum. Yet, one thing that the mobile desperately needs that that IM has is presence.

I don’t IM since it’s really a PC-based activity and I am not usually at my PC. But, I wish my contacts on my phone had presence information*, information to tell me about the availability and communication preferences of the person I am interested in contacting. Therefore I could choose the best form of communication before I connect. And this presence has to be tied somehow to my profile as well, so that it’s easy for me to change my presence status throughout the day.

We’ve had IM and presence servers for a very long time. I remember pointing out the benefits of presence-savvy phones many years ago. I think the reason IM and presence is not more a part of the mobile network fabric is part multiple proprietary IM systems, multiple players (multiple service providers and phone manufacturers), and maybe a touch of benign ignorance or imagination.

Link: Tom Hume: SMS and IM.

Weirdly, I was chatting to a guy from a VC earlier today about exactly this. I’d never thought of it before, but I suspect usage of SMS and IM are rather different – one seems significantly more synchronous than the other. Can one replace the other – and will users want them to? I can’t exactly see them running side-by-side…?

*Nokia has a few phones with presence-savvy contacts, but I don’t know of anyone who uses it or if anyone in the ‘wild’ actually knows how to set it up.

The Narrative

The Economist on: The magnificent seven to end African poverty

Posted on by charlie

I just read an article (quote below) on the UN’s Millennium Project. It’s a no-nonsense take on the simple things that can help people in developing nations get out of poverty. Basically, it’s some of the things that we take for granted that allow us to get beyond just trying to survive – Maslow, step 1 as it were.

One thing that I want to point out is that one of the seven magical items is the mobile phone.

Yes, the link between mobiles, getting out of poverty, and emerging markets will be one part of my book.

Link (subscription may be required): African poverty | The magnificent seven | Economist.com.

The Millennium Project is trying to show how a few simple reforms, seven in all, can substantially improve lives and provide livelihoods. These are: fertiliser and seed to improve food yield; anti-malarial bed nets; improved water sources; diversification from staple into cash crops; a school feeding programme; deworming for all; and the introduction of new technologies, such as energy-saving stoves and mobile phones.

Blindspot/Strategy/The Narrative

Observation for the weekend – the real effect of phone subsidies

Posted on by charlie

I think most of us who complain about the operators and their subsidies might really have a blindspot. We are looking from the vantage point of power users who know what phone they want, how open they want it, what services and plans, and how to hack it.

What about everyone else?

Everyone else wants something cheap or free, that makes decent calls, and looks pretty. Quite different than the average (though significantly less numerous) power user.

I mentioned recently that this past 01 April, the Finnish operators were allowed to bundle phone plans with phones. I wondered if it was a step backwards or if we were the ones actually wrong.

Eh, maybe we are wrong.

Why do I say this?

Well, in the past month I have seen a ton more 3G smartphones (the main ones that are being bundled). Even a friend who does not get excited about advanced phones was quizzing me.

So, let’s think about this:

– Is it better to make folks pay full price up front for an advanced 3G smartphone that might go for over 500€, or,

– Is it better to help them upgrade from their four-year old Nokia 3330s and bring them to the modern world?

I’m sorry, I’m starting to side with the operators on this one.

But wait – this strategy is only working because it’s the advanced phones only, as far as I know, that can be bundled. In other countries, all phones are subsidized. So, maybe we can find the middle ground and subsidize the advanced phones to effect a roll-over to more functional phones.

What do you think?

BTW, this weekend is the annual bacchanalia here – Vappu – Finland’s May Day. Another wonderful three-day weekend. See ya all Tuesday!