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On Sale: The iPhone (well, in Europe, at least)
Well the iPhone may be hard to come by in the U.S. these days, but they’re practically giving them away overseas. As Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster notes today, two more mobile phone retailers — Britain’s 02 and Carphone Warehouse — have cut the price of the 8 GB iPhone by 37 percent. This follows another, even more drastic price reduction earlier this month, of 75 percent, by T-Mobile in Germany.
Munster thinks the cuts indicate that the demand for iPhones in Europe is light. However, he also believes iPhone carriers are clearing the way for the new 3G model, expected to be launched in June.
Meanwhile, RIM’s BlackBerry keeps adding addicts overseas: Roughly 33 percent of its subscriber base is now outside of North America, according to Scotia Capital’s Gus Papageorgiou — with most of it in Europe.
Oh No….Blackberry Ban In India?
Put this in the dumb-things-dumb-government-officials-do category! Apparently India’s Department of Telecommunications has rejected Tata Teleservices’ application to offer RIM’s BlackBerry on their network. DoT’s dumb excuse: “BlackBerry service does not allow for ‘lawful interception’ mandated for all Value Added Services (VAS).” In other words, they are bringing up the national security bogeyman! Current BlackBerry service providers have been contacted by DoT as well. The question is, what will DoT do with overseas visitors who show up with their BlackBerrys?
Hey Microsoft, forget MIX, focus on Mobiles
It is hardly a surprise that the more en vogue and exotic MIX ‘07 is overshadowing a strategically more important event hosted by Microsoft - the 2007 Mobile and Embedded Devices Conference also being held in Las Vegas.
Given that mobiles are supposedly the platform for the next billion - aka a market Microsoft has to play in - it is a surprise that Microsoft and its vast press corps failed to send us a single alert about this conference, and instead chose to spend all their attention (and some serious dollars) on MIX 07. Such apathy is contrary to the progress Microsoft has made with Windows Mobile, which is one of the two future platforms of growth for the company. (Xbox is the other.)
“Today we already outsell RIM Blackberry in the marketplace, something most people don’t know,” said Robbie Bach, president of Microsoft’s Entertainment and Devices Division in his keynote, promising that Microsoft will sell 20 million Windows Mobile 6 units in 2008.
(Good luck, but the competition is going to be fierce, especially from some flavor of mobile Linux, Symbian and just maybe from iPhone.)
That’s not a lot. Every year, roughly a billion mobiles are sold. Twenty million also doesn’t compare favorably to Nokia’s 2006 smart phone shipments of around 38 million. But to put it in proper context, five years ago, Microsoft had one device, one operator and a UI that behaved like the dwarf-cousin of the real thing, aka Windows.
Today Microsoft can at least boast that there are almost 150 devices that run Windows Mobile for mobile phones, 125 operators that sell those devices made by about 50-odd handset manufacturers. The user interface has improved, but it is still a work in progress.
While it is unlikely that I would switch to Windows Mobile anytime soon, I have seen how some friends of mine like the platform. In fast growing mobile societies like India and China, Windows Mobile devices are popular despite their high price tag. Many use Windows Mobile (and other phones) for what we view as computing tasks in the US. It is their computer.
Microsoft has to work hard with device makers to bring the prices down to $100-a-pop range, and see its market share zoom. Microsoft’s relevance (and more importantly future profits) in these new mobile societies are going to come from mobiles, not PCs.
linux
Windows
mobile
microsoft
nokia
Blackberry
Technology-News
Helio’s Last Chance: the Ocean
It’s no secret Helio has been burning through money, trying to boost its subscriber base and spark interest in its youth-oriented tech-savvy phone service and devices. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution writes that Helio could go out of business if it doesn’t bring in more funding this year from parent companies SK Telecom, Earthlink, or outside investors. That’s not something customers really want to hear when considering signing up for an expensive phone service.
But Helio’s Ocean messaging device, which we checked out at CTIA last week, could come in as an unlikely savior, though, it is too soon to count on that. The company has spent considerable time on developing the design — and started working on Ocean before Helio was officially a company. The Ocean is the startup carrier’s first breakthrough phone, with its slick dual slider form and messaging interface, and it could catch fire with the young professional set. A big “if” of course, but a chance nonetheless. Here’s 5 ways the Ocean could help turn around Helio:
1). Devices are king: More and more the phones themselves are the reason subscribers are signing up for service. It’s a hits-driven business with the iPhone causing customers to considering switching to Cingular. With no followup hit to the RAZR in site, Moto is learning the hard way. Nokia and Motorola are opening stores in key locations looking to strengthen the handset brand and control the experience. If the Ocean gets enough buzz, it could be the tipping point to get subscribers to sign up for an already quality phone service.
2). Young professionals want the next Sidekick: Time after time, friends in Silicon Valley say when it comes to phone options for personal and business use, they want a better designed Blackberry or Treo, or a more business friendly next gen Sidekick. Moto has the Q, and Samsung has the Blackjack. The next generation of Sidekick (hiptop) devices was more of a basic upgrade, and missed out on this latest opportunity. If Helio stays around long enough, the Ocean could fill this void. It’s $295 and is expensive for the youth market, but the young professional could pony up the dollars for a nice design.
3). Mobile UI: With the iPhone and LG Prada pushing the fluid user interface, consumers — especially the early-adopter young professionals — are tired of the poor consumer experience of phones like the Treo. Ocean is Helio’s way to show off a lot of its nice mobile software details that could win over a lot of loyalty (once you have a chance to use the phone). For example if you start typing while the device is in idle mode, it automatically starts a web search (Yahoo is the default) or a contact list search. For web browsing Helio is using its own slick browser, and the device uses its standard menu layout.
4.) Supports Microsoft’s Exchange ActiveSync: This is a feature that would actually make the device work with corporate networks, a necessity for some of the big-spending young executive.
5). All messaging is created equal: The young professional demographic is young enough to be avid text messagers, while relying on email for much of the day, and also in need of connecting with corporate exchange servers. Helio’s messaging interface doesn’t relegate SMS to a seperate inbox. The device merges all these messaging options together into one place and makes all equally important.
mobile
Blackberry
telecom
treo
earthlink
helio
Technology-News