Yet another year of Mobile World Congress has passed. The 8th for me and the most positive in 4 years. People were optimistic about the future, there were lots of new exciting startups, we saw power shifts and power battles, and the overall message was: we are here to do business!
The key talking points:
1. Mobile OS wars
Some consider it game over, with iOS and Android the clear winners, but the other players certainly haven't given up. Two main factors keep adding fuel to the fire:
The key talking points:
1. Mobile OS wars
Some consider it game over, with iOS and Android the clear winners, but the other players certainly haven't given up. Two main factors keep adding fuel to the fire:
a) The operators don't want to become bitpipes
b) The handset manufacturers don't want to be relegated to hardware manufacturers
At the same time the handset manufacturers are launching a massive number of Android devices. Google, and hopefully the consumers, are currently the biggest winners from this. In the long run, it might result in less competition and innovation.
Operators hand have found that Android devices are very easy to sell, creating a nice counter weight to iPhone. Google, once again, is the biggest winner while the operators have little control over or little revenue from the services provided. This is why the operators have put a big emphasis on WAC (Wholesale Application Community) this year at MWC. With WAC, the operators could succeed in building up their own eco-system for developers, basing it on web standards. This could open the door to a role in the app value chain. In the background, operators are revising their device purchasing strategies, aiming for a good balance between iOS, Android, WM7, RIM and other operating systems such as Limo. More about this in another blog.
2. The power is with the developers
Possibly one of the most exciting developments is the reassignment of roles between operators, device manufacturers and developers. Just two years ago it was almost impossible for a developer to get on the carrier decks (i.e. sell content through an operator portal). Operators normally wouldn't respond at
all and when they did it was usually with great arrogance towards the developer or content provider. Today this has completely changed. Operators are screaming for apps for their appstores and do everything they can to attract developer attention including competitions, developer outreach programs and more. Many of the developers on the other hand refuse to even speak to the operators. They are happy with the existing appstore distribution channels, primarily Apple Appstore and Google Android Market.
3. Tablets, tablets and more tablets
One year ago all the visitors had notebooks, this year they had iPads. Even more prominent was the fact that almost every single device manufacturer presented a tablet of some kind this year including Motorola, RIM, HP, ZTE, Huawei, LG, Samsung, etc. According to Gartner, by 2013 media tablets such as Apple's iPad will have infiltrated 80 per cent of enterprises, and the increasing use of the devices, along with other mobile gadgetry such as smartphones, will be THE disruptive technology implementation for CIOs in the coming years. The question remains whether there is really a market for that many products?
4. Apps are KING
The "Content is king" trend goes in cycles. In 2000 AOL acquired Time Warner for 162 billion USD with the argument being that content would be the most important thing in acquiring and retaining customers. The same argument has been used several times since by mobile operators as well as handset manufacturers. Every 2-3 years they make a major investment and a few years later they get impatient and give up on the initiative. With the current app trend this is happening once again. Handset manufacturers are looking for exclusive apps that help differentiating their devices and appstores. Operators are looking for the latest and greatest apps for their appstores. This year content or rather apps were definitely king at MWC.
5. VAS and mobile marketing companies doing everything
- “What do you do?” I asked one of the companies in Hall 7 (the app and content area of MWC)
- “What do you want?” was the answer
Many of the companies at MWC still offer a little bit of everything to operators and companies. A typical offering by a mobile marketing agency (which they usually don't want to be referred as) includes messaging, text to win, CRM, search, mobile websites, video streaming, music, games, app development, mobile advertising, mobile social networking and LBS. Our experience is that it takes about 6 to 12 months for a sales or project manager to get to a base level in terms of knowledge about mobile apps alone. Imagine selling all of them. One expectation for next year is therefore more specialization and consolidation.
We definitely need a 12 month break now but already look forward to MWC 2012!
b) The handset manufacturers don't want to be relegated to hardware manufacturers
At the same time the handset manufacturers are launching a massive number of Android devices. Google, and hopefully the consumers, are currently the biggest winners from this. In the long run, it might result in less competition and innovation.
Operators hand have found that Android devices are very easy to sell, creating a nice counter weight to iPhone. Google, once again, is the biggest winner while the operators have little control over or little revenue from the services provided. This is why the operators have put a big emphasis on WAC (Wholesale Application Community) this year at MWC. With WAC, the operators could succeed in building up their own eco-system for developers, basing it on web standards. This could open the door to a role in the app value chain. In the background, operators are revising their device purchasing strategies, aiming for a good balance between iOS, Android, WM7, RIM and other operating systems such as Limo. More about this in another blog.
2. The power is with the developers
Possibly one of the most exciting developments is the reassignment of roles between operators, device manufacturers and developers. Just two years ago it was almost impossible for a developer to get on the carrier decks (i.e. sell content through an operator portal). Operators normally wouldn't respond at
all and when they did it was usually with great arrogance towards the developer or content provider. Today this has completely changed. Operators are screaming for apps for their appstores and do everything they can to attract developer attention including competitions, developer outreach programs and more. Many of the developers on the other hand refuse to even speak to the operators. They are happy with the existing appstore distribution channels, primarily Apple Appstore and Google Android Market.
3. Tablets, tablets and more tablets
One year ago all the visitors had notebooks, this year they had iPads. Even more prominent was the fact that almost every single device manufacturer presented a tablet of some kind this year including Motorola, RIM, HP, ZTE, Huawei, LG, Samsung, etc. According to Gartner, by 2013 media tablets such as Apple's iPad will have infiltrated 80 per cent of enterprises, and the increasing use of the devices, along with other mobile gadgetry such as smartphones, will be THE disruptive technology implementation for CIOs in the coming years. The question remains whether there is really a market for that many products?
4. Apps are KING
The "Content is king" trend goes in cycles. In 2000 AOL acquired Time Warner for 162 billion USD with the argument being that content would be the most important thing in acquiring and retaining customers. The same argument has been used several times since by mobile operators as well as handset manufacturers. Every 2-3 years they make a major investment and a few years later they get impatient and give up on the initiative. With the current app trend this is happening once again. Handset manufacturers are looking for exclusive apps that help differentiating their devices and appstores. Operators are looking for the latest and greatest apps for their appstores. This year content or rather apps were definitely king at MWC.
5. VAS and mobile marketing companies doing everything
- “What do you do?” I asked one of the companies in Hall 7 (the app and content area of MWC)
- “What do you want?” was the answer
Many of the companies at MWC still offer a little bit of everything to operators and companies. A typical offering by a mobile marketing agency (which they usually don't want to be referred as) includes messaging, text to win, CRM, search, mobile websites, video streaming, music, games, app development, mobile advertising, mobile social networking and LBS. Our experience is that it takes about 6 to 12 months for a sales or project manager to get to a base level in terms of knowledge about mobile apps alone. Imagine selling all of them. One expectation for next year is therefore more specialization and consolidation.
We definitely need a 12 month break now but already look forward to MWC 2012!
1 comment:
Hello,
Mobile marketing is a interactive wireless media. It is an excellent way for you, to connect to your intended audience in an effective manner every time, which is one of the popular and viable marketing strategies for businesses to enhance their market opportunities. Thanks a lot..
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