ArchiveSeptember 2010August 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 |
“I should have known better”
With the risk of sounding like a broken record with my Android experiences I just can’t let this one piece of news slide.
Early August, when the launch of Android version 2.2 was imminent, HTC Desire users of Vodafone UK (as many others) were eager to get the update. When it eventually arrived, disappointment ensued. It turned out that the update was not the awaited 2.2 but a new 2.1 with lots of Vodafone 360 apps and graphics. Apps and graphics that were non-removable to the user. This created enough stir in the community that Vodafone took action (planned or non-planned?) and ensured all users that a 2.2 update would override the 2.1 update and be based on the common Android version. Read all about it here: http://www.telecoms.com/22013/vodafone-backs-down-on-custom-android-update/ Needless to say, the initiative went off the mark but I still believe that Vodafone are on to something in taking the Android track with their 360 initiative. With Android, operators with the scale and ambition of Vodafone may have their “final” shot at designing and “owning” the customization, UI and applications. The Open Source nature of Android, the possibility to add UI layers and create applications pose a clear opportunity for anyone wanting to add the little extra. So, what do I think they should have done? Well, offer the applications, UI layers, widgets etc. in the android market (yes, I know they’re offering some, but..). Their basic strategy evidently implies a belief in being able to add value to the customer experience. If so, then why not compete with all other apps in the market. Why not go for a wider audience than the Vodafone user base? In the new world of app stores freedom of choice prevails, and if Vodafone wants to play a role in the applications and software arena they will have to compete with the best of breed to really win their customers’ hearts. / Per Per Stenström is a Manager at Northstream Feedback to blog@northstream.se
02 Sep 2010 | Northstream
Live and let Die,…or Live?
Microsoft has been struggling with their mobile operating system, Windows Mobile, for years. Recent statistics do not speak in favour Microsoft either: their market share shrunk from 9% to 5% over the past year. During the same period Apple iOS grew from 13% to 14% and Google Android exploded from 2% to 17%. (Gartner, August 2010)
 This development is of course not news to Microsoft who since long has announced the much anticipated next version of Windows Mobile, now dubbed Windows Phone 7. Release dates are set for October/November, just in time for the holiday sales. Early reviews have generally concluded that it looks promising but has its share of issues that need attention. Microsoft’s new mobile OS is not likely to shake the earth when it hit stores but may at least halt their loss of market share.
Even if Windows Phone 7 lacks features to really set it apart from iOS and Android it does seem to have something quite unique: the Xbox Live gaming network. Xbox Live thrives and Microsoft claims some 25 million registered users. Looking at the mobile gaming competition, Apple’s iOS has some very popular games but they cannot really compare to the titles available for Sony PlayStation Portable (PSP) or Nintendo DS. Quality games for Android are generally hard to find, likely a consequence of Google’s inability to having launched paid applications in more than 13 countries so far. In the fierce competition on mobile operating system market share, Xbox Live and good portable gaming experience may indeed be the differentiator Microsoft needs for their new OS release. If Microsoft can convince just some percentages of the current 25 million Xbox Live users that they need Windows Phone 7 for great mobile games, their market share will increase by significant numbers. Microsoft needs to hurry though: iOS shows high growth on the portable gaming market as well, mostly nibbling share from Sony’ PSP according to Flurry.  To approach tomorrow’s market, there are important lessons to be learned from both present and past:
First, make sure you understand which features are essential and which are key differentiation attractors. Make essential features as good as the competition, but focus efforts on making the key differentiation attractors outstanding. Apple’s overall iPhone strategy was clear: you can get away with “good-enough” hardware as long as the device user experience is excellent. Microsoft should take on a follower approach in the user interface and then focus on the things they do really well. One of the reasons that Nokia’s N-Gage phone/game device failed a number of years ago was the split focus. N-Gage was neither a good phone nor a good gaming platform and on top of that too expensive. Second, make sure that consumers can pay for applications and games immediately in all countries where the OS is launched. Failing to do this will alienate users as they will not be able to access premium quality content and developers because they don’t get paid. This is the problem Android phones face with Android Market in most countries. Make sure the best game titles are available and you will attract consumers, but avoid being middle-of-the road with content that is readily accessible elsewhere. Microsoft is in a good starting position as the Xbox Live infrastructure is already in place. Third, in providing third party applications through an app marketplace, strike a good balance between open and closed. At present Android Market represents the fully open while Apple’s App Store is the closed alternative, both with their respective pros and cons. We believe there is a middle road here allowing for developer openness while curating the experience for consumers to find the best and weed out the worst. Microsoft’s intention with Windows Marketplace for Mobile is not clear yet. There is little doubt Windows Phone 7 will have significant challenges in trying to grab market share from iOS and Android, but Xbox Live could turn out to be just the thing Apple and Google lacks. Microsoft has to carefully navigate with their strategy to please the market and stay in touch with their users. For instance, Microsoft announced that multiplayer support will not be part of the initial Windows Phone 7 release. Such features might prove essential and not only nice-to-have when you are up to the kind of competition that Microsoft is facing. Microsoft needs to get these things right or risk losing in both the smartphone and portable gaming market opportunities. /Erik Erik E. Byström is a Senior Consultant at Northstream Feedback to blog@northstream.se
30 Aug 2010 | Northstream
Here, there, but not everywhere
Last weekend I got the Android 2.2 update to my HTC Desire.
First, let’s run through all the good things with that experience;
When I got to the office Monday morning some other things became apparent;
/ Per Per Stenström is a Manager at Northstream Feedback to blog@northstream.se
27 Aug 2010 | Northstream
It takes all sorts to make a world
Sony Ericsson has been blessed by some good news lately. The other day AT&T started selling the Xperia X10 in the US and the European Imaging and Sound Association (EISA) awarded the Xperia X10 mini “European Mobile Phone 2010-2011”. Earlier on, the same phone received the red dot award for product design. Congratulations!
More than a straightforward implementation of the Android OS in an iPhone-form factor, the Xperia X10 mini demonstrates an OEM’s creative divergence from the mode du jour and value-adds in terms of the Sony Ericsson UI additions, the overall design and finish. After the iPhone launch in 2007 it has been fascinating to see smartphone after smartphone quickly imitating its form factor. For a while it seemed as if the Motorola Razr blockbuster phenomenon never happened. However, we must remember that consumer purchase criteria do not change as quickly as Apple and Google would have us believe. Of course there are lots of people for whom a small phone, a sturdy phone, a long-lasting-talktime phone, or a powerful-antenna phone is more attractive than one with a large screen, just as some prefer a physical QWERTY keyboard to a touch screen keyboard. The better then, if a small phone can offer a smartphone experience. In a way, this was specifically acknowledged by EISA by awarding a smartphone the mobile phone award. Size won the jury, and an “uncompromising smartphone experience” was a value-add. Remarkable then, that in their award motivation, EISA concludes “Its small size and weight and variety of vivid case colours make it perfect for introducing the fairer sex to smartphone technology”. Geez, we wonder on the composition of that 50-person jury... As long as this kind of sexist thinking prevails, there is certainly room for more changes in the consumer electronics business! /Johan Johan Ragnevad is a Senior Manager at Northstream Feedback to blog@northstream.se
24 Aug 2010 | Northstream
Let it be…
People have been proclaiming its demise for years now. Me and others now and then take pictures of them in exotic places to remind ourselves and our grandchildren that there was a time when we built houses for telephones. Yes, the phone booth was easier to find twenty years ago. In Sweden they peaked in 1981 at 5 phone booths per 1000 inhabitants. Even though they still today just outnumber ATMs at 3 phone booths per 10.000 inhabitants, callers in need are not helped by payphones that do not accept cash or by the difficulty in finding places that sell payphone cards.
One may also wonder if incumbents have given up on these exotic points of interconnect, as so many of them are out of order or badly maintained. In Finland they are gone all together. Even though the website of the Independent Payphone Association of New York has expired, we understand that some private payphone owners still make money in the Big Apple – to the tune of $200 per month. Mobile phones – it is sometimes forgotten – run out of battery or simply are not fully ubiquitous yet! But maybe the Finns will regret their haste. As mobile data demand continues to grow exponentially and operators struggle to cope, there has been much talk about femtocells and WiFi offload solutions. Well, how about using those pieces of phone booth real estate? It turns out that that is exactly what TeliaSonera is doing in Sweden. At least 25% of the remaining phone booths serve as hubs for Telia homerun WiFi surf zones, offering laptop, smartphone and tablet users a boost while relieving the 3G network. Let me predict that the number of phone booths in places like downtown Stockholm will not reduce further! Now, how about attaching some chairs and benches as well…? /Johan Johan Ragnevad is a Senior Manager at Northstream Feedback to blog@northstream.se
19 Aug 2010 | Northstream
|
