carriers

Google looking to free handsets from carriers

Phil Goldstein — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 09:56:29 -0400

Google is interested in producing a technology that will enable users to have an open mobile device that searches for cellular networks in range, much like WiFi devices currently sniff out hotspots, according to a patent the company filed in 2007 that was released this week.

The concept, called "Instant Bid," allows users to effectively end the system in which handsets are tethered to a single wireless network, and may be geared more toward prepaid cell phone users who do not have long-term contracts with carriers.

Google has said that the idea may amount to nothing, but with the Android software and the G1 device promising open application development, as well as Google co-founder Larry Page's push to get white-space freed up for unlicensed wireless applications, the idea of "open" at Google seems to be gaining steam.

For more:
- see this article
- click here to see the patent

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Sprint CEO looks to improve Nextel unit

Phil Goldstein — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 10:18:35 -0400

Dan Hesse, Sprint Nextel's CEO, said the company is focused on fixing the Nextel part of the partnership, and said despite the lag it has put on business, the Nextel unit is not something Sprint necessarily has to sell.

Hesse was speaking Thursday at a conference hosted by Goldman Sachs, and said the company's top priority right now is to reinvigorate Nextel, but he also spoke about paying down the company's debt. A sale of the Nextel unit would go a long way toward doing that, though Sprint is not likely to get anything near the $38 billion they forked over for it in 2005.

Since Sprint bought Nextel and its iDEN network the company has struggled to integrate it and has fallen behind AT&T Mobility and Verizon Wireless in market share.

For more:
- see this article

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Mobile marketing panels offer differing views

Phil Goldstein — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 19:49:52 -0400

In the emerging world of mobile marketing there are often divergent points of view between carriers and ad agencies over what values should be emphasized in targeting consumers. At two separate panels at the CTIA Wireless I.T. and Entertainment conference in San Francisco these differences came to the fore and the participants also expressed similar concerns over the value of being respectful of consumers.

In an afternoon panel focused on carrier concerns, with participants from Alltel, AT&T, Sprint, and Verizon Wireless, the idea of working in market on demand was emphasized. Kristi Crum, the director of multimedia content for Alltel and Matt Hull, an executive director of AT&T mobility, said the reach for mobile markets in available even if it is in its infancy.

Joseph Kearny, a senior account manager at Verizon Wireless, said mobile market targeting from a carrier perspective reached a tipping point and that ad-supported models were win-win propositions if the ads were unobtrusive yet valuable.

In that environment, Kevin McGinnis, a director at Sprint, excused himself for using a cliche and said a high tide rises all boats--that higher mobile data usage led to increased impressions on consumers. In terms of targeting consumers and balancing that with protecting their privacy, McGinnis stressed that carriers should not push the envelope too far and needed to educate consumers about how much of their private information was truly available.

Along those lines, at the panel focused on agencies' desires, Julie Preis, a general manager of Ansible Wireless, a mobile marketing agency in a joint venture with mobile technology partner Velti, said treating consumers with respect was the key to success.

The agencies' panel's moderator, Mark Lowenstein, the executive director of Mobile Ecosystems, echoed some of the themes from the carriers' panel: mobile data usage is taking off, smartphone growth has led to an increased potential market. The challenges, he said, were moving away from strictly SMS targeting into more MMS and video, which may not be viable as a business model now because a lack of devices to send ads to. Another main hurdle was developing metrics to measure the effectiveness of ads.

David Katz, the vice president of mobile advertising at Yahoo!, said the key to mobile markets was obvious: to deliver audiences, and, in turn, revenue. The problem, with this, Preis said, was developing a clear line between brands and consumers and delivering on the promise of mobile marketing as a persistent and personal form of advertising. She emphasized SMS messaging as the greatest reach potential method.

Preis said the way forward was going to be defined by the ability to cut down the time it takes to transfer a web campaign to a mobile format, which she said takes far too long now. For Katz, the most difficult challenge was measuring effectiveness of campaigns.

All of the panelists acknowledged the value of respecting consumers on all levels though in a demand-driven market.

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MVNOs may enter South Korea

Fri, 06 Jul 2007 06:59:55 -0400

South Korea's Ministry of Information and Communication announced that the country is considering a move to allow MVNOs and other new wireless carriers into the market. The aim is to help cut mobile tariffs and promote competition, according to the Ministry. The government is currently strategizing on how to implement a system to allow the MVNOs to lease capacity on the incumbent networks. Politicians, civic groups and the like have been clamoring recently that the incumbent carriers: SK Telecom, KT Freetel and LG Telecom are overcharging their subscribers. So, "SK Helio" cometh?

For more on South Korea's MVNO talk:
- check out this WSJ article (sub. req.)