Archive for February 12th, 2008
Defensive move from NOKIA?
At Mobile World Congress wireless fair in Barcelona, NOKIA announced to integrate ‘Google Search’ on its handsets. Google search would at first be added to selected phones and markets and later to some mass-market models in more than 100 countries, the companies (NOKIA & Google) said. A few NOKIA handsets already support Google owned another application ‘YouTube’.
In my opinion NOKIA is on defense now in the light of development such as - 1. Android commercial launch in mid 2008 2. Google launching a rival to NOKIA’s S60 platform later this year. 3. Google’s Android turning into a reality at Mobile World Congress where Android based handset prototypes were launched.
NOKIA will accept Android or not remains to be seen, however, this announcement clearly suggests that NOKIA is on a backfoot now.
Add comment February 12, 2008
Apple iPhone ahead of Motorola, Microsoft phones in Q4
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The research estimates that the iPhone had 28 percent of the US converged-device market in the fourth quarter of 2007. Windows Mobile phones had 21 percent share of devices sold in the quarter, falling into third place behind Apple.
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Apple had stirred interest in smart phones in the US Converged-device shipments, which consists of smart phones and wireless handhelds, which grew 222 percent in the U.S. during the quarter, according to Canalys.
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Globally, the market position is different. Nokia sold 52.9 percent of smart phones worldwide in the fourth quarter. RIM grew up 121 percent over the same quarter in 2006. On the other hand, Apple holds third place by capturing 6.5 percent of the market, beating Motorola by few percents.
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The Apple iPhone is doing well in Europe, Middle East and Africa region. Apple holds fifth rank with Nokia, RIM, HTC and Motorola among the top players.
Add comment February 12, 2008
Android should succeed.. why?
Odds are very high in favor of Open Handset Alliance (OHA) Android to succeed. To explain & understand it, first we need to understand the wireless telecom industry business environment. Take a not of the picture below….
4 important parts of the environment are – Handset Industry, Operators & Media, Enterprises & CONSUMERS. The first 3 sections are in the business because of the last. This diagram also depicts the telecom industry value chain also. Android supported by OHA( led by Google) is due for commercial launch in mid 2008 and one noteworthy fact about OHA is that its member companies leader in their own businesses put together complete the entire mobile business value chain.
The 34 founding members of the Open Handset Alliance are:
| Mobile operators | Software companies | Commercialization companies | Semiconductor companies | Handset manufacturers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Now reasons Android can end Symbian’s dominance -
1. First & foremost of all it is brainchild of Google.
2. Supported by the entire mobile value chain – OHA has semiconductor companies, commercial software vendors, mobile handset manufacturers & last but not the least closest to the consumers ‘telecom operators’. Unlike mid nineties the telecom opetators have become more powerful now affecting handset manufactuer’s decision about what kind of handsets to develop. Operators want handset packed with applications & features which can maximize their revenues. Android with its open architecture & same API support even to application developers makes it easy to integrate & develop third party applications. Operators are at liberty to have ARPU maximizing features in the handsets, so they are going to push Android phones quite aggressively.
3. Cheaper high performance handsets packed with innovative features using Android- As one TI reports says the next 1 billion mobile users are going to come from emerging countries. The consumers in these countries demand handset packed with high multimedia features at rock bottom prices & are highly price sensitive. Android being free could help handset manufactuers to reduce handset prices further.
4. Value for all the stakeholders – I feel Android would add value to all the stakeholders involved, cheaper & feature packed handsets for consumers, higher ARPUs for operators & flexibility & ease for application developers.
Please comment, what do you think about Android. I am still not sure how Android would help chipmakers.
Add comment February 12, 2008
Will Android do the same to mobiles what Google did to search? « Mobilehandsets’s Weblog
Add comment February 12, 2008
Will Android do the same to mobiles what Google did to search?
The first mobile phones fitted with Google’s Android software platform made their debut at an industry trade show on Monday, a milestone for the Internet giant as it looks to dominate the wireless world.A handful of chip makers — ARM, Marvell, Qualcomm, NEC, Texas Instruments and ST Microelectronics — showed off prototype handsets at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.
Internet use on mobile phones can currently be a frustrating experience, with clunky software and slow download speeds.
“There are few phones that provide a compelling web experience,” explained a spokesman for Google, Barry Schnitt. “As people use the web more, they’ll use Google more and we’ll be able to sell more relevant advertising.”
Android is being developed by a coalition of 30 handset manufacturers, chip makers and software groups and is based on open-source code, meaning programmers are able to build compatible applications for free.
“The future ability of Android is exciting because it’s open-source so it allows developers to come up with the next killer application,” said a spokesman for US chip maker Texas Instruments, which demonstrated Android software in a prototype phone.
The Apple iPhone, for example, runs on Apple software and uses Apple applications, while an Android-enabled phone would incorporate applications from any number of developers.
But Google software faces fierce competition from the world’s biggest mobile phone maker, Nokia, and its Symbian system.
US software giant Microsoft also has a Windows system for mobiles and a separate consortium is working on an open-source Linux solution.
Android was on display for the first time in only prototype phones. The first handset for consumers from either Taiwan’s HTC or US group Motorola is expected in the second half of this year.
Google announced the “Open Handset Alliance” in November last year to develop Android, including China Mobile, HTC, Intel, Motorola, Qualcomm, T-Mobile, Telefonica, LG and eBay.
Gartner’s Milanesi stressed that “the road between a prototype and commercial handset is a long one” and said the ultimate test of Android’s success would be how easily applications could be used.
“It should have everything that we see on the PC, not just shrunk down to work on a mobile phone, but really being optimised for a mobile phone,” she said.
The interest in a new software platform from Google also stems from the company’s desire to establish its brand in emerging markets.
“If you look at emerging markets, people are more likely to have their first browsing experience on a phone not a PC (personal computer),” said Milanesi.
Google surprised analysts when it unveiled Android last November. They had expected the Internet giant to announce the launch of its own Google-branded G-Phone to compete against Apple’s popular iPhone.
“Imagine not just a single Google phone, or G-phone, but thousands of G-phones made by a variety of manufacturers,” said Google chief executive Eric Schmidt at the time.
This could be Android’s weak spot, however.
HTC and ailing US manufacturer Motorola, which has announced it might break-up its businesses, are the two main handset manufacturers in the Open Handset Alliance.
“For it to become a worldwide platform and drive uptake, they need more manufacturers onboard,” said Milanesi.
Google launched Android last year, hoping to establish its software as the standard operating system for mobile phones and to improve the quality of web-browsing for handset users.
“It’s definitely very promising,” an analyst for technology research firm Gartner, Carolina Milanesi, told AFP. “This means that we should be on track to see commercial devices in the second half of 2008.”
The idea is that Android will lead to radically improved functionality, notably for web browsing, meaning more people will use their mobile phones for Internet surfing and other applications.
2 comments February 12, 2008
