Engaging with N-Gage
The UK's 3G licences were sold off in 2000 and as we approach 2008 it's a tad depressing to look at the lack of any proper traction within the mobile content arena. Most services & applications beyond basic voice and 
text services are, well, crap and the long-promised value ot the mobile phone as a comms vehicle seems to be restricted to Burger King vouchers and SMS campaigns.
So it's nice to see that Nokia is getting its act together in the mobile gaming space with the re-launch of their 'nearly-good-last-time' N-Gage service. This time it's not a product but a service which is a very smart move and one which now allows all the big game publishers to develop multi-phone, big title games for their multi-media phone range. The initial reaction looks good [example] so we're doubly curious: will it provide us with new ways to connect with a mobile gaming audience?....and could it (just could it) finally get people using their phones beyond voice, text and the odd uninspired web surf?....
Posted by: Brad at 5 ish on Friday, 7th September 2007
(0)
Square peg, round hole
O2 announced this week they will be discontinuing their I-Mode offering.
Launched with a hefty advertising budget two years as the way to access the mobile internet, the offering has failed to excite consumers.
This may in part be due to handset restrictions and the closed nature of the network. But I think there’s more to it: it may simply be that browse, surf and search, which works so well from a desktop PC or laptop, is simply not the best way to experience the mobile web.
Vodafone, who have a huge campaign live at present promoting their mobile internet offering, are clearly betting that I’m wrong.
But at present a better model for the mobile internet is “subscribe & receive”: browse for interesting content from your desktop, and then subscribe to receive this content direct to their mobile. An RSS [define] model for the mobile. Like this.
Image from vrogy.
Posted by: Sam at home time on Thursday, 26th July 2007
(0)
Apples third leg
Having described the Mac & iPod as 'two strong legs' on his chair, Apple's Steve Jobs is now banking on the hotly anticipated iPhone to provide a third leg to his business (aside: won't that make his chair wobbly?). Certainly, the hefty price tag is not deterring US consumers who have queued up overnight in the rain to
snaffle up the first batch, due out today.
Universal McCann, however, don't believe in all the hype. They've just launched some, ahem, 'international research' which concludes that Apple's ambitions of selling 10m units by 2008 are too lofty. The claim is based on findings such as "only 31% of US consumers surveyed said they wanted a converged device". Well what would you expect them to say?
Apple are in the business of creating demand and they'll certainly do that when it finally arrives over in the UK. It might not replace Nokia as the worlds leading handset manufacturer but it'll probably shift as many as it can physically produce. Nice resource [here].
Thanks to Arikan on Flickr for the photo.
Posted by: Brad at 4 ish on Friday, 29th June 2007
(2)
"I'm on the train"
If I was between 16 and 24 would I want pay nothing for my phone in exchange for receiving four pieces of mobile advertising per day?
This summer will see the launch of Blyk, an (in their own words) “pan-Eur
opean free mobile network operator for young people, funded by advertising”. Blyk have research to prove there’s a market for their offering and have clearly thought hard about how to make it easy for advertisers to run campaigns. The key challenge will be to get advertisers on-board who know how to engage Blyk’s youth audience.
Never one to miss out on an opportunity to launch a low-cost alternative, Stelios Haji-Ioannou this week announced the re-launch of Easy Mobile. The service will likewise offer free calls in exchange for ads.
Any tips for a hatrick of competitors?
Posted by: Sam at Kettle on time on Friday, 15th June 2007
(1)
Got the secret?
As the early adopters hang ten on the swell of development aimed at realising the ultimate all-in-one handheld camera-phone-pda-mp3-kitchen-sink player, the rest of us seem to be getting quite comfortable with the rather unassuming USB stick.
From humble beginnings as the favoured PowerPoint distribution device, the USB key has changed its colours at a rapid rate. It’s a must have accessory with school kids swapping songs and movies wherever they are. Techies are installing entire operating systems so they can carry their PC in their pocket. Record companies are selling albums on them. The obligatory slew of novelty options has materialised.
Watch this space for a slew of clever USB key accessories. Kate Moss USB anyone?
Posted by: Ben at bring on the w/e on Friday, 11th May 2007
(0)
