Mobilious

Technology suppliers submitted their responses to the telecommunications giant earlier this month and a more formal tender is expected later this year.

It is the third time that Telstra has sought information on such services from technology providers.

The first time was under Ziggy Switkowski’s previous management team when the company was preparing for a substantial technology transformation.

The second approach was soon after Sol Trujillo took the reins as chief executive at the telco, which resulted in French vendor Alcatel, now Alcatel-Lucent, being handed most of Telstra’s broadband upgrade.

This included the now defunct plan to build a $4 billion residential high-speed broadband network, which had been earmarked for IPTV services.

This time Telstra is understood to be looking at a broader network play that would include offering both fixed and mobile services off a common platform.

Telco carriers across the world are increasingly looking at converged platforms for internet-based video services, one industry observer said.

Telstra’s IPTV ambitions have proved a source of friction with Foxtel, the pay-TV group in which Telstra holds a 50 per cent stake. Telstra resells Foxtel in discounted bundles with its voice and internet services, and also offers a subscription package for 12 Foxtel mobile TV channels.

But the telco has already signalled further ambitions by branding its online content suite as BigPond TV. In recent months Telstra has spent more than $100million stitching up a fresh round of exclusive sports content including AFL and V8 Supercars, with NRL talks still under way.

It remains unclear if Telstra would need a television licence for any IPTV service.

…

The upshot of Telstra’s latest fray into video may see the company take a technology path to mobile TV services, which could lead to it not bidding for the spectrum licence set aside for mobile TV by the federal Government.

The spectrum for the B licence has been mainly targeted at mobile video services using the DVB-H, a cut-down version of terrestrial TV services. The strength of DVB-H lies in its capacity, but its weakness is its lack of quality interactivity, an executive familiar with the technology said.

Industry executives were reluctant to comment for the record as Telstra has not concluded its search for technology suppliers.

Telstra sources said the company was not particularly thrilled by the trial of DVB-H services it conducted last year with Foxtel, Nokia and Macquarie Bank’s Broadcast Australia. Telstra’s mobile network supplier Ericsson is pushing a different technology, known as MBMS, which uses the existing mobile network spectrum already operated by Telstra (and other local networks).

Ericsson demonstrated the technology, which it said will be ready for commercial deployment in 2008, at the recent 3GSM mobile phone trade show in Barcelona…

Telstra wants to become a television network by stealth,” one observer said.
Trujillo has been attempting to recast the company as a “media comms” group and the telco has being eyeing a position as a key media player since it was first corporatised, at one time in the early 1990s holding a stake in the Seven Network.

After that Telstra began exploring subscription TV services and eventually ended up in a 50-50 alliance with The Australian’s publisher News Limited that resulted in Foxtel.

News’s stake in Foxtel was later diluted to 25 per cent when the Packers’ Publishing and Broadcasting Limited entered the alliance.”

News picked from and details continue at; http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,21265016-7582,00.html

“Teens utilize different modes of communication in different social contexts”.

When choosing a communication tool, teens will most likely choose to use cell phones and landline phones to talk to a friend about something serious or important (cell phone 34%, landline phone 23%); apologize to a friend (cell phone 22%, landline phone 20%); or break up with someone (cell phone 14%, landline phone 9%).

Overall, teens are most comfortable using cell phones, instant messaging and landline phones to have a private conversation (cell phone 29%, instant messaging 16%, landline phone 15%), sharing a secret (cell phone 25%, instant messaging 11%, landline phone, 14% ) and gossiping (cell phone 17%, instant messaging 17%, landline phone 14%). Teens are also more likely to hear rumors about people through instant messaging (31%) and social networking website (27%).

Cell phones are the number one choice for arranging to meet with friends (36%), having quick conversations (29%), contacting a friend when bored (25%) and inviting people to a party or event (22%).

The survey was conducted online within the United States between December 14 and 22, 2006 among a nationwide cross section of 1,726 youth ages 8 through 18 (703 tweens, ages 8-12; 1,023 teens, ages 13 to 18).”

News picked from and details continue at; http://www.cellular-news.com/story/22146.php

Nevertheless, the major challenge for market participants lies in offering multiple content pieces in a bundled manner to the end user. Especially since mobile operators in the U.S. have segmented offerings according to various applications such as ringtones, games, graphics, mobile video services, mobile information and others.

“Different categories of applications such as ringtones, graphics, games, and video clips, developed around a particular theme or topic, could be bundled together,” says Gandhi. “Early movers have embraced this approach with notable success.”

News picked from and details continue at; http://www.cellular-news.com/story/22088.php

News picked from and details continue at; http://www.3g.co.uk/PR/Feb2007/4284.htm 

Company website: http://www.challengermobile.com

Anyone can add or edit entries, while the ranking of a story on the front page depends on how many votes it receives from other users.

Wikia, a for-profit company whose founders developed the non-profit venture Wikipedia, said the three sites launched today were just the tip of the iceberg. It planned to “roll-out [sic] additional communities on a wide variety of topics in the coming months”…”

News picked from and details continue at; http://www.smh.com.au/news/web/wiki-magazines-a-free-for-all/2007/02/14/1171405260619.html

Key Trial Results:
:: Reliable delivery of mobile TV services using TDtv technically viable
:: Up to 11 to 14 high quality channels can be delivered in 5MHz of TDD spectrum
:: Coverage comparable to WCDMA but using fewer cell sites
:: Performance consistent when moving at speed
:: Dual mode handset viable

The TDtv trial, announced in October 2006, aspired to test key performance and deployment aspects of the mobile TV technology. Covering a large area of Bristol in the UK using only 12 macro-cell sites, the trial proved that the technology has the ability to offer reliable television delivery at the data rates that are needed to provide high quality mobile TV services.

Finally, the TDtv network also proved very reliable with 99.999% availability during the trial.

The participants are now discussing next steps and exploring how the findings from the trial could be used to develop commercial models.”

News picked from and further details continue at; http://www.3g.co.uk/PR/Feb2007/4269.htm

Launching in the UK initially, the agreement is expected to offer Vodafone customers in key markets across Europe the chance to access a version of the YouTube service directly from the Vodafone live mobile internet portal.

“People want to view and share favourite YouTube videos seamlessly wherever and whenever they want,” said Steve Chen, Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer for YouTube. “Partnering with Vodafone will accelerate those efforts to serve our loyal YouTube users as well as allow new mobile audiences to enjoy YouTube.”

Vodafone and YouTube will continue to explore ways to enhance this offering and cooperate closely in the coming months.”

This news is picked from and details continue at: http://www.cellular-news.com/story/21902.php

While smaller than a typical mobile phone, the new device features a display which extends up to 5-inches and may simply be stored away after use by folding it, thanks to the flexibility of the polymer based display material. Future developments include colour and moving image capable display.

The rollable display enables reading entire newspapers as well as books…”

This news is picked from and details continue at: http://www.cellular-news.com/story/21857.php

Mobile Marketing via SMS
Mobile Marketing via SMS has expanded rapidly in Europe and Asia as a new channel to reach the consumer.

SMS initially received negative media coverage in many parts of Europe for being a new form of spam as some advertisers purchased lists and sent unsolicited content to consumer’s phones; however, as guidelines are put in place by the mobile operators, SMS has become the most popular branch of the Mobile Marketing industry with several 100 million advertising SMS sent out every month in Europe alone.

In North America the first cross-carrier SMS shortcode campaign was run in 2002. Over the past few years mobile short codes have been increasingly popular as a new channel to communicate to the mobile consumer. Brands have begun to treat the mobile shortcode as a mobile domain name allowing the consumer to text message the brand at an event, in store and off any traditional media.

All SMS services need to be run off a short code. These are 5 or 6 digit numbers that have been assigned by all the mobile operators in a given country for the use of brand campaign and other consumer services. The mobile operators vet every application before provisioning and monitor the service to make sure it does not diverge from its original service description.

One key criterion for provisioning is that the consumer opts in to the service. The mobile operators preferably demand a double opt in from the consumer and the ability for the consumer to opt out of the service at any time by sending the word STOP via SMS.

Mobile Marketing via MMS
Brands are delivering promotional content such as mobile music to mobile games to drive consumer engagement. This mobile content is delivered via MMS (Multimedia Message Service). Brands are also leveraging consumer generated content.

A good example of this is Motorola ongoing campaigns at House of Blues venues where the brand allows the consumer to send their mobile photos to the LED board in real-time as well as blog their images online.

Mobile Marketing via Bluetooth
The rise of Bluetooth started around 2003 and a few companies in Europe have started establishing successful businesses. Most of these businesses offer “Hotspot-Systems” which consist of some kind of content-management system with a Bluetooth distribution function. This technology has the advantages that it is permission-based, has higher transfer speeds and is also a radio-based technology and can therefore not be billed (i.e. is free of charge).

SMS MARKETING EXAMPLES  

Voting
Voting is an exciting way to engage your audience and let them have their say. Newspapers, magazine and television are prime examples. Big Brother 3 claimed 3 million votes. Think not only of the revenue generated by voting alone, but the opportunity to offer other mobile services such as text alerts, ring tones, logos etc.

Instant Win
Exciting instant win prizes can be delivered where customers can find out if they have won a prize straight away.
Shortage of prizes is not an issue; prizes with different values always attract end users.
Ex: 1 TV, 10 DVD Players, 100 Walkmen, 1000 CDs…

Timed Vouchers
Timed vouchers are an exciting way to drive footfall into business.

Mobile content runner-up prizes
The popularity of entering competitions by SMS is growing every day. Entry is quick and easy and therefore encourages a bigger response rate.

Location Based Services
Location based campaigns is a good way to drive footfalls into the nearest store, bar, club, theatre, cinema, petrol station etc,

Customer Value Added Service
These services are a great way communicating with existing database and offer greater value of service.
Examples: Supermarkets can send out daily recipe ideas, special promotion alerts, diet tips etc. Alcohol brands could send out cocktail recipe ideas. Music stores could release music reviews, release dates, Top 10 chart, in store promotion alerts.

MOBILE MARKETING EXAMPLES

Head and Shoulders shampoo flirts with mobile
Proctor and Gamble seem to be taking a good approach to using mobile with their current campaign for Head and Shoulders shampoo. Their campaign encourages users to SMS in and they receive a car racing game for their mobile in return. The game is also multiplayer and has an interactive scoreboard. This really seems like mobile advertising and brand building done right. The user gets something of value that they’ll reuse, and in the process keep seeing Head and Shoulders brand.

Happy Valentine’s day… from Ford
In Belgium, Ford allows users to send special Valentine’s SMS with branded love messages for uninspired lovers. Actually Ford gives people the opportunity to send free personalized messages, but if someone is (sadly) out of ideas, some suggestions are provided. For example: “Vandaag ligt de FOCUS op mijn liefde voor jou en als bewijs stuur ik je duizenden kusjes”… which means something like “Today the fire (FOCUS) of my love is for you and as a sign I send you thousand kisses”…

MMS marketing worked for Samsung
The first MMS marketing campaign by Samsung Mobile proved to be a success with a response rate of over 15 percent and a conversion rate of 2. The campaign, developed by Enpocket, gave Samsung Fun Club members the possibility to view a preview of the mobile game “Skipping Stone” and then then the chance to instantly download a free demo using a WAP link embedded in the message. Once respondents had trialled the free demo they could then go on to buy the full game from a dedicated WAP site.

Mike Baker, President and CEO, Enpocket commented: “Conversion rates are more immediate and more dramatic when brands market to customers on the same device where mobile content is downloaded and consumed”.

Another idea: barcode marketing
NeoMedia has been awarded a patent covering the capture and processing of bar
codes explicitly from camera cell phones. NeoMedia’s technology enables capturing the image of a bar code by the camera device on a Web-enabled cell phone, and processing the bar code so as to deliver the appropriate URL – or Web-based information – to the user’s cell phone screen.

Mobile marketing for Stephen King
Textually reports Stephen King is about to launch a new media campaign to promote his new book “Cell: a novel “.
Thousand of Stephen King’s fans who opted-in to receive promotional information on their mobile phone will receive the following SMS: “The next call you take may be your last… Join the Stephen King VIP Club at www.cellthebook.com.”
Exclusive, gloomy, ringtones and the book wallpaper are also available to buy, but only for AT&T and Cingular.

Mobile gaming, an opportunity for advertising
eMarketer has recently published an article on the market potentials of mobile gaming. It’s no big news, there’s a lot of money out there, but what is interesting is that advertisers can also take advantage of the situation.

According to eMarketer senior analyst James Belcher the opportunities are mostly connected to location-based and multiplayer games which will allow advertisers to precisely target their prospects. Also, mobile gaming can work for branding, so we can expect mobile advergames to grow. Of course distribution (costs) will be an issue, but hopefully Bluetooth connections will solve every problem allowing user to by-pass carriers in the download flow.

Coke: the advertising future is mobile
New Media Age reports Coca-Cola UK is planning to invest more and more money in mobile advertising. Coke claims mobile phones are potentially more powerful than TV in reaching its target audience. Quoted in the article, Coca-Cola marketing manager James Eadie explains:
“Mobile marketing could be phenomenally important, when you look at the penetration of handsets and the passion the audience has for mobile. As a way of connection, it ought to be phenomenally powerful and more important than TV. So we should be spending 50% of our marketing budget within decades.”

Red Bull Flugtag mobile sold out
Next Sunday Red Bull will be in Rotterdam (NL) with the first edition of the Dutch Red Bull Flugtag. The tickets for the event have been sold only via mobile. In two weeks, HotSMS managed to distribute 12.000 tickets, using a combination of premium SMS and Internet to verify the codes.
SMS advertising and a mobile game are also part of the Red Bull campaign still in The Netherlands.

Bad hair day with Opel Tigra
Car manufacturer Opel in Germany has launched a pre-campaign for the new Tigra TwinTop on www.total-verfoehnt.de (basically that means ‘totally messed by blow-dryer’). Main objective is to test if your hairstyle stands the new Opel Tigra TwinTop.
Clou is the combination of the online and mobile channel: on entering the site, users can subscribe with their mobile phone number. The supervisor of the hairstyle experiment Professor Windaloopie is than calling the users on cell phone inviting them for a test drive weekend.”

Conclusion: There is actually no limit in technology; only limitation is your and/or your customers imagination. Once you can imagine and inspire others, rest is a piece of cake for mobile business.

Cem Resimcioglu
The Editor, Mobile News Picks

Note: Information and general wording is gathered from the sources below. We’ve just combined and edited a little.

Sources:
www.adverblog.com
www.operatelecom.com
www.wikipedia.org   
www.robertprice.co.uk/robblog