Posts by Julie Ask (bio)

Julie Ask | May 06, 2008, 06:02 PM
WiMax Whispers ... Sprint Lines up Partners to Invest and ?

MocoNews reported this afternoon that the WSJ is reporting that Sprint Nextel and Clearwire are about to announce a new JV that includes a bunch of other partners - and their capital. So far, not a lot of surprises. There has been talk and reporting for months now that Sprint was seeking partners to share both the cost and the risk of deploying a nationwide WiMax network in the U.S.

The announced partners (the ones I've seen so far) are logical.

Clearwire - It's a scale business - makes sense for Clearwire to join in let alone that they can add some of the expertise they've developed over the past couple of years.

Intel - already invested millions (if not more) to develop their WiMax chipsets and to move them into PC platforms. No network = no demand for their chipsets. Moreover, they practically built the Wi-Fi market by spending upwards of $350M (at least the public number, but could be higher) promoting Centrino/Wi-Fi and educating consumers.

- Cable companies ... logical, but still challenges ahead. Some of them (if not all soon) just threw in the towel on Pivot Wireless - their answer to AT&T's and Verizon's bundled offerings. WiMax is meant to be a data network. Interest in broadband wireless connectivity outside the home is high. Demand is moderate, but willingness to pay is still low today. We expect it to grow over time.

- Best Buy - could never figure this one out. Let's hope to not see the mistakes of past be repeated with non-telecom entities wanting to run wireless service operations or networks. (Search MVNO for all the blog postings I've written). Building networks and acquiring customers is really, really hard ... and then you have to collect money from them.

- Google - They've been seeking more open access to a wireless broadband network for years. There was the Earthlink Muni Wi-Fi deal in San Francisco that fell through. There is the constant petitioning of the FCC. There was the original agreement struck with Clearwire and Sprint. What has characterized these deals, however, has been lack of control - at least Google's control over the execution. I'll wait to see the announcement to see how much money they are going to commit ($500M is a lot of money, but very affordable to Google - see the cash on their balance sheet) The question will be ... what can one buy for $500M? or a $1B investment? What control does one get?

Intel needs people to buy chips in laptops and handhelds. Cable companies want triple/quad plays. For these partners, the investment looks to be more table stakes for their future strategies / return on investments to date to compete with AT&T and Verizon who are rolling out video offerings faster than the cable companies are rolling out wireless voice.

Google makes money from advertising - so more inventory at higher rates serves them well. Higher rates are plausible - if you add context (e.g., location) to search terms, you can charge more. Leading someone into the nearby auto dealership to buy a car is worth more than driving web traffic to gm.com. How much inventory can benefit from context including location? That's an unknown, but likely a question Google can answer. It's a fair expectation in any case, that more "access" will be wireless going forward than wired in terms of new devices added. We also know that people do more browsing on larger devices (e.g., portable media players) that can benefit from broadband than cell phones. (see the Admob data in our report) And, the CTR's seem to be higher. A lot of this browsing is also done off carriers' networks on Wi-Fi.

Someone asked me what this means for AT&T and Verizon? My first reaction is that I don't believe they'll feel threatened. The investments will certainly give Sprint a boost and make the liklihood of this network being built out higher. AT&T and Verizon are the market leaders in wireless as measured by number of subscribers - they are by definition less likely to take risks. Besides, they already have home (wired) + wireless plays. Verizon can be confident they'll benefit from the scale of LTE as it's the natural evolution of GSM - the mostly widely adopted standard worldwide. They also have a head start with quad-play offerings. Interesting, most consumers don't buy wireless (at least voice) based on their ability to bundle / save money - it's still about the network so WiMax won't likely provide that advantage. Ubiquitous, wireless broadband access with a single bill not tied to location or a single device is still anyone's territory to claim.

Challenges that lie ahead ... scale - is there enough in WiMax with all the global deployments to make it cost competitive? Is there a business case that makes sense? Like Public Wi-Fi, it will likely require many sources/streams. Can WiMax avoid some of the early difficulties that Wi-Fi experienced - difficult set up, poor interoperability among vendor products, interference or slow speeds due to competing user needs - if it is truly a wide open network that doesn't moderate any one individual's use in order to benefit all on the network. How well aligned are the partners' interests? Will consumers pay for devices? Will they pay for WiMax when Wi-Fi is so ubiquitous and inexpensive? Will we see some free, ad-sponsored access at the lower tier speeds? That would compete head on with Sprint and the cable companies offerings to some extent.

Julie Ask | April 25, 2008, 02:20 PM
Wireless - Why am I paying to sign up? But they pay me to take the phone ...

So, I tried to switch service providers the other day. I really wanted to switch, but I couldn't figure out the math or get a deal that suited me.

I wanted to get a voice plan (ca. 900 minutes) and a data plan. I also wanted to be able to use at least two phones. (Ok, yes, this story is about a GSM carrier.) Here are the problems I encountered:

1) The first thing I learned is that not all data plans (just data access) are equal. In my mind, a small screen phone with full browser vs. a medium-sized screen phone with limited browser (no email service) seemed comparable. Prices, however, were really different. Crazy.

2) They wanted me to pay them an activation fee for an account. I didn't want a subsidized phone. I was just a walk-in customer off the street who wanted a plan. They wanted me to pay them to become a customer. I asked them to waive the fee, but they wouldn't. I even waited around for a while (this works in the fruit markets in Morocco, and has been a successful tactic for me in the past at places such as Virgin Records, Best Buy, Good Guys, etc.) to see if they would change their minds. They didn't. I walked out. I have about five phones with service, and I'm not on contract (which I told them) so I had time.

So, I went home and searched online. I looked at places like Amazon.com, WireFly, Wireless Toyz, etc. Did a Google search on "Free phones from [wireless service provider]" Got a lot of results. I even found a few cases on Amazon.com where they would pay ME money to sign up and be a customer.

Then my brain shifted into overdrive.

If I sign up on Amazon, they'll give me the handset and $25 or so. I could apply the $25 towards the activiation fee (if it isn't already covered) Perhaps I could then sell the cell phone for another $10 at least to cover the remaining portion of the activation fee. I'm not sure if I'd qualify for SuperSaver shipping since they are paying me to take the phone, but I'm paying for service.

Wait, am I selling or buying a service plan?

Julie Ask | April 22, 2008, 10:24 PM
My Growing Addiction to Text Alerts

I admit, I've become addicted to text (SMS) alerts in a way comparable to my Outlook calendar. I no longer function without a 15 minute reminder that I have meeting approaching. The same is true of my reliance on SMS alerts to know what is happening in the Presidential campaign.

Yesterday, Barack's campaign sent me an alert to let me know he'd be on The Daily Show. It was actually information I wanted. This evening, I received a text alert from Hillary's campaign letting me know she'd won PA about 10-15 minutes after her victory speech began - fairly timely. I was overseas during the Ohio primaries and I nearly went crazy trying to get results until the SMS finally arrived.

Julie Ask | April 22, 2008, 10:15 PM
Mobile Marketing Well Done - Coke Zero & Euro2008

I came across one of my favorite examples of well-executed mobile marketing last week in Switzerland. Coke was running a sweepstakes to win tickets to UEFA Euro2008. Tickets were being given away every 90 minutes thereby encouraging more purchases of Coke products. (A Coke in Switzerland, by the way, costs more than a ticket to a soccer game in the US, but, hey the Euro 2008 is special - this is the best there is between World Cup's). And my favorite part, they know at what time of the day their products are being consumed because the codes are under the caps. The frequency of give-away's encourages consumers to text in immediately to enter. Well done on many fronts. Hard to see on the label, but it also explains the cost per message.

Promotion on Coke Zero bottle in Switzerland

Julie Ask | April 22, 2008, 10:07 PM
Anti-HotSpot Campaigns

I was down in Palo Alto a couple of months ago and saw this sign out on the sidewalk. The concept of ubiquitous broadband and how to convey the idea to consumers without tech-speak is a tough one. As consumers, how soon will we simply be connected without having to choose a technology?

Verizon Wireless Advertisement on University Ave. in Palo Alto

Julie Ask | March 17, 2008, 10:54 AM
Mobile Internet: Improving the Experience with FLASH

This morning, Adobe made the following announcement:

Adobe Systems Incorporated (Nasdaq: ADBE) today announced that Microsoft has licensed Adobe Flash Lite software, Adobe’s award-winning Flash Player runtime specifically designed for mobile devices, to enable web browsing of Flash content within the Internet Explorer Mobile browser in future versions of Windows Mobile devices. Microsoft has also licensed Adobe Reader LE software for viewing Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) documents including email attachments and web content. Both Adobe products will be made available to Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) worldwide, who license Microsoft Windows Mobile software.

The deal with MS will help Adobe with distribution. They've just reached the half billion mark and sales have been accelerating over the past couple of years. Many - not all - MS devices have QWERTY keyboards and data plans (people get them for email + productivity applications) so together with adding Flash/Lite there is a confluence of factors that contribute towards consumers being more likely to use the browser and consume more content. Admob is already reporting that just under 20 percent of their ad requests come from smartphones – devices that do not represent 20 percent of the device market. These devices will be more attractive to both carriers and consumers - as well as developers.

Many good things will come from better Internet experiences on portable devices:

For media companies, there is a richer platform for content. Consumers with portable devices with rich browsers consume more content. More content consumption equals more page views and inventory to sell to advertisers. Cell phones already add time/space dimensions - device type, location, more time of day, behavior, etc. Rich media is another layer than will increase CPM's.

For advertisers, rich media offers more opportunities for engaging with their customers.

For carriers, more content consumption = more access subscriptions and share of a large ad revenue "pie"

And consumers have shown that they are more likely to browse on devices with full and rich browsing experience than on those with mini- or scaled-down- browsers.

Flash is one factor that contributes to a much richer browsing experience (and video) on mobile devices. Nearly one quarter of consumers surveyed by Jupiter Research say they'd be more likely to use web-based experiences on phones if the UI were better.

We know that portable media players (e.g., Apple iPhone) and cell phones with full, rich browser experiences see more traffic per device than cell phones with mini-browsers. Apple is saying they are seeing 71 percent of smartphone page views.

Julie Ask | March 13, 2008, 06:23 PM
Places I Visited in Morocco with Better Coverage Than My Home in SF

Here are a handful of places that I visited in Morocco that have better voice coverage on a GSM network than my home in San Francisco. You can argue that the cityscapes are flatter and waves may be better able to penetrate clay than the building materials used at home. You could argue that in an area as flat as the Sahara desert, it’s not surprising that you get great coverage because there is little to nothing that can interfere with a signal. It was still astonishing to me how good the coverage was in those areas.

The top criteria for consumers when selecting a carrier are quality of coverage at home and while traveling.

Tannery in Fez

Abdul on his cell phone in the High Atlas Mountains

It’s hard to see, but there is a cell tower in this town in the distance.

Sahara near M’Hamid

Sand dunes near M’Hamid

A Kasbah near Ouarzazate

Habib’s camel sleeping after a long walk

Julie Ask | March 13, 2008, 06:04 PM
Satellite TV Adoption in Morocco

This is slightly off the topic of wireless, but not technology and services. One of the things that amazed me was the presence of satellite dishes. Apparently they cost just under $100 to get the equipment, and there is no service charge. We saw red clay hut homes in a number of Kasbahs with electricity, but no running water (and very little furniture). The electricity in some places we visited had only been installed in the last ten years. They also had Internet access. It was simply astounding to see so many satellite dishes on homes made of clay and rock. Just down the hill from one village were women doing laundry in a river and drying their rugs on stones along the river banks.

Satellite Dishes on Rooftops in Fez

We visited a Kasbah near M’Hamid where electricity had just recently been added. They didn’t seem to be using it for lights or any appliances. There were no cars in the streets – only donkeys, camels and children on foot. The homes had no floors other than the clay or earth. There were minimal furnishings – some carpets, stools, and a few cooking utensils. We did, however find a satellite dish on the roof of a home.

Kasbah near M’Hamid with Electricity

Here is a few into a doorway in the village shown above where there are children watching a European soccer match.

Julie Ask | March 13, 2008, 05:32 PM
iPhone in the High Atlas Mountains

We had an 8 to 10 hour drive between Marrakesh to M'Hamid. Our guides - especially Habib and Abdul - were wonderful singers, but we couldn't do Arabic music for that long. The only non-Arabic cassette that they had was U2 Boy - which is a great album, but it wasn't going to last for that long.

Each of the three of us in our car had an iPod, and they had a hook up for the stereo so we were able to listen to some of our music. I showed Abdul and Rudouin the iPhone. The touch interface fascinated them - I think it was the first time they'd seen a device like this. Two things seemed to amaze them most - a) the amount of music on a single device and b) that it was actually a phone - they just couldn't seem to get their heads around the idea that it was a phone.

Our guides had cell phones, but the more basic type with a black/white screen. They primarily used their phones for voice calls and not text messages.

Rudouin and Abdul Checking Out the iPhone on the High Atlas

Julie Ask | March 13, 2008, 05:14 PM
My Theory on Why Ringtones Were Created

I spent a lot of time in crowded souks on my trip. The Noka ring tone was more common than any other noise I heard. Each time I heard it, I reached for my backpack to check to see if it was my phone. It drove me crazy.

Julie Ask | March 13, 2008, 05:00 PM
In a Land Where There is No Mobile Marketing

I just returned from 10 days in Morocco including a trip to the Sahara desert. I've got a series of posts that I'll put up today.

My first Mobile Marketing encounter (or lack thereof) was in JFK when I landed from San Francisco enroute to catch my flight on Air Maroc. There was a billboard in JFK airport suggesting that you text a code word to a short code to find out where their services are/will be. It was a Fortune 500 or 1000 company.

The reply came back "" - and twice none the less. Seriously - thanks for letting me pay for no information twice. This is the first time this has happened to me. Totally lame - how do you not execute on the backend after paying for an expensive ad(s) on the walls of the gate lounges at JFK?

Then in Morocco - I saw no mobile marketing promotions and relatively little telecom advertising. There was the normal "Maroc Telecom welcomes you to Morocco. For more information ...." However, that was it - I didn't see anything else. I'm not sure if it's an issue with the Arabic language, literacy (my guide from the desert had only been in school two years). It was an interesting contrast to so many other places I've been recently.

Julie Ask | February 26, 2008, 04:36 PM
How much messaging can a Pres. Candidate do in an SMS?

My inbox is full of messages from Barack and Hillary. Barack sends 3-4 times as many as Hillary. I'd like to say it's too many, but the combination of things he's doing seems to be working. They typically both send text messages before events like the debate in Cleveland, OH this evening. I think I received the messages late morning for the debate this evening ... a little late for programming my Tivo since it's not connected to the Internet.

Here's what they each sent today. I think it's interesting that you can get a flavor of their strategy even in a very short message.

Hillary's:

"Cheer on Hillary in the debate tonight at 9PM EST. Watch on MSNBC or stream live from msnbc.com - Thanks!"

Barack's (which arrived just seconds before Hillary's did)

"Watch Barack debate tonight at 9pm EST on MSNBC or streamed at Cleveland.com. Remember to tell friends in OH, RI, TX & VT to vote Obama on March 4th. Please fwd."

Hillary wants moral support. Barack wants to get the word out. Barack wants viral.

Interesting.

Julie Ask | February 26, 2008, 01:55 AM
Short Codes, Peanuts and Bar Napkins

I was traveled on US Airways last week from San Francisco to Charlotte, NC. When they set my "Coke Light" (do they sell this in the US?) on my tray table, they also handed me a snack pack and a napkin (see photo below).

They were offering to let passengers text in their name, email and zip code, and in exchange they would send back their Dividend Miles number. It's not clear if the miles would be automatically registered or if the passenger should present the number to an agent. What I also couldn't figure out was ... was I supposed to save the napkin rather than use it? Was I supposed to turn on my phone, but in "airplane mode"? The code was "TextUs" or "839887" - not so easy to associate with US Airways.

What I did like about the napkin, was that they had a figure illustrating a person creating a text message. Could have used the information on my ticket stub - something easy to save and a piece of paper I wasn't tempted to use to wipe off salt off my hands.

Julie Ask | February 11, 2008, 11:12 AM
Some Free Wi-Fi at Starbucks?

AT&T announced this morning together with Starbucks (but not T-Mobile) that they will offer a combination of free and paid Wi-Fi. It comes just a few days after Earthlink announced that they want to sell their Municipal Wi-Fi business.

First, the AT&T/Starbucks announcement is exciting for a lot of reasons. One of the inhibitors to growing subscriptions (besides demand for access outside of the office - but this is growing) has been footprint. Free trials help convert users into paying subscribers. It provides reach/coverage at a time when the market is still maturing - makes economic sense for both parties.

The Starbucks/Wayport/AT&T strategy is very different from the municipal one with which Earthlink has struggled and is now looking to sell. One one hand they look to provide a similar services - but whereas Earthlink was looking to build a cloud, AT&T/T-Mobile/Wayport built "spots" (okay, hotspots) that would be easy to find in well-known retail locations. Also, from the beginning (and give some credit to the guys at McDonald's who originally thought some of these ideas through) they had a number of revenue streams lined up to pay for the service. Earthlink was looking to do the same, but seemed to be running into more challenges with the cities and their commitment to use (and help pay for the network).

Not in the release is the news that AT&T looks to be displacing T-Mobile. (A journalist told me this, but I haven't seen it in the release). This is also interesting, but a lot for one blog. The news comes just a few months after Apple announced free Wi-Fi service (at least for iTunes) for the iPhone. They included Starbucks in the announcement, but not T-Mobile. You have to wonder if open access for AT&T customers on their cell phones or portable media players with telephony capability (e.g., iPhone, Nokia 810) isn't soon going to be part of this. Too many details missing so far to know all of the implications - in any case, you don't have to own the network to use it or sell services on it.

Julie Ask | February 08, 2008, 06:41 PM
Marketing High Speed Data Networks - or Not

I was on a U.S. carrier's web site today looking up some information on 3G phones. All of a sudden a "chat" box opened up. I thought what fun. I'm searching for this information and now someone is here to help me. The problem was ... they seemed to have NO IDEA what I was talking about.

Our conversation (with the wireless service provider name deleted for privacy)

Thank you for your patience! [Carrier] sales representative will be with you shortly.
You are now chatting with Mary M, [carrier] sales representative.
julie: hi mary
julie: i have a quick question for you
julie: what do you call your 3G network
Mary M: Welcome to [Carrier] online Sales support. I am reading your question and will be right with you.
julie: how do I know if I have a phone or plan connected to your fast network
julie: Mary ... are you there?
Mary M: Do you currently have a wireless phone?
julie: i do
julie: but that's a separate topic
julie: i'm wondering how you market to consumers
Mary M: What are you looking for?
julie: how can I tell if a phone is on your 3G network or not
julie: what "key words" do I search on
Mary M: Are you asking about how to find out if a phone we don't sell will work on our network?
julie: no - what I'm wondering is
julie: if I wanted to get a phone that was 3G-capable, how would I search for that feature among phones on your site?
julie: and how can I look up how much a data plan (for web access) would be for that phone?
Mary M: You can view our phones by going to shop/ phones and devices. From there you can filter the phones by features you would like.
julie: ok - I'm on that section of the site, but I don't see where I can sort on phones, for example, with access to the "high speed wireless broadband" or "3G" or something like that
Mary M: Unfortunately, we don't have a way to single out only those phones in your search. The best way would be to select the features you can filter with such ad PDA, manufacturer, etc and see what 3G phones are available.
julie: ok, thanks
Mary M: Is there anything else I can help you with?
Mary M: I haven't heard from you so I'm going to close the chat session now. Thank you xxx. Have a nice day.
The chat session has been closed by [carrier] sales representative.

Julie Ask | February 04, 2008, 06:46 PM
Will the real Chocolate Cell Phone Please Stand up?

Ironically, Samsung is producing this one for Hershey's. In an unlocked phone environment, these make sense.

Julie Ask | February 04, 2008, 06:33 PM
Another MVNO Says "Good-bye"

Voce slipped away rather quietly today. A journalist pointed me towards this story in the LA Times.

It's not surprising that they've closed down. It's more surprising that they lasted as long as they did. I'm not in any way criticizing their efforts - it's a tough business acquiring customers and then collecting money from them each month. I was in their shop once in the LA area - great boutique store. Beautiful phones.

Julie Ask | February 04, 2008, 06:20 PM
Last Message before Super Tuesday

At precisely 3:13 pm pst I received a text message from Barack Obama's campaign. Within 10 seceonds, I received a second one from Hillary's campaign. How does this happen? Hillary's campaign doesn't text met that often so I was more curious about this message.

[Before I continue, I have to comment though ... when is the short code going to show up as a name instead of a number. When I six-digit number shows up as the "Sender," it's like a blinking warning light: "Spam, Spam, Spam."]

Hillary's last words:

Tonight at 9 EST I'm holding a nationwide townhall meeting and I want your input. Reply 'Voice" plus your question and tune in at HillaryClinton.com - Hillary

Barack's last words:

(and granted I receive about one message per day from his campaign - it seems. On Saturday they reminded me to watch him on MTV)

Vote for Barack tomorrow! Polls are open from 7:00am to 8:00pm. For location info: CA.BarackObama.com or call 866-675-2008 (press 4)Please fwd this msg.

Pressing "4" on my cell phone did nothing so I guess they mean press "4" once you call the 866 number.

Kudos to Barack's campaign for some location-based targeting. Yeah, ok, it's just at the "state" level, but not bad.

Julie Ask | February 04, 2008, 03:36 PM
SMS Ads ... What warrants an alert? and when?

Last summer I did a couple of blog pieces on the Presidential candidates using text messaging to reach supporters.

There was the Tootsie Roll analogy in this one. And a reference to an RCR Wireless piece in this one.

I now receive messages from his campaign whenever he is going to appear on TV ... which is frequently these days. While the timing tends to be same day as the event which is good, I'm often at the office and can't get home in time to watch or program my Tivo to do so. (My Tivo from DirectTV is pre-Ethernet connection days). I know of the events, but I can't do anything about them. I also haven't received the bumper sticker/materials that I opted in for via SMS. Having backend systems to support SMS efforts is an entirely different issue.

MyCokeRewards has been sending me gentle "nudges" every so often. When I first registered (see blog), I gave them a bunch of information regarding my cell phone and then heard nothing from them for a long time. Now they send me messages every once in a while encouraging me to visit their site to get some loyalty points or to watch Superbowl commercials, but it's never really enough to motivate me to do anything.

For me these campaigns illustrate where we seem to be right now with mobile marketing messages. Some early momentum a year or so ago. We saw some initial creativity with Starbucks and some others. Brands were collecting subscriber information, but not doing anything with it. THere was a lot of caution used in sending out messages. Now, a few messages are trickling out. Backend systems weren't in place to integrate acquisition data or do analytics. Short codes / voting are all over TV and doing well (any one watch the Superbowl yesterday?) - it's become expected at least for national football/basketball games. I haven't seen much lately though that indicates we're going to see accelerated growth. It's certainly not stalled, but could use a boost right now.

Julie Ask | January 23, 2008, 12:02 PM
Finally! AT&T delivers a premium broadband speed tier via U-verse

I have a "guest blog" from my colleague Doug Williams our Broadband analyst on AT&T's announcement today on U-verse.

AT&T has finally introduced a broadband speed tier that makes use of the VDSL2 network architecture used to deliver the company’s U-verse TV and Internet access services. AT&T is now offering a 10Mbps down/1.5 Mbps up U-verse broadband product to customers who bundle it with U-verse TV, for $55 per month.

It’s about time. When AT&T first rolled out its U-verse service offering, I was surprised that the broadband service came in the same flavors as AT&T’s DSL service offering. (Clients can review a case study of AT&T’s prior U-verse broadband offering here, which was attached to a report on consumer broadband service provider selection, available here.) By tying its undifferentiated U-verse broadband offering to the U-verse TV services, AT&T clearly expected uptake to be driven by the new TV service. Now that the 10/1.5 broadband service is available, consumers that value a fast Internet connection over all else when considering a bundle may give U-verse another look. I’m a bit surprised that the price point isn’t a bit lower. Look for more competitive bundled pricing in the future, particularly if early uptake lags corporate expectations.

In addition to the faster connection speed, I’m equally pleased that AT&T has dubbed the new service “AT&T Yahoo! High-Speed Internet Max.” It’s no FiOS, but at least you can see a nickname in there. (Hint: it’s “AT&T Max.”) What is the shorthand for “AT&T Yahoo! High-Speed Internet U-verse Enabled,” anyway?

P.S., Thank you to Julie for sharing space on her blog. My own blog should be up and running soon, so look for it next time you visit Jupiter’s Analyst Weblogs page.

Julie Ask | January 22, 2008, 11:34 AM
Services or Access? What sells? And who Pays?

I saw this press release from the NY Times and AT&T Wireless today. It's an interesting business model that we discuss a lot in our research. Will people pay for plain old access for their cell phones as they do for their homes? or will access be bundled with services? or will it be ad-supported? or some combination of the three? And certainly there could be other models beyond consumer pays or advertiser pays. We saw Apple make the announcement a few months ago with free access to iTunes in Starbucks. Gives consumers a lot of new possibilities to load up on content outside their homes. This one lets AT&T customers access NY Times content - presumably without a data access subscription. I don't see this evolving long term at such a piecemeal rate with each web/media property deciding one-by-one to subsidize access to grow their audience numbers to appeal more to advertisers. Yes, iTunes isn't about advertising, but they are selling music and promoting Starbucks music. As more capacity is added into the networks, it becomes less of a scarce resource, but it's hard to imagine advertising revenue alone paying for access. Will be interesting to watch where this heads.

Julie Ask | January 17, 2008, 04:14 PM
Ordering Pizza on the Phone - What's the big deal?

We've been using our phones to order pizzas for years. I am old enough to remember when "pizza delivery" was a big deal, but not when ordering it on the phone was novel. I still do this the old-fashioned way with my cell phone. I use Google SMS to get the phone number. I click on the number in the text message, wait on hold for five minutes, and then spend what seems like 10 minutes providing all of the relevant information it takes to order pizza on the phone.

Pizza Hut has taken ordering pizza on a phone to the next level, and I actually DO think it's a big deal. (see CNET article) It suits their target demographic. It's one of categories of products and services for which consumers are willing to receive special offers on their cell phones. The article stated that 20 percent of orders are already placed online so the infrastructure was in place to extend it to mobile.

They've done many other things well with the execution:

- Information about the service is on the front page of their home web site
- They've given it a cool name: "Total Mobile Access"
- They leverage their web site for account set up and maintenance
- Education - not only do they explain the differences between using text messaging and their mobile web site, but also they walk you through the steps one by one
- They have a partially branded short code. They have a 6 digit short code with "hut" being the last three digits. I can only assumed they explored lots of possibilities before settling with that one. "Pizza" must have been taken.

Julie Ask | January 16, 2008, 01:02 PM
The Power of Nokia’s Brand (Philippines Series)

I was wandering around a small market in a town about 90 minutes outside of Manila. One of the small stalls was selling candy shaped like cell phones. (I think “sugar globs” were just called “Dots” when I was young and that seemed to be enough to sell us on the idea of eating coated balls of sugar).

Candy Cell Phones

In any case, it wasn’t just that the sugar dots were organized to look like buttons on a cell phone. This company even took the liberty of using the Nokia name to help sell the candy – as if a cell phone weren’t enough.

Nokia Branding on the Cell Phones

Certainly the majority of people I saw there with cell phones had Nokia cell phones –easily the most popular brand. I found it interesting though that they were even borrowing the brand to sell candy – likely not the way Nokia would like to have their brand used, but still it speaks to the power of their brand globally.

And …. there wasn’t JUST one type of cell phone candy at the market – there were two types. No idea of what this red stuff is, but it reminded me of some kind of bean paste.

“Bean Paste” Cell Phone Candy

Julie Ask | January 16, 2008, 12:35 PM
How does one send 200 SMS each day? (Philippines)

I just spent a couple of weeks with a family in the Philippines. There were two teenagers – a sixteen year old and a fourteen year old. The sixteen year old is in college (common age to start college in the Philippines) and lives away from home. The fourteen year old is in a technical high school near Manila. Both are girls. The fourteen year old seldom uses her phone while the sixteen year old becomes visibly agitated if she’s not holding her phone or can’t get to her messages constantly. The sixteen year old told me she sent more than 200 messages per day. I was amazed and wondered how it could be possible … until I spent a couple of days with her. I don’t have a teenager at home so this was novel experience for me.

First, she can tap in messages quite quickly. She uses a Nokia phone. She had another (not to be named brand) for a while, but gave it up because she couldn’t tap out letters fast enough. She texts at the dinner table, while in the car, while talking to you, while walking, etc. – you get the idea. I was using a computer in a room where she was sleeping one morning – she even txt’ed in her sleep. She claimed that she sleeps with her cell phone on her pillow/in bed next to her because she uses it as an alarm. I didn’t hear an alarm though. Several times though, I did observe her wake up, send a text message, and then rollover and go back to sleep. I couldn’t believe it.

Teenager with Phone on Pillow

Teenager – Close-up

SMS messages are inexpensive in the Philippines, but not cheap. It seemed to be 50 cents or so for unlimited text messaging for24 hours. There were also packages for multiple days. It can be less expensive here. Many hourly workers earn as little as US$5/day – I still saw them with cell phones though perhaps not using as many text messages as these teenagers. I was told that rates were going up at the end of January, but that didn’t worry this teenager. She said the telecom companies make that announcement each year. They make the change, but quickly revert back to the lower prices.

SMS Offer