Some of us have been discussing the new Zong EDGE rates at TGP. Is it really just 400 for EDGE? And what about the coverage? With the official launch ZONG folks have been busy and at times it is hard to confirm even simple things like this. The ZONG website does a nice job of re-branding and all but at the time of this writing there are still a few pages with incomplete or no information. So we thought we will ask you, the readers, if they have an answer to this.
We have nationwide GPRS with edge covering major nine cities of Pakistan.
Charges
* Standard GPRS charges Rs15+tax/MB
* Special rates on Zong Free Rs10+tax/MB
* Data will be charges in chunks of 8KB
Unlimited mobile Internet Package
* Just Rs400+tax and enjoy unlimited internet for the whole month.
* To activate Zong unlimited internet package call 310 or visit the nearest sales & service center.
Does it make business sense to introduce 3G in Pakistan at this time? PTA has been deliberating on this question for a while. Recently PTA asked major technology stakeholders (equipment makers, mobile companies) to share their view points on 3G licensing and roll-out. The presentations have been posted at the PTA website. Telenor CEO has talked to press about his views on 3G, covered here. Take a look at few points from a presentation by another one of the major mobile company. The argument presented is that conditions are not suitable for 3G in Pakistan and the data revenue potential does not justify investments needed for 3G. They recommend to either defer spectrum allotment or give partial spectrum at nominal cost. Can you guess which mobile operator is this?
3G Situation in Pakistan
Pakistan is a low priced voice dominated market. Industry is building voice capacity rather than enhanced capability
Pakistan Mobile Data Subscriptions Disappointing
Nominal GPRS subscriptions in the industry
ARPU uplift from these subscriptions is negligible
Multi-mode (GSM/UMTS) handsets are still costly
GSM market exploded due to economies of scale in the hand sets
GSM hand set is available as low as $25
Small percentage of 3G capable hand sets in the market
3G non-voice mobile revenues are expected to be negligible
Localized content stimulates usage — Low literacy in Pakistan
No content available in local/regional languages
Spectrum Cost
Spectrum forms part of investment for an operator to roll out a 3G network
Five operators can be expected to invest over a billion dollars on initial launch
More cell sites would required to support higher data rates
Local content development is an uphill task
Option 1
Defer the allotment of spectrum for another 1-2 years (as per our recommendation May 2007)
Option 2 Award 5Mhz of 3G spectrum to all MNOs at nominal cost (similar to WiMax spectrum fee )
Why?
Incentive to build and grow 3G services
Justify high capex on roll outs
Technology proliferation
Affordable 3G services for masses
Allocation of additional 3G spectrum at a subsequent date
Operators keen to expand on 3G portfolio can bid
Market foundation is laid
Business case for further investments
Strengthen operator capability to offer better QoS and advanced services
Hear what Big Blue has to say about the future of mobile phones. This discussion of a IBM mobile learning executive and a Motorola director touches upon some interesting directions such as text to speech and location based technologies. Technology companies realize that this is the time to define their territory and are eager to share their visionary thinking. One of the point worth mentioning from this conversation: phones have to fit well with people’s lives and not the other way around.
Over the coming years, mobile phones are expected to get “smarter”, adjusting to our usage patterns. Innovations such as larger projectable screens and other e-commerce and social networking features will enable the phone to provide much more value to our lives.
Intel has introduce Atom™ processor, a new family of low-power processors designed specifically for mobile Internet devices (MIDs). MIDs are devices which are smaller than a laptop but larger than a cellphone, with cost in the $500 range. Technology analysts and blogs are raving about Atom. About 25 hardware companies have decided to make portable Internet devices using Atom. The gadgets will start appearing in late May and early June on store shelves in China, Japan and South Korea. According to Intel, China was an early focus because of the activity surrounding the Olympics, with Japan and South Korea both logical next candidates because of their wireless broadband services. More information available at Intel Mobility blog and from a report by WSJ.
Intel, which largely missed out on the market for chips used in cellphones, is using a technology conference in Shanghai to talk up gadgets it calls MIDs, for mobile Internet devices. The company hopes to attract consumers who are frustrated with trying to use the Web on their handsets. The new products, Intel says, match personal computers in their ability to play video and handle some other advanced features of Web sites.
Intel is introducing five Atom chips that draw 0.65 watt to 2.4 watts — compared with 35 watts for one of its typical laptop chips — and carry list prices ranging from $45 to $160. Companies expected to show prototype MIDs based on its chips this week include Lenovo Group Ltd., LG Electronics Inc., Clarion Co. and Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., maker of Panasonic-branded products, Intel said.
Intel won’t lack for competition. Rivals include companies that make chips for handsets called smartphones, such as Qualcomm Inc. and Texas Instruments Inc. They mainly use microprocessor technology developed by ARM Holdings PLC, and are helping to improve the Web capabilities of cellphones and other devices.
While Mr. Chandrasekher estimated the Atom chips have about twice the calculating power of ARM designs, he acknowledged that ARM still has an advantage in low power consumption. Bob Morris, ARM’s director of mobile computing, added that a coming chip design from the company offers a three-fold boost in computing performance.
CTIA Wireless 2008 is one of the largest wireless events in the US. Among its various programs is the Emerging Technology Awards which claims to highlight the most innovative products and applications representing all facets of the mobile lifestyle in wireless”. It is a good place to see some promising gadgets, applications and products.
Take a look at this report. Do you think these were truly worthy of awards?
Consumer Applications - Messaging (SMS/MMS)/Mobile Marketing
1st place - Cellfire 3.0
2nd place - Reply with Jott for BlackBerry
3rd place - SnapNow Mobile Visual Search
Consumer Applications - Mobile Entertainment/Social Networking
1st place - Ontela’s PicDeck™
2nd place - WidSets
3rd place - Yahoo! Go 3.0
Mobile Widgets - Consumer
1st place - Zumobi
2nd place - Fusion Voicemail Plus by PhoneFusion
3rd place - JACKED Mobile SportsTop
As the new year starts research and media companies present their views on what the future holds. Over the next few days I’ll share some selected articles about the future of communication technologies. Here’s one from TMC.
The evolution of mobile devices to an open platform and the movement of Internet video into the mainstream are this year’s two macro trends that will have the greatest impact in the future, according to a report released on Monday by MultiMedia Intelligence.
This year marked a new transition of mobile devices into open platforms. Although it’s known for being a closed platform when it comes to allowing third-party applications, Apple’s iPhone started a new dynamic, and Google’s Android platform and a possible Java-based operating system are the next phase, MultiMedia Intelligence said in the report.
Another important development rounding out the macro trends of 2007 is Motorola’s recent investment in UIQ, a software platform based on the Symbian OS. In October, Motorola bought 50% of Sony Ericsson’s stake in UIQ, which is also the platform behind Sony Ericsson’s touch-screen smartphones. This means touch screens are likely to become a major focus for the phone maker.
In a recent interview with the media, Zouhair Khaliq speaks about Mobilink’s future expansion and investment plans and recent standing of the company among mobile and data service providers. Excerpts are presented below, full story here. As I have written before, Mobilink has been successful in 2 strategic directions. It has maintained its top position in mobile market by adding wireless subscribers. Secondly it has diversified into the broadband and data services market by acquiring Internet Service Providers such as DanCom, WOL, DVCom etc . Overall Mobilink continues to be a strong player and a good profit source for Orascom, the parent company.
In fibre optics, Pakistan Telecommunication Limited (PTCL) had been the only company that owned an optic fibre backbone. Mobilink has successfully introduced competition through the introduction of a nationwide network. Mobilink’s optic fibre backbone provides the perfect platform to Mobilink for connecting its customers nationwide with highest level of voice and data quality with more reliability.
Deployment of the national backhaul stands completed with full protection, making Mobilink’ optic fibre backbone fully protected/redundant. By providing last mile connectivity Mobilink has positioned itself as a one-stop shop for meeting all communication requirements of enterprises and individuals. The optic fibre network currently covers 6,500 kilometres and will be increased to cover another 2000 kilometres very soon.
“We are envisaging sustainable growth in Pakistan. With mobile penetration still at around 43 percent, the room for growth is immense. The growth is not only limited to mobile telephony, as there are huge opportunities in other fields like broadband (optic fibre, DSL, WiMax), LDI etc. This coupled with the enabling environment being provided by the Pakistan Telecommunications Authority ensures an excellent future for this sector,” he said when asked to comment on the company’s future plans in Pakistan.
Spotted this interesting article at LIRNEAsia.net. Nathan Eagle, who is developing a voice interface for the mobile internet, writes about the challenges of making mobile web useful for developing countries.
The phones that are designed and marketed for the ‘developing world’ today aren’t data enabled, they have no browser or any ability to function as a traditional data device. We’re dumping hundreds of millions of devices into these regions that are essentially crippled - and their legacy (the average life span of a phone in Africa is many times that of it’s Western counterpart) will affect mobile internet usage in these regions throughout the next decade. Furthermore, in the small Kenyan village where I live it’s significantly less than 1 in 10 phones that can support the traditional ‘mobile Web’ experience, and it’s probably closer to 1 in 1000 phones that have ever successfully connected to the web. Most of the phones I see in the village were originally manufactured well before 2003. (The most popular selling phone in my village is an old Ericsson that stopped being made back in 2001.) The local mobile operators should take some blame as well - many simply don’t have the equipment or expertise to role out a data network on top of their rapidly expanding GSM net. It took me over 10 days of phone calls with my local Kenyan operator to get my phone activated for their new EDGE network. Most people I know give up after the first couple of hours of configuration. And that’s assuming they actually have the right phone…
After months of speculation there is an official statement from Google about their mobile phone plans. However the information on the Google mobile phone software stack (which is based on Android platform) lacks many details and the product release time frame of second half of 2008 is long. In the coming days analysts will discuss this a lot so I’ll spare you detailed comments but here’re a few things which come to mind.
The software will run on special handsets from a wide range of partners. Based on what I’ve read the phone will be more of a smart phone with easier and faster access to internet and productivity applications leading to the mashups which created waves for the Internet. There’s no limit to which the new apps can go but I think speech apps (such as those from Nuance) are going to be a big part here.
The Open Handset Alliance and Open source support is important here. there has been a good momentum going for the open-source linux phone and the google phone announcement will help it a great deal. Countries like Pakistan are embracing linux and open-source and there is potential for some interesting work. However it is not yet clear if the LIMO efforts will converge with this or not. For developers the long lead time is a bit long but being google it is the hope that the wait will be worth it. It may be worth noting here that Apple has also announced opening its iPhone to outside developers.
As opposed to Apple’s iPhone pricey brand the google phone strategy is to create a platform which is widely scalable and seen as the rescuer, the common man’s phone. In that sense it will attract tremendous attention in developing countries. If you look at the partners HTC is the among the first handset maker to come out with an android based device. Large international carriers such as China Mobile are listed as partners as well.
Addendum on Nov 12: See the video about Android and the $10 million prize. Code is here.
The google blog said:
If you’re a developer and this approach sounds exciting, give us a week or so and we’ll have an SDK available.
Through deep partnerships with carriers, device manufacturers, developers, and others, we hope to enable an open ecosystem for the mobile world by creating a standard, open mobile software platform. We think the result will ultimately be a better and faster pace for innovation that will give mobile customers unforeseen applications and capabilities.
Brough Turner has written many interesting pieces covering the Connect 2007 conference in Boston. Here is an excerpt from his entry on mobile web based on the panel discussion in the conference. I agree that the ‘middle of the road’ approach makes sense but its not yet clear what are the parameters which will make it click.
Andrew Budd of mBlox is very articulate on the need for wholesale models, i.e. not the “real” Internet, but a mobile world where operators allow (facilitate) customer access to 3rd party content. This is the compromise position between the typical walled garden operator and the completely open Internet (which Dean Bubley pressed in a question from the floor). Andrew’s argument against the wide open mobile Internet is roughly that we don’t want the 900 number meltdown that we saw in the US in the 1990s (when premium rate services became associated with scams and porn).
Likewise, Jud Bowman of Motricity, clearly expects the “real” Internet to win eventually, but in a long transition in which operator run programs dominate. Jud made an interesting point I need to double check: PC’s are only upgraded every 4-6 years (can it be that bad?) whereas mobiles are upgraded every 2 years (in the US). The implication is we’ll see very rapid change in the mobile market in the next 2-4 years as handset vendors learn from the UI of the iPhone and 3G data capacity continues to evolve.
Michael Scully, Director of Music, Mobile Content and Data, at Virgin Mobile USA was the one operator representative on the panel and, as might be expected, (and completely legitimately), pressed the point that Virgin Mobile has a relationship with their customers that centers around a very personal device - their mobile phone.
Another set of numbers (from Andrew Budd) that I need to check out: The mobile industry is worth $700B whereas the Internet is only worth $150B. That was partly contested by Seamus McAteer of M:Metrics but I didn’t hear an alternate set of numbers.
Mapping is the killer mobile app. Whether you have location-based services (LBS) or not, the chances are that you are using mobile mapping software on your smartphone and starting to take it for granted that it will just be there for you when you need it. So it is no surprise that there has been some interesting M&A activity in this space.
Navteq and TeleAtlas are the top providers of street-level information, which is the key to enabling mapping and navigation applications. These are businesses where the barriers to entry are quite high–getting the initial set of street-level data requires a ton of data crunching & surveying. From that perspective, the two companies’ core value proposition is well-protected.
With the two big street mapping players now part of larger and even slower-moving companies, there may be an opportunity to disrupt this market in the next five years. The key question is one of bootstrap costs to get to a critical mass of good-enough data. I expect the solution will include three aspects:
User-generated content. See OpenStreetMap, for example.
New Location Mashing Technologies (LMTs–I’m inventing a new term here because I don’t know what to call these). I see these coming in two forms: (1) from the world of unstructured information to the world of latitudes and longitudes, e.g., MetaCarta, and (2) between more traditional geolocation databases, which some in notoriously many different formats.
Business models that use Navteq and TeleAtlas data (perhaps via their consumer rendition of Google Maps, etc.) as a crutch to fall back to when the data isn’t good enough.
When I wrote about phone address book a while ago I did not know about Jaiku, an address book utility company. I read today at ComputerWorld that Google has bought them. Jaiku provides peresence information right inside the address book, allows you to text updates to Jaiku and follow your contacts and channels on the go. This sounds like a better twist on Twitter with more features. Another advantage is that it is a full application with api for 3rd party apps. On the down side this is something limited to certain handsets. Here’s more from Jaiku site:
Jaiku’s main goal is to bring people closer together by enabling them to share their activity streams. An activity stream is a log of everyday things as they happen: your status messages, recommendations, events you’re attending, photos you’ve taken - anything you post directly to Jaiku or add using Web feeds.
We’ve put in a special effort to create Jaiku Mobile, a live phonebook that displays the activity streams, availability, and location of your Jaiku contacts right in your phone contact list. We modestly believe it is the best solution out there for seeing what your friends are up to. Currently Jaiku Mobile is available for phones based on the Nokia S60 software platform.
The original announcement was at this Google blog.
CTIA Wireless 2008 is one of the largest wireless events in the US. Among its various programs is the 
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