http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/04/technology/04open.html?_r=1&ref=technology&oref=slogin

Laura Holson makes a number of interesting points in this article about the ripple effect of the iPhone on the direction of the mobile ecosystem and the consumer experience that is driving it.

Certain comments are particularly noteworthy:

1) “With independence, consumers develop a relationship not with their carrier but with the phone or the applications on the phone.”

The implication here is that U.S. carriers are equal in the eyes of mobile consumers today. The only real differentiators are the specific mobile devices and the unique applications and services being offered by the carrier. What does that say about the hundreds of millions of dollars spent on brands representing trust and quality of service?

2) “Applications spur the use of higher-priced wireless data plans and the purchase of more expensive smartphones.”

Carriers are unlikely to realize their long-term growth objectives by capitalizing on the churn of their competitors and special promotions. Growth can come only from increased data usage, which requires mobile internet services beyond on-portal web browsing and a compelling user experience that shapes the mobile lifestyle and creates an irresistible attachment.

3) “Consumers may find it confusing that some applications work only for certain phones because developers do not have the time or money to adapt projects to every operating system.”

The value of openness to consumers is intuitively obvious, but there may still be issues of consistency across devices. In-network technology such as content adaptation and optimization can enable carriers to overcome such disadvantages dynamically and transparently, thereby maintaining a seamless user experience.

4) Holson points to Open Moko’s Neo Freerunner as a “mobile phone of the future” by virtue of its personalization capabilities. She quotes an Open Moko spokesperson, whose 13-year-old daughter wants to create her own mobile games: “What we want to do is bring the openness of the personal computer to the phone. We want people to be able to play around.”

In addition to personalization, this speaks to the convergence of the PC internet experience and the mobile internet experience and the openness required to give consumers as many individual choices as possible. The playing field is larger than web browsing; it encompasses mobile internet applications of every conceivable flavor.

- Adrian Hall

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Tags: content adaptation, iphone, mobile internet, optimization, personalization, portal browsing, smartphones

This entry was posted on Wednesday, August 6th, 2008 at 6:07 am and is filed under content adaptation, mobile ecosystem, mobile internet. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.