Everythings going mobile…

One out of every seven minutes of media consumption today takes place on mobile devices, according to new research from IPG’s Universal McCann and AOL. How can companies prepare for – and communicate with – their customers in the mobile age?

For many organisations, throwing out the existing rulebook might be a good start. Too many firms still think of customers and customer service in an old world style.

Such old world thinking suggests customers are people that usually buy from you in a face-to-face format, where service is all about building interaction and managing delivery. And that’s where the catch comes.

Interaction and delivery are crucial but such tenets of customer service need to be managed across a series of channels – from face-to-face to internet, and from call centres to mobile devices.

Mobile might seem like a fairly insignificant element of the customer service puzzle right now, with analyst Freeform Dynamics suggesting as much as 60% of users rarely or never take advantage of advanced services such as information, navigation and social networking.

Expect that picture to change and quickly. As stated above, individuals are already consuming media on mobile devices and that is simply the starting point, with mobile usage expected to grow by as much as 60% by 2011.

Such growth needs a strategy. Do not make the mistake that many firms made on the transition from old world selling to web-enabled delivery. Too many companies bolt internet and call centre offerings to existing face-to-face services.

Integration should be your watchword and you should identify the existing services that your customers could use to connect with you through a mobile device. People use mobile phones on the move and on an ad-hoc basis.

The success of the apps service on Apple’s iPhone shows that individuals are simply looking for useful tools that can help them fill otherwise dead time. Such tools could be games or enterprise apps, but they might be a sales channel to your company – and you need to plan accordingly.

Analyse mobile devices, speak to your customers and develop an interface that helps your customers speak to – and buy from – your business. Such developments could take the form of an advocacy network on Twitter, where customers help to spread the benefits of your service.

The developments could also take the form of mobile payments, one of the fastest growing areas of online purchasing. Think, plan and integrate your customer delivery interface across all channels.

You have been warned. Don’t get left behind in the old world because the age of mobility is fast approaching.

Further reading

http://www.businessweek.com/the_thread/brandnewday/archives/2009/07/mobile_devices.html

http://www.freeformdynamics.com/fullarticle.asp?aid=705

Technologies for the new age of mobility

The talk of the IT industry is that we are about to enter a new age of mobility. But as the market for mobile phones and chips is actually falling, it is important to seek the deeper trends beneath the vendor puff.

 The semiconductor industry posted a decline in revenue for only the fifth time in the last 25 years in 2008, according to Gartner. The analyst reports that global mobile phone sales are being hit even harder, with a record 8.6% drop in sales during the first quarter of 2009.

 But not all areas of device manufacturer are struggling. The new age of mobility requires a new age of mobile devices, with technologies and applications to match.

 Gartner says sales of multimedia-enabled smartphones – such as Apple’s iPhone or RIM’s BlackBerry – rose 12.7 per cent in the first quarter of 2009. In fact, smart devices should account for at least half of all mobile phones by 2012.

 So, why the rush to smartphones? And from accelerometers to micromachines, what are the technologies that will drive the next stage of device interactivity?

 Apple’s iPhone uses an accelerometer to automatically reorient the screen to landscape when the device is tipped on its side. Nintendo’s motion-sensing Wii controller uses an accelerometer, too.

 Consumer demand for smarter applications on interactive devices means growth will continue, with market researcher iSuppli expecting the market for accelerometers to almost double by 2013 and hit $1.7bn.

 It is not just about mobile gamers, either. Due to the continuing spread of consumerisation, businesses are being forced to find innovative ways to adopt the collaborative and interactive technologies that many employees now take for granted.

 The use of accelerometers is part of a broader use of micromachines, a set of minute components and a microprocessor that allow mobile devices to act smart. Certain micromachine technologies, notably inkjet printing, are already commonplace in business.

 Technology firms are now finding other pioneering ways to ally micromachine and mobile technology. Take Texas Instruments, which is pioneering the use of micro projectors and digital light processing in portable devices.

 Or computer giant IBM, who continue to work on the Millipede data storage project and which aims to provide data density of more than one terabit per square inch.

 Such developments help to illustrate why traditional semiconductor revenues are struggling and sales of smart devices are soaring. Micromachine technology means that a new age of mobility is fast approaching.

  

Further reading

 http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/technology/article6360594.ece

 http://news.cnet.com/8301-13924_3-10251217-64.html

http://www.pcworld.com/article/165694/mobile_payments_will_double_by_2012_researcher_says.html

Devices: What comes first, the device or the application?

 

The new age of collaboration and mobility is a wonderful thing – colleagues and connections can be contacted any time, anywhere.

 

Individuals with all-singing and all-dancing handheld devices, such as iPhones, BlackBerrys and smartphones, can stay connected through a variety of applications.

 

The result is that users are busily downloading applications for a range of devices. From instant messaging to Facebook and from current affairs to games, individuals are finding ways to run loved applications on their favourite devices.

 

It all sounds like a new, collaborative age – but sometimes, we’re just too clever for our own good and user experiences can be patchy. The main problem is that the chosen method of application development is often the wrong way round.

 

Most organisations are prioritising devices. As a result, many businesses recognise more of their customers are using high power mobile devices and are retrofitting their existing applications to handheld devices.

 

Sounds good, in theory – but the problem is that most applications are designed with one platform in mind. And as applications are pushed across platforms, users are often left with is a poor quality experience.

 

In practice, we should create an alternative method of development: a need for software should be identified, and the application then created and designed for a specific device.

 

Second, when considering whether to put an application on a device, companies must also consider whether the tool is appropriate for the device.

 

How many people chose to do their online banking through a TV? Would you look at your bank statements in front of your family and friends? More specifically, would you want to fill out a lengthy mortgage application form on a mobile phone?

 

Other examples are not hard to find. How will workers make best use of essential enterprise applications – such as word processing and spreadsheet software – in the mobile age?

 

Such questions require a significant step change in the way we create applications – in short, businesses must recognise that the design of the application, and a consideration of the device, is absolutely crucial.

 

Once firms have decided the functionality is appropriate they can then design for the specific screen estate. This method will help prevent over-invention and ensure users are exploiting the right channel for the right purpose.

 

Certain applications – such as word processing, social networking and location-based services – are quickly becoming a mobile necessity. Your workers will expect to have devices that provide an intuitive link to their favourite applications.

 

We have a fantastic opportunity to allow our employees to collaborate in new and innovative ways – but only if our mobile devices allow us to make best use of our favourite applications.

The 2nd Wave of Mobile Applications

From the banking crisis to rising unemployment levels, the downturn has had a number of damaging effects.

 Losing your job and struggling to repay your mortgage is an all too visible sign of the recession. But some affects are more underlying.

 Businesses – and IT leaders, more specifically – are continually being told of the need to innovate their way out of the downturn. Attend any conference at the moment and the message is the same: those that continue to invest will be best prepared for an upturn.

 So much for the rhetoric – while it is one thing aiming for innovation, it is quite another investing in new areas of business IT. Having to account closely for all areas of spending means some projects are being delayed or shelved.

 The consequential affects on innovation are clear. And mobile device development is one outlying area of development that has been affected by the recession. In particular, the downturn has helped apply the breaks on the quicker emergence of a second wave of mobile devices.

 User spending on mobile entertainment services will slow dramatically, increasing by nearly $13bn during the next five years, according to Juniper Research. The analyst previously predicted pre-downturn growth of $26bn (see further reading, below).

 The new figure represents a significant drop. But $13bn still represents a considerable increase when other areas of IT and telecom development are stalling.

 And while spending on high cost content is slower than might have been anticipated, businesses are continuing to invest is in the area of mobile services.

 Analysts suggest mobile social networking, applications and broadband will continue to receive significant investment (see further reading), helping to support the emerging bandwagon of a ‘desktop in your pocket’.

 Take Apple’s iPhone, with its excellent web-browser rendering and billion-selling, or freely downloaded, apps (see further reading). The success of the iPhone shows how users are already benefiting from a second wave of mobility, where individuals can stay connected and create knowledge through an easy-to-use interface.

 Reports suggest the level of mobile and online activity is increasing in importance, with people today spending more than 20% of their time consuming ‘new media’ (see further reading).

 The message is clear. When times are tight, businesses are unlikely to spend on expensive content that has an indeterminate value. At the same time, they will continue to invest on usable mobile technologies that help boost collaboration and provide access to information.

 So when the green shoots of recovery sprout, make sure your business users already have access to a desktop in the pocket.

  

Further reading

 http://www.telecomseurope.net/article.php?id_article=8344

 http://www.businessinsider.com/apple-sells-1-billion-iphone-apps-three-times-faster-than-it-sold-1-billion-itunes-songs-2009-4

 http://mobile.broadbandgenie.co.uk/news/most-operators-looking-to-invest

 http://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/196/78/35223.html

Putting the power of a desktop in your pocket

It wasn’t so long ago – fifteen years, in many cases – that most companies were buying their first PCs.

During the last few years, most businesses have opted to eschew desktop computers in favour of a lighter laptop option. But the trend is changing again – and quickly.

The speed of development, both in processing power and mobile capability, means devices are getting smaller. The recent Mobile World Congress helped elucidate this point: the web – and an associated range of content and applications – is moving from the desktop to the pocket.

Providers are developing technologies and software that can help workers deal with information on the move. So, how will such changes in wireless networking affect businesses?

First, flexibility – you can forget being chained to a bulky PC at your desk. Smaller and more powerful devices will allow workers to use a broad staple of enterprise applications in the field.

Second, usability – the increasing power of mobile devices means real-time processing and monitoring becomes a certainty. Customised mobile applications will allow users to react quickly to crucial business intelligence, improving customer service and efficiency.

Third, collaboration – the ability to contact staff through various platforms at any time means companies will be able to quickly develop new modes of work. Cloud-based applications, for example, will enable teams of employees to log-on independently and create joint working documents.

Finally, innovation – new working methods will help your people think and operate in different ways. People can concentrate on exchanging ideas, rather than waiting for an email to arrive.

Positive changes in networking mean IT leaders will also have to keep a tight grip on security policies. It is great that your company’s workers can communicate on the go – but businesses must ensure workers know how to use mobile information in a safe and secure manner.

Such developments mean mobile security is likely to be the next big area for standards and compliance. And when it comes to working in the cloud, the ability to use applications both on and offline will be key to enterprise development.

But if you keep on top of any potential challenges, your workers will be able to benefit from the big four changes – flexibility, usability, collaboration and innovation.

New working practices and the seven-day weekend

The three-day working week of the early 1970s was a political reaction to intractable challenges posed through industrial action.

Sometimes reactions can be used to create new models of working and there was a time when UK workers might have expected the long-term adoption of a four or three-day working week.

Such changes never materialised, most workers still work a full five-day week – but transformation is afoot, often sponsored by fast-evolving internet technologies.

BlackBerry owners will be familiar with the new feeling of hyper-connectivity. Not so long ago, office email was a Monday-to-Friday, nine-to-five technology.

Then you get a BlackBerry and can access email anytime, hardly noticing how regularly you check emails during the weekend.

But while no executive can resist the call of the flashing red light on a BlackBerry, some semblance of moderation is required.

While technology can be a facilitator for 24/7 access, it can also be a conduit for more flexible and sensible working practices.

Such freedom means workers no longer have to be tied to a desk, constrained by the rigid definition of a five-day working week.

Smart employers are beginning to use available IT to allow their workers to contribute from various locations at any time of the day.

And what is emerging in these smarter firms is not a reduced working week but increased flexibility that might be better described as a seven-day weekend.

Trusted employees are logging-in at a broader collection of times, fitting their working arrangements around their external commitments.

Rather than just creating a more effective work/life balance, technology is actually beginning to provide a better life/work balance – and those sort of priorities actually help employees feel more valued and work harder.

The rise of interactive convergence

“Games are the convergence of everything,” began a recent article in business magazine Forbes, the premise of which was that the integration of social and internet components is allowing players to experience a new era of immersive game play.

 

Sounds exciting, but what does such interactive covergence mean for business? How will the convergence of user interfaces – such as touch, voice and gesture – change the way we work and use information?

 

Let’s return briefly to the games industry, where media specialist iConecto reports that health electronic games represent 16% of the video gaming industry, amounting to a $6.6bn annual global market.

 

Owners of a Nintendo games console will have already seen the potential fun and health benefits that can be garnered by playing such games as Wii Sports and Wii Fit. These converged simulations require individuals to make best use of a combination of movements and gestures.

 

But Nintendo is not the only business wise to the positive effects of convergence. North American insurers are also realising the benefits of gaming, with healthcare specialist Cigna creating Remission – a game that helps young cancer patients build an adherence to oral chemotherapy.

 

Beyond gaming, some organisations are already developing a leading edge in covergence. Take the BBC, which is planning to work alongside ITV and British Telecom to further develop its popular iPlayer service.

 

Internet TV subscribers will grow five-fold to 71.6 million worldwide by 2012, according to analyst Research and Markets. The firm reports that convergence features, linking TVs with PCs and mobile phones, are helping to push demand for an increasing range of content.

 

Over the Atlantic, the recently completed CES conference was dominated by issues surrounding the convergence of content and technology. The conference shows technology companies and finding innovative ways to push information across a series of converged platforms.

 

IT leaders that are not already thinking about developing their own converged systems will also need to prepare for a raft of new converged applications and technologies. The result will be multiple methods for using mashed-up content, many of which have not even yet been considered.

 

Planning for an unplannable future just got even more diificult. Good luck.

Santa’s perfect consumer gadget

Santa’s perfect consumer gadget

 

Christmas is coming – and rather than getting fat, the goose is getting excited about consumer IT.

 

There’s nothing quite like getting a new gadget from Santa, whether it’s a gaming system, MP3 player or high-tech camera phone.

 

The theory of convergence would suggest your exciting Christmas toy is likely to be a combination of all of the above – gaming, music, video and mobility.

 

But while your converged device might seem exciting on Christmas Day, the endless amount of unused applications is likely to weigh down on your enjoyment in the cold light of the New Year.

 

So beyond the tinsel and trimmings of all-singing and all-dancing device, what add-on extra would really create the most useful gadget from Santa?

 

Well, Christmas is a time for eating copious amounts of food with the family – and, of course, watching endless amounts of television.

 

Under those circumstances, what could be more useful than a mobile phone with a built-in remote control for the TV?

 

You and your family are likely to spend the week-or-so after Christmas Day camped around the goggle box, watching endless re-runs of Morecambe and Wise.

 

It is a universal role understood and accepted by all men that remote controls are always lost, especially when you need to change channel.

 

That state of affairs is completely opposite in the case of your mobile phone, which can usually be found at a moment’s notice and is often in your pocket.

 

Having a converged phone and remote control allows you to cut out the middleman and cut out the Morecambe and Wise.

 

What’s more, bringing the two together should be simple. The technology doesn’t have to be flashy – most phones could easily add infrared remote control capability.

 

And if you want to get flashy, take a look at Sony’s patent for a converged device that changes TV channels (see link below).

 

See, the smart minds are already thinking about how to bring the UK’s two most useful technologies together. Have a lovely Christmas and a Happy New Year!

 

Further reading:

http://www.unwiredview.com/2007/03/01/sony-ericssons-mobile-phoneuniversal-remote-control/

 

Is it touch and go for future user interfaces?

The next couple of years promise a huge upsurge of interest in touch-sensitive user interfaces, as IT firms battle to provide new and intuitive ways to access information.

 

Following on from the massive popularity of Apple’s iPod and iPhone devices, major suppliers – such as Microsoft and RIM – are exploring how new input mechanisms that can improve the user experience.

 

RIM recently announced the details of Storm, its first touch screen BlackBerry. The device – which includes dual-mode functionality and integrated GPS – uses ClickThrough technology to allow users to push the screen as they select an application or enter text.

 

Other manufacturers are offering additional bonuses. Nokia’s 5800 touch sensitive phone includes a semi-professional camera and – most tantalisingly, perhaps – unlimited music downloads.

 

Camcorder specialist Flip, meanwhile, has just released details of its next-generation Mino recorder and the pocket-sized device relies on a touch-sensitive screen for its user interface.

 

Developments are not just confined to mobile devices and the latest Jaguar XF includes a touch-sensitive video screen that allows the driver to operate climate, entertainment and driving controls.

 

Other devices offer a clever solution to an intractable challenge, such as the Series 58 touch-sensitive switch from EAO – which can stick to a surface without the need to drill holes and its electronic switching element is powerful enough to operate though thick double glazing.

 

But is important to remember that being flavour of the month is no assurance of long-term popularity. And while IT firms are working hard to develop sleek touch-screen devices, they must remember that a good-looking device is no substitute for a usable interface.

 

There is clearly an advantage for multi-touch device over single touch, as they offer a greater palette of “touch gestures”. However, such richness comes with issues: first, no common standard for gestures across devices; and second, having to remember more gestures.

 

Problems with touch devices are common, too. Screen calibration issues can mean users have to “guess” hot spots for touch. Button performance can be erratic and users often enter applications or text accidentally.

 

Interfaces can also be slow to respond, leaving the individual waiting for a device to update menus and on-screen information.

 

Such problems mean users can sometimes be wistful for their old-fashioned mechanical buttons – and for many applications, the ability to support “Undo” functionality will be a key blessing!

 

Take Google’s new G1 phone, which includes a touch-sensitive screen and a computer-like keyboard and tracker ball mouse that provides an additional interface to the firm’s Android operating system.

 

Such developments illustrate that levels of users satisfaction will not necessarily match huge interest in touch-sensitive devices until interfaces are perfected.

 

 

Specialists can be better than jack-of-all-trades

Last month, I talked about convergence and the emergence of multi-purpose devices. It was a timely post.

Check out the recent hype surrounding the launch of the updated iPhone. Media reports give the impression the whole world wants all-purpose, smart phone technology.

While the queues of eager customers snaking around Apple stores are representative of high demand for converged devices, we should also retain a sense of perspective.

Convergence is a popular and well-supported theory, but an alternative school of thought suggests we are about to enter a period of device divergence.

Rather than relying on a single converged device that attempts to cover as many technical areas as possible, the divergence concept recognises users will not necessarily demand converged technology because it is possible to bring together component parts.

Divergence is a more than plausible theory because many people still hold separate devices, despite modern phones including a range of smarter options.

Everything comes down to an issue of quantity versus quality: just because a device holds many applications doesn’t mean an individual will use them.

Rather than a one-size-fits all approach, more individuals are actually looking for specialist devices for specific purposes, such as a BlackBerry for email and an iPod for music.

In summary, devices essentially consist of an input mechanism, such as a keyboard, touch or movement – and an output means, including graphics, voice and text. Other essential elements are memory and a central processing unit.

Finding ways to connect the elements of such devices will be crucial. And if you can successfully connect the various components, users will be able to integrate a range of separate technologies through wireless technology.

While people may prefer using their specialist devices, some element of connectivity will be essential – especially if individuals want different applications on different devices to communicate.

Any user experiences are possible, once we recognise the logic of specific applications can be transferred to any output mechanism. Here’s to a future of multiple users for single devices.