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Thursday, November 19, 2009

Everyone’s selling Android phones… but who’s selling Android?

Mark Bridge writes:

Samsung. Huawei. Acer. HTC. Motorola. LG. Toshiba. Sony Ericsson. INQ. Dell. They’re all after a slice of the Android cake. (The Android cake is an éclair at the moment. Not particularly good for slicing. But I digress).

And my, what advertisements we’ve seen. Most recently Motorola has been knocking the iPhone while HTC has been playing with marker pens.

But those ad campaigns are mainly about manufacturers and phones. As you’d expect, really. Not about Android.

Compare and contrast with Apple, which sells its mobile operating system and its mobile phone together. You could even argue, given the recent TV commercials, it’s barely selling the phone at all. It’s all about the apps. Everyone who’s anyone has an iPhone that’s pregnant with applications… and they want you to know about each and every one of them.

Is that a problem?  Yes, for Android.

Android for saleIt seems that interest in Android is starting to fade – because no-one’s really selling the benefits. Recently, mobile game business Gameloft has said it’s cutting back its Android game development. “Google has not been very good to entice customers to actually buy products”, said Gameloft’s finance director Alexandre de Rochefort.

It’s a similar story from Gartner analyst Roberta Cozza, who says the Android platform is lacking a decent central marketing strategy.

So – what’s going to happen?

Are Google or the Open Handset Alliance going to start advertising Android?  I think not. Google’s rather too busy with its Chrome OS and the OHA’s members have way too many diverse interests.

Of course, we could see Google pushing Android with the much-rumoured ‘Google phone’ that’s expected next year.

Or – perhaps – we’ve already seen the beginning of the next stage. It is, surely, no coincidence that the Motorola Droid’s name contains the second syllable of Android. No coincidence that the Droid's iPhone-knocking ad campaign talked about operating system capabilities. And no coincidence that the Motorola Droid got version 2.0 of Android before the code was barely dry. If it really is no coincidence but is part of an agreement between Motorola and Google, who knows what could be next from this partnership?  Android-lovers just need to hope it happens soon enough to maintain the momentum.

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Opinion Articles

This week at The Fonecast: 5th March 2011

Mark Bridge writes:

It's hardly worth mentioning the new iPad, is it?  Not because I'm unimpressed – although I'd describe it as more of an upgrade than a brand-new product – but because everyone else has been talking about it so much. And we'll be doing some more talking in Wednesday's podcast, so let’s move on...

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There's nowhere to go with tablet innovation - even Apple seems to agree

Mark Bridge writes:

"Harder, better, faster, stronger". Okay, so it's a lyric from Daft Punk (or Kanye West, if you prefer) but it might as well be the vague design brief for second-generation tablets.

Author: The Fonecast
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Cell phones cause increased brain activity

Vidushi Sinha of voanews.com writes:

A new study finds that an hour-long cell phone call causes a spike in biochemical activity in the user's brain. The researchers can't say whether that's a good thing or a bad thing, but the finding has renewed the debate over cell phone safety and raised calls for more health studies.

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SK Telecom: m-health, mobile telematics, HD video calls and much more

Mark Bridge writes:

When I arrived at Mobile World Congress earlier this month, I said I wanted to see a bit of everything. Ground-breaking devices, advanced technology, network innovation... and some original applications as well. What I didn't realise was that I could find all of those in one place, on the SK Telecom stand.

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This week at The Fonecast: 26th February 2011

Mark Bridge writes:

For many people, the week after Mobile World Congress has a flat, post-Christmas, post-holiday feeling.

But not here at The Fonecast. We’ve produced two extra podcasts this week – themed around mobile audio and mobile usability – and there are more interviews from MWC lined up for next week.

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Recent Podcasts

Reviewing our 2015 mobile industry predictions... and looking forward to 2016

Podcast - 15th January 2016

Iain Graham, James Rosewell and Mark Bridge return to review their mobile industry predictions from last year. Which mergers, partnerships and developments did they forecast correctly... and which didn’t work out as planned?

Later in the programme, the team anticipates some of the topics that will be hitting the headlines during 2016.

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Podcast from Mobile World Congress 2015

Podcast - 6th March 2015

Mark Bridge learns about the mobile technology trends at Mobile World Congress 2015 by chatting to James Rosewell of 51Degrees, Dr Kevin Curran from the IEEE and Chris Millington of Doro.

They talk about wearable devices, wireless charging, mobile operating systems and much more... including some of their favourite products from the exhibition.

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Looking back at February: from security scares to multiple MVNOs

Podcast - 27th February 2015

We're taking a look back at the biggest mobile industry news stories from February 2015, including allegations that the UK's security service tried to breach SIM card security by hacking into one of the world's biggest SIM producers.

We also talk about the planned BT and EE merger, the creation of two new UK virtual networks, some acquisitions in the mobile payment arena and a new Ubuntu smartphone.

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Interview with Chris Millington of Doro about mobile retailing, wearables and technology for older consumers

Podcast - 24th February 2015

In today's programme Mark Bridge talks to Chris Millington, who's Managing Director for Doro UK and Ireland.

They discuss the state of mobile retailing in the UK, the future of wearable devices and - as you might expect - smartphones for seniors.

Author: The Fonecast
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A month of mobile: O2 counts on 3, Microsoft counts to 10 and Apple counts its profits

Podcast - 30th January 2015

We're back with a month of mobile industry news, including takeover talks and takeover rumours. O2 and Three are said to be discussing a merger... but is there any truth in the suggestions that BlackBerry could be up for grabs?

We also discuss Apple's record-breaking quarterly figures, the highlights of CES and the launch of Microsoft Windows 10, as well as saying farewell to the current version of Google Glass.

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