The large mobile service providers are not without significant persuasive tools where it comes to inducing customers to buy important new service plans that protect legacy voice and messaging revenues while tying mobile bandwidth consumption to retail prices.
One of those tools is use of Apple's FaceTime video calling feature. AT&T has announced it will limit how iPhone users can use FaceTime over AT&T's 3G and 4G networks when Apple's new iOS 6 software launches.
Users will not be able to use FaceTime over 3G or 4G unless they sign up for one of AT&T's new shared data plans. Users with an individual data plan will only be able to use FaceTime over Wi-Fi.
One suspects both Verizon and AT&T will have to do much more before usage of the new plans really becomes the norm. Right now the actual savings for switching to the new plans are fairly subtle, and therefore not so compelling.
More value will be needed, ultimately, and that probably will include a much clearer value-price relationship. Right now, a rational consumer would be hard pressed to identify significant savings or clear additional value.
Friday, August 17, 2012
FaceTime Now a Reason to Buy AT&T "Mobile Share"
Gary Kim has been a digital infra analyst and journalist for more than 30 years, covering the business impact of technology, pre- and post-internet. He sees a similar evolution coming with AI. General-purpose technologies do not come along very often, but when they do, they change life, economies and industries.
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