BTIG Research says its random and admittedly limited channel checks suggest there is not yet any indication that large numbers of people are anxious to buy a full-price Apple iPhone, to avoid a service contract.
Of course, it does not appear that Virgin Mobile, which has begun selling such full-price iPhones, has swung serious marketing effort at the new program.
Until a full marketing push, it will be hard to assess demand. And it might not be the case that the market demand will come largely from traditional "prepaid" customers. In fact, the demand might actually turn out to be customers that in the past would have opted for a traditional postpaid plan, have the money to pay full retail, but simply want the lower month recurring charges.
So far, it is too early to conclude much of anything about the actual level of demand.
Monday, July 2, 2012
Are Consumers Buying Full Price iPhones?
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.
Anyfi Networks Helps Fixed Networks Support Wi-Fi Access
Anyfi Networks thinks it can help fixed network service providers add a "mobility" or "untethered" capability outside the subsciber's home, using software.
"By remotely upgrading your home gateways with our patent pending software you can transform your existing infrastructure into a mobile broadband network, license exempt and Wi-Fi compatible, literally overnight," Anyfi says.
"Anyfi.net Simple" lets a fixed-line broadband operator extend the home Wi-Fi user experience outside the home, the company says. "Since devices always authenticate against the home gateway the connection is automatic and completely secure," Anyfi Networks says.
"The trick is combining Wi-Fi with IP, Internet Protocol, to break the tie between logical network and physical infrastructure, much in the same way as Voice over IP separates your phone service from the physical line. You can think of it as Wi-Fi over IP," the company says.
Anyfi claims that a fixed-line operator having a high density of broadband subscribers in certain urban areas could actually become mobile operators overnight, just by upgrading the modem software remotely, transforming the infrastructure into a radio access network.
Anyfi says that the ability to offload mobile traffic to any Wi-Fi access point depends on a business relationship between the "home" ISP and the operator of the remote Wi-Fi hotspot. In other words, Anyfi does not enable access to Wi-Fi hotspots whose owners do not agree to cooperate.
"By remotely upgrading your home gateways with our patent pending software you can transform your existing infrastructure into a mobile broadband network, license exempt and Wi-Fi compatible, literally overnight," Anyfi says.
"Anyfi.net Simple" lets a fixed-line broadband operator extend the home Wi-Fi user experience outside the home, the company says. "Since devices always authenticate against the home gateway the connection is automatic and completely secure," Anyfi Networks says.
"The trick is combining Wi-Fi with IP, Internet Protocol, to break the tie between logical network and physical infrastructure, much in the same way as Voice over IP separates your phone service from the physical line. You can think of it as Wi-Fi over IP," the company says.
Anyfi claims that a fixed-line operator having a high density of broadband subscribers in certain urban areas could actually become mobile operators overnight, just by upgrading the modem software remotely, transforming the infrastructure into a radio access network.
Anyfi says that the ability to offload mobile traffic to any Wi-Fi access point depends on a business relationship between the "home" ISP and the operator of the remote Wi-Fi hotspot. In other words, Anyfi does not enable access to Wi-Fi hotspots whose owners do not agree to cooperate.
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.
Deutsche Telekom, Sprint to Back Firefox Phones
Deutsche Telekom and Sprint will support a new Firefox smart phone platform to turn up the heat on Google and Apple in the mobile software market, starting in 2013. Smart, Telecom Italia, Telenor and Etisalat also are backing the Firefox platform.
Mozilla Foundation, creator of Firefox Internet browser, said phone makers ZTE and TCL Communication Technology will roll out the first Firefox phones using Qualcomm's Snapdragon processors in early 2013.
Whether the support will manage to create a serious alternative remains a question. You might argue that telcos generally have had little to no success creating viable alternatives to either Apple's iOS or Android, so far.
A combination of forces are at work, including consumer preferences, not just operator support, and so far, customers simply have preferred both Apple and Android devices. You might also argue that consumers do not actually buy "operating systems," but rather the full bundle of values any device represents.
Still, some might argue the Firefox devices will be less costly for consumers, so some demand could exist in the "lower cost device" end of the market.
Mozilla Foundation, creator of Firefox Internet browser, said phone makers ZTE and TCL Communication Technology will roll out the first Firefox phones using Qualcomm's Snapdragon processors in early 2013.
Whether the support will manage to create a serious alternative remains a question. You might argue that telcos generally have had little to no success creating viable alternatives to either Apple's iOS or Android, so far.
A combination of forces are at work, including consumer preferences, not just operator support, and so far, customers simply have preferred both Apple and Android devices. You might also argue that consumers do not actually buy "operating systems," but rather the full bundle of values any device represents.
Still, some might argue the Firefox devices will be less costly for consumers, so some demand could exist in the "lower cost device" end of the market.
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.
Sunday, July 1, 2012
NFC Has to Solve Problems People Didn't Know They Had
Mobile payments solves a problem nobody, or few people, really have, one sometimes hears. It might be reasonable, even for its supporters, to argue that adoption will take some time, given the complexity of the required ecosystem.
In fact, the question of "what problem is getting solved?" has many potential answers. With specific regard to near field communications, one might suggest that it is not yet clear which specific problem NFC "solves."
Many might argue that, in developed regions, the payment process in fact is not "broken," making NFC-based mobile payments less a needed substitute and more a feature or capability that adds value in some other way.
It is possible that the ultimate answer will be that NFC solves a problem people don't know they have, as Apple has created products that people did not "know" they needed.
In fact, the question of "what problem is getting solved?" has many potential answers. With specific regard to near field communications, one might suggest that it is not yet clear which specific problem NFC "solves."
Many might argue that, in developed regions, the payment process in fact is not "broken," making NFC-based mobile payments less a needed substitute and more a feature or capability that adds value in some other way.
It is possible that the ultimate answer will be that NFC solves a problem people don't know they have, as Apple has created products that people did not "know" they needed.
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.
Friday, June 29, 2012
Square Processes $11 Million Worth of Transactions a Day
Square processes at a rate of $5 million a day (up from $3 million in 2011, and $4 million in March 2012), Sybase says. Others say Square processes $11 million a each day.
Assuming Square gets a 2.75% cut of all of the $11 million in payments processed per day, that’s around $300,000 in gross revenue per day, or a $110 million annual revenue run rate.
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.
LTE Will Reach 1 Billion Users by 2017
So says 4G Americas. 
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.
Mobile Payments Will Reach $245 Billion by 2014
According to 2011 data from Ernst & Young, mobile payments are expected to reach $245 billion in transaction value by by 2014. The actual forecast transaction is probably not so important.
Neither is the forecast number of mobile money users are expected to total 340 million, equivalent to about five percent of global mobile subscribers.
Perhaps the more-important issue are the categories of mobile money Ernst & Young believe offer revenue potential for mobile service providers globally.
Neither is the forecast number of mobile money users are expected to total 340 million, equivalent to about five percent of global mobile subscribers.
Perhaps the more-important issue are the categories of mobile money Ernst & Young believe offer revenue potential for mobile service providers globally.
Mobile payment technologies and scenarios1
| SMS | NFC | Mobile internet | |
| Payment type | Person-to-person Person-to-business Business-to-person | Person-to-business Business-to-business | Person-to-person Person-to-business |
| Use case | Domestic remittance International remittance Branchless banking | Contactless payments Identification- and marketingrelated services | In-app payments Mobile wallet transactions |
| Characteristics | Payment services for the unbanked and underbanked | High levels of cross-industry collaboration | Extension of online payment services |
| Examples | Salary payments (Roshan, Afghanistan) Money transfer (M-PESA, Kenya; Obopay) | Transit payments (Mobile FeliCa, Japan) | Mobile wallet (Paypal, Zong, Starbucks) |
| Payment providers and enablers | Start-ups Mobile operators Money transfer companies Handset manufacturers | Card issuers Mobile operators Handset manufacturers Merchants Start-ups | Web services players Start-ups Mobile operators Merchants |
| Mobile operator participation | High | Medium | Low |
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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