I am Helen Keegan, a veteran of mobile marketing, advertising and media since 2000. This is my diary and musings about mobile since 2004. I am part consultant and part events organiser in London, Barcelona and beyond (Swedish Beers and Heroes of Mobile). I write here about mobile technology and media and other things I'm interested in like theatre, art, crafts, business and life.
Ah, it's that time of year when the annual new iPhone announcement comes out. I'm not particularly bothered. I've never bought into the cult of Apple products or services. If you don't think it's a cult, then I recommend your read this brilliant article about a journalist trying to get their press pass to attend. I digress. Judging by my timeline and the flurry of press releases about iPhone 7 compatible headphones and cases that I got within moments of the press conference finishing. A few people I know are upgrading the software on their existing iPhone and some have stated their aim to buy the new handset despite the high price point. I also note that Brexit appears to have put the price up due to our currency devaluation of late.
Do you really need to upgrade your phone?
You might think that's an odd question from someone working in the industry and actively promoting mobile apps and services. But I am serious. I am conscious of the environmental impact the industry is having. And I was reminded of it this morning when following this discussion on TEN and this related article from Quartz from a couple of years ago, the reminder that the Coltan needed in all our phones, and not just iPhones, is sourced from troubled nations like Congo and Rwanda, that most of our phones are made in China where workers' rights are not necessarily a priority, putting it politely, and the retail workers selling the phones are on low wages too. And that's despite the £599+ price tag for the latest iPhone. And then there's the whole recycling issue - not just of the devices but of the cables, plugs, adapters and gizmos that we use alongside them. Is there anywhere near you where you can recycle cables and gadgets safely and easily?
My lowly Nexus One
I meet with friends from the mobile industry regularly. They joke with me that I usually have a really old phone. They're not wrong. I still use my Nexus One which I got in 2010 (although I can only use it for phone calls, SMS, alarm and, at a push, maps. It can't take the pressure of much else). It still works so why not still use it until it stops working?
I currently complement it with a Samsung S4 (3 years old) and a Google Nexus 7 tablet (also 3 years old). My laptop is also 2 or 3 years old but serves its purpose. Shouldn't our devices and gadgets be built to last? Until I actually need a new phone, I won't be upgrading any time soon.
I stumbled across this chart earlier today. It's from Statista using data from Gartner and it shows the global smartphone operating system market share.
If you're looking at the UK only, then the market share is still dominated by Android but not as steeply. This is my source for the UK data for the chart below and I'm guessing their source will be Gartner or similar.
If you look at either chart, you can see that Google is currently winning the battle both at a Global level and in the UK. Whether they've won the war or not is a different matter in different countries. There is still much to play for and it's a dynamic market. Nokia was once as dominant as Google is now.
Understanding your market
However, it is also important to note that when you're running mobile activity that you understand the nuances of the market(s) in which you're operating and the habits of your customers. And it's not just an Android vs everyone else story. There are so many shades of Android and such a wide variety of handset capabilities within Android that you also need to understand that at a deeper level. There's everything from the high-end devices from Samsung, Sony Experia and their ilk down to the sub £100 handsets to even cheaper devices in developing countries.
It is still important to avoid memory and RAM hungry apps if you can as many of your customers simply won't be able to access them or if they do, it's at the expense of other apps - a one-in and one-out scenario.
I'm also musing if the first chart will do a full circle and go back to the multiple OS environment we had 7 years ago. Probably not anytime soon, but it could happen. Look at Nokia.
When I travel abroad and I know roaming charges are going to be high, I revert to using my trusty Nokia N95 to minimise data costs. I’ve been using an Android phone for the last couple of years and it is at least a year since I last used my N95. But when I picked it up again last week, it felt like going home when it came to using the keypad. It was totally pleasurable. And fast. Much faster than on a touchscreen. It made me feel good whilst I was doing it. It felt like home. The combination of flicking up the screen to reveal the keypad and then using the keypad was a delight in a way my touchscreen phone has never been. And I use that *a lot*.
So what’s going on here? It seems that I have ‘muscle memory’ for the keypad but it hasn’t developed for my touchscreen use in the same way. Muscle memory is not a memory actually stored in your muscles, but they are memories stored in your brain and they are a bit like a cache of frequently enacted tasks for your muscles. I touch type, that’s another muscle memory. My ability to communicate is directly linked to my access to a good keyboard and I literally think through my fingers. Riding a bike would be an example of another. Or playing a musical instrument.
I do have some muscle memory with my touchscreen phone, but it’s linked to browsing or playing games not typing and it’s not a positive thing. The swipe up/down/left/right is now a natural instinct, but it doesn’t bring me joy or satisfaction in nearly the same way, and if anything, I think I have negative emotions associated with it. I’ve tried the haptic screen too and that did nothing for me.
I wonder, do people who have only used a touchscreen have muscle memory for that or is it linked to something that needs a bit more physical exertion like pressing a key? Anyone have any insight into this area and care to comment?
Suffice to say, bring back keyboards and keypads for mobile devices. I want my keypad back!
I just had an email newsletter pop into my inbox from John Strand. If you don’t know him already, he's a long-serving mobilist with many years experience of consulting for various organisations on the subject of mobile telecoms.
I’ve often wondered myself why my phone varies in performance. I get that different networks will have an impact, but I hadn’t really thought what the other issues might be. John explains it in his recent newsletter which I’ve copied below for you (with permission). I’m interested to know what you think. How much do these factors affect performance and are there other things that can affect it? I welcome your thoughts and comments.
“Various reports from around the world over the last three years note that have consumers increasingly experience poor coverage with their smartphones. The challenge for mobile operators is that the perceived coverage rarely reflects the quality of the network that the operators build and run, but rather the quality of the smartphones that people use. As a new ground-breaking study shows, the quality of the smartphone combined with how it is used and configured is more to blame that the mobile network.
Here are the 10 main reasons why you get a bad signal on you phone:
1. The wrong phone. There is a big difference in the quality of antennas in phones. As for the iPhone 5 and Samsung Galaxy S3, the previous versions of these phones performed better in a major study of phone quality performed by Professor Gert Froelund Pedersen from Aalborg University, one of the world’s leading institutes for the study on antennas in phones. 2. Too many apps. The more apps you install, the less coverage you may experience. Apps create unwanted signal noise. 3. Free apps. Free games such as Angry Birds don’t not cost a penny, but they are filled with advertisements that eat your bandwidth and can contribute to poor coverage on your phone. 4. Open apps. It is a good idea to close them when not in use. Even if you are not using an app, it will still send and receive signals to the network. 5. Too many friends on Facebook or a few really active friends. If you have a lot of friends who ping and update you all the time from Facebook, this can also affect your experience negatively. 6. Your operating system. Even if you make sure you version is up to date, you run the risk that the new version is actually worse than the old. Plus you have to be sure to install all the proper updates. Android is also available in a multitude of versions, but each phone manufacturers adapts them differently. 7. A Samsung Galaxy S3 is not a Samsung Galaxy S3. Mobile phones are produced in a vast global manufacturing network and supply chain. The same phone may be made with different components from alternate suppliers. The model can vary both by country and within country. There are at least 10 variants of the same Samsung Galaxy S3. Your variant may not be optimal with your network. 8. Rush hour. During times of peak traffic, the same mobile mast must serve more users, so the quality per user may degrade. It's like getting into a packed train during rush hour. 9. Train travel. The metal tubing around windows in trains and related materials can be killers of mobile signals. When the train moves quickly, it can be difficult for your phone to switch connection between masts. 10. Telecom service provider. There is no such thing as the best network. The network that is best for you depends on which has coverage where you are when you use your phone. The next time you experience poor coverage, take a look at your phone. Remember there are many things that can impact your experience beyond the network itself.
In the report “How to reduce the cost of mobile masts and improve regulation”, Strand Consult describes the challenges that operators face as they build and run mobile networks. In addition to Strand Consult reports, a number of institutions have recognized the role that smartphones play in the quality of coverage. If you want to know more about the report or about Strand Consult's experience in this field, click here..
I know I haven’t been blogging as much of late. It’s just so much easier to play on twitter. But I’ve made a sort of pact with myself to do more blogging this year and better capture some of my thoughts, projects and reading. I can’t promise I’ll keep it up mind, but let’s see how we go…
There’s a new UK Strategy Group which is looking at the Future of the Internet. Details about this Technology Strategy Board initiative is here. This is as much as I know about at the moment, but it’s something I’ll be keeping an eye on.
Victor Keegan’s (no relation!) view of the upcoming challenges for the mobile phone including LBS (location based services) and metadata so that we know more about where we are and who we are to give more relevance for mobile services.
Nice use of SMS for customer service by La Trouvaille restaurant in London’s Soho is noted here.
I’m pleased to be the first Female Friday interviewee for GomoNews. The fairly in-depth interview is here outlining my journey into the mobile world, what I think of mobile marketing and, in particular, the role of SMS and mobile internet.
I’ve been travelling a fair bit too. I had the pleasure of speaking at Hostelworld’s annual international conference for hostel owners in Dublin last week. Cian from GomoNews was in attendance so he captured my keynote speech including tips and hints on how to do mobile marketing on a tight budget. As an aside, Hostelworld has launched its iPhone app which has done amazingly well since its recent launch.
A comprehensive article on the smartphone market by Guy Agin. Well worth a read to put the different smartphone vendors and platforms into some kind of perspective and redraws the mobile platform map and explains the graph below in more detail.
Conceptual design and thinking behind a ‘five year phone’. Food for thought, especially after our Mobile Monday London goes to Brighton event on sustainability in mobile back on 18th January.
Or at least that was the title to my 6-minute talk at yesterday's Future of Mobile conference at Kensington Town Hall. I was one of the 6 x 6 bloggers (alongside peers Vero, Andrew, Ewan, Whatleydude and Jemima) and I had 6 minutes to wax lyrical about any topic I liked.
There was a sharp intake of breath as I announced there was no future to mobile. As you might imagine, as an advocate of all aspects of mobile technology, and especially mobile marketing, advertising and media, it was not a sentence the audience expected to hear coming from my lips.
There are 6 reasons why, if we carry on the way we are going, there will be no future to mobile.
1. We carry on focusing on technology rather than people
The technology is a hygiene factor and not the raison d'etre. The technology needs to be reliable, affordable, usable, fast and context relevant. There are very few folks out there who care which gizmo or platform you're building on. They just want it to work. The technology needs to be invisible and seamless. And of course that's a challenge to developers and service providers, but the fact still remains that this is all about the people and not the technology.
2. We continue to have silly mobile tariffs
Why are mobile tariffs, let alone data tariffs so complicated? Why are the tariffs, in particular data tariffs, focused on contract customers who are prepared to commit to an 18 month contract when 60% or more of the UK's mobile customers are on prepay phones and either won't (it's too scary, don't know what to expect, or are transient) or can't (poor credit rating) change to a contract. But more than that, why are they going to switch to a contract to use mobile data if they have no idea what the experience is going to be like?
Back in the early days of the internet, internet service providers, like Freeserve (now Orange), revolutionised internet access by introducing the penny a minute tariff up to a maximum of £12.99 a month. You knew that if you were online for 10 minutes, it would cost you 10p. You knew it would never cost you more than £12.99 a month. You didn't have to have a contract and therefore it removed the risk. Admittedly dial-up could be a bit flaky, websites could be a bit slow to load (sound familiar huh), but still folks could try it risk and commitment-free. And it meant a huge increase in internet usage.
3. We create applications and services for people like us
There was an excellent turnout at the Future of Mobile and I'm guessing that 99% of the people in the room were Promobs - as in professional or "super" mobile users. You know the type - have a N95 in one hand whilst checking their email on their blackberry in their other hand and live streaming qik at the same time.
The trouble is, the market is full of people who are *not* like us. Our customers are normal people. The ones who use their phones for talking and texting. The ones who have no idea that they may need new firmware or may need to change their handset settings. My family is a case in point.. bearing in mind I've been working in the mobile industry for more than 8 years, you wouldn't be able to tell that by my own family's usage of mobile technology...
My sister, well she's just about changed her ringtone and clings on to her Nokia 3310.
My brother has a Motorola Razr and when he got it, thought it was a seriously cool phone (and more to the point, thought I would think the same).
My parents are just too elderly now to get their heads round mobile technology. It's too complicated to learn, their fingers aren't as nimble as they used to be and they just don't have a need. They've lived their long lives without mobile technology. In fact a lot of their lives was lived without telephony in the home at all.
My nieces - well it's all about SMS and to a lesser extent listening to music (and sharing music files via bluetooth). The perception of mobile data to them is still that it's scarily expensive and a £5 a month commitment just so they can check facebook is just a step to far to the average teenager or twenty-something.
And my Auntie, well she just loves to chat. Whether it's a landline or a mobile, she doesn't care. She just wants to talk.
So my question to you is how do we create useful, relevant, entertaining, interesting services for Normobs so that we can bring them into our mobile world without dragging them there kicking and screaming in pain at the experience? How do we create that demand?
4. We continue to nurture the culture gap
Yes, there is. There's a culture gap between web people and mobile people. I've met a lot of people in both camps on the development and the commercial side and in the main, they really don't talk each other's language. Web centric folks can't understand why mobile folks put up with the complexity of the development task let alone trying to access the internet via a 2 inch screen. And then add in the disconnect with the handset folks and the web and the mobile development folks. And then add in the network operators. And then add in brands and agencies and we have a melting pot of folks who just don't understand each other. And in many cases don't even want to play nicely together in the playground due to perceptions about each other that are largely unfounded.
So I have a request that we are more open with each other. That we try to understand each other's points of view so that we can all move forward together in this brave new world.
5. We remain Western-Centric
The next billion customers are not going to come from the USA, the UK or the rest of Europe. The next billion customers are not in the West. This means that the "rest of the world" is not bogged down with the feeling that the internet on mobile experience is second best to the full fat internet on a laptop or desktop screen. It means that they can leapfrog technology rather than go through the evolution that we are still experiencing. And it means that there will be innovation based on needs today and solving problems today rather than working on 'the next big thing'. The speed of growth of mobile penetration in India, China, Africa, South America is phenomenal. This is where we'll see innovation. This is where we'll see real people come up with new ways to use mobile technology to solve their day to day problems or enhance their day to day lives.
6. We forget that the mobile phone is a communication device
It was designed for us to talk to each other. It was designed for us to be able to communicate with our friends, family, colleagues and lovers by voice, text, instant message, email, facebook, twitter, whatever. But it's about communication. In every region of the world, mobile data traffic is largely driven by social networking - whether that's Peperonity, Cyworld, Facebook, MySpace, Twitter - it doesn't really matter. It does mean that it's the human communication that's important to us and drives the desire to explore mobile devices further in order to find other ways to communicate with loved ones.
The mobile phone is personal, it's precious, it's an object of desire and it's our access to the outside world. It's also a necessity and a basic tool to participate in UK society (according to the latest Joseph Rowntree report).
So please, don't abuse my mobile life by clogging it up with stuff that doesn't work, stuff that is memory hungry, stuff I don't need or want. Think about the real people who are using real phones in real life and make their mobile life better. And maybe then, just then, there'll be a future of mobile.
Update: After my session, I did a short audio interview with the lovely Jemima Kiss discussing my talk a little more and it's now live on The Guardian.
Update 2: My talk was video-recorded by Mauricio Reyes. He also caught my fellow 6 x 6 bloggers.
I've often asked the question as to what research has been done into what difference gender makes (or not) in terms of how we use technology - laptops, software, mobile phones, whatever. I've asked user-interaction designers, marketers, commercial folks, media owners and no-one has been able to point me to anything tangible. I suspect that the mobile network operators may have done research in this area, but they're not telling. And maybe the nice folks at What If? have done something in this area? (They happened to hold a lovely evening a couple of weeks back to celebrate the women in the mobile industry and I was invited.) Or maybe there's no need for stuff that is used equally by both genders?
Anyway, the few attempts by the handset manufacturers to appeal to women have had mixed results to say the least it seems. It feels like phones designed for women look prettier but are often dumbed down when it comes to functionality and applications. Is this just a reflection of how Western society views women anyway (i.e. they like us to be pretty but not too clever because that's scary)? Maybe I'm stretching the analogy a bit, or maybe there's more truth to the stereotype than I care to admit.
I know that putting a gadget in pink does sell product whether it's a pink kettle or a pink phone. But where is the insight into marketing a phone to women beyond making it shiny, pink or bejewelled? We probably don't necessarily need different phones (I'm very happy with my Nokia N-95 and I'm certainly tempted by the G-phone in white - neither handset is aimed at women specifically) but maybe men and women need them explained to them in different ways. Maybe changing the language is all you need rather than changing the model.
Well, quote of the day yesterday actually,as when I first spotted it, but I had computer problems so couldn't post anything.
"Startups should “intelligently hedge their bets across multiple platforms,” advised Richard Wong of Accel Partners. His firm has invested in mobile games and application site GetJar, “the store for the other 3 billion phones that aren’t iPhones,” as Mr. Wong put it."
I don't have an iphone. I can see that it has had an impact on to what's happening on the mobile web. But it's not the be all and end all. Nor is it some kind of saviour of mobile web. It's not the device that will be in the hands of the majority of folks globally.
More than a website, MP3 player or phone, miCoach is a total coaching system that creates personalised training plans, keeps tabs on your stats, and coaches you along the way.
It's a suite of impressive sounding sports coaching services that help you:
Find Your Level: miCoach guides you through your first run to determine your fitness level.
Set Your Goal: miCoach gives you a range of goals that suit your fitness level, and a series of workouts to help you reach your goal.
Get Your Plan: With the help of professional sports’ top trainers, miCoach creates a customized training plan just for you.
Play Your Music: miCoach lets you download 4 gigs of music, and can even customize a playlist to match your stride rate.
Start Your Run: miCoach gives you audio cues to keep you on pace and in your target heart rate zone for the duration of your run.
Track Your Stats: miCoach tracks your pace, distance, calories, stride and heart rate to keep you and your goals on track.
Reach Your Goal: miCoach has everything it takes to get you there. The training expertise, the personalized coaching and the music all work together.
It all sounds great. It's only available on the Samsung F110 handset which seems to have the standard things you'd expect from a phone these days - 2mb camera, mp3/4 player, 1Gb flash memory but with the added extra of the ability to keep track of your running data - heart rate, speed, distance and stride and to manage your personal miCoach programme.
The phone is currently on sale at Carphone Warehouse in the UK (and has been for about a month now it seems). In addition, Adidas is offering a £25 voucher for all new miCoach phone owners.
Is this just a marketing gimmick or a genuinely useful bit of kit? I'm a little skeptical because at the moment, it's all focussed on one single handset. If it was software that could be downloaded on to a range of handsets then I believe it would be a much longer term proposition for Adidas. I don't have any figures on how well feature-specific handsets do in the marketplace so it's hard to judge this one. If you're half-way through your contract, would you pay for a sim-free version of this handset? Or is this only something you might consider if your contract was up and this happened to be an option at the time?
Comments please, especially from any handset marketers out there or customers who have a view on this stuff. (I'm trying out disqus which I'm told is very good).
One of the newsgroups I belong to, focussed on the mobile market in Japan, is up in arms about this article from El Reg claiming that it's cultural differences that have determined the success of i-mode in Japan. Unfortunately, the myths about Japanese life today still exist and the writer of the article has succumbed to them in terms of the Japanese not having home computers and the like (except that you can get rather nice laptops these days to desk top real estate isn't the issue it was 10 years ago). Not what one would expect from El Reg but hopefully it's a one-off.
Anyway, it prompted me to think about why i-mode failed in the UK...
1. It was an exclusive deal with o2 so had no chance of gaining critical mass. There were probably folks on other networks who would be interested, but not if it meant switching networks. AFAIK, there was little marketing effort to move existing o2 customers to i-mode and instead the marketing effort that I was exposed to was about recruiting new customers and it is common knowledge that it is way more expensive to recruit a customer than to retain one.
2. There is little awareness in the UK as to what i-mode is unless you happen to work in the mobile industry or are really geeky about mobile phones (in which case, you're probably working in the mobile industry!). I know of a few folks who had i-mode phones for testing but it never became their primary phone.
3. Timing was out. We were already in the start of the 3G world in the UK by the time i-mode came out. Why are you going to go 'back' to 2.5G/i-mode when you can have the overhyped wonders of the 3G world? The network operator Three had already spent millions on extolling the virtues of 3G so the i-mode message was lost in translation
What do you think? Was i-mode always on a hiding to nothing in the UK or could/should it have worked if handled differently?
It won't come as much surprise to many that the mobile phone operators and handset manufacturers squarely target youth segments - you only have to see their advertising which mainly seems to be focussed around using phones for enjoying music, ipod stylee. Just occasionally, you see advertising promoting mobiles for business. But if you visit any mobile phone store, Carphone Warehouse, Phones4u et al, their in-store offers are all aimed at the youth segment (by which I mean under 30s) - free Sony PSP, free wide screen telly, xbox 360 or a free ipod Nano.
But having met Dick Stroud not so long ago, my eyes have been opened to the lucrative over 50s segment, which is incredibly diverse, but under represented when it comes to technology offerings - mobile or web.
Recently, there's been a phone launched on to the market, the Emporia Life, and it seems the network operators have snubbed it. The phone is aimed at the over 50s, although, I think they've made the assumption that all over 50s have trouble with their eyesight, hearing and manual dexterity. And having a brother and sister who are over 50, I can safely say that although they wear glasses, they have no problems handling their Motorola Razr and Nokia 3310 respectively. Russell's noted that they're going to find it tough and thinks their approach is patronising. And I have to agree. Defining customers by age is a bit daft these days. There are 50 year olds out there who have more in common with a 20 year old than they do with a 60 year old. Age is a state of mind not an accumulation of years.
I think it's disappointing that Communic8 has got the Emporia Life marketing and PR message so wrong. There are clearly a *lot* of folks out there who would find this kind of mobile phone incredibly useful - easy to read display, nice big buttons for easier dialling and texting and a simpler UI (user interface) as well as an emergency button. But Communic8 need to sharpen up their marketing to reach their market better. Not all over 50s are the same as Dick Stroud will happily tell you. And if they do that, then maybe, just maybe, the network operators will sit up and take notice.
Andrea Trasatti dropped me a line the other day to let me know about his new appointment as Director, Device Iniatives for dotmobi. As part of this, he'll be overseeing the new device database that dotmobi is putting together. It's early days yet, but Andrea's in charge of designing, building and launching this new service.
"The database will provide structured data, accurate to a degree not found in existing public resources. Information will be obtained from – as well as shared with – the global development community and published online. This will simplify the development process and enable developers to create the very best experience for users, based on comprehensive and reliable intelligence."
Sounds like a great resource. Good luck with it Andrea!
Virgin bags online and mobile rights for The Football League to allow Coca-Cola Football League matches to be shown on its broadband and mobile channels. Highlights of Football League matches will be available to watch on-demand for up to one week after transmission.
Streamthru offers free flight information via your mobile phone. Really useful if you do much travelling. You get updates 4 hours before departure time, shortly before boarding and immediately if your flight is delayed by 15 minutes or more. I could have done with knowing about this when I was travelling earlier in the year.
And if you're travelling to exotic climes, the new malaria information service by text message might be for you.
But whilst you're travelling, don't buy cheap mobile phone batteries from China or Hong Kong for your Motorola or Nokia mobile phone... because it might explode. Nokia and Motorola, however, say they are very concerned about the substandard goods, particularly because their reputations are at stake in China, which has the world's largest number of mobile phone subscribers at over 400 million. Best to stick to the branded batteries for now.
I wonder how long it will be before we get these in the UK? In Japan, DoCoMo has released a handset on to the market with motion-senser gaming capability. Now that's very cool. I think. I'm not quite sure how this motion senser stuff will work on a phone as part of the appeal of the Wii is that there's a screen that you're aiming at and others can see what you're doing.
At World Telemedia last week, the bright sparks at ARN recruitment bribed one of the team's nephews to borrow his Wii and they set it up on their stand so you could play Wii Sports. And it was a great hit too with the expo delegates. And it's great fun to play judging by how long people were hanging around to join in and play golf and ten-pin bowling.
DoCoMo seems to be innovating a lot in the handset market with recent phones having a touch sensitive screen and another that gives off a scent when you use it. Whatever next!
As ever, the lovely folk at m:metrics have been doing their stuff again and have provided us with some juicy stats on the top 10 handsets in the UK by sales and by installed base. The really interesting thing for me about this is that all of the top 10 handsets by sales and 7 of the top 10 handsets by installed base have a colour screen, a camera and wap access. The future is bright, the future is mobile!
Top 10 handsets by sales (3 month average ending Jan 07) in the UK
Make
Model Name
Subscribers
Sony Ericsson
W850i
145,032
Sony Ericsson
K800i
132,978
Samsung
D900
109,752
Nokia
6230i
102,822
Samsung
E900
91,388
Nokia
N73
88,721
Sony Ericsson
K750i
87,187
LG
KG800 Chocolate
76,710
Samsung
D500
74,252
Samsung
D600
73,326
Top 10 handsets by installed base (3 month average ending Jan 07) in the UK
Make
Model Name
Subscribers
Nokia
6230i
1,614,909
Samsung
D500
981,663
Motorola
RAZR V3 Black Edition
932,762
Sony Ericsson
K800i
879,901
Nokia
6230
860,477
Sony Ericsson
K750i
792,681
Nokia
6280
781,564
Samsung
D600
774,267
Nokia
3310
769,520
Nokia
1100
744,444
They have also just announced their MeterDirect service which is the first research service to directly and continuously measure consumer mobile media behavior, unlocking mobile as a viable medium for advertisers. The first report reveals the top 5 US and UK Mobile Web Domains in February 2007.
The US sites are heavily geared towards things you would do on the internet anyway (searching, instant messaging and entertainment) whilst in the UK we're browsing the network operator sites. I wonder how much of that is an o2 user looking up what's going on on orangeworld for example or if people are loyal to their own network operator? Good to see the BBC up there though - it really is a good example of a mobile web site for usability.
