The mobile Internet revolution
Filed under: Android, HTC, innovation, iphone, lifestyle, mobile handsets, mobile internet, networks, smart phone, technology, wireless
Just as the mobile phone changed the way we communicate, the mobile Internet is fundamentally changing the way we access information and the kind of information we access. Within three-to-four years virtually every person over the age of 10 will have access to the mobile Internet with one or more devices – and this will become the norm for accessing the Internet. And this is only the beginning.
I can see in the near future when cars are automated, currently in the research stage in the US, mobile internet will play and even more important role.
People will enter the car and tell it to drive to work whilst the person sits back and watches the daily news or surfs the internet which will be directly supplied to the car via the mobile network.
Cars will even be able to communicate with other cars to navigate traffic.
Imagine techs going to their car and it automatically drives them to thier next job.
I am so excited about the prospect of this advancement in technology and what it means for a company like Telstra who I’m sure will embrace it.
Very true. maybe it is high time Telstra looks closer at the new emerging LTE technology? Gives you 20 to 80 Mbit/sec download speed from your mobile gadget. Has been in production in Stockholm and Oslo since Dec 2009, launched by Telia, Telstra’s scandinavian sister.
A mere 20 years after the ‘revolution’ of user interfaces such as Windows 3.0 on desktop PC’s we are getting a range of open new phone interfaces, but now linked together seamlessly.
Each is faster, richer and opening up new opportunties.
Dont telstra already have a 21mbps wireless? soon to be double to 42mbps with the dual-sim technology, and then by the end of the year i heard they were doubling each bandwidth so thats like 84mbps connection on a wireless device. id be happy with that, if the connections was stable and had reasonable pings. thats my story.
What will I use the mobile internet for? To reduce the costs of my phone and sms usage. I would prefer to pay a flat monthly data rate than a per use phone minute and sms rate. I am looking forward to the $20 price point for mobile data. That should give me a heap of voice minutes, sms, and data. I am a small phone bill user; about $20 per month (sometimes less) but I will look forward to reading on the iPad on the way to Uni. But it will be a mix of books downloaded from home, and current news. Unlikely to be downloading high volume video or music, unless I can get unlimited data for $20. When I have an unlimited data point at home, and can take that data with me on my iPad/iPod, my mobile usage will be necessarily lower.
One more thing. If the NBN does give us unlimited downloads, then maybe we should have open wifi from every NBN user. THen if I am standing next to a shop with NBN connection, I could use their wifi for nothing. It would be a truly user driven network.
Maybe Telstra should be driving this change…. Telstra Phoenix….
It was no accident that Telstra developed the Next G network when it did. As the Telstra add goes, apparently there are more mobiles than people these days.
In our clan, the ratio is 3 landlines 11 mobiles.
Industry shareholders will benefit, when sanity prevails.
Very interesting presentation. David clearly has a grasp of technology and has some very interesting thoughts on the subject.
I have spent some time reflecting on how me and my family have been affected by the internet. We all have broadband (there are 10 of us in all including children and spouses and 11 grandchildren from 9 down) and we all have iPhones (yes all 10 of us). We now have access to email, calendar, documents, news, Social networking wherever we are. We are in constant contact without having to go out of our way to find a phone and ring or even SMS. Conversations can occur via facebook, twitter, email, and these are interactive conversations with multiple people.
For instance, soon after I bought my iPhone iI went to a wedding. I took some video and photos and uploaded them to facebook and soon received comments on them on FB.
This is today and the speed and ease of access these devices provide together with the easy to use interface make it easy enough for theose who are not tech savy to do.
The other usefull function is information services. Finding shops around me is now extremely easy and convinient. At application integration also increases the usefullness of this.
I see that the biggest limitation today is the cost of data. Things such as audio and video on demand are big consumers of bandwidth and they are not going to be widely accessed untill this issue is addressed. It is true that providers ahve their own video and audio services but these are prohibitively expensive and they only sulppy access to much the same material that is free on other media. The ideal situation is to have access to what you see and hear on FTA radio and TV wherever you are.
Print content is also another interesting aspect. The big problem here is expectations. Up until now newspapers have been more or less free on the internet and to expect people to pay is going to be an uphill battle, especially since there is so much competition. The other issue here is with the quality of the screens. The e-book readers are excellent but the generic devices such as the iPhone, iPad and NetBook do not have displays that are conducive for reading books without effecting the eyes.
As far as future developments are concerned I think it is being held back by bandwidth and cost of data and media. We alredy pay for broadband, phone plans, device costs and in sone cases seperate 3G broadband. These are expenditures that far exceed what we are used to paying in the pre-internet days. It is true that costs have come down but the total cost of all of these tellecommunications services are much higher that we paid for our good old POTS. What we now need is a streamlined universal access so that we have integrated phone, internet access that is universally available and for a similar cost to what our POTS used to be. Once this is acheived then we will see a dramatic increase in the innovative way that the internet is being used.
PS – keep the government’s hans off our internet.
I dread the day (Clive) that cars are automated!! A drive in the countryside could be dangerous – when you hit a mobile blackspot!!
In our family there is definitely a mix of mobiles and internet. My sister, who is 28, doesnt even have an internet connection as she cannot afford it. Lives by herself with own mortgage, so not high on priorities. She uses a mobile for internet banking and uses work computer or Mum and Dad’s computer for high data internet usage.
Which brings me to my point, the price of data over mobile/3g network is extreme. I would use it more if it wasnt so expensive. If it was cheaper we would ditch the ADSL at home and only use mobile technology!! Extremely fast speeds are not all that high on our agenda as we dont download much music/movies. We use it mainly for email, social networking and searching. I also have a Nextg modem for my work laptop, the speeds from it are (for me) just as good as the wireless ADSL at home.
So, if Telstra made wireless technology cheaper we would use it more. Sure, we would disconnect the adsl, but then Telstra would have one less expensive phone line to maintain. As an ex linesman I know some of the work that goes into maintainance of the POTS network.
Although, then again, if it was cheaper I would never get my wife off facebook!
David, congratulations are in order. When only the best will do!
“Suncorp has signed a three-year contract with Telstra for an undisclosed value to deliver all of the finance giant’s mobile voice and data services and refresh its entire wireless data card fleet, leaving its existing supplier Optus out in the cold.”
Courtesy:
http://www.zdnet.com.au/suncorp-signs-telstra-mobile-deal-
339303295.htm
Nevertheless the ip and the Wireless Bandwidth and channel might be an big issue soon in the future
Will privacy & security issues being considered seriously in this “future”?
Totally agree with Darren. The price is the major concern for the users. Esp in australia. There r limited free internet unlike lot of countries in asia
Couldn’t agree more. It wasn’t until I got my iPhone did I realise how good it was. I could stop carrying my ipod, my Palm pilot and my mobile. Now just one robust device.
The interface is just great and I find myself using it way more than the home computer.
Telstra has the best mobile network (both speed and coverage), it is not controlled by the ACCC and is cheaper to maintain than landlines. The only thing that prevents just about everyone from using it is price. Surely if we did an aggressive campaign so we were cheaper than the others and had decent download limits we would win out in the long term.
Keep the plans simple (I love the $20 flat rate idea) and maybe a killer price with sms – after all a text-only sms is not much bandwidth compared to voice – and that would bring the teens in droves.
Telstra should take a lesson from the Likes of Woolworths and Coles.. They didnt get where they are today by charging Premium Prices..Being Proactive and meeting Consumer Pricing ideals was the key.
Optus and other Telcos have the right idea, which is why they have progressed rapidly in the market place..
http://news.ninemsn.com.au/national/1052187/trendy-youngsters-dialling-into-optus
“Telstra’s loss appears to be Optus’ gain as Australia’s number two telco reported a 16 per cent rise in annual net profit due to growth in its mobile phone business.”
iPhones as well as all smartphones HAVE revolutionised mobile phone technology. As they should – technology is rapidly evolving.
Telstra needs to understand consumer needs better if they want a better quarterly statement. Optus has done this (free texts on all plans etc) and that is the reason why their profits have significantly increased.
Data is severely overpriced in this country. I pay $10 and only get 250 mbs? I should pay $10 and get unlimited downloads on my device! It’s a joke! Allowing consumers cheaper prices on calls, texts and giving them unlimited internet would draw in the majority of the market. Teenagers, the ones with the care-free hearts would be dying for Telstra’s superior network.
Steve Jobs, Apple CEO recently (2 June) advised the newspaper industry how to improve their falling revenues:
1. make the best product
2. price aggressively and go for volume
ie do what Apple does…. Apple finds premium products that the market will pay for, and builds cheaper options at many price points, eg various ipods, ipad vs MacBook, Mac Mini vs MacBook. Sometimes to create more value, you need to take function and cost away, to hit an attractive price point for consumers (Kim and Mauborgne 2005).
I look forward to seeing how Telstra evolves its customer acquisition strategy to leverage its best in class network. Telstra, find your Jetstar…!
Hi Richard. Thanks for the insights and suggestions. I like the Value Theory of Innovation image on your blog. We have a new Director of Creativity and Innovation and he’s making some inroads already within Telstra..
@Blake $10 for unlimited .. seriously be realistic!
I want a Audi R8 for $10,000
Hello David, I wonder if you could answer for me a fairly simple question.
With more and more people using wireless or mobile Internet via home and mobile devices there is of course a need for greater data capacity and speeds. While some minor gains in data have been provided over the later part of 2010 I have yet to see any improvements in our area of the speed in which the mobile internet is provided.
So what does it take? Or what is the trigger? Or what can I do? To have our local tower upgraded from a 3.6mbps tower to one that has a greater speed capacity?
Thanks for your time
GW
Hi David,
I was amazed and pleased that you had responded on this customer feedback exchange, I have seen dramatic improvements to Telstra’s product value and service, and believe that the speed and coverage is superior to other providers, David I have written to you, and apparently had any responses placed into the hands of others, my only request and concerns revolved around the highest Bigpond wireless Data plan being only 12GB , and with the dial up shaping speed of 64kbps for todays family with children going to school and using the internet for homework and research etc , usually around half way through the month they have soon used that 12GB , this is a real unhappy issue for those who were not able to get a fixed line ADSL service,I also have forwarde on my remarks and concerns to your staff, but expect once again to not receive a genuine response.