Can on-device portal 2.0 nudge mobile internet adoption past a tipping point and into the mass market?
The on-device portal was once seen as the key to unlocking the vast potential of mobile entertainment revenues.
This was because of the direct link it provided between consumer and content. But as operators shifted away from one-off downloads to bundled services, the on-device portal had to evolve too.
Surfkitchen refers to this new breed as ODP 2.0. Whereas the original ODP concept directed consumers to downloadable content, this updated widget-based framework provides direct access to content on the mobile internet. It’s a kind of uber-bookmark.
But even if the ODP has changed, discoverability remains an issue. Surfkitchen claims that up to 80 per cent of subscribers will use the ODP if it’s on the idle screen, compared with 50 per cent via the softkey and 30 per cent on the device menu. Clearly, placement is key to bringing in the mass market and thereby helping consumers discover the mobile internet.
So it’s not surprising that mobile internet adoption dominated Surfkitchen’s recent roundtable event in London. It says that all markets – excluding Japan and Korea – fall short of the magic 20 per cent adoption figure. So the main question addressed was whether the medium is fundamentally flawed or if adoption will merely take time as hurdles tumble one by one.
The consensus was that the pricing barrier is definitely falling, thanks to flat-rate and daily billing. Apple is also making a difference, not just for its own users, but also for the wider consumer base. Jag Minhas, head of group technology (products and devices) for Telefonica O2, said the iPhone is driving footfall into O2’s retail outlets, even if this does not always translate into an iPhone sale.
While there is no direct correlation between the iPhone and the increase in internet traffic, research by Direct2 Mobile reveals that in key iPhone markets, such as the US and UK, there has been phenomenal traffic growth over the last 12 months. The iPhone appears to be the catalyst in pushing mobile internet consumption beyond that elusive tipping point.
But this in itself is raising new concerns. No sooner have mobile operator walled gardens collapsed, than OEMs raise new ones. As Dave Evans, CTO at Surfkitchen, noted during the event, the iPhone and Nokia’s Ovi are themselves creating fresh walled gardens. This begs the question of whether OEMs can adopt a standard way of developing apps or bookmarks to reach the mass market.
The iPhone has proved successful because its user interface is intuitive and its ‘widgetisation’ of the mobile internet is a simple concept to grasp. While not all companies can deliver a similar UI, the ability to widgetise is a given.
Nick Allott, chief technical officer of the Open Mobile Terminal Platform, said at the roundtable that widgets integrated into the core user interface have the potential to augment sites, such as Facebook, to deliver rich apps to the consumer. That’s exciting. But it will only happen with proper discoverability; ODP 2.0 must now be thinking idle.
Nick Lane is Chief Researcher at Direct2 Mobile, which offers mobile content consultancy, and our own ME Research service. You can contact Nick at meresearch@intentmedia.co.uk.
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