Page 12 - Mobile World Daily - Day 2

NEWS

Q&A r Consumers show and the U.S. already own a
strong interest connected device such as a smart
Stephen Shurrock, in connected meter (28 per cent), security system
CEO, Consumer, Telefónica household devices (23 per cent), lighting system (23 per
cent) or health monitor (23 per
Wearables By Anne Morris lighting and cars, as well as health cent), the report says.
monitors, washing machines, smart
Hall 4 – Conference Village – Auditorium 4 Around 89 per cent of people watches, activity trackers, ovens and The survey also confirmed that
Tuesday, 3 March, 14:00–15:30 want to wirelessly connect refrigerators. the opportunity to save money was
all their household devices the most compelling benefit of
We have seen a massive increase in the number of wearable devices available: to the internet in future, with “Multiple machines, devices and purchasing connected devices for
is customer demand increasing at a pace that supports this? perceived benefits including cost appliances are being connected to the home: for example, 70% of all
We’re still in the “early adopter” phase when it comes to wearables. We recently savings, peace of mind and security. the Internet through numerous respondents believed that this was
carried out some research and found that while 60 per cent of people surveyed networks and are providing the most important aspect of
were aware of smartwatches, only 2 per cent owned one; however, a significant According to a new report titled consumers and businesses with owning a connected energy system.
number said they would consider buying a wearable in future. There’s certainly The Impact of the Internet of Things: innovative new services. The
increasing appetite, but most people aren’t quite ready to take the leap just yet – The Connected Home by KRC Internet of Things may sound like a Connected healthcare devices
this will start to change in 2015. Research and GSMA Intelligence, futuristic buzz term, but it is already were also well received by consumers
There’s lots of awareness and focus on smartwatches in particular, but as consumers have a strong interest in here and improving our lives,” said with 83 per cent of respondents who
connectivity moves beyond just watches and bands to things like t-shirts and connecting virtually everything in Alex Sinclair, CTO of the GSMA. already owned such devices
footwear and all of these things talk to each other as well as your smartphone their homes including security reporting that their sense of well-
and tablet, this opens up a whole new world for people and connectivity providers systems, thermostats, smart meters, At present, around one in four being had improved and that their use
like Telefónica who can help to make the cross-device experience seamless. people in Germany, Japan, the UK provided peace of mind and helped
with lifestyle improvements.
What do you think it will take to make wearables a mass market proposition,
rather than a niche for geeks/fitness fans? The GSMA Connected Living
I think there are five main factors that will accelerate the transition of wearables programme will be present at the
to mass market: GSMA Innovation City at Mobile
• Form: they have to be fashionable (or easily concealed) and most importantly World Congress this week in Hall 3,
stands 3A11 and 3A31.
comfortable to wear.
• Functions: people want services and applications that are designed for a IoT and wearables marketing officer. “It’s critical for
could be costly “market operators to take action to protect
wearable experience, not tablet functionality poorly adapted to a smartband. The distractions” warns study and drive revenue in the face of
number of positive use cases is key to maximising interest and sustaining it. fierce battles for subscribers.”
• Usability: It has to be quick and easy for people to access and make use of the By Ken Wieland The company argued, however,
data captured by any wearable. Battery life is an important factor too – having that opportunities for roaming Number crunchers from SEEC
to recharge a smartwatch overnight when it’s supposed to be capturing data Anew study launched by revenue growth were much more added that $16 billion in roaming
about the quality of your sleep would be frustrating for users. Syniverse, and researched immediate than the more allusive revenue may potentially be at risk if
• Price: At current prices many wearables are regarded by consumers as by economists from sales potential of IoT and major operators didn’t introduce
significant purchases, not as something they might pick up to experiment Strategic Economic Engineering wearables. compelling roaming offers for
with or “give it a go.” Corp (SEEC), threw cold water on customers in the US, the UK and
• Education: Most people have heard of “wearables” particularly smart the hype surrounding Internet of According to the survey, today’s Germany.
watches/bands for your wrist or smart glasses, but it’s questionable how Things (IoT) and wearables. It $57 billion global roaming services
many people have tried them out or really understand what they can do. The warned mobile operators that these market could grow by more than “Our analysis shows the
benefits of wearables are certainly not crystal clear to people right now. newer innovations could be $30 billion in the next three years if competitive importance of roaming
“market distractions” and carry an roaming pricing is “proactively pricing, and, as a result, we’re
What is the key to increasing user engagement? opportunity cost of up to a addressed”. In comparison, newer advocating measures for mobile
A big problem with wearables – particularly those that are used primarily for staggering $46 billion. innovations look set to deliver operators to focus resources on
“quantified self” purposes like fitness and health – is that people reach their around $3.3 billion to global their long-term roaming strategies
goal or target and then stop using the device. Recent research by Endeavour Key to operators reducing risk, operators. and deliver the proactive offers and
Partners suggested that a third of people in the US stopped using their concluded the report, was experiences their end users
wearable device within twelve months. “aggressive and compelling” retail “The pace of change in today’s increasingly expect,” said Sam
In a way this is human nature. We’ve all bought those January gym roaming offers. mobile ecosystem sometimes Brown, SEEC’s CEO. “While there
memberships that steadily decline in use as the year goes on. But there’s no makes it difficult to keep focus on is a competitive threat, it’s not all
getting past the need for better functionality and more engaging services and Syniverse would no doubt core business areas like roaming risk and downside. There are
applications designed specifically for a wearable device. welcome the findings, not least that still carry tens of billions of billions of dollars up for grabs for
To increase and sustain engagement levels we need to move to a place where because it helps mobile operators dollars in revenue opportunity,” mobile operators that can find the
these devices tackle life problems and help to make everyday activities easier – facilitate global roaming agreements. said Mary Clark, Syniverse’s chief right intelligent roaming solutions
paying for things or detecting certain illnesses, for example. There should also to unlock end-user demand – a
be stronger entertainment factors, be that exciting content like games or an simple evolution of current
element of competition where you’re encouraged to compete against friends or practices.”
interest groups to reach a particular goal. There are already a number of stand-
alone apps that have successfully used this approach. Panasonic Cameramanager, a
Ultimately though this is all dependent on the device in question and the amount provider of video surveillance as-
you’re paying for it. The expectations people have for a small, cheap microchip a-service (VSaaS) in Europe, is
that fits on existing clothing vs a top of the range smartwatch are quite different. introducing Nubo, “the world’s
There’s no silver bullet for increasing engagement levels, but more generally it’s first 4G-enabled monitoring
all about the functionality and the services you get from the device that either camera” which will allow
meets, or ideally exceeds, your expectations. consumers to monitor property
and belongings without needing
Where do you see the opportunity for mobile operators? Wi-Fi connectivity
Where a wearable links directly to a smartphone to sync up text messages,
emails, social media notifications and so on then there’s clearly a distribution Nubo is weather resistant and offers
opportunity whereby these devices are sold alongside smartphones or as add- sensor connectivity through an
ons afterwards. Similarly, where a wearable device has its own in-built integrated wireless radio and claims
connectivity then we can provide reliable and fast connectivity offering various to deliver a complete platform,
cross-device deals where needed. including a mobilecamera, data
plan, app and secure cloud storage
offering

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