TAPC - What’s next for Wireless Consumers?
This panel addressed that big question in the context of navigation. First off, we saw some video from focus groups in Washington DC of somewhat savvy users of wireless devices:
When you think of new technology, what do you think of?
Smaller
Intimidated
Convenience
Speed
Communication
Access to goods/service/information
Decision making
Wireless
Digital
Self explanatory products
Wikis/blogs
How do you navigate?
MapQuest/Yahoo for my daughter/wife
My colleagues can’t follow directions; they must follow someone
East/north are not east/north
People swear by GPS (used to use ADC maps)
Key features in next GPS purchase?
One with road conditions, but I like the one I have, especially for night
Increase integration capability/Bluetooth/live updates
Knowledge of Wireless GPS Providers?
Five didn’t know about it.
Nextel TelNav hard to use.
Wireless feature wishlist?
More than I need now! (camera, Internet, text, etc.)
GPS would be nice and text messaging
I’d like GPS part to be useful
GPS
E-mail
GPS
After a test drive with PNAV
Still not user friendly (better than phone one)
Willingness to pay?
$5 - all
$10 - half
50 cents/per - all
From the moderator - key takeaways
(1) they were interested
(2) thought it was ok to pay
(3) community interest (wikis)
(4) conversational directions (left at McDonald’s)
Questions to the panel:
What can your company offer to address their requests?
Got be easy to get to and then use. Should be taken for granted. From there, very appealing/easy to use. Need to see it as more than a nav application - it’s part search, too.
- Kim Fennel, deCarta
Education. Folks don’t know this stuff exists. And discoverability. We need to understand limitations of the platform and work with them in mind.
- Alan Beiagi, MapQuest Wireless
We need to drive handset folks to make it easier to find. Should be like an iPod. We need to push of app providers to improve the interface. Give me relevant content -
- Steve Myers, Sprint
Mobile is not a desktop. We need to get developers to use it “real time” while driving, with kids bugging them, etc. Bar is it should be intuitive. We’ll need to figure it out, just like we did with e-mail. Sharing/collaboration of content will drive use.
- Jess Boudreau, RIM
Working with our partners, need to educate consumers.
Dave Hildebrant, Cingular
If you could add one feature… what would it be?
Voice recognition
- Sprint
Better sharing of information. Tracking your buddies. Tracking your lost phone. Get me close to where I’m going. Tell me the name of the next street; the sign is blocked.
- RIM
GPS chips in GSM phones.
- deCarta
Big leap?
If I had it I wouldn’t be here!
- Sprint
Great traffic information. Predictive based on history, all roads, etc. So long as its accurate and it really works. Consumers are quick to be “turned off.”
- deCarta
Drive my car. Make the stuff we have actually work! Mobile brings a lot to the table, but still have issues. Data updates, for example.
- RIM
This stuff was supposed to happen six years ago!
- MapQuest Mobile
Single user experience across all platforms. Level of customization (SMS on traffic for home turf vs. full navigation for out of town).
- Cingular
What the evolution of a location standard for data sharing?
Ideally it will be collaborative. Not a choice, a matter of time.
- RIM
Market will drive it. Maybe not nav industry, but social networking may do it.
- deCarta
We look to the developers to spread that innovation. We need to leverage every platform.
- Cingular
We standardized our APIs. We are looking for the killer social networking app to take hold.
- Sprint
How are people going to pay for these types of apps?
Most are subscriptions. We are looking at pay per use. I don’t think that’ll last - nav will be integrated into other apps like search. Will ads fly? We don’t know. We don’t know the price to feature value proposition.
- Sprint
Driven by model that drives content to each part of the value chain. Now it’s MRC. Mostly advertising for now. Paradigms that work on the Web won’t work on mobiles. Something will evolve.
- MapQuest Mobile
We need to educate and get critical mass. Could be pay per view - if I’m lost I’ll use it! (How lost are you? $3 lost? $5 lost?) We need to be careful not to turn folks off.
- RIM
Some form of ads/coupons/search may defray the cost.
- deCarta
A lot of success when get a month free. If they use it three times, generally will buy it.
- Cingular
I learned on new term at this panel: LBS Ecosystem. I understand that to mean all of the folks in the value chain - carriers, applicatoin providers, platform folks, data providers, etc. Here’s a use example: the entire LBS ecosystem is responsible for educating the market about the availability of wireless navigation systems.
