Cellphone wins 'battle for the pocket`

Johannesburg, 10 Nov 2004

The mobile phone has won the 'battle for the pocket`, outpacing such devices as the personal digital assistant (PDA) and the iPod, says 3G strategy consultant Tomi Ahonen, formerly of Nokia`s 3G Business Consultancy department.

He was speaking at the Vodacom First Tuesday event held at the Sandton Convention Centre yesterday.

"As a 3G consultant, I feel very privileged to have participated in one of the first 3G calls made in this country," said Ahonen, who was introduced via a 3G video phone call.

He said numerous devices have been fighting for people`s pocket space, but the mobile phone has won the war, as by the end of this year more smartphones will have been sold than all PDAs sold in the last 12 years.

"As for cameras, some 84 million camera phones have been sold, compared to about 46 million 'traditional` digital cameras. The biggest camera maker in the world today is not Konica or Kodak, it is Nokia.

"This is not to say there is not a market for these other devices, but as far as the mass market goes, the mobile phone will be the predominant option. The phone will not, however, fight it out with the PC - the PC will fight it out with the TV in the home entertainment space."

Discussing the growth of new mobile services, Ahonen said the phone will supplement the home entertainment experience, as people will consume TV-related content and services, although they will still prefer to watch the actual show on the big screen.

"In Sweden, they initiated a special option for 3G phone users, who could access exclusive cameras in the Big Brother household, to supplement the viewing pleasure for fans. Another option has been updates and previews, via phone, on what is happening in people`s favourite soap operas.

"The key is to play to the strengths of the phone and to use it to enhance the television watching experience."

Mobile addiction

He pointed out that people are becoming more addicted to their mobile phones, with a lost or stolen phone reported on average within 68 minutes, whereas the financial industry says on average, it takes people two days to report lost or stolen credit cards.

"As for the future, it is really bright for the mobile phone. In countries where 3G is already happening, there is a move towards mobile blogging, with authors paid a percentage to provide content, and consumers charged a certain amount to view it.

"Once we have resolved all the issues surrounding keypads, screen size, battery life and bandwidth, and the majority of users are comfortable with the technology, we will see some exciting developments."

Ahonen predicts that in the future, the phone will replace music players, with 'music phones` being sold with virtually every song ever made preloaded on it.

"We won`t even have to pay for this, as perhaps two years of music consumption will be included in the price of the phone, and you will even be able to connect the phone to your HiFi at home. Of course, you will have to pay for music updates.

"Another possibility, which I think will be here in less than 10 years, is the free content phone. Here you will have a variety of channels available, but you will have to consume three minutes of adverts for every 10 minutes of content, without being able to change channels to avoid the ads.

"In the long-term, I believe the mobile phone will become the only digital device we will use."