Why people don't use mobile applications

Today's focus: Survey: Why people don't use mobile applications

By Keith Shaw

Anyone who has used a mobile device knows that wireless data services and mobile applications continue to be disappointing and frustrating for end users. To delve deeper into the reasons why users are frustrated, Action Engine conducted a mobile usability study to learn more about the user experience.

Not surprising, 64% of mobile data services users found the experience of searching the Web on a mobile phone was disappointing or somewhat disappointing. Further, respondents said time-consuming data entry and slow response times were the most frustrating aspects of using data services on a mobile phone, Action Engine says.

The company sent an e-mail survey to 120 people who had previously expressed interest in Action Engine's data services offerings. Respondents were from North America, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific regions, with 74% male and 26% female. Most (43%) were between the ages of 30-39.

When asked whether they used their mobile phone to access applications like news, weather, sports, and the mobile browser, 34% said they didn't, despite faster networks and the number of mobile phones that include an Internet browser.

The company then asked those users the main reason why they don't access the mobile applications. Cost was the main reason, with 46% saying the apps were too expensive. Applications that are too complex to operate and access came in second, with 28%. Only 2% said that they weren't interested in any of the services offered, which suggests that if carriers could reduce the cost and make them easier to use, then usage would grow.

The survey also asked that if they did use mobile applications such as news and weather on their phone, how often would they access them? Most said they would access them 2-5 times during the week (43%), with 27% saying they would access them several times per day. A huge number (93%) would access them at least once a week.

Another interesting question was the types of mobile applications users want. Topping the list is news and weather (86% showed an interest), with travel, maps and driving directions coming in a close second at 81%. Communications such as e-mail or instant messaging applications garnered 75% interest, and then information applications, such as city guides or directories, came in with 74% interest from responders.

Despite a lot of hype from carriers, multimedia applications such as music downloads and television has generated low interest from users (only 39% said they were interested). However, it's possible that the cost factor is at issue here, along with unfamiliarity with the services. Other low-scoring applications included sports (unknown whether this means watching a sporting event, playing a sports event or using the cell phone in a sporting event - see story <http://www.networkworld.com/news/2005/091205widernet.html?rl> ), games (34% interest), shopping/eBay (23%) and financial applications (stocks and financial news) with only 28% interest.

The complete study can be downloaded from Action Engine's Web site <http://www.actionengine.com/docs/Usability_Study.pdf>.

Symbian recently released some numbers

Symbian recently released some numbers regarding its mobile device operating system, seen mostly on converged mobile devices - a.k.a. smart phones, devices that combine a mobile phone with intelligent, PDA-like functionality.

The company says:

* Shipments of Symbian OS phones in the second quarter of 2005   were three times as high as they were in the second quarter of   2004, reaching 7.8 million shipments. * More Symbian OS phones shipped in the first half of 2005 (14.5   million) than in all of 2004. * The worldwide Symbian OS installed base is now more than 39   million phones.

Most enterprises in the U.S. have probably not heard much about Symbian, the software licensing company that developed the Symbian OS. The company was created in 1998 by Ericsson, Motorola, Nokia and Psion.

Known mostly for consumer mobile phones, in the U.S. the Symbian OS has 24% of the market for converged mobile devices, compared with 21.3% for the Palm OS and 9.2% for Microsoft (both Pocket PC Phone Edition and Smartphone OS are included in their numbers). Worldwide, Microsoft takes second place, with 12.7% of the market, compared to first-place Symbian's 55.9% and Palm OS's 6.3%.

So why should you care about Symbian? Because of Symbian OS v9 <http://www.symbian.com/technology/product_v9.html>, which the company launched in February. Devices with Symbian OS v9, including Nokia's N91, will be launched to the world in the second half of the year. Symbian says the new version "implements a more robust security model to support enterprise and network operators' provision of secure commercial services." Enhancements include network service, device management, communication infrastructure, Java, personal area networking and application framework features. In essence, the Symbian OS will be provided on devices that will appeal to business customers.

That puts them in the crosshairs of Microsoft, which has business customers in its camp. Whether Symbian can make the crossover from consumer phones into enterprise-class devices will be the compelling story for the rest of 2005. According to an IDC report, "Symbian, its stakeholders, and its licensees clearly know how to build mobile phones for consumer consumption, but legitimacy in the form of enterprise-class devices, applications, services, and support is still lacking."

Microsoft will be helped in this space when it releases Windows Mobile Version 5.0 (announced in May), codenamed Magneto (anyone else think it's odd that they named it after a super-villain?). The new version will move away from separate Pocket PC, Smartphone and Portable Media Center platforms <http://www.microsoft.com/windowsmobile/about/tours.mspx> and instead focus on different experiences (voice, data and multimedia). IDC says that Microsoft "possesses an advantage in the minds of enterprises considering mobility," given its dominance in the computing world. As companies look to mobilize their applications beyond personal information and e-mail, IDC says that Microsoft should be in a good position.

For those who wonder about PalmSource as an operating system, IDC is less than enthusiastic. "The platform is falling behind its competitors in the race for consumer and enterprise adoption," IDC says, and even though the PalmOne Treo devices have captured attention, fewer than 1 million units sold in 2004, which represents only 5.5% of the converged device market.

According to IDC forecasts, by 2009 Symbian will control 59.4% of the worldwide converged mobile device market, with Microsoft Windows Mobile at 17.3% and Linux-based devices at 16.8%. The Palm OS will be somewhere at about 3% market share in 2009, IDC says.

Nokia wireless email

SEPTEMBER 15, 2005

By Andy Reinhardt

In This Corner, Nokia With its e-mail for the "corporate masses," the company puts pressure on partner RIM and threatens Microsoft as well as some upstarts Until recently, sending and receiving e-mail on a handheld wireless gizmo was a privilege reserved for corporate execs, investment bankers, and top-tier traveling salespeople.

Case in point: For all the buzz it generates, Waterloo (Ontario)-based Research in Motion (RIMM ) has only about 3 million users for its iconic BlackBerry. That's roughly the number of mobile phones Nokia (NOK ) sells in four days.

HUGE CONSEQUENCES. Smelling a big opportunity, newcomers have tried to worm their way into the business pioneered by RIM. Startups such as Good Technology, Visto, and Seven have rolled out software that lets all manner of portable devices connect to corporate e-mail systems.

And now the battle has suddenly gotten much hotter. On Sept. 13, Finnish giant Nokia announced an e-mail package, called Nokia Business Center, that it hopes will "bring mobile e-mail to the corporate masses."

This isn't Nokia's first foray into mobile e-mail. The company's Communicator line of phone/PDA hybrids already works with a host of third-party packages, including offerings from the mobile e-mail startups and a version of the software in RIM's BlackBerry. But this marks the first time Nokia itself has waded into the e-mail software business -- and the repercussions could loom large.

What sets Nokia's product apart is its dramatically lower price. In an attempt to kick-start mobile e-mail by spreading it as widely and quickly as possible, Nokia will give away unlimited free downloads of a basic version of its e-mail client software to customers who buy a copy of the Nokia Business Center e-mail server.

CARRIER COST BURDEN. The server sells for $2,200 for every 400 users. The basic client lets users read, reply to, and delete messages via a small selection of Nokia smart phones -- with all the actions synchronized back to a Microsoft Exchange mail server in the office. Nokia will add Lotus Notes and Domino support later. And because the client comes written in industry-standard Java software, dozens of other handsets from a range of makers should gain access to it soon.

Important in the equation is that Nokia's technology also cuts operating costs. RIM has won the affection of mobile carriers by bringing them lucrative clients -- high-usage, high-margin mobile junkies who sop up bandwidth on an expense account. But carriers pay a price for it: RIM charges $7 to $10 per user per month to route all e-mail traffic through its centralized network operation center.

The approach used by Nokia does away with the outside center, letting mobile operators charge less for carrying e-mail traffic, while still keeping more of the lucre. "We are focused on changing the economics of mobile e-mail adoption," says Mary McDowell, executive vice-president of Nokia's Enterprise Solutions unit.

LOVING RELATIONSHIP. Nokia's e-mail thrust gets more profitable for the company if users elect to upgrade the client software. The "professional" version -- which goes for a one-time fee of $68, or $86 for a perpetual license -- has a more graphical user interface and supports file attachments, Microsoft Outlook scheduling, and access to corporate e-mail directories.

"Nokia is betting that customers will take the basic version, become comfortable with it, and then upgrade," says Jeremy Green, an analyst with London-based telecom researcher Ovum.

At first blush, the biggest loser in this scenario looks like the already-embattled RIM. But, curiously, Nokia and RIM have a strong and enduring partnership. Nokia was the first company to license the rights to re-create the Blackberry experience on a device not from RIM.

SMALLER FISH. The joint effort comes late to market, but RIM co-CEO Jim Balsillie sounds exultant about its potential. He says as many as 30 carriers have lined up to sell the new Nokia Communicator 9300 handheld with BlackBerry technology built in, set to ship this quarter. "It will shoot out of the gate," he says (see BW Online, 9/15/05, "With Friends Like Nokia").

Balsillie says Nokia is going down-market in search of mass volume. But he argues that the move leaves RIM plenty of room with big corporate customers who trust its years of experience. Nokia's product, he says, "lends itself to an individual in a corporation or a small group."

But Nokia clearly has a wider audience in mind. "We're going after the full 650 million corporate e-mail in-boxes," says McDowell. "We want to knock down the barriers to mobilizing the entire corporate e-mail market."

IN NOKIA'S PATH. Along the way, Nokia could topple a few upstarts that up to now have put up a valiant fight. Redwood Shores (Calif.)-based Visto has 200,000 users and recently announced new deals with Nextel and No. 2 French carrier SFR, an affiliate of Vodafone Group (VOD ).

Rival Seven Networks of Redwood City, Calif., which recently merged with Finnish competitor Smartner, has signed up 5,000 corporate accounts and struck e-mail deals with 67 mobile operators around the world.

Still, both Seven and Visto could take a hit from Nokia's entry. Perhaps better protected is Good Technology of Santa Clara, Calif., which has surged in popularity by offering e-mail through Palm's Treo handhelds. Good has a deal with Nokia to collaborate on e-mail software for demanding, high-end corporate clients.

MICROSOFT'S STAKE. Danny Shader, Good's CEO, welcomes Nokia's entry as a boost for the mass market. "The more volume they do, the better they can compete with RIM in hardware," he says. Meanwhile, he thinks big corporate customers will prefer Good's technology -- which uses an outside service center, just like RIM -- for its predictability and security.

The biggest question mark is what Nokia's move means for Microsoft (MSFT). The software king announced last June that it would provide an upgrade to its Exchange Server tuned to support mobile e-mail. The software will ship this quarter.

The so-called Service Pack 2 will enable exchange users to send and receive e-mails on mobile devices, with full synchronization as well as access Outlook calendars and other data. Microsoft is taking the same approach as Nokia, eliminating the external network operations center, but its software is optimized to work with Windows-based mobile devices.

"BLACKBERRY TAX." Microsoft found some comfort in the fact that Nokia's approach so closely mirrors its own. "There's a big opportunity now," says John Starkweather, product manager for mobile and embedded devices at Microsoft. He especially sanctions the idea of eliminating outside operations centers.

"Carriers are looking for ways to do away with the BlackBerry tax," he says. But at the same time, Starkweather faults Nokia for requiring a separate server to handle mobile e-mail, instead of running the whole shebang on Microsoft Exchange. "If you really want to open up mail to the masses, you need to reduce complexity," he says. "Organizations don't want to have to pay to use and manage another piece of software."

Nokia defends its approach as the only way to give customers complete choice. The Nokia Business Center server will swap e-mail with servers from Microsoft or Lotus, including earlier versions of Exchange, and manages phones in the field, even downloading new versions of the client software automatically. Thanks to Java, it works equally well with handsets from any manufacturer.

DRAMATIC TURNING POINT. And Nokia can upgrade features, such as support for voice messages, in its own time frame, rather than waiting for the next Microsoft update. "This is the architecture everybody else is using," says Scott Cooper, vice-president of mobility solutions in Nokia's Enterprise Solutions group.

With high-speed mobile networks coming online all over the world and more e-mail software options flooding the market, it would appear that now is the long-awaited golden moment for mobile e-mail. British market researcher Quocira finds that 60% of businesses are contemplating wide-scale rollout of mobile e-mail access for their employees. It looks as though Nokia has arrived just in time. READER COMMENTS