Ged Carroll

Blog

  • LTE in Korea

    Whilst the UK government flights with the major carriers including Vodafone over 4G whilst simultaneously wanting universal broadband for rural communities, Korea has a real-life working LTE eco-system.

    So what’s it like?

    The handsets come with a spare battery and desk charger as realistic battery life is somewhere south of an iPhone 4S.

    The devices sport big screens and other features like a built-in mobile television receiver that allows you to watch the five main TV channels – so its hard to just blame the network.

    Call quality was an issue, primarily because of the way the calls are handled, the Korean careers were using 3G networks to carry voice calls. This means that calls are affected by network handover issues and the complexity of the chip architectures needed to do this.

    Network coverage is patchy, which is why the 4G networks have bolstered their offerings with wi-fi roaming. You can’t go into a coffee shop or a department store and not find a paid for wi-fi service.

    The key thing for me was that there wasn’t a key application that demonstrated the real-world superiority of LTE over 3G services. And this means that its hard to drive sales beyond the early adopter community unless carriers use bundle-based price promotions and subsidised handsets. One thing that did strike me whilst on the road was that laptop users didn’t bother using 3-or-4G dongles at all – which is where I thought LTE would be able to demonstrate superiority. More wireless related content here.

  • Android differentiation

    I decided to write on my story  onAndroid differentiation after careful consideration. On one hand I didn’t want the companies involved to suffer because one executive had a loud mouth. On the other hand it raised interesting questions about the state of the Android eco-system. So I decided at the time to thinly veil the identities of the different parties.

    March 14: I was sat down in the main dining room of the JW Marriott in Seoul having breakfast and minding my own business when I found myself sitting the next table along from a rather loud discussion of a proposal that a US start-up (Flipboard) wanted to make to a major Korean Android handset (Samsung) and tablet manufacturer in a meeting scheduled that day for 2pm.

    The crux of the pitch was around Android differentiation opportunities. The major Korean manufacturer (Samsung) has a need for something to provide a clear space. The start-up can help the Korean company sell more devices if they pay for the start-up to develop their software. The  software currently is a prominent RSS and social network aggregation as magazine-type reader on iPhone and iPad.  The startup wanted funds to develop it specifically for the Korean company’s Android devices.

    Samsung should also spend a bit more to offer on a new phone or tablet –   a three-month free subscription to a publication like The New York Times, Vanity Fair or People magazine – given the media connections that the start-up partnership development person had: they could broker the deal to make this happen. Would the glorified subscription model be

    I also gathered that a similar pitch had already been made to a Taiwanese handset manufacturer (HTC); but not much progress had happened, though this may change as they had a good idea that the start-up was in discussions with Samsung. HTC were apparently keen to talk to Flipboard again.

    Now ignoring the lack of common sense in having this discussion in a public place with colleagues when your voice carries across the room I was struck by two things regarding Android differentiation:

    • The economics of major applications on Android seem to require major financial incentives if this guy had flown half-way around the world to pitch this offer at the same time that SXSWi was on in Austin
    • Android device differentiation / hyper-competition is becoming an issue, if the head of marketing at a large corporate would spend time to do this meeting and seriously consider the start-up’s proposal. The market must be seriously commoditised and there must be little ‘value-add’ benefits between devices

    Now I don’t think that a free three-month subscription is going to move the needle that much, particularly if one looks at how Nokia’s Comes With Music initiative failed to arrest the decline of the world’s largest phone maker. And the implication about the economics of high-quality Android application development was something that concerned me, particularly when I look at the increasing demand for mobile work from clients. More related content here.

  • Mobile and TV integration

    Social, search, mobile and TV is the first in a series of posts of observations and thoughts from my recent trip to Korea.

    I was stuck by how mobile and TV advertising integration is achieved through QRcodes, search social and e-commerce. The consumer is surrounded in a brand membrane whilst at home in front of the TV.

    Korea is known for being advanced in social networks and search engines. Twitter has a vibrant community there, but Me2Day gives it a good run for its money.

    KakaoTalk is like a multi-platform version of BBM that brands are using to engage with fans and mature platforms like Cafe Daum, Naver and CyWorld can still school Silicon Valley on all things social.

    The country also has a diverse and vibrant eco-system of television stations with a lot of content based around K-pop stars and celebrity participation. TV is available on mobile devices and is one of the main engines of popular culture. TV enjoys a viewership that you don’t see in the UK or Europe any more.

    Given these two vibrant media eco-systems; advertisers and television commerce operations seek to do multichannel marketing. Here are some examples I took pictures of during a five-minute period during a mid-morning commercial break.


    Daum Mobile search is suggested as Daum is known as a site that provides content of interest for women. Encouraging mobile use allows for an immediate call to action.

    Han Hea Youn is a Korean fashion designer who sells her range of clothing via TV shopping channel. The QRcode at the top of the screen allows for the audience to get more information online and make a purchase.

    Where the product isn’t specifically aimed at a female audience the commercials recommended a search term for Naver Mobile.

    These commercial sections were not best-practice but indicated how true integrated multichannel has become a hygiene factor in Korean advertising campaigns. More related content here.

  • Turbo + more news

    Turbo

    Turbo Shandy from the Turbo Drinks Company – I find it fascinating that someone would use ‘turbo’ as a brand. Its so 1980s: Saab Turbo, Turbo aftershave (like Brut, but nastier), Turbo sunglasses, Turbo razors

    China 

    Cui Yongyuan on government Weibo accounts: Shanghaiist – market in helping Chinese government departments ‘get’ social media engagement?

    Global Economy: Why China Should Slow Down – but Probably Won’t | TIME.com

    Shenzhen drivers face new toll | SCMP.com – it would collect the congestion fee when the city’s public transport network improved with the opening of phase three of the Shenzhen Metro, adding five new lines and more than 100 stations. <– This says a lot about the can-do attitude of China

    Consumer behaviour

    Young Women Often Trendsetters in Vocal Patterns – NYTimes.com

    Ethics

    Tobacco firms celebrate as judge rules against graphic images on packets | guardian.co.uk

    Finance

    Bankers decamp to the new frontier | SCMP.com – leaving US institutions for Chinese firms (paywall)

    Hong Kong 

    Cathay seeking 400 in its largest ever recruitment | SCMP.com – Hong Kong is a real mobile device society so it was interesting to read that since Cathay Pacific introduced mobile app boarding passes only 60-100 out of an daily 50,000 passenger check-ins used the mobile QR code based boarding pass (paywall)

    Confidence shaken by hub revelations | SCMP.com – interesting that Norman Foster’s design was originally disqualified for technical reasons, yet was reinstated by some jurors and then won. Sounds a bit dodgy (paywall)

    Ireland

    FBI: Irish duo are top hackers | Irish Examiner – the way the Irish Examiner writes about this its like the lads have brought home an Olympic gold medal

    Japan

    Asiajin » Japan’s Youngest Female Mayor Complained Media On Facebook. The Media Fusses

    Monk guards remains of unknown tsunami victims ‹ Japan Today – brings home the scale of the loss of human life that happened

    London

    Monocolumn – Is the UK a failing state? [Monocle] – as usual Monocle nails it

    Luxury

    Hermès’ China Trademark Case. Do You Know What Trademarks You Really Need? | China Law Blog

    Media

    Cosmopolitan Says It Has 100,000 Paid Digital Subscriptions | Advertising Age

    Launching a new idea in a post-paper world – The Domino Project – interesting post on the challenges of e-publishing

    Exclusive: Yahoo Labs Head Raghavan Departing to Google – AllThingsD – interesting that Google is picking him up, to keep him out of Microsoft’s hands perchance?

    Online

    Facebook and Twitter are far from being revolutionary | SCMP.com

    BT and TalkTalk lose challenge against Digital Economy Act | guardian.co.uk – no incentive to set up a digital business in the UK

    Research says 40% of Britons ‘getting bored’ with social media, points to rise of niche sites | The Wall Blog

    Twitter & Facebook share a problem: Proving social ads work — GigaOM – people are right to be skeptical, it will help improve measurement

    Quality

    After Ratings Drop, Ford Reworks Touch Screens – NYTimes.com – really interesting comments about software quality, appropriateness of design in cars

    Retailing

    Experian Hitwise – Voucher sites overtake Price Comparisons sites online – disclaimer: Experian (who own Hitwise) is a client

    Security

    The Department of Homeland Security Is Searching Your Facebook and Twitter for These Words — ANIMAL – interesting the focus that they put on privacy, much higher than I would have expected

    Software

    MIT App Inventor – Android development

    OpenText Tempo – OpenText Corporation – interesting product: Dropbox | Box.net type metaphor to a product which does the same role that Microsoft Sharepoint previously did within the enterprise

    Technology

    The European Perspective: The Rise of the iPad – Comscore

    Inside Apple’s A5X Chipset: Dual-Core CPU, Quad-Core GPU

    Apple bought half of ST MEMS in 2011, says IHS – which indicates that there are a lot of low spec Android and Windows Phone devices out there

    Wireless

    CTExcel – Chinese MVNO in UK

    Core Wireless sues Apple for (of course) patent infringement | MacNews – Microsoft and Nokia in legal shenanigans

    Google, Motorola Ordered to Give Android Data to Apple – Bloomberg – this could get interesting

    HK cellcos stick to unlimited plans | Telecom Asia

  • The Green Linnet

    Irish public broadcaster RTÉ is celebrating 50 years of television broadcasting and one of the shows being re-broadcast is The Green Linnet. The Green Linnet in question was a drab green Citroen van based on the Citroen 2CV car in which two traditional musicians toured Europe and played music on the streets to earn their keep. The van was a former mail van with an underpowered engine. The van was named after the greenfinch (which is more yellow than green), a prominent song bird in the Irish countryside. The filming took place in 1978 and the series was shown in early 1979.

    Watching a few episodes and a retrospective of The Green Linnet, I realised that the programme was an unintentional proto-reality show; as the filming caught the eventual frayed nerves of the musicians living in an artificially-created environment under constant surveillance. It was a pint-sized Big Brother house on wheels.

    The constricted space in the van and their general condition got progressively grottier living on camp sites and spending every waking moment together. The Green Linnet pre-dated the Dutch show Nummer 28 (which is considered by many to be the first modern reality show) by some 12 years. The breakdown in The Green Linnet  also mirrored highlights in MTV’s The Real World.

    RTÉ had a history of doing pioneering work. Ireland shot its first soap opera in studios, this was Tolka Row, that focused on a couple of working class Dublin families. They then decided to shoot an equivalent show showing rural life called The Riordans. Ireland was an agrarian society at the time and so they pioneered shooting outside and on location to make it more relatable to the rural audience. The Late, Late Show is the world’s second longest running TV show in the world. It is second only to The Tonight Show on NBC in the US.

    More information here. More content on the media can be found here.