Mobile World Congress Highlights -- Day One

SPECIAL ROAD EDITION
I am in Barcelona attending the Mobile World Congress (http://www.mobileworldcongress.com).  But you didn’t think that a few thousand miles and a six hour time difference would keep me from doing my email blast, did you?  I am going to be writing about what I see and learn in my blog all this week.  

OK, I thought I was prepared for the scale of the Mobile World Congress, but I underestimated it. Over 6000 people are attending and there are over 1500 exhibitors! This is really is an event for the powerful people in the mobile industry. There is a very good chance that I am the only professor I attendance. And the prices for this event speak to the amount of money in this industry today. Ed O’Meara, the Director of Marketing for the GSM Association (http://www.gsmworld.com/) that is putting on the show (and a Georgia Bulldog) got me a Gold Pass for the event. I looked it up today and that ticket cost 3,799 Euros (just about $5500). Thanks, Ed! The conference just started today (Monday, 2/11) and most of the sessions where just preliminary meetings. The bulk of the conference starts tomorrow (Tuesday, 2/12) – that is when I should get some good intel. But there were a couple of highlights worth mentioning.

Carrier/Innovator Tensions – “The Thorn in the Garden”
Kicking off the Mobile Innovation Marketplace, Tom Wheeler (Tom Wheeler, Partner, Core Capital and Former CEO/President, CTIA) delivered the verdict that the landscape for mobile innovation is lush. However, he noted one “thorn in the garden.” Innovators want unfettered access to customers. Carriers are being resistant – they know they are in a new world and they are trying to adapt but old habits die hard. That tension is shaping the future of mobile innovation. I guess that thorn might be in the “walled garden,” right?

User Experience.
That seems to be the buzzword for the first day. In a session on Innovation in the Mobile Space almost everyone mentioned that the industry needed to focus on the user experience. It took a little while to figure out exactly what that was. It is a little bit of user interface and a whole lot of content. Rikko Sakaguchi (Senior Vice-President and Head of Product & Application Planning for Sony Ericsson GSM/UMTS phones) says that at Sony Ericsson, all discussion about new products start with what the user wants to do – not technology. That is a refreshing approach, but you could see the cell phone carriers in the audience bristle. Several from that camp explained that the user experience is important, but monetizing the experience is essential for the long-term development of mobile media. Ouch, was that a thorn?

Dolby Mobile
I have only made a single foray into the cavernous exhibition halls (eight of them in all) but one of the coolest things I experienced was the sound quality being promoted by Dolby. They call it Dolby Mobile. I sat down in front of a Nokia N95, put on a set of headphones and listened to a recording of The Killers. True stereo that is as rich and clean as any stereo system I ever owned. But then I unplugged the headsets and the magic was gone – it sounded like good sound from tiny speakers. I have to admit that I was skeptical about wearing headphones to listen to my phone. But the iPhone has us all listening to the phone with little white earbuds. So Dolby Mobile sounds pretty good.

Money From Lectures.
At the bar at the opening party, I met a guy from Ireland (avoid those rash stereotypes that would prompt you to say “Where else would you meet a guy from Ireland?). He is working on a video system that will allow you to post videos from a phone and then charge people to watch. His company was producing the platform and, of course, they are taking a cut on what you make. You decide what you charge and his company will take 10% . When he found out I was a professor he had a business proposition for me. I could post my lectures on the web and then charge students to watch them. When he found out that some of my classes have 250 students he got very excited. The band was loud at he had had a couple of drinks so he kept slurring the URL – I will try to find it. I have to admit that it sounded tempting. But then I figure I could cut out the middleman and just sell grades if I really need the money, right?

Global Mobile.
And if you want concrete evidence that mobile is a global industry, you just had to look around at the opening gala party. There I saw a Swede dancing with a gang of Koreans to the sounds of Flamenco! It doesn’t get more international (and frightening) than that.

More to come!