A former colleague of mine, Chris Loosley, who hosts his blog Web Performance Matters, speaks out a lot about how design and architecture of your web presence can effect the end user’s perception of your site, service, application and more. A few months ago, he published his post about “The Laws of Website Performance” it got me thinking about the parallels for the mobile web, content and services. While web standards have matured from static pages, lists of links and images arranged in galleries to dynamic content, AJAX, Javascript, and other tools have accelerated the capabilities and interactive nature of a web browser.The same type of access, functionality, capabilities, and interactive expectations seem to be on the cusp of being there. Innovative devices like the RIM’s Blackberry, the Apple iPhone, Nokia’s N95 and N800 tablet, even the LG Prada and Motorola Dolce & Gabana devices have all been game changers. All have contributed in big and small ways to the thinking about how a mobile phone is used, but ultimately, it’s the software and services that need the attention!This week, Kenneth “Casey” Keller, Motorola’s CMO was interviewed by Advertising Age where he commented about how Motorola will evolve and new “brands” will emerge. Motorola also signed a deal to acquire ownership in UIQ (announced earlier this week) which further admits that Motorola needs to embrace and invest heavily in software if it wants to continue to remain relevant.

“What we’ve been trying to do is also get into applications and experiences beyond just the initial (making phone calls).”

“The mobile-wireless environment is going to create a whole new set of brands—brands around devices, brands around the experiences, and also brands around the way people are connecting and researching on the Internet. You’ll see new brands around this mobile world, hopefully some from Motorola, because we are thinking about creating distinct brand experiences underneath the parent brand Motorola in the mobile space in the future.”

Source: AdAge

But with the software and services, there needs to be a focus around performance and not just functionality. The fact that WAP pages load slowly, content downloads are cumbersome to obtain and mobile commerce can partially be attributed to the less than optimal network infrastructure, however, a constant vigil needs to pertain to bloated page files, excessive calls for images, and limit “tracking” code. Downloadable content needs to be scrutinized for file size and streaming content must continually improve codecs. Subscribers will continually expect more and more from their mobile phones, so keeping in mind the sometimes nerve-racking wait to retrieve information should be worked out. Constant testing of the performance of a site or service should be done regularly from a real handset, not just simply testing concurrent session maxims, or stress-testing load. A fair amount of the chain is out of the control of most content developers who are at the mercy of the platform provider or the mobile operator. Everyone needs to keep in check their performance and availability of their mobile content and services. This is the lifeline and customer experience that drives your mobile channel and revenue source. Spotty service leads to low adoption rate, business ineffectiveness and ultimately poor revenue.

With the Apple iPhone launched, who’s next to enter the ring and claim victory in the all-out Mobile Device Battle Royale?

So the iPhone has been out for a few months now, the supply has met the demand, happy cell phone users abound, so what’s next? While the bravado from Steve Jobs and Apple is not likely to be repeated, there are several other brands who could launch a mobile device and create similar icons. Here are a few potentials:

Dell
Dell has technically entered the mobile market by offering integrated EVDO or HSDPA data chipsets as part of the notebook computer. They entered the mobile music player/PDA market and bowed out. The company can write a book about creating the mobile computing market. And as the computing platform is shrinks from setting it on your lap to holding it in your palm, they will face quite a bit of competition from HTC. Dell’s relationship with Microsoft and Linux gives them quite a few options for the OS. They also have a large customer base of enterprise customers which could be ripe for a Dell mobile device.

In an interview by Edward F. Moltzen, CMP Channel, of Michael Dell, the question of a Dell mobile phone was brought up:

CRN: Apple is set to come out with its iPhone in the next few weeks, perhaps next month. What’s your thinking about that? Is it a competitive threat? Will we see a dPhone, a Dell phone or anything of that nature?

DELL: When you look at the space that exists between, let’s say, a cell phone and a PC, there are all sorts of products that are put out there, proposed, experimented. Some of them have gone on to relatively nice success. But many haven’t. It’s sort of an area of great experimentation.

Nobody knows exactly what the right device is. It’s not a two-inch screen, it’s not a 15-inch screen. There are all sorts of tests in there. There are some reasonably successful products. It’s an area we’re paying increasing attention to. I wouldn’t look for anything in the short term for us there, but we are certainly looking at it, as there is dramatic growth in next-generation wireless broadband networks. People want to take the Internet with them. It’s something that’s very interesting to us.
Source: CRN Interview: Dell Chairman & CEO Michael Dell, 8:00 AM EDT Wed. May. 16, 2007

Nintendo
Nintendo has a long history of portable computing with its Gameboy line. A lot has changed from the black and white low resolution LCD with a cross controller and two buttons and a cable to connect two devices together. Nintendo now sports a wireless bluetooth connection and could easily morph it’s next installment with a WiFi and cellular mobile connectivity. Network gaming as well as downloading software from a service can also be benefits to encourage addiction. While they seem like an unlikely candidate to build a mobile phone, I am sure it is on someone’s whiteboard and roadmap at Nintendo. The active development platform is geared towards gaming, but could easily be opened up for application development. A few weeks ago, on GigaOM shared some similar thinking:

But now comes the iPhone, loaded with features and still riding heavy buzz, pushing into the game space, Nintendo’s territory. How should they respond? Well, the DS already comes equipped with a microphone and wireless connectivity; add a Skype-type application, and the two systems would be in more direct competition. (With lower price and greater install base giving DS the edge.)
Source: GigaOM: Nintendo DS and iPhone on a collision course

It would be an interesting crossover/intersection point when the “game console companies” decided to begin to target other applications aside from gaming. The Nintendo Wii offers Weather and messaging capability as a start. Purely by install based only, Nintendo could outpace the Apple iPhone.

Nokia N-Gage
Nokia has been tinkering at merging its dominance in the mobile phone market with portable gaming for almost 4 years (N-Gage first launched on Oct. 7, 2003). While it has undergone a few incarnations (N-Gage, N-Gage QD, and N-Gage QD Silver Ed.), it never proved to take off unlike the Nintendo Gameboy/DS series or Sony PSP. I suppose true portable gamers still like the brand and titles that with “traditional gaming companies” even though Nokia has the Symbian S60 platform and had cellular connectivity via the GSM chipset. Partly to blame is the timing of all this, as Nokia perhaps was ahead of its time for mobile phone games took off on a variety of platforms, and not exclusively on the N-Gage. Java and BREW are also software platform alternatives that also added to the clutter and confusion about all the portable gaming choices out there. Nevertheless, Nokia is still considered a pioneer for having the concept right, just a market timing and execution problem. Relative to Nintendo and Sony, Nokia did not have the same caché and consumer marketing savvy. Neglecting the the North American market proved dangerous for the success and unit sales, but that can be attributed to the sales channel of going through then Cingular or T-Mobile, and some limited distribution with Electronics Boutique and GameStop. These are extremely limited in comparison to Amazon, Best Buy, ToysRus and other retailers/e-tailers that can move volumes. Another hurdle to overcome is the extremely hypercritical reviewing process by analysts, gamers and bloggers who rip any console or game apart the moment it’s available. If it can withstand the rabid gamer criticism, along with titles to select from, then it will be great to see the unit sales climb. Unfortunately, after much hype, it was not even close to meeting expectations.

But the experiment has not deterred Nokia. It’s new strategy of enabling more handsets and expanding the software, wooing game houses, seems to be a smarter play for Nokia. Instead of focusing efforts of a single mobile device, use the catalog of existing and upcoming handsets to tout the gaming features. Set to launch in November 2007, I, like many others will be watching closely to see how this next salvo for portable gaming will connect.

Sony PSP
Sony. Playstation. PSP. These three words are enough to conjure volumes of pictures in one’s mind. Aside from the lackluster sales of the PS3, the PSP has been a huge hit. Lots of titles. The ability to play movies via the optical drive (UMD). Memory stick expandability. Even a camera, GPS receiver and Digital TV receiver attachments. IrDA and WiFi connectivity. Hmmm, sounds like the making of a metamorphosis in disguise. The PSP also has a web browser built-in and an RSS reader. All that is needed for the next generation PSP is a mobile chipset, bluetooth and it’s off to the races. Like Nokia N-Gage, the Sony PSP is a serious contender for mobile phone/gaming console. I wonder what the political impact and organizational dysfunction would occur if Sony Entertainment was competing with SonyEricsson Mobile Communications (SEMC). Convergence is still happening and who knows what the stable model will look like.
Microsoft Zune
More Microsoft grumblings. While Microsoft WM6 is forging ahead, the Zune as a phone sends a loud signal to licensees of the WM platform: Co-opetition.

While the company has been playing it hot and cold during the past few months, it looks like Microsoft might have some sort of iPhone competitor on its roadmap after all. At this week’s Citigroup technology conference in New York, Mindy Mount, corporate vice president and CFO of the Microsoft’s entertainment and device division, said that it’s not “unreasonable” to expect a photo and music-centric Windows Mobile device with a touchscreen in the near future. Users “tend to have one phone for personal as well as work [use],” Mount said. “Being able to do pictures and music is something that consumers are going to want, so it’s a natural thing for us to want in our product roadmap.”

Source: Daily Tech Rag

Conclusion
So what does this all look like and mean? Well, pick your partners and distribution channels wisely. Do a lot of focus groups and internal product reviews. Then do some more. Consumers are getting increasingly critical and savvy about what they want with the portable-mobile-gaming-multimedia-life-altering devices. Retailers, e-tailers and Mobile Operators are all battling for the unit sale and subscription. And lastly, locking down and fostering the development community is just as important as the gamers. Nurture the entire mobile software development lifecycle, don’t ignore a single link in the ever-growing chain.