Mobile Solutions CI

SEVEN now supporting Google Calendar

SEVEN has put out a press release describing their calendar integration to mobile email and PIM for their supported handsets (currently listed as 450). They are working hard to reach further into operators by listing carrier-side support for gmail and calendering issues as a main feature.

SEVEN Launches Google Calendar Integration for Mobile Devices.

While this is the right path for SEVEN to pursue in extending mobile email and calendering from web-based services to mobile phones, in a way I find it amazing that carriers have yet to think and act beyond providing connectivity. Why aren't carriers demanding a personalized or contextualized version of such a service where calendar updates are time and location sensitive (e.g. auto-sms or email notice to participants if you are running late, on a another call, etc)?

Why aren't they working on a UI that is specific to handet classes--if not specific handsets--instead of just trying to port a PC-based web experience to a tiny screen? If players from Zimbra through Xobni, Clearcontext, etc. are trying to do better than Outlook on the web why in the world isn't anyone tyring to do better for email and calendar experiences in mobile?

The danger of this product roadmap for SEVEN, Visto, and SyncML-based players is that user uptake flips to interacting directly through different experiences and they are left high and dry with all their investments in a roadmap designed to support use cases that are suddenly irrelevant. This could happen sooner than one might think through expansion of Twitter or RSS use cases, of Facebook or MySpace or Youtube overlays which replace email and IM and calendering, or productization of any of these through third party standalone apps released through app stores.

Can SyncML survive Microsoft's expansive licensing of ActiveSync?

Microsoft continues to license its ActiveSync protocol to competitors. It's a great move by Microsoft as it ties email to Microsoft software and preserves Outlook and Exchange share. It's a great move by Google as it broadens the reach of other Google mobile services.

Many of the fastest growing email, mobile calendar, and mobile contacts-syncing startups rely upon SyncML protocols to extend data synchronization to feature phones. They generally go to market with a "Blackberry for the rest of us" message and thru SyncML are able to target basic feature phones. ActiveSync as a protocol is really only meaningful to smartphones.

However, this seems like an increasingly perilous positioning when you combine Microsoft's licensing and down-market pushes by RIM, Google, Nokia, etc. with the aggressive trend for device makers to enrich feature phones with smartphone-like capabilities and price and position smartphones across consumer segments. How long before most phones are smartphones or the term becomes meaningless because of the capabilities of all devices?

Firstly, as Google continues to push into the sync market the consumer price expecation goes ever more rapidly to free.

Google licenses Microsoft’s ActiveSync, beats rival to market with synching service - RCR Wireless News.

Secondly, RIM itself is finding new ways to reduce the cost of its service. And while it will never have the broad reach of an industry standard, neither will services which reach all handsets find compelling ways to drive uptake of add-on pricing services for email, social networking, and device backup. If they could SEVEN and Visto would have cracked that nut some time ago.

Synchronica and other mobile email startups would do well to try and leapfrog RIM in packaging prepay services with specific devices to drive uptake. By choosing a limited but targeted set of the most mature and common devices, and working hard with operators to co-create and fund marketing and demand generation, they could offer downward compatibility to existing handsets and offer operators a real chance of turning email into a mass consumer proposition as promised for so many years.

Instead, what you see are resources poured into building out support for more handsets. This won't work. The consumers who want email as a core service, i.e. will pay for it and/or use it at least weekly, will choose handsets and services which have a decent experience for messaging. Those handsets support ActiveSync and other third-party services to deliver messaging. The huge mass of consumers who don't want these kinds of handsets and services will be served just fine by sms and next generation messaging, such as Twitter, which uses sms as a platform. This broad pool of consumers will not be reached by extending a stripped-down email service which is not great to more and more handsets. Synchronica is chasing a segment that is dipping in size faster than it can be monetized.

SEVEN launches NOC in China

While news of the first NOC in China is a great first-mover advantage for a startup, I'm surprised to see SEVEN still focusing on building out carrier relaltionships rather than pouring resources into sell-in.

There is yet to be a white label winner that gives service providers a demonstrable alternative to RIM. The longer that the SEVENs and Visto's of the world go without establishing great success stories in one or two key markets the greater the risk that a competing business model will dislodge them.

Mobile Email Tops Voicemail, Says Seven

Mobile Email Tops Voicemail, Says Seven - WIRELESS AND MOBILE NEWS.

SEVEN has done an interesting survey claiming that voicemail and email are a bit of an either-or communications preference for businesses, and that IM lags substantially behind email.

In my (non statistically relevant) experience companies tend to be culturally inclined toward either voice or email. Most technology companies I work for are either email or IM dominated for reaching someone or getting an answer. However service firms I've worked with, and for, are primarily voice oriented.

I've always thought the type of work you did created different demand types. Service firms often rely heavily upon context and conveying that is easier through voice. Tech firms often need fairly straightforward info bits which is fastest thru email, text, or IM.

Interview with SEVEN from CTIA Wireless: New product, broader focus

Last week at CTIA Wireless in San Francisco Isabelle Dumont from SEVEN was kind enough to sit down with me and discuss SEVEN's new messaging platform.

SEVEN has around 130 operator customers and, consistent with the white label market, is focused on sell-in. With RIM demonstrating willingness of some consumers to pay for a premium mobile email experience there is a real desire from operators to have a cross-platform alternative for email, IM, and beyond-sms messaging at a price point below RIM's BIS.

To address this market SEVEN has a new product update called Mobile Messaging Platform. This is essentially the same NOC-based architecture of System SEVEN with a new client side. The mobile client has a Flash-based presentation layer sitting on top of email, sms, mms, IM, video, music, and other content application modules.

You can try out SEVEN's new product through their free beta/trial at http://community.seven.com/main.php.

At the same show Yahoo! made much the same play with it's new OneConnect product. This is a validation of SEVEN's product strategy and a clear indicator that messaging solutions have to work across messaging types as well as integrate easily into the basic elements of user actions for managing their Web 2.0 lives--presence, voicemail, pictures, and videos.

This is a great play by SEVEN. They keep their transport layer (compression, device support and scalability) advantages while turning the mobile client into an application framework for either SEVEN or 3rd party apps and content. In today's market the ability to partner well and integrate content or apps--even from competitors--to deliver great consumer experiences is rarely addressed by point solutions. For instance Yahoo will deliver rich content if they can own the branding and customer experience. Some partners and operators won't be so excited to give up branding.

The Mobile Messaging Platform allows service providers to extend their brands through both the client side and through SaaS offers or deploy SEVEN's lightweight server for a partial server-side solution.

SEVEN announced the platform in conjunction with Qualcomm. After years of trying to bring cross-platform consumer mobile email to broad audiences through operators vendors seem to be revisiting their go-to-market and incorporating device and infrastructure vendors in product launches. With RIM and Apple both setting such high bars for integrated service experiences on devices I believe this is a must-have for any solution today. Without native, on-deck placement and support the strategy of reaching beyond expensive high-end devices has proven at best to be a long slow march.

Oz, Synchronica, SEVEN, Visto, the list goes on for vendors who have brought lightweight clients to market to capture consumer messaging without demonstrating lasting traction. SEVEN's new integrated platform keeps it abreast of the mobile messaging market. It will be interesting to see if it is combined with a multi-party go-to-market to break into the mainstream. Operators have so far been incapable of supporting service launches on their own but perhaps with Apple breathing down their necks the level of commitment is changing.

Startups and subscriber claims: Visto and Berggi

Here is a very interesting exchange from Oliver Starr on Berggi's claims of subscriber uptake.

This caught my eye because just yesterday I was reflecting on Visto's aggressive subscriber uptake claims in the absence of any data. I may be a bit off on the exact timing, but Visto claimed they would have 500,000 subscribers by year's end back in 2005 when they likely had around 100,000.

They didn't make it. Then, instead of recalibrating, the CEO comes out and says by the next year they will surpass RIM's subscribers. RIM took off, Visto stalled, and RIM adds more subscibers than Visto's entire base about every two weeks.

Instead of recalibrating, Visto then comes out and says this year, 2007, they'll hit 10 million subscribers.

Taken in conjunction with Visto's patent suit business strategy how can anyone take this company seriously? What are operators thinking partnering with a vendor who can't speak the basic truth?

Seven concedes patent litigation to Visto

Visto and Seven announced a settlement in their ongoing lawsuit. Visto had previously won judgment against Seven which Seven then contested.

"SEVEN has acknowledged the validity and enforceability of Visto’s patent portfolio and has agreed to licensing terms including monetary and non-monetary considerations. Both companies will dismiss all pending legal claims in all jurisdictions."

This move also clears the way for any potential merger/acquisition that either side may be considering.

While Visto may be emboldened to use this victory as reason to continue aggressively pursuing its litigation against RIM and Microsoft you have to wonder if it won't work against them in the long run as they may be tempted to continue pouring resource down that hole while growth stagnates.

It's worth remembering that when RIM settled it's R&D and marketing budget took up the money that had been invested in legal fees. It subscriber growth has increased greatly, now averaging over 12% per quarter, since settling.  Settling the NTP case led to its current success. Visto subscriber growth is slowing while RIM, Microsoft, and Nokia Intellisync are taking off. Can Visto afford to focus on anything other than subscriber growth? Is the overhang of pending litigation affecting partners?

1H 2007: Increased focus on mobilizing SMB through hosted channel

I believe the first half of 2007 will see mobile solutions vendors’ emphasis on reaching SMB through hosted offerings will increase.

We will likely see direct and indirect competitors focusing on hosted messaging providers as the preferred channel to SMB. Evidence of this trend includes mobile email vendors staffing up positions for the purpose and "upstream" players acquiring mobile point solution companies to build out a portfolio of offers (see below).

As a result, bundled product and service offerings from hosted providers will add pricing pressure for standalone components of mobile email. Device and product launches will compete against end-to-end solutions in the form of OEMs aligning with Sis and solution providers to launch their products as integrated solutions. In some regions, such as EMEA, SaaS pricing will become an important enabler for such bundled solutions.

Key Drivers Influencing Speed and Impact:

• Consolidation in hosted email providers targeting SMB
• Increase in growth for hosted solutions and SAAS for SMB is accompanied by increase in competition from messaging vendors—Existing players including Visto and SEVEN target hosted messaging providers while outliers such as HP and IBM get more directly involved.
• Vertical industry alignment (e.g. HP reselling Apptix hosted messaging combined with HP devices, MOT/Good/Apptix distribution offering discounted Q through Mailstreet)

While Visto and Seven are two key competitors in this space, Exchange Direct Push will increasingly emerge as the main substitute for a standalone solution.

For the direct competitors Visto sees itself as targeting small to medium businesses, while Seven focuses on consumer/prosumer. Both companies will have significant challenges to execution over the first half of 2007.

Visto is recovering from an investment round that for at least some employees was a “down round” and has therefore lost (and is losing) key staff from the product manager to director level. The lawsuit between Seven and Visto is a serious distraction for both, with the financial impacts a real problem for Seven.

Key Indicators:

• Motorola partners with Apptix and discounts Q to sell mobile email to small business through Best Buy (detail below)
• Hiring by competitors is focused on SMB hosted channel:
  • Visto is adding a Poduct Director role focusing on enterprise with hosted email background (detail below), snr prod mgr and prd mrk mgr all in this space
  • SEVEN is adding a Product Marketing Manager focusing on enterprise messaging
  • Yahoo! Adding product marketing manager for mobile email through partners
• HP acquired Bitfone to add mobile DM (detail below)
• Consolidation of Cingular, ATT, and SBC for full voice and data to enterprise
• Microsoft is increasingly competing with itself to drive upgrade to Exchange 2007, Crossbow in market with operators and OEMs

Background

Visto: Hiring for Product Director with hosted exchange background:

• Experience with Microsoft .NET and Web Services
• Work done with additional data and voice applications (e.g. IM and VOIP solutions)
• Knowledge of and experience with Hosted Exchange
• Ideal companies to have worked for: Microsoft, IBM, Salesforce.com, USA.net, Intermedia, Mirapoint, SUN, Oracle.

HP buys Bitfone to gain DM and FOTA capability:

“In a bid to expand its mobile enterprise business, HP is set to acquire Bitfone Corp., a privately held global software and services company developing software solutions for mobile device management for the wireless industry.” Bitfone was a key partner for Motorola in delivering FOTA to operators; what does this move do to Motorola's product roadmap with Good?

MOT partners with Apptix to sell mobile email to small business through Best Buy:

• Hosted wireless service: $40 ($9.95 per month for Hosted Exchange (Apptix) and $30 per month for the data service (VZW)).
• Motorola Q at $179 (with 2-year committ to Verizon Wireless)
• Bluetooth headset (estimated $50) and phone charger (estimated $30) provided by Apptix
• Point of sale activation and account setup by Best Buy

SEVEN gets $42Mn, loses round with Visto, adds new CEO

A busy week for SEVEN marks the continued fast pace of the mobile email space:

SEVEN added a new CEO with experience selling a mobile email company, also announcing $42Mn in additional funding. SEVEN did not specify who the "new capital investors" are but it is interesting that current investors were apparently not involved.

SEVEN also continued to avoid subscriber figures after prominently claiming that they would announce subscribers in pursuit of RIM and to bolster a claim that they had 700,000 users.

Finally, SEVEN also lost an appeal in its ongoing legal saga with Visto.

SEVEN establishing operator foothold

SEVEN is consolidating a market position of white-label (consumer focus) email vendor of choice to non-Vodafone operators.  Over the past few weeks SEVEN has announced significant strides in deepening its relationships with partners:

Sony Ericsson preloads SEVEN client, branded as Ericsson Mobile Organizer, on M600 and P990.

SEVEN client branded as Sprint Mobile Email is available as free download for Sprint data subscribers on some Sprint and Nextel phones.

Alltel and SEVEN announce that the carrier's Office Sync mobile email service (already available for Palm and Windows Mobile devices) is now available on lower-end BREW-capable handsets, beginning with the RAZR V3c and Kyocera Strobe K612B. Alltel will offer the new service for $14.99 with a $39.99+ voice plan and two-year contract.