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We’re a long way from the carrier deck being the center of the mobile experience, but there are still some battles to be waged to determine just how far operators will be driven out of the mobile apps/services game. Today, a couple of developments that show what’s at stake: whether Facebook is or isn’t building a mobile phone (and why it matters) and news of European mobile operators potentially building a version of the Android operating system that basically removes Google from the equation, replacing them with services from the mobile operator.
Not surprisingly, the would-be Facebook phone drew tremendous interest around the blogosphere, from the initial TechCrunch rumor, which posited a relatively cheap, low-end device centered around Facebook content; to the Facebook denials, saying the company believes in software, not gadgets; to the opinion pieces stating emphatically that Facebook SHOULD absolutely build a phone; to other stories saying they should direct their attention in mobile elsewhere.
What all of these stories have in common is not only does Facebook aim to push Google and Apple aside, more than anything the mobile operator becomes secondary in the equation. The experience is all about Facebook, from the Web to the device, and nothing else — contacts, location, communications and more. Could Facebook, if they DO build a phone, end up doing it in partnership with carriers? Possibly. The question would be why. What would they gain? Distribution, yes, but they’d own — and want to own — the user experience to such an extent that mobile operators could undoubtedly be cut out of the loop almost entirely (leading to the inevitable carrier backlash).
Speaking of lashing back, European operators are apparently considering building a new mobile operating system, which while based on Android would significantly cut Google and its services out of the equation. Of course, that’s the exact opposite of most Android-based devices, which have Google search, mail, voice and other services right at the center of the customer experience. According to reports, France Telecom-Orange, Deutsche Telekom, Telefonica and Vodafone are planning to discuss the new platform soon:
The talks, which are scheduled to take place 8 October in Paris, are motivated by a view that Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android operating systems have become a “Trojan horse” for these companies to establish their own relationships with mobile customers, reducing the significance of the operators in the value chain. While operators globally have moved away from a closed ecosystem to support products and services from Apple, Google and other companies from the computing and Internet industries, these new partners have been gradually increasing their influence in the mobile space, at the expense of operators and their traditional ownership of the relationship with subscribers.
It seems like a fairly convoluted play and one certain to confuse the market — not to mention developers, who want less fragmentation, not more.
The truth is, the cat is out of the bag. Net neutrality arguments are ensuring that carriers not discriminate on what runs over their pipes, and the ascent of mobile operating systems like the iPhone, Android and the upcoming Windows Mobile 7 means operators won’t be able to control apps and services, either.
What’s left? Competing on a level playing field in all those areas. How? Consider news today that Verizon is selling a new cloud-based mobile storage solution dubbed Vcast Media Manager, which lets its mobile users store and access content from the network.
Rather than keep others from competing or building entirely new OSes that are unlikely to succeed, mobile operators would do best to leverage their natural customer, distribution and network advantages and compete with just these types of cloud services. Even better would be to combine strengths, such as integrating mobile apps/services with telco TV services, as AT&T has done with DVR side-loading (something competitors can’t match and which is wildly compelling if done well).
Looks like the mobile world is about to get even more interesting.