Monday, October 16, 2006

 

Why not in Canada?

T-Mobile Dash
T-Mobile has announced the launch of a WiFi enabled phone and data device that will operate on its cellular network and enable "superfast" data connectivity using WiFi hotspots. The phone is GPRS/EDGE and WiFi enabled.

It appears to be an attractive package, manufactured for T-Mobile by High Tech Computer. It may provide a consumer grade alternative to Blackberry or other similar devices. The device runs Microsoft Windows Mobile applications, includes a still and video camera and music player.

According to T-Mobile:
Everything you need to stay connected, all in one sleek package. Send, receive, and reply to your personal and business e-mail easily with a full QWERTY keyboard and the convenience of Microsoft® Office Outlook® Mobile. View photos, videos, and large attachments, and share them with others or browse the Web using super fast Wi-Fi connectivity. All of this in a slim Windows Mobile® Smartphone that's comfortable to hold and provides crystal-clear calling.
Why would T-Mobile introduce such a device and what inhibits the launch of a similar product in Canada?

Clearly, there are different market conditions in the United States. Among them:
  • T-Mobile operates an extensive network of WiFi hotspots - claimed to be the world's largest private WiFi network - and the network is a differentiator. Canada's wireless carriers agreed to intercarrier WiFi roaming, expanding reach but at a cost of competitive differentiation.
  • The US cellular market has more flat rate plans available to consumers - WiFi provides opportunities for network cost reductions for suitably equipped carriers. If consumers are going to consume lots of minutes or bytes for a fixed price, the winning carrier will be the low cost network operator.
T-Mobile can leverage its WiFi network assets to reduce its cost to serve customers and acquire customers with an offering that cannot easily be replicated by its competitors.

Only in America? Hardly. But will combo WiFi / cellular be coming soon to Canada?

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Posted by Mark Goldberg @ 10/16/2006 07:07:00 AM
Comments:
Mark,

I believe this new device from T-Mobile is one of the first ones in the States which actually will allow the use of the WiFi built into the phone. For example, North America recently began selling the Nokia e62, which is also a BlackBerry imitator, but without WiFi. Europe, on the other hand, sells the Nokia e61, with WiFi.

I would be interested to see if Canada follows suit and offers a WiFi enabled device, though with data being such a large source of revenue for them, I don't see it likely anytime soon.

There is, however, a BlackBerry scheduled for launch early 2007 which, supposedly, will have WiFi.
Posted by Anonymous Anonymous : 8:05 AM, October 16, 2006
 
Unfortunately in Canada we have the combination of 'Industry Canada' Regulatory Authority and CRTC - who (the former) must seemingly regulate any 'NEW' devices per adherence to 'spurious emissions' and other archaic specifications (in common with the USA's FCC) and the latter :-

The 'totally idiotic' nd unnecessary 'CRTC' who will (guaranteed!) want to protect Canadian Carrier Networks, Grandpa's Hearing Aid Companies, Supermarket PA System's, telephones 'French Instruction Booklet Printing Companies' and anything else they can hang their 'busybody' hat's on - to protect us against 'new' technological advancements - just to screw us!


Where is NAFTA when you need it?


Terry Bennett
Posted by Anonymous Anonymous : 1:14 AM, September 10, 2007
 
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