IP Democracy: The Multi-Purpose Mobile Device is Upon Us

Voice-enabled mobile devices are busting out all over today. First, Comcast and Time Warner announced the launch of Sprint co-branded mobile telephony service in selected markets. Then, word came down that Microsoft plans to add voice capabilities to its iPod rival Zune, which will also feature —at some point — video sharing capabilities.

On top of that, Wired’s Leander Kahney devotes a considerable amount of pixels to the mythical Apple iPhone, which Kahney (like me) believes really exists, at least somewhere within Apple’s secure facilities. All of this mobile phone talk comes on the heels of Google CEO Eric Schmidt’s statements that mobile phones should be free and supported by advertising, which is right up Google’s alley although Schmidt denies that Google is planning to introduce a phone.

Mobile communications is the new frontier, there’s no denying that. What all of these developments have in common is that not one of these companies — Comcast, Time Warner, Microsoft, Apple or Google — thinks of mobile devices as single purpose platforms. The cable guys think pure mobile voice service is a commodity with razor thin margins, so they’re hoping to add a host of features (remotely programming PVRs seems to be the prime example) that enable them to distinguish their mobile voice services from the next guy’s.

Microsoft and Apple are coming from the opposite direction. They’ve got mobile devices that already offer a lot of functions (music, video, social networking, etc.), but no voice service. Apple, presumably, needs to keep upgrading the iPod to spur continued sales, while Microsoft has to keep pace with Apple.

Google’s interest in the all-purpose mobile device is pretty transparent — the search giant wants another outlet for selling advertising. This crush of interest in developing new mobile phone features is not lost on the leading mobile voice providers, of course, who already offer music, video, Internet access, text messaging and more on their handsets. That’s on top of phones capable of taking photos and recording video.

With all this jostling to capture a share of the booming hand-held and mobile device and cell phone businesses, how much consumer confusion lies ahead? Not to mention interoperability conflicts. Consumers say they want their mobile phones to serve as music players and more, but the complexity of actually using the non-voice features wears them down.

Oh well, get ready for even more complexity ahead. It’s clear that the mobile phone is the hottest piece of real estate in the media world.

Posted by Cynthia Brumfield on November 14, 2006 6:43 PM to IP Democracy