Mobile email - the next frontier
10 August 2006
Telecoms Special Features
Mobile email has been getting a lot of hype ever since Research In Motion (RIM) hit the big time with a device that was so compulsive, addicts lovingly referred to it as the "CrackBerry".
With the BlackBerry already a runaway success in the corporate market, RIM and its rivals are now looking to the consumer space to expand their opportunities, encouraged by operators looking to replicate the success of SMS as a data service.
In terms of finding the "killer app" to stimulate data usage, mobile email is a no brainer. It is not a new technology - everybody already understands it and can see the attraction and benefits.
Europe has been in love with text messaging for years but across the pond in North America, SMS never really took off. US operators are not going to miss the boat a second time and mobile email is already seeing some traction amongst consumers and businesses, mainly due, it's fair to say, to the BlackBerry.
In this special feature, telecoms.com explores the current offerings in both the corporate and consumer spaces, identifying the main players, the rates of adoption as well as the obstacles and challenges to delivering what users want. We also look in detail at the rash of litigation which shook the market and nearly brought a giant to its knees.
Finally, we give a brief overview of a handful of the major services on offer, recounting our own experiences with them. Interestingly, one of the major conclusions drawn from our investigations is that mobile email has been alive and kicking for much longer than the marketing puff would suggest.
Handset vendors have been packing email clients into their handsets for some years now, neatly tucked away in a menu somewhere. In fact, this is one of the biggest obstacles facing the service providers today - education.
The technology has been available for some time but operators have only recently coughed up the required investment to push it into the mainstream. On the business front, it has taken some years for enterprises to come around to the benefits of the technology and a few extra years to come up with a valid implementation strategy.
Read on to see whether the email of yesteryear is going to be the communication technology of tomorrow.
Other articles in this Special Feature:
