In a world where convenience is king, mega online retailers continue to stake their claim. Amazon, ShopRunner, WalMart, Target, etc. all provide online access to everyday and niche items that can be delivered to your door with a swipe of your credit card (not really but you get the idea). Lost in the excitement of a growing e-commerce market is yours truly… the customer. Sure, it would be easy to join the masses and assimilate to the growing consciousness that all online customers are more interested in coupons and shipping costs and less concerned with customer service. However, did anyone notice that customer-centric companies like Nordstrom continue to build value and earn a profit?
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Hyundai’s system focuses on “four buckets of service”: Safety and Security (including theft immobilization and automatic emergency service notification in the event of a crash), Infotainment (wireless connectivity features for telephone, music, etc.), Navigation (like OnStar’s turn-by-turn direction service), and Vehicle Diagnostics, a tool for both owners and dealers that could help track the need for maintenance and potentially even notify one’s dealer to order parts for a forthcoming repair.
Nokia Siemens Networks is in talks with several buyout firms about selling up to a third of the company for at least $1 billion in cash, The Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday, citing “people familiar with the matter.” Potential investors reportedly include Silver Lake Partners, TPG, Blackstone, Bain Capital and KKR. As the name implies, Nokia and Siemens each currently own half of the venture.
The proliferation of standardized, interlinked GSfM/GPRS networks across large swaths of landscape, coupled with the development of smaller, lower-power GPS devices, have been the primary drivers for the surging market for asset tracking and monitoring in the last few years. We might describe this as Phase 1 of the Mobile Machine-to-Machine (M2M) Revolution. But only about ten percent of the Earth’s surface is covered by terrestrial wireless networks. What about the other 90 percent? For many applications – such as ships and boats at sea, fixed wing aircraft and helicopters in the air, and vehicles and heavy machinery in sparsely populated regions of the world – terrestrial wireless data links are unavailable or unreliable.
Contactless payment technologies have been around for years, and buying goods with cellphones is commonplace in some parts of the world, but in the U.S., e-wallets haven’t caught on. Android’s upcoming Gingerbread OS update may change that. “This mode of payment has been crying out for more enabled devices,” said Nitesh Patel, a senior analyst at Strategy Analytics.
In the current market, product line extension and value engineering are more important than conventional innovation. But as we all begin to innovate internal to our products rather than by building new categories, the risks associated with getting innovation wrong escalate. This is where social media plays a role.
A new study has found a rise on the adoption of cloud computing among small and medium sized businesses in the first half of 2010. During the first half of 2010, 14 percent of small and medium businesses (SMBs) reported using cloud computing services and another 10 percent reported plans to deploy cloud-based services, according to a new study conducted by Spiceworks.
Prospective clients need to experience the value of telematics. Hard data can help prove the viability of a solution to those with vision; but many customers lack vision. Imagine the reaction a client will have when an attractive usable interface is placed in their hands. They can click, navigate and discover first-hand how telematics can improve their life. But unintuitive and unattractive user interface limits the effectiveness of this sales strategy.
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Social shopping sites are now harnessing the power and promise of networks. They are evolving along with consumer expectations and desires, shaping a new world for e-commerce.
Verizon Wireless only added 997,000 new customers compared with 1.2 million new customers during the same period one year earlier. There was a 25 percent drop in third-quarter profit. Its net income dropped. Operating revenue dropped. And it won fewer new customers than AT&T Mobility.
Expert review of architecture and design during the early development phase of a telematics device can save a company substantial time and money while maximizing market potential. The former CTO of Quake Global and lead architect of their market dominating satellite modem — Mark Jones — has formed Sancomm Inc. to provide precisely this service.
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The Federal Communications Commission wants to bring broadband to everyone in the country, and both government and industry agree it is necessary. But like many grand plans, the devil is in the details.