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Technology news and Jobs 
Fuzzy Logic Survey: 91% of Australians say mobile Internet just too expensive
Fuzzy Logic Survey: 91% of Australians say mobile Internet just too expensive | Survey: 91% of Australians say mobile Internet just too expensive |
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| by Alex Zaharov-Reutt | |
| Tuesday, 15 April 2008 | |
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Page 3 of 3 The survey also reveals the need for web access on mobiles does not support generational stereotypes, and accessing the internet on the move isn’t just for the young. Josh Oxspring, Head of Marketing, Sony Ericsson Oceania, noted that: “Proliferation and uptake of the internet on PC was the driving force behind Sony Ericsson re-designing the mobile web experience”. Oxspring claims that Sony Ericsson is producing “products specifically designed to mirror the PC internet experience”, such as on the recently announced Sony Ericsson K660i, “our handsets overcome barriers to bring mobile web browsing to the masses. Web browsing on a mobile is now officially easy and fun.” I’m yet to trial a Sony Ericsson K660i, and am curious to see how the browsing experience has been improved over previous Sony Ericsson models, which included a standard phone web browser, but not one that you’d be writing home about, unlike the free mobile browser Opera Mini or the paid (and even more capable) Opera Mobile, from browser company Opera which work on just about any modern phone to deliver true ‘desktop-like’ browsing to the small screen. In a press release, Sony Ericsson says that: “The survey was conducted in conjunction with the launch of Sony Ericsson’s K660i, a phone specifically designed for mobile web browsing. Featuring unique applications and Web browsing design such as one-click access to bookmarked favourites, illuminated shortcut keys, landscape browsing of Web sites, and in-built software like Google Maps for Mobile, the K660i provides a rich mobile Web browsing experience in a straightforward way.” But given Oxspring’s claim, and that of the press release, I’ll definitely be contacting Sony Ericsson’s PR company to organise a trial unit to see for myself – there improvement has to be visible or they wouldn’t be making the claims, so I’ll withhold final judgement and just say that it’s good to see Sony Ericsson taking mobile web browsing more seriously. Anyway, back to the last part of the survey. It states that, in regards to sites people would access from a mobile phone, “the survey indicates search engine sites (76%) and email (74%) were the most valuable to access on the move. Other popular sites to access include timely, up to date news and current affairs (63%) as well sports sites (34%).” Christina Ferve, Head of Content at 3 and co-sponsor of the survey, naturally had some comments to add, saying: “3’s customers have been heading to the internet on their mobiles since 2006 and its value and a good experience that’s the key. As consumers we won’t tolerate a poor online experience at home or work, and we won’t on the mobile either.” Ferve continued that: “2008 in our view is certainly a year where the mobile internet will continue to grow, through a combination of higher awareness from consumers of what they can do on their mobile, and devices with browsers that support a better experience.” As noted previously, Three Mobile has offered great mobile Internet pricing, actually since 2006, forcing Vodafone, Optus and even Telstra to follow suit to various degrees. But Three certainly will be in a tough spot when it comes to convincing Internet savvy and connected consumers that regularly or even only sometimes travel throughout Australia – both in and out of Three’s coverage area – that Three’s service will be the one to go for. Even more aggressive pricing for metro areas – for voice and data - seems to be the only answer that I can see from this far out, no matter how good current and future phones make the browsing experience. Also I just had an interesting experience trying to talk to a friend in Sydney – I’m currently based in Melbourne. We’re both customers of the Three network, and we just had a phone call that continually dropped out, well over a dozen times. I even tried calling my friend back on a different carrier – to no avail, we couldn’t stay connected for more than a minute before the call dropped out. I’m not sure if Three are having a minor problem, or a more serious one, and whether it’s localised or not, but it’s ironic that it happened in the middle of writing an article about Three. I’m sure it’s just a temporary glitch, but it shows that no technology – or network – is infallible, and that having a backup phone on another network – whether for voice, data or both – is always a good thing, even though that will make your communications bill even more expensive. Sony Ericsson and Three say that the survey was “carried out by a third party in March 2008, surveying 653 Australians aged 16-49 across all states. Interviews were conducted using CATI (computer assisted telephone interviewing) with telephone numbers randomly selected from electronic White Pages. Age, sex and region quotas were applied to the sample and, following the completion of interviewing, the data was weighted by sex and area to reflect the latest ABS population estimates.”
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