The Government has offered Australia's three mobile operators, and vividwireless, renewal of their existing spectrum allocated on 15 year licences in the late 90s and early 2000s at set prices, while the Government expects to rake in $3 billion.
It turns out that Australians, compared to other markets, prefer the more traditional numeric keypad (38%) while the Chinese (59%), Indians (59%) and Taiwanese (63%) are predominantly in favour of touch screen phones. 36% of Australians preferred touch screen phones.
When it comes to a mobile phone purchase, the following factors rank high with Australians in the decision-making process:
- Functionality, rather than the look of the phone, was stated as the highest overall factor when choosing a mobile phone in Australia (55%), while most other countries across APAC placed higher importance on cost.
- 54% of Australians site cost as the second most important factor when deciding which phone to purchase.
- Australians rank ease-of-use (44%) as the third most important factor when buying a device.
Grace Kerrison, Microsoft Australia’s director of Mobile Communications Business, said: "Other than showing some of the more unconventional uses of phones, these results show how entrenched in all aspects of our lives mobile phones have become.
“With the arrival of smartphones, people are doing even more on-the-go. It’s exciting to see Microsoft’s vision of making mobile communications a reality for users everywhere coming to fruition!”
It’s at this point in the press release covering the survey that Microsoft takes the opportunity to pitch Windows Mobile, although unlike some of the survey results, this is entirely unsurprising.
Microsoft software that “with smartphones helping to make significant improvements in mobile communications, not only can people reach their contacts via SMS, Instant Message (IM), or e-mail, there are plenty of other imaginative ways to reach out to one’s social network.”
It also notes that “today”, there are about “140 phones across APAC running Microsoft Windows Mobile in a variety of form factors including touch screens, QWERTY keyboards and one hand navigation” – no doubt poking a bit of fun Apple’s way, with its single design.
Microsoft also reminds us all that there are “more than 18,000 Windows Mobile applications – spanning cocktail mixing to New Year’s resolution tracking to personal fitness programs – to help empower communication, sharing and discovery no matter where you are.”
Given that Microsoft’s partners sold 20 million Windows Mobile phones in total last year alone, and with competition set to be tight in 2009, what with the Palm Pre, a new iPhone midyear, the Nokia N97 and a host of others, it’s only natural that Microsoft wants you to forget about all of those and think Windows Mobile – whether or not using your phone in the loo is, or isn’t, for you!
David Bass
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