Smartphone owners are savvy about their Wi-Fi and want more of it

The proof is in the survey of 420 smartphone owners in the US that we commissioned in May 2011 and was conducted by MarketTools® Zoomerang®:

• 74 percent of smartphone users in the United States are interested in a mobile operator-provided service that uses Wi-Fi to provide lower cost calls.
• 72 percent of smartphone users are interested in an application that uses Wi-Fi to improve cellular coverage.
• Nearly nine out of 10 (89%) of respondents have smartphones with Wi-Fi.
• 77 percent have Wi-Fi at home; 54 percent have it at their place of work.
• 62 percent of people who own smartphones with Wi-Fi use the Wi-Fi four or more days each week.
• 30 percent say they use Wi-Fi because it is faster than the cellular network; 19 percent because it is easy to access the internet.
• 30 percent have smartphones with a Google Android operating system (OS); 26 percent use Apple iPhone OS; and 22 percent use a RIM OS.

As we all read about in tech and general publications regularly, smartphones have become the dominant mobile phone technology, and their users have aggressively embraced Wi-Fi for a variety of reasons. This trend appears to be continuing on its upswing with no sign of abatement. 

Cost and coverage continue to be key issues plaguing the mobile industry, and solutions that address those issues are of great interest to subscribers. This survey finds that subscribers are truly interested in utilizing Wi-Fi capabilities more and are open to operator-provided services.

There are plenty more stats and information about customers by operator and by smartphone type available at Kineto.com.

If you've been following this blog for a while, you may recall that Kineto commissioned similar 2010 smartphone surveys in the US and UK.

Do these 2011 survey results coincide with what you think is going on in the market? Tell us what you think and what in the comments

Part of a Winning Team

ZTE has been on a bit of a roll lately. The company opened a major network testing and development center in London and quickly followed up that announcement with another that it shipped 35 million mobile handsets in the first half of 2011, up 30% on-year, and it's smartphone sales grew by 400% in the first six months of the year to 5 million units.

It's a strong partner, and we're proud to see ZTE supports Smart Wi-Fi in the market as well. The company is pre-loading Kineto's Smart Wi-Fi Application onto select new Android-based ZTE smartphones, starting with the Skate, coming soon in the UK.

Wu Sa, director of Mobile Device Operations for ZTE UK, said: "Devices such as the ZTE Skate are proving very popular with both operators and consumers, and we're happy to be working with Kineto to integrate Smart Wi-Fi into devices for carriers that want to take advantage of the benefits of UMA."

ZTE is on a winning streak, and Smart Wi-Fi is now part of that streak.

Not Resting on our Laurels

Second quarter was a strong and positive one for Kineto. We're not resting on our laurels, mind you, but I do want to share them with you.

By the end of Q2 2011, Kineto's Smart Wi-Fi Application was officially on 15 additionalAndroid smartphones. This brings the total number of Smart Wi-Fi-enabled smartphones to more than 30 from the industry's leading manufacturers, including HTC, Huawei, LG, Motorola, Samsung and ZTE.

Other highlights:

•  Orange UK has expanded its Signal Boost service (based on Smart Wi-Fi) to offer the following nine smartphones: Samsung Galaxy S II and Galaxy Ace; the LG Optimus Me; HTC Wildfire S, Cha Cha and Desire S; along with the Orange-branded Barcelona, Monte Carlo and Stockholm.

•  T-Mobile USA introduced six new Wi-Fi Calling-enabled smartphones, including the Samsung Dart™, Samsung Gravity™ SMART, Samsung Exhibit™ 4G; HTC Sensation™ 4G, T-Mobile® G2x™ with Google™ and the T-Mobile® Sidekick® 4G, providing customers with enhanced network coverage and the ability to experience high-quality voice and data on their home Wi-Fi networks.

•  ZTE will now pre-load Kineto's Smart Wi-Fi Application onto select new Android-based smartphones.

•  Huawei will now pre-load Kineto's Smart Wi-Fi Application onto select new Android-based smartphones.

Wi-Fi Calling Post-Earthquake

Mobile phones provide a level of accessibility and convenience we've never had before. And in times of crisis, they are the first things we look to in order to connect and get reassurance. Of course, that's why all the mobile operators reported clogged networks in the Northeast US Tuesday when nearly the entire East Coast into parts of the Midwest started rumbling from the earthquake.

Mobile operators took to Twitter to encourage subscribers to try email and other ways of communication. But many T-Mobile customers had an edge with Wi-Fi Calling. Through Twitter, we read first-hand accounts about how Wi-Fi Calling helped families and friends to connect.

Here's just a sampling of the tweets about how helpful Wi-Fi Calling was post earthquake:

@johnashtonedgar: @TMobile #Tmobile Wi-Fi calling would also help alleviate the stress on the network in earthquake affected areas. #EastCoastEarthquake 

@NuShrike ironically, I'm hearing it's #WiFi calling that still works on East Coast @TmoNews @TMobile @kinetowireless @alfranken @SenatorSanders 

@MadBlackPoet This wifi calling is very useful in times like these. Damn, cell towers jammed. 

@Luton13 #tmobile wifi calling working like a champ...thank you magenta for innovating even when towers are not working 

@signofthegrind @MsCat215 most cells are down or overloaded. Unless u use wifi calling 

@JGarc1187 Put that android or blackberry to work... Use wifi calling.. It works to make calls and text..I hope everyone is ok... 

@Brownnotes215 If you can't make calls use wifi calling to make calls 

@msparisknight Wow that earthquake was crazy! Thankful for wifi calling 

@HaisamIdo Thank u @TMobile for providing free Wi-fi Calling on my #android phone. I was able to send SMS during #earthquake !!! 

@FACEofDIAMONDS - Now calling Mom using Wi-Fi calling. If you need to reach loved ones with no service I can help you through Wi-Fi calling.

Follow these tweets and more at Twitter.com/KinetoWireless. 

Have you had any experiences where Wi-Fi Calling helped you when you really needed it? Tell us in the comments.

Rogers, Fido expand international wi-fi calling

It looks like MobileSyrup got an early tip that Canada-based mobile operators Rogers and Fido have launched an “International Wi-Fi Calling” add-on. For operators concerned about preserving roaming revenues, here’s a great way to capture additional value from users traveling abroad.

Rogers has been gradually growing its Wi-Fi Calling service, starting with an offer geared toward students and expanding wi-fi calling to address business’ needs. According to the article, the new add-on gives subscribers with capable phones that ability to use these phones during international travel.

They are charging either $25 or $40 for 30 days of service plans for this. According to the article, $25 gives you international roaming rates and unlimited Wi-Fi calling back to Canada. For $40, you get unlimited local calling and long distance, plus Unlimited Wi-Fi calling. The fine print states that “Calls made back to Canada over Wi-Fi will not be charged against shared roaming plan minutes.”

Wi-Fi Calling for Emergency Response

On the T-Mobile blog the other day, there was a post about its Persistent Communication Solutions powered by T-Mobile’s Wi-Fi Calling for Governmenttechnology. Have you heard about it?  

It's a really valuable and important program as it allows first responders – including police, firefighters and EMTs --

"to stay connected during emergencies with the same phone they use every day, without having to switch to a different device, even when commercial wireless networks are out of service. It also enables wireless communication where no commercial networks exist – so first responders can stay connected even in the most remote areas."  

You can read more about it at the T-Mobile blog post. 

It ties in for us regular folk, too. As I blogged the other day, Wi-Fi Calling came in quite handy in recent weeks post-earthquake on the east coast and also during and after the Hurricane Irene havoc for people who had electricity and wanted to reach out to friends and family to check in. Cell towers got knocked out and networks were overly congested. Wi-Fi Calling gave many some peace of mind. 

It's great to learn about T-Mobile's programs like this -- it's not something we often hear about. Have you been in a situation where Wi-Fi Calling really helped you? Tell me about it in the comments

Smart Wi-Fi drives data offload

Based on data recently released by Validas, which analyzes the mobile-phone bills of consumers, T-Mobile looks to be the only US mobile operator able to control its data surges from increased smartphone usage.

An article in Fierce Wireless reported Validas' research compiled between June 2010 and July 2011. It showed Verizon with the highest percentage of increase in data usage with AT&T second and Sprint in third place. Yet T-Mobile had a slight decrease. 

Is T-Mobile able to increase data offload because of Smart Wi-Fi? It is the only operator of the four with an active and successful Wi-Fi data offload service -- Wi-Fi Calling, based on Kineto's Smart Wi-Fi technology.  Smart Wi-Fi gives T-Mobile subscribers a reason to connect their smartphones to Wi-Fi – and thus offload the cellular network.  So it would follow that its offload is very positively impacted and that is what sets it apart from its competitors. 



With data surges developing into a major issue for mobile operators, competitive solutions abound. Could T-Mobile have found the one that truly has an impact? Let me know what you think in the comments.

Republic Wireless turns mobile world upside down

But for mobile industry watchers, it's not the price but the approach which is turning the mobile model upside-down.

The concept is that people spend the majority of their time indoors (home, office) and within range of Wi-Fi.

Rather than relying on expense and limited cellular spectrum, Republic 'requires' subscribers to use their service predominately over Wi-Fi. Yes, they offer a 'fall back' to Sprint when out and about, but per their customer service agreement, Republic will cut you off if you use too much of Sprint's network. Wow.

There have been plenty of discussions about turning Wi-Fi into a global, mobile network. Trilogy Partner's CEO John Stanton said he spoke with Steve Jobs in 2006/2007 about creating Apple's own mobile network based on Wi-Fi.

And now Republic has taken such a service to market.

We've known for quite some time that the majority of mobile usage happens indoors. And it's these indoor locations which are most difficult to cover from outdoor macro cell towers. This problem, combined with the compelling rise of smartphones as a constant companion, has fueled the rise of Wi-Fi usage within mobile networks.

What Republic is showing is that a 'mobile service' doesn't need to be exclusive to cellular spectrum or radio towers.

In this case, cellular is a service delivered 'over the top' of Wi-Fi. The implications are profound.

Will Republic succeed? Unlikely. They don't have the brand awareness/marketing firepower to make a dent in the hyper-competitive US mobile market.

But as US operators look to lower costs while trying to address massive data demand, they will quickly realize Wi-Fi is for more than just simple data offload.

Nielsen - Telling the US smartphone story

I’m always on the look-out for a good resource which highlights what’s really happening in the mobile market. Recently I’ve been turning to quarterly reports published by consumer preferences company Nielsen.

The most recent Nielsen Q3 2011 Mobile Survey report is packed with interesting tidbits on the US smartphone market.

I particularly like their chart on smartphone ownership by OS by manufacturer:

In another post on another blog, I commented how the word “voice” didn’t appear in the report until page 24… a testament to how we use our smartphones today – as mobile internet tools, messaging machines, game-stations, and apparently last as an actual phone.

RIM Re-Joins the Wi-Fi Calling Party

For some unspoken reason, RIM had removed the Wi-Fi Calling functionality, possibly a
symptom of the firm’s general malaise. But its reintroduction as part of the new OS suggests strongly that its removal did not go unnoticed.