As 60,000 people flooded Mobile World Congress in Barcelona this week, multiple bars and restaurants were suddenly hit by wave after wave of men (it's mostly men) in blue and grey suits. The suits at MWC are there to do one thing. Sell mobile base stations to each other, get carrier partnerships for their new Latin American MVNO (or similar), and generally be those mobile corporate drones that flood the Fira conference centre annually. This year some companies have gone all out with their trade stands - Alcatel's looks like a cross between MacDonalds and a scene from Logans Run. The irony that socialist troops paraded on the same ground during the 1930s is lost on most. But amid all this razzmatazz and hype about the future of mobile, one can't help wondering: Has Mobile World Congress outlived its usefulness? The signs are there. Carriers are losing their position as the centre of gravity in mobile. It used to be the case the that big stories were about Verizon/AT&T/Vodafone/Whichever signing some big deal. That's no longer the case. Today it's all about software and handset operating systems like Windows Phone and Android (Apple never exhibits, but now and again you can spot their executives wandering around). These days the conversation around mobile is all about apps and platforms. Angry Birds launching on a handset or tablet is the news, not some carrier deal.
Mittwoch, 29. Februar 2012
Slowly But Surely Software Will Eat Mobile World Congress Too
As 60,000 people flooded Mobile World Congress in Barcelona this week, multiple bars and restaurants were suddenly hit by wave after wave of men (it's mostly men) in blue and grey suits. The suits at MWC are there to do one thing. Sell mobile base stations to each other, get carrier partnerships for their new Latin American MVNO (or similar), and generally be those mobile corporate drones that flood the Fira conference centre annually. This year some companies have gone all out with their trade stands - Alcatel's looks like a cross between MacDonalds and a scene from Logans Run. The irony that socialist troops paraded on the same ground during the 1930s is lost on most. But amid all this razzmatazz and hype about the future of mobile, one can't help wondering: Has Mobile World Congress outlived its usefulness? The signs are there. Carriers are losing their position as the centre of gravity in mobile. It used to be the case the that big stories were about Verizon/AT&T/Vodafone/Whichever signing some big deal. That's no longer the case. Today it's all about software and handset operating systems like Windows Phone and Android (Apple never exhibits, but now and again you can spot their executives wandering around). These days the conversation around mobile is all about apps and platforms. Angry Birds launching on a handset or tablet is the news, not some carrier deal.
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