Tesco MVNO VoIP VoWLAN

Tesco Mobile Virtual Network gets VoIP as VoWLAN

I have always argued that convergence and MVNO go hand in hand. One of the key issues of Tesco when first negotiating their MVNO when I was at Mason Analysis, was that the host MNO needed a certain level of success and takeup for the then MNO investment in the MVNO (there were no MVNEs at the time) however, if the MVNO became too successful, it could prove a burden on the host network. Convergence is a simple way to ensure that the cheap low value calls do not become a burden to the host network operator. This was at a time when Nokia would hear nothing of the Nokia 6600 prototype I had with Bluetooth voice, nor my plan to roll it out across major banks...

Years have gone by, and now VoIP SIP stacks do not have to be hacked into high end Nokia phones, they are there already. The other phone we hacked, a P800, has an array of successors in UIQ that have VoIP, and they have now moved to a microsoft platform which was the easiest to add SIP to of all.

The problem so far has been that nobody has closed the loop of complexity: Trufone is good in that it is all done for you from the network to your broadband, but you still need to fiddle with NAT, WPA, IP addresses and the like. The truth of the matter is that VoIP ready Wi-FI ADSL routers are no in the sub $20 price point, and settings can be added and can be checked remotely. The next loops to close are:

• The power consumption... for which you need to own both the handset and the access point...
• The value proposition; S60 wi-fi phones are not cheap, and are not bought by the people who may look to use VoIP to save money
• Roaming; VoIP in the home is compelling, and Tesco have the ability to offer this by owning the broadband connection; but it is VoIP in Starbucks and VoIP in the airport and abroad that is the tipping point, and where QoS cannot be assured. At present, outside of the US public Wi-Fi is even more expensive than cellular, and not as ubiquitous as required for this roaming to be a compelling purchase trigger
• High end phones, like the Nokia N and E series, appeal to the MBTI types that have NT in their profile, and research on marketing by personality type I have undertaken, has shown that these groups prefer to buy their phone from the main provider; i.e Nokia or Vodafone, not an affinity partner, like Tesco, or their local trusted provider, etc. In short; these VoIP capable phones are not sold to Tesco's or a typical Mobile Virtual Network Operators' target market.

Read more in the MVNO convergence section

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posted by Christian Borrman 11:26am 25/05/08

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Glossary
Glossary of all the terms used above on Christian Borrman's blog.

links

MVNO Definition on wikipedia
Virtuser MVNO Consultancy
Diagrams:
Mobile and the brand
MVNO from the customer perspective
Legacy and Next Generation MVNO models
Other Resources:
Fixed-Mobile Convergence
Next Generation MVNO Report..

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