The GSM Association (GSMA) had a recent board meeting and announced the “3G for All” program. In the words of the CEO in their press release:
Our 3G handset initiative will allow far more people to take advantage of the video clips, mobile music, Internet access, and many other multimedia services now enjoyed by more affluent users in the developed world. Our Emerging Market Handset programme is a compelling demonstration of how economies of scale can be brought to bear to accelerate falls in the cost of manufacturing mobile phones.
Will this development go down to our local telcos? If the next generation of low-end phones will have 3G capabilities, how will our local market change?
Imagine, video calling, video streaming, and high speed surfing with PhP 4,000 handsets with dual cameras – can they do it?
3 comments
Handsets of the future? http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2005/tparty.html. Not sure if they are after cost effective handsets tho.
An update from Globe re: 3G for All.
Before manufacturers put 3g on low-end handsets, 3G service must be made affordable to the masses. daily tv subscription at 20 pesos and internet browsing at pesos an hour. while globe makes their service complicated I’d rather not use 3G than read applicable rates and conditions of use. Sun on the other hand is a little bit late on 3G, but with the way Gobe and Smart put up their service prices and the challenge it poses for potential subscribers to understand their method of charging, Sun might not be far behind. Sun has the reputation of making things cheaper and available for the mass market – the market that PRE-pays, and with 3G, sun will definitely be in the race and lead the 3G service competition with (a hopefully) unlimited, comprehensive and no-brainer way of understanding the service and charging.