The NATPE Mobile++ was a day-long event on January 28, 2008 at Las Vegas. The event preceded the annual NATPE Conference that is scheduled from January 29 to January 31, 2008. The NATPE Mobile++ saw attendance from most of the movers and shakers of the global digital industry.
The day began with a close look at the technical aspects of the third screen and what the future holds. The general consensus was that the mobile industry had already become a very mature market to handle multiple players, and the benefits that were once the luxury of the high-end consumer were trickling to the mid-class digital consumers as well. The hot topics ranged from i-phone and smart-phones to Google’s forthcoming initiative ‘Android’ and applications that made the mobile medium as interesting as it is today.
Reiterating that Google was not in the process of launching any gphone, Diana Pouliot, Director of Mobile, Google, spoke on Android and the thought process behind it. She said, “At Google, we want to help people to get on to mobile Internet in an innovative way. There are three trends here that really are game defining. First, you need a great device that can unlock the true potential of mobile Internet. Second, it has to have speed, there is no ways anyone is waiting for 30 seconds to get information today, when they are on the move and finally, the information has to be relevant and accurate.” She explained that the ‘Android’ was designed bearing all this in mind.
Android is a software that Google aims to provide to handset manufacturers and carriers. The idea was to partner with as many players as possible for widespread distribution of this initiative. Handsets using the Android platform are expected to roll out in the second half of 2008. Pouliot agreed with Jeffrey Stier, SVP, Business Growth, North America, JWT, that 2008 was the year of mobile advertising. Where five years back, the consumer didn’t want to live without the TV, three years back couldn’t survive without the Internet, now it is all about the mobile phone. The experts also spoke about the focus on return on investments in the mobile media, and the fact that this market was still very small in comparison to traditional media.
However, they asserted that brands are very excited about the mobile market. Research, too, shows that people act faster on mobile search than they do on Internet search. Rachel Switzky, Client Relationship Manager, AT&T Mobility – IDEO, emphasised further on the importance of exclusive content on the mobile. She explained that the industry was doing a lot to offer new things to the consumers – whether it was exclusive content or enriching the mobile experience by offering more interactivity and creating communities.
However, some of the key trends on what the consumer wants include seamlessness, which is the ability to get content across all platforms and hence, have the control to access content whenever and wherever the consumer wants it; offer interactive entertainment that allows the consumer to engage both with the content and the brand and finally the ability to recognise ‘Mavers and Tribes’, which is the set of individuals that exude influence on communities.
Another interesting session in the day was on ‘Mobile Marketing and Advertising’. Roger Wood, SVP and GM, Americas Region, Amobee Media Systems moderated this session that spoke of the basics of the mobile medium. John Hadl, P&G, Ad Lab, spelt it out when he said, “The marketer is not buying tools or content – he is only buying access to audiences with the hope of selling products and services.” Yahoo Inc’s GM, Global Monetisation, Connected Life, Michael Bayle, explained that at present, the mobile medium was used to get audiences on mainstream, or to other mediums, the interest drawn from mainstream media. He said, “Sometimes you watch something on TV, want to know more on may be the actor, and use your mobile, and sometimes, it is the mobile alert that may have taken you to the TV.”
Two points that followed from here were the role of content across platforms and the role of local information, whether city-centric information or local maps and guides. Some of the other points revolved again on the creation of communities on mobile; role of mobile for viral campaigns; the possibility of a two-way conversation between consumer, content and brands.