By Editor on February 20, 2012 · Leave a Comment
Telecommunications operator, Orange is launching an innovative service making Facebook accessible on any phone across all areas in Africa, where Orange has its presence. As per the company, Orange is the first operator in the region to use USSD technology, a low-bandwidth data service that is accessible from even the most basic phones, to create access to social networking.
With Facebook via USSD (Unstructured Supplementary Service Data), Orange is providing mobile access service to millions of customers in Africa, many potentially for the first time. The company claims that even users with older or very basic handsets without an internet connection or data plan will be able to stay in touch with their family and friends on Facebook through a simple and affordable text-based service.
USSD is a technology used by all GSM mobile devices to send information across a 2G network, and is already used widely in Africa for services such account information and callback services. Orange expects over one million customers to avail this service within the first year.
Orange launched this service at the end of 2011 for Mobinil customers in Egypt, and over 350,000 customers have connected Facebook via USSD in the first month.
According to company reports, this new service forms part of Orange’s strategy to help customers get more from their digital lives and provide access to mobile services such as Facebook to the widest possible range of customers. This is the latest in a series of services designed to open up access to digital services in emerging markets such Google SMS chat and email via SMS, and the exclusive Alcatel One Touch range of phones with deep Facebook integration.
Xavier Perret, Vice President of Strategic Partnerships, France Telecom-Orange has said that social networks such as Facebook have completely changed how people stay in contact with their family and friends, and it’s important that their customers, regardless of the phone they have, are able to access and participate in these services. They feel that it is their role to help their customers enjoy a digitally rich, connected life, and services such as Facebook via USSD this make that possible for even more of their customers.
In order to avail this service, customers only need to type a specific code into their phone to open Facebook via USSD session and enter a PIN code to access the service securely. Once connected to Facebook via USSD, customers can search for friends, invite friends, accept or deny friend requests, update their status and comment/like/unlike their friend’s status’. Customers will have the choice between four types of pricing: per session (10 to 20 minutes), daily, weekly and monthly. Exact bundles and tariffs will be confirmed by each country as the service comes to market.
Filed under Africa, Europe, France, Mobile, Social Media for Mobile Operators ·
Tagged with Africa, Bundle, Facebook, France, Google SMS chat, Orange, Social Networking, Tariffs, USSD technology, Xavier Perret
By Editor on August 15, 2006 · Leave a Comment
The Western European mobile phone market has grown seven per cent since last year, reports market research firm IDC.According to IDC, the Western European mobile phone market, consisting of traditional mobile phones and converged devices, saw shipments of 414m units, compared to the 38.5 shipped in the corresponding quarter of 2005.’Further movement of WCDMA handsets into accessible price points including pre-pay bundles represented 21 per cent of total shipments, and this, combined with the widespread introduction of highly compelling feature phones sporting comprehensive feature sets in innovative form factors, drove healthy renewal cycles in 2Q06, while the emergence of highly competitive pre-pay bundles invigorated demand at the low end,’ said Jean-Philippe Bouchard, senior research analyst, European Mobile Devices.
These numbers reflect a solid growth, says IDC, despite signs that this growth in the traditional mobile phone market is unsustainable as subscriber saturation in most Western European markets moves beyond 100 per cent and operators continue to scrutinize costs and downsize portfolios.
Growth in the converged device market was only slightly larger than that of traditional mobiles, despite the fact that converged devices have consistently outperformed traditional mobile phones. IDC believes that the reason for this is that most consumers view many features offered by converged phones to be unnecessary.
As a result, consumer-centric converged devices are competing directly with high-end feature phones, which in terms of the most visible technical specifications such as cameras, are generally deemed indistinct from smart phones by most consumers. Converged devices are defined as voice- or data-centric handsets that are capable of synchronizing personal information and/or email with server, desktop, or laptop computers.
Source- http://www.digitalmediaasia.com
Technorati : Handset, Mobile, WCDMA, Western Europe
Ice Rocket : Handset, Mobile, WCDMA, Western Europe
Filed under Mobile ·
Tagged with Bundle, Bundles, cameras, CDMA handset, Desktop, e-pay, Laptop, Mobile Device, mobile devices, Portfolio, Renew, Renewal, Saturation, SEVEN, Specification, Specifications, Sporting
