Kevin Benedict Ponders the Future

Full Disclosure: I am an independent mobility analyst, consultant and blogger. I work with and have worked with many of the companies mentioned in my articles.

Mobile Expert Video Series: Telstra's Warren Wipiti

Last week in Australia I was able to listen in on a presentation about field services automation, scheduling and mobilizing field workers by Telstra. They use Panasonic Toughbooks, WiFi enabled vehicles and ClickSoftware's ClickSchedule to organize and dispatch their field services teams.

In this video Warren shares that Telstra has gone from being just a utility provider, to now being a service provider in a deregulated and competitive environment where superior quality and customer service is a competitive advantage.

Telstra has done something that is very hard. They reduced their field services staff by 50%, yet improved their quality and customer service. Listen to this video to find out how.

Upcoming Events

Critical Requirements for Mobile App Development: Agility and Speed Strategy, Process, and Tools to Accelerate Mobile Development, July 21, 2011

Whitepapers of Note

The Business Benefits of Mobile Adoption with SAP Systems
ClickSoftware Mobility Suite and Sybase Mobility Solution
Mobile Adoption Among Gas and Electric Utilities
Mobile Adoption in Life Sciences
Mobile Adoption in Oil and Gas
Networked Field Services

Recorded Webinars of Note

3 Critical Considerations for Embracing Mobile CRM
The Future of Enterprise Mobility
The Latest m-Business Trends and How the Onslaught of Mobile Devices Affects Development Strategies
The Real-Time Mobile Enterprise: The Benefits of Rapid, Easy Access
Syclo and SAP Deliver Mobile Apps on Sybase Unwired Platform

*************************************************************

Kevin Benedict, Independent Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst, SAP Mentor Volunteer

Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict

Full Disclosure: I am an independent mobility analyst, consultant and blogger. I work with and have worked with many of the companies mentioned in my articles.

Mobility in Australia is Challenging

Snake is 5 meters (15 feet) long
Click Image to Enlarge

I had the privilege of speaking at a conference in Australia this week and spending time with many utilities and construction companies. The challenges in Australia can be highlighted by this image of a snake, provided by Jeff Morgan from Electrix taken from the window of a utility vehicle in Australia. This snake is of a very aggressive and deadly nature. I was also intrigued by the many spider stories that were shared by the field engineers that I spent time with this week. Seems spiders really like electrical meter boxes.

In addition to the biting and stinging variety of challenges, there are many connectivity challenges in a country as big and remote as Australia. It doesn't take long to lose connectivity once you leave the main roads in Australia. Companies use specialized radios and satellite phones and up-links a lot in this region.

Any mission critical mobile application such as field services and enterprise asset management needs to be designed to work equally well connected or disconnected from the Internet in Australia. That takes databases on the mobile client, syncing technology and back office integration. In other words, these kinds of mobile solutions are naturals for Sybase's SUP and SQL Anywhere architecture.

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Kevin Benedict, Independent Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst, SAP Mentor Volunteer

Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict

Full Disclosure: I am an independent mobility analyst, consultant and blogger. I work with and have worked with many of the companies mentioned in my articles.

Mobile Expert Video Series: Jemena's Tinashe Mutimbe

I met Tinashe Mutimbe over dinner at ClickSoftware's ClickConnect APAC 2011 conference in Manly, Australia this week. We had a very interesting discussion about enterprise mobility in the utilities industry and he was kind enough to agree to a video interview. Thanks Tinashe!

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Kevin Benedict, Independent Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst, SAP Mentor Volunteer

Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict

Full Disclosure: I am an independent mobility analyst, consultant and blogger. I work with and have worked with many of the companies mentioned in my articles.

Mobility ROI Weekly - Week of July 11, 2011

This weekly ROI (return on investment) report will include ROIs that I come across in my weekly enterprise mobility, M2M and GPS vehicle tracking research. I will be collecting ROIs and posting them here. The idea is that in the future if you need to find ROIs for companies in various industries they will be available here. I hope you find this useful.

Scottish Council Saves Through Fleet Management

After investing in a fleet management system from TomTom Business Solutions, the Scottish Council of West Dunbartonshire was able to track its fleet of vehicles resulting in a £100,000 reduction in fuel expenses during the first year. The Council installed TomTom LINK300 tracking units on 260 vehicles allowing Rodney Thorton, head of fleet and waste management, to better monitor the driving habits of his workers.

In the upcoming months the Council is expected to install TomTom tracking units on the remainder of the 380-vehicle fleet to save in fuel costs and reduce carbon emissions. West Dunbartonshire is also looking at TomTom’s ecoPLUS device that monitors engine performance and gathers engine data through embedded sensors. West Dunbartonshire’s ROI was reported to come from the following areas:

£100,000 reduction in fuel expenses
The ability to better monitor the driving habits of workers resulting in more responsible and efficient driving practices.
Fuel cost savings resulted from improvements to the way council vehicle operators carry out their duties.
Reduced carbon emissions

Read original source

Pipe Works Services SAves Through Vehicle Tracking

New Jersey based Pipe Works Services was able to increase their vehicle fleet productivity and reduce fuel consumption after installing GPS tracking devices on company vehicles. They selected the Marcus Fleet Tracking Solution package from Discrete Wireless, Inc. Pipe Works chose this solution because it offered features including email alerts and geo-fencing capabilities. Their ROI was reported to have come from the following areas:

35 percent productivity increase
20 percent reduction in fuel consumption
Better security and improved employee accountability

Read original source

Ventura California Saves Through GPS Tracking

The city of Ventura, California equipped select vehicles in its fleet of 450 with GPS tracking devices. After implementation the city saw impressive savings that include an overall fuel savings of 10 percent. In just the city’s water department, they realized annual savings of $10,000. Larger vehicles like wastewater vehicles can save up to $1,200 per year. After implementing a fleet tracking solution, the city saw an ROI in the following areas:

Improved fuel economy by 10 percent, which more than pays for the GPS Tracking System
Reduced idling time
Improved routing
Improved customer service
City water department saved more than $10,000/year in fuel and maintenance costs
Larger vehicles realized up to $1,200/year in fuel savings
Helped the city become leaner and greener by implementing more sustainable practices

Read original source

Upcoming Events

Critical Requirements for Mobile App Development: Agility and Speed Strategy, Process, and Tools to Accelerate Mobile Development, July 21, 2011

Whitepapers of Note

The Business Benefits of Mobile Adoption with SAP Systems
ClickSoftware Mobility Suite and Sybase Mobility Solution
Mobile Adoption Among Gas and Electric Utilities
Mobile Adoption in Life Sciences
Mobile Adoption in Oil and Gas
Networked Field Services

Recorded Webinars of Note

3 Critical Considerations for Embracing Mobile CRM
The Future of Enterprise Mobility
The Latest m-Business Trends and How the Onslaught of Mobile Devices Affects Development Strategies
The Real-Time Mobile Enterprise: The Benefits of Rapid, Easy Access
Syclo and SAP Deliver Mobile Apps on Sybase Unwired Platform

*************************************************************

Kevin Benedict, Independent Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst, SAP Mentor Volunteer

Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict

Read The M2M News Monthly

Full Disclosure: I am an independent mobility analyst, consultant and blogger. I work with and have worked with many of the companies mentioned in my articles.

Mobility Charts Weekly - Week of July 11, 2011

In the course of my daily research on subjects related to enterprise mobility I find charts that depict the current and future status of the market. It occurred to me that these charts may also be useful to others, so I am going to collect these charts, include links to the original source, and then publish them in a new weekly blog article called Mobile Charts Weekly. I hope you find this useful.

eMarketer estimates that during 2011 nearly 88.2 million Americans will redeem an online coupon for either an online or offline purchase, and by 2013 they expect 96.8 million adults to do the same. This chart reflects the predicted steady growth of U.S. coupon users over the next few years. Read Original Content

Michael Boland recently authored a forecast report for BIA/Kelsey that predicts large increases in both overall mobile advertising and, more specifically, a sharp increase in location-based advertising. By 2015 he expects advertisers to spend $2.84 billion on location-based advertisements. Read Original Content

The Wall Street Journal ran an article on June 29, 2011, reporting on recent studies on the emerging M2M market. In the article Juniper Research breaks down the M2M industry and compiles the different M2M sectors into the chart above. As a whole the M2M market is expected to increase sharply over the next few years. Read Original Content

CapGemini estimates that the world M2M market will be worth €27.4 billion ($39.3 billion) by 2013. Also Vodafone expects wireless traffic alone to be valued at €8.9 billion euros. Read Original Content

Upcoming Events

Critical Requirements for Mobile App Development: Agility and Speed Strategy, Process, and Tools to Accelerate Mobile Development, July 21, 2011

Whitepapers of Note

The Business Benefits of Mobile Adoption with SAP Systems
ClickSoftware Mobility Suite and Sybase Mobility Solution
Mobile Adoption Among Gas and Electric Utilities
Mobile Adoption in Life Sciences
Mobile Adoption in Oil and Gas
Networked Field Services

Recorded Webinars of Note

3 Critical Considerations for Embracing Mobile CRM
The Future of Enterprise Mobility
The Latest m-Business Trends and How the Onslaught of Mobile Devices Affects Development Strategies
The Real-Time Mobile Enterprise: The Benefits of Rapid, Easy Access
Syclo and SAP Deliver Mobile Apps on Sybase Unwired Platform

M2M News Weekly - Week of July 11, 2011

Welcome to M2M News Weekly, an online newsletter that consists of the most interesting news and articles related to M2M (machine to machine) and embedded mobile devices. I aggregate the information, include the original links and add a synopsis of each article. I also search for the latest market numbers such as market size, growth and trends in and around the M2M market.

Also read Field Mobility News Weekly
Also read Mobile Commerce News Weekly
Also read Mobile Marketing News Weekly
Also read Mobility News Weekly
Also read Mobility Charts Weekly

According to the information firm Pike Research, approximately 17.4 million smart meters were shipped globally in the first quarter of 2011, with 12.1 million of those units being deployed in China and around 3.5 million in North America. Read Original Content

Berg Insight reports that the market for home health monitoring devices was $10 billion in 2010, and patient monitoring is set to grow about 26 percent annually through 2014. In the next few years healthcare telematics is set to expand rapidly. Read Original Content

The number of smart meters installed in Europe will reach more than 130 million devices by 2016, according to a new research report from Berg Insight. Read Original Content

With help from 3G and 4G networks, more than one billion M2M connections are expected by 2015. Read Original Content

Visible Energy, Inc. has released an iPad application that allows customers to track their home-energy usage through their tablet. Read Original Content

The Mobility News Weekly is an online newsletter made up of the most interesting news and articles related to enterprise mobility that I run across each week. I am specifically targeting information that reflects market data and trends.

Also read Field Mobility News Weekly
Also read Mobile Commerce News Weekly
Also read Mobile Marketing News Weekly
Also read M2M News Weekly

According to a study by Pew Internet and American Life Project, a quarter of Americans with smartphones use the devices as their main way to access the Internet. About nine in 10 owners of such devices access the Web and check their e-mail each day through a mobile device. Read Original Content

The number of teens who own smartphones has nearly tripled over the last two years, says a new study: About 4.8 million teenagers owned smartphones in April of this year, according to research firm ComScore; in April 2009, only 1.7 million teens owned smartphones. Read Original Content

According to Kantar Worldpanel's research, Android has surged from 10.7 percent of UK smartphones in June 2010 to a dominant 45.2 percent in June 2011, thanks to the popularity of phones from the likes of HTC and Samsung. Read Original Content

Phones using iOS software currently hold 18 percent of the UK smartphone market, down from 30 percent last year, while RIM is showing a jump to 22 percent. Read Original Content

Nokia still leads the pack with 95.5 million phones, boosted by its strong position in emerging markets, followed by Samsung's 73.7 million. However, some Reuters analysts expect Samsung will narrow the gap in the coming quarters and one sees it overtaking Nokia in 2012. Read Original Content

The Mobile Marketing News Weekly is an online newsletter that is made up of the most interesting news, articles and links related to mobile marketing that I run across each week. I am specifically targeting market size and market trend information.

Also read Field Mobility News Weekly
Also read Mobile Commerce News Weekly
Also read Mobility News Weekly
Also read M2M News Weekly

Local Media Consultancy predicts that advertisers will invest a total of $690 million on local mobile ads this year, reaching $2.84 billion by 2015. Read Original Content

Pyramid Research recently stated that global revenue for the location-based services market is expected to reach $10.3 billion in 2015 up from $2.8 billion in 2010. Read Original Content

Marketers are poised to increase their U.S. mobile advertising spending from $790 million in 2010 to $4 billion in 2015 according to a new forecast published by BIA/Kelsey. Read Original Content

Apple is trying to capture a larger advertising client base by offering special deals to ad agencies to market companies through iAds. Read Original Content

Earlier this week Groupon informed it’s 83 million subscribers that they have changed their privacy policy in order to collect more information from mobile devices and personal content. Read Original Content

AT&T is creating a mobile location-based yellow pages feature that allows companies to advertise through the mobile app. AT&T expects the local mobile ad market to be worth $2 billion by 2014. Read Original Content

Mobile Expert Video Series: Gizmo's Troy Cox

Troy is CTO at Gizmo. They are an IT services start-up using cloud solutions, unique business models and mobile solutions. I had the chance to listen in on his presentation and to interview him in Australia this week.

Upcoming Events

Syclo Mobile Conference 2011, July 13 – 15, 2011
Critical Requirements for Mobile App Development: Agility and Speed Strategy, Process, and Tools to Accelerate Mobile Development, July 21, 2011

Whitepapers of Note

The Business Benefits of Mobile Adoption with SAP Systems
ClickSoftware Mobility Suite and Sybase Mobility Solution
Mobile Adoption Among Gas and Electric Utilities
Mobile Adoption in Life Sciences
Mobile Adoption in Oil and Gas
Networked Field Services

Recorded Webinars of Note

3 Critical Considerations for Embracing Mobile CRM
The Future of Enterprise Mobility
The Latest m-Business Trends and How the Onslaught of Mobile Devices Affects Development Strategies
The Real-Time Mobile Enterprise: The Benefits of Rapid, Easy Access
Syclo and SAP Deliver Mobile Apps on Sybase Unwired Platform

*************************************************************

Kevin Benedict, Independent Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst, SAP Mentor Volunteer

Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict