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 Marketing News Weekly - Week of June 27, 2011

Geneva Eggs With Benedict Mobility Breakfast Meeting, June 27th

Eggs With Benedict Geneva

Today the folks from K2 Partnering and I were in Geneva, Switzerland for a mobility breakfast meeting. It was a beautiful venue on the lake. We met mobility experts from many different companies and had numerous discussions about interesting projects.

Did you know that in some places in Africa medicine bottles have phone numbers on them so you can text to validate the medicine's authenticity? Seems counterfeit medicine is a huge problem in Africa.

Did you know some companies are wanting to capture and utilize the knowledge of their remote workers around the world by implementing social networking and knowledge management solutions? Seems many remote workers do not even have computers. Companies are considering supplying them with mobile phones with SMS capabilities to integrate with these solutions. Very interesting!

Another issue - It is often very difficult for a remote worker to find in-house experts in the same company in different parts of the world? Seems many in-house experts are only known through personal relationships. Large companies want to optimize the value of their institutional knowledge and expertise through mobility.

I am always interested to learn how different systems integrators around the world view the Sybase Unwired Platform and SAP's mobility strategy. I spoke to an SI today that believes Afaria is top notch, but is less convinced about the rest of SUP. He wondered why SAP did not just expand DOE to cover the mobility feature gap. I shared my opinion that there are many motivations for acquiring a company beyond just a particular product feature set. There is market position, image, perception, momentum, brand evolution and a need to start strong and command attention. Everyone must start and build. Sybase was a good place to start and build.

The SIs I spoke with today are seeing a lot of mobility interest from their clients in central Europe. They have numerous opportunities and a strong mobility sales pipelines.

Tomorrow I will be in Frankfurt for another Eggs With Benedict mobility breakfast meeting. Again I was disappointed that there were no real eggs for breakfast in Geneva. How many croissants can one person eat? There is still time to join me for breakfast in Brussels and London later this week to learn if I will ever see a real egg at these meetings.

Upcoming Events

Eggs with Benedict - European Tour - Mobility Strategies and More, June 27 – July 1, 2011
ClickConnect APAC 2011, July 11 – 13, 2011
Syclo Mobile Conference 2011, July 13 – 15, 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.

Paris Eggs with Benedict Breakfast Meeting, June 26th

We kicked off the Eggs with Benedict mobility series of breakfast meetings yesterday in sweltering Paris, France. Strangely there were no eggs at my breakfast, only croissants, esspresso and fruit. We had an intimate group of attendees that were passionate about mobility and we explored some very interesting subjects related to the global challenges and demands on IT organizations for mobile solutions.

One CTO from a global cement manufacturer shared that he had just returned from Zambia where he met with his African IT organization and mobility was a central discussion point. The challenges they have are often basic infrastructure issues, like how to connect to the internet.

It was also interesting to learn that a global company was trying to figure out a way to connect with over half of their 78,000 employees who had no access to computers. They were looking at how mobility could solve this issue.

I also heard about how valuable SMS (texting) is to companies in many less developed countries. Basic mobile phones can support SMS, and many SMS solutions can provide incredible value. Banking, payments, notification of departure times for deliveries, etc., can all be done using SMS. One production text-based mobility solution discussed automatically notifying customers when their shipment left the depot. These were just a few of the many SMS based mobile solutions discussed over breakfast.

The discussion around SMS solutions helped me to better understand the value of Sybase’s 365 offerings to the overall mobility picture. Many of us who focus the majority of our time in the Western economies often forget there is much value outside of just expensive smartphones and tablets. We have yet to fully tap the power of SMS, but need motivates ingenuity.

The common thread with the meeting attendees was that enterprise mobility is a priority. Now on to Geneva for the next Eggs with Benedict mobility breakfast meeting, perhaps there will be eggs.

Upcoming Events

Eggs with Benedict - European Tour - Mobility Strategies and More, June 27 – July 1, 2011
ClickConnect APAC 2011, July 11 – 13, 2011
Syclo Mobile Conference 2011, July 13 – 15, 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.

Mobile Commerce News Weekly - Week of June 27, 2011

The Mobile Commerce News Weekly is an online newsletter made up of the most interesting news, articles and links related to mobile payments, mobile money, e-wallets, mobile banking and mobile security 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 Marketing News Weekly
Also read Mobility News Weekly
Also read M2M News Monthly

Google Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt predicts that by 2012 one-third of all restaurants and retail outlets will offer NFC payment options. Read Original Content

SmartSoft has announced a major breakthrough in NFC payments. Together with partners Turkcell and Plastkart, the companies have unveiled Europe's first MNO (Mobile Network Operator) Trusted Service Manager mobile solution for NFC Payments approved by MasterCard. Read Original Content

Research conducted by Technavio reveals that the NFC payments market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 68 percent between 2010 and 2014. Read Original Content

NFC developer ISIS announced that in the first few months of 2012 they will conduct trials for their new payment system in Salt Lake City and in Austin, Texas. Read Original Content

ViVOtech, provider of NFC software and systems, has announced that it has closed $24 million in a Series C round of funding from several new investors. Some investors include Google and Citi Bank. Read Original Content

For the third time this year PayPal has increased it’s forecast of mobile payments and now predicts the company will reach $3 billion in mobile payments during 2011. Read Original Content

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

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

AT&T has created a cloud system that allows physicians to upload and share medical images over a secure network. This will allow doctors to review patient images securely through their tablets and smartphones. Read Original Content

By using RFID tracking devices on valuable equipment, Saint Luke’s Hospital in Kansas City was able to save thousands of dollars and can now operate with more assurance that their inventory is secure. Read Original Content

Traklok has created a new device that can communicate its location and status via Wi-Fi, satellite and cellular communications, and when used with cargo shipments can secure a cargo container's door so that it unlocks only where and when authorized to do so. Read Original Content

The U.S. Army is currently leaning towards Research In Motion’s Playbook over the iPad, because the Playbook is more secure for military use according to an Army Lieutenant Colonel. Apple and RIM are competing among the branches of the U.S. military to tap into the billions spent on new technology each year. Read Original Content

A study by the University of Cincinnati has found that RFID monitoring of medical supplies could save hospitals 18 percent in labor expenses. Read Original Content

The U.S. Marine Corps recently submitted a request for information to the smartphone community on how handset devices could be used by the Marine Corps to meet their specific needs both on and off the field. Read Original Content

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

A study by The Electrical Power Research Institute estimates that smart grid projects in the United States will lead to $1.3 to $2 trillion in benefits by 2020. Read Original Content

Both SAP and General Electric have joined an alliance of companies in order to help create common standards within the smart meter market. Read Original Content

Ford recently announced that in select new models the vehicle communication and entertainment systems will be able to connect with smartphones. Read Original Content

ABI Research forecasts that by the end of this year there will be over 100 million smart meter shipments and by 2016 there will be 250 million yearly deliveries of smart meter units. Read Original Content

The Northeast Group recently projected that by 2020 the South American smart meter market will reach 104.5 million units and will be worth $21.5 billion dollars. Read Original Content

Wireless Federation reports there will be massive growth in M2M security components in Europe over the next few years. The projections point at growth from 2.4 million in 2010 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 55 percent to touch 21.4 million in 2015. Read Original Content

Mobile Expert Interview Series: VWFS's Carl Redman

I was able to schedule and conduct an interview with Carl Redman, Head of IT Development and Business Analysis at Volkswagen Financial Serivces in the UK today. He is a veteran mobility user with two enterprise mobility implementations under his belt, and that makes him an expert in my estimation.

His first enterprise mobility implementation was a joint project between his developers and a team from Research In Motion. The mobile solution was the Mobile Stock Audit app and was used on BlackBerry devices. The app was integrated with SAP on the backend. It enabled his team of auditors to check on the status of over 20,000 vehicles distributed at auto dealerships around the UK. Auditing is very important, because it can help detect dealerships that may be experiencing financial troubles.

The Mobile Stock Audit app enabled auditors to have updated reports on their BlackBerrys and to closely monitor the workloads of their auditors.

This first bespoke (customized) mobility app took six months to develop with RIM. The mobile solution worked fabulously, but it was expensive to develop, maintain and support. If they continued to use this bespoke model, they would need to hire additional IT staff just to develop and support future mobility applications. Redman realized that bespoke mobility applications were not the ideal scenario for his future mobility applications.

Mobile Field Services and Service Optimization - Not This Time

Yesterday we called our lawn sprinkler company and requested service. The service was on a section that had been repaired earlier. I was calling them back to repair the same section.

Here is what an optimzied service would have looked like:

The mobile service ticket would have alerted the service technician that this was the second visit for the same issue.
The service technician would call me and ask a few questions before driving all the way out to my house. This would save time and money.
The service technician would then bring the required parts with him, thus reducing time and fuel and allowing for more work to be done in a day.

Instead, the service technician did not call, did not review the service ticket until arriving, did not look up my account details, and did not review my past service tickets and issues. He drove all the way out, looked at the problem, realized he needed parts, drove all the way back to get the parts, and returned 30 minutes later. A simple five minute visit took nearly an hour. The cost was the same for the 5 minute visit as it was for 1 hour.

I remember another incident with my plumber. I called and scheduled a service call. I said I will take a photo and email it to you so you can see the problem and know what to be prepared for prior to coming out. The dispatcher said, "What would I do with a photo?" Never mind....

You probably don't want to be a service technician at my house. I exhibit a freakish interest in your job, ask too many questions about the way your business operates and follow you around with a note pad.

Upcoming Events

Eggs with Benedict - European Tour - Mobility Strategies and More, June 27 – July 1, 2011
ClickConnect APAC 2011, July 11 – 13, 2011
Syclo Mobile Conference 2011, July 13 – 15, 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 News Weekly - Week of June 20, 2011

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 Monthly

Mobile app analytics firm Flurry is releasing a new report comparing the daily engagement of smartphone users on mobile apps vs. web browsing on the PC. Games and social networking categories dominate, capturing 47 percent and 32 percent on consumer time spent daily, respectively. Combined, these two categories control 79 percent of consumers’ total app time. Read Original Content

HighPoint Solutions, a premier provider of specialized IT services dedicated to the life sciences and healthcare industries, has announced a strategic partnership with Pyxis Mobile, provider of the only cross-device mobile application platform designed to meet customers’ constantly changing needs. Read Original Content

Android's rather sizable share of the U.S. smartphone market declined slightly from 52.4 percent to 49.5 percent last quarter. Read Original Content

The global smartphone security software market is set to reach nearly $3 billion by 2017, according to a new report available on companiesandmarkets.com. Read Original Content

Smartphone owners are using more than twice the data from a year ago, while data plan rates have remained constant, according to research firm Nielsen. Read Original Content

Going to Australia to Speak on Mobility and Field Services - July 11-13th

Manly, Australia

I have been invited to speak at the ClickConnect APAC 2011 event in Manly, Sydney, Australia on the subjects of enterprise mobility and mobile field services July 11th-13th. I was in Manly and Sydney in March speaking at the Mastering SAP Technologies conference and it was beautiful and an extraordinary place for a conference so was happy to accept.

This event is open to companies that are involved in field services, service optimization and/or are looking to implement enterprise mobility strategies and solutions.

The focus of the event is on how service organisations can achieve high performance of their people, assets and overall service delivery by overcoming specific barriers that may stand in the way.

Folks from SAP, Sybase, ClickSoftware and many other service companies that have already successfully implemented mobile and service optimization solutions will be speaking. If you are interested in attending click here for more information.

I will be leading a number of sessions on enterprise mobility strategies and the real-time, network centric operational approach to field services, and reporting on my most recent mobility research. I hope to see you there!

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

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 Marketing News Weekly - Week of June 20, 2011

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 00
Also read Mobility News Weekly
Also read M2M News Monthly

A recent study by InMobi reveals that African mobile web users prefer the mobile channel (46%) to their Desktop (10%) and even In-store (44%) when shopping for Apparel, Consumer Electronics and Entertainment Tickets. Read Original Content

A new report from research firm Gartner predicts that global mobile advertising revenue will reach $3.3 billion this year, up from $1.6 billion in 2010. Read Original Content

ABI Research reports that by 2016 there will be over 830 million enterprise smartphone and tablet apps, a growth rate of nearly 90 percent. Read Original Content

According to Cowen and Company Google will see a 41 percent increase in mobile online advertising revenue this year. Read Original Content

A new report from research firm Gartner says that global mobile ad revenue is projected to reach $20.6 billion by 2015. The Asia-Pacific region is expected to grow to $6.9 billion by 2015. Read Original Content

TMC reports that advertising through mobile apps is more effective than advertising on mobile websites. Read Original Content

Pyramid Research reports that by 2015 there will be $6.2 billion dollars in location-based advertising. Read Original Content

Pyxis Mobile provides an agile, powerful, and secure mobile enterprise application platform. It enables rapid cross-platform application development, unlimited data integration, enterprise-grade security, and the unique ability to change and update applications in real time. This newsletter is sponsored in part by Pyxis Mobile, http://pyxismobile.com./

Location based application company Foursquare announced that they have reached the 10 million member threshold. Read Original Content

There are now over 6,000 location-based apps for the iPhone and Forbes predicts that location0-based services will continue to become the trend among consumers. Read Original Content

Everything Everywhere, O2 and Vodafone are partnering to provide both contactless payments and location-based advertising in the same package. Read Original Content

Recent Articles by Kevin Benedict

Mobile Commerce If You Want My Business
Mobility Insights for Tuesday
Mobility Can Change the World and Healthcare
Philippe Winthrop and Steve Levy Webinar on Enabling the Agile Business through Mobile Strategy
Eggs with Benedict - European Enterprise Mobility Breakfast Meetings
Response to My Article on Sybase's Embedded Mobile Databases and HTML5
What Does HTML5 Mean for Sybase's Embedded Mobile Database Business?

Upcoming Events

Eggs with Benedict - European Tour - Mobility Strategies and More, June 27 – July 1, 2011
ClickConnect APAC 2011, July 11 – 13, 2011
Syclo Mobile Conference 2011, July 13 – 15, 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

You can follow me on Twitter @krbenedict and read my blog, Enterprise Mobility Strategies.

I have added a feature to my blog site that supports email subscriptions. You can now receive all blog articles directly via email. If you are interested, click here.

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

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 Commerce If You Want My Business

"They should have a mobile app if they want my business!" That is what my wife said to me today. She was referring to a particular business focused hotel chain without a mobile app. "I use my mobile Amazon app constantly. I want to do business with companies that have mobile apps," she added.

Forrester Research reports that mobile commerce revenue is expected to reach $10 billion by the end of this year and will continue growing at an annual rate of 39 percent.

I wonder how many other people feel the same as my wife.

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

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 Commerce News Weekly - Week of June 20, 2011

The Mobile Commerce News Weekly is an online newsletter made up of the most interesting news, articles and links related to mobile payments, mobile money, e-wallets, mobile banking and mobile security 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 Marketing News Weekly
Also read Mobility News Weekly
Also read M2M News Monthly

Forrester Research reports that mobile commerce revenue is expected to reach $10 billion by the end of this year and will continue growing at an annual rate of 39 percent. Read Original Content

The Standard Bank of South Africa is recruiting customers by providing convenient mobile banking “shacks” in thousands of locations throughout the country. Read Original Content

The “electronic alternative payment” market, which largely includes mobile payments, is currently estimated to be worth $62 billion and by 2015 will reach $127 billion according to the research conducted by Packaged Facts. Read Original Content

Starbucks is expanding its mobile payment plan and recently announced that they now offer a mobile payment app through Android phones for nearly 1,000 locations. Read Original Content

A new survey by Retrevo Pulse found that only 21 percent of their participants were interested in smartphones with NFC capability, the majority of the participants were simply uninterested in using devices to pay for things. Read Original Content

Mobility Insights for Tuesday

Mobile technologies can be so clever and interesting. They can provide so many useful tools. Let me share a few recent examples and experiences.

Example #1 - My good friend Jody Sedrick and his team here in Boise (home of the Boise State Bronco football team) have a mobile application called Find Things Fast that enables you to organize and quickly find your stuff. First you take a photo of your possessions, and then identify the storage container and location of each. The end result is that you can quickly find your favorite winter sweater by searching your application and seeing quickly which box it is in, and where the box is located in the garage. This is like a consumer version of an enterprise asset management system. Very cool!

Example #2 - Last week, while traveling, working and playing in Europe I used my iPhone (the WiFi connection) constantly for information, maps, looking up the history of a region and language translation. I also used skype on my iPhone to speak with my clients overseas. This would have been cost prohibitive without skype. I could not have done my job, while traveling, without the internet and mobile devices.

Example #3 - I found an iPhone application called TextGrabber that enables you to take a photograph of a business card, article or page, and the app will automatically use OCR (optical character recognition) on the photo and import the text into a note page. Now I can quote, cite or reference a statement in an article, word for word without re-typing. This app cost something like .99 cents.

Example #4 - My wife kept a travel journal of our family vacation this year. While sitting in an outdoor cafe or traveling on a train she would write about our experiences. She did nearly all of her typing on an iPhone and then transferred it to her MacBook Pro later for additional editing. She can type very fast and comfortably on her iPhone. She proved the ability to take extensive notes and seamlessly transfer them back and forth with her laptop. This is very useful for people that produce a lot of written content in mobile environments.

Example #5 - I read about a new language translation app for smartphones that enable you to take a photograph of any menu, sign, page, etc, and then the app will use both OCR (optical character recognition) technology and language translation software to convert the photo into print and then translate it for you. Wow! No more surprise dishes at the French restaurant.

Upcoming Events

Live Webinar - Learn how Carefusion mobilized SAP CRM Field Service with Syclo, June 22, 2011
Eggs with Benedict - European Tour - Mobility Strategies and More, June 27 – July 1, 2011
ClickConnect APAC 2011, July 11 – 13, 2011
Syclo Mobile Conference 2011, July 13 – 15, 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 Can Change the World and Healthcare

Puneet Suppal

My friend Puneet Suppal from SAP wrote a great article this week that emphasizes some of the ways mobile technologies can improve and revolutionize the healthcare industry. It is motivating to read these kinds of stories. There are so many different ways that mobile technologies can improve things. Let me highlight just a few.

When I want healthcare or medical answers I routinely look them up on my smartphone. I simply enter http://www.webmd.com/ or any number of other quality sites to read up on the topic. I found out recently that I am allergic to wheat. I discovered this by looking up the symptoms and reading about it on my iPhone. I then scheduled a blood test with my doctor to confirm. The powerful part of this scenario is that mobile devices and smartphones can enable anyone, any place in the world that has access to the internet, the same capabilities for accessing information. Smartphones and the internet can unlock the digitized knowledge of the world and make it accessible to even the remotest corners of the earth.

I worked on a mobility project a few years back that helped medicine be delivered to various parts of Africa. Donors wanted proof of delivery of the medicine in order to continue the program. We delivered a mobile supply chain management and "chain of custody" solution that documented the shipment and delivery of the medicine to final destination. This entire solution utilized smartphones.

There are all kinds of advances in the medical device industry that utilizes mobile solutions and M2M technologies. This week it was announced that Cinterion is planning to embed a cellular wireless chip into a heart arrhythmia monitoring device. The device can monitor patients for up to 28 days and also enables care providers to communicate with patients via the device.

Last week I published an interview with Vivint's Scott Taylor on their use of smartphones and M2M (machine to machine) technologies in the home management and security solutions industries. The capabilities Scott demonstrated on his iPhone are revolutionizing that industry as well.

It is an exciting time to be involved in enterprise mobility.

Upcoming Events

Live Webinar - Learn how Carefusion mobilized SAP CRM Field Service with Syclo, June 22, 2011
Eggs with Benedict - European Tour - Mobility Strategies and More, June 27 – July 1, 2011
ClickConnect APAC 2011, July 11 – 13, 2011
Syclo Mobile Conference 2011, July 13 – 15, 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.

Field Mobility News Weekly - Week of June 20, 2011

Philippe Winthrop and Steve Levy Webinar on Enabling the Agile Business through Mobile Strategy

Philippe Winthroup

Two smart mobility experts, Philippe Winthrop and Steve Levy, are presenting a webinar tomorrow that I believe will be very interesting. I have presented with both several times and value their insights. Philippe and Steve are mobility veterans with many opinion, some I even agree with! Here is the webinar description:

Businesses must be nimble and responsive to survive in today’s highly competitive global and local markets. Rapidly growing and increasingly complex demands for enterprise mobility solutions require a development strategy that has the flexibility to change and respond quickly. How do you build a mobile development strategy that has the Agility to meet changing needs while controlling costs?

Please join Philippe Winthrop, Managing Director, Enterprise Mobility Foundation and Steve Levy, CEO, Pyxis Mobile for a discussion on the challenges of creating enterprise mobility strategies that can meet today’s rapidly changing business needs.

Philippe Winthrop, Managing Director, Enterprise Mobility Foundation:

* Enabling business agility through mobile strategy

* Making the transition from tactical to strategic management of enterprise mobility

* How app development strategy enables business agility

Steve Levy, CEO, Pyxis Mobile:

* Why responsiveness and agility are critical to mobile strategies

* How to add responsiveness and agility to your mobile app development process

Click here to register

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

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.

Eggs with Benedict - European Enterprise Mobility Breakfast Meetings

My breakfast was this big!

Next week, the week of June 27th, I will be presenting a series of breakfast meetings on enterprise mobility in 5 different cities across Europe. If you are in the neighborhood, I would love to invite you to breakfast with me. I will be having breakfast in the following locations:

Paris - 27th June - Park Hyatt Vendome Hotel - 5 Rue de la Paix
Geneva - 28th June - Hotel Grand Kempinski - 19 Quai de Mont Blanc
Frankfurt - 29th June - Marriott Hotel - 2 Hamburger Allee
Brussels - 30th June - Radisson Blu - 35 Idaliestraat
London -1st July - Park Hyatt The Churchill Hotel - Berkeley Mews Mayfair

If you are interested in attending at any of these locations please email James Common. James is organizing the event. I would love to meet up and discuss enterprise mobility with you! Here is the event description.

K2 Partnering Solutions is proud to be hosting a Mobile Strategy presentation and question and answer breakfast session with Kevin Benedict as our guest speaker. Kevin is a renowned authority in the area of mobility and a much sought after advisor by companies around the world.

Whether you are presently reviewing or have already begun implementing a mobile strategy at your own company, this is an opportunity to broaden your understanding and share experiences with CIOs, Application Managers and Mobile specialists from other leading firms.

We would welcome your attendance and are happy to extend additional invites to your colleagues or peers in this area but would be grateful if you would inform us in advance of the numbers in your party along with their name and job titles.

These will be small intimate breakfast meetings, so if you are interested please contact James right away as there is limited seating and orange juice.

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

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.

Response to My Article on Sybase's Embedded Mobile Databases and HTML5

I received feedback on my article, "What Does HTML5 Mean for Sybase's Embedded Mobile Database Business?" from Sybase's Tom Lee this week. Comments don't show up well on this blogging platform so I wanted to publish it here so you could be sure to read it. Please add your comments as well!

Tom Slee: Kevin - interesting comments, but I have a few disagreements. I'm speaking as part of the Sybase mobile and embedded database team, but opinions are my own.

HTML5 is now, as you know, a much bigger spec than just the local database. It includes a lot of video and other UI enhancements (canvas and so on). What's more, the Web SQL Database that you are referring to is no longer part of the HTML5 spec (although it is still present in mobile browsers, still supported, and has a bright future - just not as part of a formal spec.) See http://www.w3.org/TR/webdatabase/

So I think the changing face of HTML5 leads to a couple of confusions in your article. Sybase SUP 2.0, which I think is what you are referring to when you say "September is when SAP estimates they will be releasing their HTML5 container" [Kevin's comment - No, I am referring to SUP 2.1) does not have offline database capability. The container model stores some data offline, but not rich or structured data.

Also, the Web SQL Database has no synchronization component. That means that while it is fine for storing app-specific data, any attempt to keep that data up to date with what's in an enterprise store must be done by a developer. As you know, the data sync/enterprise integration issue is -- like all data consistency problems -- complex, especially in enterprise applications. Sybase products solve that problem for developers.

Who knows where pricing and licensing will go? That depends on many developments in the mobile enterprise space and I have no crystal ball. But I am confident that there is still a future for the offline data model in mobile enterprise applications, and for software that tackles the complex issues around enterprise integration.

Thanks Tom!!!!

Any comments to add?

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

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