fiercewireless.

com

 A year-ago FierceWireless published its first ebook
on the topic of embedded devices and the overarching
theme was that embedded wireless devices held
enormous potential. At that time, many operators,
module makers and device OEMs were just starting to
take advantage of the opportunities that were available.
Fast-forward one year and the message is clear:
connected devices are quickly moving from niche
applications such as remote metering and alarm systems
to mass market items such as e-readers, netbooks,
connected picture frames and more. In fact, in the
third quarter many U.S. operators started reporting the
number of embedded devices they have added to their
network as these devices started to impact their net
additions. AT&T Mobility appears to lead U.S. operators
with 1.12 million embedded devices added in the quarter.
T-Mobile USA reported 300,000 connected devices
in the third quarter followed by Verizon Wireless with
its 251,000 connected device additions in the quarter.
Sprint has so far not reported its connected device
figures. The company says it will wait until the industry
figures out a common metric for defining and measuring
a connected device before it jumps into the fray.
Indeed, it is difficult to determine exactly how to
count a connected device as a wholesale customer.
Others may group their connected devices in with
their prepaid subscribers. Nevertheless, it’s clear that
the industry is seeing a big impact from these devices
and it’s likely that will increase as consumer adoption
of connected devices grows.
But some analysts warn that the embedded device
ecosystem still has a long way to go until it reaches mass
market proportions. One of the biggest challenges is
reducing module costs. Although 2G modules just cost
around $20 per module, 3G modules run closer to $47,
according to Analysys Mason. While 2G modules clearly
have a cost advantage most operators are encouraging
connected devices to run on 3G networks. And most
consumer electronics OEMs want their devices to
benefit from 3G speeds. Hopefully as 3G module volume
increases, the price will decrease making it much more
affordable for OEMs to incorporate into their products.
In this eBook from FierceWireless we will take
an in-depth look at the various business models —
both in the U.S. and overseas — that are driving the
embedded wireless ecosystem.
Sue Marek

The Embedded
define a connected device. Some operators may Editor-in-Chief /// FierceWireless

 Thank you to our sponsors:

device evolution:
 Diamond Sponsors:  platinum Sponsor:  gold Sponsors:

from niche applications

to mass market appeal
3
Suitable Business
7
Defining and
8
Do We Care What
10
Silicon RF Front
11
Multinational
12
M2M Devices Can
14
Winning in the New
15
The Evolving
19
Retailers Have
21
The Connected Car
Models are Key Measuring It’s Called? Ends Drive CE Companies Work in Weak-Signal Mobile Game Embedded Wireless High Hopes for is Poised for Growth
to Embedded Connected Devices *Sponsored Content* Connectivity Depend on Global Areas *Sponsored Content* Business Model Connected Devices
Device Growth Isn’t an Easy Task Expansion Connectivity *Sponsored Content*
*Sponsored Content*

1 | December 2010 December 2010 | 2

 fiercewireless.com
Suitable Business Models are
Key to Embedded Device Growth
By Tammy Parker
Consumer electronics manu-
facturers find that adding 3G or
4G connectivity is much more
complicated than WiFi.
 The market for embedded
wireless devices is primed to ben-
efit from a perfect storm that is
bringing together advanced com-
munications networks, innovative
consumer electronics, existing
M2M expertise, plus the wants
and needs of governments, busi-
nesses and consumers.
Though analysts apply a variety
of different monikers to this
emerging device-centric com-
munications ecosystem, their
message is essentially the same:
Once the business models
are ironed out, the market for
embedded wireless devices will
reach into the billions and touch
numerous facets of people’s
everyday lives.
A recent report written by
Jim Morrish, principal analyst
with Analysys Mason, predicts
that the consumer “Internet of
Drivers of the Embedded Internet
Political Legislative Initiatives & Incentives: Broadband, E-Governance, E-Call, smart metering,
E-Health
Economic Operational Efficiency: Increased ARPU, lower TCO, increased productivity
Social Smart Spaces: Intelligent networked embedded devices adapt to human needs, RFID,
video analytics, speech recognition and other sensing applications
Technological Pervasive Connectivity : LTE, GSM, WiMAX, WiFi, Bluetooth, ZigBee, Z-Wave
Source: Intel
3 | December 2010
Things,” or IoT, will encompass
nearly 16 billion connectable
devices worldwide by 2020,
with household devices making
up more than 60 percent of that
total. These devices, which also
include personal devices, passen-
ger cars, domestic alarm systems
and remote metering, can poten-
tially be linked to the Internet via a
variety of technologies.
ABI Research estimates that
mobile broadband-enabled CE
device shipments will exceed
38 million in 2013. The forecast
covers e-book readers, personal
media players, connected per-
sonal navigation devices, digital
cameras, digital video camcorders
and handheld gaming systems
using mobile broadband radios.
There are numerous stimuli
behind the rise of embedded
devices. A white paper from Intel
cites four in particular: Political
drivers, including legislative and
regulatory initiatives related to
public safety, healthcare and
more; economic drivers, encom-
passing efforts to lower operating
costs and monitor assets; social
A Wave
drivers, pushed by consumers
demanding ubiquitous Internet
connectivity for the majority
of their electronic devices; and
technological drivers, which will
encourage pervasive connectivity
through inexpensive broadband
is coming
links and GPS.
Connected devices are still far
If you are ready
from a mass-market proposi-
tion though. All of the necessary
you can ride it
technologies and tools are all the way.
available at suitably low price
“Any network operator
that has an M2M
business today is also
in the wholesale mobile
broadband CE device
business.”
— Jeff Orr, ABI Research
points, “but they have yet to be
pulled together in a cohesive and
user-friendly package, and the
necessary scale has not been
achieved,” Morrish wrote.
For one thing, makers of
consumer electronics devices
struggle with the fact that adding
3G or 4G to a product is much
continued on page 5
T-Mobile can make the ride easy and has years of experience to share.
T-Mobile USA M2M team
m2minfo@t-mobile.com
+1 877.284.1009
 fiercewireless.com
continued from page 3
more complicated than simply
inserting WiFi connectivity, which
does not require a network sub-
scription. Manufacturers aiming to
add wide-area networking capability
to a consumer electronics device
quickly discover that this “is a very
unnatural extension to their busi-
ness if they’re used to just making
boxes,” said Jeff Orr, principal
analyst for ABI Research.
Manufacturers have three main
options when it comes to adding
mobile broadband connectivity to
their products: an external modem
interface, embedded modem mod-
ule and integrated modem chipset.
“The choices have to do with how
much heavy lifting the device man-
ufacturer wants to do,” Orr said.
ABI predicts 93 million cellular
PC modems will ship in 2010, the
vast majority of which will be USB
dongles because they offer the
quickest, most low-cost method of
bringing a device online.
Embedded modem modules can
be fitted to specific networks, and
5 | December 2010
they offer low intellectual-property
rights implications for CE manufac-
turers because, as is also the case
with the external interface, modem
makers assume liability for IPR
licensing and royalties. “A module is
seen as an interim step,” Orr noted.
He added that embedded modem
modules are generally adopted nine
to 12 months after the launch of
new network services.
Integrated modem design offers
little or no installation or configura-
tion requirements, Orr said, but
there are potentially significant
IPR implications for the terminal or
router designer.
Apple provides an example of a
company that performs consider-
able integration to maintain as much
ownership of a device as pos-
sible. “They really want to control
their destiny,” said Orr, which is
why, for instance, Apple’s iPad 3G
tablet computers include integrated
modem chipsets.
Many mobile operators world-
wide are ready to work with CE
manufacturers to develop the con-
nected-device market, seeing it as a
way to derive incremental revenue
and create new business models
based upon data-friendly 3G and
4G mobile broadband networks.
“Any network operator that has
an M2M business today is also in
the wholesale mobile broadband
CE device business,” Orr said. He
noted software used for provision-
ing, managing and supporting a
non-handset device in the field is
virtually the same for M2M as well
as embedded devices.
Nonetheless, operators have
considerable work ahead to adapt
their business models to CE
device requirements, starting with
redesigned customer contracts.
Though some observers have
suggested multi-device subscrip-
tions, “providing individual users
with multiple SIMs against the
same subscription account is an
invitation to fraudulent distribution
of SIMs to non-contracted third
parties under unofficial ‘resale’
arrangements,” Morrish observed.
Instead, he suggests connectivity
costs be bundled into a device’s
initial purchase price, the purchase
of media consumed on the device,
a monthly or annual subscription, or
an annual maintenance service.
Alternatively, providers could use
combinations of usage- and QoS-
based pricing,” Morrish wrote.
As the connected-device market
matures, it is unlikely to assume
a one-size-fits-all billing plan,
with the more probable scenario
being a proliferation of pricing and
billing arrangements. “The busi-
ness models will continue to vary
because there will be different
requirements for the devices,”
ABI’s Orr said. l
 fiercewireless.com
Defining and Measuring Connected
Devices Isn’t an Easy Task
By Lynne tte Luna
For operators to convey the
value of connected devices
to Wall Street, they must first
agree on a definition and a
common measurement.
 As the U.S. wireless indus-
try reaches its saturation point,
operators are banking their
future growth on connecting
a plethora of broadband
wireless-enabled devices-
-ranging from e-books,
tablets and digital
cameras to industrial
devices such as M2M
modules--to propel
penetration rates up
to 500 percent or
more. But this new
era of business is
pushing the mobile
operator industry to
find new ways to
report their financial
metrics and convey
the value of this new
business segment to
Wall Street.
This year has seen
several U.S. opera-
tors begin to break
out the number of
embedded devices
they have added
to the network as
these devices begin
to have an impact
on net additions.
7 | December 2010
AT&T Mobility was the first, and
recently announced it added 1.12
million embedded devices in the
third quarter.
Verizon Wireless said in the
third quarter the company added
251,000 net “other connections”
to bring that total base to 7.9
million at the end of the quarter.
Susan Welsh de Grimaldo, an
analyst with research firm Strat-
egy Analytics, said smartphones
and connected devices helped
propel both AT&T and Verizon
ahead of the rest of the wireless
industry. For these two opera-
tors, embedded device additions
outpaced postpaid additions in
the third quarter.
Meanwhile, T-Mobile USA
said it added 300,000 connect-
ed devices in the third quarter,
which helped offset its loss of
360,000 postpaid subscribers.
continued on page 9
Do We Care What It’s Called
By John Horn, National Director of M2M
 Everyone is talking about the
internet of things. As the M2M/
Embedded world evolves it will
be natural to constantly try and
redefine what it is. Many would
like to put it in a nice little box
and wrap it up for others to see.
Yesterday I was sitting in a
M2M conference in Shang-
hai. A key topic of the first
three hours was “what is
M2M and what is not”.
Does it matter? The bot-
tom line is - each of us that
is in this business is con-
necting various machines
in various ways to create
efficiencies, make life
easier and have a little fun
too. No boxes required.
Every day I see new
applications that will
change how a particular
industry is doing business.
By creating efficiencies
through connectivity and
the quick transfer of vital
information companies can
become more competitive
in this difficult business environ-
ment. These connected solutions
will help to drive the future
success of these companies.
They may call it asset manage-
ment, asset tracking, resource
allocation, funds transfer, etc. It
doesn’t matter. Does it work? Is
there a sufficient ROI? If so good,
now let’s move on.
Many new solutions being
developed will make life easier
through home energy manage-
ment that improves the quality
of life while saving money and
resources. There are also the
many advances in telemedicine/
telehealth (another business we
are trying hard to define) that will
allow people to receive the medi-
cal monitoring and care they need
while allowing them the freedom
and mobility that life requires.
This is a game changer and I bet
most people who will use these
services haven’t heard of M2M or
whatever else we call it and prob-
sponsored content
ably never will. The bottom line
is the same - does it work? Is my
life better? Sounds good enough
to me.
Those who work with me know
it isn’t just about work, I like to
have fun along the way. One
reason I love this business is it is
lots of fun. There are new devic-
es and solutions being developed
every day that will be fun
and simplify life. If you like
toys - this is the place. How
about eReaders? With all
my travels I read a lot of
books. How good is it to
carry one device instead of
five books on a trip? I think
it’s good. How fun is it to
wirelessly connect to peo-
ple all over the world and
play a game? It’s not only
fun but probably safer then
the games my competitive
family plays when we get
together at my house for
the holidays.
The business we are in
is the “making life better
business”. Maybe that’s
what we call it. What we
can do is get out of the
way and let the many verticals
and solutions develop. If we are
doing our jobs right, we will then
be there to help these many solu-
tions companies find a successful
model to build their business on.
And have a little fun too! l
December 2010 | 8
 fiercewireless.com
continued from page 7
The total number of what it calls
“connected device customers”
reached 1.8 million at the end of
the third quarter. Sprint Nextel
has yet to report the number of
connected devices it supports.
The company said that it is wait-
ing for the industry to settle upon
a common metric before it jumps
into the fray.
Aside from M2M and other indus-
trial plays, the consumer connected
device market today is primarily
dominated by e-readers, netbooks
and tablets, according to analysts.
Many of AT&T’s connected device
additions were primarily the result
of sales of Amazon Kindle and
Barnes & Noble Nook e-readers,
noted Kate Price, analyst with Tech-
nology Business Research. Apple’s
iPad will likely have
a larger impact on
AT&T’s connected
“As connected consumer electronics devices gain more widespread
device numbers
acceptance, the level of innovation and consumer adoption will grow.”
going forward as
— Kate Price, Technology Business Research
the operator only
recently launched
the device in its own
retail stores.
“Operators need to start out with
more basic devices, ones consum-
ers understand at this point,” Price
said. “E-readers are something
consumers understand along with
netbooks. As connected consumer
electronics devices gain more
widespread acceptance, the level
of innovation and consumer adop-
tion will grow. Pricing structures
will also be another big factor. The
move to tiered data pricing will help
consumer adoption.”
Connected devices account for
9 | December 2010
just 3 percent of quarterly data rev-
enues today, said Chetan Sharma,
head of Chetan Sharma Consulting,
in a recent research note. Within
five years, however, connected
devices are expected to generate
more revenue for operators than
the entire prepaid segment in the
U.S., he said.
While this segment presents sig-
nificant opportunity for an industry
that saw U.S. subscription penetra-
tion surpass 96 percent in the third
quarter, it also presents a challenge
in terms of financial metrics. Con-
nected devices, while having a lower
cost of acquisition, bring in lower
average revenue per user (ARPU), a
metric that has typically measured
the health of a wireless company.
Sharma notes that T-Mobile has
already seen a dilutive effect of
connected devices. T-Mobile’s
postpaid ARPU was $52 instead of
$55 in the third quarter, he said. devices that have monthly revenue
Simply creating a separate cat-
egory for connected devices won’t
be a sustainable practice going
forward, Grimaldo said. “There
are different business models
depending on what devices we are
talking about,” she said. “Tablets diversify the connected device
may be directed by the operators
themselves, e-book readers may
be more of a wholesale model and
a traditional M2M play. Operators
are trying to decide where the best already have expertise in the con-
place is to report these devices.” nected device space. l
As such, some devices may fit
under a prepaid metric, while oth-
ers might fit under a retail umbrella
and still others might be counted
as wholesale connections. “It all
depends on how you define a con-
nected device,” Grimaldo said.
Grimaldo also said that operators
are contemplating a new metric
for connected devices--average
margin per user, which would keep
connected devices from watering
down ARPU but would also require
operators to educate Wall Street
analysts in their valuations of the
wireless industry as connected
devices become the growth engine
of the industry.
“It’s a bit of a challenge to make
sure companies are comparing
apples to apples,” Grimaldo said.
“Some devices are consumer
devices with higher revenue.
Others are machine-to-machine
but don’t generate data per month.
At the moment, the industry is at a
stage where it is defining what the
categories are.”
In the meantime, operators are
aiming to aggressively grow and
space, establishing innovation
centers and business processes to
get new devices into the market as
well as partnering with players that
Silicon RF Front Ends Drive
Connectivity Expansion
By John Brewer, Jr., VP Corporate and Business Development,
SiGe Semiconductor
 The proliferation of wireless
connectivity – short-range Blue-
tooth™, wireless local area network
(Wi-Fi™), real-time location utilizing
global positioning satellites (GPS),
and wide area wireless (WiMAX™
and cellular) – across the wide
range of consumer electronics
applications feeds a seemingly
insatiable consumer demand for
unfettered interactivity and access.
Mobile phones have
become “smartphones”
– productivity and
entertainment devices
that also happen to do
voice communications.
Today’s mobile indus-
try embraces Wi-Fi as
a means of satisfying
consumer demand
for high-speed mobile
Internet access with-
out spending billions of
dollars on network infra-
structure. Consumers
demand a value-oriented, feature-
based user experience limited only
by their imaginations, leaving sup-
pliers to create ways of improving
user experience inside of specific
price points.
In its never-ending pursuit of
consumer imagination, the elec-
tronics industry repeatedly turns to
the semiconductor industry for the
alchemy enabling yet another new
level of innovation and cost reduc-
tion. Semiconductors have and will
continue to fuel the evolution of
consumer electronics. The micro-
processor industry stretches the
physical limits of photolithography
in its quest to increase computa-
tion speed and functionality while
decreasing power consumption.
The analog industry increases
functional integration in data con-
verters, power management and
display drivers while driving perfor-
mance and cost. And yet, of all the
segments of the semiconductor
industry, it is the radiofrequency
(RF) wireless physical layer where
the new consumer focus on value
drives the most dramatic changes.
The transformation of the RF
physical layer away from exotic
technologies to silicon-based
manufacturing signals the final
inflection point in the expansion of
wireless multimedia communica-
tions for embedded electronics.
sponsored content
Silicon-based RF front ends such
as those produced by SiGe Semi-
conductor represent “the third
wave of silicon™”, following the
path of microprocessors and
analog signal processing towards
system-level functional integration,
widely available wafer capacity, and
industry-standard product
design techniques. As
such, RF front end func-
tionality continues the
evolution from its reputa-
tion as temperamental
“black magic” to a readily-
available, value-oriented,
highly-manufacturable
portion of wireless con-
nectivity solutions.
The consumer’s shift
from a focus on high-end
features to value-driven
pricing in electronics
products has driven a necessary
evolution in RF front end manufac-
turing to silicon-based technologies
such as those utilized by SiGe Semi-
conductor. The result: increased
satisfaction of the consumer’s
seemingly unbounded imagination
for “wireless multimedia every-
where”. l
December 2010 | 10
 fiercewireless.com
Multinational CE Companies
Depend on Global Connectivity
BY Tammy Parker
Consumer electronics com-
panies must ink deals with
operators globally so they can
sell to a worldwide customer
base.
 Encouraged by early suc-
cesses in the United States and
driven by the needs of multi-
national consumer electronics
manufacturers, M2M players
worldwide are starting to reach
beyond traditional business-
to-business applications and
expanding their wares into the
more consumer-centric wireless
embedded- devices space.
Connected consumer elec-
tronics “has really been a U.S.
phenomenon,” said Macario
Namie, senior director of Prod-
11 | December 2010
uct Marketing at M2M platform
provider Jasper Wireless. “The
United States is the largest con-
sumer of consumer electronics,
and so it was a natural place for
a level of innovation for connect-
ing CE devices to occur.”
In addition, U.S. mobile
operators have been particularly
innovative in creating M2M and
embedded devices businesses,
said Namie, who cited Jasper
partner AT&T as a “bellwether”
for operators worldwide.
Japan is also a leader in the
connected-device space, Namie
noted, but Japan’s unique and
closed market means lessons
learned there are difficult to
apply elsewhere.
So, using the U.S. market as
an example, mobile operators
in Europe and Asia are ramping
up to join the connected-device
revolution. That’s due in part
to the fact that because CE-
“Every single large
consumer electronics
manufacturer has either
started to go to market
or has plans to go to
market with a connected-
device strategy.”
— Macario Namie, senior
director of product marketing,
Jasper Wireless
device manufacturers sell to a
worldwide consumer base, their
connectivity strategies need to
be globally based.
“Every single large consumer
electronics manufacturer has
either started to go to market or
has plans to go to market with
a connected-device strategy
across the vast majority of their
product lines,” Namie said.
The impending globalization of
CE device connectivity is open-
ing the door for multinational
mobile operator groups to offer
M2M solutions for these CE
manufacturers.
Spain-based global mobile
operator Telefonica is one of
those jumping on this bandwag-
on. On Nov. 4, 2010, Jasper and
Telefonica announced a stra-
tegic partnership to wirelessly
connect M2M and consumer
electronics devices.
The companies said their col-
laboration “will accelerate market
entry for a new generation of
connected consumer devices,
including PNDs, e-readers, digital
photo frames, cameras, and
gaming” in addition to enabling
traditional business-oriented
M2M applications.
Other international operators
pursuing M2M opportunities
include Vodafone and Orange,
which both use internally devel-
oped service-delivery platforms
to support their M2M business-
es. Both also offer global SIMs
-- designed to provide affordable
connected services in interna-
tional markets with no additional
continued on page 13
M2M Devices Can Work in
Weak-Signal Areas
By Brian Allred, Senior Account Manager, M2M, Wilson Electronics, Inc.
 Wouldn’t it be wonderful if all
M2M devices that rely on cellular
networks were installed in locations
that always have a strong and reli-
able signal?
But in the real world, wireless
M2M installations are often required
in areas where the nearest cell tow-
er is many miles distant or the local
topography diminishes the chances
for a solid connection. Or perhaps
even more common, where sur-
rounding concrete and steel walls
interfere with the cellular signal.
Under any of those weak-signal
conditions, and many others, M2M
devices could be unable to reliably
connect. For applications where
having a remote data available at
your fingertips, or when time is of
the essence, then a reliable signal is
a must.
Fortunately, there is a solution
for M2M devices installed in weak-
signal locations. Signal boosters can
detect and amplify faint signals so
M2M devices can reliably receive
and transmit data.
For example, a company that
distributes its products through
a nationwide network of kiosks
depends upon cellular networks to
move transaction data securely and
reliably between its thousands of
locations and the company’s com-
puter system.
Product demand often calls for
these kiosks – some inside and
some outside – to be located in
areas where the cellular signal is
less than optimal. Use of M2M
signal boosting units has allowed
the company wider distribution by
making the kiosks viable in weak-
signal areas, where the unreliable
signal would have otherwise made
installation impractical.
But not all cellular signal boosters
are created equal. Design, engineer-
ing specs, and construction quality
vary. Here are five things to look for
when considering a signal booster
for your M2M device.
1 Receiver Sensitivity – The signal
booster must have the ability to
detect very weak signals from
the cell site. For example, the
boosters produced by Wilson
Electronics feature a receiver
sensitivity of -109 dBm, which
is significantly greater then the
CDMA 2000 standard of -104
dBm. Combining the receiver
sensitivity of the signal booster
with a high-gain, exterior mounted
antenna allows for the best
possible reception in weak signal
environments.
2 Output Power – Depending on
the situation, the best signal
boosters should have the ability to
increase a data modem’s power
back to the cell site by as much
as four times, while remaining
in compliance with industry
standards for CDMA and GSM.
3 Flexibility & Compatibility – The
signal booster should be compact
sponsored content
ANTENNA
CELLULAR
MODEM
AMPLIFIER
BACK OF VENDING MACHINE
in size, with flexible mounting
options allowing it to easily adapt
into any type of installation.
4 Rugged Construction – Because
the installation of signal boosters
varies based on the M2M
application, they should be of
rugged electrical and mechanical
design.
5 Cost-to-Performance Ratio – To
satisfy M2M project requirements
without busting budgets, the
booster unit must deliver all of
the above at an affordable per-
unit cost without sacrificing
performance.
Whatever your project require-
ments, Wilson Electronics has
solutions for M2M device deploy-
ments in locations with weak
signals. As the operator of kiosks
has found, M2M cellular signal
boosters can solve weak-signal
problems, and all devices to connect
in areas previously not possible.  
For more information on the
deployment of cellular signal boost-
ers in M2M applications, contact
Wilson Electronics at 866-208-5398
or m2m@wilsonelectronics.com. Or
visit www.WilsonElectronics.com/
M2M. l
December 2010 | 12
 fiercewireless.com
continued from page 11
roaming charges -- and these are
setting the stage for global M2M
offerings. For example, TomTom
already uses Vodafone’s global
SIMs to provide real-time traffic
data to end users across 34 coun-
tries.
Global SIMs are attractive to
“large enterprises with operations
and assets in several countries”
as well as to “a growing number
of product manufacturers whose
service offerings require their
products to be network-connected
in the field post-sale, wherever
they happen to be,” wrote Robin
Duke-Woolley, CEO of Beecham
Research, in a recent commentary.
Yet another global M2M player
is Telenor Group, the world’s sixth
largest mobile operator, which
estimates that it serves 2 to 2.5
million SIM and “pure” M2M
solutions, not including laptops,
notebooks and CE devices.
Telenor is building its non-voice
13 | December 2010
“We are looking at
models to see if we can
tie a more business-to-
consumer approach into
that process because
our customers want to
integrate and standardize
connectivity no matter
where they sell their
products.”
—Robert Brunback, head
of marketing strategy,
Telenor Connexion
business with the aid of wholly
owned subsidiary Telenor Con-
nexion, whose data-centric core
network provides M2M services
for global customers include Vol-
vo, Daimler and Securitas Direct.
Telenor Connexion has begun
evolving its business model from
pure business-to-business rela-
tionships to include relationships
with businesses that are selling
connected devices and services
directly into consumer markets,
said Robert Brunback, the com-
pany’s head of Market Strategy.
He noted Telenor Connexion
recently announced plans to
provide wireless connectivity
for TomTom personal navigation
devices in the Nordic region.
“We are looking at models
to see if we can tie a more
business-to-consumer approach
into that process because our
customers want to integrate
and standardize connectivity no
matter where they sell their prod-
ucts,” Brunback added.
While some embedded devices
require worldwide reach, others
will have mainly regional appeal.
For instance, e-readers probably
demand ubiquitous connectivity.
“Something like an e-reader is
universal, just as books are univer-
sal,” Namie said.
However, less wireless reach
is needed by regionally oriented
devices such as the Coyote, which
combines satellite technology and
GSM/GPRS to alert drivers when
they near one of the many speed
cameras deployed across West-
ern European countries such as
France, Germany and the UK.
“This is something you just
won’t see here in the States,
because we don’t have the preva-
lence of speed cameras. So, we’ll
continue to see those kinds of
regional successes in the CE
world,” Namie said.
CE device manufacturers who
enter the embedded-devices
space must accept that they will
become de facto service providers
in the eyes of consumers, regard-
less of the business arrangements
they make with mobile operators
delivering the underlying service.
Creating appropriate business
pacts with local operators around
the world will be especially tricky,
but companies that succeed at
this will reap the reward of world-
wide revenue streams.
“Being able to scale globally is
where we’re going to start see-
ing some interesting things. The
Global 5000 companies are really
where this business is going to
lie, and we’ve got to start mak-
ing it easy for them as a whole
to be able to deploy connected
devices on a worldwide basis,”
Namie said. l
Winning in the New Mobile Game
By Abhijit Kabra, Senior Director with Accenture Embedded
Software Services
 Each new innovation introduced
to mobile devices over the last
few years quickly moves from
‘must-have’ status to a minimum
requirement. Hardware features like
megapixel cameras, touch-screens
and MP3 players are now simply
expected, attracting little premium.
Consumers’ focus today is not so
much on the hardware attributes of
a device but rather on the applica-
tions, content and services they
can access. So instead of asking:
“ Can I browse the web? Does it
have a camera?” now they want
to know what they can do: “Can I
keep up to date with my Facebook
friends? Can I stream music live on
the move?” And they make their
choices according to the answers.
This fundamental change in the
way consumers select and buy
their mobile devices means their
choices are around the platform
the device supports rather than its
hardware specification. The rapid
growth of applications for use on
mobile devices means that users
expect to be able to customize their
device to fit their lifestyles. What-
ever their interests, they want to
be able to find and use apps that
deliver to their individually-defined
needs. The speed at which this
transformation has happened is
illustrated by Apple’s app store for
the iPhone. Launched in Septem-
ber 2008, the store now offers
more than 300,000 individual third-
party apps (as of October 20 2010),
and over seven billion downloads
to date*. And other vendors are
rapidly growing, too.
The response to this momen-
tous change is manifesting itself
in big strategic plays across the
mobile value chain. OEMs are
looking to provide content and ser-
vices (e.g. Nokia’s OVI app store)
No-one can afford to ignore the rapid and
pervasive change taking place in the mobile market.
Standing still risks rapid obsolescence.
and, in the other direction, digital
services businesses are devel-
oping operating systems (e.g.
Google’s Android).
We are without question enter-
ing a decisive phase in the mobile
market. As of yet, no stand-out
winners have emerged. So what
will mobile businesses need to
do to give themselves the best
chance of being in or ahead of the
leading pack?
Accenture believes that a num-
ber of key business capabilities
will come to the forefront and will
be essential ingredients of suc-
cess. Manufacturers will need
to consider how they will drive
differentiation and the impact on
their current product portfolios. In
doing so, they will need to balance
the extent to which they develop
sponsored content
device-specific apps and features
and provide access to new apps
and services in the aftermarket.
Collaboration with partners that can
help create differentiating content
and services that consumers want
is likely to be key. This will mean
new business models and sharing
risk and rewards in ways that are
largely unfamiliar today. Achieving
sufficient scale and global reach
will also be critical, so making sure
that apps and services are available
simultaneously across platforms
and different geographies will
demand an industrialized approach
to development and testing.
No-one can afford to ignore the
rapid and pervasive change taking
place in the mobile market. Stand-
ing still risks rapid obsolescence.
On the other hand, bold differenti-
ating moves could secure a lasting
advantage in a game that can only
become more intense. l
* Figures announced by Apple
Inc CEO, Steve Jobs on Octo-
ber 20, 2010, Apple http://
events.apple.com.edge-
suite.net/1010qwoeiuryfg/
event/index.html
December 2010 | 14
 fiercewireless.com
The Evolving Embedded Wireless Business Model
By Peggy Albright
Companies must be flexible
if they want to succeed in the
connected device space. Pre-
paid, postpaid, usage-based
and bundled access fees will all
exist in this burgeoning area.
 Consumer electronics products
that have embedded wireless
connectivity are introducing new
opportunities for operators along
with some fundamental business
challenges. To accommodate the
wide array of CE product vendors,
the broad range of devices that
can be connected and the new
types of use cases that can be
introduced, operators have been
forced reconsider their traditional
15 | December 2010
notions of how products are sold
and connected to the network.
The ground-breaking Amazon
Kindle, for example, provides
network access only for book
purchases and bundles the access
fee in with the book purchase
price. The Apple iPad 3G provides
service via a usage-based pre-
paid connectivity option offered
through AT&T Mobility along with
access to AT&T WiFi hotspots.
Verizon Wireless offers the WiFi-
only iPad bundled with a MiFi
hotspot that runs on the Verizon
network for a prepaid monthly fee.
The examples above demon-
strate the flexibility companies
must have if they are to forge
Expand your
boundaries
of Can.
See what’s possible when
you partner with AT&T.
compelling business models to
bring popular CE devices onto
their networks. Operators have
a competitive imperative to do
so. In the next five years, the CE
segment will enjoy the greatest
compound annual growth rate in
the embedded wireless business.
Play, learn, connect
It will grow faster than embedded
Delivered by AT&T, the
devices geared to vertical market nation’s fastest mobile
and faster than smartphones, broadband network
according to Miguel Myhrer,
managing director of Accenture’s
wireless practice, new product
development and innovation for
North America.
Experimentation with business
models is necessary and expect- Learn more and sign up to launch your emerging
technologies on AT&T’s network by visiting att.com/edo.
continued on page 17
Mobile broadband and other services not available in all areas. See coverage map at stores for details. ©2010 AT&T Intellectual Property. Service provided by AT&T Mobility. All rights reserved. AT&T and the AT&T logo are
trademarks of AT&T Intellectual Property. All other marks contained herein are the property of their respective owners.
 fiercewireless.com
continued from page 15
ed. “All of the business models
that make sense probably haven’t
been discovered yet,” said Steve
Pazol, president of nPhase, the
Verizon Wireless and Qualcomm
joint venture.
AT&T, for example, has just
worked out a new business model
with Pandigital for a 3G digital pic-
ture frame, which Pandigital will use make sure that as often as can be
as a distribution channel for selling possible, the CE products will sup-
photographs. Customers will be able
to insert a credit card into the frame to establish multiple connections in
to purchase photos. AT&T config-
“All of the business models that
make sense probably haven’t
been discovered yet.”
— Steve Pazol, president of nPhase
ured the end-to-end system and
will sell data access to Pandigital,
which will bundle the fees into the
prices it charges its customers for
images. While at first glance the fee- ing,” Pazol said.
bundling approach resembles that
used with Amazon’s Kindle, Pandigi-
tal has created new way to market
photographs and a business model
that can accommodate consumers’
desires to pay per picture.
“For every device and every
partner, the deal has to be cus-
tom,” noted Glenn Lurie, president
of emerging devices, resale and
partnerships for AT&T Mobility and
consumer markets.
Business culture factors also have
a role to play. Most of these new
connected CE products are originat-
ing outside the wireless industry,
and CE firms seeking to partner
17 | December 2010
with operators are coming into their
discussions with their own world
views and their own understand-
ings of their customers. For many,
the connected device is their first
wireless product. In some cases the
operator might assume that busi-
ness model used with one device
could be applied to another, but the
CE partner might not see it that way.
Operators will, of course, strive to
port their own strategic objectives
the home. Operators will encourage
customers to add CE devices
to a family plan and to sup-
port more MiFi-style hotspot
plans, Pazol said. But they
also will support CE vendors’
need for Kindle-like approach-
es as well as options that will
allow the CE vendor to offer
network subscriptions to get a share
of the recurring revenue stream.
“You’ll end up seeing a very mixed
model and I don’t see that chang-
As operators experiment to incor-
porate the new opportunities, they
also need to vet their partners and
products carefully.
“You don’t want those that aren’t
financially viable or don’t have the
right back-end systems,” cautioned
John Horn, national director of M2M
at T-Mobile USA.
Sprint right now is considering sev-
eral new business models, according
to Sunil Nair, who is Sprint’s director
of product marketing for consumer
broadband solutions. Nair said the
company is open to bundling WiFi-
only products like tablets with a
Sprint hotspot and it is exploring
session-based and prepaid data pric-
ing models for tablets, netbooks and
notebooks form factors.
Sprint is also considering new
ways to work with retailers such
as Best Buy or RadioShack. For
example, it could offer a limited
amount of free network access to
customers who buy notebooks or
similar product from the retailer as a
way to promote network subscrip-
tions. Another option is to subsidize
the cost of the module used in a
retailer’s products to ensure that
each device sold is activated on the
network, either on a prepaid basis or
through a contract.
The operators competing to
develop new business with CE part-
ners have realized that streamlining
the process is necessary to expe-
dite the process. AT&T uses Jasper
Wireless as well as an in-house pro-
gram called Enterprise on Demand.
Sprint works with partners through
its Emerging Solutions Group and
it also just launched its Command
Center, a self-service dashboard
companies can use to manage
and provision consumer devices.
T-Mobile uses the Infinys Rating
and Billing platform. Verizon Wire-
less uses nPhase, the joint venture
it created with Qualcomm. l
 fiercewireless.com
Retailers Have High Hopes For Connected Devices
By Lynne tte Luna
Every retailer wants to play in
the embedded device space.
The challenge will be finding
products that are unique and
that they have the expertise
to support.
 As operators aggressively
embed wireless connectivity
in all types of devices--ranging
from e-readers and tablets to
GPS devices to cameras and
refrigerators--the practice cre-
19 | December 2010
ates both an opportunity and a
challenge for wireless device
retailers.
One significant opportunity
for retailers lies in the fact that
they will have access to a host
of new devices to sell. Wireless
device distributor Brightpoint is
already distributing a number
of connected devices, some
are specifically directed toward
enterprise channels. Mark
Howell, president of Bright-
point Americas, said embedded
devices are opening up its
distribution into the direct-to-
consumer channel through retail
stores and online.
Jay Sichting, vice president
of corporate operations with
The Cellular Connection (TCC),
a national Verizon Wireless
retailer, said the advent of
connected devices will enable
his company to diversify as a
retailer by striking deals with
both Verizon and consumer elec- unique, which is a challenge for bit less problematic. However, if
tronics companies. For instance,
TCC will soon sell Apple’s iPad
wireless vendors today.
Lang also believes the con-
the future is thousands of con-
nected devices coming to market,
tied to a 3G contract via the MiFi nected devices market will allow even a retailer as big as Best Buy
personal hotspot device. retailers to pick certain products can’t simply stock them all, Lang
“I see us as a wireless retailer and niches. For instance, one said. That is when online sales will
that will be crossing over into the retailer might position itself as become an even more important
consumer electronics space,” the premier provider of tablets, component of retail sales, she
Sichting said. “We’ll be sign- while another might become the predicted.
ing bigger leases, gaining more one-stop shop for healthcare solu- “When we are talking thou-
square footage and carrying a tions. Meanwhile, larger retailers sands of devices, there is no way
bigger stock of devices that are not only have the opportunity to a retailer will put all of those on
more than just phones. We’ll have expand their device selections but the shelf, but they don’t want to
to demo devices and not just have also create more
10 phones on display. We have to services products,
have the space to do it.” such as aggregated “Margins will get bigger as consumers
Sichting views tablets as a high- billing, around these buy bigger buckets of data.”
profile connected device. Coupled devices. — Jay Sichting, vice president of corporate operations
with Verizon Wireless’ next-gen- Of course any at The Cellular Connection
eration LTE network, new opportunity
tablets are poised to comes with chal-
replace the netbook lenges. For TCC,
and take a bite out of the challenge will be determining lose the sale either,” Lang said.
the notebook and PC what devices to stock. “We will “A virtual store will have a lot of
markets and even- have to be smart about inventory,” value, especially when you can
tually power other Sichting said. “You don’t want too complete the activation and ship
connected devices many dollars tied up in connected it out.”
such as home secu- devices, higher priced smar- Retailers also will find they will
rity systems, he said. phones and higher priced tablets. have to educate their sales staff
Sally Lang, You have to stock the right stuff more than ever before. For Bright-
president of retail financially and be able to turn point, the challenge is supporting
services with Bright- inventory over as people adapt.” a significantly broader product
star, a wireless Moreover, the connected device portfolio, requiring employees
global services and game will become much more of to become better technologists,
distribution company a margin play in data services than Howell said.
that counts retail- devices, as subsidies are used “Consumers have to get their
ers such as Best less frequently, Sichting said. heads around it,” Howell said.
Buy and Wal-Mart “Margins will get bigger as “There will be a cultural change.”
as customers, said consumers buy bigger buckets of Sichting agrees. He understands
the wireless device data,” Sichting said. The vision for that TCC retail stores will have to
market in general is the future is for consumers to buy become much more of a “technol-
so hot today that vir- into one big data plan to power a ogy playground” where potential
tually every retailer multitude of connected devices. customers can experience the
wants to get into the For a large consumer electron- technology first hand. Sales,
game, but they want ics retailer such as Best Buy, the he said, will require more of an
products that are devices it decides to carry are a upfront education process. l
December 2010 | 20
 fiercewireless.com
The Connected
Car is Poised
for Growth
By Peggy Albright
Automobile manufactur-
ers believe connected car
technologies will help them
differentiate their cars from
the competition.
 The automobile has always
held a special importance in the
wireless industry. The visionar-
ies who developed the mobile
phone focused initially on in-
car communications needs
and businesses specializing in
machine-to-machine communi-
cations have offered telemetry
and telematics solutions for the
automotive market for many
years. Today, with embedded
devices poised to propel the
wireless industry to its next big
growth opportunity, the automo-
bile has once again become a
focus of innovation.
According to research con-
ducted in 10 countries by
Accenture and the GSMA, 57
percent of early adopters in the
consumer market are interested
in embedded mobile systems for
automobiles. Among automobile
owners, the level of interest is
even higher: 62 percent. The
respondents are interested in
systems that can transmit a car’s
GPS position to a web site to
locate the car in case of theft
and access to web portals that
21 | December 2010
give the user information about
their car’s performance, such
as acceleration rates, braking
patterns, engine speed, fuel flow
and mileage accrued.
The business sector wants to
get in on this opportunity too.
The study found that leading
corporations that are technology
innovators but not in the mobile
industry, such as retailers, device
manufacturers, and technology
firms, also have their eyes set on
the connected car market. They
view telematics and navigation
systems as near-term opportuni-
ties and they believe connected
car technologies will give them
new ways to differentiate their
products and generate revenue.
While the earliest connected
cars used integrated, factory-
installed and dedicated systems,
tethering techniques, which allow
the consumer to connect their
mobile phone via Bluetooth to
bring wireless connectivity to
the car, are more adaptable to
consumer needs and less costly.
Hybrid architectures that use both
integrated technology for safety
and security features and the con-
sumer’s handset to bring Internet
emergency notification systems in services to cars. IMS Research about a car’s location, performance
cars should be in place by around
2014, after several lengthy delays.
expects that nearly 24 million cars
sold in 2017 will have Internet
or status via a car maker’s web
portal, businesses are still envision-
Brazil’s mandate that all cars have access, up from about 1 million ing many other types of things
embedded GPS tracking devices to
reduce car thefts, now going into
sold in 2009. The market for in-car
applications is expected to generate
that can be delivered to the car. In
addition, they are considering the
effect, opens an instant and very more than $4 billion in revenues in best human-machine interfaces for
sizeable market. 2017, according to the firm. doing that.
Of course the most excitement in While it is already possible to Applications introduce both an
the connected car market today is interact with applications such as opportunity and challenges. The
the opportunity to bring better Inter- mapping and search from within a prospect of making hundreds of
net applications and infotainment car itself, or to access information thousands of smartphone applica-
tions available in the vehicle and
applications to the car also are accessible from a display in the
gaining traction. Cars equipped At-A-Glance: Consumer Telematics cockpit, while considering the
with Wi-Fi hotspots are beginning Market Metrics and Growth Projections potential for driver distractions
to appear. The options are broad- associated with use of engaging
ening the market for aftermarket The Consumer Telematics Market in 2009 on-line features, still needs to be
products as well as application • More than 5 million telematics devices for consumer cars were worked out, noted Greg Geisel-
development opportunities. sold during the year hart, director of North America for
All of this will help make con- • About 9 percent of new vehicles sold in 2009 had telematics WirelessCar.
sumer telematics mainstream. In systems “The issue today is, how are you
2009, the number of consumer • About 1 million new cars sold in 2009 had Internet access going to let people access mobile
cars equipped with telematics • North America had about half of the overall telematics market apps in a safe way that also sup-
systems exceeded 5 million units • General Motors sold more than 2 million vehicles with factory- ports your brand?” he asked.
worldwide, according to IMS fitted telematics systems during the year, more than any other Ford’s move to bring smartphone
Research. In 2017, about 40 mil- automaker apps to its Sync platform through
lion cars sold to consumers will an API, giving developers the
have telematics capability. The Consumer Telematics Market Forecast for 2017 opportunity to create voice-con-
While the market has begun • About 40 million cars sold worldwide during the year will have trolled apps for use in the car, is one
to diversify, its foundation, telematics capability example of how automakers will
based on embedded approaches • Nearly 27 million of these cars will have embedded approach this. In anticipation of the
that transmit information via technologies API’s release, Ford received more
the wireless network to a data • Nearly 24 million will have Internet access than 1,000 queries from interested
center for emergency concierge • Nearly 14 million of cars sold with telematics capability will be developers. It has selected three
services and asset tracking func- sold in the U.S.   partners so far and is considering
tions, among others, will retain • Of these, 4.3 million will use strictly embedded products others to do business with. Mini-
its importance. IMS Research mizing driver distractions will be
expects that more than half of Revenues from Cellular Components in part of the selection criteria.
the cars sold in 2017 to con- Telematics Systems in Consumer Cars: “We do want control over what’s
sumers will have embedded • 2009 Revenues: more than $1 billion appropriate in the vehicle,” said
telematics capability. North • Forecast for 2017: nearly $6 billion Jim Buczkowski, Henry Ford
America currently enjoys more technical fellow and director of
than half of this market, but In-Vehicle Applications Revenues: electrical and electronic systems
other regions will gain quickly. • Revenues during 2017 will exceed $4 billion research and advanced engineering
Europe’s eCall initiative to require at Ford. l
Source: IMS Research
December 2010 | 22