The hidden subsidy
May 27, 2009
Consumers buy more smartphones than companies do. Therefore “personal” buyers are more important than “business” buyers to the smartphone manufacturers of the world. Check out their marketing … it’s all about lifestyle, media, consumer apps. Even RIM is talking more about Facebook than Exchange these days. Enterprise influence must be fading. Seems like a logical conclusion.
Except I think it’s wrong.
There is a hidden subsidy out there.
I buy a phone because I love it. Which means I want to use it as much as I can, for home and work. Which also means there is a good chance my company is going to end up paying for at least part of it.
This “enterprise subsidy,” especially for data plans, makes the growth of the smartphone industry more dependent that we’ve thought on the preferences and expense policies of employers. How much of the ongoing service revenue of the smartphone market is really being subsidized by companies, not individuals? If it’s a big number, shouldn’t corporate IT be getting a lot more love from smartphone manufacturers and service providers?
Personally, I want a great-looking phone with an awesome camera. I want to use it for media AND email. And I want my company to pick up the tab. How about you?
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I think the strong consumer oriented marketing by the carrier is going to continue, or even get stronger as the landscape becomes more populated with cheap Smartphones that are ending up in the hands of young people who may be nowhere near joining the corporate world.
Pretty soon, a standard 12 button cell phone will be as uncommon as a home phone. I think you hit the nail on the head in that it’s still the actual user who is choosing the phone, not the company they work for. Whether the company helps the employee pay for part of it or not won’t impact the consumer oriented marketing efforts. I used to work really closely with Palm. They were so stuck in “consumer land” back in the early 2000′s, it’s no wonder they lost a nice lead to MS and RIM. Now, the line between consumer vs. corporate device is so blurred, many companies are choosing a $200 (disposable) smartphones for remote workers as their first choice. If those don’t work out, then they might purchase a more rugged over-$1000 device or scrap the whole idea because the devices are either not robust enough, too expensive or a bitch to manage/support.
Personally, I use a Treo 700wx. I rarely use the camera, but perhaps because it’s low quality. I use Google Maps, Skyfire for browsing and tap several POP email accounts to stay in touch with customers. Perhaps if I had some newer technology, I might use it for different things…
Tim Cerami
Tim Cerami Design
8 years of mobile experience (2000-2008)
Comment by Tim Cerami — June 3, 2009 @ 5:15 pm