Preview of Mobile World Congress 2011
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Published:
Week 4
January 2011 -
Image Source:
GSM Association
Summary
Despite growing convergence between mobile devices and consumer electronics, Mobile World Congress remains the mobile sector's primary event. In recent years, some concerns have been raised that it might be eclipsed by the much bigger Consumer Electronics Show (CES) that occurs just a few weeks before, but its pure focus on mobile technologies remains a significant differentiator. Last year Mobile World Congress attracted 49,000 attendees and the GSM Association has worked hard to increase the appeal of the show beyond its traditional operator audience. Although some observers regard this as a show in decline, we believe the growing mix of new participants from the Web, content, application and service sectors is sustaining its popularity.
The importance of this year's show is characterised by the participation of high-profile chief executives from outside the mobile sector, such as Steve Ballmer (Microsoft), Carol Bartz (Yahoo), John Chambers (Cisco), Dick Costolo (Twitter), Paul Otellini (Intel), Eric Schmidt (Google) and Sir Martin Sorrell (WPP Group), in addition to the CEOs of mobile network operators and device manufacturers.
The event has seen a growing focus on content, services and applications, notably through the App Planet section of the show. This mirrors a shift from voice-centric communications to a mix of hardware, software and services delivering a rich experience to mobile users.
Apple has always stayed away from Mobile World Congress, even though it has become the proverbial "elephant in the room" in recent years. This year, it will be represented by proxy with the inception of a MacWorld Mobile developer conference for Apple iOS developers. Several other manufacturers are hosting developer days for their own platforms, underlining the importance of a strong developer community to phone-makers.
This report presents our expectations of the show. It is divided into the following sections, reflecting practice areas within CCS Insight:
- Devices
- Mobile software platforms
- Network operators
- Content, services and applications
- Semiconductors
CCS Insight will have a full team attending Mobile World Congress 2011. We plan to provide clients with regular updates from the event through text alerts, blog posts and our online gallery. A comprehensive event report analysing Mobile World Congress will be published in the week after the show. For last year's report, see CCS Insight Event Report: Mobile World Congress 2010).
