Apple Faces Mixed iPhone Reception in Europe

Americans waited for hours - and even days - to get a first-run iPhone. But in Europe, the reception was less enthusiastic. The iPhone debuted on Friday in both the UK and Germany, though interest fell short of expectations. "The days preceding the launch had been filled with pages of coverage from posh papers and broadsheets alike," declared Andrew Orlowski of the UK-based Register. "But now it looks as if a tight-knit group of media and PR people got caught in a feedback loop."

British early-adopters aggregated most heavily around Apple stores, leaving spotty traffic for Carphone Warehouse and O2 outlets. "There was a security guard and a guy at the door handing out numbers for the queue," said buyer "Steve" in comments to mobile blog dialaphone.co.uk, describing an 02 location. "Both looked bored to tears." The iPhone was released in Britain at 6:02 pm GMT, a clever timing pushed by exclusive partner O2.

In Germany, the story was also mixed. Exclusive carrier T-Mobile offered an initial sales tally of 10,000, and like its British counterpart, consumer interest varied greatly store-to-store. Reuters reported a "throng" outside a Deutsche Telekom store in Cologne, but almost total indifference in Frankfurt.

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Catching the European Mobile Market

AUGUST 22, 2007

European mobile customers may speak many different languages, but marketers everywhere are getting the message.

"The European mobile market starts with two big advantages: a widespread, high-speed infrastructure and handset manufacturers that are among the best in the world," says John du Pre Gauntt, eMarketer Senior Analyst and author of the new report, Mobile Europe. "So it's no wonder that European mobile consumers are accustomed to switching easily between voice and data services."

A recent receptivity among carriers, regulators and brands is opening up new opportunities for mobile marketing on the Continent.

eMarketer estimates that mobile advertising spending in Western Europe alone will grow from $382 million in 2006 to $3.46 billion in 2011, roughly a ten-fold jump.

According to the European Information Technology Observatory (EITO), the mobile market in Europe will total 850 million subscribers in 2007 and grow to 920 million by 2010.

"These are huge numbers," says Mr. Gauntt. "Of course, when compared to Asian juggernauts such as China, where one operator, China Mobile, alone will serve more than 400 million subscribers in 2007, they seem slightly less overwhelming."

According to an Exane BNP Paribas and Arthur D. Little study, on a per-capita basis, Europeans in 2007 will spend an average of €30 ($41.48) per month on mobile voice and data services, and growth is expected to be slow.

"One of the primary reasons the red carpet is rolling out for marketers is that the mobile industry has exhausted almost all other avenues for monetizing its mobile Internet and 3G investments," says Mr. Gauntt. "Marketing revenues stand out as one of the few new sources of income in this relatively mature market."

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A Traveling Photo Booth Sells a Cellphone

Sony Ericsson Touts BestPic Function on the Road

Published: August 02, 2007

Brand: Sony Ericsson
Brand Owner: Sony Ericsson
Category: Telecoms/mobile
Region: Europe
Date: August 2006 - November 2006
Media Agency: Mediaedge:cia
Other Agencies: Digit
Media Channels: Outdoor

The Sony Ericsson K800i mobile handset had a USP (unique selling proposition) that enabled it to stand out from a raft of me-too mobiles. Its BestPic function lets it take nine pictures at a single press of a button, thereby allowing users to scroll through all the shots and pick the best.

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Although this function was part of the traditional campaign launch that encompassed TV, print, out of home and online, the thinking was that making a broad European target audience aware of the functionality might take something a little bit more.

Research showed that consumers regarded the brand as niche and cold. Moreover the creative line, "Never miss a shot," was not successfully conveying the power of the BestPic function.

The solution was a fun brand experience that turned the humble photo booth into a nine-shot wonder. A branded unit traveled to high-traffic locations such as shopping centers and train stations.

The booth had nine 6-foot digital screens in a row and people were asked to jump, dance of just move in front of a high-speed camera that captured nine frames in a second. The results were shown on the screens, printed out on high quality paper and placed online.

Sony Ericsson teams were also on hand to demonstrate the phone and answer questions. Units were set up for a week at a time at each of the 10 destinations.

In total nearly 14,000 people participated in the BestPic demonstration. Each participant spent an average of two to three minutes interacting with the unit and nearly 18,000 people voted for the "BestPic of the day" at the microsite.

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Cream is a U.K.-based magazine owned by C Squared Communications aimed at highlighting the best in creative media worldwide. All media ideas are part of C Squared's Creative Media Database. csquared.cc

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