The New Age of Handset Customisation: 2006

The New Age of Handset Customisation: 2006 - 2011

Product Type: Market Research Report
Published by: ARCchart
Published: August 2006
Product Code: R462-21

Description

Handset customisation is a standard practice across the mobile industry. Mobile network operators (MNOs) enforce a range of modifications to manufacturer handsets to improve service interoperability and discovery. However, customisation is now working its way into the physical form factor of the device, as well as the graphical user interface. MNOs like Vodafone and Nordisk Mobiltelefon have launched completely customised phones to better address the needs of specific customer segments. New-age MVNOs such as AMP’d, ESPN and Voce, are deploying customised handsets to appeal to niche market segments. Handset manufacturers of all sizes and types are evolving their product portfolio towards differentiated devices that appeal to niche audiences. Finally, consumer and lifestyle brands such as ELLE and ESCADA, are diversifying into mobile handsets in search of brand extension opportunities and greater profits.

This report examines the industry evolving around uniquely customised handsets (UCHs). We believe that the coming years will see a proliferation of uniquely customised handsets, which have both distinguished industrial design and a customised user interface, to target niche consumer segments. This will meet an increased demand for variety and personalisation in phone colours, styles and form factors, as handset cosmetics become a key purchase criterion for consumers. Market precedents such as Vertu, Xelibri, ESCADA, Firefly, Vodafone Simply, Dmobo’s Disney-themed M900, i-kids, ELLE Glamphone, Bang & Olufsen Serene, Goldvish, Casio G-Zone, Voce, Jitterbug and Nordisk MobilTelefon have paved the way for uniquely customised handsets, targeted at a wide range of segments, including kids, fashionable females, tweens, teenagers, sports enthusiasts, senior citizens and VIPs.

Key topics covered include:

OEM strategies, including case studies for Xelibri, Siemens ESCADA, Bang & Olufsen, ELLE, i-kids and Vertu
The 12 steps to handset commercialisation: from brand licensing and design, to distribution and the retail experience
UCHs as a key differentiator for MVNOs
Operator UCHs: including Vodafone Simply, Orange Experience and Nordisk Mobiltelefon
The emergence of Customised Design Manufacturers (CDMs)
Insight into how operator and manufacturer customisation strategies will evolve in the coming years
Leveraging the handset software stack
Next-generation plastics and casing techniques
Recommendation for optimising UCH market strategy
Market forecast: Growth of uniquely customised handsets to 2011 and the changing roles of OEMs, ODMs and CDMs

Table of Contents

Executive Summary
Preface: Organisation of the Report; Companies and Products Reviewed; Methodology and Interviews
CHAPTER A. The Quiet Revolution: A.1 1990-2000: The Handset as the Network Endpoint; A.2 2001-2005: The Handset as a Medium for Branding and Service Access; A.3 2006-2011: Uniquely customised handsets
CHAPTER B. The Market Today: B.1 The Status of Handset Customisation Today; B.2 Uniquely Customised Handsets; B.3 Uniquely Customised Handsets: Global Update
CHAPTER C. Manufacturers: Disruptive Times In The Age of Customer Segmentation: C.1 Striving for Customer Segmentation; C.2 Diversity in Manufacturer Positioning; C.3 OEMs: Innovative but organisationally handicapped; C.4 ODMs: Facilitating customised devices; C.5 ODEs: Changing the Economics of Customisation; C.6 Case studies of uniquely customised handsets; C.7 Manufacturer handset customisation: 2006-2011
CHAPTER D. Operators & MVNOs: Time for Handset Innovation: D.1 The Ageing State of Operator Handset Customisation; D.2 MVNOs: Reinventing the Handset; D.3 Operator strategies in handset customisation; D.4 Operator-led handset customisation: 2006-2011
CHAPTER E. Consumer Brands: The New Force in Mobile Handsets: E.1 Brands and Mobile; E.2 Consumer Brands and Mobile Content; E.3 Branded Handsets: The New Frontier; E.4 Beyond 2006: The Future of Branded Handsets
CHAPTER F. The Silk Road of Customised Handsets: F.1 The Path to Handset Commercialisation: From Design to Distribution; F.2 Routes To Market for Uniquely Customised Handsets; F.3 Industrial Design: First Step of the Experience; F.4 Customised Design Manufacturers; F.5 Value-Added Distributors; F.6 Handset Commercialisation: 2006-2011
CHAPTER G. A Guide to Technologies for Handset Customisation: G.1 The Handset Technology Stack; G.2 On-Device Portals; G.3 UI Customisation Platforms; G.4 Application Environments; G.5 Operating Systems; G.6 Hardware Reference Designs; G.7 Casing: new materials for mass customisation; G.8 Handset Customisation Technology: 2006-2011
CHAPTER H. 2006-2011: Market Forecasts and Trends: H.1 Global Market Forecast 2006-2011; H.2 Market Trends in Handset Customisation
CHAPTER I. Recommendations For Industry Players
List of Figures: Figure 1 - Detailed list of uniquely customised handsets and handset series profiled in this report; Figure 2 - Motorola’s market segmentation chart identifying main consumer clusters; Figure 3 - BenQ Siemens market segmentation chart circa 2004; Figure 4 - Roles of manufacturers, by category; Figure 5 - Global handset production breakdown: in-house vs outsourced; Figure 6 - The Red Motorola SLVR and Dolce & Gabbana RAZR v3i as examples of superficially; Figure 7 - The Sagem my700X Roland Garros designed for fans of the French Open tournament; Figure 8 - Illustration of the LG SD410 handset whose design resembles a sports car; Figure 9 - The Nokia Versace 7270, with Swarovski crystal lanyard; Figure 10 - The 3250 WESC Limited Edition handset; Figure 11 - The Casio G-Zone splash-proof phone; Figure 12 - The grey colours and conventional form factors typically found in mass-market handsets; Figure 13 - The Nokia 5500, the first device to offer ‘mode shifting’; Figure 14 - A music phone design by FG Wireless; Figure 15 - The Philips 968 Linux-based high-end handset designed by Cellon; Figure 16 - Xelibri models 1 through 8; Figure 17 - The Siemens ESCADA range; Figure 18 - The Bang & Olufsen Serene handset; Figure 19 - The ELLE Glamphone No 1 phone (top) and No 2 phone (bottom); Figure 20 - The i-kids uniquely customised handset targeting the tweens segment; Figure 21 - Selected handsets from Vertu’s Signature range (left) and Ascent range (right); Figure 22 - The Goldvish diamond-encrusted handset; Figure 23 - The VIPN Black Diamond designed by Jaren Goh; Figure 24 - Vodafone’s handset menu icons; Figure 25 - Orange Downloads service; Figure 26 - Vodafone Live Cast screenshots; Figure 27 - T-Mobile’s market segmentation charting segments by life stage; Figure 28 - The Firefly uniquely customised handset for 8-12 year old children.; Figure 29 - LG and Pantech handsets customised for Disney Mobile; Figure 30 - Disney-branded fixed, cordless and mobile handsets, manufactured through brand licensing; Figure 31 - Limited edition of Dmobo M900 with numbered certificate and rag cleaner; Figure 32 - The Hero and Kickflip handsets launched by MVNO Helio; Figure 33 - The Amp’d Jet, Hollywood and Angel handsets; Figure 34 - The Sanyo MVP and the Samsung ACE customised Mobile ESPN handsets; Figure 35 - Leather-embossed Motorola RAZR v3 handsets available exclusively to Voce customers.; Figure 36 - The A120 phone models designed and built by Samsung, based on Jitterbug’s conceptual; Figure 37 - The Vodafone Ferrari Sharp 902 handset; Figure 38 - The Sony Ericsson W300 Robbie Williams handset, exclusive to T-Mobile; Figure 39 - Vodafone investment in handset user interface, core applications and middleware; Figure 40 - KDDI Designer handsets; Figure 41 - The DoCoMo Music Porter X army-style handset from Mitsubishi; Figure 42. Dedicated single-task buttons as part of the Simply user interface (VS1 handset model); Figure 43 - Handset retail margins of selected Tier-1 manufacturer handsets; Figure 44 - The 12 stages in the lifecycle of handset commercialisation; Figure 45 - The stages in the lifecycle of handset commercialisation and industry roles alongside the; Figure 46 - Example of the stages of the handset industrial design process; Figure 47 - A dissection of the industrial design of the NMT handset, showing the complex arrangement of; Figure 48 - The Nordisk MobilTelefon logo; Figure 49 - The industrial design for the rugged handset developed by Ocean Observations; Figure 50 - Screenshots of the user interface designed for the NMT handsets; Figure 51 - modelabs’ customisable handset features for project delivery within six months; Figure 52 - The Elite Model Look EML1 handset powered by modelabs; Figure 53 - The EmporiaLife handset designed for the 50+ age group; Figure 54 - Simplified handset technology stack showing core software platforms that enable handset; Figure 55 - Positioning of on-device portals within the handset technology stack; Figure 56 - Examples of immersive data service experiences delivered by commercial on-device portal; Figure 57 - Positioning of UI customisation platforms within the handset technology stack; Figure 58 - Examples of customisable user interfaces delivered by TAT’s product; Figure 59 - Example of a customisable user interface delivered by Digital Airways’ product; Figure 60 - Examples of customisable user interfaces delivered by e-SIM’s product; Figure 61 - Examples of customisable user interfaces delivered by MSX’s product; Figure 62 - Positioning of application environments within the handset technology stack; Figure 63 - Positioning of operating systems within the handset technology stack; Figure 64 - Positioning of hardware reference designs within the handset technology stack; Figure 65 - Evolution of reference design hardware and integration of functionality into fewer chips; Figure 66 - The Dmobo M900 and the Philips Xenium 9@9 handset featuring leather-moulded housing by; Figure 67 - Branded vinyl skins produced by SkinIt, themed around a licensed Star Wars character; Figure 68 - Unit sales of uniquely customised handsets by manufacturer type: 2006-2011; Figure 69 - UCH sales as a percentage of global handset sales: 2006-2011; Figure 70 - UCH sales as a percentage of global handset sales: 2006-2011; Figure 71 - The handset industry shift from vertical to horizontal forms, modelled on Charles Fine’s Double

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