Euphemism PR 101 : "Nexus One changes in availability"

As Andy Rubin, VP, Engineering, put it in Google's most elaborate backpedaling announcement ever, "innovation requires constant iteration".

I can't wait to see the next iteration of such innovative PR.

A few months ago, when Google was trumpeting online distribution for its Nexus One, I pointed out that "Google are not into distribution, IRL.*" This operation was bound to fail : not only because this is not Big G's trade, but also because Big G cannot grow bigger in every single dimension without endangering its own stability, including from a regulator's point of view. Furthermore, yes, "it's clear that many customers like a hands-on experience before buying a phone, and they also want a wide range of service plans to chose from".

So the only questions were "when" and "how". When would Google stop this joke ? The answer is today. For the "where", the official Google Blog was the natural channel. Now I really loved the "how" they did it :

- Google is not stopping online sales : "Nexus One changes in availability"

- Google is not abandonning independence : it offers "more retail availability" and is going to be "working with partners"

- Google is not closing its online store : "we'll stop selling handsets via the web store, and will instead use it as an online store window", and we even call this innovation "from retail to viewing".

Now it takes guts to deliver such a pitch without guffawing. Google probably learned that skill from Chinese authorities.

mot-bile 2010

* "Google Phone At Hand. No Kindling."

Skype on your TV : home improvement ?

mot-bile 2010 - Skype stole part of the Google show : if the Nexus One was already yesterday's news*, Skype is tomorrow's.

Because coming up this spring, Panasonic and LG internet-connected HDTVs will have Skype inside**.

OK. We're not talking major innovation there. Only smart bundling. And for the moment, it's either Skype or TV, so forget about chatting while watching a program, for instance a soccer game (heard the news ? there's a World Cup this year). But it should help videophony get a boost, and internet TV become as mainstream as it should be.

Next thing you know, some may reconsider using at home that other always on screen of theirs, a much more personal yet smaller and costlier one.

Former Skype owners eBay were left at the gate, but I'm sure they - among others - would love to take a shot at home shopping networks. Anyway, expect in a very near future more familiar logos sticked on every internet HDTV.

* see "Google Phone at hand, no kindling".

ADDENDUM 20100105 : on the official Google blog, Mario Queiroz, VP of Product Management
developped "Our new approach to buying a mobile phone" (or rather "superphones")
"through a new, simple online web store from Google".

** see Skype video on "Get Skype on your TV" (Skype - 20100105)

Google Phone At Hand. No Kindling.

mot-bile 2009 - Nexus One is all over the web. Unlocked, open, bare, the gPhone will probably be cheaper than an iPhone... MNO subsidies not included.

MNO subsidies ? As Big G eventually takes on Apple & co on their core business, it decides to redefine the whole handset ecosystem : direct sales, operator agnostic, Dell Computer style, without the intel inside jingle.

Imagine a small M-VNO proposing competitive rates for data. All of a sudden, a bunch of nerds subscribe for their brand new Nexus and bring the house down. Far-fetched ? 3% of iPhone users generate 40% of the data traffic on AT&T's network, to the point the operator confessed : "we've got to get to those customers and have them recognize that they need to change their patterns or have to face other things" (see "AT&T may penalize iPhone users who hog data"). In other words : be a good customer, but not too smart. or else... "face other things". Whatever that means. Maybe some big guy with a slight Italian accent will come with a baseball bat and redesign your knee caps, or upload a creative application on your face.

Nexus One makes a lot of people nervous. Some even consider lawsuits : if Google inaugurates itself the next version of Android, the newcomer may face charges of anticompetitive behavior, even if it only sells one device.

I'm looking forward to an interesting 2010 year : Apple facing full-fledged competition, Nokia going at Blackberry's throat... and Google releasing its Kindle.

Because that's basically the same story for Google and Amazon : beyond the device (the "Google outside", if you prefer), the aim is to understand the whole value chain and to secure future revenues in a field that's bound to represent a great chunk of the core business in a very near future.

The main difference : Google are not into distribution, IRL.