T-Mobile G1: Interview With Head Of Corporate Affairs, Robin O’Kelly
Well, the dust has settled on the T-Mobile G1’s launch and with a Saatchi-designed marketing drive, things are well underway. Omio had the opportunity to talk to Robin O’Kelly, Head of Corporate Affairs for T-Mobile. We discuss the handset at length, as well as T-Mobile’s plans for the future.
OMIO: I suppose we should start at the beginning. How did the partnership between the three companies involved in the G1 (HTC, T-Mobile and Google) come about?
O’Kelly: T-Mobile has been part of the Android Open Handset Alliance since its inception. We share Google’s view with regards to mobile internet, in that we want to provide freedom to the customer and we were the first to break the “walled garden” when using mobile internet with web ‘n’ walk back in 2005.
Other networks preferred to control what customers saw and where they clicked as soon as they entered the web, pushing their own services and products. We came at it from the other direction, we thought: ‘if we make the user experience comparable to the one they are familiar with on a PC, they will readily come back and use it more frequently.’ Which they did.
Now you see this as standard practice from the other networks, but it began with T-Mobile.
The G1 is a natural extension of that concept of fast, open and easy mobile internet usage, as is Android.
OMIO: And how was it working with HTC?
They are an excellent manufacturer, and one that has come so far in the last three years or so. They used to make high-end, technically very proficient Windows Mobile driven handsets, including the MDA III for T-Mobile. Now they are entering the mass market place, designing handsets for themselves and others. They are very happy to work alongside many manufacturers, but we think the chance to work with an entirely new operating system was the allure for them with the G1.
OMIO: Are you not concerned that the excitement surrounding Android might overshadow interest in the G1?
O’Kelly: No, not really. We feel that the device and Android compliment each other. The large touch screen and the intuitive interface are tailored for mobile internet usage, and the QWERTY keyboard and 3G connectivity allow it to provide a browsing experience like no other.
To be honest, the development of mobile phone UI architecture was very slow prior to the iPhone and the G1. To have such a novel way to navigate and utilise the G1 is impressive, and hopefully compelling to consumers.
OMIO: What of Google’s involvement in the process? Why is it called the G1, as opposed to the GooglePhone/gPhone?
O’Kelly: To give the handset its full name, it is the T-Mobile G1 with Google. The G1 is really more about Android than Google, but as the first Android handset, and given Google’s close involvement it makes sense to be the G1 with Google.
We see the handset as very valuable from a branding perspective at T-Mobile, which is why our name features prominently. The ‘G’ stands for Google, and it is obviously the first handset of its kind from us, hence ‘1’.
OMIO: But calling it the G1 only invites questions like this one! Does this mean we be seeing an Android powered G2 from T-Mobile?
O’Kelly: Ha ha! Plans for a second handset are possible…
OMIO: How is the G1 selling?
O’Kelly: Pretty well…very well in fact. We have found that interest is huge, particularly in America. I know HTC have been working very hard to keep up with demand!
We aim to be rolling out the G1 to the rest of Europe in the first quarter of 2009.
OMIO: The G1 may have a strong cachet in the marketplace at present, but how will it compete when there are also other Android handsets available?
O’Kelly: The spotlight may well shift slightly once other handsets using Android are released, but we will be keeping the G1 in our marketing plans for 2009.
OMIO: When do you think we will be seeing the next batch of Android powered handsets from other manufacturers?
O’Kelly: I wouldn’t be surprised if other manufacturers came out with an Android device as soon as the first or second quarter of 2009.
OMIO: What is the G1’s target demographic?
O’Kelly: The G1 is aimed at the mass market for £40 a month on Flext and Combi tariffs, with unlimited internet usage and the handset provided for free. It is a slightly more expensive tariff than the casual consumer might be used to, but we are going for the slightly more tech aware shopper.
OMIO: With BlackBerry Storm and Apple iPhone straddling the business and consumer sectors, does the G1 have the functionality to do the same?
O’Kelly: Features such as push mail are possible via a POP3 account, and is very quick at pulling new messages due to the always-on internet connection. The G1 would be an entirely capable handset for small businesses.
One feature that is currently missing on the G1 is support for Microsoft Exchange mail servers, but I’m sure this will change as time goes on. It is a necessity to many business users receiving their work e-mail, so we hope to deliver this functionality.
OMIO: What about the Marketplace? With Gameloft posting record Q3 sales and attributing a large proportion of their success to the iPhone App Store, will Android Marketplace be following suit with paid apps any time soon?
O’Kelly: Certainly, the Marketplace is set up to receive paid applications, and there are already a number of impressive free titles in place at present. Slightly more simplistic games such as Pac-Man are already in, proving the G1 as a competent games machine. The Marketplace currently has the infrastructure to hold paid items and allow users to set prices, it is just a matter of time before it begins to be populated with such content.
[...] was able to score an interview with Robin O’Kelly, Head of Corporate Affairs for T-Mobile. In the chat, he asks how T-Mobile came to be partnered [...]
[...] was able to score an interview with Robin O’Kelly, Head of Corporate Affairs for T-Mobile. In the chat, he asks how T-Mobile came to be partnered [...]
[...] You can read the interview at OMIO. [...]
[...] that it has the ability to compete Apple Store. The detailed interview of Robin O Kelly can be read here. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, [...]
[...] Robin O’Kelly, Head of Corporate Affairs over at T-Mobile, recently gave OMIO an interview about the creation of the G1 in cooperation with HTC. It is an interesting interview in that O’Kelly responds to a question about competing with Apple’s App Store, discusses the iPhone a bit, and anticipation of future T-Mobile Android phones (a G2, perhaps?) and speculation of when competitors may be offering Android handsets of their own. Give it a read here! [...]
[...] Omio interview with T-Mobile head Robin O’Kelly revealed that it was definitely on their radar, although not something that was going to be [...]