The lack of a service integrator to help businesses purchase, deploy and manage mobile offerings has long been an albatross for the wireless industry.
But it looks as if help might finally be on the way. Brad Boston, chief information officer of Cisco Systems Inc., called attention to the problem earlier this year at the 3GSM World Congress in Spain. Boston slammed the industry for its inability give businesses the tools they need to allow workers to access corporate data remotely and securely.
“One of the biggest challenges we see is that there’s very little focus on the enterprise market,” Boston told attendees. “(Businesses) are looking for a number of services to buy, and there’s no place to buy them.”
Boston’s concerns are neither new nor unique. For years, analysts have recognized a “channel gap”-a disconnect between businesses’ wireless needs and the companies that provide them.
“There are some really good opportunities out there” for a service integrator, said Boston, noting that Cisco manages nearly 40,000 mobile devices for its employees, “because we all have the same kind of problem.”
Wireless operators have tried to position themselves as the sole channel for enterprise mobility offerings and-perhaps unsurprisingly-found limited success. Traditional resellers have focused on one-off purchases and typically have neither the interest nor the resources to help businesses deploy products and manage services.
Other factors are at play as well. Resellers often have had their hands tied by contracts with operators that demand exclusivity, crippling their ability to carry a variety of offerings. And some blame handset subsidies that result in 2- or 3-year contracts, locking businesses into products and services that can quickly become both antiquated and costly.
But a handful of newcomers have entered the space, looking to serve as a single point of contact for IT directors. The trend was evident at CTIA Wireless 2006 in Las Vegas two weeks ago, where startups such as Movero Technology Inc. and Integrated Mobile Inc. tried to raise their profile within the industry, according to Kathryn Weldon, a principal analyst with Current Analysis.
“One key surprise (at CTIA) was the emergence of a new class of small companies that are taking on wireless deployment and management, answering the `cry for help’ at enterprises struggling with how to mobilize applications without a huge investment,” Weldon said. “Both companies emphasized that they (as opposed to a carrier) can provide support for companies with multiple carrier relationships.”
Small players aren’t the only ones on the playground, however. Mobile-phone distributor Brightpoint Inc. has been working for more than a year to address the market, building a team to help resellers offer end-to-end wireless solutions for small businesses.
The 24-employee division spends four months training each retailer on devices and applications as well as more sophisticated issues like security and integrating wireless systems with a company’s servers. Brightpoint also is developing financing programs and leasing options to ease the transition to enterprise mobility, and eventually hopes to analyze rate plans for businesses and aggregate bills from different service providers.
The number of factors that must be considered when it comes to mobilizing businesses underscores the difficulties in bringing retailers out from the sales counter to develop long-term relationships with clients.
The company plans to officially launch several solutions in the next three months, according to Dave Brown, senior vice president of Brightpoint’s Advanced Wireless Services business. Additional offerings are scheduled to come to market as small businesses move from deploying wireless products and services to managing devices and data.
“Another important component is the technical support component,” Brown said. “Frankly, we haven’t completely figured it out yet, but it’s an extremely important part of the value proposition.”
Brightpoint believes its experience in distributing phones and providing logistics gives it a leg up as the channel gap begins to close. The company shipped 24 million phones last year and is working with 150 resellers that want to sell to businesses. Also, Brightpoint already has deals with Cingular Wireless L.L.C. and Sprint Nextel Corp. and is hoping to solidify relationships with other operators.
“We see that right now there’s not one place” for businesses to go to purchase and manage wireless goods and services, Brown said. “But let’s face it: there are several people we think will want to play in this space. … Everybody wants to get into this space.”
