The inside track on the news – online and in print
£2.70 www.MobileToday.co.uk 9 September 2016
Note 7 recall costs billions p3
Virtual reality steals the show p4
Apple hit with €13bn fine p6
‘Make it right’ Three CEO tells regulator
Network’s CEO Dave Dyson wants a stronger regulator and more spectrum By Zak Garner-Purkis THRee’S Ceo Dave Dyson (pictured) has launched a major attack on the current state of the UK mobile market. Dyson has urged regulators to do more to ‘level the playing field’ so the business can compete with the likes of ee and Vodafone. He also accused his rivals of ‘strategic bidding’, ‘sitting on spectrum’, and using the threat of legal action to maintain their market position. Speaking to the media – significantly for the first time since the deal for Three’s owners CK Hutchison to buy rival o2 was rejected – Dyson was brutal in his market assessment. ‘You look at the history and it strongly suggests – even though we’re a bigger business now – that we’ve obviously got something that significantly impedes us. It’s not about the strength of the shareholders; they are making strong commercial decisions.
It’s fundamentally about the structure. We’re not looking for a leg-up from ofcom, we just want a level playing field. and right now there isn’t a level playing field.’ Raising the stakes ahead of the next radio wave spectrum auction, the Three boss said that he believed ofcom held back from making decisions that may be detrimental to the market’s biggest players because of the threat of legal action. ‘There is very little evidence of ofcom sticking its neck out and actually supporting the consumer. That’s not because it is incompetent or because it has been asleep at the wheel. It’s because the standard of appeal that ofcom has to live by is relatively low compared with other regulators in the UK such as the energy industry. ‘ofcom has always been aware that the big incumbents have massive legal teams and resources to delay and frustrate decisions that ofcom would
look to make.’ Dyson said it was Three’s belief that, in the past, rivals ee and Vodafone had both strategically acquired spectrum that they didn’t actually need. ‘Fundamentally, we think BT/ee and Vodafone have tried to get spectrum that they didn’t necessarily need. and the main object of that was to deny other operators in that market access to the spectrum.’ The next auction, which was initially scheduled for December 2015, is for the
2.3GHz/3.4GHz bandwidths. It was delayed after O2 and Three’s owners threatened legal action against the regulator because the decision on the merger between the two firms was still to be resolved. Three is asking ofcom to put certain limitations on the auction to ensure an even greater disparity of spectrum – a suggestion rejected by EE CEO marc allera when speaking to Mobile over the summer. He said that he opposed any alteration to
the process: ‘I hope that it’s a competitive process, I believe auctions should be.’ Responding to Dyson’s comments, a spokesperson from Vodafone UK said: ‘These are some pretty surprising comments from an operator that has been in the UK market for more than 15 years and has had ample opportunity, as well as the financial resources, to bid for spectrum when it has become available.’ a spokesperson from EE denied that the network was ‘sitting on spectrum’: ‘We have never stopped using our spectrum to deliver the very best network experience for customers. We pioneered 4G and we are a leader in network speeds. ‘We are unique in our commitment to expand 4G coverage to 95% of the UK’s landmass by 2020 – further than any other UK network has done – and will continue to ensure the UK stays at mobile technology’s leading edge.’
iPhone 7 launch: Redeem ready for £20m boom By Kezia Joseph ReDeeM has predicted that apple’s iPhone 7 launch will bring with it a boom in consumers looking to trade in their old handsets. The mobile phone recycler said it expects to return £20m to consumers in the weeks following the US tech giant’s keynote event, predicting trade-ins will significantly increase over the period. this will be
driven by Redeem-run schemes such as o2 Recycle and online service envirofone. Commenting on the launch, redeem CEO Paul adams said: ‘the iPhone launch is the key time of year for customers trading in their old devices, and represents a huge opportunity for Redeem across all of our operating territories. Consumers are increasingly looking to get value from their old device in order to get the latest model.’
across the rest of the industry, the iPhone 7 launch is highly anticipated. one staff member at a major UK retailer told Mobile: ‘We’re hoping the apple launch goes well after the launch problems last week with Samsung. ‘I think even though demand and excitement for the new iPhone feels about the same as last year, there may be a bigger push from Samsung to apple because of the issues with the galaxy note 7.’
HoW TRAiNiNG iS CHANGiNG THe FACe oF ReTAil P7-10
News Devices
Samsung Note 7 recall racks up billion-dollar bill Manufacturer confirms to Mobile that all sales will be halted until ‘battery cell issues’ are resolved By Kezia Joseph Samsung’s decision to issue a global recall of its new Galaxy Note 7 devices is set to cost the business as much as $1bn, according to estimates by Bloomberg. The manufacturer suspended worldwide sales of its Note 7 flagship and recalled 2.5m pre-ordered devices after finding evidence that faulty batteries caused 35 of the handsets to explode. Citing battery cell issues, Samsung confirmed to Mobile on 9 September that it will stop all sales of the new flagship device while it carries out a full internal investigation and liaises with its suppliers. The news came less than a week before Apple’s Keynote event, where the launch of the new iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 will no doubt pile pressure on Samsung. A spokesperson said: ‘Samsung is committed to producing the highest-quality products and we take every incident report from our valued
customers very seriously. In response to recently reported cases of the new Galaxy Note 7, we conducted a thorough investigation and found a battery cell issue.
‘To date (as of September 1) there have been 35 cases that have been reported globally and we are currently conducting a thorough inspection with our suppliers to identify possible
affected batteries in the market. However, because our customers’ safety is an absolute priority at Samsung, we have stopped sales of the Galaxy Note 7.’
The recall marks another major blow for the manufacturer, after it was forced to suspend Note 7 shipments on 1 September when initial reports of exploding devices started to circulate. Samsung has now urged customers to return their devices, stating that a replacement handset will be issued in the coming weeks. To aid with this Samsung has also launched a product exchange programme for customers in the UK & Ireland where Note 7 handsets can be traded in. ‘For customers who already have Galaxy Note 7 devices, we will voluntarily replace their current device with a new one over the coming weeks. ‘We acknowledge the inconvenience this may cause in the market but this is to ensure that Samsung continues to deliver the highest-quality products to our customers. We are working closely with our partners to ensure the replacement experience is as convenient and efficient as possible.’
There have been 35 cases that have been reported globally and we are currently conducting a thorough inspection with our suppliers to identify possible affected batteries in the market Samsung spokesperson
Manufacturer
New UK manufacturer believes it can grab 3% share By Zak Garner-Purkis New smartphone brand IMO (In My Opinion) is targeting a 3% market share of the UK market within its first year. The manufacturer is a UK business backed by Chinese investors, and comes under the umbrella of parent company Verve Connect. IMO’s three handsets will target the sub-£100 sector of the market, an area that has been abandoned by a number of the big-name manufacturers over the past few years.
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Speaking to Mobile at the launch of its latest set of handsets, Nigel Whitehead, IMO’s head of sales and propositions, said that deals with a number of key UK players would help to establish the brand in the UK: ‘We believe that 3% is a realistic target for our first 12 months. We’re working with a number of established partners such as Virgin, Argos and ASDA to make our name this year. We’ll be looking to add more retail partners as we move forward, and in 2017 work with the larger carriers and operators.’ Explaining the reasons for choosing to launch in the
UK first, IMO said that the UK was one of the most liberal in terms of regulation, and open to new brands. IMO secured Virgin Media as a launch partner, and the manufacturer revealed to Mobile that it would be offering new customers a tastecard with some handsets to entice customers to the product. Annie Brooks, director of mobile at Virgin Media, said: ‘With IMO we’re bringing an exciting, fresh mobile brand into the UK and helping our customers to enjoy on-the-go connectivity, with quality smartphones at an affordable price.’
9 September 2016 mobile 3
News IFA 2016
Virtual reality steals the show at IFA 2016 The biggest launches in Berlin: Sony’s new flagship plus Samsung and Alcatel wearables
By Kezia Joseph Virtual reality was the standout theme at this year’s IFA as manufacturers across the board used the event as an opportunity to claim a share of the market. Alcatel launched its Vision VR headset while ZTE also unveiled a VR offering that could be used alongside its latest Axon smartphone. Mobile Choice editor Sunetra Chakravarti was at the event and told Mobile that from high-end manufacturers down to entry-level names, the demand for VR was huge. ‘Virtual reality dominated at this year’s IFA,’ she said. ‘Samsung, LG and HTC used the past year to move into this market and now the rest of the industry are playing catch-up. Everyone from big-name manufacturers to new market entrants used IFA 2016 to try to claim a slice of the VR pie. Alcatel launched its standalone Vision headset while ZTE paired its new Axon 7 smartphone with its own VR proposition.’ Sony was also a showstopper, launching its first flagship of the year at the Berlin event. Chakravarti said that despite the public launch, Sony has a long way to go to appeal to those outside their die-hard fan base. ‘The launch of Sony’s new Xperia XZ also took IFA by storm,’ she continued.
‘The manufacturer’s first flagship of the year made a very public appearance, with Sony no doubt hoping to generate a strong level of consumer excitement. ‘A mishmash of the X and Z ranges, the XZ has everything on paper to get die-hard Sony fans excited. However, as Sony itself said at the launch, it has a job to do and converting consumers to its brand will
in all likelihood be an up-hill task.’ For Huawei, IFA 2016 was the perfect time to move into the midrange market with its latest series of smartphones. The Nova and Nova Plus will come in at £334 and £359 respectively, putting it in direct competition with Apple’s iPhone SE, which will retail at £359. At the low end of the market, Doro expanded its
feature phone portfolio, revealing the Doro 5516 as its latest addition. Samsung used the high-profile event to expand its wearable portfolio with the launch of its new smartwatch, the Gear S3, while wearables were also the theme for Alcatel. The brand launched its Go Watch range of durable smartwatches, flaunting both waterproof and dustproof features.
Everyone from big-name manufacturers to new market entrants used IFA 2016 to try to claim a slice of the VR pie Sunetra Chakravarti, editor, Mobile Choice Manufacturers
New Honor flagship device touches down in Europe By Kezia Joseph Honor has launched its latest flagship device across Europe. The new Honor 8 will place a major focus on longer battery life and better camera experiences, with the handset to go on sale at a number of online retailers, as well as Honor’s own Vmall online store.
4 mobile 9 September 2016
The Huawei-owned brand will be hoping the Honor 8 can replicate the success of its previous flagship – the Honor 7 – which it claimed sold out within one day of its European launch. Honor has taken a number of steps to boost its presence in the region, most recently appointing a new European head to take its brand ‘to
the next level’. Huawei has previously attributed its strong growth in the region to the Honor brand, as shipments increased by 98% year on year. The new Honor 8 will start at £369.99 and will be stocked at Three stores, as well as with online retailers Amazon, Ebuyer, Clove and Expansys. Commenting on the launch,
Honor said: ‘The Honor 8 has been specifically designed by Honor, the leading e-commerce smartphone brand for digital natives, to meet the ambitious, fast-paced lifestyles of this generation. It combines breakthrough design with supreme speed, high-quality camera capabilities, and smart functions, making it the perfect match.’
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News Manufacturers
Apple slapped with €13bn unpaid tax fine US tech giant received illegal tax benefits from Ireland By Kezia Joseph Apple has been ordered to pay €13bn after EU regulators ruled that the US tech giant had received illegal tax benefits from Ireland. The European Commission’s investigation found that on two occasions, tax rulings issued by Ireland to Apple enabled the US tech giant to gain the upper hand by paying less tax than other businesses. The tax arrangement saw Apple attribute sales from 1991 to 2015 to a head office that the EC found only existed on paper and which could not have generated such profits. As a result, Apple managed to avoid paying tax on almost all profits generated across the EU Single Market. Ireland has now been ordered to recover the unpaid tax fine from Apple. However, Ireland’s Minister for Finance, Michael Noonan, said he will be appeal the EC’s decision. ‘I disagree profoundly with the Commission’s decision,’ he said in a statement. ‘The decision leaves me with no choice but to seek Cabinet approval to appeal the decision before the European Courts. This is necessary to defend the integrity of our tax system; to provide tax certainty to business; and to challenge the
encroachment of EU state aid rules into the sovereign Member State competence of taxation.’ Delivering the verdict, EU Commissioner Margrethe Vestager branded the findings as ‘selective treatment’ towards Apple, which employs 6,000 people in Ireland. ‘Member States cannot give tax benefits to selected companies,’ she said, ‘this is illegal under EU state aid rules. This selective treatment allowed
Apple to pay an effective corporate tax rate of 1 per cent on its European profits in 2003, down to 0.005 per cent in 2014.’
Apple teams up with EE
In the UK, EE announced that it had teamed up with the US tech giant to offer Apple Music to customers free of charge for six months. New or upgrading customers will be able to take advantage of the offer,
which marks the first time that Apple has offered its music app to a UK network. The timely announcement comes in the same week that Apple Music offered exclusive access to Frank Ocean’s long-awaited album. The deal marks another aggressive push from the network towards content after EE offered customers allinclusive access to BT Sports, a move that did not go down well with rival Virgin Media.
I disagree profoundly with the Commission’s decision. The decision leaves me with no choice but to seek Cabinet approval to appeal the decision before the European Courts Michael Noonan, Ireland’s Minister for Finance Operating systems
Android overtakes iOS as most stable mobile platform By Jack Courtez Apple’s iOS platform has been bettered by Google’s Android for the first time. Data collected by Blancco Technology Group showed that iOS apps crashed on 50% of Apple devices in Q2 of 2016 – double the number in Q1. The firm’s regular State of Mobile Device Performance Health report also showed that Android app crash rates dropped from 44% to 35% over the same period. Among the worst offenders for crashing iOS devices were Snapchat (17%), Instagram (14%) and
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Facebook (9%). In terms of phone models, the iPhone 6 suffered most, accounting for 29% of reported failures. It is thought this reversal in rankings between the two big mobile platforms is largely due to Apple’s much-criticised updates, released in April and May, which caused performance and compatibility issues with third-party apps. Samsung handsets accounted for 26% of failures and Lenovo was singled out as producing all five of the worst-performing handsets. Blancco Technology Group CSO Richard Stiennon
said: ‘Ever since the first iPhone was introduced in 2007, Apple’s iOS has been a force to be reckoned with – launching new models every year and raking in strong sales and revenue quarter after quarter – but our data suggests that the performance battle between iOS, Android and other operating systems is constantly changing… ‘As industry experts, wireless carriers and consumers look ahead to the highly anticipated launch of the iPhone 7 in September, it will be interesting to see how the new model’s features may, or may not, impact the phone’s performance.’
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Feature
How training has changed the game The way in which a phone is sold has transformed over the past few years. This is largely down to staff training, so Mobile decided to find out how things have changed
By Kezia Joseph When it comes to staff training, gone are the days of a programme tied to technical specification and commission-driven contracts. The consultative approach has changed the way mobile networks, vendors, dealers and retailers teach their staff how to sell. ‘There’s been a big change with training,’ Vodafone head of retail John Shaw tells Mobile. ‘If you go back five
or six years, retail was a very salesfocused culture that didn’t understand the value of great service. ‘It used to be about selling boxes but we had to adapt how we train people and focus on how to behave with customers, rather than just selling loads. It’s recognition that retail is changing. If you use retail as a space to sell things it’s a very expensive part of your business, but if it’s a focal point of customer interaction you become a very accessible brand.’
Spot the difference
Customer conversations no longer centre on product, as services such as roaming become more important. Carphone Warehouse has made a major shift away from training staff on particular device features, and instead focusing on everyday use cases. Caroline Angell, director of talent and development for Dixons Carphone, tells Mobile that as both staff and consumers become more familiar with smartphones outside of work, there
is less need to focus on the handset during training. ‘Current phones are typically very familiar to people now and especially to our colleagues,’ she says. ‘Staff work for us because they have an interest in mobile so we only really need to explain the key features and benefits. Instead, we focus on understanding our customer needs, supporting them in getting the right package, amount of data, call and text usage, and using your phone abroad.’
If you use retail as a space to sell things it’s a very expensive part of your business but if it’s a focal point of customer interaction you become a very accessible brand John Shaw, head of retail, Vodafone UK www.mobiletoday.co.uk
9 September 2016 mobile 7
Feature If you’ve got a natural tech geek but they can’t communicate with the customer then the technical part is pretty useless James Phipps, CEO, Excalibur Digging into the detail
From a manufacturer perspective, Alcatel has opted to play to its strengths and make training all about the handset. As it becomes harder to find a point of differentiation, Paterson explains that the business is actively looking for features that rivals may not have picked up on. The manufacturer has spent the past four months developing its Tech Team, which goes out into the channel to train networks and retailers about the Alcatel brand. ‘They find a point on a product,’ he says. ‘It may not be a unique point but we may be the only ones who talk about it. A good example is the wideangle selfie camera. We give the guys and girls in the team a device and let them play with it to see what they come up with.’
Keeping it in the family
The high street retailer now puts a greater focus on software – in particular operating systems – to give its staff a point of difference: ‘We now include much more information about the different operating systems and focus on how customers use their phones day to day.’ Samsung has adopted a similar approach, shifting focus away from the technical specs of a device and onto consumer experience. Liz McAuliffe, training manager UK and Ireland, tells Mobile that Samsung targets its training at empowering staff, using hands-on demonstrations to do so. ‘We have moved away from focusing on the technical specifications of a device,’ she says, ‘and now focus
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on how our devices add value to the consumer’s life. Our approach to training is to empower the staff with the knowledge that they need to be able to relay a confident demonstration to consumers that highlights how they can use their phone to meet their needs. We use Samsung Backstage to host video demonstrations so that staff are able to refresh their knowledge around this at any time they wish.’
Moving away from product
From a manufacturer perspective, there has been a shift in some parts of the market away from product, with a greater focus being put on brand. This change is described by a trainer from
one well-known brand: ‘It’s been a shift from talking about product to talking about brand, as we haven’t had many releases. The main focus has been refreshing our image – it’s a balance between talking about our heritage but also about showing what we’re doing differently.’ For Vodafone, it isn’t just about the handset in the same way it has been in the past. ‘We train our guys to never start with the product,’ says Shaw. ‘We do things the other way around and tell our staff to start with the customer and see what they plan to use it for. Device knowledge is still really important, but only when you’ve established what the customer needs.’ Vodafone trains its staff to deal with everything from product questions to business services and troubleshooting. This, Shaw claims, gives it the edge over rivals in the market. ‘We stand out as offering the most varied experience in store,’ he says. ‘Our people are trained to deal with everything and that’s where the industry needs to move too. If you just have people there to sell, customers will become wary and you don’t want them to feel nervous. ‘We train the teams to deal with Vodafone customers irrespective of what customers they are and whether it is a service query, business enterprise, SMB or consumer. That’s very different from our competition – if you went into a rival store with a customer service issue they’d give you a phone number, we’re the opposite.’
When it comes to b2b, the training focuses more on building business skills rather than technical knowledge. While dealers such as Olive launched their own training academy, others have opted to bring in external trainers to up-skill staff when necessary. Aerial Comms prefers to train the majority of staff itself, but also partners with O2 and Samsung, which come in and run workshops to bring employees up to speed. Sales director Dave Stephens explains that having these reputable external partners boosts trust in the business. ‘One of the senior team members recently became an O2 “Digital Advisor”, which means that they received training directly from O2 and can now assist the sales & marketing departments in all things digital. For our customers, it means that Aerial can provide better technical advice and support in relation to the network and its services.’ Vodafone partner Onecom also runs an in-house training facility, which offers induction and continued development for staff. CEO Darren Ridge says: ‘We have to put a percentage of staff through our programme and Vodafone provides the technical training. Now that Vodafone has announced a complete change in its partner programme, there’s been a big emphasis from it to get more involved in the training side.’ From a vendor side, Samsung’s b2b training combines device features with business use case, with McAuliffe naming security as a key area that sets the business apart from rival manufacturers. ‘B2b training focuses more on “Why Samsung for Business”. While we still train staff on the features of our devices, we focus more on how these
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Feature All of us in the industry need to spend more time in making what these products can actually do more understandable William Paterson, UK head, Alcatel features are aligned to meet business needs and requirements. Our security features such as KNOX are a primary focus, and we talk about how this sets us apart from other manufacturers,’ she says.
Training with tech
For Dixons Carphone, the big change in training has come from incorporating technology into its programmes. The high street brand uses online modules and communities to continue to support its staff after their induction period, which is held off site at a residential three-day workshop. ‘We have taken full advantage of using technology in our learning modules and have definitely seen a shift here in recent years,’ says Angell. ‘We encourage user generated learning and online communities to support knowledge sharing and support too. We still kick off our staff’s life with us in a central venue so we can immerse them into our brand and ways of working. Feedback from staff is they find this really engaging before going into their stores where they can continue their learning on the shop floor and also with lots of support online.’ For Vodafone, off-site training is also a key part of its programme, designed to introduce newcomers to what Shaw describes as the ‘very daunting’ world of telecoms. ‘We do a lot of off-site training because when you do in-store training the reality is that if the store is busy or short staffed they may not spend the time that they need learning,’ he says. ‘When anyone joins Vodafone we set up a training plan and that includes an induction away from their store with a full training programme and then spending 12 weeks on the shop floor with a buddy. The world of telco is a very daunting place so it’s vital they have the support they need and learn to be natural and warm with customers while looking at a complicated screen.’
Being consistent
Dixons Carphone’s Angell explains that one area where incorporating technology comes in handy is in maintaining a consistent level of training across all of its stores and staff members – a big challenge for the high street brand. ‘Being able to share out content and knowledge at speed to thousands of colleagues across the country in an engaging and memorable way has it challenges,’ she says, ‘but we do it well, utilising our learning technology and having well-embedded cascade processes in store.’ One way in which mobile brands
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manage to maintain training across a large region is through social media. One trainer explains that using channels such as WhatsApp and Snapchat enables them to stay in contact with staff and answer queries. ‘What we’ve seen is an increase in our use of social media so we can stay in contact with more staff on a daily basis,’ the trainer says. ‘Every day I’m using Google Duo, Facebook, Snapchat,
WhatsApp and Instagram to keep in touch, answer questions and share information. Not only does this allow one trainer to have a much more frequent presence even across a larger region, it also furthers the “always on” approach that I think a lot of trainers have.’
Virtual learning
Samsung has taken training to the
next level by combining it with virtual reality. The manufacturer tells Mobile that it has adapted its approach to make use of its Gear VR headsets in aiding staff development and boosting engagement. ‘The market has changed considerably over the years,’ says McAuliffe, ‘what with the growing popularity of wearables, smart watches and virtual reality headsets. Because
9 September 2016 mobile 9
Feature
of these introductions to the market, we have had to adapt our training approach to highlight Samsung’s convergence story, and demonstrate how our devices work together to make day-to-day life easier for consumers. We are now able to deliver our training in an even more engaging manner by using the innovation within our devices – the Gear VR in particular makes for a truly immersive training experience! ‘Using this, and the introduction of our 360 camera, we are able to create innovative content and deliver training in an engaging, immersive way. Delivering knowledge in this manner has been received positively and has shown an increase in brand advocacy and knowledge retention. We appreciate that store staff have a varied level of understanding, so we adapt our training and support to the individual needs of the staff through face-to-face visits, regular communications and our online portal Samsung Backstage.’
Unhelpful innovation
However, as mobile evolves beyond smartphones, Samsung has hit a major challenge when it comes to training. The rise of virtual reality is an
unfamiliar territory for staff, who need training not only on how to use this tech but also how to sell it. McAuliffe explains: ‘As we increase our product portfolio, staff need to retain more information than ever before. There are also new innovations coming to the market such as 360 cameras and virtual reality headsets that staff may have had no previous experience with. ‘We combat this with a phased approach to training, to ensure that staff are able to retain the information. Delivering 360 content via a VR experience, the staff are able to experience the products and gain a deeper understanding of it. It’s this experience that allows them to confidently discuss the devices with their consumers.’
Recruitment
Industry players are moving away from the more traditional methods of recruitment, seeking out particular qualities over vast retail experience. When O2 launched its Stores of the Future earlier this year, the network made a concerted effort not to hire staff from a retail background. Instead, the
brand opted for those passionate in particular areas, such as music or photography. For Alcatel it’s all about communication. Paterson explains that the industry is at the stage where consumers are very familiar with the technical aspects of a smartphone, and more time needs to be spent communicating handset features. ‘Consumers don’t care about technical knowledge. All of us in the industry need to spend more time in making what these products can actually do more understandable. Our guys and girls will pick up things up quickly so we don’t need to spend a lot of time on the technical aspects. We can always teach them about handsets – we really wanted to find people that could communicate well, build a relationship and show off the brand.’ Paterson’s comments were echoed by Excalibur CEO James Phipps who believes that staff with too much technical knowledge can be more of a hindrance than a help. ‘We try not to take people from the industry,’ he says. ‘Too much knowledge over-complicates things. We have technical experts but
customers don’t normally want to know the ins and outs of everything, they just want the best advice. So our training is about giving staff that technical knowledge. If you’ve got a natural tech geek but they can’t communicate with the customer then the technical part is pretty useless.’ Phipps explains that recruitment is a massive challenge in the industry and says the business has ramped up investment into that area. One way the dealer has done this is by setting up the Excalibur Business School, which uses a mixture of apprenticeships, workshops and work experience to upskill staff and attract new employees. However, for some manufacturers, hiring those without a technical mind or interest can cause problems at a training level. A trainer at one major brand says that it has become far harder to motivate new starters because fewer have the same passion for technology. ‘I’ve found staff to be less interested in technology than they maybe were previously,’ the trainer says. ‘Because they are less passionate about handsets and devices, it can be more challenging to ensure they retain all the key points of our training and the spec of the phones. I’ve found the most important thing is to convey your passion to the staff because it is contagious and it really helps to motivate them.’
A new kind of employee
A shift in demographic is also playing a role in changing recruitment, especially with the influx of millennials into the market. However, for Vodafone’s Shaw, the network is moving away from a mobile phone shop that was previously filled with young staff. ‘If you walked into the store five years ago you would see a very young set of people, but we’re changing that and looking for more mixed ages, and that’s good. A lot of young people can be quite daunting. As everyone is getting more comfortable with smartphones it’s less of a scary frontier so we’re having lots of different people look to come and work with us.’ He explains that a key challenge is how to retain staff. ‘When you do spend a lot of time training someone and getting them up to speed how do you maintain that relationship and make them stay?’ he says. ‘We have a formal graduate training scheme and we’re not short of people, but how do we keep the staff we’ve trained? We’ve spent a lot of time making sure comms in the front line is very different.’
I’ve found staff to be less interested in technology than they maybe were previously. Because they are less passionate about handsets and devices, it can be more challenging to ensure they retain all the key points of our training Manufacturer trainer 10 mobile 9 September 2016
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Advertisement Feature
Telenomics: Franchise of the Future
Telenomics was one of the first O2 franchises, co-founded by entrepreneurs Adarsh Radia, Amar Radia and Asad Hamir back in 2007. Now, with 16 stores across London, the South, the North East, and consistent award wins, co-founder Asad Hamir discusses the role of franchises in our rapidly changing retail environment. What benefits does a franchise model bring to the UK mobile industry?
What O2 found from starting with us as a pilot franchise partner is that there are substantial benefits for a large company in working with agile, enthusiastic business owners. We always aim to be more O2 than O2, we’re invested in the brand but we’re also agile and able to operate on a hyper-local level. We will always push and challenge them to do more and to do better; it’s a dialogue driven by continuous improvement and there’s a healthy impact that extends beyond just us.
Can you give an example of this agility that Telenomics can use to its advantage?
Sure, we’ve been working with local gyms to help with one of their key focuses – member retention. We’ve been able to design partnerships where they subsidise fitness wearables for their members to extend that excitement of first joining a gym by keeping them invigorated even when they are at home. For them it reduces churn and for us it also provides opportunities to win new customers.
Your stores range from the street with the highest footfall in the country to small seaside towns, how do you ensure reliable customer experience? It starts at the top, it’s about your purpose, your
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values and then aligning these to your actions. We’ve recently introduced a higher pay structure to reward service and attract great staff who share these values. We then promote team-building excursions and events on a weekly basis and use our feedback mystery shop and NPS systems to encourage continuous improvement at every level.
What challenges is mobile retail facing?
The mobile industry is at a crossroads. There are challenges such as declining mobile revenues but also huge opportunities on the other side. O2 is exceptionally placed to lead in the new space of IoT and smart tech, especially with its Store of the Future program. It’s a blueprint for the future that we’re aligning ourselves with. Especially as non-mobile revenue is so important for us – last year we trebled it and we’re already looking to expand it this year.
What non-mobile revenue areas are key areas for you in particular?
It’s accessories such as cases and, importantly screen protectors. We found that this is still a relatively under-tapped market, which we’re investing in in-store. Wearables and audio accessories are doing very well for us as well; we make sure staff members get given different headphones, speakers and earphones regularly so they are confident in discussing how these can benefit the customer.
For the future, virtual and augmented reality are key focuses. It’s great for us because new products are really a part of our business culture of being the first to adopt and share the latest innovations.
How does this accessory focus change the balance in store?
The consumer journey is changing. Next to a handset you’ll have a wearable device and audio equipment all connected. The function of stores has to be to demonstrate all these products together. It’s a huge opportunity for a manufacturer-agnostic approach to push emerging technology forward. Whoever does this and does it well is going to win in this market.
What sets Telenomics apart from other franchises?
It’s innovation and entrepreneurship, I trained as an optometrist in 2006 before co-launching Telenomics shortly after. We’ve since launched our high-growth eyewear brand Kite. My co-founders Adarsh and Amar Radia built the award-winning restaurant brand Dishoom, and Adarsh also set up a venture capital firm for investing in tech businesses. I think this really sets us apart because we’re deeply passionate about technology but we also bring a wider perspective to the market. It’s why O2 not only looks to work with us to grow mutually, but also for insight, for ideas and to be challenged.
9 September 2016 mobile 11
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raining on the smartphone parade Samsung’s battery explosion problems couldn’t have come at a worse time for the Korean brand
T
he competition between apple and Samsung has been particularly intense in the past few years. Both companies are performing above the expectations of industry experts and financial analysts, which has intensified the competition still further. there are certain flashpoints in the mobile year where this clash between technology giants is particularly evident. The companies both launch products around spring and in the autumn. During the spring, apple attempts to cause a stir before Samsung releases a flagship device at mobile World Congress. The autumn launch sees this pattern in reverse, with Samsung looking to take the momentum away from apple’s flagship reveal. This year, at a critical period, both companies have been hit with a couple of damaging public relations episodes. apple was landed with a very public unpaid tax bill by the eU to the tune of €13bn while Samsung had to issue a global recall of its new note 7 devices after a number of them exploded. For both companies the timing of these revelations couldn’t have been much worse. apple’s approach to taxation has long been criticised, but the eU’s actions have brought the issue to the forefront of consumers’ minds before its biggest launch of the year.
Samsung may have been feeling that it was in the position to capitalise on public animosity in europe towards its rival. It was also a geography eagerly anticipating the new note 7, as the last few versions of the phablet had not been released in europe. However, after a number of new phones began exploding in Korea, the manufacturer was forced to issue a global recall. The responses from the two brands were particularly interesting. While Samsung quickly acknowledged the error and sought to remedy it, apple sent its CEO on the offensive to defend its actions. admittedly, these were very different problems for the businesses to deal with, but it will be interesting to see how the differing approaches play out in the long run. In a few months all the controversy will be in the rear view mirror and the products will be plastered on billboards ahead of the Christmas push. But that doesn’t make the timings of these latest controversies any less painful for the brands to deal with.
Zak Garner-Purkis, Editor
THE ODD CALL Old tech to become Olympic gold
snowden’s anti-hack smartphone
Organisers of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games have requested that gold, silver and bronze medals be made using metals sourced from old technology, including smartphones. Japanese media source Nikkei said that the country’s ‘urban mine’ contained enough electronic waste to make all the medals required for both the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Whistleblower Edward Snowden is designing a smartphone case that tells the user when the device has been hacked. It will be aimed at journalists, activists and aid workers who need to conceal their whereabouts.
Metals recovered from discarded electronics in 2014 totalled 143kg of gold, 1,566kg of silver and 1,112 tons of copper. To put this into perspective, the London 2012 Olympics used 9.6kg of gold, 1,210kg of silver and 700kg of copper to produce medals. ‘We need a system that makes it easy for consumers to turn in used consumer electronics,’ said Takeshi Kuroda, president of ReNet Japan Group, one of the many businesses backing the plan.
12 mobile 9 September 2016
As of yet, only designs for an iPhone 6 case have been drawn up. Announcing the plans, Snowden and collaborator Andrew Huang described smartphones as the perfect tracking devices. ‘This work aims to give journalists the tools to know when their smartphones are tracking or disclosing their location when the devices are supposed to be in airplane mode,’ they said. ‘Trusting a phone that has been hacked to go into airplane mode is like trusting a drunk person to judge if they are sober enough to drive.’ www.mobiletoday.co.uk
News DisTriBuTiOn
Westcoast overhauls supplier base to seek easy sell The IT distributor tells Mobile it will review its partners in a bid to make it easier for dealers to sell services By Kezia Joseph WEStCOaSt has told Mobile it will review its suppliers base, adding to its roster those that open up new sale opportunities for dealers. Head of mobility Darren Seward said that while the It distributor is looking to ‘fill up gaps in our services portfolio’, it means nothing if dealers do not understand how to sell it. ‘We’ve been reviewing the suppliers we use as part of our value add proposition,’ he said. ‘In order to make these things successful, it has to be easy for everyone, and we’re looking for people who make the process easy for dealers to understand. They’re the ones in front of the end users and they need to know how to sell a service or product. ‘There’s no point having a 20-point process or a competitive price if no one is going to use it. From a traditional telecoms market and It reseller base we’re trying to educate customers to sell a solution and give them the tools to be able to do that. It’s a big challenge.’
Dealer priority
Westcoast has taken a number of steps to simplify the process for dealers, most recently teaming up with lease telecom to offer mobile phone financing; their second leasing partnership in a year. lease telecom founder Simon Fabb previously told Mobile that the option of financing gives dealers the confidence to secure big sales and break away from the traditional revenue-share relationships with networks. Seward said that the market trend of
decoupling airtime from the handset was becoming an increasingly popular option, and one that Westcoast is looking to move forward in. ‘This is a positive thing for dealers,’ he said. ‘over the past few years it’s been a recurring trend to see contract times extending and a fall in hardware upgrades. at the moment, dealers have to fund the cost of the device until the point where they get commission, whereas if it’s on a finance agreement the dealer gets their money within five days. ‘We are looking at some new services that we don’t offer at the moment – it’s difficult to come out with stuff that revolutionary. at the moment, the market is quite fragmented – you’ve
got the device sale and airtime and they’ve always been coupled, but there is a trend now of decoupling the two through leasing.
Balancing the books
‘You’ve got operators with lots of devices on their balance sheets because there’s a trend of giving away a free device and you only recognise that after so many monthly payments. From an operator’s perspective, leasing allows them to find ways to not have that cost on their balance sheets – and for end users it offers a lot more flexibility. ‘If you look at the market a few years back, the technological advances in smartphones made everyone want a new device because there was usually a
huge difference. However, saturation has become an issue for everyone – for operators and ourselves selling simfree devices to the market works in our favour, but dealers need to work out how to add value around what they’re selling aside from phone and airtime. ‘We’re educating partners using a combination of boot camps, and inviting partners to training days geared around what an end user is looking for. It’s always been the case of when trying to sell something new you have to train up your channel to sell those things, and that’s done through a combination of us and vendors.’
saturation has become an issue for everyone, we’re selling sim-free devices to the market and that works in our favour, but dealers need to work out how to add value around what they’re selling aside from phone and airtime Darren Seward, head of mobility, Westcoast www.mobiletoday.co.uk
9 September 2016 mobile 13
News insurance
cut-throat culture holds dealers back Supercover claims the dealer channel is wary of investing in mobile phone insurance as a new service By Kezia Joseph mOBIlE insurance fears are holding dealers back from tapping into a billion-pound revenue stream, Supercover has told Mobile. Sales director John Fannon said the business has seen huge b2b growth but despite expectations that the insurance market would hit £1bn over the next year, some dealers have been reluctant to invest. He claimed that cut-throat tactics used elsewhere in the channel had made the dealer community wary of potential clawbacks. ‘When we talked to dealers they were reluctant to let us put a policy in place,’ he said. ‘They believed if their customers made a claim we would fix the handset and then bill the dealer for it,’ he added. ‘This is nonsense, as the insurer stands the cost. However, they believe that’s what happens because they have come from a world of telecoms where mobile networks or distributors will claw back commission.’ Changing these perceptions has been a priority for Supercover, which runs incentives, staff training and workshops to encourage dealers to tap into mobile phone insurance. as Fannon said, ‘if they don’t offer it someone else will’. ‘a major challenge has been resetting this mind set,’ he said, ‘and letting these guys know that the stuff they’ve been led to believe simply isn’t true. That’s the culture they’re embedded in; they live in a cut-throat culture of someone else grabbing the money. They just assume that any other supplier who is offering a service is likely to adopt the same pattern. ‘It became fairly obvious to us that aside from knocking on doors and trying to get people to
represent us, we almost needed to do an education piece. Now we do plenty of training, get experienced telecoms people on the road, and do business face to face, as well as running staff training sessions, incentives and workshops and sending out regular bulletins to inform them.’
Fannon continued: ‘It was quite a challenge in the early days to get dealers and distributors to believe that there weren’t any strings attached. The insurance market is expected to be £1.031bn next year so it’s going up and up – two years ago it was £600m, so dealers are crazy if they don’t want a piece of that.’
They live in a cut-throat culture of someone else grabbing the money. They just assume that any other supplier who is offering a service is likely to adopt the same pattern John Fannon, sales director, Supercover ManufacTurers
Huawei uses smartphone success to target uK b2b By Kezia Joseph HuaWEI has launched its Matebook device in the UK in a bid to target business users. The two-in-one tablet was unveiled at this year’s Mobile World Congress and marked the manufacturer’s first step into the b2b market. Much of the thinking behind the device came from Huawei’s success in the smartphone space, which Ceo Richard Yu said would give the manufacturer
14 mobile 9 September 2016
an advantage in the PC and tablet arena. Speaking earlier this year at the Barcelona event, Yu said: ‘With the Huawei P and mate S series, people liked the design and this kind of smartphone. However, business people need the long-lasting battery and Huawei will bring our experience in smartphones and smart watches into the tablet and PC industry. this is a new era of connectivity and mobility for businesses.’ Yu’s comments were echoed by Rhys Saunders,
sales director, Huawei uK&I Consumer Bg. Speaking about the UK launch of the Matebook, he said: ‘With the power to glide through any task put in its path, and the aesthetics and build quality to impress in and out of the boardroom, the Huawei MateBook truly is made for a new style of business. It is the device of today for the professional of today.’ The Huawei Matebook is on sale across 13 stores in the uK and retails from £749.99.
www.mobiletoday.co.uk
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Dealers praise Samsung over global Note 7 recall Excalibur tells Mobile that Samsung’s quick thinking may have saved the brand from lasting damage By Kezia Joseph SamSung’S galaxy note 7 recall has impressed industry dealers who believe the decision reflected well on the brand. the manufacturer confirmed that 35 cases of exploding batteries in its new flagship had forced it to suspend worldwide sales and carry out a full internal investigation into a ‘battery cell issue’. Dealer excalibur believes taking the faulty devices off the market may have saved the manufacturer from any lasting damage. Ceo James Phipps said that while Samsung may have been overcautious in its decision to pull the note 7, this could work in its favour and boost consumer trust in the manufacturer. ‘Samsung has a good reputation for quality,’ he said, ‘and although it will be frustrating for customers and the company to do this recall on the note 7, apple has had problems with handsets before and it has not caused it huge issues in the medium term. as only 35 cases are being reported worldwide, it looks like Samsung has been overcautious and that may indeed reassure customers about the brand rather than detract from it.’ The worldwide recall delivered a blow to UK dealers, who had hailed the new flagship as one that would
boost sales for the rest of the year and convince ioS business users to jump ship to android. the recall was particularly bad timing for Samsung, which was left without a new handset in the market less than a week before rival apple unveiled its own highly anticipated flagship. the One Point branded the move disappointing after receiving strong pre-orders for the note 7. mD martin lauer had previously told Mobile that the Samsung Galaxy note 7 would steal a march on the highly anticipated iPhone 7 and
iPhone 7 Plus, especially among business users. However, he explained that mistakes are to be expected as mobile manufacturers are increasingly forced to push to the limit of a device in the quest for longer battery life. ‘The battle to overcome battery shortcomings will always force manufacturers to try to push boundaries,’ he said. ‘I am sure this is a bad batch, not a basic design oversight. I think customers will be very disappointed. our pre-orders were strong, but safety is paramount.’
Dixons Carphone & Accenture extend contract DIXOnS Carphone has extended its partnership with accenture to further grow its digital platforms. accenture will continue to provide maintenance services and app development to the high street retailer, as well as further develop its Internet of Things platform honeyBee. the business first teamed up with Dixons Carphone in 2014 to manage the systems integration between the newly merged Carphone Warehouse and Dixons Retail. according to matt Prebble, mD of accenture’s retail practice in the uK and Ireland, the extended multiyear agreement will give Dixons Carphone the advantage in a competitive retail environment. He said: ‘Retailers must adapt and evolve constantly if they are to grow and succeed in this rapidly changing global market place. We look forward to helping Dixons Carphone evolve its businesses as it accelerates towards digital transformation.’ Commenting on the news, David Hennessy, It director of Dixons Carphone, said: ‘This is testament to our long-established track record of successful collaboration with accenture and we are delighted to be continuing our relationship. We are the retailer people trust to bring technology to life in a way that works for them, and we are confident in accenture’s ability to support us in the next stage of our development.’
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