Erusal

Playing and learning are so closely related that they often can’t be distinguished at all. In one way or another, most games are educational – even if it were only in educating the player up to a higher level of competition. That’s quite often overlooked, I believe… but it’s true: even your very own recreational game of tennis, on a sweet summer afternoon with a frefreshing drink witin hands reach, is an educational game!

But let’s be realistic: when talking about educational toys, more often than not we refer to learning objects for our children. Especially in the last decade or two, an enormous number of educational “tools” have been developed for children of all ages, and even for grown-ups. The latter may or may not be intentional, but a fact is that many of the more intricate educational or learning systems, like those dealing with science and nature, are enthusiasticaly played with by the parents of the children for whom the gift was originaly intended!

This will less easily happen with educational toys for very young children, like alphabet blocks or ABC blocks. And then there’s the amazing range of educational games/toys for all other ages! Looking back on my own youth in the post-war years I am truly amazed by all the educational tools that are available now! On the other hand I believe that our childrens own creative development suffers from those pre-chewed and bite-sized chunks. I used to be quite excited with the proverbial cigar box from my grandfather, out of which I created houses, factories and garages – the box that is, not my granddad.

So it’s all a matter of relativity, I reckon. Some values are lost, others are gained. But at least, to the great relief of often desperate parents, buying educational games and toys is now easier than it was ever before. Generally speaking, this is an improvement.

The Future of Wireless Commerce

It has been hyped for years – wireless commerce and the ability to make purchases from a cell phone or mobile device. However, wireless commerce still hasn’t hit full stride in the US and probably won’t have wide scale support and adoption for several years. The technology divide exists where the next generation of technology meets deployment challenges and delays. Carriers and device manufacturers cannot agree on standards. And the biggest challenge that remains: waiting for the industry to accept wireless commerce and let it have its own space to breath in the mobile ecosystem.

Over the last decade, text messaging services and mobile internet has quickly taken hold in the US. As of June 2008, the CTIA reports that in the US, over 75 Billion text messages are sent and received every month. To put that into perspective, in June 2000, the number of text messages was just 12 million (not billion). How and why did mobile messaging kick into full gear? Wireless carriers opened their networks to inter-carrier messaging that transmits messages between mobile communications networks regardless of technologies involved (CDMA, GSM, iDen, or TDMA). This has lead to mass adoption to text messaging and opened the door for mobile marketing.

Advertisers, retailers and other service businesses have jumped on board to take advantage of mobile marketing. Mobile marketing can enhance customer loyalty and reduce churn and as it becomes a popular and sustainable revenue-generating medium, will also force the carriers to take notice.

The complete mobile ecosystem includes network operators, advertisers, technology and solutions providers, service providers and consumers who all stand to benefit from wireless commerce. To apply wireless commerce to everyday life, companies are quickly developing new mobile commerce applications. These applications and services are prepared to give a significant boost to the adoption of wireless commerce across the mobile ecosystem. Some of these applications include:

Wireless Commerce Applications

Mobile banking & Financial Service
Mobile brokerage
Mobile financial information
Mobile entertainment
Mobile gaming
Download of music and ring tones
Download of videos and digital images
Location-based entertainment services
Mobile information services
Current affairs (financial, sport and other news)
Travel information
Tracking services (persons and objects)
Mobile search engines and directories Mobile office
Mobile marketing -? Mobile couponing
Direct (context-sensitive) marketing
Organization of mobile events
Mobile newsletters
Mobile shopping
Mobile purchasing of goods and services
Mobile ticketing
Public transport
Sports and cultural events
Air and rail traffic
Mobile parking

These mobile commerce applications are currently in use by retailers, banks and other companies. Other wireless commerce applications are being tested throughout several markets in the US. Having a mobile commerce application is only half the challenge. Many wireless carriers require approval for some types of m-commerce while others have to approve each campaign running across their network or promoted in their storefront. These new campaigns and applications often require certification and testing prior to acceptance.

Quality of service and ease of use are often considered part of a carrier review. According to Telephia, 22 percent of consumers who encounter a “quality of service” problem when making a purchase give up on the purchase. They also tend to register their complaint with the retailer or their wireless carrier. However, all is not lost. Those who can’t finish the order process often complete their purchase in store or online and 17 percent stated they would try again later.

“We have found that user testing and quality of service improvements are critical if we expect to foster development of wireless commerce as a sustainable and formable business model,” noted David Geipel, President of US-based QWASI, Inc. “Companies have to create a user experience for wireless commerce and m-commerce that supports industry growth.”

The future of wireless commerce and m-commerce depends on a number of players in the mobile ecosystem to be creative and innovative. A solid, replicatible customer experience is vital to growing m-commerce throughout the next decade. As more retailers and companies dip their toe into the water, one thing is sure: the outlook for wireless commerce is bright.

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