Mobile working Toolkit

3 slams video mobile confusion claims

Tags:
3,
3G,
Three,
Netonomy

Graeme Wearden ZDNet.co.uk

Published: 09 Feb 2005 17:25 GMT

Mobile operator 3 has hit out at research published earlier this week that claimed mobile phone services are getting too complicated for people to understand and configure.

The survey, commissioned by Netonomy which sells online customer self-service products, found that usability concerns were a deterrent to 3G updates. Over 70 percent of the 2,000 people interviewed agreed that mobile phone services are getting more complicated to understand and configure, and 41 percent were confident they would find 3G phones and services easy to use.

Netonomy claimed these figures show online customer self-service has a crucial role to play in the 3G marketplace.

"It is an exciting time for the industry as services such as mobile TV and mobile video conferencing become a reality. However, rather than technological advances making it easier for the consumer they seem to be making things more complex," said John Hughes, cofounder and executive vice president of Netonomy, in a statement.

3, though, isn't convinced the research carries much weight. "These were probably the same people who claimed that mobile phones would never take off," said a 3 spokeswoman. "Have these people ever used a video mobile phone and seen how easy it is?"

The 3 spokeswoman added that it was actually encouraging that 41 percent of people surveyed had confidence in 3G. "This is quite high for such a new technology," she said.