Features - 15 - Mobile News

Shebang looking to right past mistakes

Shebang chief Iain Humphrey admits it’s been a tough 18 months for the company – with mistakes and the economy resulting in cost cuts and redundancies. Nevertheless he remains upbeat, as he tells Paul Withers

Imagination is the limit for Ericsson

The Swedish telecoms giant has an impressive legacy and a truly global reach, but it has been through some testing times of late. Jasper Jackson talks to UK MD Chris Houghton about the business and its future plans

Carphone Warehouse gets serious about B2B

HSC has been rebranded as ‘Carphone Warehouse Business’ and has set its sights on being the UK’s number one destination for the B2B market. In an exclusive interview, editor Michael Garwood hears about its plans

Michael Garwood

Three: Public image has turned a corner

CEO Dyson says network’s reputation has improved and it’s now first for customer service

Bring your own device and the battle for the B2B space

This year’s product launches suggested manufacturers are now developing consumer handsets with the business market firmly in mind. We asked industry experts who will boss B2B in the next 12 months

O2: ‘We’re the most innovative brand in the market’

CEO Dunne says new customers are being attracted by the operator’s innovative value-added services

Laikin: BrightPoint is the ‘complete package’

The ‘device life cycle services’ provider’s CEO speaks exclusively to Mobile News about its evolving proposition

Michael Garwood

Revolutionary plan for long-term dominance

Chinese manufacturer Huawei says B2B channel is the last piece in its global battle plan

Michael Garwood

Looking forward to life after Phonebox

After selling the B2B dealer, managing director Nigel Harrison is exiting the industry after 27 years. In an exclusive interview, he talks about the highs and lows, his views on the channel and what newly-formed dealer PMGC Technology can achieve

Vodafone doubles enterprise power

Vodafone’s £1 billion takeover of Cable & Wireless Worldwide makes the mobile network the biggest UK telco behind BT. Jasper Jackson analyses what implications the deal will have for the industry

Hearts and minds – Sony’s return to UK

Sony Mobile wants to ‘re-engage’ with the public – starting with a £20 million marketing blitz. Paul Withers asks the firm’s president of North Western Europe, Pierre Perron, how he intends to claw back market share

Comm-Tech in bold move for the future

The distributor and Vodafone platinum partner recently completed a £300,000 move to a new high-tech premises. Jasper Jackson talks to the company’s top brass about the Comm-Tech story to date, its sister firms and its plans for future growth

Grey matters work for gsmExchange

Grey trading may be a controversial subject in the mainstream mobile industry, but it is helping wholesale B2B marketplace gsmExchange and its 60,000 members to flourish. Jasper Jackson talks to the company to find out how it started, who its members are and how it operates

Helping customers to help themselves

TMTI revolutionised customer services with its telephone helpline ‘human manuals’, and the firm is now looking to the future with app-based solutions for smartphones and tablets. Jasper Jackson finds out more

Data Select: Nokia loss was a positive

Takeover talks, management buyouts and contract terminations – just some of the headlines Data Select was linked to in 2011. Michael Garwood visits the distributor’s Slough offices to find out the inside story

Michael Garwood

How HMRC finally caught Nasir Khan

Nasir Khan had a successful accessories business, a jet-set lifestyle and reputation as a pillar of the community. But all that vanished in December when he was jailed for his part in a £250m VAT fraud. Jasper Jackson discovers how a 10-year investigation by HMRC led to his downfall

Turning unwanted phones into profits

Redeem, a pioneer of mobile recycling, is seeing turnover approach £20 million. The company’s new owners, Curt Hopkins and Pete Petrondas, talk to Michael House about its recent fortunes, its projects and their plans for expansion

Going it alone – can Sony challenge in the mobile market?

Following the break-up of its partnership with Ericsson, Sony is to become a standalone mobile vendor. Michael House asks leading industry figures how they rate its chances

B2B channel up for the challenge

With unemployment numbers at a 17-year high and few signs of economic recovery on the horizon, Mobile News asks the dealer channel about the challenges it is facing

February 22, 2012

2012 predictions: Daisy Distribution managing director Dave McGinn

Daisy Distribution managing director Dave McGinn sees three key focus points for distributors – the operators push into unified communications, Cloud services impacting on the channel and opportunities for LOB applications

February 14, 2012

2012 predictions: Lyca Mobile group CEO Milind Kangle

Lyca Mobile group CEO Milind Kangle thinks innovation through products and services will be key to further improving customer relations, with investment in brand and service quality leading to heavy growth

February 14, 2012

2012 predictions: Mainline managing director Andrew Boden

Dealers will be considerably helped by distributors and networks in meeting specific customer requirements, according to Mainline Digital Communications managing director Andrew Boden, with the channel growing as more embrace convergence

February 14, 2012

2012 predictions: Aerial Telephones managing director Paul Davis

Aerial Telephones managing director Paul Davis reckons consolidation of ICT will come to the fore, with FMC and consumerisation also emerging as key focus areas for growth

February 14, 2012

2012 predictions: Welcomm chairman Chris Stanton

Competition between the networks will heat up as more call and data packages are introduced, says Welcomm chairman Chris Stanton, with the ICT market offering a host of opportunities for mobile dealers

February 14, 2012

2012 predictions: Samsung UK & Ireland telecoms & networks MD Simon Stanford

Samsung UK and Ireland telecommunications and networtks division MD Simon Stanford sees smartphones growth accelerating, with manufacturers having to offer a wider collection of devices to make the experience more accessible

February 10, 2012

2012 predictions: MoCo managing director Ian Robinson

MoCo managing director Ian Robinson thinks being able to offer added-value business apps will be a key point of difference in the market place, with ICT continuing to gather pace

February 10, 2012

2012 predictions: Evolve Telecom MD Mark Gordon

‘Adding value’ will be the key phrase this year, according to Evolve Telecom managing director Mark Gordon, with dealers having to significantly invest in their businesses in order to compete

February 10, 2012

2012 predictions: Car Phone Company co-owner Rob Williams

Apple’s iCloud will make Office 365 easier to sell in the channel, says Car Phone Company co-owner Rob Williams, with Nokia entering a make or break stage in its history with its device releases

February 10, 2012

2012 predictions: IMPDA chairman Chris Caudle

IMPDA chairman Chris Caudle reckons there will be plenty of consolidation and acquisition activity within the industry this year, with distributors needing to give dealers enhanced support as smartphone and tablet growth soars

February 10, 2012

2012 predictions: Vodafone enterprise director Peter Kelly

Vodafone enterprise director Peter Kelly thinks businesses will begin to the range of mobile working options to enable their staff to work as efficiently as possible, but those that don’t adopt this will suffer

February 2, 2012

2012 predictions: Shebang Logistics Solutions MD Joe Bennett

Shebang Logistics Solutions managing director Joe Bennett sees the last remaining box shifters disappearing, but the industry will receive a boost from growth in mobile accessories and mobile payments

February 2, 2012

2012 predictions: Premier Mobile MD Jason Yeomans

Customers will demand more from their providers, according to Premier Mobile managing director Jason Yeomans, leading them to enabling new technologies and smarter ways of working to meet these needs

February 2, 2012

2012 predictions: Mobile Fun managing director Mo Hussain

Huawei and ZTE will start to be recognised more to consumers under their own brand names, according to Mobile Fun managing director Mo Hussain, as end users are driven towards cheaper devices

February 2, 2012

2012 predictions: Voice Mobile managing director Ian Watson

Voice Mobile managing director Ian Watson thinks we should keep an eye on Nokia releasing a Microsoft-based tablet to rival the iPad, whilst Everything Everywhere will make its unified communications move

February 2, 2012

2012 predictions: Data Select managing director Roy Taylor

Data Select managing director Roy Taylor thinks adding value in distribution will be key this year, with manufacturers able to counteract a difficult period through clear differentiation in handsets

February 1, 2012

2012 predictions: Fonehouse managing director Clive Bayley

Plenty of fighting spirit is what’s needed to combat a difficult year, says Fonehouse managing director Clive Bayley, with businesses keeping a very close eye on cash flow

February 1, 2012

2012 predictions: EBS sales director Andrew Dawson

EBS sales director Andrew Dawson reckons careful planning and the successful adaptation of business models will be the key to success this year

February 1, 2012

Best-selling trade devices (Europe) â€“ 26th September, 2011

Data from www.gsmexchange.com

September 26, 2011

Best-selling trade devices (Europe) â€“ 1st August, 2011

Data from www.gsmexchange.com

Industry must talk more with business

Industry demands better communication between the mobile sector and businesses in the aftermath of Government Spending Review

October 21, 2010

Industry outrage at Apple’s arrogance

Appleâ€™s response to the signal issues detected with its iPhone 4 has drawn intense criticism from all quarters of the industry. But shoppers have shrugged, and continued to drive its profits up

Business Watch: MNP, and Brussels’ long shadow

Ofcom chief Ed Richards is on a fresh rampage, backed by Brussels, and UK operators can only delay the inevitable. Separately, Tesco issues 12 month contracts. Watch out Charles Dunstone

Cutting Room: MoCo steals march with O2

Kent-based MoCo looks to have moved early with a smart O2 exclusive, as distribution space continues to consolidate and resellers align with operators

Business Watch: O2’s chasing pack closes in

O2 remains the number one network in UK mobile in terms of growth but the gap between it and the other four networks is narrowing as the market continues to recover

Android: Race to the bottom

News Orange will offer sub-Â£100 Android phones by Christmas has jolted manufacturers, especially those who have used Android to differentiate themselves

Retail ignores market trends

A survey exclusively into UK mobile retail shows a buoyant market in terms of physical numbers, in which dealers appear to be holding their own against the chains