The Mobile Big Bang

The global smartphone craze has led to an explosion in mobile Internet use; ushering in a mobile era. As mobile phone manufacturers like Samsung Electronics and Apple race to introduce their high-performance smartphones, one out of five people in the world is projected to have a smartphone by 2011. The mobile big bang brings changes to companies in three general areas: work environment (infrastructure), working modes, and the value chains (business models). Through fixed-mobile convergence, office fixed-line phones and mobile phones are interlinked to enable real-time communication between employees regardless of time or place. Mobile-triggered changes in the work environment have led to changes in working modes. With access to all the information needed in the field, field employees stand to have more discretion. The addition of mobile information services to existing products or to product supply channels can enhance customer convenience.