2009 5
Would you buy a Peek in Europe?
Published by MartinVarsavsky.net in General with No Comments
This post is only directed at Europeans and is based on the possibility to bring Peek to Europe. This is not an announcement and the Peek may or may not come to Europe. Now here´s the question. Peek is basically an email machine. You can study the product here. It is like a bare bones Blackberry. It only does email, no sms, no twitter (there is another model that does Twitter but this post is not about that model), no browsing, no telephone calls, just email. Now here´s the question. If you could buy a Peek device for 20 euros and pay then 15 euros per month to get your email anywhere in Europe and the USA without any roaming charges and contracts. Would you get one?
I already have a poll in my Spanish blog for this issue. It generated many votes and comments in only one hour. Some people like the opportunity but I see that many commentators say that they get their Blackberry service for only 19 euros a month so why do they need a Peek. But the issue here is that operators force you to pay 59 euros a month and stay 18 months so you cannot get a plain stand alone Blackberry service and a Blackberry for 19 euros. Blackberry contracts have minimum commitments of over 1000 euros when you add them up. The Peek as you can see, in USA has no minimum commitment. But when you compete with giants with enormous advertising budgets people get brainwashed so if people believe the comparison is Blackberry for 19 euros or Peek for 15 euros Peek apples to apples, Peek does not have a chance even with free roaming around Europe and USA. Or it has a very limited niche. Because a Blackberry does a lot of things and the Peek just email.
In the future Peek may also come with browsing and sms capability for say 50 for the device and 19 per month with unlimited texting in your own country and browsing all over Europe and USA. I also included that possibility in the poll.
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penny on November 5, 2009 ·
what about a wifi *only* peek? on top of open wifis it should be able to freely connect to fon spots (open and closed)
the monthly fee will be very low or none if you sell peek hardware with a margin and somehow share it with foneros
it will be a way of promoting FON and wifi
Martin Varsavsky on November 5, 2009 ·
Jose Manuel, let´s say this. You paid for that smartphone through a high monthly service charge over 2 years. This contract probably cost you around 1000-1500 euros. After you are done with that, indeed you can use that phone, only in Spain, for 10 euros a month for data only. Although I still need confirmation that you can only pay 10 euros and nothing else. But let´s say you can. What the Peek offers somebody who does NOT own a smartphone is the ability to buy and own the gadget for 20 euros. And then if you want to you add the service for 15 euros per month and you can roam for free anywhere in Europe and USA. But I agree with you that in your case, in which you already paid for the smartphone and you don´t leave Spain then your plan is better.
Jose M Guardia on November 5, 2009 ·
Yeah, I get your point. The issue is, though, that it’s not an either/or thing. People won’t relinquish their cellphone, so it’s whether they would spend 15 euros a month for another gadget when you can add that 10-15 euros cost as data plan on the gadget they already own, the smartphone (re fee, i don’t think you can pay cell companies just 10-15 for data only; you need a voice contract, but you want that anyway). I agree Peek concept good for travelers, but if they’re frequent they’re probably on expense account, so roaming cost is not really an issue. If they’re not frequent, then I guess they’ll prefer paying roaming just the few days they’re travelling rather than commit themselves to a montly, even if low, cost, all the time (or use the hotel’s connection, or go to a coffee shop; not everyone needs to check email all the time as we do…)
In short: concept is great, but as things stand now, it’s for people who simultaneously 1/ travel all the time, 2/ have a tight budget, 3/ can’t wait to check email once or twice a day, 3/ don’t mind carrying another gadget around besides cell, ipod, camera, and so forth. I?m not sure there are enough of them to make it work… (of course, Peek would have been a killer a couple of years ago when there were no data plans and you had to pay €1 per meg)
PS: It’s José Miguel — don’t worry, I’ve been called worse things 😉
Jose M Guardia on November 5, 2009 ·
Plus, there is a problem with interaction (something that didn’t happen either a couple of years ago, pre-web 2.0): if for example I had received the email altering you had replied this thread on a Peek, I wouldn’t have been able to just click the link as I’m able in my smartphone (for the record, I’m responding actually this time on my laptop, but you get my point). On the Peek you can’t respond to Facebook messages for which you get an email alert; nor you nor to DM notifications from Tweeter, and so forth (and I’m only considering now the most similar features in both to plain old email). There’s so many people (especially the most tech-savvy and thus the ones more inclined to gadgetry etc) are emailing less and tweeting / facebooking more; actually the last two are the main method of communication for quite a few people I know (and I’m sure you know your share of them)
me on November 5, 2009 ·
No – I wouldn’t. Here in Austria I pay 4 EUR per GB per month for UMTS data (also 4 EUR for each additional GB, I can quite the contract at any time). Alternatively I could pay 19 EUR for 19 GB per month. I use an unlocked Android phone that I bought on Amazon.
The only reason why I would buy a peak is that I have email access when traveling in other countries. However, I already have this (via WiFi). And in cases where I really need access without WiFi the roaming charges are still cheaper than paying 15 Euros per month for a device that I don’t really use.
Francois on November 5, 2009 ·
It would be better if phone operator would simply drop their ridiculous roaming charges within Europe. I bet the first operator to do that would gain enormous market share, especially if it is based in a country with long and populated borders (yes, I am talking to you France), where mobile users have since the very beginning roaming charges involuntarily.
Of course that would make the Peek redundant, but with smart phones selling strongly, is it a bad thing?
Martin Varsavsky on November 5, 2009 ·
In 1995 I wrote an article that was called the Death of the Minute and I predicted that per minute billing would go away. It mostly did in fixed telephony, but not in mobile in Europe. And roaming in a united Europe is absurd. But it is the sad reality we have and that´s why I thought a roam free email machine could make sense to complement a WiFi offering.
me on November 5, 2009 ·
The mobile provider 3 already offers free roaming (voice and data) in all their networks. They currently have networks in: Austria, Italy, Ireland, Sweden, Hongkong (or something like this – not sure if all countries are correct).
Diego on November 5, 2009 ·
I’m sure there’s a great market for it in Europe, as you pay only for the mail service, there’s plenty of people that is not likely to use a smartphone. So I think that there’s still space for a device like the Peek in Europe.
Maybe you’ll find this link interesting: http://www.gartner.com/it/page.jsp?id=1126812
Paul RODTS on November 6, 2009 ·
I get Gmail on my cheap LG Cookie, which I own, and I use a pre-paid card from Mobile Vikings in Belgium http://www.mobilevikings.be
For each top-up of € 15 : I get 60 minutes talking time, 1000 SMS, both to all Belgian networks AND !!! 1 GB mobile internet.
The Peek is only email and the Cookie can also be used for internet and also as a modem with a computer.
So I use about 200 to 300 MB monthly to check my Gmail and the rest of the 1 GB as mobile surfing while the Cookie is serving as a modem.
Martin Varsavsky on November 6, 2009 ·
Your solution is great except that it only works in Belgium and you had to pay for your phone much more than a Peek.
Paul RODTS on November 6, 2009 ·
Yes Martin, of course you are right, but maybe FON can team up with Mobile Vikings to start as a, let’s say, european mobile virtual network operator.
Mobile Vikings is a movement for free internet on mobile phones and FON is a movement that offers free internet access sharing with members.
Free Wi-Fi and Free 3G working together sounds cool for me. 😉
leroy on November 7, 2009 ·
I do think that you can add data plan including acceptable roaming volume (for mails) for a cost that is very close to the proposal (I know for sure in UK and France, have to check in Italy and Spain) and this covers also Asia.
If you are travelling and not yet equipped with a smartphone you will probably get one at Christmas.
Bottom line is that it was interesting last year but is condamned given the speed at witch people get equipped with smarthones. On top of that you need the device to be capable to display html and at least pictures if not browsing capabilities given the current content of most mails.
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Jose M Guardia on November 5, 2009 ·
I get email in my smartphone, which I already own, for 10 euros a month (Movistar in Spain). Why would I want to carry another gadget, worry about the batteries and charger when I travel, etc?
Plus the big problem I see is that many emails I get have a link to some info etc. In a smartphone you can just click and go there; I’m unsure how this can be done in a Peek.