News
Issue #2003 - 31 (December 2003)
(Updated Dec. 16, 2003)

INFRASTRUCTURE, PRODUCTS & SERVICES

Bluetooth Update

1. Bluetooth Vendors Look for Respect and Adoption 
Source: Mark Hachman, eWeek

SAN JOSE, Calif.—According to wireless industry executives here attending the Bluetooth Americas 2003 expo, Bluetooth is now boring.  

In a keynote address, Mike McCamon, executive director of the Bluetooth Special Interest Group of Overland Park, Kan., said that while the short-range wireless technology has become accepted, Bluetooth still faces some last hurdles of interoperability. 

On the other hand, fellow speaker Seamus McAteer, managing partner and senior analyst at San Francisco's The Zelos Group sounded more pessimistic, noting that U.S. consumers and carriers alike simply don't care about the technology. 

Both speeches underscored the fundamental promise and challenge of the Bluetooth technology, which has labored under a cloud since its inception. Bluetooth components, now in their third generation, have overcome questions of interference with Wi-Fi radios, and become widely adopted in Japan and Asia. The Bluetooth 1.2 specification, released in late November, provided further provisions for removing interference and improving the user interface. Vendors' chips are being qualified now. 

However, Bluetooth has also become intrinsically tied to the cellular phone, finding success in just three markets: as a connection to hands-free wireless headsets, tying together a PC or PDA to a cell phone, and as a means of connecting the mobile phone to an automobile. Slowly, McCamon said, the technology is being used for wireless gaming, such as in Nokia Communications' N-Gage phone wireless gaming platform. 

To read a 1UP review of Nokia's combination gaming-talking platform, click here. 

Bluetooth's success, McCamon said, will be found in "disvergence," allowing manufacturers to build in their best capabilities into a single device, and then tying them all together with Bluetooth. 

"There is no [one] killer app for Bluetooth; there are probably dozens of killer apps for Bluetooth," McCamon said. The challenge, McCamon added, is to improve the interoperability of Bluetooth devices. 

Last year, the Bluetooth SIG installed a plan to ask manufacturers to allow devices to be set up in five minutes. Now, the SIG is still hammering out the last vestiges of interoperability concerns, with two dozen initiatives under way among the SIG's 3,000 or so member companies. 

In 2004, the SIG will work on brand building, and plans an "Operation Blueshock" publicity stunt at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in January, McCamon said. Companies are also examining ways to "beam" business cards and other data via Bluetooth. 

On Tuesday, Stockholm's Ericsson Technology Licensing also announced that it would form an independent laboratory for interoperability testing, designed to facilitate interoperability studies on an application level with end-user products. 

McAteer, however, offered a more pessimistic view. To date, the largest cellular carrier in the U.S., Verizon Wireless, has not qualified Bluetooth cellular phones, or handsets. In a survey of American consumers asking which technologies they considered important in wireless, Bluetooth ranked last on the list, he said. 

"The bottom line is, consumers don't care about Bluetooth," McAteer said. 

In 2003, about 2.2 million Bluetooth-equipped mobile handsets will be shipped, McAteer said, about 2.8 percent of all handsets sold. The total installed base of Bluetooth handsets will represent 1.4 percent of all mobile subscribers, The Zelos Group found. In 2004, an estimated 7.8 million Bluetooth-enabled handsets will ship, or 9.4 percent of the total, and the installed base will represent 5.1 percent of all mobile subscribers. By 2008, about 60 percent of all handsets in the market will include Bluetooth, McAteer said. 

However, Bluetooth-equipped PDAs have topped out at between 6 to 8 million units and will probably decline, according to an industry source. 

Likewise, retailers have few incentives to sell Bluetooth-enabled data devices, McAteer said, as that would mean losing out on a cellular service subscription that they could otherwise attach to a cell phone. 

However, handset makers have largely adopted Bluetooth, especially in Europe and Asia. More than 18 Bluetooth-enabled cell phones launched or shipped during 2003, according to Markus Schtelig, senior manager for wireless connectivity for Helsinki's Nokia Communications, the world's largest handset maker. In total, Nokia has shipped between 50 and 70 million Bluetooth-equipped phones in 2003, he said. 

Stefan Svedberg, vice president of product management for Ericsson Technology Licensing, described 2004 as the "year of Bluetooth."  Even Motorola Inc., the lone U.S. handset maker, is jumping on the Bluetooth bandwagon. "If you ask consumers what Bluetooth is, they still won't know what you're talking about," said Steve Deutscher, director of product marketing for companion products at Motorola, Schaumburg, Ill. However, he added the time is right for Motorola to start getting involved. 

"All the issues have been solved," Deutscher said. "Motorola will be jumping in significantly on the handset side in 2004." Motorola has one Bluetooth-equipped phone on the market, the V500, and will be launching the V600 in 2004, along with the A835 and A760, representatives for the company said. 

2. Ericsson to Test Bluetooth Products
Based on popular demand for an interoperability testing initiative of Bluetooth-enabled products, Ericsson Technology Licensing is set to conduct such tests at its independent Bluetooth Qualification Test Facility. Ericsson says the tests will run at the application level to help determine the different types of functionality supported by Bluetooth products and the various types of user scenarios they are capable of handling. With the approval from the Bluetooth manufacturers, Ericsson plans to publish its results in a cross-reference list of the products in selected publications. (Source: EE Times) - more info 

3. Australian Museum Offers Bluetooth Tours
A Melbourne, Australia, museum is offering its visitors the opportunity to hear tours via Bluetooth. The system was designed by Melbourne-based Clarinox and Indian software giant Tata Consultancy Services, and is dubbed BeATS (Bluetooth enabled audio tour system). BeATS offers visitors the opportunity to take advantage of the tours through streaming MP3 audio services that allow them to access relevant commentary tailored to a specific tour. Museum staff are also benefiting from the system, as it offers a new method for audio storage and updating. It also yields information about the routes taken by people and how long they spend at each point. (Source: ZDNet)

Sources: Different, including eWeek and 802.11 Report Newsletter

MobileInfo Comments and Advisory: We do not think Bluetooth is dead. Bluetooth is not the only game in town. Most of the confusion arises when a new technology comes along and its proponents and enthusiasts start hoping that it will displace everything else. Bluetooth has a role in connecting handsets and PDAs at affordable costs. The price of Bluetooth chips has come down and battery requirements are low. If the vendors can solve interoperability problems, they would do more good than claims and counter claims. Wi-FI for cellular handsets is an overkill in most cases. Where it is necessary, let us put multi-mode (Wi-Fi and Bluetooth) chips in the device.

Note: This news release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and section 21E of Securities Exchange act of 1934 in USA. Similar provisions exist in other countries. There is no assurance that the stipulated plans of vendors will be implemented. MobileInfo does not warrant the authenticity of the information. Readers should take appropriate caution in developing plans utilizing these products, services and technology architectures.  All trademarks used in this summary are the property of their respective owners.