Most people value their cell phones over their laptop computers;
In developing countries, more people have cell phones than those who have running water, so it was also not surprising when we saw the data released last week from IDC (International Data Corporation), the global leader in digital market intelligence: 50 percent of consumers consider it 'vital' to have phone access while driving.
What did surprise us a bit was the exponential rise in the market for smart phones. According to another IDC Manufacturing Insights, a recently published mobile phone forecast, smartphone shipments were expected to surpass 1.0 billion units in 2013, representing 39.3 percent growth over 2012.
"By 2017, total smartphone shipments are expected to approach 1.7 billion units, resulting in a compound annual growth rate of 18.4 percent from 2013 to 2017."
Onto this active playing field has recently arrived a phenomenal new product. Imagine being able to make and receive calls or messages on your own mobile device from all over the world for next to nothing?
If you were excited about Skype or Magic Jack, this application goes even farther; it extends your low-cost calling ability to your smart phone. Currently available for iPhones and Androids, Upptalk is a free application to make unlimited calls within the United States, Canada, and Mexico. To call other countries requires a small payment, but it is even less than Skype's six cents/minute.
When I asked the CEO Jochen Doppelhammer how he is able to do it, he said, "Telecomm operators are heavily overcharging; we are able to reduce cost base by a factor of a hundred and still make a small amount on each call".
The "free" service also includes small banner advertisements on the app, however for less than USD$4/year, you can opt to eliminate those as well. You can earn international credits by referring others or mentioning UppTalk on social media or buy 40 credits for less than one USD.
Beyond these remarkable attributes, what makes this app so special is that it is the only mobile service that is cloud based. Moreover, unlike FaceTime, Viber, and others, users can talk with and send messages to others who don't have the app! Plus users receive a unique UppTalk phone number---so as long as they have WiFi access, they will never miss call. Finally, like regular mobile service, they can call landlines as well as other mobiles and tablets.
What's coming from UppTalk is the ability to have multiple numbers for multiple countries as well and link with telecomm services without WiFi; for world travelers, that new service is going to save a lot of money!
The world is going more and more mobile and products like UppTalk are perfectly positioned to capitalize on this trend.
© Copyright 1998-2014 by The Herman Group of Companies, Inc., all rights reserved. From 'The Herman Trend Alert,' by Joyce Gioia, Strategic Business Futurist. (800) 227-3566 or www.hermangroup.com
The Herman Trend Alert is a trademark of The Herman Group of Companies, Inc. Reprinted with permission. Also Read at 4Hoteliers.com:
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