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October 9-10, 2012
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Small Cells Americas
December 3-4, 2012
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Alcatel-Lucent
** Exclusive Insights** 
60 Second Interview with Mr David Swift,
Senior Manager - Product Marketing, Wireless Networks, Alcatel-Lucent, speaking at Femtocells Americas 2011
David, your presentation at Femtocells Americas will focus on the results of Alcatel-Lucent’s recent study on mobile use in the office. Could you tell us a bit about what the objectives behind this project were?
"For many, the market for femtocell technology is residential, now Alcatel-Lucent is offering a range of femtocell tech for the business market segments. These products have a low price point and are plug and play for self-install just like the products for the home but with increased capacity and coverage capabilities. However, the question still remains on what exactly small and medium businesses need from mobile service in the office. When it comes to large enterprise clients, operators are largely familiar with in-building solutions having had DAS and picocell tech to offer, but with smaller clients it is not as clear the value they would put of in building mobile service coverage.
With this in mind, Alcatel-lucent decided to commission a study whose objective, at the highest level, was to determine the value that SMBs would place on having indoor coverage and services. Would this drive them to move from one operator to another? Do they use the mobile in the office? If they do, what do they use it for?
The market now is segmented; there isn’t much loyalty between SMBs and operators. To get service in an office, clients will look at what operator can offer service, rather than approach their present cellular carrier and ask for service."
How was this study carried out? Did you look at several markets and pilot a few companies?
"We commissioned an independent researcher to do the work for us. This research project covered 7 nations, each market selected had different dynamics and were at different points of femtocell service launch. For example, we surveyed companies in the UK & Singapore where there have been femtocell consumer propositions for some time now, or in Spain, where two different operators offer femtocells to customers. We also targeted markets like Russia, looking at cities like Moscow and St. Petersburg, Italy, and Australia , where femtocells have only recently launched or soon to be.
In essence, we took a look at a wide range of markets, and focused on speaking with SMBs and understanding their needs."
What are the main headline findings from the study?
"1) A lot of businesses simply don’t understand what femtocells are. SMBs and the market as a whole do not have enough information about these products, so launching an in-building solution does not mean you can put the service out there and clients will come to you. There is a necessity to educate and inform the market.
We found that once clients were explained what a femtocell is and what it does, over 60% are either likely or very likely to switch to the cellular provider that does offer the service
2) When we talk to operators about data service in the office, the normal pushback is that everyone uses WiFi so there is no need for femtocells. However, in over half of the companies we surveyed, 25% of their bills were for data services in company offices. This is a clear indication that end users are still using their mobiles to access data, and thus this is a necessity that isn’t being covered with WiFi.
3) Of those people using data in their offices, 30-40% of them are unhappy with the indoor service they are receiving. There are complaints of high dropped call rates and email latency, and these are all things that a femtocell will resolve."
Shifting the focus to the Americas conference, is the SMB sector as an untapped sector where operators and ODMs need to focus?
"The product is here, the technology is here. It is now much more about understanding the market needs. That’s why we conducted this research; to allow our clients to have a competitive advantage or lead over their competitors, by understanding the market needs and launching services that target these needs directly."
For Additional Speaking Opportunities Contact:
Alejandro Pinero - Conference Producer
Tel: +44 (0) 207 370 8202
Email: alejandro@avrenevents.com
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