Batteries: New wireless services always come with new power requirements, notes
Belson. The arrival of video services will raise wireless battery power needs to dramatic new levels.
High-resolution screens: Video, games, and other services delivered in the form of
screen images will require much higher resolution screens in wireless phones.
Higher resolution cameras: As people grow accustomed to using their phones for
cameras, they will want higher quality results.
Dual mode: As WiFi and WiMax systems grow, wireless phones will need to develop the ability to move back and forth between traditional cell and new wireless zones. “You may use WiFi in your building and then switch over to the cellular network when you step outside,” says Belson. “This may happen, unless broadband wireless networks that don’t require WiFi gets there first. We’ll have to wait and see how this works out.”
Security features: As wireless phones begin to provide financial services — by, for example, doubling as a debit card — more sophisticated security features will become necessary.
More sophisticated handsets will also raise new customer service issues. “For a long time, customer care in the wireless industry has been about the service itself — roaming, for example,” says Belson. “But customer service is about to get a lot more complicated. When a consumer can order products over the phone and charge them to the phone’s credit or debit chip, there are going to be service needs. The same is true when a consumer wants to watch a streaming video presentation. Every time you add features to a phone you improve the customer experience and also complicate it. That increases customer care requirements.”
Legislation and Regulation
There has been considerable discussion and speculation regarding telecommunications legislation in 2006. While some believe it’s possible that such an initiative could be on the President’s desk before the end of the year, others believe that timetable is too aggressive and is unlikely to be met. “Realistically, this legislation will take a long time to move through Congress,” says Deloitte’s Carol
Mattey. “Major legislation affects so many players that it can take years for consensus to develop and a bill to pass. The 1996 Act took between 10 and 12 years to move through Congress.” Mattey also believes that pressing issues, such as universal service, could very well be separated from the main bill and placed into separate legislation.
