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Oonagh Reidy

Listen Up: Android Get iPhone-Like Dock Speakers FINALLY

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Android’s get a leg up with Philips Fidelio docking speakers specially for the OS.

Philips has unveiled Fidelio docking speakers for Android smartphones and tablets at IFA Berlin.
The Android docking speakers are almost identical to Fidelio for Apple range, meaning you can dock any device from a Samsung Galaxy S II to a HTC Desire and get the most out of mobile music. 

And the smart people at Philips have got around the fact that Android’s models, unlike iPhones, vary in size by developing a three dimension connector design that adjusts to hold any phone in portrait and landscape positions – so always at the centre of the speaker for the best sound quality. 
Users can dock and charge “most” Android phones on Fidelio, say Philips. 
This is great news for all Droid’s since, to date, most of the speakers available for smartphone have been for the iPhone variety. Pah! 
And the Fidelio app for Android, will automatically allows Droid’s hook up their device to docking station via Bluetooth. 
Fidelio for Android also boasts Philips Songbird media player to sync and play all your music. 
There are several version available: The 30 W Fidelio AS851 which is strong on acoustics and features precisely tuned bass pipes for deep reproduction, and comes with Philips Digital sound processing for distortion-free tunes. 
The smaller 10W AS351 is good for on the go, with battery and AC power options. The clever shielding technology blocks mobile phone interference and AUX-in port at the back allows other devices hook in also.
The Android AS111 is the smallest of the three (pictured above). 
 

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Philips appears to be going hell for leather on Android OS, revealing plans to make an MP3 player based on the platform, GoGear Connect.

Read Audiophile Alert! Philips HD Fidelio Headphones For Golden Ears Here

NBN-Optus $800M Deal Green Light

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Competition watchdog to approve $800m deal to switch Optus customers over to NBN.
The Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has issued a draft determination proposing to authorise the major agreement between NBN Co and Optus for the migration of the telco’s 400,000 hybrid coaxial cable (HFC) customers to the NBN and decommissioning of parts of its network.

The deal if it goes ahead, is worth $800m to Optus, similar to the one penned with Telstra earlier this year.

The main public benefits of the agreement are “clear and quantifiable,” the ACCC said in a statement, and will avoid the cost of operating Optus’ HFC network which provides a service which the faster speed NBN can already provide, and means lower costs for HFC subscriber migration to the NBN.

“The ACCC acknowledges that this draft determination represents a finely balanced decision, drawing on public information and submissions and a large amount of confidential information provided by NBN Co and Optus,” Chairman Rod Sims said.

The HFC Agreement removes a “potentially significant” fixed line competitor to the NBN in Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne and competitive pressure from the Optus network may have prompted NBN Co to improve its performance.

“Optus is unlikely to undertake the large investment required to offer significantly faster products on the HFC network than those currently available” and is “unlikely” to be extended beyond the current 1.4 m homes, limiting the potential for its subscriber base to grow beyond its current 400, 000 users, the ACCC noted.

 

Optus HFC network would only provide a “close substitute” to the NBN for customers seeking broadband services that will be at the lower end of the range of services that the NBN will support, Sims also noted.

Minister for Broadband, Senator Stephen Conroy, welcomed the draft decision by the ACCC.

“The agreement between Optus and NBN Co provides the opportunity for Optus’s current HFC broadband customers to gain the full benefit of the National Broadband Network,” Senator Conroy said.

Read: 40% NBN Users On 100Mbps: Quigley

Dick Smith Sold To Equity Group $20M

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Dick Smith finally sold to equity firm Anchorage Capital Partners for a cut price.


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Woolworths has sold  the troubled electronics retailer to private equity firm Anchorage Capital Partners $20m, it announced today.

The sale announcement was made today as Woolies confirmed it has signed a share sale agreement with the Sydney based firm, with the transaction expected to be completed late 2012 following the satisfaction of conditions, a statement to the ASX confirmed.

Woolies first announced it would divest the company in November last year after a strategic review.

Under the sale agreement, Anchorage will purchase 100 per cent of the Dick Smith business in Australia and New Zealand, its 325 stores and 4,500 staff.

The equity group has appointed ex-Myer exec Nick Abboud as new CEO of Dick Smith, effective upon completion of the deal.

Woolies had been hoping for a far higher price but has been looking for a suitable buyer for several months now.

By comparison, Harvey Norman paid $55m for Clive Peeters chain with 32 stores in 2010, although the purchase has since proved to be less than a success.

Dick Smith recently announced FY12 earnings of $24.6bn – up 12% – and sales improved by 2.3% to $1.5bn.

The $20m will be paid to Woolworths during the FY13 and the retail giant may also benefit from any upside if the equity group choose to sell the retailer in the future.

Woolworths CEO Grant O’Brien said: “We announced the Company’s strategic priorities in November 2011 which included a review of our portfolio of assets, particularly our participation in the consumer electronics category, with a view to maximising shareholder value.”

“These businesses were a small part of Woolworths and this divestment will allow us to be fully focused on the core parts of our business.”

 

Phillip Cave, Chairman of Anchorage said the group was “impressed with the underlying quality of the business and sees Dick Smith as an ideal fit for our investment mandate of acquiring established businesses with strongbrands that can benefit from Anchorage’s proprietary approach to operational performance improvement.”

Cave also said Ancorage are “extremely pleased”  with the agreement and are “confident in the long term success of the business.”

Abboud said he was “delighted” with his new role, adding “Anchorage and I see great potential in the Dick Smith business and I look forward to working with the team to fully realise these opportunities.”

The Dick Smith Board will now comprise of: Mr Cave as Chairman and Michael Briggs, a Partner at Anchorage, together with Abboud and Bill Wavish.

Woolies’ shares fell 0.92% to $29.01 after the announcement was made.

The retail giant also announced today the sale of Woolworths Wholesale, India, to Infiniti Retail (owned by Tata Sons) for A$35 million.

Is 4G “A Curse”?

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It’s tipped as The Next Big Thing in mobile but 4G is not all its cracked up to be, warn Korean telcos

The boss of one of South Korea’s biggest telcos warned fellow telcos of “the curse of 4G” at the World Mobile Congress in Barcelona this week.

Suk-Chae Lee, the head of KT Corp, complained his company is not seeing the returns they’d like on their massive investment in 4G LTE networks at the World Mobile Congress in Barcelona this week.

The problem is, after the telco erected these super pricey networks, users are not prepared to pay more to use the faster LTE services.

“Our European colleagues complain that the explosion in data has not fully happened for them, that it did not come to reality.”

 “In Korea, they are data crazy. We have unprecedented demand. We cannot handle it,” Lee admitted.

“But the issue we have is that they are not willing to pay enough.

“So, the fundamental problem is, can we make any money out of it?”

Korea has one of the biggest LTE networks in the world and KT’s 4G service, called ‘LTE WARP’, covers the entire country.

Mike Wright, Telstra’s Networks and Access Technologies Director was not available for comment as he is currently in Barcelona at the World Mobile Congress himself, but we don’t doubt his ears were ringing at the warning.

High Hopes

Telstra did not comment on the warning by South Koreans when contacted by SmartHouse.

Just last week, Telstra unveiled its 4G strategy and said it would begin using 2G spectrum to deal with the “tsunami “of demand for mobile Internet data in OZ even in remote areas, Mike Wright, Executive Director, Networks and Access said.

Telstra’s 4G users are growing at 20% monthly, and outpacing 3G growth and last week announced technologies including LTE Advanced, HetNets to make sure it can meet 4G demand, part of its plan to expand network to 66% coverage across Oz.

The telco which set up the first 4G LTE network here 18 months ago is investing $1bn this year alone and has 1.5 million users on its LTE network the biggest in Australia, with Optus’ network still in its infancy.

But Telstra don’t seem to be doing too badly out of 4G – its mobile revenue grew by 4.6% to $4,5bn in the six months to 31 December 2012.

 

South Korean telecom’s Chief Technology Officer backed up his rival at WMC saying “the traffic increases but the revenue does not necessarily follow,” but did say average revenue per user rose $13 compared to 3G.

“It is good money, but it may not be enough to justify the huge investment needed in LTE.”

However, Jae W Byun predicts returns would increase as users numbers rose from 30% to 60%.

And with Telstra looking to wean mobile users off 3G and 80% of its smartphones sold will be on 4G networks this year, they are clearly thinking the same.

A Vodafone spokesperson is confident about the future of 4G telling SmartHouse: “Australia is the second highest penetrated smartphone market – an indicator which suggests it’s only a matter of time before 4G really takes off.”

Although the telco hasn’t yet revealed when 4G will go live (its still testing), they’re “very excited about the potential for 4G and is on track to roll out a competitive network in Australia later this year.”

And in fact, although behind rollout compared to Telstra and Optus, Voda’s LTE network could have the fastest speeds of all networks.

“Vodafone will be the only carrier to offer 20mhz contiguous spectrum in the 5 state capitals when we switch on in 2013. For data hungry customers that means faster speeds than they can get today from any other network,” the spokesperson added.

“Our industry is in transition. We’ve only begun to see the digital revolution occur and high speed, specially efficient technology such as LTE will play a key role in the full enablement of this revolution. “

Ultrabooks To Revive “Bleak” Notebooks

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Notebooks “bleak” but Ultrabooks may save their souls

Notebooks sales from the likes of HP, Acer and Lenovo are looking at a “bleak” first half in 2013, but Ultrabooks sales will help revive the market in H2, predict analysts IHS iSuppli.

This comes as tablets and smartphones, like the iPhone, continue to eat into other PC categories.

One in 3 PCs sold globally are tablets, like the iPad and Samsung’s Galaxy Tab. The market grew a massive 75% to 46.2 million in Q4 alone.

Notebook shipments from the Top 5 ODMs are forecast to slump by 15% to 35.2 million during the first quarter, IHS predicts.

“Notebook ODMs in early 2013 are feeling the pain from the combined impacts of uncertain economic conditions and slower-than-expected sales of Ultrabook PCs,” said Peter Lin, senior analyst at IHS.

And although demand for Ultrabooks and other ultrathins haven’t taken off as expected, “an expected increase in demand for Ultrabooks and other ultrathins will help reignite notebook PC shipments in the second half,” Lin predicts.

Shipments from ODMs will rise 5 percent from 2012 to around164 million units, IHS iSuppli estimates.

 

Ultrathin notebooks recently released by the likes of Samsung, Toshiba and Asus on Windows 8 are being given a new lease of life with improved battery power, detachable use as a tablet and a higher-performance Intel’s Haswell chip processor.

In Australia, tablets sales doubled those of notebooks in Q4 last, Gfk figures released yesterday show. 

Lin also blames the notebook slowdown on uncertainties in the global economy, and the slowing markets of Europe, China and the US.

Mass Exodus: Gerry Harvey To Jump Ship?

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There could be a mass exodus of retailers from Australia if the GST loophole isnt fixed


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That’s according to Harvey Norman Managing Director Katie Page, who warned of a mass exit of local retailers from Australia, to low cost countries in Asia, citing Hong Kong in particular, if the government doesn’t act asap to fix the GST rules.

In her speech, reported in the SMH, Page said “advisers” are looking to lure “thousands” of Aussie retailers to Hong Kong, but then criticised the practice as “un-Australian” and the “worst thing Australian company could do.”

“They [other retailers] can actually be setting up in Hong Kong – anywhere in Asia now actually, Hong Kong is the favoured place. There’s lots of advisers of going around, speaking to thousands of retailers at the moment, saying, ‘Just set up the company in Hong Kong and ship into this country’.”

”How un-Australian is that?” Page also warned other companies would follow if Harvey’s did take the lead and jump ship.

The Harvey Norman boss was speaking at a superannuation conference in Melbourne yesterday, but her GST battle cry echos the sentiments of her husband and Harvey Chairman Gerry Harvey, who engaged in a very public campaign on the issue last year only to be lambasted by consumers irked at his attempt to raise the price of online goods.

The government is currently looking at changing the GST rules for goods purchased online from overseas and lowering the tax threshold from $1000 to just $30, meaning online goods bought from overseas may increase 10%, making price of goods bought locally far more competitive.

But Page, too, may soon be at the recieving end of the public’s ire, after she suggested Australians may not have a proper grasp on how the tax system works, and hit out at the government for not explaining it properly.

Online goods bought from international retailers currently accounts for just 2% of total sales here.

So, is Harvey Norman about to up sticks and move to Hong Kong?

 

Page said her company would take it “step by step,” but added:

 “I think that is just the worst thing an Australian company could do. It could solve a lot of problems but, you know, if Harvey Norman did that, everybody else would follow. And that’s wrong.”

In relation to the current state of her company, which recently announced a profit drop of 32%, Page said critics simply did not understand how the company works and were too focused on the short term. 

Sony: Shuts Stores, Opens ‘Kiosks’.. A Good Move?

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LG Preps For Impending Galaxy S4 With Optimus G Pro

Yesterday, Sony Australia announced it was shutting its Sony Centre NSW stores at World Square and Drummoyne and adopting a kiosk retail strategy.

Sony said the move was in response to the “changes in consumer behaviour,” and will focus on an extension of the Sony Vaio ‘kiosk solution’ already operating in Westfield Chatswood and Bondi Junction.

It said retail kiosks were part of its NSW retail strategy and it is not clear if the move will affect the seven Sony Centres in other states. Westfield’s website still lists just these two locations for Sony.

“Sony Australia remains committed to pursuing direct retail avenues and locations that will meet the needs of Sony customers,” it said in a statement.

“This retail model, offers shoppers the opportunity to get hands-on with Sony products in a flexible, high-traffic location.”

Acer too are adopting this kiosk strategy and have several in Sydney already including Westfield Bondi Junction, as CN revealed last week. But Sony is also said to be recruiting sales staff for kiosks in NSW, and is likely to expand beyond just Chatswood and Bondi.

Sony Australia was not available for comment at the time of writing.

A Sony Chatswood store worker we spoke to this week blamed the store demise on lack of footfall: “we just don’t seem to get the traffic here.”

Read: Exclusive: Sony To Close Sydney Stores

So, is it the right move?

There is now a big trend towards pop-up stores and the move “makes sense” for retailers such as Sony to go direct to the consumer and “interrupt their path to purchase,” says Telsyte analyst Sam Yip.

 

Customers can still experience the goods (at the kiosk) and make a purchase online or via mobile right there and then at the location.

The path to purchase is “rapidly changing” – such kiosks can interrupt the consumer even when they are not thinking, Yip believes. With a physical store, a consumer has to actually go there and think about all the different brands, products.

Traditionally, this purchase path started with ads, then a consumer went to a retail store and got the item delivered – now its retailer to consumer.

“Retail is moving online and mobile. It doesn’t make sense for retailers to have a permanent store anymore” says Yip.

The Apple Store is a ‘destination’ but there’s no denying online sales are rapidly increasing.

Big brand Samsung too is advocating a retail destination strategy and is said to be planning to open 12 demonstration stores in OZ, as exclusively revealed by CN.

A Samsung source said: “We are now looking at larger stores where can demonstrate our full range of products, we need to show TV’s communicating with our tablets, PCs, smartphones and our home theatre kits. We need to demonstrate our cameras and appliances”.

Samsung Australia was not available for further comment.

 

This gung-ho direct selling strategy following up from the Sydney CBD store opened last year, after it originally opened a pop up store to promote the Galaxy S II, to counteract the mayhem around the launch of iPhone 4S at Apple Store.

Sony stores will cease trading Sunday 3 March.

Maybe its a case of: Big brands = shops, Struggling brands = kiosks.

Who’s Cheapest Tech Retailer OZ?

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JB Hi Fi and Kogan are falling in price. But Gerry Harvey appears to be propping his prices up.
In fact, Harvey Norman is shown to be the most expensive of four main Aussie electronics retailers, followed by JB Hi-Fi, Dick Smith and Kogan, who was shown to be the cheapest.

That’s according to the latest consumer electronics indices from Credit Suisse, which examined prices in four of the main tech retailers: Harvey Norman, JB Hi-Fi, Dick Smith and online-only operator Kogan, from July-January last.

All four retailers were shown to have dropped their prices, overall, in the past few months, bar Dick Smith.

Dick Smith prices dipped in August, around the time it held massive sales before being sold off to equity group Anchorage Capital.

However, prices rose again towards the end of the year.

 “We have observed incremental price increases at Dick Smith Electronics across a number of categories since early December,” notes Grant Saligari, an analyst at Credit Suisse.

“There is some uncertainty as to Dick Smith’s pricing tactics due to its recent ownership change. These tactics will be an important influence on sector profitability.”

JB Hi-Fi prices also dropped in accessories from Nov-Jan, as did tablets ( it’s most competitive category) and MP3 players.

 

Harvey Norman was clearly shown as the priciest among its rivals, with accessories in particular, showing a massive price hike, although tablets did fall.

“Prices have stabilised following selective discounting in December,” the Credit Suisse analyst said, but expects gross margin to increase year on year.

Overall, prices of cameras are falling about 18 per cent per year and MP3 players are down 22 per cent, the indices shows.

 

Daly To Hook WA, Qld To NBN

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NBN Co signs contract with project giant to connect additional units to the fibre broadband network in WA, Qld.
Daly International has been signed on to connect units in WA, Brisbane and Gold Coast in a contract worth up to $27.7 million over two years, it was announced today

The contract also has the option of two one-year extensions.

Under the contract, Daly International will provide project development services, including notifications to residents and owners’ corporations, survey, design and construction services.

The news comes as the politically contentious National Broadband Network project, estimated to cost in the region of $42 billion, comes under increasing pressure to be seen to complete connection targets, particularly in an election year.

NBN Co stated the target for June 2013 is to have over 1.2 million premises commenced or completed, and wants to ramp up premises activated to the network to 91,700 from just 34,500 completed by December last.

In December, NBN Co signed Downer EDI to connect units in NSW, Victoria and the ACT, with Universal Communications Group to do the deed in Tasmania and Sydney.

Daly International’s project delivery group has operations that span Australia and the UK in telecommunications, power, water and gas projects.

NBN Co Chief Operations Officer Ralph Steffens said: “We’re pleased to have signed another partner to assist in the proactive approach we are taking to the rollout to apartments in terms of engagement with residents and the construction task.”

“The rollout to MDUs requires special attention because of the variety of buildings we need to design and build for, and because we need to engage with owners of existing buildings inorder to undertake survey and installation activities.”

 

The job of contacting owners’ corporations is being made easier by an agreement with Strata Community Australia (SCA) which is helping NBN Co obtain relevant contact details, Steffens said.

Representing over 2500 companies and individuals, SCA has set up a site allowing members and non-members to register for each building scheduled for installation via a secure online site.

The National Broadband Network is to be completed by 2021.

Telstra Say Tata…& Make Global TelePresence Felt

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New Tata deal will provide Testra HD telepresence in 31 cities worldwide.

Telstra’s new interconnection deal with Indian telco Tata Communications will allow its Cisco’s TelePresence customers connect to high def video conferencing equipment globally.

Tata Communications’ Global Meeting Exchange provides private and public telepresence services spanning 31 cities across five continents. Telstra’s Cisco TelePresence managed service is delivered over its Next IP (TM) network.

Telepresence allows virtual simulation of meeting rooms, joining participants who are at different locations and can assist with employee collaboration across remote locations, boosting productivity reducing travel time and costs.

The comms tool “is an increasingly popular way to conduct global business meetings because of the time, cost and environmental efficiencies it delivers,”  saysPhilip Jones, Executive Director of Telstra Innovation, Products and Marketing. 
The new agreement will help address the demand for telepresence meetings globally, he added. 

To organise a telepresence meeting, Telstra customers will be provided with instructions on how to reach their conference on Tata Communications’ Global Meeting Exchange platform.  

Assistance is available to Telstra customers via their local Telstra service desk number in each region.  

The interconnection agreement will also benefit other organisations that do business across the globe, Peter Quinlan, VP, Integrated Business Video Services, Tata Communications, said.

 

“The agreement with Telstra further demonstrates our commitment to drive Telepresence as a tool for true global collaboration where customers can connect with each other regardless of service provider or network,” Mr Quinlan said.