Page 14 - Sphere No.24 (Mar 2009)

12 SPHERE
fiercely contested prize in the mobile
industry, beating other heavyweight
contenders such as the Nokia E71, T-Mo-
bile G1 (also known as the Google phone),
RIM BlackBerry Storm and LG KS360.
In making the award, the judges commented:
“The INQ1 represents a significant step towards the mo-
bile device as a social networking hub and also represents
superb value for money. Its approach to the deep integration
of services such as Facebook outshines that of much cost-
lier smartphones, and it pres-
ents a compelling proposition
by treating the phonebook as
the focal point of the device.
With its ingenious ability to
transform from phone to 3G
modem by simply plugging it
into your USB port, the INQ1
delivers data services to the
mass market and for an afford-
able price.”
INQ Mobile’s Chief Execu-
tive Frank Meehan was de-
lighted. “Prior to INQ Mobile,
the INQ team was part of the
HWL Global 3G Handset and
Application Group. We were
responsible for managing
handset vendor and Internet partner relationships,” he said
after the award ceremony in Barcelona. “HWL management
had tasked the 3 Group to fully deliver on the data prom-
ises of 3G by leveraging its mobile broadband capabilities.
Our role was to source handsets that could get consumers
excited about the Internet on mobile.
“However, the main vendors were concentrating all their
efforts on high-end devices which were complicated to use
and too expensive for most consumers. So HWL decided to
invest in our own Internet-centric range. Our first device
was the Skypephone. Its success with consumers, and its
ability to deliver more margin to the 3 Group, led us to take
it a step further with INQ. Now, with a small investment,
we have the potential to deliver large returns and become a
major global brand for the Group”
The new INQ1 handset combines the traditional func-
tions of a mobile phone, such as contacts book and
message inbox, with direct access to Facebook,
Skype, and WLM.
In addition, the address book provides
live status updates and profile photos
from Facebook and presence informa-
tion from Skype and WLM – perfect for
busy people who want to access their
social networks while on the move. The
phone also has one-touch access to a se-
ries of other Web services, such a Google,
LastFM, Ebay and YouTube.
Henri Moissinac, Director of Mobile,
Facebook, said: “More than 20 million Face-
book users currently access the site through their
mobile devices. This number has quadrupled over the last 12
months and we expect it to continue to grow as more people
begin to connect with their friends and family through Face-
book on innovative mobile devices, like the INQ1.
“Congratulations to the INQ
team for being recognised for the
hard work they put into bringing
a standout device to market.”
Technology Website Engad-
get put it this way: “INQ won
because of how they’ve enabled
Facebook deep integration, fo-
cus on your contacts as living,
breathing, and ever-changing
entities, great pricing, and a
compelling user interface.”
Mr Meehan stressed that the
phone is designed to bring the
mobile Internet to a much wid-
er audience. “People are tired
of paying a fortune for phones
that are unusable,” he said.
AN AMAZING TRIUMPH
TO PUT THE achievements of the team at
INQ into context, the GSMA Global Mobile
Awards are the Oscars of the mobile com-
munications industry. For a new company to win the
award for Best Mobile Handset or Device is quite
remarkable, especially when the opposition included
established industry heavyweights Nokia, BlackBerry
and LG.
More than 450 companies spanning Internet, fi-
nance, advertising, music, television and gaming sub-
mitted entries across 16 categories for this year’s
awards, reflecting the diversity and breadth and depth
of the industry. The event was attended by more than
900 executives and mobile industry leaders.
The GSMA represents the interests of the world-
wide mobile communications industry. Spanning 219
countries, the GSMA unites more than 750 of the
world’s mobile operators, as well as 200 com-
panies in the broader mobile ecosystem,
including handset makers, software com-
panies, equipment providers, Internet
companies, and media and entertain-
ment organisations. A groundbreaking
device that will
probably change the
way you use your
mobile
All smiles: The INQ team celebrates at the GSMA
Global Mobile Awards – the Oscars of the mobile
communications industry – after winning the
award for Best Mobile Handset or Device.