Bringing the Boyle out of the Femto

Femto Hub Blog (Jul 1 2009)

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  1. Bringing the Boyle out of the Femto

    By David Nowicki

    Avren Events’ Femtocells World Summit started off with a bang, not once, not twice, but three days in a row. The conference was filled with solid contributions throughout, but the three most memorable presentations--in my view--occurred as the opening keynote of each day. What made these sessions outstanding was not any one aspect of the presentation itself, but a unique blend of elements. These presentations stood out from the rest and clearly mark the event through their simplicity, memorable messages and passionate deliveries.

    The first, by Kenny Graham and Lee McDougall of Vodafone, had all the elements of a great presentation: (1) a simple and powerful message, (2) superb graphics and (3) a surprise ending. The presentation began straightforwardly, but soon revealed itself as a well-told story complete with a surprise. Using slides built in the presentation Zen style (big beautiful images with succinct text), Graham discussed the importance of the femtocell in the marketplace. He then turned the presentation over to marketing head Lee McDougall to prove that the impending announcement was a true market offer.

    McDougall did not disappoint. He first outlined the work that goes into a femtocell launch. This established credibility that VF was well prepared. It also gave the impression that the launch was several months away. Next McDougall put up a date of October 15th on the screen. The audience was left believing that this was the launch date. Next they were told that this was not the date, but a date… yet another surprise. Then the calendar started rolling backwards! Finally the audience was aghast with the fact that July 1st was the launch date---only one week away! The presentation continued with pricing, strategy and offer details. This keynote will certainly go down in femtocell history as watershed event. And the fact that Vodafone decided to announce their July 1st femtocell launch at the Femtocell World Summit (rather than on their own stage) raised the profile of the Avren stage.

    As chairman of Day Two, I had an up close and personal view at the opening keynote presentation by Dr. Klaus-Juergen Krath of T-Mobile International. Dr. Krath is a respected radio industry expert who has spent a great deal of time analyzing the potential of the femtocell. His presentation succinctly covered both the great potential and the remaining challenges of launching femtocells. After Dr. Krath’s talk I heard one audience member proclaim that if you only were able to attend one presentation on femtocells, this was the one. Dr. Krath delivered data, trial results, issues and potential solutions. His main message was to approach femtocells as one would any technical breakthrough--in a phased approach that allows you to fully understand each level of complexity. The message was extremely positive and delivered with a realistic and credible tone. Again a simple, memorable talk delivered with zeal.

    Day Three commenced with Mathew Oommen from Sprint Nextel. Having now deployed femtocells for 18 months, Sprint has more experience than any other operator. Oommen opened by saying that Sprint would not be where they are today if the Femto Forum and events like this did not exist. He expressed support for the work the Femto Forum has done to date, and pledged to stay closely involved. Oommen also employed the Zen style, using bold images and memorable captions. He provoked the audience to think of the femtocell as Susan Boyle*. Both Boyle and the femtocell are ordinary at first glance. However, on closer inspection, both are in fact extraordinary. The story of Susan Boyle is now well known, debated and admired. But the story of the extraordinary femtocell is yet to be written. Oommen sees a future in femtocell services and encouraged the industry to work together, break down barriers and enable application development from all parts of the ecosystem. Oommen sees the greatest potential for applications in the consistent global quest to keep our families safe and secure. He opened his speech by asking the question “is it a micro base station or customer experience tool?” He ended by asking the audience to bring the “Boyle out of the Femto.”

    Vodafone kicked it off with an historic launch. T-Mobile brought us down to earth again with a measured, yet positive approach. And Sprint left us with a quest to seek the extraordinary in each and every femtocell.

    *For those unfamiliar with Anglo-American pop culture, Susan Boyle is an ordinary-looking but vocally outstanding Scottish singer who rose to international prominence as a contestant on Britain's Got Talent.

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