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Tag: mobility

  • Mobility driving China’s economic growth

    Mobility driving China’s economic growth

    China’s mobile ecosystem added 5.2 trillion yuan ($750 billion) in value to the country’s economy in 2018, according to a new GSMA report.

    Mats Granryd, director general of the GSMA says the report confirms how China’s mobile industry has been a key driver of economic growth, inclusion and modernization – creating a new generation of digital consumers and transforming industry and society.

    Grandryd says China’s mobile operators will invest a further 401 million yuan with the rollout of 5G.

    Numbers speak volumes

    • China is the largest mobile market in the world with 1.2 billion unique mobile subscribers at the end of 2018, about 82% of the country’s population;
    • 69% of mobile connections in China are smartphones, with smartphone adoption expected to reach 88% by 2025;
    • 4G networks cover 77% of China’s connections peaking in the coming years before falling as consumers migrate to 5G services;
    • By 2025, there will be 460 million 5G connections – this will, however, only account for 28% of China’s total network connection;
    • By 2023, mobile connection will contribute 6 trillion yuan to the economy, up from 5.2 trillion yuan in 2018;
    • China’s mobile ecosystem directly and indirectly supported 8.5 million jobs in 2018 and contributed 583 yuan in tax revenue;
    • The number of licensed cellular IoT connections in China stood at 672 million at the end of 2018, supporting various industrial and smart cities applications.

     

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  • Alipay Hong Kong promotes Smart Mobility to enable Boundless Living

    Alipay Hong Kong promotes Smart Mobility to enable Boundless Living

    As a fast emerging TechFin brand, AlipayHK has led and driven the adoption of the e-wallet in application in Hong Kong. Since the formation of Alipay Payment Services (HK) Limited (“APSHK”), the joint venture between CK Hutchison Holdings Limited (“CK Hutchison”) and Ant Financial Services Group (“Ant Financial”) in March 2018, the company’s flagship product AlipayHK has extended its coverage to 50,000 merchants and more than two million users. This year AlipayHK will focus on widening the e-wallets adoption across public transportation providers and expand its cross-border payment services by strengthening collaboration among merchants. Its overarching goal is for people in Hong Kong to enjoy the benefits of smart mobility and the convenience that comes with using its e-wallet.

    AlipayHK revealed the e-wallet’s new features, EasyGo, at the Smart Mobility, Boundless Living exhibition which marked the first anniversary of the company. Guests were amazed by the speed and convenience of using EasyGo to pass through tickets gates and AlipayHK for cross-border payments. By simply scanning a QR code users could also enjoy special currency exchange rates and the additional perk of a HK$20 Guangdong-Hong Kong- Macao Greater Bay Area discount on cross-border purchases during the promotion period.

    Special guests who officiated the ceremony included: Mr. Canning Fok, Group Co-Managing Director of CK Hutchison and Chairman of APSHK, Mr. Eric Jing, Chairman and CEO of Ant Financial, Mr. Howard Lee, Deputy Chief Executive of Hong Kong Monetary Authority and Ms. Jennifer Tan, CEO of APSHK.

    Smart Mobility expands local coverage and goes global

    Smart Mobility is an important initiative of AlipayHK to drive the development of Smart Cities. As part of this, AlipayHK is widening the adoption of smart mobility solutions to a range of public transport providers. For example, in January it launched EasyGo on a minibus line and AlipayHK will now be extending this service to other minibus routes and transportation providers.

    Smart Travel is another major initiative for AlipayHK as part of its strategy to offer Hong Kong people a premium consumption experience when they travel overseas. Last month, AlipayHK launched its innovative connection service across the Greater Bay Area which covered popular shopping destinations, as well as essential services such as medical and education and provided a more convenient experience for people living in and traveling to the Greater Bay Area. When travelling to Japan, a popular destination for Hong Kong travelers, AlipayHK users can now use their e-wallets in the Daimaru Tenjin store in Fukuoka and the service will soon expand to the whole country. AlipayHK aims increase the coverage of this service to other retailers around the world so Hong Kong people can enjoy the convenience they experience from their e-wallets at home, and also when they travel overseas.

    Mr. Canning Fok said, “It is encouraging to see such a growth in the number of AlipayHK users in only a year. AlipayHK was the first e-wallet to become an official partner of the MTR Corporation and this disrupted the traditional payment methods for public transportation. As the Greater Bay Area develops, AlipayHK is poised to capture the opportunities from cross-border payment services among the nine cities within its cluster with the aim extending our coverage to the whole country. I hope the continuous development of AlipayHK will bring more innovative retail experiences to users as we broaden its application and user base across the globe.” Mr. Eric Jing said, “Hong Kong is a key market for Alipay’s globalization. We will continue to support AlipayHK by bringing the best products and technology know-how to Hong Kong, in order to create unique value for users and merchants. In the future, we will also connect e-wallets from other regions around the world with merchants in Hong Kong, enabling them to benefit from mobile payment.”

    Ms. Jennifer Tan said, “As an e-wallet provider in Hong Kong, AlipayHK always aims to pioneer positive change for Hong Kong citizens in order to make their lives easier. We would like to thank people in Hong Kong for their support. Without it, we would not have achieved such an impressive growth in users and merchants. We will continue to further develop solutions for public transportation service and cross-border payment to enable smart mobility and living.”

  • Softbank, Toyota form JV for mobility services in Japan

    Softbank, Toyota form JV for mobility services in Japan

    Japan’s Softbank and automaker Toyota announced plans to form a joint venture by April 2019 to provide launch Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS) in the country. The company, called Monet Technologies, will combine Toyota’s mobility services platform and information infrastructure for connected vehicles with Softbank’s Internet of Things platform, the companies said in a joint statement.

    Initially, Monet plans to roll out just-in-time vehicle dispatch services for Japanese public agencies and private companies to meet user demand. Those services include on-demand transportation service and corporate shuttles.

    By the second half of the 2020s, Monet intends to launch an autono-MaaS (autonomous mobility as a service) businesses, using Toyota’s e-Palette battery electric vehicles.

    These vehicles will deliver meals with food prepared in the vehicles, provide hospital shuttles where onboard medical examinations can be carried out onboard.  These vehicles can also serve as mobile offices, Softbank said.

    Softbank said Monet will roll out its mobility services in Japan before focusing on future expansion to the global market.

    The joint venture will have initial capital of 2 billion yen ($17.49 million), and this will be increased to 10 billion yen in future.

    Softbank will own 50.25% of the JV and Toyota take the remaining 49.75%.

    SoftBank Corp representative director and CTO Junichi Miyakawa will be president and CEO of the new joint venture.

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  • Mobility is the top priority in corporate travel

    Mobility is the top priority in corporate travel

    Four in five travel managers now believe mobility to be the biggest priority in managing corporate travel, according to Sabre Corporation‘s 2017 Asia Pacific Corporate Traveller study.

    According to the study conducted on corporate travel professionals from across 19 countries in the region, more than 43% of corporate travelers are also deviating from company policy ahead of the trip and 42% are making changes while traveling.

    When asked what it is they considered to be the biggest priority in managing corporate travel in their organization, 80% of travel managers said they believe mobility – from making a booking through a mobile device, to itinerary management, to staying in touch with their traveller via instant messaging – is their top priority.

    Two in three (66%) also quoted looking at alternative forms of payment technology as a high priority area for them.

    Today, new technologies are emerging at a rapid pace, ultimately opening up countless new revenue channels for travel companies to tap into. Travel managers have an opportunity to engage their corporate travelers on multiple devices at all points of the journey for a truly seamless trip.

    Product solutions that can seamlessly integrate booking, itinerary management, messaging, virtual payments, expenses reporting and travel risk management will help corporate travelers improve their traveller experience, whilst helping their organizations maximize efficiency, streamline expenses and improve compliance.

  • Motorola scores managed mobility win in Australia

    Motorola scores managed mobility win in Australia

    Victoria Police in Australia will adopt a new managed service mobility solution for at least 10,000 police officers across the state.

    The A$50 million ($37.6 million) solution from Motorola Solutions will help increase situational awareness, safety and productivity for frontline officers.

    Motorola Solutions will lead a consortium of service providers to deliver the contract, including Optus, the second largest mobile operator in the country, as well as local IT provider CompNow. The managed service contract will run for a minimum of five years.

    The service will place real-time information at the fingertips of at least 10,000 police officers equipped with iPads and iPhones, helping them manage their daily work more safely, efficiently and productively.

    The solution is designed to help reduce the duplication of data entry by officers while increasing workforce collaboration by sharing vital information between frontline personnel and their colleagues working in control rooms.

    The technology will also help Victoria Police to preserve its mission-critical radio communications for essential emergency communications by removing lower priority traffic from the radio network.

    This investment represents a major goal within Victoria Police’s Capability Plan 2016-2025, which highlights the way the force will transform its service delivery to be more “agile, responsive, people-focussed and connected.”

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  • BluJay acquires mobility solutions provider Blackbay

    BluJay acquires mobility solutions provider Blackbay

    BluJay Solutions, a provider of supply chain software and services powered by the ‘world’s first’ Global Trade Network, has acquired Blackbay Ltd. Blackbay is a provider of mobility-enabled solutions for the transport and logistics industry. With the acquisition, BluJay expands its mobile offerings with comprehensive shipment tracking and proof-of-delivery capture.

    “Intelligent mobility solutions have become an indispensable part of delivering a world-class experience for our customers and their customers,” said Doug Braun, CEO of BluJay Solutions. “Adding Blackbay to our Global Trade Network is a highly valuable and ideal extension of BluJay’s offering, expanding customers’ visibility into the supply chain and each stage of delivery.”

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  • China’s Future Mobility plans $1.7 bln electric car plant in Nanjing

    China’s Future Mobility plans $1.7 bln electric car plant in Nanjing

    Chinese electric car venture Future Mobility plans to build an 11.64 billion yuan ($1.7 billion) factory in Nanjing, aiming to capitalise on rising demand for electric cars in the world’s second-largest economy and elsewhere.

    The investment announced on Thursday comes despite a delay to planned funding from technology giant Tencent Holdings and Taiwan manufacturing heavyweight Foxconn , with Hong Kong-registered Future Mobility citing stricter implementation of China’s capital flow controls.

    China has ratcheted up controls on money leaving the mainland since last year in an effort to bolster a weakening yuan and prevent capital flight as the pace of economic growth slows.

    Future Mobility said it is in “close communication” with relevant parties, while a source with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters that the company has been able to find ample funding from other investors.

    Tencent and Foxconn did not respond to requests for comment outside of business hours.

    The Tencent and Foxconn money currently sits in a China-based fund established before the tightening of capital controls and Future Mobility is working with lawyers to devise mulitiple options to “find a smart way” to complete the investment, the source said.

    The source added that Foxconn and Tencent remain as backers despite the hiccup.

    “We didn’t (initially) find a way to get the funds to come from China to the company outside of China,” the source said. “The money is there.”

    The new factory will eventually have capacity to produce 300,000 cars a year. The company did not give an indication of when it expects to reach that output but said that the first phase of the plant’s construction will be completed by 2019.

    After that initial phase, the factory should be able to produce 150,000 vehicles a year, it said.

    China, struggling with high pollution levels in major cities, is aggressively pushing plug-in vehicles. Its carrot-and-stick approach combines heavy investment and research funding with subsidies, as well as regulations designed to discourage the driving of fossil-fueled cars in big cities.

    Future Mobility said the first product it plans to produce is expected to be a pure-electric medium-sized smart SUV and that vehicles produced at Nanjing will be sold globally.

    A company spokeswoman said that the first car is likely to have a price tag of about 300,000 yuan ($43,700) and is expected to hit the Chinese market in 2019.

  • TV, video viewing shifts rapidly towards mobility

    TV, video viewing shifts rapidly towards mobility

    Average viewing times on mobile devices has grown by more than 200 hours a year since 2012, driving up overall TV and video viewing by an additional 1.5 hours a week, according to the latest Ericsson ConsumerLab TV & Media Report.

    The surge in mobile viewing is offset with a decline in fixed screen viewing of 2.5 hours a week, however the appetite for TV and video is not waning.

    Weekly share of time spent watching TV and video on mobile devices has grown by 85% (2010-2016). On fixed screens it has gone down by 14% over the same period.

    Also, 40% of consumers globally are “very interested” in a mobile data plan that includes unrestricted video streaming.

    In the US, 20% of mobile viewing is paid-for content using services such as Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime.

    A major issue is low consumer satisfaction when trying to find something to watch, 44% of US consumers say they can’t find anything to watch on linear TV on a daily basis, an increase of 22% compared with last year (36%).

    In contrast, US consumers spend 45% more time choosing what to watch on VOD services than linear TV.

    Paradoxically, 63% of consumers claim that they are very satisfied with content discovery when it comes to their VOD service, while only 51% say the same for linear TV.

    The findings suggest that although the VOD discovery process is more time consuming than with linear broadcast TV, consumers rate it as less frustrating, as it implicitly promises the opportunity to find something they want to watch, when they want to watch it.

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  • Renault, Nissan buy French tech firm to develop mobility apps

    Renault, Nissan buy French tech firm to develop mobility apps

    Renault SA and Nissan Motor Co announced on Tuesday they would buy French software development company Sylpheo as they compete with global automakers and tech firms to develop new services including ride hailing and car sharing.

    The French and Japanese automakers said that the acquisition, under which they would absorb Sylpheo’s 40 engineers and consultants, would boost their software development and cloud engineering expertise.

    “The Sylpheo team of software developers and cloud engineers joining the Alliance will have a unique opportunity to work on our next generation of connected cars and other advanced technologies,” said Ogi Redzic, Renault-Nissan’s senior vice president of Connected Vehicles and Mobility Services.

    “They will be playing a critical role in this new era of tremendous change for the global auto industry.”

    Automakers from Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T) to General Motors (GM.N) have been investing in software firms and mobility start-ups to position themselves for the rise of autonomous driving, ride-sharing and other connected services which threaten the traditional vehicle ownership model that has dominated the past century.

    Sylpheo will develop the applications for the alliance’s connected car service platform, a Renault spokeswoman said. She said the acquisition was part of the alliance’s recruitment push to hire 300 technology experts to better compete in the fast-growing mobility services sector.

    These services will be integrated with autonomous driving technologies. In July, Nissan launched a suite of semi-autonomous driving functions in one of its Japanese minivan models which enables the vehicle to drive on single lane motorways and navigate congestion.

    The two companies plan to launch more than 10 vehicles with autonomous drive technology by 2020. Nissan is aiming to develop autonomous multiple-lane driving functions, including lane changes, by 2018, and functions for full urban driving, including intersection turns, by 2020.

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