racoma.com.phJ. Angelo Racoma on technology, economics, writing, problogging, and getting things done

I’m an avid user of Globe Telecom’s Immortal TXT service, which essentially extends your PhP 10 prepaid load into 50 + 10 SMS messages (50 within Globe networks and 10 to other networks). Globe has recently come up with a new “immortal” scheme, which now includes voice calls. Dubbed Immortal Call, the service will give you 50 SMS within Globe networks (including Touch mobile and Tattoo mobile) and 5 minutes worth of Globe network calls. Cost is PhP 15, and you can activate this by sending IMMORTAL15 to 8888.

In effect, you will be extending your PhP 15 to PhP 50 + PhP 6.50×5 (since each voice minute costs PhP 6.50), for a total of PhP 82.50.

I’m not using Immortal Call, though, since I’ve activated Super DUO last month (now since lapsed, but will activate it again soon, before my local number expires). But I do think that Globe’s per-second charging (using the “232” prefix instead of “0”) may actually be cheaper at PhP 0.10 per second, given my telephone calling habits, which rarely go a few seconds each call. Therefore I prefer the Immortal TXT service. But if you’re a heavier caller, then Immortal Call + would be cheap, at PhP 1 per minute.

I’ve been using Globe Telecom’s new time-based charging system for data. I only get to pay PhP 5 per 15-minutes, which is comparable to Smart’s PhP 10 per 30 minutes charging system. Globe seems cheap enough, but there’s a catch.

To recap, Globe has two data charging schemes:

KB Browsing Rate

This kind of charging is best for info-based browsing like browsing for the latest news or movie schedules, searching online dictionaries and checking sports stats. Since you are charged only P0.15/kb, a search for the definition to a puzzling word would only cost P2.30 while checking that movie schedule would only cost about P1.62.

Time Browsing Rate

This charging scheme is best used for multimedia-based activities like sending and receiving files through email or even viewing pictures and videos. All these are done more affordably when you use Time Charging at P5 for 15minutes.

My big gripe with Globe’s rate is that the charge is per 15-minute session. This means if your connection is broken for any reason, and you connect again, you would have to pay another PhP 5 for another 15 minutes. This is unlike Smart’s flat rate charging, where you get charged a single PhP 10 for the whole 30-minute duration, no matter how many times you connect or disconnect.

Globe’s system has many disadvantages. For one, if you’re connecting via 3G or even HSDPA (a.k.a. 3.5G), your phone would usually automatically adjust speed according to the available network signal. Depending on signal strength and availability of the data carrier, you can change connections across GPRS, EDGE, 3G, and HSDPA.. So if you move in and out of a 3G-enabled cell site, in all likelihood, your connection would be considered broken and re-connected.

A tip: watch your signal meter while connected. For Nokia phones, indicators would include 3.5G, 3G, G, or E (for EDGE).

Secondly, you might have several applications on your mobile phone that need to connect and reconnect, in case you switch apps. For example, Nokia’s XHTML browsers might automatically disconnect upon exit. Or if you launch an IM client (which, by the way, doesn’t work on Globe), you might find yourself having to pay another PhP 5 for a new session.

Or, perhaps you receive a call or SMS in the middle of your data connection. In these cases, the packet data connection is usually paused or broken. And since a reconnection would be considered a new session, there goes your PhP 5 again.

In my opinion, Smart’s charging system is simply smarter. It’s truly a flat-rate charging scheme, whereas Globe’s is more complicated. While PhP 5 seems cheaper than PhP 10 (especially when you just need to check a few tidbits of information at a time), it might turn out more expensive in the long run. With Smart, one gets no worries about being double-charged. It’s really as simple as PhP 10 per 30 minutes.

And I’m not even talking about Internet protocols yet (in which Globe only supports port 80 or Web). But that’s another story.

At least I get to use my phone’s data capabilities practically free when at home or when at any public hotspot. I use WiFi! The phone even lets me make and receive VoIP calls via SIP, Google Talk or Skype. (Review coming soon.)

I got an invitation to attend the launch party of this yet-undisclosed (as of that time) telco, but I wasn’t able to attend. Turns out it was ü Mobile, and they had launched an innovative (relatively) mobile service, which lets users get free credits for receiving advertisements.

The service seems to be exclusive, though, as they are targeting the 15- to 35-year old demographic. That’s understood, given the need to target advertisements. And perhaps we can assume that if you’re over 35, you probably don’t have the patience to read ads; or perhaps you have enough disposable income that you would prefer to pay for services rather than get freebies.

And so I got a call the other day from ü Mobile telling me they are sending over a SIM card. I got the SIM this morning, and excitedly plugged it into my Nokia 1112. After several attempts to make calls and send SMS, I gave up. I had a hunch that the service only worked over 3G networks, which i confirmed after calling customer service.

It’s a bit disappointing, since the ü Mobile network supposedly ran over Smart’s network. So ideally it should work both on the UMTS and GSM networks. I did have a spare 3G-enabled phone I could use the SIM on, but it was locked to Smart. Even if ü Mobile were a Smart brand, I still couldn’t use it because of the locks (while other Smart brands like Talk n Text and Addict Mobile can be used on Smart-locked phones).

Easiest option for now would be to plug the SIM into my E51 (review to follow), but then being my main mobile (for use with both business and personal calls and text, IM’ing and VoIP) I would rather not.

Or, I could have my LG KU250 unlocked, but it would void warranty. Or perhaps I could acquire another (unlocked) 3G-enabled mobile, but this would be a truly unnecessary expense.

My ü Mobile SIM would have to wait, then. Ah, the lost advertising opportunities.

The in thing in the Philippine telco market today is the wireless landline service. It’s somehow a mix of mobile phone service and landline service: the focus is on voice calls, but the service is usually not limited within a home or office.

There are various reasons why the Philippines is called the texting capital of the world. For one, text messaging is cheaper than voice calls (at least in the country). Secondly, Filipinos are known not to be a bit on the shy side when it comes to communicating. So we would rather text than call because the impersonal nature of texting serves as a veil between the communicants—one doesn’t have to worry about emotions or reactions. And for the forgetful ones like myself, I like keeping info (or agreements!) in my SMS inbox, so I won’t forget.

The recent upsurge of “wireless landline” services, however, goes to show that telcos are tapping that unused capacity of their networks in bringing about a new service—something I would call a “hybrid” one, but something that others may consider bordering on marketing gimmick.

Until recently, wireless landline services had to be exclusively subscribed-to, and required exclusive handsets. Some networks even use systems that are not same as the most widely used standard here, which is GSM. Bayantel, for one, uses CDMA. And until recently, using wireless landline services meant using a full-sized telephone apparatus, complete with the wired handset and the base with antenna. Portable, true. But one might look silly walking around at the mall speaking into what looks like a wired landline phone (at least that was what I thought when the service first came out a year ago).

But then the candybar-type handsets came to be popular, also. These were as portable as your usual mobile phone, but without the limitation of per-minute charged calls.

And for about a year after wireless landline services were introduced, these were usually postpaid plans with unlimited outgoing calls and SMS messages. But now the trend is going towards prepaid.

Hands on with PLDT’s wireless landline service

So I’ve wanted one for the longest time. My wife preferred the large apparatus type unit (if ever we were to go for one). But we didn’t feel the need for it yet. So it was way below our to-do / to-acquire list. But I got an offer from fellow blogger Jepoy, who was giving out prepaid PLDT Landline Plus SIM cards.

What was really great about the PLDT service was that it was no longer limited to specialized handsets. One could acquire a PLDT Landline Plus Prepaid SIM card, plug it into any GSM phone (Smart locked or unlocked), and voila! You have service!

I got my SIM card in the mail this afternoon (after much anticipation through the weekend) and tried it out. Here are some photos and my initial thoughts.

• The service functions much like a regular prepaid GSM subscription, albeit a basic one. There’s caller ID, but there are not much bells and whisltes (like wireless Internet, call waiting, call forwarding, etc.)
• Voice quality is good—I would expect this of the Smart network. It does have an echo sometimes, though.
• Coverage is good so far. I would expect this of Smart, too.
• Interconnectivity is good, so far. From my Bayantel landline at home, I could connect 100% of the time. Other reviewers, though, say that interconnectivity is iffy at about 75%.

I tried the SIM on my LG KU250 (the one stolen and recovered). And for one to use a “wireless landline” SIM on such a phone would be overkill, as Max Limpag would say. The data connectivity features of the phone would just be put to waste. So later this week I’m off to get myself a cheapo basic phone (much like what I use as my main phone).

I had no problems activating the SIM from my home office. Jepoy says you need to be in an area where the Smart cell site is already upgraded to handle PLDT wireless landline activation. No problem on my end, though.

Jepoy posts a comparison between two of the more popular prepaid wireless landline services here. I’m a loyal Bayantel user, so I initially wanted to get a Bayantel wireless landline phone. But then I would have to purchase a new handset altogether (which is incompatible with the rest of the country’s networks), and a dedicated SIM. The advantage, though, is that Bayantel has per-call charging, while PLDT’s is per-minute. But that’s for outgoing calls. Knowing how ingenious we can be at penny pinching, many users would probably just use the outgoing calls to ask the other end to call back.

Then again, as earlier mentioned, the telcos may have just found a really smart way to extend the use of their existing networks by marketing the service as a “wireless landline” service, when they could, in fact, just introduce cellular plans that are more focused on cheap voice calls rather than text.

I’ll be road testing this service soon, so watch out for more insights.

First, let me say that Caren and I had a good time last night at Temple Bar, Greenbelt 2, where the Globe Innove sponsored bloggers’ meetup was held. Food was okay—not really great, but it was okay—and the drinks were good, too (anything with alcohol is, right?). But what was great was how the event gave us bloggers another opportunity to interact with each other in person. While I have been seeing an upsurge of activities lately where bloggers get to meet and do interesting stuff, this is not as common an occurrence as we would like it to be. So we try to take advantage of such events.

It was also great to have met people from the corporate world who have started considering the blogosphere as a way of getting feedback. After all, Globe Innove’s market is the Internet-using public. It would only be logical to seek inputs from those who are usually connected most of their waking hours.

However, the event was one big disappointment for me, and I would think the other bloggers present last night would agree. And here’s why.

The Influencers

Most, if not all, of the bloggers present during last night’s meetup are people who can be considered influencers. We each have our respective spheres of influence. In our areas of interest, we write about our thoughts, opinions and insights and people listen to and interact with us. It could be in technology, politics, business, the arts, or other themes. Some would just even fans regardless of interest (it’s sometimes personality-based).

As Scoble highlights,

I’ll tell you what executives from big companies (like Kraft, Procter and Gamble, GM, and others) who were at MSN’s OWN ADVERTISING CONFERENCE told me. An influencer is worth THOUSANDS of times more than a non-influencer (influencer is someone who tells other people stuff, which is why blogging is getting so much advertising attention lately). That’s why Google is charging more per click than MSN is (Google has more influential users). That’s why Federated Media is closing advertising deals left and right.

I think Innove missed a very important opportunity last night. They went out to gather a group of bloggers to get inputs about our behaviors, opinions and preferences, particularly when it comes to going online. However, apart from the dinner and drinks, the bloggers were treated to a standard Innove gift pack for the trouble This includes some stationery, a jacket, and a month’s free access to Globe WIZ, the company’s WiFi hotspot network that spans several cafes, malls and resorts. That’s it.

True, every one of us needs a fast and reliable Internet connection, and if possible, we do want a way by which we can access the ‘Net from anywhere. But a free WIZ account would probably be the last thing we need, since most of us have free unlimited Airborne Access accounts, anyway! WiFi isn’t exactly new to us. Accessing alternative networks would be a last resort, say, if ever we find ourselves in a location without AA. And there are usually prepaid options—even Globe WIZ has prepaid.

The Missed Opportunity

Honestly, many of us were expecting the opportunity to try out Globe’s 3G-based wireless Internet, called Visibility. This is exactly what we’re looking for: connectivity anywhere—or at least anywhere with a Globe HSDPA or GPRS signal. We would have been happy to get to try that out, even for a limited period, much like how Smart Bro has tapped Abe and other bloggers to try out their services (free) and give feedback.

Bloggers would generally write about personal experiences, and would usually give honest, unbiased recommendations about products and services we actually use personally. You don’t even have to ask us. If a service is interesting enough, we’d be glad to make rave reviews. If it’s crappy, well we’ll be sure to give our big seal of disapproval!

For instance, I’m pretty sure my writeup about my Compaq Presario V2617 and my PTB article about the price drop of branded Centrino laptops helped people make a choice about the laptops they buy. And talking about connectivity, Abe has blogged about his experiences using Smart GPRS during his stay in Vigan. Arnold has written about connecting thru Globe’s 3G at PTB. I, too, have tried PLDT’s WeRoam a year back, and the connection was really slow. Don’t forget Smart Bro! Most posts I’ve read about it say its crappy—in strong language, no less (see the Smart WiFi chronicles for links)!

However, Globe Visibility is something most of us do not have access to, since it’s still currently intended to service corporate accounts. I hear they’re planning to open this up for personal and even prepaid use soon. This could’ve been the perfect time to get a band of influential bloggers to try out the service and perhaps give feedback and also write about it (it doesn’t even have to be free; what’s important is that it’s available to us non-corporate types). What’s even better is that within the bloggers’ spheres of influence are likely to be like-minded people: those who want and even need mobile connectivity, and who have the money to spend for such. Talk about targeted word-of-mouth advertising.

This could’ve been great marketing, wouldn’t you think?

Update: Here’s what the other participants wrote about the meetup (list stolen from Noemi). I’ll update as more people write about the event. Also, do check the trackbacks at the comments section.

• Noemi – The Globe-Innove Sponsored Blogger’s Meet at Temple Bar
• Kiven – Globe-Innove Blogger Meet at Greenbelt 2
• Gail – A night with bloggers
• Bimbo – Globe Innove Blogger Meet
• Anton – Power Blogger’s Meet and Unfulfilled Expectation
• Abe – Link Building Strategy (Globe Innove Blogger Meetup)
• Connie – The Globe Innove meet-up
• Jayvee – Globe Innove Aftermath
• Marc – Globe’s Blogging Adventure

Feedback from bloggers who were not present:

• Migs – Globe/Innove Bloggers Meetup: A Wasted Opportunity?

*Laptop with mobile phone image from yugatech.com