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Possible strategy for a so-called "Facebook Phone" that I came up with

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Re: Possible strategy for a so-called "Facebook Phone" that I came up with

#11

Post by nemeth »

prostoalex wrote: post #10
sipefree wrote: post #7

> Graphene is fundamentally vanilla Windows Phone, except with all Windows/Microsoft branding removed in favour of Facebook Not a chance. Microsoft would never compromise their branding. They're not THAT desperate yet, and their still in a stronger position than Facebook in terms of having money to throw around. > phone functionality swapped with a custom Skype UI (integrated with Facebook contacts) You'll never get…

> Microsoft would never compromise their branding. Seems that Sidekick and Kin are counter-examples to that statement.

> Seems that Sidekick and Kin are counter-examples to that statement.

Microsoft threw away the working Sidekick OS and re-built it from the ground up on Win CE so that they could brand KIN as a "Windows Phone". So isn't that really a perfect example?

Re: Possible strategy for a so-called "Facebook Phone" that I came up with

#12

Post by buu700 »

prostoalex wrote: post #10
sipefree wrote: post #7

> Graphene is fundamentally vanilla Windows Phone, except with all Windows/Microsoft branding removed in favour of Facebook Not a chance. Microsoft would never compromise their branding. They're not THAT desperate yet, and their still in a stronger position than Facebook in terms of having money to throw around. > phone functionality swapped with a custom Skype UI (integrated with Facebook contacts) You'll never get…

> Microsoft would never compromise their branding. Seems that Sidekick and Kin are counter-examples to that statement.

In addition, with all the semi-frequent frenzied branding changes, Microsoft leadership seems to be acutely aware that they lack a well-regarded image with the consumer market. Perhaps they would decide against such a strategy, but "never" is a bit extreme.

As far as the carrier issue, let's just say XCom Global and the individual carriers all snub Facebook. Even without Microsoft, Facebook has more than enough cash on hand to directly buy out Sprint Nextel and/or its assets. A foothold in the US alone would be a strong enough starting position to make this feasible.

Re: Possible strategy for a so-called "Facebook Phone" that I came up with

#13

Post by ippisl »

Maybe there's an option to create a custom android rom by facebook. something based on cyanogenmod(which support 60 devices), that deeply integrates facebook.

Then push installations using independent installers ,for people who already got phones and new phone buyers ?

Re: Possible strategy for a so-called "Facebook Phone" that I came up with

#14

Post by buu700 »

olog-hai wrote: post #5

Says the Skype website: "Skype is not a replacement for your telephone and can't be used for emergency calling." It's also not possible to port an existing phone number to Skype.

Ah, good point. I'm guessing gaps in 3G coverage and/or the unnecessary extra layers of SkypeOut are the risk? In any case, I suppose my idea could be revised to include CDMA/GSM specifically for emergency calls (which would rely on roaming).

As far as porting, it would definitely be a nice feature, but I'm not sure would be necessary for a successful market entrance.

Re: Possible strategy for a so-called "Facebook Phone" that I came up with

#17

Post by swalsh »

I highly doubt Facebook wants to make their own phone... but if they were here's my take on it.

1.) They could benefit by adding new hardware. Imagine they remove the screen and opt for a google goggles like interface. If they own this channel, they become a real 100 billion dollar company.

2.) having closer access to users communication gives them more vectors to scrape users personal data...

Re: Possible strategy for a so-called "Facebook Phone" that I came up with

#18

Post by papaver »

I don't see the advantage. What market segment are they attacking? Technology wise it would be a step forward from the current form of telephony, the consumer on the other hand doesn't care, they just want a product that works in the end and which they can use to communicate with their friends and family.

Google has done wonders with android because they attacked a market segment that apple was ignoring, cheaper smart phones for people that don't necessarily care so much about apps.

With google's buyout of motorola, im just waiting for the 'free' phone. where sms and a phone line are free for users in exchange for reading/listening to ads. Data plan is free (with a limited amount of usage) in exchange for a permanent status bar that displays ads.

Re: Possible strategy for a so-called "Facebook Phone" that I came up with

#19

Post by Danieru »

ippisl wrote: post #13

Maybe there's an option to create a custom android rom by facebook. something based on cyanogenmod(which support 60 devices), that deeply integrates facebook. Then push installations using independent installers ,for people who already got phones and new phone buyers ?

So Facebook gets all of the support burden and none of the hardware money?

That is never going to happen. Nor should it.

Re: Possible strategy for a so-called "Facebook Phone" that I came up with

#20

Post by grecy »

papaver wrote: post #18

I don't see the advantage. What market segment are they attacking? Technology wise it would be a step forward from the current form of telephony, the consumer on the other hand doesn't care, they just want a product that works in the end and which they can use to communicate with their friends and family. Google has done wonders with android because they attacked a market segment that apple was ignoring, cheaper smar…

I imagine phone calls could be an order of magnitude cheaper...
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