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Vodafone goes ‘Blue’ to ride Facebook wave

September 6, 2011 by  
Filed under Latest Lingerie News

Offers handsets with free access to social network

Vodafone Essar launched its handset developed in collaboration with social networking site Facebook in India on Tuesday. ‘Vodafone Blue’ will be priced at Rs 4,950, and offer free Facebook access for a year, without a lock-in period.

Mr Kumar Ramanathan, Chief Marketing Officer, Vodafone Essar, said, “Web usage is driven by e-mail, search, social media and more, but we find that the usage is extremely polarised. The biggest trend that we see is the affinity for social media. The idea behind the launch is that if people are sticking to certain functionalities, can we make the experience better, and at affordable price points?”

Vodafone Blue will be sold across 75 to 80 cities and towns in India that account for 85 to 90 per cent of smart phone sales, explained Mr Ramanathan. During the launch phase, 30 cities will be targeted.

“Besides the Vodafone outlets, we have national partners in place for the distribution. We are closing deals with large-format outlets,” he added, clarifying that Vodafone would not seek to be a device manufacturer in the Indian context.

The Blue handset is being manufactured by Alcatel for Vodafone.

While there is a revenue arrangement in place with Facebook, details were not disclosed.

The handset launch will be backed by an integrated campaign led by a 130-second film, and understandably, social media marketing will play a role too. Vodafone is attempting a repeat of its successful ‘Blackberry Boys’ campaign, also created by Ogilvy.

Targeted at the youth, Blue will offer a better Facebook experience, claims Vodafone, as the handset has been built with Facebook at its core — in collaboration with the social networking major that claims 750 million users worldwide and over 30 million in India.

However, there are analysts who differ. Mr Anshul Gupta, Principal Analyst, Mobile Devices, Gartner India, said, “There is no denying that Facebook has huge traction. But with a large number of feature phones that allow Facebook access already available in the market, at lower price points, and similar data plans, I don’t think this will be a deal changer. Also, this is a 2.5G handset and there are 3G handsets available.”

The analyst also does not see Vodafone Blue becoming the second phone of the youth, for ‘Facebooking’.

Vodafone though, is looking to expand its base of 25 to 30 million data users (of a total of 140 million), and the ‘Facebook mobile’ is a step in that direction.

Mr Ramanathan believes India‘s data growth will come from 2G and 2.5G-enabled handsets.

He said, “In India, volumes in data will come from smaller transactions, millions of transactions. For both data and voice, we will have to provide ‘snack’ options from day one.”

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Chamber Tech Forum "Facebook for Business"

September 6, 2011 by  
Filed under Latest Lingerie News

Community Calendar More Events »

Want to BETTER understand Facebook Marketing?
The NEW Facebook business page has many new tools for you to take
advantage of! From lecture to application – don’t miss this one! Bring your laptop and get ready to GET SOCIAL! Learn how to set up your Facebook account and build a dedicated fan page that will help your brand get maximum coverage on Facebook.
Details:
There are more citizens of Facebook than citizens of the United States, but will Facebook really help grow your business? For many businesses the answer is yes, but how to achieve success may not be clear.
Who is the course for?
Anyone who wants to learn how to do Business Facebook marketing. Anyone that wants to increase lead generation.
How long is it?
1.5 hours
About this course
In this Facebook for Business seminar you’ll learn how to setup and maximize your business Facebook fan page, events and groups. You will learn how to add Facebook to the rest of your marketing strategies.
Leave the class knowing…
• The power of having a business page vs a personal page
• How to add FREE applications to your business page
• How do market B to C and B to B
• How share your page and start gaining NEW fans
• How to set up a business page – brand it and get attention
• Get the best practices on the do’s and don’t’s for social media marketing
•Learn how to virally market and generate awareness for your brand
• How and when to post

Presented by Chamber member, Kymberlee Kaye Raya – chief imagination officer for Big Shot Marketing. www.bigshotmarketing.com

Contact:
Gail Haller, executive Director, Park Ridge Chamber of Commerce, 847-828-3121, info@parkridgechamber.org

http://www.parkridgechamber.org

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