Can Bluetooth ever be cool?
That is a question that must be troubling technology marketeers across the world, including the makers of headsets and other Bluetooth-enabled devices, and the organisation that manages Bluetooth technology – the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG).
Bluetooth has been around since 1998, and actual Bluetooth devices started appearing a couple of years later. The very first commercially available Bluetooth product was from Ericsson, as reported in Incisor in November 1999.
From that day forth, promoters of Bluetooth have hoped that there would be a global wave of enthusiasm for the technology from consumers. But it just hasn’t happened. Despite the fact that legislation in a number of countries forces us to use Bluetooth headsets if we want to talk on a cellphone in our cars, Bluetooth daily usage is apparently going down, not up. Research company Strategy Analytics says by as much as 40% in the USA over the last year.
Here at Incisor we think that a big part of the problem is that nobody, but nobody has managed to make wearing a Bluetooth headset cool. Instead, the words ‘Bluetooth’ and ‘naff’ are heard together on far too often a basis. Only taxicab drivers and people who wear leisure suits made from synthetic materials (ok, they are often the same people) seem to think it is OK to be seen walking around wearing a Bluetooth headset.
The web is loaded with anti-Bluetooth humour, including this. Bluetooth-mocking movies are even being used as a device by companies marketing products. Check this commercial out for Keystone Light Beer. Even the vendors of Bluetooth equipment are doing it – thanks, Philips, for this one.
Some claim to be working to try to make Bluetooth cool, and have been using the old chestnut of celebrity endorsement. Courtesy of Plantronics’ marketing machine, we learn that P Diddy, Eva Longoria and Brooke Shields apparently all use Plantronics headsets. Bluetooth headsets have even made their way into music videos – Motorola product placement is at work as we watch this one for Fergie’s Big girls don’t cry. This is one of the better ones – check out that car, that girl, that track, and the headset is OK too.
But it is not working! Or else, why are all of those iPod users still walking around with their tacky white plastic headsets? Why would we want to use wired headsets when there is a huge range of wireless headsets on the market now for similar money? Heck, its a problem when even the world's coolest company can't make Bluetooth cool!
And surely this must be holding back the more widespread deployment of Bluetooth technology in other consumer electronics devices?
With some justification, the Bluetooth SIG and big-name consumer electronics (CE) companies that are supporting Bluetooth will point to the fact that billions of Bluetooth chips have been shipped, and have been built into many products that are in the hands of consumers all over the world. That is true, but it doesn’t mean that these people are using Bluetooth, or that massive chip sales means that Bluetooth has become aspirational (like, dare we say it, an iPod) or, to use the word again, cool.
So, what is the problem, and is it too late? Can Bluetooth regain the momentum it had in the early years, when people actually criticised the Bluetooth trailblazers for creating too much publicity and too much pent-up demand and hype (‘bet they’d like some of that back now!)? What would it take?
We have theories, but we want to hear from the big wide world. This blog will be promoted via all of Incisor’s channels, and that includes Twitter, Facebook and business networking sites such as LinkedIn.
And we will take it a stage further. On the 26th of September Incisor is staging a public event called Bite-Back (Bluetooth/Incisor – Bite-Back – geddit?) at a venue in the UK where there will be live music and – the main point – lots of young people. We will have the IncisorTV cameras there, a bunch of Bluetooth products and we will interview people and ask them for their views – it could be a bit painful for the Bluetooth faithful, but who knows, something really good could come.
We will make a short movie from the event and this will be promoted in the next issue of Incisor, as will a follow-up feature that will report some of the views that we hear.
It should be exciting. And maybe we will even learn what it will take to make Bluetooth cool.
posted by Vince Holton at
16:26
21 Comments:
Bluetooth can never be cool, which is why I started this site to call out all those who think it's necessary to wear their bluetooth earpiece in public regardless of whether they're on a call or not.
I was going to respond to your blog to contradict you but I fear you're right. But does a technology have to be cool for it's deployment to become increasingly pervasive? "cool" probably only applies to certain (youth oriented) applications like music - not geeky or business oriented apps. But I don't know why it hasn't ticked that box.
Maybe there just hasn't been the right sort of celebrity endorsement; Dog the Bounty Hunter is not going to inspire your typical 20 something.
The Keystone beer advertisement is interesting in that it's not the Bluetooth technology user we're encouraged to laugh at; in fact, we're clearly supposed to feel some afinity for the female who has inadvertently attracted the attention of (a perfectly normal and not at all technology encumbered) male.
Bluetooth is fantastic. But not really much more exciting than an invisible wire.
I think Anonymous said it best, in all honesty Bluetooth is as exciting as an invisible wire.
What i think needs to be answered and more clearly defined is that what are the business cases for Bluetooth that appeal to the CE market, and ones that they are willing to pay for. I live in Japan and headsets aren't popular at all. Headphones are but are consumer willing to pay the extra $50 for a wireless headset.
Being an advocate of NFC, I think also the complication of setting up Bluetooth pairings has been a hinderance, couple it with NFC for simple pairing and it makes it more attractive, but the question still remains, are people willing to pay for this extra functionality.
So to compare to iPods, the iPod created a simple and intuitive device that captured an emerging market. Headphones and headsets are not an emerging market.
To answer the initial question of how to make Bluetooth cool... find a good business case that caters to a wide demographic. If I could tell you what this was, I wouldn't be writing this, I would be siting on my yauht in Micronesia somewhere.
Good luck with the event in UK.
Interesting comments, people, and not looking great for Bluetooth's cool factor.
Anonymous - you don't think business (I think that means older) people like 'cool'? I'm not sure I agree with that. I'm not 'down there wiv da kids' but I still like to think I know what cool is and aspire to owning gadgets, appliances, cars etc that are stylish, clever and God knows, perhaps even sexy.
The commments from Peter, who lives in Japan, are also very interesting. It has always been fascinating to me that Bluetooth has had so little impact there. I believe that Japanese people are very reserved, but I have also spent a lot of time in Karaoke bars with Japanese businessmen, so I'm not sure about that!
Keep the comments coming though - this one has a while to run.
Re headsets in Japan - I think this has a lot to do with culture. Japanese cellphone users exhibit a unique and quite specific persona that is the polar opposite of those in the west. Whilst it seems obligatory for some western users to converse at a volume that almost makes the telephone a redundant element in the communication, Japanese users are extremely reserved. I suspect that there is a connection between this reserve and the popularity of wireless headsets in Japan.
Pairing is still not as easy as it could be. But (IMHO) it's not difficult enough to stop consumers from buying a cool product.
So what might be a cool product? Well the Motorola S9 stereo headphones undoubtedly have plenty of user appeal - they work well (under most user conditions), they look pretty slick, they're affordable and they facilitate portable music which Apple has already proved has universal consumer pull. They're also quite easy to pair. So I revert to my earlier comment - I really can't see a reason why they haven't ticked the cool box.
When I said "I suspect that there is a connection between this reserve and the popularity of wireless headsets in Japan." I did of course intend this to mean "level of popularity". Which as Vince points out, is low in Japan.
IMHO Bluetooth it's not about 'Bluetooth' being cool, but the SIG et al ensuring they are sliding into bed with manufacturers promoting the products that people already use and the one's they desire, in their personal world (whatever that may be) and then spending their marketing dollars on making those as desirable as possible.
I have always been a Bluetooth fan, but I gave up with the headsets for handsfree speach over a year ago having spent hundreds of pounds on numerous devices whose battery life didn't match my phone's and which, for some reason always died. (I still have them all in one, sad, box). So after many such occurrences and repeatedly having to fall back on my inclusive wired headset to continue handsfree, I just decided that was the way to go. £5 to replace, should the unlikely happen and it stop working or get broken and no re-charge necessary. The noise cancelling benefits of the better Bluetooth products were outweighed by a long chalk.
Then there's aspect the aspect of 'wearing' a Bluetooth product. It's great if you want to look like a not-so-secret secret agent, security man or even sci-fi character, but most people don't want to look like that, (or at least, not outside their own homes), and most girls and women I know have no desire to replicate Tomb Raider's Lara Croft in any other form than the programmers (game) and GOD (Angelina), gave her.
Yes our generation (I'm almost as old as you Vince), aspire to cool gadgets, etc, but most people couldn't give a rats a*$# what the underlying technology is; they want cool that works without having to know how.
As to the point about why iPod/touch/phone users have this sexy tool and still use wired headphones, that's easy; they made the cables and phones white, the reverse of everyone else and then spent a load on marketing to make white wires look almost like 'THE' jewellery to be seen in.
Good points, well made. Thanks.
Maybe we can get some comments from the SIG?
What are the details of the planned event and how do you get to participate in it?
The event will be at Bar One10 in Godalming in Surrey on Saturday the 26th of September.
Live music, good F&B and IncisorTV talking to people about their Bluetooth experiences.
Anyone planning to come along, let me know and I'll provide access details.
Vince
I'm with Anon too - it's as cool as an invisible wire. At that, it works well.
Anything more complex starts to involve various secret genuflections, dancing widdershins around the room on one leg and hoping that the moon is in the seventh whatever-it-was.
It's just not easy or transparent to use apart from the headset stuff. And that's not cool at all.
What's more, some things I've never got working, and I've been involved with computers and technology for 25 years. What hope does Joe Public have?
Hey Vincent - Sean from Rococo here - interesting article.
Check these out from Jabra - these are most definitely cool!! I bought a pair yesterday and I'm enthused with them (for wireless music, and have proved excellent on calls .....)
http://www.jabra.co.uk/Sites/Jabra/uk-uk/Headsets/Pages/JabraHALO.aspx
On Japan: yes - headsets (wired or wireless) have never been popular for phones there. That's cultural, not technological or down to lack of cool though. Japan is about to launch quite a few Bluetooth-based phones though (way more than recent years) and I think we'll se that tech savvy society embrace wireless gaming and a variety of healthcare scenarios which Bluetooth will underpin.
Anyway - get some of those Jabra headsets for your even - the "young folk" will love them :-)
As for "cool" factor: aside from headsets, I think we'll genuinely see some cool products over the next 12 months - from jackets, to jewelry, to sports-oriented tags and watches that will really drive Bluetooth onwards.
Cheers, Sean
Bluetooth can *never* be cool because it's a wire-replacement technology. If the success of the Internet relied upon IP/TCP being considered "cool", you wouldn't have this blog. What is "cool" are the new capabilities enabled by the technology, seldom the technology itself (WiFi being an arguable counterexample, but only because of the intense vacuum it stumbled into).
I agree with Mike that it is not particularly required to be cool in order to be successful. But it is somewhat concerning that use is dropping and it is very concerning that so many people have identified material shortcomings that are not being pursued by the technical committees. Here are a few stray thoughts for you.
1) It is difficult to justify an image promotion for BT if you are a phone company. Maybe BT should consider image ads of their own.
2) To be cool, it is useful to be less nerdy and conspicuously annoying. Why must people speak so loudly. If users were less annoying, it could only help.
3) To raise use numbers, improve ease of use. This would seem to be imminently addressable. I agree with the use of NFC to address.
4) To increase use, maybe BT should consider a lobbying effort to legislate hands free uses in cars. Good for the country and for the technology.
5) Anon had something. You are a "wire", not an end product. Cool is likely the wrong objective. "Used" seems like a better one. Invisible may be an alternative. Think flesh colored.
6) Ever read "The Tipping Point"? Maybe some targeted placement with influencers in the under 18 group would be a good idea. Start a trend, don't bemoan the absence.
Vince,
The way that I read the comments here, you've tapped into a body of disquiet.
1) Can't get it paired even with 25 yrs technical background.
2) Loud talking interupts.
3) Battery life doesn't match the phone.
I'll throw out a thought for you to consider. These are problems that the sector should be addressing.
What if you were to collect input about strengths and weaknesses from this blog with a more directed question and at your public event. The ones that recur could be cleaned up and investigated for articles. Try to get the SIG to comment about how they might go about correcting problems that are being raised.
While I think there is a fine line, I think you are in a position to be the public advocate for improvement of the technology and the market perception. It doesn't have to be confrontational.
I forgot to add my website address
http://bluetoothdouchebag.com
Great set of comments - thanks, everyone. I will be trying to act upon some of the suggestions that have been made.
I want to clarify one thing: in the offline discussions on this topic that I have been having with a few people in the industry, I have sensed that I've created a situation whereby it has been deduced that MY opinion is that Bluetooth is un-cool, or is in a bad place. This is categorically not the case.
I am merely acting as a repeater for vibes that have been felt. On the contrary, I am a fan, and so I am frustrated that Bluetooth hasn’t managed to reach the tip-over point at the top of the climb to ubiquity, and is not now careering down the other side on a wave of popularity.
The cool factor is an important element, and I'm pointing out that it is an element that is currently missing.
I still feel that Bluetooth could be cool, but it would need either a super-human effort from one very big company with boundless resources, or the sort of co-ordinated effort that was seen in the first few years, when influential people in the original five founding companies of the Bluetooth SIG, then the larger promoter group, all pulled together to build awareness for a technology that they were excited about.
This spirit of meritocracy continued for some time, and was embraced as the SIG grew from hundreds into thousands and then tens of thousands of companies. I’m not embedded in the internal goings on of the SIG, but it doesn’t feel as if this level of co-operation still exists – maybe the embers went cold when the SIG marketing committee was disbanded? Maybe it would be impossible today to manage a multi-lateral, pro-Bluetooth marketing push, but it feels defeatist to just cave in and accept it.
So, if my activities are seen as negative, including this recent blog, that's not the intention. Stupidly, having worked on the periphery of the Bluetooth industry for more than 10 years, I have a personal interest, perhaps verging on a passion, in seeing Bluetooth succeed. What I hope, I suppose, is that some interest may be generated, either at SIG level or at member level, to do something about addressing one aspect that could substantially alter Bluetooth’s fortunes.
So, for the time being, I will continue to prod the tiger with a stick. And I am very much pro-Bluetooth, and the other wireless techs, and open forum, free debate.
Amen.
(BTW - this sermon isn't intended to close this blog down - it will be promoted through September and until the Bite-Back event at the end of the month)
Just reading through all these comments, another point that stands out is that handsfree headsets are NOT cool.
Bluetooth needs to demonstrate a better use case to make a cool. Headphones are cool (I don't know about the Jabra sets) but the charge factor on a set is a problem.
I like the idea of jackets and jewellery with bluetooth but I can't see the use case. If anyone has ideas, would like to hear/read them.
Vince, I can't believe people think you don't support Bluetooth. I think you should be named Vince "Bluetooth" Holton. Keep up the great work.
We are getting close now to the Bite-back event, which takes place on Saturday the 26th Sept, and at which the IncisorTV cameras will ask real consumers the 'Can Bluetooth be cool?' question. Bite-back is a live music event that Incisor is staging at Bar One10 in Godalming, Surrey (Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref=home#/oneten?ref=nf). Jabra, the Tier 1 Bluetooth headset company is supporting the event, and we will be staging a prize-draw for three of the company's top of the range, noise-cancelling headsets. All comers are welcome!
This is an interesting experiment as the event is being promoted purely by social media - Twitter, Facebook etc, and we will see how this works as we cross over between B2B and B2C marketing.
The resulting movie will be shown at http://www.incisor.tv at the end of the month.
I believe its the potential applications for Bluetooth that will make it not only Cool, but an essential accessory.
I am specifically talking about Proximity Applications and the inherent identification and positioning capabilities that comes with any Bluetooth device.
What will make Bluetooth Cool is ongoing convergence of Bluetooth with Web based applications like Mobile Content Delivery and Mobile Social Networking. Be it Audio or Video Streaming direct to Mobile Phones or sharing User Generated Content for Social Networking, or applications like Proximity Radio, Targeted Content Delivery, Proximity Dating, Peer to Peer, etc.
What has prevented these applications for becoming reality has always been the need for supporting Bluetooth infrastructure and until now, there have been no viable business models to support these potential applications for Bluetooth.
At HCV Proximity Solutions (www.hcv.com.au) we have solved the infrastructure problem with our Plug'n'Go concept by adopting the Marvell Sheeva Plug as our affordable "Green" computer platform (less than 5 watts) together with open source software and open source hardware combined with a totally wireless deployment.
Now we can start developing all those Cool Applications for Bluetooth with viable business models that deliver value added services by subscription for example.
There is no limit to Bluetooth, we are only just beginning to understand its capabilities and applications in the convergence of Web, Mobile Networks, Content Delivery, Advertising and Social Networking.
The first Bluetooth Bite-Back event has now taken place, and boy, did it go well! Talking to the mostly young people at Bar One10, there were some real revelations about Bluetooth usage. If you don't talk to real consumers, you don't know the real answers .... I'm not giving away the secrets here (although some DO consider Bluetooth cool!), as the movie is now in edit and will be made public within a few days. The great news is that the Bluetooth SIG wants us to stage another Bite-Back event in Seattle, and we're now planning that one too! Incisor's Bite-Back event programme is up and running!
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