Vorsprung durch Apps – says T-Mobile Germany

September 4-9, 2009, in Berlin, Germany, very big consumer electronics trade show takes place – IFA 2009. It’s bigger than CES, so it’s not small. Both IFA and CeBIT are 2 major trade shows in Germany which always energize German companies to release something and T-Mobile Germany claims that it is releasing wholly new Android phone at IFA 2009… but more important and more interesting is what T-Mobile Germany says about Apps:

“Apps are growth driver for our industry in 2 dimensions. When I [T-Mobile] don’t have good apps, then customers don’t buy data tariffs. Only exclusive content that is relevant attracts customers. Most apps are made by others but we also have to have our own relevant apps.” says Christian Illek from Deutsche Telekom, the mother corporation that owns T-Mobile Germany (and T-Mobile USA, etc). And by “our own” he means for example that app for iPhone, which enables live broadcasts of all soccer games and is available for German owners of iPhone.

“Vorsprung durch Technik” means “‘Advancement through Technology” or “head start through technology” and is the main strapline and company ethos for the German car maker Audi (owned by Volkswagen that now also owns Porsche). It looks like German T-Mobile uses the motto “Vorsprung durch Apps” as it offers Android phones and has exclusivity for iPhone in German market.

Let it be lesson for all operators and carriers that nowadays features in mobile phones does not matter that much as apps available for these phones. Palm Pre for example has launched with tiny amount of apps and its sales are abysmal even though this phone has multi-touch.

We must admit that one operator per country exclusivity for iPhone is hurting end users as operators are less compelled to offer competitive prices and services. Users of AT&T in USA can confirm and the same is in several others countries where iPhone is exclusive to only one operator. However iPhone has shown how critically important apps are. And now it is funny to observe T-Mobile Germany, former pioneer in Windows Mobile phones, to focus on Google Android and Apple iPhone…

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