Cellular and Wi-Fi Need to Get Along Better

[Commentary] Comcast’s announcement that it is triggering the MVNO (mobile virtual network operator) relationship with Verizon, and plans to test a “Wi-Fi First” wireless service over the next few months will once again shine a spotlight on the relationship between cellular and Wi-Fi. My view is that there are still some significant usability challenges that must be addressed before a “Wi-First” service, as I call it, is ready for prime time.

First, there continue to be issues related to how phones switch between “Wi-Fi mode” and “cellular mode.” Put simply, smartphones still often default to a Wi-Fi hotspot, even if the signal is weak or it is congested. The second major issue is that Wi-First services must be available on the majority of devices users already own. Today, services from MVNOs such as Republic, Scratch and Google only work on a handful of devices customized with purpose-built software for Wi-First. If Wi-First services aren’t available on the leading iOS and Android devices, they’ll never have broad appeal.

[Mark Lowenstein is the managing director of Mobile Ecosystem]