Auchan to launch mobile portal A-Mobile

Rating: Qui Qui Qui

Supermarket MVNO’s are hot(ish). More than that they are tasty and there is nothing better than buying a chocolate bar, red wine and mobile phone in one go. But is there a need for a WAP portal for a supermarket MVNO? Isn’t voice the killer that the MVNO’s are targeting?

Not quite. French MVNO Auchan has partnered with Mobivillage to create a WAP site. The plan is that the French supermarket will knock the socks off the dominant Tele2 competition with it’s A-Mobile WAP.

Auchan has 438.000 subscribers (year end 2006). This is 1.99% market share. There were 1.39 million MVNO subscribers in France in 2006 which represents 2.79% of the total mobile market. With stats like this perhaps supermarket MVNO’s do need data services.

What we think
On a more serious note – is a WAP site necessary? Mobile Search is where the mobile market is going and search engine with an index of groceries, special offers etc in store might be enough to make supermarket shoppers’ mobile and tech savvy. I keep saying federated mobile search is in – so come one people – wake up and smell the coffee. Start offering new hot competitive services not just mimicking existing offers because everyone else does.

Related News:

1. Auchan Telecom launches a post-paid offer in cooperation with Comarch
2. Italian operator strikes MVNO deal(s)
3. ASDA to launch MVNO in the UK with Vodafone
4. Le MVNO round-up
5. Is MVNO a dirty word? Pat McCarthy VP Telcordia