As embedded 3G and wireless-enabled consumer 
xchange sat down with Glenn Lurie, who was selected a little over a year ago to head up the connected devices opportunity for AT&T Inc., and got his take on these developments – from the iPad to the evolution of carrier business models to new forms of customer service.
What a difference a year makes. Describe this sector’s growth in the last 12 months.
Glenn Lurie, president of emerging devices, AT&T: If you take a step back and consider what was going on a year ago at [the Consumer Electronics Show in January 2009], the whole concept of embedded devices was still very new. A lot of people weren’t sure where the low-hanging fruit was, or which verticals would emerge first. The ecosystem was cloudy because no one knew who would emerge as a leader. There were a lot of moving pieces: 3G modules, people on the software side, device-makers and carriers. In 2009 we saw some of those players taking leadership positions. [AT&T] did, for one. It surprised some people, the level of the performance of this sector — we sold one million plus devices in the quarter. That has made the opportunity very tangible and real. This is clearly the next big growth opportunity in the wireless space.
How is the business model changing for the carrier as the device starts to own the customer relationship?
GL: The business models and how carriers play have matured very nicely in the year. Folks inside the ecosystem look to the carrier as the sun; the center of the ecosystem, making things happen. The carrier still controls the performance and the user experience.
For us to make this space successful it’s about enabling flexibility and customer choice. Amazon has done a phenomenal job, one of the best jobs, of making a device, [the Kindle e-reader,] that’s simple to use, and they’ve had great success. People know who the carrier is behind it, but I’m comfortable being kind of invisible in that kind of relationship. The key to this space is flexibility.
Is this a cultural shift for a carrier?
GL: I attended a conference on healthcare technology given by Qualcomm, and the first four presentations I saw showcased phenomenal new and innovative devices. And the question is, are carriers flexible enough to do this? AT&T is, because we understand that you have to go into most of these discussions with a clean sheet of paper. We have [digital] picture frames launching this quarter.
