Synchronica’s acquisition of AxisMobile is completed, and now it’s offering a new product to mobile operators in emerging markets.
Synchronica announced Synchronica SimpleMail, a new consumer push e-mail (CPE) solution that brings mobile e-mail to almost 100% of handsets in use today. It’s based on technology acquired from former competitor AxisMobile.
Synchronica already has signed license agreements for the technology with two mobile operators in emerging markets and received an expansion order from a mobile operator in Russia/Commonwealth of Independent States for additional licenses.
Synchronica’s technology allows it to send e-mail to basic phones through a conversion to SMS or MMS. Although it may not produce the best user experience, it is a reasonable solution for people in emerging markets who don’t have a PC, can’t afford a smartphone and basically have no alternative, said CEO Carsten Brinkschulte.
Brinkschulte said his company can offer a “CrackBerry,” otherwise known as a BlackBerry, service for the mass market. “We’re not trying to displace BlackBerry … but we’ve got a good enough service for the casual user” who can’t afford a BlackBerry.
The solution also features the patented Optimizer transcoding gateway, which reduces the size of pictures and allows for attachments, such as Word, Excel and PowerPoint documents, to be displayed on feature phones that normally can’t support such functionality, the company said.
Synchronica currently is not targeting U.S. operators but sees bigger potential in emerging markets. Brinkschulte said he has seen how popular Internet cafes are with consumers in emerging markets who want Internet access, and he believes there’s a huge opportunity for mobile operators to replace the Internet cafes with mobile Internet and e-mail.
