Who

 We  Are  
•  Puleen  Patel  
–  So/ware  Architect  &  Developer  
–  Android  Super-­‐user  
–  Long-­‐<me  loyal  Rogers  customer  
–  Tech  blogger  www.puleen.com  

•  Michael  Schmidt  
–  Gadget  Geek  &  Tech  Enthusiast  
–  Android  Super-­‐user  
–  Long-­‐<me  loyal  Rogers  customer  (15+  years)  
–  Canadian  Android  blogger  www.iwantmyonepointsix.com  

•  Don  Rayner  
–  Electronics  Technician,  Cer<fied  PC  Tech  &  Network  Admin  
–  Android  Super-­‐user  
–  NEW  and  returning  Rogers  customer  
–  Canadian  Android  blogger  www.  greatbigdog01.wordpress.com  
 Acknowledging  Rogers  
•  Took  the  leap  and  was  first  in  bringing  Android  to  the  Canadian  market  
before  any  of  the  compe<tors  
–  PlaSorm  was  new  and  unproven,  took  the  risk  
–  Step  ahead  of  Bell  and  Telus  
–  Innova<ve  by  introducing  a  new  plaSorm  
–  Offering  more  choice  to  consumers  
•  Responsive,  responsible,  accountable  
–  Offered  Dream  users  Magic  devices  
–  Took  appropriate  steps  quickly  to  provide  affected  customers  with  alterna<ves  
and  choices  
–  Not  leaving  customers  behind  
•  Listening  to  customers  
–  Engaging  with  customers  via  TwiYer  
–  Engaging  with  customers  through  several  Social  Media  channels  
–  Development  of  RedBoard  Blog  to  further  hear  from  customers;  Neither  of  the  
other  compe<tors  (Bell,  Telus)  have  same  capacity/capability  
What  is  Android  to  Rogers?  
 Community  Percep<on  of  
Rogers  Understanding  of  Android  
•  New  and  upcoming  plaSorm  
•  Get  the  foot  in  the  door;  didn’t  want  to  be  le/  behind  
•  Marketed  Android  as  bringing  “revolu<on”  to  Canada  
•  Jumping  on  the  bandwagon  by  being  first;  without  knowing  where  
the  wagon  is  headed  
•  Lack  of  understanding  of  Android  phones  as  mini  computer  vs.  
lumping  them  into  the  category  of  a  web  phone  
•  Increase  sales  and  customer  market  share  by  selling  a  “new  toy”  to  
customers  
•  Have  the  most  diverse  lineup  of  products  running  diverse  mobile  
plaSorms  
•  Updates  to  phones  were  neither  important  nor  needed  
•  Lack  of  understanding  of  the  type  of  customers  who  are  buying  
Android  phones  from  Rogers  
 What  Android  Is  To  Us  
•  Mini  computer;  All  encompassing  (Applica<ons,  GPS,  Wifi,  
Bluetooth  and  much  more…)  
–  Ability  to  customize,  personalize  and  tweak  it  as  needed  to  
meet  the  needs  of  the  user  
•  Android  is  like  an  iPhone  for  those  who  do  not  want  an  iPhone  
–  Built  on  an  open  plaSorm  (linux,  open  source)  
–  Customizable  
–  Personalizable  
–  Much  more  than  a  phone  geared  towards  facebook,  
twiYer,  myspace,  etc.  
 What  Android  Is  To  Us  
•  Open  plaSorm  for  applica<on  development  
–  Produc<vity  boost  for  users  
–  More  than  30,000  (paid  and  free  apps)  available  to  users  
–  Apps  like:  
•  Documents  To  Go  
•  Microso/  Exchange  
•  Google  Maps  
•  Gmail  with  push  email  
•  Google  Docs  
•  Google  Finance  
•  Photoshop  
•  Astrid  (To-­‐do  list)  
•  Thinking  Space  (mind  maps)  
•  Evernote  (notes  and  more)  
•  Wordpress  (blogging)  
•  Gaming  plaSorm  with  new  games  evolving  in  the  future  
 Rogers  &  Android...  The  Road  to  Here  
•  Rogers  has  engendered  ill-­‐will  towards  its  brand  with  poor  
understanding  and  handling  of  Android.  
–  HTC  Dream  &  Magic  launch  at  the  same  <me.  Consumers  believe  the  only  real  
difference  between  them  is  the  physical  keyboard,  and  are  led  to  believe  they  
will  receive  OS  updates  to  1.6  and  beyond.  
–  Android  1.6  debuts,  Rogers  customers  s<ll  wai<ng.  Canadian  Android  
community  blossoms.  Customers  begin  complaining  en-­‐masse  demanding  
Android  1.6.  
–  Rogers  Office  of  the  President,  CSRs,  and  tech  support  give  conflic<ng  
informa<on.  Some  say  there  will  be  no  1.6  update,  some  say  1.6  is  coming,  
some  say  1.6  is  already  available.  Rogers  OotP  confuses  Android  1.6  with  
Android  1.5.  Once  mistake  is  discovered,  customers  are  told  there  will  be  NO  
update  beyond  1.5.  
 Rogers  &  Android...  The  Road  to  Here  
•  Rogers  and  HTC  start  a  finger-­‐poin<ng  blame  game  for  the  
lack  of  an  update.  
–  Rogers  tells  customers  that  HTC  won’t  provide  the  update.  HTC  tells  customers  
that  Rogers  must  “request”  the  update.  Rogers  and  HTC  claim  that  it  was  a  
single  HTC  CSR  who  erroneously  told  customers  that  Rogers  must  “request”  
the  update.  
–  HTC  announces  on  their  web  site  that  they  have  no  plans  to  update  the  Rogers  
HTC  Magic  and  Dream  beyond  1.5,  and  that  they  feel  1.5  is  a  “stable  and  
reliable”  user  experience.  This  is  before  the  911  bug  is  “discovered”  by  Rogers  
&  HTC.  
–  Backlash  from  community  grows.  New  blogs  are  created  to  ensure  consumers  
know  the  truth  before  buying  these  phones.  Mary  PretoYo  engages  customers  
on  TwiYer  and  in  forums  to  find  out  “why  they  want  1.6”.  
 Rogers  &  Android...  The  Road  to  Here  
•  Rogers  comes  through  for  Magic  and  Dream  owners...  finally.  
–  A/er  con<nuous  hammering,  Rogers  applies  pressure  to  HTC,  and  HTC  
announces  that  the  Magic  will  be  updated  to  1.5  +  Sense  UI  immediately,  and  
Android  2.1  by  mid  year.  Dream  owners  to  get  nothing.  
–  Rogers  relents  and  offers  Dream  owners  the  opportunity  to  upgrade  from  the  
Dream  to  the  Magic.  Many  customers  accept  the  very  short  term  offer,  but  
with  reserva<ons  about  losing  the  physical  keyboard.  
–  Users  demand  to  know  why  the  Dream  won’t  be  updated.  Rogers  tells  
customers  that  HTC  says  the  memory  in  the  Dream  won’t  support  an  update.  
Customers  know  this  is  a  lie,  since  the  HTC  G1  in  the  US  (Dream  in  Canada)  has  
the  exact  same  amount  of  memory,  but  received  Android  1.6.  Rogers  refuses  
to  discuss,  claiming  that  it  is  a  “different  phone”,  which  is  not  true.  
 The  Rogers  911  Bug  
•  While  preparing  the  updates  for  the  Dream  and  Magic,  HTC  and  Rogers  suddenly  
seem  to  “discover”  the  911  bug,  leading  to  the  “Rogers  911  Bug  Fix  Fiasco”  
•  Rogers  warns    customers  via  text  message  and  in  forums  about  a  911  bug  in  Android.  
•  Rogers  announces  a  fix  is  available  as  a  part  of  the  promised  1.5  update  (with  Sense  UI  
for  Magic)  and  that  if  users  do  not  update  by  Jan  24,  they  will  lose  their  data  connec8on!  
•  Whoops!  The  update  doesn’t  work  with  Windows  7,  Mac  OS,  or  Linux.  Rogers  and  HTC  
have  to  find  a  work-­‐around.    
•  New  issues  arise  a/er  the  update,  including  loss  of  Bluetooth  func<onality,  and  voice-­‐
dialing.  Some  phones  crash  repeatedly  or  experience  Force  Close  errors.  Some  apps  
disappear  from  the  market.  
•  Power-­‐Users  discover  they  can  no  longer  root  their  phones  &  there  is  no  way  to  go  back.  
•  Rogers  announces  users  who  have  not  updated  must  also  turn  off  WiFi  or  risk  bug  crash.  
Start  pestering  users  with  text  messages  and  recorded  calls,  even  at  home!  
•  Rogers  refuses  to  answer  legi<mate  ques<ons  about  the  911  bug  being  fixed  by  Google  
and  HTC  in  September  of  2009,  and  one  user’s  claim  that  he  warned  a  Rogers  tech  about  
it  at  that  <me.  
 What  Android  Users  Want  
•  All  updates  that  phones  are  known  to  support  
–  G1  can  support  1.6  
–  Magic  can  support  2.1  
–  LG  Eve  /  Samsung  Galaxy  Spica  can  support  1.6  
–  Sony  Ericsson  will  “evolve”  to…  ?  
•  Control  over  their  phones  
–  Ability  to  root  the  phone  
–  Ability  to  install  apps  which  are  more  useful  to  users  
–  Portability  
–  Upgradability  
–  Defined  OS  upgrade  roadmap  
–  “My  Phone”  which  I  bought  so  I  can  do  what  I  want  with  it.  
 Recommenda<ons  for  the  Future  
•  Take  Android  seriously!  
–  Android  is  no  different  from  so/ware  releases  provided  by  Microso/  or  
Adobe.  
–  Evaluate  each  release  of  Android  from  Google,  not  HTC.  

•  Offer  both  Google  and  Rogers  branded  devices  

–  Google  branded  device  comes  with  everything  Google  makes  available  as  part  
of  their  release.  
–  Google  branded  devices  could  s<ll  come  pre-­‐installed  with  applica<ons  or  
bookmarks  pertaining  to  Rogers.  
–  Rogers  branded  device  are  those  customized  by  manufacturer  specifically  for  
Rogers  only.  
 Recommenda<ons  for  the  Future  
•  Establish  an  Android  User  Group  within  Rogers  to  do  the  
following:  
–  Evaluate  decisions  on  Google  Branded  phones  vs.  Rogers  Branded  device.  
–  Monitor  new  capabili<es  provided  by  Google  and/or  partners  which  customers  
require,  and  the  Android  pre-­‐requisites  for  these  capabili<es.  
–  Provide  exper<se  to  product  management  on  Android  plaSorm  updates  from  
Google  (what's  new  and  how  it  helps  customers).  
–  Evaluate  any  updates  coming  to  Android  from  Google  and  develop  a  roadmap  
for  devices  which  can  or  cannot  support  them.  
–  Work  with  manufacturers  of  devices  to  develop  an  OS  update  plan  ahead  of  
<me  make  sure  customers  can  get  reliable  informa<on  at  <me  of  purchase.  
–  Involve  external  Android  experts  (community)  to  evaluate  and  test  updates.  
–  Provide  material  to  Rogers  customers  with  regards  to  updated  list  of  fixes  and/
or  changes  released  for  a  specific  Android  device  and/or  engage  with  (new  or  
exis<ng)  customers  in  learning  what  they  would  like  to  see  in  terms  of  
capabili<es  for  Android  based  devices.  
 Recommenda<ons  for  the  Future  
•  Establish  an  internal  Android  applica<on  development  group:  
–  Develop,  configure,  and  install  any  Rogers-­‐related  apps  on  Rogers  devices.  
–  Primary  group  responsible  for  developing  apps  which  can  be  installed  on  the  
Google  branded  devices.  
–  Work  with  manufacturers  to  test  upgrades  (in  addi<on  to  the  tes<ng  done  by  
the  manufacturer)  to  ensure  that  there  are  no  unknown  bugs  and/or  issues  
before  releasing  it  to  the  general  public.  

•  Establish  partnership  with  external  Android  power  users:  

–  Gain  addi<onal  exper<se  from  the  outside.  Allow  for  ample  power-­‐user  tes<ng  
of  devices  and  iden<fying  issues  early  on,  before  making  the  decision  to  offer  
products  on  the  Rogers  roster.  
–  Unbiased  group  which  represents  power-­‐users  who  want  to  see  both  Rogers  
and  Android  succeed.  
–  Establish  “street  cred”  and  good  PR  for  Rogers  among  the  Canadian  Android  
Community.  
 How  We  Can  Help  Rogers  
•     We  are  the  power-­‐users  who  use  these  devices  to  do  more  than  what  an  
average  consumer  would  use  it  for.  
•     We  can  provide  exper<se  from  a  technologist,  applica<on  developer  and/
or  a  customer  point  of  view.  
•     We  are  willing  to  work  with  Rogers  to  test  out  devices  and  put  them  
through  rigourous  real-­‐life  tests  before  Rogers  decides  to  carry  the  
devices.  
•     We  can  be  the  experts  who  can  provide  an  unbiased  opinion  and  
exper<se  on  updates  from  Google  and/or  manufacturers  for  all  Android  
based  devices.  
•     We  want  to  see  Rogers  do  Android  right,  and  succeed!  
 In  Closing...  
•     Rogers  is  going  in  the  right  direc<on  by  adop<ng  a  great  open  plaSorm  
that  is  Android.  
•     Rogers  will  only  gain  more  and  more  recogni<on  once  they  successfully  
demonstrate  that  they  are  serious  about  Android.  
•     Rogers  will  stay  a  step  ahead  of  the  compe<<on.  
•     We  want  to  see  Rogers  achieve  the  above  three  things  successfully.  
•     We  are  the  power  users  who  will  not  give  up  on  Android  and  on  Rogers  as  
our  wireless  provider,  provided  Rogers  does  not  give  up  on  Android.  
•     Together  we  know  that  Rogers  can  make  a  difference  and  come  back  
stronger  than  ever.  
•     We  want  to  thank  you  for  giving  us  the  opportunity  to  be  heard  and  for  
taking  the  <me  to  hear  us.