Deutsche Telekom indefinitely delays Joyn launch date, admits to technical issues

​Deutsche Telekom (DT) is indefinitely delaying the commercial launch of its Joyn RCS service after admitting that implementing the technology is taking much longer than originally expected.
The company had initially confirmed Oct. 1, 2012, as a launch date for Joyn services, but this then slipped to December and has now been delayed further due to complex integration issues, according to Teltarif.de.

Incorporating the Joyn software into DT's handset portfolio is a lengthy process that requires thorough testing, DT spokesman Dirk Turning told Wirtschafts Woche. "Our goal is, of course, to move as quickly as possible to bring Joyn to market," he said.
The problems appear to be focused on the Joyn messenger service and its lack of stability, the German website reported.

While the aim is to launch Joyn on Android-based handsets, DT is worried about the current fragmentation of the Google smartphone platform and ensuring that its Joyn services will work with other German operators and those elsewhere.

Vodafone Germany launched its Joyn service in August at the IFA event in Berlin--albeit in beta format on the Android platform, but has given no indication when an iPhone version might become available. Telefónica's O2 Germany has said it is committed to launching Joyn in the future, while E-Plus has given no sign regarding its intent.

Separately, WhatsApp, a major over-the-top messaging and social messaging rival to Joyn, has been criticised for breaching privacy rules following a joint investigation by Dutch and Canadian regulators, according to a BBC report.

Investigators said concerns centred on the messaging app asking smartphone users to enable access to their address book once they had downloaded the WhatsApp software. The privacy issue arose when the app transferred users' address book details to the WhatsApp servers, and failed to delete those belonging to people who had not signed up to the service.
"This practice contravenes Dutch and Canadian privacy law, which holds that information may only be retained for so long as it is required for the fulfilment of an identified purpose," the regulators said, according to the BBC.

The Dutch Data Protection Authority told the BBC it could take punitive action if U.S.-based WhatsApp does not change its software.

Source: 

• http://www.fiercewireless.com/europe/story/deutsche-telekom-indefinitely-delays-joyn-launch-date-admits-technical-issu/2013-01-30
  

MetroPCS says joyn launch proceeding smoothly despite DT's troubles

MetroPCS said its deployment of Rich Communication Services under the GSMA's joyn brand is humming along just fine. The comments are notable considering the technical difficulties Deutsche Telekom is experiencing in Germany that have forced the carrier to indefinitely delay launching joyn there.

MetroPCS, the only U.S. carrier so far to have launched joyn, said all of its LTE handsets--including the Samsung Galaxy S III, Galaxy Admire 4G, ZTE Avid and LG Spirit--now support joyn via a downloadable client available in Google's Play storefront.
MetroPCS spokesman Drew Crowell told FierceWireless that the company's plans for joyn remain unchanged, and that the carrier hopes to sell phones with joyn built in by the middle of this year. "We are working with handset OEMs to build-in joyn as a fully integrated feature, without the need for a download," he said.

Deutsche Telekom said earlier this week is indefinitely delaying the commercial launch of joyn in Germany after admitting that implementing the technology is taking much longer than originally expected. Incorporating joyn software into DT's handset portfolio is a lengthy process that requires thorough testing, DT spokesman Dirk Turning told Wirtschafts Woche. "Our goal is, of course, to move as quickly as possible to bring joyn to market," he said.

MetroPCS first launched joyn in late October. "As with any new service or feature rollout, there were challenges that needed to be addressed but we are proud to have been the first LTE operator to successfully launch RCS v. 5.0," Crowell said.
Crowell declined to provide usage statistics on MetroPCS' joyn users. MetroPCS has said the technology will allow users with compatible handsets to:

• See when other users are available;
• Conduct threaded text conversations;
• Share content via one click from an address book;
• Share video, images and files while on a call;
• And conduct voice and video calls over Wi-Fi networks.

MetroPCS has said it launched joyn to enhance its customers' mobile experience and not necessarily to protect against losing messaging or data revenues--MetroPCS is not charging extra for the service. However, many European carriers have embraced joyn in order to stem losses to over-the-top messaging services like WhatsApp, Apple's iMessage and Facebook's Messenger.
Late last year in Spain Telefónica's Movistar, Orange Spain and Vodafone Spain jointly launched joyn service.
As operators rally around joyn, over-the-top providers continue to expand. For example, Facebook recently updated its Messenger app for iOS to support voice calling between Facebook users.

 

Source: 

• http://www.fiercewireless.com/story/metropcs-says-joyn-launch-proceeding-smoothly-despite-dts-troubles/2013-01-31 

RCS-e Joyn: Deployment World Map

The blogger issues a question that another engineers are thinking:

Where is Joyn really deployed and in what way can I benchmark approaches and business models ?

What is Joyn? Joyn is an end user communication tool with instant messaging, video calling, file transfer and fully integrated in the device and network subscription.

Current live network deployed Joyn (client application):

• US: metroPCS
• Spain: Movistar (Telefonica), Vodafone and Orange
• Germany: Vodafone and Deutsche Telekom (T-Mobile)
• Mexico: Telcel (America Móvil)
• South Korea: SK Telecom, KT and LG U+

Also, Zain(with mobile operations across eight markets in the Middle East and North Africa) is launching pilot Rich Communications Services (RCS) in its home market of Kuwait too.

Planned deployment at: AT&T, Bell Mobility, Bharti Airtel, KPN, KT, LGU+, Orascom Telecom, Rogers Communications, SFR, Telecom Italia, TeliaSonera, Telus and Verizon.

Also in the this matter, accreditation by GSMA is an ongoing process that can be reviewed at http://www.gsma.com/rcs/interoperability-testing/accreditation/. The metrics are defined but not all the client applications are accredited.

Promotional Video - Vodafone Joyn: http://www.youtube.com/joyn@vdf
Resources - GSMA Joyn: http://www.gsma.com/rcs/resources 

Last update@2013-03-11

Sources:

• http://www.fiercewireless.com/story/joyn-sms-version-20-will-it-help-carriers-stem-ott-tide/2012-03-29
• http://www.gsma.com/rcs/ 
• http://www.fiercewireless.com/europe/story/deutsche-telekom-indefinitely-delays-joyn-launch-date-admits-technical-issu/2013-01-30  
• http://www.telcel.com/apps/web/
• http://www.telegeography.com/products/commsupdate/articles/2013/03/07/zain-first-in-middle-east-to-join-joyn/