Joe Fennell, COO Of XCom Global (interview)

Joe Fennell is the Chief Operating Officer at XCom Global. He has over 20 years business management and operations experience, specializing in the wireless communications industry serving in senior-level positions at Novatel Wireless and Intel Corporation. Droid Report recently interviewed Joe about his current role as COO and discussed industry insights.

Joe Fennell, COO of XCom Global

Droid Report: Hello Joe, could you tell us more about your current role as COO of XCom Global and your initiatives for 2014?

Joe Fennell: XCom Global Inc. is a U.S. subsidiary of a Japanese company that has been in the forefront of providing travelers with innovative wireless communications services since 1995. As Chief Operating Officer at XCom Global, I oversee all of XCom Global’s U.S. operations.  In 2014, our key initiatives are to expand our markets, provide 24/7 support for travellers, upgrade our service speeds to 4G LTE in countries where available, and expand our coverage countries.

Droid Report: Could you share some insight on how you see XCom Global changing the wireless communications industry?

Joe Fennell: We are a global MVNO offering a Global Mobile Hotspot service, with a low cost, unlimited data plan for travellers around the world.  We keep our customers connected, allowing them to continue to use their own devices and consume their Daily Digital Footprint - that is: their daily consumption of data- whether it is at home in the morning getting weather updates, stock quotes, and reading the news, or making calls and accessing their email and corporate databases during the day, and using their GPS and the web to schedule reservations to go out in the evening. We don’t make our customers count megabytes, or use different loaner devices with SIMs, we just allow them to connect and continue about their normal routine. We think this convenience is a valuable solution for our customers, and we see continued growth in multiple markets for our service.

Droid Report: What is your personal insight on the state of connectivity worldwide and its cost concerns?

Joe Fennell: I think roaming costs are outrageous, and I have bills to prove it! We have been leading the charge to lower data costs for international travellers for almost two decades now, and while we are excited about the high speed (3G & 4G) connectivity options available today we still see issues with frequency fragmentation and high roaming costs. 3G and 4G HSPA+ rollouts sought to harmonize frequencies around the globe, allowing for seamless international roaming. 4GLTE was originally planned to further this harmonization goal, however, countries and carriers deployed different frequencies, which has led to a fragmentation of frequencies, and thus kept costs high. We don’t expect relief any time soon and therefore we will continue to be a valuable alternative for international travellers.

Droid Report: How do you see organizations further evolving in the future with wireless communications and mobile?

Joe Fennell:  There is no question that organizations are adopting wireless and mobile communications at a rapid rate, and every organization needs to control their mobile devices, whether they are provided by the company or part of a BYOD program. As Mobile Device Management (MDM) has become a hot topic, XCom Global Mobile Hotspots help MDM initiatives by allowing 10 devices to connect over a secure Wi-Fi (WPA2) connection, using VPN pass-thru (IPSec), and enable mobility over a 3G/4G cellular signal. We do this for a flat daily rate, with no usage or roaming fees, so customers can save money, stay connected and be productive. We expect that more users will want services like ours in the future, as wireless devices and applications become more robust, and users expect to stay connected to be productive and efficient, and consume their daily digital footprint of data.

Droid Report: Is there anything else you feel Android users and the Android market should know?

Joe Fennell: At XCom Global it is our mission to keep consumers need to be able to travel the world and stay connected – to be productive, to feel secure, and to live life online as they have come to know it.  To accomplish that, we provide secure, user-friendly Mobile Hotspots that use the latest technology to connect at the highest possible speeds, all at a reasonable daily price.

Headquartered in San Diego, California, XCom Global, Inc. is the U.S.-based subsidiary of XCom Global Co., Ltd. (Formerly Inter Communications Co., Ltd.) in Tokyo, Japan that has been at the forefront of providing travelers with innovative wireless communications services since 1995. XCom Global specializes in providing low-cost wireless Internet access rental services to business and leisure travelers, and is an established leader among international 3G/4G broadband companies worldwide.

We would like to thank Joe Fennell for taking the time for this discussion and XCom Global.