The company, which was established in Bonn, Germany in 1998 and is also based there, has been known as Bo-Mobile GmbH since 2005. It manages different web comparison portals providing independent consumer advice with the aim of creating better market transparency. In general the sector of price comparison tools has been challenged e.g. by a European Union working group report questioning the independence of such websites, while general benefits have been confirmed in the same report.
Contents
Company history, content and services
The history of the company begins in 1998 with the founding of the consumer portal handytarife.de. In the following years, Bo-Mobile GmbH expanded its offer and grew to include five additional web portals. All six websites compare prices and features of products and services with direct links to the original providers.
1998
1998 sees the launch of handytarife.de, an independent consumer portal focusing on mobile communication. It enables comparisons of rates in various areas, for example prepaid or international calls. A rate calculator has been available to users since 2004 and searches for suitable rates out of a total of almost 2,000 rates and options at present. The mobile rate app introduced in 2013 records usage behaviour automatically and generates individual rate recommendations. Regular mobile test reports and test videos on current mobile phone devices from all manufacturers are referenced by newspapers and specialist magazines.
2007
Based on the handytarife.de model and with the same scope, the sister site online-tarife.de has focussed on internet surfing rates since autumn 2007. All options from ISDN, DSL, Cable Internet access and UMTS through to LTE are compared. In addition, tablet computers are tested by in-house experts and the results are showcased in test reports and videos.
2007
The launch of smavel.com in 2007 offers general travel information. One of its main concerns is to present specialist travel providers, illuminating their main expertise and users are able to post ratings about those providers. While these assessments provide interesting reference points it can be observed that users tend to share negative experiences, so that the overall picture on the providers’ quality remains somewhat flawed.
2008
The Bo-Mobile GmbH service range was expanded through energietarife.com in 2008. This portal is also equipped with a comparison tool that is intended to provide information about energy prices, power suppliers, various energy sources and alternative, ecological energy. In keeping with the new mobility trend, electric cars and bikes are also listed and compared in respective databases, and some of them form the subject of independent test reports.
2009
Bo-Mobile GmbH acquires the domain finanzcheck.com in 2009 and transforms it into a portal on topics such as finance, insurance, investments, accounts and loans.
2010
The website vergleichen.de was launched in late 2010 uniting several topics of consumer interest under the same roof. In addition the site also compares offers in service areas such as real estate, job portals and dating agencies.
2014
In fall of 2014 Bo-Mobile launched forgetty, an online schedule book and appointment reminder especially created for groups of people that meet rather irregularly for their collaborative activities. This service is also available in English.
2015
At the beginning of 2015 the finanzcheck.com domain was sold. Its entire content however is now available on the newly launched Bo-Mobile website einfachefinanzen.de. The site's name can be translated into: "simple financial (management)".
Present and future
Some parts of the information and services offered on vergleichen.de are now available in the languages English, French and Turkish. They are intended to provide assistance to expats and migrants in particular who are beginning a new phase of their life in Germany and to point out necessary steps beyond the obligatory official processes. However, these subsites also mark the start of Bo-Mobile GmbH’s planned further expansion, which aims to appeal to customers in additional international markets.
Bo-Mobile awards
Within the scope of the consumer portals referred to, Bo-Mobile GmbH also hands out recognised awards and quality seals based on tests: