Skip to main content

Mobile 3G Still Searching for Market Demand

After years of eagerly anticipating that video services would be the meaningful application that created demand for 3G, a new survey from In-Stat finds that existing and potential 3G mobile service customers are much more interested in high-quality mapping and navigation services.

However, 3G mobile service providers that want to capture that market will have to expand the availability of compatible handsets. "Expanding the number of Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) or Assisted-GPS (A-GPS) handsets from today's levels will be an important step for 3G carriers to provide the applications their customers really want," says David Chamberlain, In-Stat analyst. "Unfortunately, technology choices left over from the 1990s make this difficult but carriers and handset vendors are starting to provide an increasing flow of products that better meet the 3G customers' needs."

In addition, the In-Stat report "3G and Mobile Multimedia," based on a survey of over 1,000 mobile users, found the following:

- Current 3G users are very enthusiastic about the service, which is in marked contrast with other customers who have expressed dissatisfaction with premium applications.

- Customer awareness of 3G is not particularly strong, with over half the respondents indicating they don't know whether their carrier offers 3G.

- An unprecedented number of respondents -- nearly half—indicated that they would consider changing carriers in order to get 3G.

Popular posts from this blog

Why 2025 Will Redefine Mobile Connectivity

As international travel rebounds to pre-pandemic levels in 2025, the mobile communication roaming market is at an inflection point. Emerging technologies and changing customer preferences are challenging traditional wholesale roaming agreements between mobile network operators (MNOs). The global wholesale roaming market is projected to more than double, from $9 billion in 2024 to $20 billion by 2028. This surge will be fueled by the expanding deployment of 5G Standalone (SA) technology, which enables real-time roaming connections and activity monitoring. But beneath this headline figure lies a complex landscape of regional variations and technological mobile service disruptions. Global Mobile Roaming Market Development Western Europe dominates inbound roaming connections, largely thanks to its Roam Like at Home (RLAH) initiative, which eliminates roaming charges among member countries.  Meanwhile, the Indian Subcontinent is emerging as a growth hotspot. Between 2024 and 2029, inbou...