Skip to main content

How Walled Gardens Can Limit Mobile Growth

The message from U.S. mobile phone service subscribers to their network operators is clear -- stay on the same course and value-added service (VAS) adoption will be minimal.

Some 35 percent of respondents to an In-Stat consumer survey of primarily North American users still only use voice services from their mobile providers, reports In-Stat.

This presents a huge opportunity for the entire mobile service industry to get these consumers to partake of some mobile data and entertainment offerings, the high-tech market research firm says. That said, VAS growth tends to remain elusive.

"There is a potential dark cloud on the horizon for the cellular operators, however, as unlimited Internet access packages may disrupt today's enhanced service offerings, which are currently very tightly coupled to what a particular service provider wishes to offer," says Gerry Kaufhold, In-Stat analyst.

I believe that the mounting evidence that identifies closed "walled garden" business models as the primary growth inhibitor is undeniable. Granted, high-priced offerings have also significantly contributed to ensure that wireless VAS subscription is still an early-adopter phenomenon in the U.S. market.

In-Stat's market study found the following:

- Nearly 50 percent of respondents would use the Internet from an unlimited data package in place of other rich media services given the right pricing.

- Too many models of handsets confuse users and fragment the market for services.

- People up to 45 years of age will become surprise drivers for future growth of enhanced services, given the opportunity.

Popular posts from this blog

GenAI Can Supercharge Economic Recovery

The Economic Recovery Corps (ERC) is a new, collaborative initiative designed to accelerate recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic in communities and regions throughout the U.S. by connecting organizations with the talent and capacity needed to advance new ways of doing economic development. However, it's unknown if new technology will be a key component. For example, less than 25 percent of government organizations will have Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) enabled citizen-facing services by 2027, according to the latest worldwide market study by Gartner. Furthermore, fear of public failure and a lack of community trust in government use of the technology will slow adoption for external use by a nation's citizens. Government GenAI Market Development Like many organizations over the past 15 months, federal and regional governments have been exploring the opportunities and risks associated with the emergence of GenAI tools. Gartner’s annual global survey of over 2,400 CIO