At a time of transition in the telecoms landscape, as cloud and 4G services come to the fore, communications service providers (CSPs) are still struggling to deliver on pre-defined service level agreements (SLAs) according to MDS research.
The survey, conducted amongst 205 IT and telecoms decision-makers, found that 93% of respondents continue to experience problems with the SLAs they hold with CSPs.
While SLAs remain...
Smartphone and media tablet use in the workplace is now growing at an accelerated pace, but it isn't always clear how mobile network service providers will directly benefit from this trend. Recent global market research offers some new insights. Mobile phone network related service revenues from business users worldwide will grow to $340 billion by 2017, according to the latest market study by ABI Research. Their market assessment includes voice, messaging, handset data plans, mobile broadband, enterprise apps, and management services revenues. "Mobility suppliers need to pay attention to the enterprise market as revenues represent over...
As more mobile network service providers continue the ongoing decommissioning of 2G networks and start on the 3G networks, their subscribers are still considering the impact of new 4G monthly service fees. Compared to 3G data pricing, 4G is around 20% higher than legacy 3G for the equivalent data plan. But there are already signs 4G tariffs will succumb to the downward pull of competition sooner rather than later, according to the latest market study by ABI Research. "In South Korea, SK Telecom has cut its 4G pricing to remain competitive. Their
By Shiv Putcha, Principal Analyst, Emerging Markets
Besides Facebook, Google is the best example of a global Internet powerhouse that has essentially been blocked from entering the Chinese market in a fair and meaningful way. This dissonant trend is particularly noticeable in the case of Google due to the enormous success of its Android operating system in China.
With Google unable to drive the adoption of its popular services in China, Chinese Internet and over-the-top players have gained considerably at its...
OTT isn’t the enemy, but there’s still an element of competition for service providers
A new piece of research by Amdocs conducted by Coleman Parkes has revealed that most service providers view OTT players as potential partners rather than as a threat, although it may all be a piece of underhanded skulduggery.
The research revolved around 50 interviews conducted by global service providers, 35 interviews with OTT and internet players, and 15 with...
By Shagun Bali, Analyst, Telecom IT, Ovum
Telcos are operating in an increasingly saturated and competitive environment, where their services are regarded as commodities and their margins are lower than ever and shrinking. Telcos are being pressured to reduce operating costs, differentiate their services, enhance customer experience and generate new revenue streams – all at the same time.
The opportunity lies in harnessing their strategic asset – customer information – to generate new...
BlackBerry: Can it rebound?
Research in Motion still remains in a very precarious position, based on where it once was ─ at the top of the smartphone market.
The company’s new CEO Thorsten Heins has orchestrated considerable senior management changes, and the brand continues to downsize. It has stopped giving financial guidance to the street and has engaged with J.P. Morgan Securities LLC and RBC Capital Markets to look at all possibilities.
Just four years ago, BlackBerry was the #1 smart phone brand, and was widely adopted in...
Plain old telephone service, or POTS, is being touted as on its way out by quite a few sources. It’s being said that with the advent of VoIP services, cable and fiber network expansions and wireless communications innovations, POTS is dying a slow, but steady death.
But is that really the case? The reason people have landlines is largely the same: voice communication.
Certainly, in terms of data, the POTS is losing its allure and has been replaced largely by other modes. For instance, it is only in the...
By James Robinson, Associate Analyst, Regulation & Policy
In the past few months regulators from various jurisdictions have found their respective incumbent telcos to have breached national antitrust law and have imposed hefty penalties.
The preservation of fair competition and the protection of consumer welfare are two primary goals of most national regulatory authorities (NRAs) and recent activities have sought to achieve these objectives.
Effective competition can benefit consumers and industry alike...
In the week that Huawei and ZTE denies being a threat to US national security, is it fair to say that Huawei is being discriminated against by overseas regulatory bodies?
According to Huawei’s Australia chairman John Lord, there were elements of disappointment and obfuscation when the Australian government banned the Chinese vendor from their $40bn+ NBN (National Broadband Network) in March this year.
Lord informed an Australian parliamentary intelligence committee of his worry that this would set a...
