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Mobile Internet users to exceed 1.7 billion by 2013, but all change for business models…
According to a new analysis from juniper Research the number of subscribers using mobile Internet services will rise from 577mn currently to top 1.7bn by 2013. This growth will apparently be spurred by demand for the collaborative applications known collectively as Web 2.0 and greater 2.5/3G network penetration.
However, Juniper’s ‘Mobile Web 2.0: Leveraging Location, IM, Social Web & Search 2008-2013’ reckons that established mobile players face increasing competition from Web-based brands, and will have to adapt their commercial strategies to accommodate greater collaboration with other members of the value chain, if future revenue growth in the mobile Web 2.0 space is to be achieved.
Juniper believes the emergence of applications such as social networking, User Generated Content (UGC), Instant Messaging (IM), Location Based Services (LBS) and search calls for delivery of the mobile Internet as it was originally conceived – that is, as an open environment in which users are able to share, collaborate and exploit content/information without any one party controlling the value chain.
This marks a fundamental shift for the industry towards the D2C (direct-to-consumer) model and places growing pressure on mobile network operators (MNOs) and handset manufacturers in particular, to relinquish some of their control over the value chain, by opening up their networks/devices to third-parties.
“Major web players have already crossed the Rubicon and established themselves in the mobile domain, placing the onus on MNOs and other members of the value chain to form innovative relationships and grab a share of the new revenue streams being created,” judges Ian Chard, Juniper Research analyst and author of the report. “The mobile Web 2.0 market is still nascent and business models remain in a state of flux, so there is still time for players to establish fruitful partnerships that build on their strengths and are reciprocally beneficial. The window of opportunity, however, is closing.”
John Williamson
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