Summary: a new 255 page report describing 5 new 'Use Cases', detailed descriptions / mini business cases for new, near term Telco 2.0 applications. The report also details 10 Case Studies from Telecoms and adjacent industries that illustrate key principles and early market progress. (May 2010, Executive Briefing Service and Telco 2.0 Transformation Stream).
|
This report is intended to help turn the theory of new 'Telco 2.0' style 'two-sided' telecoms business models into practice by showcasing detailed worked examples. It is for CxOs, strategists, implementers, and product managers, in both telcos and progressive vendor companies seeking to develop their business strategies and develop new 'two-sided' telecoms business models. The report includes advanced and detailed ‘Use Cases', including basic market sizing estimates and business case assumptions, for the following specific Telco 2.0 Opportunities:
|
 |
It also features the following case studies embodying key 'two-sided' business model learnings and early-stage market progress: Telenor, Engaging the Enterprise Voice 2.0 Market; M-PESA & Wizzit, making mobile payments work; Blackberry's fit with Telco 2.0 models; Blyk, mobile advertising from retail to platform play; Buongiorno, building customer engagement; Amazon, from Retailer to Platform Player; ESPN, making 'pay for content' work; Google, the two-sided business model master; QQ, China's Monster Facebook on a screen near you; and How will Twitter Make Money?
[NB This report is not included in full as part of the core Telco 2.0 Executive Briefing Subscription Service, although two of the five Use Cases and all of the Case Studies have been published for subscribers.]
|
This report is available to members of our Telco 2.0 Executive Briefing Service and Telco 2.0 Transformation stream. To request a copy please email or call +44 (0) 20 7247 5003. |
Introduction
The previous reports Telco 2.0 Market Study - "How do we make money in an increasingly IP-based world?" and The 2-Sided Telecoms Market Opportunity - "Sizing the new $125Bn platform services opportunity" outlined the theoretical opportunity and priorities for new business model innovation in telecoms.
Since these reports were written, many of our clients and contacts have asked us to give more detailed examples and case studies of business model innovation in practice in telecoms, and this report is the first consolidated Strategy Report containing such output. Some of this analysis is also available individually on this site to subscribers to the Telco 2.0 Executive Briefing Subscription Service, and there is now also, until September 2010, a database of 40 'Best Practice' Videos (available free online to registrants here).
This Strategy Report contains five new ‘use cases’, the goal of which are to bring new ‘two-sided’ telecoms business models to life. The ‘use cases’ describe the new application in detail, the current situation, problem solved, customer experience, and an outline business case for the opportunity. There’s more on the methodology and background to the project here and more on each 'Use Case' and what they mean for the industry below.
We've also included ten 'Case Studies' which we think give a good mix of examples of early stage implementation in telecoms, and more advanced applications in adjacent markets, to give innovators a comprehensive and detailed reference of current practices and key strategy lessons.
The five 'Use Cases' and ten 'Case Studies' are described in greater detail below.
We've recently published Mobile Advertising and Marketing: Operator and Market Growth Strategies 2010, in which one of key recommendations was for operators to exploit the opportunity to build search based mobile marketing using SMS.
Currently, local search solutions available on smartphones largely circumvent operators. And for users of more basic devices, there are very few local search solutions available. However, SMS remains buoyant and is an important marketing format which could provide an interface for a local search solution that would be available for all users. Moreover, operators have the opportunity to carve out a valuable role in the delivery of the service.
This Use Case provides a detailed problem statement, user experience, process overview, and outline business case for a new 'two-sided' mobile search proposition. (NB There's more detail on this Use Case here.)
Source: Telco 2.0
The Use Case focuses on providing immediate Local Mobile Search services that deliver relevant results to customers on the basis of their current location. The consumer proposition is a free local search SMS short-code. Sending a text containing search terms grants permission to enable the use of the Telco’s embedded location information. Responses are returned free to the user, paid for by the advertisers, and carrying paid results with greatest prominence (as per Google search). The aggregating agent for the advertising can be a partner directory service or search specialist. The Telco’s revenue is obtained either from wholesale SMS charges and/or revenue share and/or charging for a suite of enabling services.
This Use Case contains market sizing and business case assumptions.
Our new Broadband 2.0 Use Case shows a new way to ease the increasing data traffic on mobile networks and the associated cost surge and creates a new wholesale revenue opportunity for Fixed broadband service providers (BSPs). It is one of the concepts detailed in our recent Strategy Report New Mobile, Fixed and Wholesale Broadband Business Models - Best Practice Innovation, ‘Telco 2.0' Opportunities, Forecasts and Future Scenarios
An expensive way to solve the mobile data capacity crunch is to install ever more cell sites. A potentially cheaper and easier way is to relieve the backhaul and core networks by shuffling bulk Internet traffic off to the fixed broadband network and out to the public Internet at the earliest possible stage.
Mobile-to-Fixed Data Offload Schematic
Source: Telco 2.0
The Use Case describes two phases: ‘Offload 1.0’ as Mobile Operators use femtocells or WiFi on either their own sister-company's fixed broadband, or a third party's broadband without optimisation, and ‘Offload 2.0’, with Mobile operators dealing with fixed-line BSPs wholesale arms (not just their own "captive" arms). Offload 1.0 is a good start, but Offload 2.0 is needed to create the network effects to offload sufficient volumes, improve operational effectiveness and "groom" the traffic in a variety of ways.
Nearly 200 million people live outside of their countries of birth, 93% of whom on a voluntary or economic basis driving over $300 bn in worldwide, international remittances per annum. Yet many in this segment are poorly served by Banking Services.
The Digital Money use case looks at the huge success of m-banking/money transfer services in emerging markets, and asks how operators could extend this business into the unbanked segments of developed markets - a “reverse leapfrogging” strategy. The Use Case:
Source: Telco 2.0
Smart grid technology - adding rich controls to the electricity grid using modern telecoms - is emerging as a megatrend. Developed and fast-industrialising countries are pouring money into grid upgrades, driven by an increasing concern for energy efficiency and the climate.
Managing the grid better offers significant efficiency gains, and the possibility of integrating much greater percentages of variable renewable forms like wind or solar power into the mix. However, the electricity industry has been very keen to outsource its billing and measurement operations, leaving it short of the key assets it needs to build on. This may open up an opportunity for the telcos to be more than simply providers of bulk SMS/USSD messaging. Through this Use Case we explore which technologies and business models are best used and what is the best balance for each operator, region and nation in terms of sophistication vs. costs.
Opportunities for Operators in the Smart Grid Ecosystem
Source: Telco 2.0The Use Case examines the current situation, problems in practice, the characteristics of 'Smartgrids', Smartgrid architecture options, the benefits of open platform solutions, the role of 'Home Hubs', risks, and technologies.
‘Communications-Enabled Business Processes’ (CEBP) are a key application for voice and messaging APIs. This Use Case illustrates three new real world examples of integrating communications into end-user business applications using web services to access telco APIs.
In general, enterprise CEBP projects do not create new business processes or areas of business. Instead, they extend existing legacy applications making them more efficient and faster, and very often with higher overall quality. As a powerful addition, CEBP projects provide business metrics allowing managers to optimise processes in real time. From a technology perspective, CEBP is a blend between two normally disparate worlds: the real-time, arcane and difficult technology of the telephone and the thorny, legacy filled and customised enterprise software.
This Use Case describes three distinct CEBP implementations and opportunities:
The in-store feedback service uses phones and text messaging to collect comments and complaints from retail customers using any cell phone. The decision support application provides mobile and remote decision makers the information they require to make critical business decisions without having to be at their desk. The resource tracking opportunity shows how phones can be used to monitor and manage the use of enterprise resources quickly, easily and at scale.
There is more on these Use Cases, previously published as a stand-alone Telco 2.0 Executive Briefing, here.
Adjacent Market Case Studies:
|
To Access: This report is available to members of our Telco 2.0 Executive Briefing Service and Telco 2.0 Transformation stream. To request a copy please email or call +44 (0) 20 7247 5003. |
Telecoms Operators' and other Communications Service Providers':
Vendor audiences:
Regulators and other Government departments
Investors
Consultants & integrators
Introduction
Part 1: Telco 2.0 Use Cases:
Part 2: Telco 2.0 Case Studies
Part 3: Adjacent Market Case Studies
|
To buy: a Single User License is priced at £1,995 (+ VAT for UK buyers). To order, and for prices for multi-user / corporate wide licenses, please email or call +44 (0) 20 7247 5003. |
This report is part of a series of Strategy Reports with in-depth analysis of the application of 'Two-Sided' business models to telecoms markets:
Companion Strategy Reports: