Mobile phone users ‘trapped in 2003’

The survey, from telecom application connectivity firm AppTrigger, examined the usage of applications and services by UK mobile phone owners.

The findings suggest that while improvements have been made to mobile phone services in the competitive UK market, operators are slow to push out new offerings.

According to the study, which queried 500 mobile phone users in the UK in January 2008 prior to the Mobile World Congress conference, the mobile marketing industry is suffering from a lack of new services adoption.

Nearly half (48 per cent) of users said that they have never received a sports, retail or entertainment promotion from their mobile operator.

Of the 52 per cent that have received promotions, 62 per cent said that it was as infrequent as ‘a few times a year’ or ‘almost never.’

“Mobile operators are missing a trick by not combining traditional services with new IP services to create new innovative services” said Patrick Fitzgerald, VP of Marketing for AppTrigger. “However, the lack of mobile marketing is a side effect of a greater illness. If operators were equipped with the appropriate tools and technologies to link promotions, via applications, into their networks quickly and push them out to market, they would be able to capitalise on this lost opportunity.”

AppTrigger believes that mobile phone operators are largely locked into proprietary application suites and hindered by complex connectivity issues.

The missed opportunity comes in the form of traditional IN-based applications such as pre-paid, voicemail and SMS.

Operators lack the application connectivity to integrate these existing applications with new services across their legacy and next generation networks to work seamlessly and cohesively together.

This limits their ability to blend best-of-breed, multi-vendor applications in a timely fashion to respond to users’ demands and push these services out more quickly.

The data also revealed that some mobile phone owners are using their phones for services beyond ‘just text and calls.’ Of those who use more advanced services, the following data emerged:

Within the youth market (16 – 24 year olds) 62 per cent said that they download music or games;

The ‘young careerist’ market (aged 25 – 34) said they are more likely to use their phones for PDA tools (diary, contacts and email) and checking websites (62 per cent and 69 per cent respectively);

 The mainstream age market (aged 35-44) make commercial transactions with their phones (39 per cent said they conduct transactions such as topping up their balance);

The mature age group (45 to 55 year olds) were most likely to user their phones for checking websites;

In addition, only 22 per cent of mobile phone owners in all age groups said they have used Location-Based Services (LBS)

“The numbers reinforce the message that youths are being bred to use the phone like a mobile device, rather than a stand-in computer as many technologists are trying to push. Strategies for revenue opportunities from the phone need to take this trend into account,” said Fitzgerald.

All of the applications behind these new services need to be more flexible so operators can chop and change applications quickly and effectively to grasp these lost market opportunities.

“The case for mobile marketing becomes even stronger when taken with the level of phone usage for browsing the Internet. If mobile users are more likely to use their phones to check websites than for Location-Based Services (LBS), providers should be tracking website usage to push out relevant, targeted promotions based on the items that users search. LBS offers great potential, but location alone will not provide crucial data about users’ habits whereas web usage is the key.

"The ability to bring innovative network services to market via new environments such as Web 2.0 will be the catalyst that enables monetisation of application mash-ups. Operators need to be positioned to reap the rewards of these opportunities.” concluded Fitzgerald.

For the full data visit www.apptrigger.com/UK-Mobile-Services-Study