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Mobile Telecommunications Market Report 2007
Key Note Publications Ltd, July 2007, Pages: 121
In the UK, the mobile telecommunications market continues to develop apace, both in terms of its consumer base — which now exceeds 70 million active subscriptions — and in terms of revenue. Although voice calls are experiencing less dramatic growth than previously, the contribution of voice calls to total revenue is still pre-eminent. Non-voice services, on the other hand, while still a small percentage of overall revenue in the sector, are growing both in terms of content provision and revenue gain.
Estimates that, in 2007, the total UK market for mobile telecommunications — which comprises voice services and non-voice services, such as texts and data services, covering both multimedia messaging service (MMS — picture messaging) and wireless application protocol (WAP —Internet) — will be worth £14.7bn, a rise of 5% on 2006.
Of course, revenue generation among the network providers is no longer as simple as direct mobile services. 2006/2007 has seen the industry extend its reach through moves into broadband services, fixed-line services and, most recently, television. At the end of 2006, for example, The Carphone Warehouse bought AOL UK's Internet access business in order to extend the scope of its provision. The biggest takeover of 2006 — that of Virgin Mobile by communications company NTL — has indeed set the pace for so-called multiplay services, in this case, mobile, fixed-line, broadband and television.2007 is the year when faster technology — high-speed downlink packet access (HSDPA) — facilitated greater moves into content provision for mobiles. A number of network operators, including Three, Vodafone and Orange, made deals with television companies, such as the BBC, to expand programme content. Similarly, social networking websites, such as MySpace and LiveJournal, became must-haves in terms of third-generation (3G) provision. Flat-rate data tariffs included in bundled service plans are fast becoming the norm. The first of these came in the second half of 2006 from Three, with the X-Series, which offered unlimited Internet access and downloads included in its monthly plan. This has been quickly followed in 2007 by Orange, T-Mobile and others.
Forecasts that revenue from non-voice services will increase proportionately to total revenue over the next 5 years (2008 to 2012), with market share growing from 21.2% in 2008 to 31.2% in 2012. Overall growth for mobile telephony is forecast to be steady and more moderate than at the beginning of the millennium. It is unclear what shape the industry will take in terms of consolidation and acquisitions — there is scope for more low-cost mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) and, in the longer term, the number of large network providers could also reduce. For the moment, however, the market is steady, underpinned by continual subscription growth and a healthy interest in mobile telephony from UK consumers.
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