Innovation in Mobile: Operator Strategies and Successes

Emeka Obiodu
Senior Analyst, Telco Strategy
+44 20 7551 9047
emeka.obiodu@ovum.com

Agenda

Introduction

Carrier Innovation strategy: what does it mean?

About the scope of innovation
About what is needed for innovation
About the benefits of innovation
About how to go about innovation

Ovums Mobile Services Innovation Radar

US carriers
International carriers

Conclusion

Copyright Ovum. All rights reserved. Ovum is part of the Datamonitor Group.

WHAT DOES INNOVATION

MEAN TO WIRELESS
CARRIERS?

Four insights from Carrier Innovation strategy

Insight 1

The scope of innovation is broad

Insight 2

Innovation should leverage core competence

Insight 3

The benefits of innovation are varied

Insight 4

The supremacy of collaborative innovation

Copyright Ovum. All rights reserved. Ovum is part of the Datamonitor Group.

INSIGHT 1:
THE SCOPE OF
INNOVATION IS BROAD

Innovation as a Broad Spectrum Approach

Innovation in wireless carriers can happen in several places

Products
& Services
Marketing
Business
Models
Organizational
Design
Operations

Networks,
Technology,
Infrastructure

Copyright Ovum. All rights reserved. Ovum is part of the Datamonitor Group.

INSIGHT 2 :
INNOVATION SHOULD
LEVERAGE CORE
COMPETENCE

Views from the sages

vs

Copyright Ovum. All rights reserved. Ovum is part of the Datamonitor Group.

Innovation in Products & Services

Existing

Product
Development

Market
Development

Diversification

Existing

New

Markets

Market
Penetration

New

Its all about core competency. But should a carrier move beyond this?

Products

Copyright Ovum. All rights reserved. Ovum is part of the Datamonitor Group.

INSIGHT 3:
THE BENEFITS OF
INNOVATION ARE VARIED

Benefits of Innovation

11

Create new revenues

Improve margins

Nullify rivals competitive moves

Improve loyalty / Reduce churn

Defend market position

As an alternative to advertising

Improve customer lifetime value

Corporate social responsibility

Copyright Ovum. All rights reserved. Ovum is part of the Datamonitor Group.

Mass Market

Evidence from the Innovation Radar H1 2010

Nigeria: Starcomms
StarTrack location service

Norway: Telenors WiMP music service

Leadership Potential

Growth Potential
India: Reliance to offer cartoon comics

Niche

Malaysia: Maxis
mobile jukebox

Defense Potential

USA: Verizon Wireless

Backup Assistant

Global: Vodafones security

solution from F-Secure

Goodwill Potential
Italy: Telecom Italias
Line@Medica Diabete service

Me too

12

Unique

Copyright Ovum. All rights reserved. Ovum is part of the Datamonitor Group.

What the categories mean

Strategic benefit

Description

Leadership

Services that are unique in their domestic

market, and that have a strong possibility of
becoming mass market products.

66%

Services that are me too in their domestic

market, but that still have the potential to
become mass market services.

15%

Services that are unique in the market. However,

they are only suitable for a niche market
segment.

15%

Services that are me too in their domestic

market, and are aimed at a small, niche market.

4%

Potential

Growth
Potential

Branding
Potential
Defensive
Potential
13

% of H1 2010
service launches

Copyright Ovum. All rights reserved. Ovum is part of the Datamonitor Group.

INSIGHT 4:
THE SUPREMACY OF
COLLABORATIVE
INNOVATION

Collaborative, Open Innovation

Collaborate with every stakeholder within the ecosystem even those
outside Porters 5 forces

Customers

The forces
facing Carriers

Suppliers

Rivals

New
Entrants

Complementers
e.g App
developers
Substitutes

15

Copyright Ovum. All rights reserved. Ovum is part of the Datamonitor Group.

Examples from Ovums

Mobile Services
Innovation Radar

Examples from the Radar AT&T USA

Oct-09

Consumer

Personalisation

AT&T is to launch its UpperClass mobile application for colleges and universities
that extends the college experience to students mobile devices.

Nov-09

Jan-10

Consumer

Consumer

Location based

AT&T is to partner with Rave Mobile Safety, to provide location-based

services

safety services (Rave Guardian) to mobile subscribers at higher education

Mobile

institutions throughout the United States.

Safety

Mobile Voice

AT&T is to introduce noise suppression technology into its custom-specified

handsets from early 2010.

Mar-10

Consumer

Mobile Music

Rave

Audience

AT&T launched a new music service that combines all of the key mobile music
services into one AT&T application.

Mar-10

Jul-10

Enterprise

Enterprise

Application

AT&T has revamped its online Small Business Mobile Application Recommender

Store/Portal

Tool (SMART).

Mobile Money

AT&T has partnered with Apriva to deliver new payment solutions AprivaPayTM

Apriva

and AprivaPay Professional.

Aug-10

Consumer

Mobile TV/Video

AT&T has launched a U-Verse mobile app which gives U-verse subscribers the

Apple

ability to download and watch popular TV content on their iPhone.

Dec-10

Consumer

Mobile Voice

AT&T has launched a video relay service app for iPhone 4 which will enable deaf

Apple

and hard of hearing customers to make VRS calls.

Jan-11

Enterprise

Mobile Security

AT&T has partnered with McAfee to offer the McAfee Enterprise Mobility

McAfee

Management (McAfee EMM) software.

17

Copyright Ovum. All rights reserved. Ovum is part of the Datamonitor Group.

Examples from the Radar Verizon Wireless USA

18

Oct-09

Enterprise

Location based
services

Verizon Wireless announced at the CTIA that it is to offer onCare, an application

that, among other things, enables health managers track field workers.

Oct-09

Consumer

Location based
services

Verizon Wireless is to partner with Smarter Agent to offer an application that

enables customers to search for real estate information on their mobile phones.

Smarter
Agent

Mar-10

Consumer

Mobile Money

Verizon Wireless is to launch Danals BilltoMobile payment service, enabling

customers to charge online purchases of digital goods directly to their monthly
Verizon Wireless bills.

Danal

Mar-10

Enterprise

Mobile
Messaging

Apr-10

Enterprise

Location based
services

Jun-10

Enterprise

Mobile
Advertising

Jun-10

Both

Mobile Voice

Jun-10

Both

Personalisation

Jul-10

Consumer

Mobile Music

Verizon has partnered with mSpot to offer mSpot Radio.

mSpot

Oct-10

Enterprise

Services
Management

Verizon Wireless has unveiled a version of its mobile worker management

application, Field Force Manager app for Android devices.

Google

Nov-10

Enterprise

Services
Management

Verizon has partnered with XATA to offer the XATA Turnpike fleet management and
compliance solution.

XATA

Jan-11

Consumer

Mobile TV/Video

Verizon Wireless has unveiled plans to offer Sling Media's subscription service that
will give customers the ability to watch their home TV on new 4G devices.

Sling
Media

Mar-11

Enterprise

Mobile TV/Video

Verizon Wireless has partnered with Lextech Labs to enable users of Lextech Labs
iRa C3 product to view live and recorded video surveillance feeds on smartphones.

Lextech
Labs

Verizon Wireless has launched an entreprise messaging solution which enables

companies to send 450-character text messages to their workforce or customers.
Verizon is to offer TeleNav's business mobility products which allows organizations
field personnel to exchange data with the back-office using their smartphones.
Verizon Wireless will partner with Zoove to license StarStar codes for US retail
brands.

TeleNav
Zoove

Verizon has launched "Group Communication" that allows customers to assign a

calling list of up to 20 wireless or wireline phone numbers to a unique dialing
number.
Verizon has launched the Backup Assistant(SM), a wireless application that saves
and updates a copy of the phones address book to a secure website.

Copyright Ovum. All rights reserved. Ovum is part of the Datamonitor Group.

Examples from the Radar Other players

19

Sep-10

UAE

Etisalat

Etisalat has launched a service that enables customers to back up and protect their
personal data on their mobile devices.

Sep-10

Indonesia

Indosat

Indosat has launched Evolving Systems' dynamically allocated SIM solution.

Sep-10

Portugal

Vodafone

Sep-10

Global

Orange

Orange has launched HD voice services to UK businesses, becoming the first operator
to do so in the market.

Oct-10

Ghana

MTN

MTN Ghana has launched Comviva's Virtual SIM service, enabling customers without
phones to use other people's phones.

Comviva

Oct-10

Bangladesh

Banglalink

Banglalink has partnered with Comviva to launch an mWallet service.

Comviva

Oct-10

Qater

Vodafone

Vodafone has launched a Facebook reload service for its prepaid subscribers.

Facebook

Oct-10

Bulgaria

Globul

Globul has launched its WAZ'UP portal, offering clients access to e-mail, social
networks, chat and file storage and sharing via their mobile phones.

Oct-10

Palestine

Jawwal

Jawwal has partnered with Info2cell to launch Al Iman Messages, a new MMS
service that will allow subscribers to receive Islamic-themed multimedia messages.

Info2Cell

Oct-10

Fiji

Digicel

Digicel is to partner with the Water Authority to enable its Digicel Mobile Money
customers to pay their water bills via the service.

Water
Authority

Oct-10

United
Kingdom

O2

Oct-10

UAE

Etisalat

Oct-10

Kenya

Oct-10
Oct-10

Evolving
Systems

Vodafone Portugal has launched the Vodafone One Net, bringing together fixed,
mobile phone and internet services.

O2 has launched a a large-scale location-based mobile marketing service, enabling

brands to deliver relevant SMS and MMS to consumers in a more targeted way.

Starbucks &
L'Oreal

Etisalat and Alcatel Lucent have partnered to launch a permission-based mobile

advertising service in the UAE.

Alcatel Lucent

Safaricom

Safaricom has expanded its M-Pesa money transfer scheme to supermarkets

Supermarkets

Europe

Telefnica

Telefnica's Jajah has launched a Facebook app that enables users to make free voice
calls.

Facebook

Dominican
Republic

Claro

Claro Dominicana has launched a mobile email and synchronization service based on
Synchronica's platform.

Synchronica

Copyright Ovum. All rights reserved. Ovum is part of the Datamonitor Group.

Conclusion

Innovation is fundamental to the business of wireless carriers

There are many aspects of the carriers business where innovation

should happen

Carriers core competency is key to innovation

But it is not enough!

20

The benefits of innovation transcend generating new revenues

Carriers can not innovate alone. You either collaborate with others, or
you sink

The Innovation Radar shows that there is a healthy culture of

innovation among Carriers
Copyright Ovum. All rights reserved. Ovum is part of the Datamonitor Group.

Thank you!
Emeka Obiodu
Senior Analyst, Telco Strategy
+44 20 7551 9047
Emeka.obiodu@ovum.com