Frost & Sullivan: Emerging Opportunities in Global Mobile Messaging Infrastructure Markets

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. June 29 /PRNewswire/ -- Capacity enhancements and ongoing maintenance have represented the two largest areas of opportunity for messaging platform vendors. However, strong traffic growth could still translate into lower yearly revenues for messaging vendors. Messaging volumes continue to increase at a rapid pace, enlarging the scope for messaging platform vendors to provide additional capacity for mobile operators to manage short message service (SMS).

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SMS and voice are the top two services used on any cellular network, and mobile operators globally are working hard to ensure that the messaging experience is seamlessly carried over the high-speed 4G networks currently being deployed. Various estimates indicate that total SMS will exceed 7 trillion messages globally by 2015.

New analysis from Frost & Sullivan (http://www.wireless.frost.com), Global SMS Infrastructure Markets, finds that the market for legacy messaging infrastructure components earned revenues of $1.39 billion in 2009 and estimates this to decrease on a yearly basis hereafter.

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"Considering the fact that each message entity could traverse multiple networks and should be considered in network capacity planning, the total opportunity just for capacity upgrades looks attractive," says Frost & Sullivan Industry Analyst Vikrant Gandhi. "Additionally, helping mobile operators gradually migrate SMS from legacy SS7-based platforms to all-IP environments will also be an important endeavor for mobile messaging vendors."

Messaging vendors lend support for mobile operators, helping them leverage the core messaging components deployed in the networks for developing and offering new services. For example, converged web inbox, IMS-based rich messaging services, social networking, and others will be increasingly deployed by mobile operators globally.

The biggest challenge is to create enough value in any new premium messaging service offered to ensure sufficient penetration among the subscriber base.  P2P messaging revenues are to some extent stagnating. A2P (or P2A) messaging could offset some of these impediments to a certain limit, beyond which the industry participants have to work collaboratively to ensure that enough value is created to be able to command a premium over and above the existing fees paid by the subscriber.

All-IP networks, which are expected to be used commercially worldwide, present some unique possibilities. Factors such as availability of newer, more capable devices, proper handling of roaming scenarios, uniform adoption of industry standards (i.e., no fragmentation) and others should all work well to ensure growth.

Currently, participants in the global SMS infrastructure markets are highly focused on new service creation. Providing service creation frameworks that allow mobile operators to deploy new messaging-based services is expected to emerge as the prime opportunity for mobile messaging vendors. Additionally, the shift to packet core networks is inevitable, and it could gradually lead to significant changes in existing messaging platforms.

The subscriber experience has to be paramount; it cannot be disturbed or compromised. Subscribers cannot be forced to use a different user interface or messaging process for new, upcoming messaging services. In other words, this may be a clear case in which if something is 'not broken,' it should not be 'fixed.'

"The messaging platform space is already extremely competitive," warns Gandhi. "Vendors not focused on new product innovation in line with the network and device evolutions could run the risk of going out of business in the next few years."

Global SMS Infrastructure Markets is part of the Mobile & Wireless Growth Partnership Services program, which also includes research in the following markets: U.S. Premium Mobile Downloadable Content and Applications Markets, U.S. Smartphone Application Storefront Markets, U.S. Mobile Financial Services Markets - Mobile Banking and Mobile Payments, U.S. Mobile Social Networking Markets, Advanced and Trends in Mobile Video Services, U.S. Off-deck Mobile Content Markets, U.S. Mobile Messaging Markets, U.S. Mobile Video Services Markets, and U.S. Mobile Connection Aggregation Markets, and others. All research services included in subscriptions provide detailed market opportunities and industry trends that have been evaluated following extensive interviews with market participants.

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Global SMS Infrastructure Markets

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SOURCE Frost & Sullivan