LONDON, UK: ABI Research expects location based services revenues to grow at 156% from $1.7 billion in 2008 to $2.6 billion in 2009. By 2014 global LBS revenues will have surpassed $14 billion.
“One of the main drivers of the strong growth in LBS is the popularity of an impressive number of off-deck LBS applications available for a one-off fee on smartphone platforms,” says ABI Research practice director Dominique Bonte.
“Apple’s iPhone is leading the way, followed by Blackberry, Nokia, and Android. There seems to be no limit to developers’ creativity in using location for functions such as search, social networking, messaging, micro-blogging and augmented reality. Combined with the astonishing popularity of the new generation of GPS-enabled touch screen smartphones, this will continue to constitute the lifeblood of LBS in the coming years.”
A more open strategy
Many carriers in both the US and Europe are waking up to this reality by gradually adopting a more open LBS strategy with Verizon increasing the number of unlocked GPS phones and Vodafone having acquired navigation software vendor Wayfinder. Both carriers are also making their networks accessible via open API platforms. Other carriers such as Sprint have opted to partner with location aggregators as a way to play a role in the LBS ecosystem.
Which models?
While there is no doubt LBS is heading towards mass market adoption, it remains unclear which pricing and business models will emerge successfully. Currently subscription-based models are making way for one-off pricing or free hardware-subsidized offers, but expectations for advertising revenues in the longer term remain high despite privacy and fragmentation issues.
Bonte concludes, “ABI Research expects many business models will continue to coexist with recurring fees for many enterprise, navigation and safety services, but free models for most other consumer applications.”
Showing posts with label LBS. Show all posts
Showing posts with label LBS. Show all posts
Friday, September 4, 2009
Monday, July 20, 2009
Vodafone selects Tele Atlas to power location-based apps
GENT, BELGIUM: Tele Atlas, a leading global provider of digital maps and dynamic content for navigation and location-based solutions, and Vodafone Group have announced an agreement whereby Vodafone will use Tele Atlas digital maps and location-based content across its global footprint for the company’s location-based services (LBS) and navigation offerings.
Through the agreement, Tele Atlas and Vodafone will collaborate to enable powerful LBS, routing and mapping applications for mobile users around the world.
The agreement gives Vodafone access to Tele Atlas’ global digital map content and products, including 24 million points of interest (POIs), 3D Landmarks, 2D City Maps and Digital Elevation Models, which give local search application users maps that more closely reflect their surroundings.
Vodafone will also gain access to Tele Atlas Speed Profiles, which provides highly accurate speed data to help navigation application users find the most optimal routes and far more accurately estimate travel times.
Bobby Rao, Director, Internet Services Marketing and New Business Director at Vodafone Group said: "In an increasingly connected world, we are constantly striving to enrich our customers’ lives by enabling them to communicate wherever they are with the tools and services they need. Accurate location content is at the heart of many of these offerings, allowing Vodafone to deliver a powerful, seamless mobile experience around the world, based on up-to-date maps and content."
"We’re very pleased to partner with Vodafone to bring their customers fresh, accurate maps and innovative location content," said Bill Henry, CEO, Tele Atlas. "As the leading map provider we’ll focus on delivering the richest experience to Vodafone customers that advances their mobile lifestyle."
Through the agreement, Tele Atlas and Vodafone will collaborate to enable powerful LBS, routing and mapping applications for mobile users around the world.
The agreement gives Vodafone access to Tele Atlas’ global digital map content and products, including 24 million points of interest (POIs), 3D Landmarks, 2D City Maps and Digital Elevation Models, which give local search application users maps that more closely reflect their surroundings.
Vodafone will also gain access to Tele Atlas Speed Profiles, which provides highly accurate speed data to help navigation application users find the most optimal routes and far more accurately estimate travel times.
Bobby Rao, Director, Internet Services Marketing and New Business Director at Vodafone Group said: "In an increasingly connected world, we are constantly striving to enrich our customers’ lives by enabling them to communicate wherever they are with the tools and services they need. Accurate location content is at the heart of many of these offerings, allowing Vodafone to deliver a powerful, seamless mobile experience around the world, based on up-to-date maps and content."
"We’re very pleased to partner with Vodafone to bring their customers fresh, accurate maps and innovative location content," said Bill Henry, CEO, Tele Atlas. "As the leading map provider we’ll focus on delivering the richest experience to Vodafone customers that advances their mobile lifestyle."
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Consumer LBS market will more than double in 2009
MUMBAI, INDIA: Worldwide consumer location-based services (LBS) subscribers and revenue are on pace to double in 2009, according to Gartner, Inc. Despite an expected 4 per cent decrease in mobile device sales, LBS subscribers are forecast to grow from 41 million in 2008 to 95.7 million in 2009 while revenue is anticipated to increase from $998.3 million in 2008 to $2.2 billion in 2009.
Gartner defines LBS as services that use information about the location of mobile devices, derived from cellular networks, Wi-Fi access points or via satellite links to receivers in (or connected to) the handsets themselves.
Examples are services that enable friends to find each other, parents to locate their children, mapping and navigation. Location-based services may be offered by mobile network carriers or other providers. They are also known as location-aware services.
“The LBS industry has matured rapidly in recent months through a mixture of consolidation, improved price/performance of the enabling technologies and compelling location applications,” said Annette Zimmermann, senior research analyst at Gartner. “Factors driving the increase in the next year or so include higher availability of GPS-enabled phones, reduced prices and appearance of application stores.”
Consumer Location-Based Services, Revenue Forecast by Region, 2008-2009 (Millions of Dollars)
Source: Gartner (June 2009)
Gartner predicts that advertising-based or ‘free’ LBS (disregarding data charges by mobile carriers) will gain more traction as users adopt it as a way to limit costs.
Mobile carriers that stick to the current predominant business model of charging users $5 to $10 per month plus data plans will experience high churn rates as users will look for free alternatives. In North America and Western Europe, the share of users taking advantage of free services is approximately 10-15 per cent today and is expected to grow to 40-50 per cent in 2013.
Gartner expects more compelling and useful applications and services to come to market in the next 12 to 18 months such as digital coupons to be redeemed in a nearby shop and points-of-interest search services. Smaller niche players will survive in local markets only when they have an established user base and unique offering that larger players cannot compete with. Other players will be acquisition targets for larger vendors.
Gartner analysts said LBS market dynamics vary by region. For example, North America is the largest market due to mobile carriers' strong efforts in navigation services and family-safety solutions. In Western Europe, navigation is currently the most used application, followed by local search and "friend finder." There is still no significant uptake of safety applications.
Japan will continue to see steady growth as GPS has been required by law in mobile phones since 2007. In Asia/Pacific, during the summer Olympics, location services were for the first time offered in China which is now an advertising-based solution and free to the user.
“The competitive landscape will change and most mobile carriers need to alter their approach toward offering LBS and dealing with developers,” concluded Ms Zimmermann. “Subscriber growth will hinge on "free" - disregarding data charges - services. Mobile operators’ initiatives to open up the application programming interface (API) to third-party developers will help them compete against other players in the market and will also be beneficial to the different parties involved, down to the end user.”
Gartner defines LBS as services that use information about the location of mobile devices, derived from cellular networks, Wi-Fi access points or via satellite links to receivers in (or connected to) the handsets themselves.
Examples are services that enable friends to find each other, parents to locate their children, mapping and navigation. Location-based services may be offered by mobile network carriers or other providers. They are also known as location-aware services.
“The LBS industry has matured rapidly in recent months through a mixture of consolidation, improved price/performance of the enabling technologies and compelling location applications,” said Annette Zimmermann, senior research analyst at Gartner. “Factors driving the increase in the next year or so include higher availability of GPS-enabled phones, reduced prices and appearance of application stores.”
Consumer Location-Based Services, Revenue Forecast by Region, 2008-2009 (Millions of Dollars)
Source: Gartner (June 2009)Gartner predicts that advertising-based or ‘free’ LBS (disregarding data charges by mobile carriers) will gain more traction as users adopt it as a way to limit costs.
Mobile carriers that stick to the current predominant business model of charging users $5 to $10 per month plus data plans will experience high churn rates as users will look for free alternatives. In North America and Western Europe, the share of users taking advantage of free services is approximately 10-15 per cent today and is expected to grow to 40-50 per cent in 2013.
Gartner expects more compelling and useful applications and services to come to market in the next 12 to 18 months such as digital coupons to be redeemed in a nearby shop and points-of-interest search services. Smaller niche players will survive in local markets only when they have an established user base and unique offering that larger players cannot compete with. Other players will be acquisition targets for larger vendors.
Gartner analysts said LBS market dynamics vary by region. For example, North America is the largest market due to mobile carriers' strong efforts in navigation services and family-safety solutions. In Western Europe, navigation is currently the most used application, followed by local search and "friend finder." There is still no significant uptake of safety applications.
Japan will continue to see steady growth as GPS has been required by law in mobile phones since 2007. In Asia/Pacific, during the summer Olympics, location services were for the first time offered in China which is now an advertising-based solution and free to the user.
“The competitive landscape will change and most mobile carriers need to alter their approach toward offering LBS and dealing with developers,” concluded Ms Zimmermann. “Subscriber growth will hinge on "free" - disregarding data charges - services. Mobile operators’ initiatives to open up the application programming interface (API) to third-party developers will help them compete against other players in the market and will also be beneficial to the different parties involved, down to the end user.”
Friday, May 8, 2009
Telecom enhances globalization in every possible way!
Is it any other way, apart from this? I was quite surprised on being asked whether telecom growth somehow blocked globalization! Quite the opposite!!
Take the Indian telecom industry for instance! Those who have followed the Indian telecom closely -- right from the days of C-DoT developing 256-switch RAX, down to the introduction of mobile phones -- after massive overbidding by folks such as HFCL in 1994, to the introduction of the Internet in India -- on the eve of India's independence day in 1994 -- the growth of satellite communications in the country in the mid and late nineties -- remember DAMA? -- to, to the introduction of CDMA in the early 2000s, to the great proliferation of mobile phones that we see around us now!
Does any of this indicate India has not been able to globalize?
When C-DoT had introduced RAX in the late 1980s, it really brought about a telecom revolution. Today, we don't talk of C-DoT in the glowing terms that it really deserves. Who would have ever imagined that mobile phones would take off the way they have done now! And well, we just can't survive without the email and the Internet!
Let's trace the global telecom history from the late 1980s. When AMPS gave way to GSM, you had the feature called roaming! People wondered what they would do with this feature? Today, we complain, if we can't roam!
ARIB, Japan, had visited India in early 1994, to try and sell PHS. In those days, PHS and DECT were the hot WiLL technologies. Later, Japan, thanks to Takeshi Natsuno and NTT DoCoMO, saw the advent of i-mode, and well, it indicated the first signs of what mobile Internet would really do!
Pages and pages were rolled out screaming "WAP is CRAP"! Now, all phones are WAP enabled and no one says a word! We love to surf on the mobile phone now, isn't it? What about all those MMS messages, including the sleazy ones? You can do mobile blogging now, can't you? Also, update your Twitter!
In optical networking, in the early nineties, PDH gave way to SDH! We later saw the advent of DWDM and also VCSELs. With the advent of 3G in the late nineties, we discovered W-CDMA. China came up with TD-SCDMA, another 3G technology. For some time, LAS-CDMA tried to make its mark, then I don't know what happened to it!
How many of you know that a simple SMS led to the famous second people power revolution in the Phillipines in early 2001, a peaceful revolution that overthrew Philippine President Joseph (Erap) Estrada!
Why, I still remember, during a spot survey at a Frost & Sullivan's telecom conference in Singapore in 2001, I was one among the three who used the mobile phone to check my Yahoo mails. I received such stares Today, we can't stop talking about Blackberry and iPhone! In Hong Kong, in the early 2000s, I used my Siemens WAP phone to locate Indian restaurants! When Nokia added GPS via HS-CSD in Hong Kong's Citybus in 2000, it was sensational! Today, we talk about LBS and GPS, and all that!
I can go on and on with such anecdotes! If there was no telecom, the world would not have progressed in the manner it has done now. Still having doubts?
Take the Indian telecom industry for instance! Those who have followed the Indian telecom closely -- right from the days of C-DoT developing 256-switch RAX, down to the introduction of mobile phones -- after massive overbidding by folks such as HFCL in 1994, to the introduction of the Internet in India -- on the eve of India's independence day in 1994 -- the growth of satellite communications in the country in the mid and late nineties -- remember DAMA? -- to, to the introduction of CDMA in the early 2000s, to the great proliferation of mobile phones that we see around us now!
Does any of this indicate India has not been able to globalize?
When C-DoT had introduced RAX in the late 1980s, it really brought about a telecom revolution. Today, we don't talk of C-DoT in the glowing terms that it really deserves. Who would have ever imagined that mobile phones would take off the way they have done now! And well, we just can't survive without the email and the Internet!
Let's trace the global telecom history from the late 1980s. When AMPS gave way to GSM, you had the feature called roaming! People wondered what they would do with this feature? Today, we complain, if we can't roam!
ARIB, Japan, had visited India in early 1994, to try and sell PHS. In those days, PHS and DECT were the hot WiLL technologies. Later, Japan, thanks to Takeshi Natsuno and NTT DoCoMO, saw the advent of i-mode, and well, it indicated the first signs of what mobile Internet would really do!
Pages and pages were rolled out screaming "WAP is CRAP"! Now, all phones are WAP enabled and no one says a word! We love to surf on the mobile phone now, isn't it? What about all those MMS messages, including the sleazy ones? You can do mobile blogging now, can't you? Also, update your Twitter!
In optical networking, in the early nineties, PDH gave way to SDH! We later saw the advent of DWDM and also VCSELs. With the advent of 3G in the late nineties, we discovered W-CDMA. China came up with TD-SCDMA, another 3G technology. For some time, LAS-CDMA tried to make its mark, then I don't know what happened to it!
How many of you know that a simple SMS led to the famous second people power revolution in the Phillipines in early 2001, a peaceful revolution that overthrew Philippine President Joseph (Erap) Estrada!
Why, I still remember, during a spot survey at a Frost & Sullivan's telecom conference in Singapore in 2001, I was one among the three who used the mobile phone to check my Yahoo mails. I received such stares Today, we can't stop talking about Blackberry and iPhone! In Hong Kong, in the early 2000s, I used my Siemens WAP phone to locate Indian restaurants! When Nokia added GPS via HS-CSD in Hong Kong's Citybus in 2000, it was sensational! Today, we talk about LBS and GPS, and all that!
I can go on and on with such anecdotes! If there was no telecom, the world would not have progressed in the manner it has done now. Still having doubts?
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Operators lose prime position for LBS
BOSTON, USA: Wireless carriers are increasingly losing control of location-based service provision to Internet companies such as Google and Yahoo, and to handset vendors like Nokia, according to “Location-Based Services: Opportunities within an Emerging Battleground,” the latest report from the Strategy Analytics Wireless Media Strategies Service.
Operators have focused primarily on navigation, people locators and ‘find the nearest’ services, but struggled to drive location service adoption for each of these categories.
However, the development of cell tower databases by companies such as Google and Skyhook, along with the integration of location APIs onto handsets, has enabled the development of a diverse set of location applications for distribution through popular channels, such as Apple’s App Store and Google’s Android Marketplace.
“Strategy Analytics expects that these elements, combined with greater GPS handset ownership and data plan adoption, will trigger growth in location-based service revenues from $650 million at the end of 2008 to almost $8 billion by 2013,” comments Nitesh Patel, Senior Analyst, Wireless Media Strategies, at Strategy Analytics.
Over 80 percent of these location revenues will come from location-enabled search and voice-guided navigation applications.
This report also identifies Google and Nokia as significant threats to carrier ambitions. David MacQueen, Director at Strategy Analytics, added: “Nokia has made significant moves in location-based services through its acquisition of mapping data provider, Navteq, and smaller companies, such as Plazes and bit-side. Nokia’s significant handset market share, combined with its ability to integrate location applications onto its handsets, places it in a strong position to compete with carrier and internet brands for ownership of location service users. Similarly, Google’s significant brand strength and carrier independent location positioning database threatens to disintermediate the operator from the location services value chain.”
Operators have focused primarily on navigation, people locators and ‘find the nearest’ services, but struggled to drive location service adoption for each of these categories.
However, the development of cell tower databases by companies such as Google and Skyhook, along with the integration of location APIs onto handsets, has enabled the development of a diverse set of location applications for distribution through popular channels, such as Apple’s App Store and Google’s Android Marketplace.
“Strategy Analytics expects that these elements, combined with greater GPS handset ownership and data plan adoption, will trigger growth in location-based service revenues from $650 million at the end of 2008 to almost $8 billion by 2013,” comments Nitesh Patel, Senior Analyst, Wireless Media Strategies, at Strategy Analytics.
Over 80 percent of these location revenues will come from location-enabled search and voice-guided navigation applications.
This report also identifies Google and Nokia as significant threats to carrier ambitions. David MacQueen, Director at Strategy Analytics, added: “Nokia has made significant moves in location-based services through its acquisition of mapping data provider, Navteq, and smaller companies, such as Plazes and bit-side. Nokia’s significant handset market share, combined with its ability to integrate location applications onto its handsets, places it in a strong position to compete with carrier and internet brands for ownership of location service users. Similarly, Google’s significant brand strength and carrier independent location positioning database threatens to disintermediate the operator from the location services value chain.”
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