This week we have a new report from Juniper Research. This report is entitled “Mobile Roaming: Regulations, Opportunities & In-flight Strategies 2014-2018.” This is the second edition of Juniper’s report. Its goal is to provide a comprehensive suite of five year calculated projections. The results are determined when they are combined with qualified findings regarding the anticipated roaming market opportunity up through 2018.
Some of the items that are covered in the 40 page report include:
- Mobile Roamers: Enterprise, Consumer, Postpaid & Prepaid
- Roaming Revenue: Voice, SMS & Data
- Silent Roamers and Revenue Opportunity: Voice and Data
- In-flight Roamers and Revenue
This year, the expected revenue generated by mobile roaming is $57 billion. In the next four years, Juniper forecasts that we will see an eight percent rise in this figure. It is believed that mobile roaming revenue will reach $90 billion by 2018.
According to a recent report from SAP AG, we are seeing faster, higher-quality roaming capabilities for consumers and greater access to networks’ LTE spectrum offerings. This correlates with Juniper’s findings as one item that the report notes will have an impact is the increasing use of data.
The primary reason given for this increase is the fact that there will be a reduction in roaming charges. The figures show that in 2013, an estimated 36 percent of the global mobile roaming revenue was seen from data roaming.
We have seen several reports in the past few months showing the data usage cycle. Basically, as the carrier expands its 4G/LTE network, it provides fast speeds for its customers. As these customers become aware of the faster speeds offered, they begin to download and stream more content. As this takes place, the demand for these faster speeds increases, so carriers try to find new and innovative ways to offer more, which in turn their customers take advantage of. You can see the circle.
One area that has always been questionable is data roaming. This is mainly due to the fact that in many cases, additional data roaming fees are charged. The choices that people are faced with are to see a very high bill at the end of a travel month, or restrict your access to data and not incur those extra charges.
Juniper’s report refers to these people as “silent roamers.” This is the group of people that I spoke of above. As the report states, silent roamers exercise caution, or do not use voice and data services at all while roaming and represent what can be considered as a non-user segment.
Some of the significant findings include the following:
- Operator revenues generated from mobile data roaming to reach just over $42 billion by 2018
- New developments in in-flight roaming have seen specialist service providers such as AeroMobile and OnAir partnering with mobile and airline operators
If service providers can target what is considered the non-data roamers by providing roaming packages that will make them comfortable, there is no reason why this group cannot become data roamers.
In reference to silent roamers, the report’s author, Nitin Bhas, said, “This is costing the industry billions each year in lost revenue opportunity, given the millions of inbound and outbound roamers as well as the expansion of data traffic over flattening voice usage.”
We are witnessing increasing growth in data speeds as LTE networks begin to cover more regions. We are also seeing companies such as SAP working to improve LTE roaming peering agreements. These are the types of programs that reduce the cost to the customer. This, of course relates to more mobile roaming. Can you see another circle forming?
Edited by
Cassandra Tucker 
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