In turn, the emergence of IoT technology has raised a number of united states of america phone number library questions for MVNOs. Should virtual mobile operators implement the Internet of Things technology on their networks? Should they wait until the IoT market matures and successful business cases appear? And, most importantly, will they be able to monetize the IoT?
As a result of a survey conducted by TMForum – an international organization that deals with issues of development and optimization of telecom operators’ businesses – industry experts came to a unanimous opinion: now is the time for MVNOs to think about implementing IoT; we cannot wait any longer.
“IoT is no longer a pioneering concept, it is the first ones to invest in projects that will make money,” says Thandi Damenet, a TMForum participant. According to him, the global market potential for the Internet of Things is about $2 billion.
Innovative approaches
The involvement of MVNEs (intermediaries between mobile operators and MVNOs) allows virtual mobile operators to master promising niches, which include IoT, much faster and more efficiently.
There are already several MVNE operators on the market that are implementing IoT projects and see great potential in this.
For example, Plintron, the largest international provider and aggregator of mobile virtual networks (MVNE/MVNA), launched an IoT project back in 2016 and has seen increased interest in this technology among MVNOs around the world.
“IoT is a fast-growing market segment that requires innovative approaches. Due to its dynamism, the Internet of Things as a new business direction is ideal for MVNOs, which are accustomed to price competition, constantly changing consumer preferences, as well as regulatory pressure,” continues Jacque Bonifay from global MVNE Transatel.
According to him, this operator has launched three commercially successful projects, one of which was implemented jointly with Microsoft (ensuring constant communication between laptops and tablets).
Formula for success
Experts from TMForum believe that IoT will first “take off” in the mature markets of the USA, Europe, Southeast Asia and China. At the same time, the IoT promotion strategy will differ in each country. Moreover, traditional pricing as a set of various options will not work in IoT.
“IoT is a very different market, much more complex and fragmented than voice and data. Most of the financial opportunities will be in the B2B space, not B2C. The challenge for MVNOs is to ‘win a place in the sun’ in the value chain,” says David Traynor of Aspider-NGI.
