ABI Research issued a study during last week's CTIA Wireless 2007 trade show that concluded there is a favorable market for fixed/mobile convergence in the U.S. The study surveyed more than 1,200 U.S. wireless subscribers earlier this month and found that 25 percent of wireless customers would switch cellular carriers for access to the benefits of WiFi/mobile convergence. The study also concluded that nearly 33 percent of subscribers would discontinue their traditional home phone service to access two main benefits of convergence: better in-home signal coverage and reduced pricing for calls made from home.
The report shows demand, but early experience in Europe shows that operators have to execute and market these services correctly to get any uptake. Last month, a German fixed-line operator ended its fixed-mobile convergence service, known as T-One, after attracting less than 10,000 subscribers since launching last August. Poor marketing, high tariffs and a lack of compelling handsets were largely to blame for the slow uptake.
For more about ABI Research's study on FMC:
- read this article from Telephony