Maximising revenue with messaging, content and entertainment services
August 4, 2004
Research and Markets has announced the addition of Pricing Mobile Messaging, Content and Entertainment services: a structured approach to maximising revenue to their offering.
"Messaging, content and entertainment (MCE) services will be the focus of innovation in the mobile sector in the short to medium term, and the pricing of these services will be an important weapon in the battle to win customers and maximise mobile revenues."
The mobile industry is facing great challenges at the moment. The phenomenal increase in mobile subscriber numbers which has fuelled revenue growth over recent years is coming to an end as the market saturates. However, operators are under pressure to fund new network roll-out and, in many cases, are still paying for expensive 3G licences. As a result, they cannot afford to accept established utility-type returns from their existing networks. The maximum revenues must therefore be obtained from current 2G and 2.5G networks, and operators must draw on the experience gained in offering these services, to ensure that their 3G networks deliver the highest possible returns from launch.
Pricing Mobile Messaging, Content and Entertainment services: a structured approach to maximising revenue examines key elements involved in pricing these services to help operators identify the most appropriate pricing strategy. It looks at the ways in which prices for MCE services can be structured now, and considers the kinds of pricing structure which could emerge in future. It also considers how price levels should be set - ranging from introductory offers, through initial full pricing, to price optimisation over time. The report looks at the impact on pricing strategy of a range of key factors - such as an operator's approach to content, the positioning of its competitors, and how well connected the operator is in other markets. It then draws this analysis together to describe a stepwise approach for operators to determine the most appropriate MCE pricing strategy given their particular set of circumstances.
Pricing Mobile Messaging, Content and Entertainment services: a structured approach to maximising revenue answers the following key questions:
-- What pricing structures are appropriate for messaging, content and entertainment
services?
-- How can operators and service providers find the right balance
of simplicity and sophistication of structure?
-- How should pricing levels be set, and how should their evolution
be managed towards optimal prices over time?
-- What options are there in approaching the sourcing of content,
and how do they affect pricing strategy?
-- How should market position and alliances affect pricing strategies
for MCE services?
-- How will competitors' pricing strategies affect the appropriateness
of different strategy options?
Who should read this report?
Mobile operators and MVNOs: to maximise revenues by understanding the alternative pricing strategies that can be used for MCE services, and using the structured approach to determine the appropriate strategy for their organisation.
Content providers: to strengthen their negotiating position through an understanding of the market dynamics that will affect different operators' choice of partnership arrangements with content providers, and the motivation and rationale behind their differing pricing strategies.
Billing and customer care vendors: to better meet the needs of operators offering MCE services by identifying future trends in pricing structure and complexity.
Regulators and analysts: to develop an understanding of the approaches to pricing of MCE services and the motivation behind those prices.
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