Mobile phones are now rapidly
replacing fixed phone lines in Europe in a big way, according to
market analyst Frost & Sullivan.
The company says that as mobile operators
offer ever cheaper voice call packages and mobile data services
become more widely taken up by users. It predicts that in 2003, the
number of fixed line call minutes fell by 5% and the number of
fixed lines decreased by 500,000.
Frost & Sullivan analyst Jan ten Sythoff
said, “The major drivers for fixed to mobile substitution include
increasing mobile voice competition, mobile saturation, 3G
capacity, and the emergence of location-based charging.”
The marketing strategy of UK 3G operator 3
illustrates what fixed line operators are up against, with 3
offering users 750 bundled voice minutes and 750 text messages a
month to any network for only £35 whether on a contract or using
pre-pay.
However, mobile does not have it all its own
way in the market. “The mobile market is however, up against a
number of restraints, such as growing fixed line competition,
cheaper fixed line pricing, and limitations in mobile technology
such as coverage and voice quality,” said ten Sythoff.
But the growing confidence of mobile operators
is expected to lead to them targeting the fixed line voice call
market too, said ten Sythoff.
Mobile operators are already in partnership
with PBX (private branch exchange) suppliers and are starting to
offer integrated solutions that allow mobiles to be connected via a
PBX to enable cheaper voice calls, instead of using more expensive
mobile networks.
This article was part of Computer Weekly's
enterprise mobile business channel, sponsored by Nokia