TMCnews Featured Article

The latest report from the Strategy Analytics’ Wireless Media (News - Alert) Strategies Service, “Location-Based Services: Opportunities within an Emerging Battleground,” says that wireless carriers are increasingly losing control of location-based service provisions to Internet companies such as Google and Yahoo, and to handset vendors such as Nokia (News - Alert).

 

The firm offers market intelligence focused on opportunities and disruptive forces in the areas of Automotive Electronics and Entertainment, Broadband Connected Home, Mobile & Wireless Intelligent Systems and Virtual Worlds.

 

The company’s Wireless Media Strategies service is designed to offer insight and strategic advice on consumer mobile data products and services. The new report on location-based services says that operators focus primarily on navigation, people locators and ‘find the nearest’ services, but struggled to drive location service adoption for each of these categories.

 

However, the development of cell tower databases by companies such as Google (News - Alert) and Skyhook, along with the integration of location APIs onto handsets, contributes to the development of a diverse set of location applications for distribution through popular channels, such as Apple’s (News - Alert) App Store and Google’s Android Marketplace.

 

“Strategy Analytics expects that these elements, combined with greater GPS handset ownership and data plan adoption, will trigger growth in location-based service revenues from $650 million at the end of 2008 to almost $8 billion by 2013,” says Nitesh Patel, a senior analyst in Wireless Media Strategies at Strategy Analytics (News - Alert).

 

According to Patel, more than 80 percent of location revenues come from location-enabled search and voice-guided navigation applications.

 

The report also mentions both Google and Nokia as significant threats to carrier ambitions.

 

“Nokia has made significant moves in location-based services through its acquisition of mapping data provider, Navteq, and smaller companies, such as Plazes and bit-side. Nokia’s significant handset market share, combined with its ability to integrate location applications onto its handsets, places it in a strong position to compete with carrier and internet brands for ownership of location service users,” said David MacQueen, director at Strategy Analytics.

 

MacQueen also mentioned that similar to Nokia, Google’s significant brand strength and carrier independent location positioning database is also a threat to disintermediate the operator from the location services value chain.