In 2012, four major trends will come to the forefront in the telecom industry in Asia Pacific.
First, as demand for mobile data services continues to grow at an unprecedented rate, the mobile broadband era will continue its rapid development. In order to ably drive this development, the industry must address certain issues, including the building of ubiquitous broadband networks and the integration of digital content across various platforms.
Second is the need for vendors and operators to commit fully to providing an optimal user experience. As mobile networks become more popular and as we enter the midst of a new information age where access to data is literally at the tips of our fingers, optimizing user experience is the key to the further development of the telecom industry.
Third, the pace of national broadband network rollouts will continue as governments in Asia Pacific pursue cutting-edge digital agendas.
The final trend is the growing push for universal connectivity. As emerging economies in the region continue to develop, there exists an accompanying need to increase the penetration rate of communication technologies.
The mobile broadband era and the further development of the telecom industry
The telecom industry was originally built around the delivery of voice services, and accordingly, mobile operators have long derived the bulk of their revenues from these services. By 2015, however, Ovum projects that revenue from voice services will fall 8.4 %, from $663 billion in 2010 to $608 billion, while revenue from data services will increase 10 % from $907 billion in 2010 to $1 trillion.
The message for 2012 is clear: We are in the midst of the mobile broadband era.