Cited frequently as the shining example for the power of wireless, NTT DoCoMo’s iMode service in Japan illustrates how wireless services can constitute an immense business proposition for companies that manage to capture the mass market. Launched in February of 1999, the service catapulted to over 40 million subscribers by quarter 1 of 2003; a wildfire-like growth fueled by inexpensive handsets, always-on connectivity, and a plethora of data services—accounting for about 80 percent of NTT DoCoMo’s revenue—
provided by over 50,000 commercial content providers. In Europe, especially in the Nordic countries, mobile phone penetration levels have reached between 70 and 80 percent of the population, whereas the U.S. market is still playing catch-up with approximately 140 million subscribers, or about 49 percent of the population, by the end of 2002, according to CTIA.

Business
Businesses are a second category of end-users within the customer segment. Companies and their employees as well as all other professionals who use mobile/wireless technologies for business purposes fall into this category. Business users use this new technology for a wide range of applications, which include communicating with colleagues, suppliers, or customers, accessing corporate e-mail, engaging in personal information management such as calendaring or time and expense submissions, gaining access to back-office ERP systems, receiving the latest service dispatch, closing a deal at a customer site, or prescribing a medication for a patient during a house call. According to Gartner Group, the job requirements of over 25 percent of the 112 million members strong U.S. workforce entail a mobile component. In a 2002 study published by Cahners In-Stat Group, the research company forecasts telecom expenditures to grow by roughly 8 percent through 2005, emphasizing the increasing penetration of mobile and wireless technologies in the business sector.

Taken From : Enterprise Guide to Gaining Business Value from Mobile Technologies

Filed under: Generate Money

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