More business models for social communication applications

According to foreign media reports, independent telecommunications analyst Ovum said that a large number of users are currently migrating to free or more cost-effective social communication applications. This has inhibited the growth in the revenue of SMS services for telecoms operators, and caused concern among operators about the profitability of the information service.

Ovum in its Consumer Insight survey (Consumer Insights Survey) report that 31% of respondents said they were using social information services to reduce the frequency of SMS services. SMS services in countries such as Australia, Brazil, China and France are the most affected by social information services, while respondents in Germany, Russia and the United States say their use of SMS services has actually increased.

"According to Dharia research, there are obvious substitution effects in the early adoption of social communication services," said Nasha de Haria, a ovum company analyst. As more and more social service providers enter the market, the price of mobile broadband will be more affordable and smart devices will become more popular, and the substitution effect will continue to intensify. However, social communication is not always weakening SMS services, in fact, if there is a stronger relationship between services and operators, this will even increase the flow of SMS services, for operators and OTT enterprises to create opportunities, through the payment of SMS services to reduce the gap between online and offline users. ”

In the ovum survey, 34% per cent of Skype users interviewed and 51% per cent of WhatsApp users said their SMS services had been used less frequently because of the use of social communication services. "It is clear that developers need to introduce services that generate revenue opportunities to make up for the gap between offline and online SMS usage," he said. "Dejaria said.

Mark Ranson, consumer analyst at Ovum, says social communication services are an important foundation for the development of social media platforms. This is because the user's adherence to the messaging service promotes user engagement and increases user loyalty. "This solid foundation can form the cornerstone of a number of profitable services, such as games, pay tools, personalization and communication," he said. ”

Ransom says operators will need more business models to seize new opportunities in the fast-evolving social-communication marketplace. Countless micro-trades can bring in the camp. Japan's social services line, in the second half of 2012, profit about 30 million dollars by selling emoticons. "The trick is to continue to look for small opportunities, plus other revenue streams such as advertising and value-added services, and super scale technology, to bring the most lucrative profits to operators." ”

Ransom said, "in short, social communication services can achieve profitability, and achieve a certain scale and build user loyalty is the key to unlocking the potential of such services." ”