Carriers See Partnerships, User Interfaces as Telecom Industry Drivers
LAS VEGAS -- Communications industry innovation requires cooperation among a cross-section of the telecom ecosystem, AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson said Tuesday in a NXTcomm keynote. He made no announcements, instead focusing on telecom’s relationship to the macro-economy. Telstra CEO Solomon Trujillo echoed Stephenson, urging carriers to focus on customer experience when designing new services.
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Phone, video, mobile and Internet integration is driving world commerce and making for an “exciting time” in telecom, Stephenson said. But IPTV and the Apple iPhone couldn’t have come into being without several vendors working together, he said. The NXTcomm show is an opportunity for companies to push each other and form partnerships, he said.
The combination of voice, video, mobility and Internet will increase connectivity and drive commerce, Stephenson said. Telecom networks make businesses and government run faster, increasing “commercial velocity” and promoting growth, he said. Knowing more about users means marketers can target better, he said. And mobility opens new avenues for consumers to buy products and services, he said. For example, more consumers will use cellphones for banking and credit card functions, he said.
Mobility is a major driver of connectivity, Stephenson said. About 80 percent of the world population lives within range of a wireless network, he said. By 2010, more than four billion will be mobile worldwide, he predicted. On the AT&T network, voice use grows 10 percent annually, while data use quadruples, he said. That will boost the economy, he said. For every ten new mobile phones per 100, the GDP rises 0.6 percent, he said. The Internet also is increasing business opportunities, he said. By 2011, Internet users globally will exceed three billion, he said.
To win customers, carriers and manufacturers should focus on building an intuitive user interface, Trujillo said in his own keynote. By January, Australians were spending more time online than watching TV, he said. That makes the service package “more critical,” he said. Telstra has responded by selling integrated services that are “simple to use,” and as a result customer churn is falling, he said. Customers shouldn’t have to read user manuals or get training to use a service, he said. “It’s our job to make it work.”
Investing in faster networks also matters, Trujillo said. Telstra has increased 3G penetration on its wireless network to 40 percent, up from 5 percent 18 months ago, he said. Higher speeds also increase average revenue per user, he said. Telstra is making $21 more per user on 3G technology than on 2G, he said.
Customized content increases use and opens opportunities for marketers, Trujillo said. The cellphone ad market is in the “gestation period,” he said, “but we're looking forward to a lot of growth in this space in the upcoming year.”