"virtual numbers will be important in 2013" - tyntec's Thorsten Trapp
Rating: GigaOM Research & tyntec study identifies way forward
A study conducted by tyntec in association with GigaOM Research has identified virtual (telephone numbers) as the way forward for both OTT (over the top) messaging services and mobile operators offering SMS (text) based messaging. The research found that the number of IP-based messaging subscribers already surpassing SMS user numbers in 2012 and 1.8 billion users sending 15 trillion messages per year by 2016. But SMS isn’t dead because it is a vital medium in specific instances.
The study points out that even Google relies on SMS in emerging markets to deliver emails and verify authentication.
Similarly, many mobile money applications use SMS to post transactions and social networking sites – such as Facebook and Twitter, also use SMS to publish updates.
So how can OTT services be combined with traditional SMS services to provide a seamless messaging experience for mobile subscribers?
“Converged messaging through virtual phone numbers seems to be a natural way to address this problem because they provide a unique identity to enable interoperability and global reach for all parties,” Peter Crocker, GigaOm Research analyst.
The benefits for mobile network operators who decide to offer virtual numbers are that they gain additional international, rich SMS and voice traffic revenues from the OTT and web 2.0 markets, the reports says.
“By integrating the IP and mobile SMS world, companies can drive revenues and increase demographic and geographic reach quickly and simply,” commented Thorsten Trapp, CTO with tyntec.
“This is why virtual numbers will be so important in 2013 and beyond.”
The research also shows that nearly 10 trillion SMS and IP mobile messages will be sent in 2013 – thereby predicting parity (in numbers sent) for the first time.
The report can be downloaded from here.
