Wireless Service Spending among U.S. SMBs to Cross $18 Billion This Year Says AMI-Partners Study; America's Largest Carriers - Verizon, Cingular, Sprint and T-Mobile - Are Ramping up Their Efforts to Reach More Mobile Customers among SMBs

Business Wire, May 10, 2006

NEW YORK -- U.S.-based SMBs (1-999 employees) are on track to spend more than $18 billion on wireless services this year, and vendors are ramping up their efforts trying to become the premier provider to the lucrative SMB market in America. That's from AMI-Partners' new study, Small and Medium Businesses: The Next Growth Engine For Wireless Service Providers. This report offers an in-depth look at the SMB wireless service market with analysis of data from AMI-Partners' latest research on both the end-user and supplier sides. It also examines the customers of the top wireless carriers in terms of firmographics, IT and Telecom adoption and spending, analyzes wireless service vendors' strategies, product offerings, marketing and channel programs targeted at the SMB mobile users.

The country's largest carriers - Verizon Wireless, Cingular Wireless, Sprint and T-Mobile - are boosting their marketing to win the hearts of millions of SMB mobile customers. For example, Sprint and Cingular have introduced business-specific rate plans and contract options that appeal to SMB customers. They have also set up customer-care centers dedicated to serving the unique needs of SMBs. And have spruced up their retail outlets with staff, products and marketing programs aimed at the SMB segment. Verizon Wireless, meanwhile, has put in place a sales team that focuses on industry-specific wireless applications to lure SMB customers in key verticals such as wholesale, distribution, construction, professional services, legal, etc.

With 76% of SBs and 88% of MBs subscribing to mobile services, U.S. SMBs are increasingly savvy in choosing a carrier. "Coverage, customer care, reliability, predictable voice bundles, flexible pricing plans, unlimited mobile to mobile minutes are all important aspects of package plans that appeal to SMB customers," says Janet Stone, New York-based Research Director at AMI-Partners. "In addition, usage requirements vary from industry to industry and business to business. As a result, there are opportunities for service providers on the value-added services front by extending communications and productivity functions to SMB employees across many industries that meet specific requirements," Ms. Stone adds.

Going forward, growth in SMB wireless spending will largely be driven by wireless data applications, as the underlying technology is finally ready for prime time. Although some may argue whether the 400-700 kbps available from today's cellular-based wireless networks is truly broadband, most industry observers say that it is the "tipping speed" for many laptop applications. With this kind of bandwidth available for mobile wireless data applications, the claim that "anyplace is your workplace" might finally ring true.

About the Study

This study analyzes the SMB wireless service market from a demand and supply side. Based on AMI's annual surveys of U.S. SMBs, the studies track a broad spectrum of issues pertaining to budgets, purchase behaviors, decision influencers, channel preferences, outsourcing, service and support. Also covered are detailed firmographics and critically important technology attitudes and strategic planning priorities. These data point to key opportunities and messaging hot buttons for vendors and service providers seeking to match their offerings to SB market requirements. Analysis on the supply side is based on interviews with the top wireless service carriers, namely, Verizon Wireless, Cingular Wireless, Sprint and T-Mobile. The survey data has been collected prior to the Sprint-Nextel merger.

For more information about this study, AMI-Partners, or our global SMB research, please call AMI-Partners at 212-944-5100, e-mail ask_ami@ami-partners.com, or visit the AMI Web site at www.ami-partners.com.

About AMI-Partners

AMI-Partners specializes in IT, Internet, telecommunications and business services strategy, venture capital, and actionable market intelligence -- focusing on global small and medium business (SMB) enterprises. The AMI-Partners mission is to empower clients for success with the highest quality data, business planning and "go-to-market" solutions. AMI was founded in 1996 under the name of Access Media International (USA), Inc. by Andy Bose, formerly group vice president at IDC. Since its inception, the firm has built a world-class management team, each with ten to fifteen years' experience in IT, telecom, online communications or multimedia.

AMI-Partners has helped shape the go-to-market SMB strategies of more than 150 leading IT, Internet, telecommunications and business services companies over the last ten years. The firm is well known for its IT and Internet adoption-based segmentation of the SMB markets; its annual retainership services based on global SMB tracking surveys in more than 20 countries; and its proprietary database of SMBs and SMB channel partners in the Americas, Europe and Asia-Pacific. The firm invests significantly in collecting survey-based information from several thousand SMBs annually, and is considered the premier source for global SMB trends and analysis.