No unified view: Opinion is divided as to whether mobile operators can target the entire business market with unified messaging - Unified Messaging

Telecommunications International, Feb, 2002 by Matthew Secker

Mobile operator executives are pulling their hair out in a continuing effort to find value-added services (VAS) that will reduce churn, increase ARPU and enable them to ride the very rough times that still lie ahead. One VAS that industry big shots have very high hopes for is unified messaging (UM). In other words, the ability for users to access voice, fax and e-mail messages via a single user interface. But the size of the market that mobile operators can aim for is a bone of contention.

"The corporate sector has particular UM needs that are well beyond the scope of mobile operators," says Trevor Richer, director of electrical customer relationship management (ECRM) and messaging for Cable and Wireless (C&W). "They don't have the skills to integrate large-scale and complex voice, e-mail and fax solutions onto the same platform."

He further argues that this could only be achieved if a corporate were prepared to outsource all of its messaging to the mobile operator, which he believes is 'far too mission critical for them to ever do'.

Richer goes on to say that mobile operators should instead target the small-to-medium enterprise (SME) market, as their offerings are more suitable for this sector. "SMEs are now starting to see the advantages of setting up a UM solution for their businesses and the best way for them to do this is through mobile operators. This is because an operator can cost-effectively install and run everything over their network."

Mark Taguchi, director of mServices for Openwave, a maker of software that gives wireless subscribers access to internet and corporate intranet-based services, agrees: "UM solutions for corporates have been provided by PBX [private branch exchange] enterprise providers for the last five years. I would say that this market is too developed and complicated for mobile operators to enter into in a big way."

He considers that it does, though, make sense for mobile operators to target SMEs because smaller entities do not have the ability to host UM software within their own location. "They don't have the necessary skills, but a mobile operator can deliver and maintain a UM system for them on their network quite satisfactorily," he says.

However, Mark Conway, strategic development manager for BT Cellnet, doesn't rule out targeting corporates as well as SMEs with UM solutions. "It can still be achieved but it will have to be done differently to what corporates already have in place. We definitely do possess the technology, devices and the necessary security to offer satisfactory UM solutions to corporates. What they will eventually need to do is weigh up the cost benefits of turning towards our offerings or sticking with what they have. I believe that it is really an issue of educating then about alternative methods in order to persuade them to make that jump."

Conway goes on to say that BT Cellnet has had success already within the corporate space with BT Blackberry, which uses technologies and servers that sit behind an enterprises firewall and are 'completely secure'. "Its true to say that there's no voice mail [or fax] integration at the moment but we are presently looking at a number of solutions to deliver these. This is crucial because we have had a lot of users indicating that the ability to have these on the move would be extremely useful in their day-to-day activities."

UM demand

There are different types of bundled UM solutions offered by varying types of providers. Indeed, some mobile operators (like BT Cellnet) only provide certain elements of what a UM solution -- in its truest definition -- should actually be. But UM in all its forms hasn't taken off as extensively as the industry hoped it would. The main reason has been the huge amount of integration required, and the fact that the technology has been expensive and proprietary.

However, UM software is now starting to lower in price and because of this, mobile operators can now start to use UM as a viable value-add. "Mobile operators are now trying to work out what their business model is for the future, and a VAS like UM is something that definitely has appeal and they can sell," says C&W's Richer. "It will be one of their key services."

Richer also states that UM demand will increase due to the growth of ISPs and ASPs who are trying to differentiate themselves and keep their customers hooked in. He argues that these groups will not have the skills to offer a UM service on their own and will therefore have to make deals with large-scale mobile operators.

BT Cellnet's Conway reports that UM demand has definitely started to pick up in the SME space. In fact, the operator has already launched a basic UM service (excluding voice and fax messaging) for the SME market in June last year called Connected. "Its primary focus is to enable SME workers to access e-mail on the move. A lot of SMEs don't have LANs so they use the likes of Hotmail and Yahoo. What Connected manages to do is feed those services when they are out and about, while also providing them with access to a diary and other content," says Conway. "We have had a lot of feedback from customers who have said that the service has increased and improved their business. Plus, they have also informed us that Connected is being used for things that we never even planned for [such as taxi services sending out appointments to their drivers]."