Latest News
Feb 2006. Results of "LBS in
Latin America" Survey Suggest 2006/2007 Big Years
for LBS
Despite
years of build-up and hype, location based services were
still in an early stage of slow growth at the beginning
of 2005. From about the year 2000, only a handful of operators
worldwide had launched location based services for their
enterprise and individual subscribers. However, the recent
introduction of 3G network technology in many markets (and
many more to come) coupled with the emphasis on boosting
data revenues, it seems like the stage is finally set for
widespread rollouts during 2006 and 2007.
This analysis is backed up by the results of a recent survey
carried out by Genasys in the Latin American telecoms market.
According to respondents, 62% of operators are currently
evaluating LBS services, vendors, and business models in
preparation for roll-outs to take place in the next 12-24
months. Highlights of the survey include:
- Only 31% of respondents who do not currently offer
LBS are interested in a 100% onsite installation financed
by infrastructure investments. The rest are interested a
mixed-model solution that requires lower capex investment
offset by higher opex.
- Mobile Resource (or Fleet) Management applications,
like the TrackWell TracScape, are the most in demand while
local chat seems to holds the least appeal in the markets
where these solutions have yet to be implemented.
- Usability ranked highest as a key factor for the
uptake of location-based application. It was followed closely
by reasonable cost and practicality/usefulness.
Fernando Lalanda, Genasys VP of Business Development explains:
"We decided to carry out this survey to bring us closer
to the market's needs, priorities, and concerns. We had
been working on our direct experience with several regional
operators and, as a result, launched our 1·2·3
Hosted LBS solution near the end of 2005. The survey results
show this solution to be ideal for many players in the market
but the results also yielded some surprises. Overall, it
was an illuminating experience."
He adds, We're pleased with the survey's outcome and participation
level and plan to run the second annual "LBS in Latin
Amerca" survey later this year."
