Mobile subscribers who avoid using their phones abroad present vast revenue opportunity
Mobile operators around the world will miss out on more than $1.2 billion in additional roaming revenues in 2012 due to the prevalence of “silent roamers”, according to research from roaming services provider Syniverse. “Silent roamers” are those international roamers who opt either to minimise or to discontinue their use of mobile services while abroad, generally due to fear of bill shock.
Based on insights from the millions of daily transactions it processes, as well as third-party data from Informa Telecoms & Media, Syniverse has calculated a monthly average of approximately 75 million unique outbound international roamers – subscribers traveling abroad with the potential to use mobile devices. Moreover, the company has calculated that:
- More than 50 percent of those roamers do not use voice services
- Up to 70 percent do not use data services
- Combined, this represents a total lost opportunity of more than $1.2 billion to mobile operators in 2012
With international roaming rates declining and anti-bill-shock measures arising in many markets, Syniverse President and CEO Jeff Gordon said operators need to make it easier and more transparent for subscribers to use mobile services confidently while traveling.
“Our analysis shows that there is a significant amount of money left on the table by end users who turn off their mobile services while traveling. Operators have an opportunity to secure this revenue by identifying silent roamers and reaching out to them in real time with compelling offers to change usage behavior,” Gordon said. “We provide real-time intelligence, so operators can identify these silent roamers and convert them into active, satisfied users.”
With Syniverse’s Real-Time Intelligence solutions portfolio, operators can target individual “silent roamers” who are traveling but use little-to-no services, and provide those subscribers with special offers to incentivise them to use their devices. Additionally, real-time data can allow operators to monitor network connectivity for roamers and make necessary adjustments before any service issues are experienced by subscribers, ensuring first-class quality of experience (QoE) and their continued satisfaction and loyalty as customers.
“With our position at the center of the mobile ecosystem and our market leadership in roaming, network interconnection and messaging, we have an unparalleled view of the subscriber experience. We are the only mobile supplier that can provide this detailed level of information to give operators the precise intelligence they need to drive better experiences and boost revenues,” Gordon concluded.