March 13, 2010 - Research and Markets : Continuing pressure on voice revenues from regulators and competitors eroding prices, including those in previously high-margin areas such as roaming and call termination, has encouraged mobile operators to focus on mobile broadband as a means to address shortfalls in both ARPU and EBITDA.

Even in the most saturated markets with mobile penetration levels over 130%, mobile broadband has been able to deliver growth in the numbers of profitable subscribers. But has this focus on acquisition and short-term profitability resulted in dangerous inattention to the issue of retention? In some markets, mobile broadband capability has been oversold resulting in a backlash of user opinion, with mobile broadband suffering from being relegated to being perceived as merely an extension of a fixed broadband subscription. This is problematic anyway, but poor market perception may hinder MNO efforts to gain a return on the major infrastructure investments required for the planned deployment of 4G (e.g. LTE) technologies.

This report examines a number of mobile broadband markets to analyse the critical success factors in developing a sustainable and viable (profitable) revenue stream and explores the vital issue of customer retention, concluding with concrete recommendations for MNOs wishing to maximise the benefits they derive from this area.

For more information visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/6b20b3/mobile_broadband