Published on the 02/03/2011 | Written by Newsdesk
An industry expert says mobile operators are helping grow competitor’s market share.
A new report by Ovum principal analyst Eden Zoller says mobile operators should not underestimate the threat that Facebook poses. It follows Facebook’s integration deal with Skype and last November’s email offering. Zoller says there is also ongoing speculation that Facebook will launch its own phone.
“Facebook is encroaching directly on mobile operator territory,” Zoller says.
“It has come a very long way since it first launched Facebook Mobile in 2006. It is now a force to be reckoned with in mobile with over 200 million users interacting with the service via mobile phone.
The independent telecoms analyst says operators tend to view Facebook as a platform to form partnerships with and offer easy access to.
“Facebook is much more than a social network – this is just a starting point and its domain spreads much wider,” she says.
“It is better viewed as an increasingly rich platform for communications and content. Facebook wants to integrate with everything and be the main way that people consume and share information, anywhere and on any device.”
She says it is turning increasing attention to location-based services with its places platform and is pushing into mobile advertising in the shape of the Facebook Deals ‘check-in’ service. She also says Facebook applications dominate stores across most smartphone operating systems.
“There is also intense ongoing speculation that Facebook will come out with its own phone, which in some respects would be the final piece of the puzzle. However, we don’t think that Facebook is any rush to launch its own hardware just yet, although it could be interested in working with partners on a customised device platform. This would in effect make Facebook a social operating system.”
She also says that despite the risks that Facebook poses, there are many reasons for operators to partner with the site.
“It is only by understanding Facebook fully that operators can engage with it effectively, be that on a collaborative or competitive basis.”
