Tuesday, 24 June 2008

Carriers Still Unsure About FMC

The benefits of seamless roaming between wireline and wireless networks is gaining steam, but many challenges remain before Fixed Mobile Convergence (FMC) is widely deployed. Chief among these challenges is finding a compelling business case for most wireless carriers, who view FMC as a contra-revenue threat, according to a study done by high-tech market research firm In-Stat.

"This is clearly the case in the US, with the exception of T-Mobile, which has primarily been focused on the consumer market," says David Lemelin, In-Stat analyst.

"In-Stat believes communications industry leaders will not be dissuaded by lagging felt need for FMC solutions by businesses, and will aim to develop compelling solutions that, once experienced, will lead to viral adoption over the next several years."

Other findings from the study titled “Enterprise FMC: A Lot of Activity, but Lacking Demand for Now" revealed that:

• 20% of businesses with Wi-Fi capability use voice over Wi-Fi.

• It remains to be seen whether FMC can be revenue-generating or simply become a differentiated throw-in to lure businesses to traditional and emerging wireline and wireless network services.

• Despite lagging demand, dual-mode cellular/Wi-Fi handset shipments will increase significantly over the next several years, with SIP phones outstripping UMA phones.