7/10 operators see OTT opportunity

70 per cent of mobile operators believe that over-the-top service providers present an opportunity for partnership, rather than a threat. Furthermore, 64 per cent of operators acknowledge that OTT players bring innovation to the industry, although 42 per cent of them claim they could offer any service an OTT player can deliver, but better.

The statistics are the findings of research conducted by research firm Coleman Parks for customer experience solutions provider Amdocs. The research consisted of 100 telephone interviews among executive decision makers at service providers, OTT players and device manufacturers globally.

The research also appeared to reveal a power struggle over which party “owns” the customer experience. 66 per cent of service providers said that they must “own the customer” in any partnering agreement, while only 13per cent of device manufacturers and 14 per cent of OTT players are prepared to envision a future in which they cede ownership of the customer experience.

“While service providers used to form partnerships mainly for roaming and with device manufacturers, today they must navigate a more complex environment full of over-the-top, internet, financial settlement and other players,” said Ian Parkes of Coleman Parkes. “Our research goal was to explore this new world, and we were surprised that service providers view OTT players as an opportunity, not a threat, and by the broad agreement on the value of service providers’ core assets.”