Battle for mobile content market rages

Despite the massive capital base and global reach of handsets manufacturers, the device-specific service is a major stumbling block in pushing their content and applications.

“Operators can fight back and remain in the driving seat for value-added services by promoting operator-hosted and device-neutral value-added services. Their chances of winning are quite good, in particular in emerging economies where internet services have yet to take off in the mass market,” Brinkschulte adds.

Analysts add that mobile operators could also exploit their billing relationship with end users and their ability to control the price of services.

For instance, they can boost success of their own offerings by offering a flat rate for accessing them while charging volume-based fees for accessing internet —the channel through which handset manufacturers offer their services and content.