A study by Juniper Research shows that mobile video calling prospects have improved in the last eighteen months due to the increasing availability of front-facing cameras on mobile phones, the release of video calling services by mobile carriers, and improvements in technology.
The increasing dominance of smartphones in developed markets and the simple way of downloading apps have improved the market for mobile voice over IP (mVoIP).
The role that voice calls plays within the mobile communications market will change as it will become available within other applications, such as social networking and games, according to Juniper Research’s Mobile Voice & Video Calling report. The alliance between a number of mVoIP providers and Facebook, and Microsoft’s acquisition of Skype are expected to greatly accelerate this trend.
“Services such as Apple’s FaceTime have brought mobile video calling to the public consciousness,” said Anthony Cox, an associate analyst at Juniper Research. However, the lack of a standardized approach and the unavailability of a route to monetize new IP-based mobile video calling may hold mobile video calling back from becoming a mass-market service in the future.
The research also found that mobile video calling services and mVoIP will develop faster in developed markets due to “the direct correlation between 3G and 4G roll outs and the take up of mobile VoIP and mobile video calling.” It also found that basic video calling services are offered by players for free to kick-start the market.
The Mobile Voice & Video Calling Whitepaper and more details of the study Mobile Voice & Video Calling: Strategic Opportunities & Business Models 2011-2016 can be downloaded from Jupiter Research’s website.
