The impact of #M2M on the mobile network operator

There are some wild forecasts about the potential size of the M2M market and predictions range from optimistic to barely credible. What disagreement there is here tends to be about the scale of growth. All industry analysts are in agreement that the M2M market will grow significantly, where they differ is on exact numbers.

This growth in M2M will have far reaching implications for mobile network operators, the companies whose networks and operations lie at the core of M2M connectivity. Already, over the last few years, MNOs have had to rethink their business models due to the rise of non-voice traffic. This has stretched their ingenuity and networks to the limit as they find ways to cope with and monetize a huge rise in mobile data traffic.

Figures just released from the GSM Association suggest that  more than 12 billion devices will be connected over the mobile network and that the M2M market potential for its members lies somewhere around the $1.2 trillion mark.

So how will MNOs adapt to this new market? That’s a big question and it’s going to require MNOs to break out of their comfort zone and come face to face with a host of new devices, tariffs and packages. They’re going to need to be commercially flexible, technically adaptable and willing to fit themselves to a host of (as yet uninvented) business models.