Wireless Billing Changing Face With Increasing Subscriber Growth, Reports Cahners In-stat Group
NEWTON, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 31, 2000--In a recent report, the high-tech market research firm reported that among wireless carriers surveyed, more than half are satisfied with their current billing systems.
However, almost two-fifths of wireless carriers plan to change their billing systems in the next 12 months. This indicates considerable opportunity for billing vendors over the next year.
"Subscriber growth is a major driver for carriers to upgrade or replace billing systems," said Ken Hyers, analyst for In-Stat's Wireless Strategies Service.
"Wireless is expected to achieve penetration rates of greater than 50 percent in the U.S. by end of 2003, and
carriers are planning to increase their focus on improving customer service and on-systems operations."
In-Stat's research also found:
-- A significant proportion (37%) of wireless carriers are dissatisfied with their current billing solutions. Of those, 65% plan to make billing system changes in the next 12 months.
-- Almost 60% of carriers use in-house billing systems.
-- The single biggest billing challenge to carriers are integration issues. These issues override the importance of costs, and they affect the carrier's ability to offer bundled services.
-- Carrier budgets for maintaining and upgrading their billing systems will increase slightly in the next 12 to 24 months.
-- HP was the vendor of choice for half of the carriers planning to change servers; Sun was the choice of almost 13%.
-- Slightly more than a fifth of the carriers plan on changing database vendors in the course of the next year; Nearly half of those stated they would likely choose Oracle as their new vendor, which could more than triple Oracle's
market-share.
-- Convergys is the leading outsourcer for billing systems. [snip]
CONTACT:
Cahners In-Stat Group
Ken Hyers, 617/558-4528 (Analyst)
email: khyers@cahnersinstat.com
Christina Hecht, 480/483-4443 (Marketing Manager)
email: checht@instat.com
www.instat.com
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