COVID-19 has impacted the Australian mobile services market negatively, according to research from Telsyte, an Australian-based provider of market research and analysis. The industry has seen an overall reduction of mobile services between January and June 2020.
CRN reported that Telsyte’s Australian Mobile Services Market Study FY2020 measured the number of mobile services by tracking the number of handsets, mobile broadband devices, and mobile IoT for business applications. The study found the decline was due to reduced prepaid handsets as tourism and migration have decreased in 2020.
The study did find an increase when it came to business adopted IoT solutions. Telsyte estimated that 4.4 million mobile IoT services were in operation at the end of June 2020, up eight percent from December 2019.
Among the major telcos, Optus and TPG Telecom both were impacted, but Telstra retained its market share due to its strong performance in mobile IoT, reported CRN. The study predicts the number of services will remain the same for the next 12 to 18 months, putting telcos “under increased pressure.”
Telsyte anticipates the numbers will “fuel competition among the players” and drive more market consolidation. “Consumers are set to be the big winners in the next twelve months as mobile service providers battle it out with attractive offers,” according to Telsyte senior analyst Alvin Lee.
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