Next Generation Wireless Applications: Creating Mobile Applications in a Web 2.0 and Mobile 2.0 World, 2nd Edition

3.5 OPERATOR RETAILING

Much of what we have just discussed for D2C retailing applies generally to operator retailing, except to keep in mind that the operator always has a direct financial relationship with the customer, whether they are prepaid or post-paid users. Let us consider some of the key differences from D2C.

• Discovery – all of the means are the same except that the operator will usually have their own resources to hand, such as an existing Web and mobile portal. For pre-installation, operators can have a great deal of control or influence over device vendors, especially in markets where the operator subsidises the handset to the degree that they have a large amount of control over its configuration.
• Distribution – this is the same as for the D2C case, except that an operator will almost certainly have an existing vending service in place to manage the OTA download process.
• Access – an operator controls their own network, so they are able to make the appropriate network resources available to ensure that the service can be accessed. Moreover, they can set the charging rate for the resource, such as the price per message, price per megabyte and so on. However, never make any assumptions about an operator's willingness to do this. A golden rule seems to be that operators do not like to change the configuration of their network if they can avoid it. In some countries, this is cripplingly so. Worse still, if you have a service that requires fulfilling a particular optimisation ...