Alcatel-Lucent reveals consumer expectations for new mobile services and the impact of the ‘Internet of Things’

Paris, France, July 21, 2015

Extensive research carried out by Alcatel-Lucent (Euronext Paris and NYSE: ALU) has revealed that consumers are increasingly looking to service providers to offer them high-definition voice and video calling services over LTE and Wi-Fi^® .

In a study of 5,500 smartphone owners in the U.S., the U.K., Japan and Brazil, Alcatel-Lucent also identified how new technologies such as wearables, connected homes and cars, and the Internet of Things will change the way they use services and interact with their mobile devices in the future.

Service providers are seeing voice and messaging service revenues erode in the face of competition from a plethora of companies delivering smartphone apps. To counteract this trend and allow service providers to grow their business with innovative revenue-generating offers, Alcatel-Lucent, in collaboration with research-based consultancy, Penn Schoen Berland, has identified the new services that smartphone users want, and how they expect to use and pay for them in a set of reports titled “5,504 Smartphone Consumers Can’t be Wrong – 7 New Mobile Service Opportunities”.

In the seven reports, Alcatel-Lucent investigates future demand growth for voice, messaging, video calling and upcoming communication service innovations for consumers and connected ’things’, including wearables and connected cars. The reports also address new ways for enterprises to engage with their smartphone-owning customers. Providing clear recommendations and a breakdown of demographics, service providers can use the information to differentiate their offers, explore ways to tailor services to various customer segments, and in turn, grow their revenue.

Key findings from the research:

• More than 30% of U.S. consumers expect that the ability to experience VoLTE-enabled high-definition voice will lead them to make more or longer calls.

• Around half of consumers surveyed in the U.S. and U.K. and 80% of those surveyed in Brazil expect to use video calling more over the next five years.

• More than 60% of smartphone consumers in U.S., U.K. and Brazil are interested in using video calls to interact with enterprises.

• Between 78% and 97% of all respondents said they will use Wi-Fi calling if offered by their service provider. Addressing areas of poor coverage is the primary motivator in the U.S., the U.K. and Brazil while saving minutes in the voice plan is the main driver in Japan.

• More than 60% of U.S., U.K. and Japanese smartphone consumers are willing to pay for machine-triggered communication services, with that percentage rising even higher in Brazil.

Josh Aroner, Vice President, IP Platforms, Alcatel-Lucent, said: “Smartphone owners today know what they want in terms of apps and services and this report helps service providers cut through the clutter, identify opportunities for differentiation from over-the-top players, and recognize real business benefits. Through our expertise in IP networking and ultra-broadband access, we’re eager to work with customers to glean actionable insights from primary consumer data such as this. And we can help them pursue new mobile service opportunities using our extensive portfolio – including our Rapport™ cloud communications software, which simplifies services delivery while enabling service innovation.”

Accessing the Report

Alcatel-Lucent will release the research and recommendations in seven bi-weekly reports through the end of October 2015. Opt-in to receive the reports or access them from a dedicated Internet page. They include:

• “I See You” – From Voice to Video, to be released on August 4.
• “Set The Bar High” in Wi-Fi Calling, to be released on August 18.
• “There’s An App For That!” – Mobile Calling and Texting, to be released on September 1.
• “Revenue Ahead” – Service Innovation Ideas, to be released on September 15.
• “Disposable Me” in the Era of Privacy, to be released on September 29.
• “Kick it up a Notch” in Business to Consumer Interactions, to be released on October 13.
• “Call Me – Maybe” - the Internet of Things, to be released on October 27.

About Penn Schoen Berland

Penn Schoen Berland (PSB) is a global strategic communication advisory rooted in the science of public opinion that specializes in messaging and strategy for blue-chip political, corporate, and entertainment clients. PSB has over 40 years of experience leveraging unique insights about consumer opinion to provide clients with a competitive advantage, what we call Winning Knowledge™. Penn Schoen Berland serves Fortune 100 corporations and has helped elect more than 30 presidents and prime ministers around the world. PSB is a part of Y&R Brands and WPP.