Wow, no such thing as a dull day.
No sooner had we done a round-up on 3G than it looks like things will change again. Based on this morning’s announcement of 3 and Vodafones likely merger as reported, here, here, here and from a media perspective here we wonder what the new carrier landscape may look like?
In terms of total customer numbers Vodafone would still be in third place, but in the key area of 3G would move ahead of Optus.
From a media perspective, this would make Vodafone VHA the #2 player in the mobile marketing and advertising arena. Optus has a nascent commercial model, whereas both 3 and Vodafone are well experienced in commercialising their mobile portals albeit in very different ways.
It will be interesting to see how this blend manifests itself – Vodafone’s team have been very open to trialling opportunities, whereas 3 has tended to favour a more protective stance on customer experience (and making the customer pay for more content). No doubt learning’s from both sides will prove very useful.
The other obvious point is that the new entity will be very strong in the 18-35 segment, a traditional hot spot for many advertisers. As ad dollars begin to flow into all carriers mobile portals (with e-Marketer and several other players predicting 300% growth this year) this should see some stiff competition.
The reality: it will be 6 months before we see any real changes, and it still has to get through a shareholder vote in April and meet with ACCC approval - although one would think the prospect of a third heavyweight in the market would be appealing.
Any other thoughts?
