NEW YORK—Technological advances are leaving wireline providers increasingly vulnerable to competition from wireless operators, according to a report released this week by Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu.
The study indicates that while wireless carriers can’t match the bandwidth of wireline service yet, carriers can best take advantage of coming technologies by targeting undervalued markets and investing to meet the needs of mass-market telephony users instead of focusing on high-usage corporate customers. Operators should also begin actively promoting wireless as a substitute for local fixed-line service, Deloitte urged.
“The question is not when wireless service will be as good as wireline,” said Phil Asmundson, national managing partner of Deloitte’s U.S. Technology, Media & Telecommunications group. “The question is when wireless will catch up with the actual needs of mainstream wireline customers—in effect, when will wireless be ‘good enough’… Now, as innovations such as 3G and Wi-Fi take hold, wireless providers have the opportunity to truly penetrate the mainstream market.’”
