WHEATON, Maryland, United States-To succeed in wireless e-commerce, companies will have to invest in applications that have no pre-existing equivalent, according to “Wireless E-Commerce: Building Blocks for Success,” a new study compiled by Herschel Shosteck Associates.
Jane Zweig, executive vice president of Herschel Shosteck Associates, said although e-commerce is rapidly becoming a successful practice for many businesses, differences between wireless and landline networks, terminals and usage models mean e-commerce will not mirror the Internet experience.
Rich Luhr, director of technology strategy for the firm, concurred. “Wireless users will have differing expectations of e-commerce. Applications will succeed which are uniquely wireless. The lessons of the Internet can help the industry avoid repeating the mistakes of history, but the landline Internet will not fully define wireless e-commerce,” he said.
“Wireless industry firms must recognize that the influence of the Internet means that wireless is no longer an island,” said Zweig. “Partnerships with Internet content firms will be important for early entrants to the market. For network operators, gaining revenue from airtime rather than transaction fees will be crucial to long-term success. This will put pressure on the network operator’s back office systems.”
The study points to why the best opportunities in wireless e-commerce are yet to come.
Limitations of current mobile technologies, limitations of bandwidth in current data networks, the high cost of wireless data services, the immaturity of e-commerce terminals and the immaturity of e-commerce offerings all contribute to the firm’s prediction that wireless e-commerce which can rival landline e-commerce is still years away.
“However, niche opportunities exist for competitors willing to work within the constraints of current technology-particularly if those firms have a path to take advantage of future technology,” said Zweig.
