Telecom Lead America: Cellular module revenues grew 21 percent in 2012.
Based on 2012 shipment data, ABI Research expects to see a further increase in shipments in cellular module reaching nearly 100 million units by 2015.
“Module supplier’s 2013 view of the market is cautiously optimistic to very optimistic. Suppliers with a larger M2M cellular module end-use footprint in Europe are more reserved while those less exposed to Europe are expecting to grab world market share,” said ABI Research Practice Director Dan Shey.
Telematics will be the biggest driver of growth in North America, Latin America, and Middle East/Africa in 2013.
North America is expected to do well in 2013, increasing both its revenue share and shipment share of the module market. Interestingly, the biggest increases in revenue and shipment share in 2013 will come from Latin America, and Middle East/Africa.
Given Europe’s recession, among other factors, positive shipment growth of 2G modules in the region will continue; however, price competition will become more problematic in part due to Asia-Pacific M2M module vendors. SimCom already has a strong European customer base and Huawei is investing significantly in European distribution partnerships.
With infotainment functionality such as music streaming, connected navigation, and social networking having dominated much of the connected car market in 2011 and 2012, traditional safety and security telematics is expected to make a comeback in 2013 due to growing awareness about its importance from consumers and governments alike. Penetration of factory-installed safety and security telematics shipping globally in new cars will reach 15.7 percent in 2013.
Mandates for stolen vehicle tracking in Brazil (CONTRAN) and emergency calling in Russia (ERA GLONASS) are finally becoming a reality in 2013. EU’s eCall is being prepared for launch in 2015.
OEMs and dealerships are increasingly looking at telematics as a customer relationship tool (CRM – Customer Relationship Management) to enhance the car experience, piece of mind of car ownership, and ultimately build a more loyal customer base. In this respect remote diagnostics and in the future remote updates are the core features around which the automotive industry is going to transform into a service industry.
