Location-based service set to grow as a mobile feature: TNS

Telecom Lead America: Location-based service (LBS)
is set to grow most as the leading mobile feature with over 60 percent of those
that don’t yet use the service globally want to start using them, revealed by
insights consultancy TNS.

The study says that almost 19 percent of the world’s six
billion mobile users are already using LBS, with more than three times this
number (62 percent) aspiring to do so in the future.

 

Navigation with maps and GPS is currently the most
popular motivation behind the LBS uptake (46 percent), but there is growing
interest in more diverse activities, with 13 percent of current social network
users ‘checking-in’ through platforms like Foursquare, or Facebook Places.

 

LBS users are increasingly using services to enrich
their social lives, with one in five (22 percent) using it to find their
friends nearby.  Around a quarter use the technology to find restaurants
and entertainment venues (26 percent) or check public transport schedules (19
percent) and 8 percent to book a taxi.

 

“We are really starting to see location based services
‘come of age’. People are realizing that sharing their location often offers
some kind of reward in terms of a discount or deal. It is the combination of
time and context – directing people towards a deal when they can easily redeem
it – that unlocks a powerful tool for marketers to develop precise targeting
approaches,” said James Fergusson, global head, digital & technology
practice, at TNS.

 

Applications of LBS also differ widely around the
world.  In the technology-saturated markets of developed Asia 36
percent of people use location services to find restaurants and entertainment
venues nearby, whereas in China this falls to 17 percent.

 

Region wise, Latin Americans most use the feature to find
friends, with 39 percent stating it as the top reason to share their location,
compared to only 11 percent in India.

 

Finding friends through LBS stands to just 9 percent
in North America and 20 percent in Europe.

 

Indian telecom operators seeking govt. subsidy to deploy LBS
infrastructure

 

In India, Location Based Services (LBS) require massive
investments by the operators for its deployments, and the government’s monetary
help can give it wings.

 

 editor@telecomlead.com

 

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