Text Issues Lead to Network Questions
A few weeks ago I read an article that didn’t surprise me very much, given the habits of my teenage kids – it seems text messaging has finally surpassed call volume. The data, released in late September by Nielsen Mobile, found the average mobile user sends 357 text messages per month, while those in the 13- to 17-year-old age range are sending about 1,742 messages in that same timeframe. The news certainly caught my eye when I read it, and apparently did the same for Nic Covey, Director of Insights at Nielsen Mobile, as he addressed this very issue at this week’s OMMA Mobile.
When a text message is sent between different networks, the data not only needs to make that network switch, it also needs to be routed to the end user’s device after the jump. On a 1:1 text ratio, users aren’t experiencing problems, but as the volume of daily texts continues to grow, network congestion and late delivery of text messages becomes more likely around major events and holidays when a large volume of messages is being sent at the same time (like at midnight on New Year’s Eve), or as new services emerge that push data to subscribers - like a feed from your favorite blog, or game score updates from your favorite team.
As text messaging is expected to remain the highest revenue generator for carriers, bringing in an estimated $177 billion by 2013, text message congestion is an issue carriers need to be aware of and start planning for. While they have been so focused of late on delivering the latest high-bandwidth services over their networks at flawless quality, perhaps it’s time to shift priorities, and it seems Nic agrees – the leaders of the wireless industry need a plan for all that data.
