US Consumers Have Strong Preference for Converged Voice

US broadband consumer households have an overwhelming preference for converged voice services (CVS) that integrate mobile and fixed communication, reports In-Stat. According to a recent In-Stat survey of US broadband households, consumers strongly favor buying all household services from a single service provider, the high-tech market research firm says. Despite the fact that PSTN voice services are the least valued of all household communication services, a significant portion of service bundle consumers would migrate to another supplier to obtain CVS.

"Operators need not wait for full fixed/mobile network convergence," says Keith Nissen, In-Stat analyst. "All the necessary technology is available today. All it will take is for one major service provider to embrace CVS, and the voice communications market will be forever changed."

Recent research by In-Stat found the following:

• CVS appeals to consumers of all ages, even those currently using mobile-only voice services.
• Nearly 85% of consumers that prefer CVS would pay $20 per month for the service.
• CVS could be generating over US$8.6 billion annually in the US and US$1.1 billion in Canada by 2011.

Posted to the site on 31st October 2007