Mobile VAS in Latin America: Milking the Slow Transition to Smartphones and 4G

Abstract

As in the rest of the world, mobile value-added services (VAS) are expected to see significant growth in Latin America. However, this does not necessarily mean a sudden revolutionary shift away from traditional services to new services based on mobile broadband. True, mobile broadband connections have indeed been growing strongly, but there are still a relatively small proportion of overall mobile subscriptions in the region, the vast majority of which are prepaid. Increased uptake in mobile broadband and smartphones has also led operators to innovate in their pricing structures to offer custom-made access, content or specific applications as a way to migrate users to higher-value postpaid data plans and to build customer loyalty.