Get the latest announcements from MEF Members across the mobile ecosystem globally in this weekly review of member news…
BICS boosts 5G data roaming with Three Austria and Sunrise
BICS has launched 5G data roaming services between the Austrian operator, Three Austria, and Swiss telecommunications company, Sunrise UPC, leveraging its 5G global IPX network.
BICS said the development is a “major advancement” in the roll-out of global 5G roaming within Europe, adding that download speeds will be “multiples times faster” than those of previous 4G roaming.
Frederic Salmon, CCO of BICS said: “By enhancing 5G inter-operator connectivity, BICS is fully supporting mobile operators in their post-Covid growth strategies through new technology rollouts.
“5G deployment is ready for a return to growth. 5G roll-outs are advancing at a faster rate than seen with previous mobile connectivity generations. Leveraging our unrivalled global IPX network reach, BICS can help operators harness the power of new 5G use cases across the consumer and enterprise markets, by providing borderless, next-generation connectivity for data-hungry subscribers, companies and devices.”
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Best Practices for Building a Secure Foundation for RCS
iconectiv joins international panel of experts for MEF Connects Virtual Panel
Rich Communication Services (RCS) that power Rich Business Messaging (RBM) is bringing a new level of efficiency and effectiveness for business-to-consumer (B2C) engagement. Expected to enable $112 billion in sales for online and brick-and-mortar retailers, RBM delivers the full power of the internet directly to the native messaging app on the mobile phone. As the industry marches forward to realize the financial and customer service benefits that this enhanced messaging channel promises, RBM has an opportunity to incorporate a verification framework early on, to help mitigate fraud that has eroded consumer confidence in traditional voice calls and text messaging channels.
This and other important topics will be the focus of MEF Connects: Business Messaging—a virtual event taking place March 22-24, 2021—where the mobile and digital technology industry meet to explore the role of technology in helping businesses build strong customer relationships.
During the event, iconectiv Chief Technology Officer Chris Drake will join other global industry experts to discuss RBM and how the industry can help ensure the platform is a trusted channel for business-to-consumer communications, right from the start.
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ZARIOT hires Saint Patrick to drive the snakes out of IoT
Saint Patrick driving the snakes out of Ireland proves irresistible for IoT connectivity provider ZARIOT, in quest to transform the IoT security landscape.
ZARIOT, with the aim of securing the future of IoT has signed a one year exclusive contract with Saint Patrick to replicate his successes in converting unbelievers to believers and driving the snakes from Ireland.
“We had the top executive search firms engaged to find the person we needed. It was a long effort and scoured over 1,000 shortlisted candidates, however as soon as I saw Paddy’s CV I was sold. We just needed to introduce him to the team and see if he would fit culturally,” Dawood Ghalaieny, CEO at ZARIOT mentioned.
The onboarding process included lengthy discussions, talking through the issues the world was having with IoT –including control of misbehaving IoT devices causing network disruption, nefarious actors taking IoT devices out of service, using IoT devices to to track their locations, and so on.
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Mobile messaging in 2021
2020 was a significant year for business messaging, as we saw an upward trend in its usage. It quickly became an indispensable communication channel for brands to stay connected with their customers, keeping them engaged and informed.
It also played a key role for customer support, as more businesses started to deploy mobile chat services and automation in line with consumer demands. It proved vital for enterprises to send key and relevant messages to their audience, enabling them to provide a better customer experience.
As new mobile technology continues to emerge, along with customer expectations, we believe this appetite for mobile messaging will only grow stronger. People today are using their smartphones heavily every day and are more accustomed to online engagement. This means brands will eventually have to turn to platforms such as Rich Communication Services (RCS), WhatsApp and Apple Business Chat to provide the service their customers will come to expect.
Brands are using SMS now more than ever to communicate with their audience. We have seen the usage increase by 33 to 40 percent since the pandemic. According to Research and Markets, the global A2P messaging market is expected to reach $77.1 Billion by 2026. Therefore, the ability to personalise, initiate a two-way conversation and send timely, relevant messaging makes mobile communication very important to the recipient.
Infobip’s Communications Platform-as-a-Service now available on Microsoft Azure
Global cloud communications company, Infobip’s full Communications Platform-as-a-Service offering is now available on Microsoft Azure, extending the enterprise customer base globally for Infobip, particularly in the finance, e-commerce and retail sectors, and allow it to expand its core market footprint.
The Azure deployment is the latest step in Infobip’s technology collaboration with Microsoft that sees Infobip adding its omnichannel capability to Microsoft’s platforms for the benefit of all enterprise and B2B customers seeking easy to scale customer engagement and customer service solutions that span contact center, marketing, security, and authentication services.
“As the markets and ecosystem evolve, we increasingly see areas of ‘co-opetition’ where companies are partnering and competing,” said Silvio Kutic, CEO, Infobip. “I see these instances as opportunities to find Go-To-Market ways together for the benefit of the customer. This collaboration is more than about creating a wider reseller network or reach a bigger client base or simply bigger clients. Of course, it does help with these goals rather it’s also about providing a more open and integrated arena to power digital customer experience as we enter the hyper-connected era of 5G.”
