According to Frost & Sullivan, U.S. carriers can leverage the investment they are required to make to improve E911 services, by using the improved technologies to market location-based services (LBS). The research and analysis firm says that LBS promises a lucrative revenue stream and presents carriers with a way to differentiate services in an increasingly competitive mobile environment.

Frost & Sullivan recently completed a white paper which reveals that with annual U.S. LBS revenues projected to reach $3.5 billion by 2013, many high-revenue services such as navigation, fleet management, friend/family finder, mobile social networking and local search require higher accuracy from the network. To achieve higher levels of accuracy, Frost & Sullivan suggests carriers consider deploying a hybrid location determination solution that meets both the E911 standards and customers’ LBS requirements.

 

“One of the worst things a carrier can do is hype LBS and then not deliver an adequate level of service to its customers,” said Brent Iadarola, research director for Mobile & Wireless Communications Practice at Frost & Sullivan, in a statement. “Customer dissatisfaction can be avoided by deploying a location technology that directly addresses the largest markets and seamlessly integrates complementary technologies to provide the highest possible accuracy across all environments.”

Today, U.S. wireless subscriber penetration stands at more than 75%, with more than 250 million Americans using cell phones. Recognizing the growing enthusiasm for location-enabled wireless applications and anticipating the ongoing resolution of various market and technological issues, Frost & Sullivan forecasts a sizable LBS market opportunity in the United States.  However, the firm warns that currently no single technology alone meets the location accuracy needs of LBS applications and E911 across all calling environments.