Mobile location services currently offered to consumers include information, tracking, redirection of inbound/outbound calls, mobile advertising and m-Commerce.

Information services will continue to be used extensively, generating income for suppliers worth $4.7 billion by 2004. However, m-Commerce and advertising revenues worth $8 billion by 2005 will surpass information services.

Fluctuating demand for the different services over time and the emergence of consumer demand for m-Commerce will see new business models emerge. This could include possible partnerships between existing suppliers in the market.

The mobile location services market is at a crucial point with mobile connections used for mobile locations services set to increase from 2 million in 2001 to 560 million in 2006.

Ovum research indicates that operators, location technology vendors, and content providers must provide services to consumers that are personalized and easy to use, in order to gain maximum revenue.

While no one technology has emerged as the definitive solution, companies involved in the provision of mobile location services need to start providing services utilizing available technology or they will be left behind. Jeremy Green, Principal Consultant, Ovum explains:

``Although no clear-cut business models have emerged it is still important that companies involved in mobile location services get the ball rolling now.

``There are a number of low cost technologies that can be implemented allowing operators, technology vendors and content providers to start working together to determine effective business models,'' he says.

Ovum's recent research also examined the importance of mobile location accuracy, touted by vendors of positioning technologies as paramount to mobile location service solutions. In contrast the research concludes that accuracy is not tantamount to successful services.

Green says:

``Ovum's research shows that the importance of accuracy is overstated in the industry.

``Many applications can be well supported with low levels of measurement accuracy; if the applications and user interfaces are well designed.

``In addition, high levels of accuracy will not compensate for the poor design of an application. Applications developers should concentrate on the quality of the user experience rather than technical performance indices, he says.''

Clearly the growth in the mobile location services market provides opportunities for those willing to develop services that are user friendly, reliable and match with consumer demand.