A study of MVNO diffusion and market structure in the EU, US, Hong Kong, and Singapore

Mobile virtual network operators (MVNO’s) are emerging as alternative channels for network operators to increase market share and drive traffic over their networks. MVNO’s have gained popularity recently in Europe, but have a dismal track record in Asia. In comparing the two regions, this study analyzes how the MVNO market has changed and what opportunities and/or threats network operators and potential MVNO entrants are likely to face. The essential question in next generation MVNO’s is how the roles of mobile network operators, service providers and content producers will change current and future value chains. This study conducts an economic assessment of market structure and environment for different countries’ MVNO diffusion. The data on market structure is analyzed by means of factor analysis techniques in order to group countries according to their market environments. Then, structural equation modeling is used to investigate the relations of MVNO diffusion and independent variables. The results show that the MVNO diffusion significantly relates to market and industry structure.