Evolutions in operator retail channels

Our previous report 'Mobile retail - don't sell yourself short' provided an overview of issues affecting the mobile retail and distribution market. In this report look specifically at operators' retail strategies for both web and physical channels, and how they might evolve going forward.

As many Western European mobile markets reach well over 100% penetration and connection growth slows down, so operators' retail and distribution strategies have evolved. The 'pile it high, sell it cheap' approach designed to attract as many new connections as possible is no longer attractive, particularly as investors and analysts alike begin to focus on EBIDTA and margins as a measure of success, rather than connections growth. In addition, there is a question over what the retail-store landscape will look like in a few years - who will own the retail channel? As such, operators have begun to look at their retail channel mix and how they utilise each of these channels.