Roaming Tariff Market Growth & Trends

The global roaming tariff market size is expected to reach USD 100.93 billion by 2028, growing at a CAGR of 5.1% from 2021 to 2028, according to a study conducted by Grand View Research, Inc. Adopting roaming analytics and expanding VoLTE networks worldwide is anticipated to favor market growth. The growing inclination of telecom service providers to rollout 5G services is presumed to pave the way for market growth over the forecast period. In recent times, Blockchain has started making in-roads into the roaming industry. Blockchain gives clear visibility into users’ activities on a network. This helps carriers or communication service providers in payment reconciliation and keep track of any fraudulent activity. Recently, companies, such as Telefonica SA, Deutsche Telekom AG, and Vodafone Group Plc, have also shown interest in integrating Blockchain in their business operation.

In 2020, COVID-19 disrupted the market, primarily due to the international travel restrictions and lockdown imposed across several countries that resulted in a shortfall in international roaming revenue. This trend is anticipated to continue in 2021, with the virus making a resurgence with a new variant and prospects of a lockdown back on cards in several nations. To mitigate the losses incurred, operators began to focus on diversifying revenue streams by capitalizing on video conferencing and OTT services while exploring new opportunities to generate long-term prospects. Carriers are expected to offset the declining revenue by emphasizing new services.

Roaming Tariff Market Report Highlights

  • The demand for national roaming services is expected to witness slow growth from 2021 to 2028, as against pre-covid forecasts
  • Although the situation began to improve towards the end of 2020, a new variant of the virus resulted in global travel restrictions hampering the segment growth
  • In addition to tourism, another major challenge the industry faced came from a drop in business travel
  • Amidst the pandemic, business travel took a massive hit due to the newly minted work-from-home model and proliferation of virtual conferences/events
  • Asia Pacific is estimated to be the fastest-growing regional market with a CAGR exceeding 6% from 2021 to 2028 due to the rising adoption of travel SIMs, new tariff plans, and penetration of connected devices
  • M&A will play a crucial role in helping vendors expand their presence globally. Tie-ups with local incumbents will go a long way in establishing regional footprints for international vendors