Mobile phone manufacturer operators want to compete for SIM card control

A small SIM card has caused waves between the consistent mobile phone manufacturers and operators. Behind the waves is the game of control over the mobile phone number.

Recently, at the World Mobile Conference held in Shanghai, the GSMA (GSM Association) working group joined forces with mainstream mobile network operators, mobile phone manufacturers and SIM card providers to discuss eSIM (Embedded SIM, embedded SIM) technology in the field of smart phones. specifications. GSMA is a mobile communications industry organization consisting of more than 800 operators, more than 200 mobile phones, and Internet companies.

Different from the previous form of issuing SIM cards by operators, eSIM refers to pre-installing SIM cards when terminals such as smart phones are shipped. This technology is likely to completely change the way consumers sign contracts with mobile operators. Previously, Apple had launched Apple SIM on iPad Air2, and consumers could choose the traffic of several operators on the iPad. This was interpreted by a large number of media as a technology that “subversives operators”.

Clearly, embedded SIM technology gives many terminal vendors an opportunity to control their mobile numbers, which means adding billions of entries. According to the latest report from market research firm IC Insights, in 2014, there were 4.4 billion independent mobile phone users worldwide, accounting for 60% of the global population, while SIM card holdings were close to 7.5 billion, exceeding the global population.

To this end, Samsung and Apple chose the united front to promote technical standards and changed the two sides' previous tit-for-tat in the global patent war. At the same time, on July 15, Gemalto, the world's largest SIM card manufacturer, and ZTE jointly demonstrated this technology in the latter's smartphones.

In addition, another senior SIM card manufacturer also told reporters: "In the mobile phone manufacturers that contact us, Huawei and Xiaomi are very eager for this technology." The reporter consulted Huawei and Xiaomi, Huawei has not given a reply, and Xiaomi’s attitude Unclear, Wei Lai, senior director of Xiaomi Technology Market, told reporters: "At present, we will not comment." Xiaomi has already approved the mobile resale business license.

Resist Apple SIM

The GSMA introduced the eSIM concept in 2010, when the GSMA was designed to address the networking problems of M2M terminals. Due to the wide range of IoT coverage, GSMA hopes that eSIM has the capabilities of terminal pre-installation, independent carrier, autonomous activation, flexible switching of operators, etc., while traditional SIM cards do not support these capabilities.

This technical concept is not only applicable to the Internet of Things, it also brings great changes to the mobile phone market.

"If eSIM is popular, users can choose one carrier's service at the same time as they buy mobile phones from mobile phone manufacturers, and they can switch between multiple operators." Well-known telecom expert Cheng Dejie told reporters: "Under ideal conditions, These operations do not need to go through the operator at all."

At the beginning of eSIM, Apple was eyeing this technology. This can help Apple seize the control of the number from the operator, but also meet the consumer's unwillingness to be tied up by the operator.

According to people familiar with the matter, before the launch of the iPhone 5, Apple had a stalemate with the telecom operators about "iPhone 5 or not SIM card". Although Apple is very strong, there is almost no operator support, and Apple did not do so.

In October 2014, Apple finally launched Apple SIM at the launch of iPad Air2. In the iPad setup option, users can enter the “Apple SIM” option and arbitrarily choose the carrier business. However, there are only four operators joining Apple SIM - AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, and UK operator EE. In addition, GIGSKY, which provides global traffic services for roaming users, also joins Apple SIM. Thanks to GIGSKY's business coverage, Apple SIM is promoted to 93 countries.

However, these 93 countries do not include China, Japan, and South Korea. On the Apple China official website, all relevant Apple SIM introductions have been revoked. Apple SIM is also not supported by the world's largest Verizon and major European carriers. Moreover, Apple SIM has not been able to add any other partners since its launch.

Even the four supporters don't fully support Apple SIM. According to John Legere, CEO of T-Mobile, on Twitter, "The iPads that must be bought from AT&T and Sprint can use their services, and once iPad users choose Sprint and AT&T, they cannot switch to other carriers." At this point, Apple did not let Apple SIM change operators and change the way users use SIM.

Entrance dispute

"From SIM to eSIM, it's not just technology, but the entire industry chain." Zhang Chu, deputy general manager of the Wichi Data Telecom Division, told reporters: "The publisher of SIM cards has also changed from the original operator to the terminal manufacturer. "Watch data is the fifth largest smart card manufacturer in the world, with nearly 400 million SIM cards sold each year."

All new services of the operators are completed by issuing SIM cards. "Apple suddenly grabbed the operator's biggest sales business." Zhang Chu said: "The impact of this business model is too big, how can operators not resist Apple SIM?"

At the same time, "When Apple writes the carrier's code number resources, link information, and data security to iCloud, the operator says goodbye to the user." Cheng Dejie said that the operator has directly changed from B2C to B2B. The object of negotiation is the consistently strong enterprises such as Apple and Samsung. "Operators can only compete for users from Apple's platform through price wars and subsidies without cost."

More seriously, the mobile phone number is almost the only link between the operator and the user, and is the only entry for the operator's Internet service. The operator's home theater, games, music, reading, SMS billing, mobile payment, etc. Both rely on the support of mobile phone numbers. If the number control is lost, the operator's Internet business will no longer have a place to stand.

However, operators are not blindly obstructing eSIM. Because eSIM can significantly reduce the operator's SIM card procurement cost and code number resource management cost, and China Mobile Research Institute Luo Hong said: "If operators can control eSIM technology, operators can further enhance user stickiness, control, and even When working with terminal manufacturers, they can get a better voice." Luo Hong said that operators can achieve this effect, but she did not disclose the details of the technical architecture. It is conceivable that operators hope that GSMA will incorporate this technical architecture that is beneficial to them into the standard.

In March 2015, the GSMA re-released the news, claiming that it will develop new technical specifications to enable consumers to activate embedded SIM cards for devices such as tablets or wearable devices through mobile network operators of their choice. According to the GSMA plan, the results of this plan will be released in the third quarter of 2015, and the general specification for remote configuration of consumer equipment is expected to be introduced before 2016.

It should be pointed out that in the new technical specifications, the GSMA did not include smartphones in planning. This trade-off helped the GSMA to be supported by 14 operators, including AT&T, Vodafone, Deutsche Telekom and other mainstream operators. However, the world's largest operator Verizon, China's three major operators, as well as South Korea's KT, Japan's Softbank and other giants are not on the list of "supporters."

Moreover, the discussion of technical specifications is also controversial. On July 15, Benoit Jouffrey, vice president of Gemalto ODC (On Demand Configuration Services), who participated in the discussion of this specification, said, “The overall structure has been agreed, and everyone is promoting technical details.” But Luo Hong told reporters: “Not yet. A consensus is not enough to set standards.” She said that we must also consider some of the security and data management issues that eSIM brings to users.

In addition to operators, terminal vendors do not fully support eSIM. A well-known domestic terminal manufacturer also told reporters: "The technology, standards and number management of SIM cards are still dominated by operators. We still choose to follow the technical routes of operators."

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