|
As September approaches, news about the new generation of iPhones is becoming more and more popular. According to foreign media reports, the new generation of iPhones may have their own built-in SIM card. Consumers only need to update the network authentication information of this card to freely choose their favorite operator. Since this SIM card is built into the phone, it is very different from the traditional SIM card in appearance, so people also call this technology a virtual SIM card.
What is a Virtual SIM?
We know that in order for a mobile phone to access the operator's network, it must insert the SIM card provided by the operator. Using the authentication information stored in the chip, the mobile phone can quickly and accurately access the operator's network. In other words, the SIM card is like a key to open the door to the network. Only mobile phones with SIM cards inserted are eligible to access the operator's network.
So what's so special about virtual SIM cards? Whether it's a traditional SIM card or a virtual SIM card launched by Apple, it stores the authentication information of the operator's network. By cooperating with multiple operators, Apple can get the network authentication information of different operators in advance. As long as the corresponding information is written into the virtual SIM card, it is equivalent to inserting SIM cards of different operators into the phone (equivalent to one key after another). With these keys, the iPhone can naturally switch to the networks of different operators at will. It is not difficult to see that virtual SIM cards have greatly increased the user's choice space.
Why does the United States need a virtual SIM card?
Although virtual SIM technology is still a long way from us, in the United States across the ocean, this technology has been supported by more and more operators. According to foreign media reports, Apple has reached network cooperation agreements with several US operators including AT&T and T-Mobile. By implanting the network information of these operators into Apple's built-in SIM card, iPhone users can automatically switch to another operator with better network coverage when the network of one operator is poor, and the user experience will be greatly improved.
Why has virtual SIM card technology developed so rapidly in the United States? This is because the United States implements a number portability system, which allows consumers to keep their mobile phone numbers and switch to any operator. For American consumers, the virtual SIM card technology provided by Apple not only reduces the time cost required for network switching, but is also very convenient to operate. For American operators, the network switching of virtual SIM cards can effectively make up for the coverage shortcomings of their own networks and improve user experience.
According to research data released by market research company comScore, as of May 2015, more than 40% of smartphone users in the United States use Apple phones. As the iPhone continues to sell well, more and more American consumers choose to buy mobile phones through Apple's sales channels. As a result, the traditional sales channels of operators have also been affected. In order to obtain Apple's support in sales channels, weak operators represented by T-Mobile and Sprint have become more proactive in cooperating with Apple. Although Apple's traditional ally AT&T also agreed to cooperate, it did not act as actively as the other two.
What is a virtual SIM card with Chinese characteristics?
Since virtual SIM cards have a good future in the United States, will the situation in China be so optimistic? The answer is no. Since China has not yet fully implemented the number portability system, consumers have to change their mobile phone numbers if they want to switch to another operator. Today's mobile phone numbers are often bundled with many important accounts including Alipay and bank cards. Once the number is changed, it will take a long time to change these accounts. It is better to have less trouble than more, so many people can only give up the idea of changing their numbers. When number portability is not fully promoted, even if Apple really launches virtual SIM card technology in China, the effect will be far less than in the United States.
So is virtual SIM card technology really out of reach for Chinese consumers? A piece of news not long ago gave us the answer. In fact, Apple is not the first mobile phone manufacturer to launch a virtual SIM card service. As early as a few months ago, Huawei launched an international roaming service called "Skylink". Through cooperation with foreign operators, Huawei has implanted a large amount of foreign operator authentication information into the virtual SIM card built into the mobile phone. Once consumers go abroad, their mobile phones will automatically connect to the local operator's network. Since the mobile phone uses the SIM card information of the local operator, the cost of mobile phone calls and Internet access is as cheap as buying a local mobile phone card, and the high international roaming charges will become history.
For Chinese consumers, the biggest role of virtual SIM cards is not to change operators at will, but to significantly reduce international roaming charges. With the support of virtual SIM cards, consumers no longer need to buy local SIM cards when traveling abroad. The low call and Internet charges have completely solved the problem of "sky-high international roaming charges", which can be said to be very gratifying.
Will operators be disrupted by Apple's virtual SIM card?
With the launch of virtual SIM card technology, many netizens believe that the virtual SIM card launched by Apple can completely free people from the constraints of operators. If consumers are not satisfied with an operator, they can quickly and conveniently switch to another operator through virtual SIM technology. In order to retain users, operators will inevitably try their best to improve quality and reduce prices, and the good days of "monopoly with huge profits" are over. In other words, the virtual SIM card launched by Apple will have a subversive effect on global operators.
There is some truth to this statement. For a long time, almost all operators have been in an unequal state with Apple. In order to cooperate with Apple, operators often need to invest large sums of money in subsidies. Many operators, including AT&T and China Unicom, have suffered losses due to huge subsidies for iPhones. Not only that, some disadvantaged operators also need to sign a sales guarantee when cooperating with Apple. Once sales are lower than expected, Apple must also compensate for its losses. On the one hand, there is the cost pressure brought by huge subsidies, and on the other hand, there is the super attractiveness of Apple products. Operators love and hate Apple.
It is this Apple that people love and hate that has launched the virtual SIM card business this time. Apple knows very well that the success of the virtual SIM card directly depends on the number of partners. If the number of operators cooperating with it is limited, Apple's virtual SIM card business is not enough to challenge the dominant position of operators. With Apple's super high popularity, most major operators in the world are unwilling to offend such a partner. Even if some strong operators are unwilling to cooperate, more weak operators will still choose to cooperate with Apple. With the increase of partners, the attractiveness of Apple's virtual SIM card will also increase significantly.
As the saying goes, "those who follow me will prosper, and those who oppose me will perish." Once Apple has enough partners, Apple may recommend or even choose operators with whom it can work more closely. As for those strong operators that initially refused to cooperate, what awaits them naturally is a decline in revenue and loss of users. As long as Apple remains strong, any operator is likely to give up its last dignity and choose to abide by the rules of the game set by Apple for its own development. In the end, operators will completely lose their voice and become an unnecessary accessory of Apple.
Summarize:
Although the virtual SIM card launched by Apple will indeed change the dominant situation of operators, Apple still needs to make considerable efforts to completely subvert global operators. For Chinese operators, since number portability has not yet been promoted, virtual SIM cards alone cannot shake the strong position of Chinese operators. For Chinese consumers, the convenience of virtual SIM cards is more reflected in international roaming. Perhaps in the near future, China will also fully implement number portability. By that time, will Chinese operators be able to cope with the challenges from Apple?
As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity. |
