Operators to lose $25 billion in roaming revenue, says Juniper

Travel restrictions in place means people won’t be using roaming data

Operators face losing $25 billion in roaming revenue in the next nine months due to the coronavirus, according to Juniper Research. 

Juniper expects this to be the figure in the worst case scenario, as the global pandemic continues to shutdown most markets.

Although global roaming revenue only accounts for six per cent of total operator billed revenue per year, Juniper anticipates the travelling restrictions in place to have a big impact. 

Operators will face huge revenue losses with roaming as people won’t be travelling, with Juniper estimating around 650 million passenger trips will be cancelled due to the global outbreak.

The months between June and August in particular is anticipated to be the most damaging period for operators, with $12 billion of the revenue lost in these three months during the peak period for travel.

During this time, Juniper don’t expect operators to mitigate their loss in revenue, with roaming revenue loss unlikely to be recovered even once the travel industry resumes normal service.