The opening keynote of the inaugural MVNO Nation USA event in 2025 was a highly important one. The MVNO market is rapidly evolving, facing disruption from all directions, and heading into a future that hasn’t yet been shaped.
For both new and established MVNOs, understanding the changing ecosystem is vital.
Daniel Guzmics, Manager, Arthur D. Little Austria opened the first day of MVNO Nation USA 2025 by asking this question:
Where did the MVNO ecosystem start, and where do we stand now, as the models have evolved and the market has matured over time?
And what does that evolution mean for MVNOs trying to grow or maintain a strong customer base in 2026 and beyond?
In order to understand why and how the MVNO ecosystem is in its current state, it’s helpful to briefly reflect on where it started, especially if you’re a newer market entrant.
The traditional approach that the early-movers and original MVNOs adopted revolved around one of two models:
- To attract as broad of an audience as possible with a mainstream offering, typically by using appealing price points.
- To create a more niche or targeted offering for one particular market segment, and attract customers that way.
“Why is it necessary to bring this traditional approach up?” said Daniel. “Because it’s important to understand this is not the way things are done anymore.”
The MVNO ecosystem of today doesn’t look like that anymore. You must evolve to remain relevant and competitive.
How has the market changed?
“What we’ve seen in recent years is the B2C space for MVNOs is now quite a crowded market,” explained Daniel. “The amount of MVNOs is still rising, and we expect that trend to continue to accelerate, but the market pretty much stays the same.”
“Adding to this challenge, we don’t only have the mainstream and the segmented offerings mentioned earlier anymore. We now have more diversity in the market, with travel offerings that are also threatening the MNOs and the existing MVNOs.”
“We now also have the integrated offering, mostly provided by FinTech companies, and that’s really a game-changer in our opinion.”
And why are these new kinds of offerings so significant in Daniel’s opinion?
Because, for the first time, many of your customers are going to ask themselves the question:
Do I still need an MVNO, or can I just use my FinTech app?
“An example of a disruptor to look at here is N26, who launched last year,” said Daniel. “This organisation launched its own telco, essentially, in Germany, supported by 1GLOBAL. They allow customers to select mobile plans and simply use them.”
“We’ve also seen this model with other FinTech companies like Revolut. They have a travel SIM offering, especially for premium customers. But now we also really see a move towards the core MVNO market. That’s quite an interesting development, and has a lot of disruption potential.”
Even more innovation and disruption are on the horizon in the coming years, as more businesses identify their points of leverage and attempt to attract their existing customers into new mobile offerings.
Daniel sees those FinTech companies as just the beginning of this new wave. Potential for further disruption in the market will come as more organisations move to a connectivity offering, which they can provide in their existing customer-facing apps.
“Think about the travel industry,” said Daniel. “Imagine what brands like Marriott Bonvoy could do, Lufthansa, even Booking.com. There’s huge disruption potential.”
So, for MVNOs, a very realistic and important question you must begin to ask as part of your strategic planning is this:
Five years from now, how will you ensure your customers want to continue to use a dedicated MVNO offering, instead of going through another app, or getting it as a free add-on from another brand?
How will you retain your customers through this disruption?
** This is something we’ll provide more perspectives, guidance, and practical tips on throughout this eBook.
Daniel advised that US-based MVNOs may be less affected by this trend, as the price points are somewhat higher, but Europe is already seeing this shift.
Think about this from the customer’s perspective. If they already have a premium product, or an American Express card, for instance, and are given the option in future to gain connectivity through that service, it adds to the convenience of their experience.
This makes sense, because it’s essentially an expansion of the value-chain involved with the MVNO offering.
“That comes with technical challenges if you want to play in this field,” said Daniel. “But it’s also creating a lot of opportunities for MVNOs who can adapt and capitalise.”
What’s the new model beginning to look like for MVNOs?
“We’re now seeing the multi-network MVNO+ / MVNA offering,” said Daniel. “You have a full-stack MVNE, ideally, with your own mobile core, and you also have access to various networks, which could be multiple within the country or could be across multiple countries.”
“And with that, you have a full-stack offering that’s not just relevant for MVNOs, and that’s the interesting part. This allows you to think outside the box, as it can go into new offerings, and you have a ready-to-use product for brands like Revolut to integrate into their existing offering.”
“You see, if I have this platform, for instance, suddenly I’m not limited to the (relatively) small B2C MVNO market anymore. I can also begin to branch out into:
- IoT connectivity
- Multi-operator run access, such as smart-meters
- White-label connectivity, like we’re seeing in FinTech
- White-label eSIM activation.”
“And then the travel SIM and eSIM market, which is probably the most discussed right now, but is only one of a range of different options where operators may decide to go.”
So, what about the use cases involved in this evolution?
“Looking at the use cases and relevant industries,” said Daniel. “We believe the majority of the use cases that go beyond the traditional MVNO offering are still going to be domestic. While there’s a lot of noise around travel, global SIM, we do see a lot of the potential is still in your domestic markets.”
Some of the areas Daniel highlighted were:
- Un-manned aerial vehicles (UAVs): Beyond visual line-of-sight (BVLOS) flights, where you simply need, ideally, a redundant system, multiple operators, depending on where the drone is flying, which a mobile operator themselves cannot offer
- Financial services: Connectivity, fraud prevention, backup systems
- Utilities and resources
- eCommerce: Logistics, asset tracking
- Travel SIM: Offering mobile data in different areas.
The roadmap into the future
While the future of the market is uncertain, one thing is for sure: there will be a great deal of change and development over the coming years.
The MVNOs who are agile, open-minded, and well prepared will be the ones who not only survive the disruption, but thrive because of it.
Daniel added:
“The traditional MVNO offering in the B2C space is still going to be relevant, of course. However, there’s simply going to be a larger share, which is shifting towards other actors in the market who are not positioned as MVNOs, just offering the same things to customers as an add-on to their existing services.”
“At the same time, don’t underestimate the potential of combining the right technical set-up with network access contracts. This can allow MVNOs to branch out and enter new markets, explore new opportunities, and create more resilience for your business model.”
Key take-aways and guidance for MVNOs
For ambitious MVNOs looking to thrive over the next few years, Daniel suggested you consider taking the following steps:
- Master and prioritise the fundamentals
- Base your business on the 10 principles mentioned earlier
- Embrace change and pursue digital innovation
- Leverage eSIM technology
- Use AI for meaningful use cases to differentiate your customer experience
- Use partners strategically to fill gaps in capabilities and scale in new areas.
Daniel closed his keynote by suggesting:
“MVNOs, ask yourselves, what is it you can offer, what are you really good at, and what additional competencies and partnerships can you add to grow beyond the traditional B2C ecosystem to take these emerging opportunities?”
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