Rich Communication Services (RCS) is quickly gaining traction, especially in industries focused on customer engagement and mobile marketing, thanks to its enhanced features and growing support from major players like Google and Apple.
Apple’s recent support for RCS has already expanded its presence across seven key markets, including the USA, UK, and France. By 2025, RCS will reach 57% of smartphone users, growing to 67.5% by 2029 thanks to the addition of iOS.
In the next three years, RCS is set to provide the global reach brands currently rely on with SMS—but with enhanced features and interactivity that few other channels can match.
So what exactly is RCS and why is now the critical time for brands to adopt it?
Emerging Potential for Brands
RCS business messaging campaign stats speak to the impact of RCS—with open/read rates of approximately 75% and conversion rates of up to 25%.
Transforming how we view and measure ROI, businesses gain valuable interactivity while enhancing customer convenience across a range of use cases—whether it’s responding to appointment reminders, managing delivery updates, or modifying rail tickets.
The impressive impact of RCS in its nascent stage is just a glimpse of what’s to come.
Why Mobile Operators Must Embrace RBM
While brands are beginning to adopt RCS for business messaging where available, its limited reach shows mobile operators aren’t fully embracing RBM yet.
Why does this matter? Mobilesquared forecasts A2P SMS spend will drop over 12% by 2029, with international traffic falling 60% due to high termination rates, anti-competitive exclusivity, and rising fraud.
In the short term, RBM can offset this decline, and in the long term, it can drive significant revenue growth for mobile operators.
RBM isn’t just an SMS replacement. While the A2P SMS market, valued at $33 billion, has peaked, RBM’s real opportunity lies in industries like digital advertising and customer care, which together account for over $1 trillion in annual brand spend. If RBM captures just 10% of that, it could become a $100 billion channel—potentially making up nearly 10% of operator revenues.
To grasp the full impact of RBM and why mobile operators must prioritize it, download the whitepaper today.