Encouraging end users to use more advanced handset services than just text and voice is where mobile operators spend a lot of their resources.

But while supporting the user with advanced methods like over-the-air services is one way forward, on its own it is not enough, warned Tim Deluca-Smith, vice president of marketing for mobile device management specialist WDSGlobal.

Given the market in which WDSGlobal operates, Deluca-Smith could be forgiven for emphasising the usefulness of over-the-air services for handsets but he believes that the role of OTA goes well beyond configuration.

“OTA technology is not just about fixing data settings,” he said. “It’s about optimising the service over the course of time – updating roaming lists for example.”

However, “it’s not just about OTA services,” he added. “It’s about understanding the usability of a service, educating and coaching users to try new technologies and change existing behaviour patterns. Even if MMS is configured on a phone, a photo has less than ten per cent chance of being shared via the messaging technology,” he said.