An empirical analysis on relationships between over-the-top applications for communication and traditional mobile voice services

Abstract

This study assesses the relationship between demand for Over-the-top applications for communications (OTT-Comm) and traditional mobile voice calls. Our work contributes to the literature by making use of a unique panel data on consumption of mobile services in Thailand in 2023. The observations’ panel structure and short timeframe allow us to account for unobserved individual heterogeneity that is assumed constant. We estimate static and dynamic panel models for demand in the absence of price variables. Demand for OTT-Comm is found to complement demand for outgoing calls; however, demand for OTT-Comm is found to be independent from voice calls. Both services are interrelated but do not constitute a single market; therefore, mobile operators who were designated to possess significant market power in the mobile service markets should still be regulated.