Super apps: An attractive, yet elusive opportunity

Many have tried to capture the elusive opportunities in the super apps domain, but very few are succeeding. This playbook examines the different approaches to super apps and offers valuable recommendations to telcos that aim to pursue opportunities in this area.

As the core connectivity market remains stagnant, telcos are increasingly looking for new digital consumer services to expand their offerings and generate new revenue streams.

This playbook considers how mobile operators can increase customer intimacy and bring in new revenue from super apps.

What is a super app?

A super app is an app that supports at least two ‘everyday’ services, such as those shown below. It could be an open platform for third-party developers or it could just support a small number of services provided by a select ecosystem of partners.

Examples of super app capabilities

Super apps are attractive to telcos and internet players which want to create a large user base that engages in frequent interactions with the app. However, this goal is quite elusive and only a few have managed to achieve it: Tencent with WeChat is the best example of success that no one else has managed to replicate to date. However, a number of telecom operators, especially in the emerging markets, have accomplished significant results.

This playbook provides an overview of the super apps space. We discuss the different approaches to super apps and why some are more successful than others. We outline recommendations to telcos in both emerging and advanced markets. 

In the full playbook, we help telcos understand the most favourable opportunities, and the important factors for launching a successful service by providing insights into:

• An overview of the super apps market 
• Case studies of key successful super apps, outlining how they work, their ecosystem, their challenges and learnings from the approaches of their creators 
• Case studies of global apps that have struggled to become super apps 
• Recommendations for super app creation in the emerging markets 
• Recommendations for super app creation in the advanced markets 

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David Pringle

David Pringle

Senior Associate Analyst

David Pringle is a Senior Associate Analyst at STL Partners, specialising within our Consumer Services research stream. He spent five years as the European tech and telecoms correspondent for the Wall Street Journal and provides editorial and analytical services to a range of organisations in the tech, media and telecoms industries, as well moderating panel discussions at industry conferences, webinars and on Mobile World Live TV. David has a BA in English and Politics from York University.