Communications and Technology Industry Research

New research from Tariff Consultancy Ltd, a consulting firm focused on pricing and tariff research of mobile operator businesses globally, shows that mobile operators are increasingly opting for discounts through the “unlimited bundle” and “super size” package offer for their customers.

 

The report, “Mobile Pricing Trends and Service Innovation,” analyzes the global market for prepaid, postpaid and the “hybrid” contracts from mobile operators.

 

The report shows the detailed pricing for a variety of messaging and multimedia services adopted by different mobile operators in different types of mobile markets.

 

The concept of unlimited data and all-inclusive flat rate is gaining popularity, according to the report.

 

Many operators now offer larger bundles of minutes and texts to get a firm hold on the market. For example, Wind, the Italian mobile operator, now offers 4,000 on-net texts for a small fee, according to the report. In another instance, T-Mobile’s (News - Alert) SIM-Only Solo price plan, which offers up to 500 texts and 1,800 voice minutes to all networks, is available to customers for a small monthly fee, according to the report.

 

According to Margrit Sessions, managing director of Tariff Consultancy, mobile operators are opting for the all-inclusive flat rate plans to bring users onto a form of contract.

 

“The bundling of core minutes and texts is starting to reach its limit, so providers will have to resort to other means to differentiate their service and gain new customers,” Sessions said.

 

The report also analyzes other emerging trends such as the integration of fixed line and mobile services. To cite this, the report mentions the service offered by Singapore’s Starhub. Starhub offers its cable TV gaming service over mobile, enabling users to transfer online gaming from PC to mobile at any time.

 

Mobile operators also offer community pricing and plans that allow minutes to be pooled among family members. The typical example of such plan is SingTel’s (News - Alert) RedPAC, which stands for “parent and child.”

 

Third-generation service providers in Russia and Central and Eastern Europe feel that once a flat rate tariff structure is fixed, , according to the report, and the market will be ready for mobile broadband for voice over Internet Protocol users or who are looking for a better-quality fixed networks.

 

“We believe that the next stage in mobile operator evolution will be those who are able to make mobile broadband a convenient, available and easy-to-use service,” Sessions said. “This time around mobile operators have the opportunity to provide a varied service portfolio which is geared to the user needs of individual groups, rather than provide pure price discounting.”

 

Nonetheless, the new flat-rate data service may create an ambiguity among the customers about the real cost of the service. This concern arises from the fact that when the usage exceeds the data allowance for a fixed period, there will be a high per MB charge rate. Considering this uncertainty, tariff plan operators are revising their pricing strategies to offer an economical daily- or per-hour-usage rate to the customers.