Unlimited does not mean the same for each operator finds telecomspricing Tariff Trend Report Move Towards Unlimited Pricing
Published: Tue 23 February 2021
The latest 50-page report from telecomspricing entitled 'Move to ‘Unlimited’ Mobile Data Tariffs' has been released.
The report provides plenty of examples of what unlimited means to tecos.
Key findings are:
- The use of unlimited mobile data plans is not new. Unlimited mobile data plans have been adopted either as a short-term promotion to accompany a new product launch or as a long-term strategy by a disruptive MNO (such as Free Mobile (France) or 3 (UK) entering the market as a fourth MNO aiming to gain subscriber share.
- More recently unlimited mobile data has been introduced in markets to encourage the uptake of mobile data services (to avoid bill shock). The impact of the new plans has been to maintain ARPU levels and encourage customer loyalty (particularly by MNOs in the USA, including T-Mobile, Verizon & AT&T). The aim has been to encourage additional smartphone data usage without penalty for “overages”. Australian and Canadian operators too fall into this category.
- With the launch of 5G services there has been an adoption of unlimited mobile data plans as part of a premium plan to support a high price point with 5G. Some MNOs, such as Vodafone, have taken advantage of 5G to revamp their plans and offer unlimited mobile data as a standard offer. The result has been some simplification of plans, but also a need to provide other forms of differentiation (such as content).
- But in a number of markets MNOs are still being selective about how they introduce unlimited services. Unlimited call minutes and SMS are provided, but not always mobile data. Instead, there is use of unlimited (or zero-rated) data for particular social networks or content streaming services, but not yet for all types of mobile da
- In short, although the use of unlimited mobile data plans are growing, MNOs appear still cautious about their introduction. Unlimited mobile data plans are instead being used as a premium product. MNOs fear that unlimited mobile data across all plans may reduce the opportunity to up-sell more services and gain more revenue. On the April 14th 2020 Reuters reported the CEO of German telco 1&1 Drillisch AG as saying: “Because of flat-rate deals, we hardly get any extra revenue if people spend more time surfing or talking on the phone,” – Ralph Dommermuth, CEO, 1&1 Drillisch.
- Average data consumption is increasing and according to an Ericsson report published in November 2020, the global average was 9.6 GB in 2020 and increases to 34 GB by 2026, a CAGR of 24 per cent. In Western Europe, the increase will be from the 11.3 per cent to 46 GB by 2026, shown as the second highest increase.
Not every operator will go down the line of offering unlimited. Congstar CEO Peter Opeman, Telekom Germany’s sub-brand which launched in 2007 view on unlimited; The unlimited use of a network is a premium offer. This may be reserved for colleagues at our parent company. However, it is also clear that we always adapt our offerings to the needs of data usage. We want to remain flexible. For the time being, however, it remains at the 200 GB limit.
A pricing analysis of selective operators shows that moving to an unlimited price plan can cost up to EUro 30 pe rmonth more or even be cheaper than the top inclusive x GB plan, though it would offer a far lower speed.
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Note for the editor:
Contact msessions@telecomspricing.com or call +44 777 625 4287
About the new report:
The Tariff Trend Report Move Towards Unlimited Pricing examines the unlimited tariff by plans over 50 operators, from truly unlimited to unlimtied with FUP, speed-dependent offerings and unlimited for apps only. Why did operators introduce unlimited; at what price and compares prices of unlimited and limited plans.
About Telecoms Pricing - Telecoms Pricing is the brand name used by Tariff Consultancy Ltd (TCL) for its telecoms reports and subscription services. TCL is an international telecoms tariff research and consultancy organisation based in London which provides research on all aspects of mobile and broadband services worldwide. Telecoms Pricing publishes a range of subscription services including a daily TariffAlert service, Telecoms Pricing SnapShot telecoms analysis service and the 3G/4G Tariff Tracker. Further information can be found on the Telecoms Pricing website at: www.telecomspricing.com