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TCL maps mobile handset portfolios of 41 players and reports minimum total cost over contract term - 22% of all handsets offered on 24-month contracts are manufactured by Samsung, 17% by Apple, 14% by Nokia and 13% by Sony

Mobile operators face a make or break fight when it comes to selecting the devices that will go into their handset portfolios. Not only do they need to strike a balance between high-end, flagship devices and lower-end handsets, they also need to provide the perfect match to the ever-evolving portfolio of mobile services that span above and beyond the rather simplistic split between prepaid and postpaid.

TCL has produced a data tracker that maps operators' mobile portfolios and reports the minimum total cost of maintaining a handset over contract term. To calculate that, the dataset tracks the upfront and/or recurring device fees separately from the mobile service fees that are associated to the lowest-priced postpaid plan. Additionally, the tracker reports core device specifications including operating system and technology, screen size, weight, storage capacity and SIM card type.

TCL's “Handsets and Service Pricing Tool” includes a selection of pre-designed pivot tables that help you answer questions such as:

• What is the minimum total cost of maintaining an iPhone 6 64GB in different markets?
• Which mobile operators split the device fees from the service fees?
• What is the level of device subsidisation as determined by the levels of handset upfront cost and monthly service fees?
• What are the manufacturers and OS shares in different operators' portfolios?
• What is the most common entry-level data bundle size of postpaid service plans?
• What are the device storage trends within a region?

Below are some of the conclusions drawn from the Tool:

Worldwide

• 22% of all handsets offered on 24-month contracts are manufactured by Samsung, 17% by Apple, 14% by Nokia and 13% by Sony.
• 61% of all handsets offered on 24-month contracts run Android, 17% run iOS and 11% run Windows Phone.
• 45% of 24-month deals present a monthly service fee of USD20 or less. All of the 24-month deals in the Middle East present a monthly service fee that exceeds USD50.
• Globally, the most common (20%) entry-level data bundle size of postpaid service plans is that of 500MB.

Europe

• On average, the minimum total cost over 24-month service contract terms in Poland is half of that in Germany; in Spain, is half of that of Italy.
• The UK has the highest number of 4G handsets on offer (91%) while Poland has the lowest (64%). Spain has the highest number of 2G handsets (8%).
• In 75% of deals tracked where the device cost is billed separately from the monthly service fee, the device contract term lasts 24 months.
• The service contract term and the device contract term are not always identical.

Notes to Editors:

For more information contact:

+44 208 993 6861/+44 777 625 4827
info@telecomspricing.com

TCL's “Handsets and Service Pricing Tools” covers the three largest mobile players in 14 markets. It captures information for 323 mobile device models of 32 manufacturers in a comprehensive 1,892-row dataset. The Tracker tool is priced at GBP 1,995.00 and available now.