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I quite like the idea of the same tariff being charged at different levels depending on the handset being had. I'm looking forward to seeing what happens.
Talk3G Super Mod
3 Tariff Overhall Due
3 is preparing for a major facelift of its main consumer tariffs in a bid to increase its market share and bolster its margins, Mobile has learned.
The operator has been planning a range of new tariffs through which customers pay at least part of the cost of the handset.
The cheapest will be a £15-per-month tariff with no handset. Users will have the option of paying a further £2 per month to get a basic phone, or a total of £25 per month for top-range handsets, all with the same airtime.
'I think it's a reasonable idea,' said Julien Parven of Fone Logistics. 'This is starting to put some value back into the handset. The idea of £300 handsets being given away is ridiculous.'
A major high street retailer told Mobile: 'The new tariffs they are looking at will separate the handset and airtime. It will be £15 for an airtime-only package and then more to get a basic phone.
'They are also planning to launch new higher ARPU tariffs in the £30-£35 range for the final quarter to complete the suite.'
The operator has already slashed its acquisition costs by 43% in the last six months compared with the previous year, and the revamp of the loss-making £15-per-month tariff is a pragmatic move to raise margins and help it get into profit.
3's overhaul of its high tariffs will be to make it more competitive at the top end of the range.
Orange's pay-monthly chief Crispin Tristram told Mobile he was watching 3's manoeuvres with interest: 'We are not going to come out with a £15 low-cost tariff…we can see they [rivals] are doing it for market share. We are watching it curiously, but it does not pay back.'
Christmas at 3
Fergal Walker, UK director of handsets, said 3 was growing the series from a 'relatively limited range of 12' handsets in May to 24 key handsets in October. The network will ditch 'old phones', such as the K610i, in favour of exclusive colour variants, the Nokia 6120 white and the red Sony Ericsson W660i, along with 'aspirational' new handsets, the Sony Ericsson K850, W910 and LG KU990. 'There are some big sellers at the low end for us – the K530i and the K770 Cyber-shot.'
http://www.mobiletoday.co.uk/content...sp?men=0&sub=1
Last edited by Ben; 30th August 2007 at 11:11 PM.
I quite like the idea of the same tariff being charged at different levels depending on the handset being had. I'm looking forward to seeing what happens.
i wonder when this will be in effect ?
I think it wil be in oct reading beween the lines in the link.
I worry that this is a back ward step. Net we will go back to the days of charging £35 fee to join the network and I sure thay could charge us to port numbers.
Talk3G Super Mod
There is nothing to legally prevent the networks for charging to port a number. I don't think that the networks are that together - despite the GSMA cartel - to collectively start increasing their charges. Not in a saturated market like the UK. As soon as they start to see one of their competitors experience Customer attrition the others will back away.
What we may witness is a return to basics - core business - in an attempt to save money. After all, apart from voice, text and, increasingly, data now the tariffs are beginning to shift in the right direction, everything else they've tried has been a dismal failure. Content? They mostly do it badly. Portals - well enough said about them, they're none of them too appealing. Much better exists in the wider Internet. Videocalling - they gave up before they tried, killed it off by overpricing it! The list goes on.
The handset makers like Nokia and Apple have seen the light and are starting to chuck their own weight around. Finally, letting the dog wag the tail. Other manufacturers will follow suit. Those networks that refuse to carry the handsets that they feel threaten their own meagre content revenue will become marginalised by the manufacturers and buying Customer. The relationship between network and manufacturer is bound to become more symbiotic. The dominant/slave relationship between the two is going to erode as the handsets get "smarter" and offer more capabilities.
If three are going to have a bring your own mobile tariff then would it work with HSDPA? would HSDPA only work with mobiles on the £17,£25,£30,£35 tariffs when bought from three directly? o2 offer a sim only pay monthly deal so I'm wondering if three will do the same.
should I get a Nokia 6120 classic now or wait to see how the tariffs work out.
If three offered a 12 month contract would I be charged extra for a 'free' mobile which I could get for free on a 18 month contract.
so many questions so little timeuntil 1st October.
HSDPA is on the network so if you have a 3 USIM and a HSDPA phone and get HSDPA signal then yes you would get the faster speeds
once again I wasn't clear getti
If I bought a HSDPA handset, got a 3 USIM, bought a £15 month plan would I be able to get the 'Broadband Lite 1GB' £10 add-on = £25 per month.
thanks,
Neil.
Last edited by neil; 19th September 2007 at 05:08 PM.
Yes you can
great, thanks getti, I can't wait for 1st October
Talk3G Super Mod
Why? What happens then
Talk3G Super Mod
Quite sad that 3's data speeds are less than half of those offered by Vodafone and T-Mobile despite 3 having more bandwidth than both of them.
Oh well, we shall have to see how users experience the services but the poorer speed does not look like a selling feature for 3.
tmobile hsdpa 1.8mb
3 hsdpa 2.8mb
Tmobile's is slower but for now they have more hsdpa coverage. By december 3 will have the same hsdpa coverage but faster speeds
Talk3G Super Mod
The speeds thing is pretty much an irrelevance as there is plenty of slack for the competing companies to crank up the speed as and when they see fit. This is an even race inasmuch as the actual technology has the potential to perform the same.
What is not clear in the UK yet is whether 3 have made the same mistakes that they made in Ireland, and which made a lot of their Customers entirely fed up.
I did go into the 3 store on Saturday - checked out the offer - but the link was running at non-HSDPA (Bluewater) and so I walked out without one. Went along to T-Mobile and upgraded my contract to an N95. Demo kit needs to work well to impress, this time it didn't.
If this is correct. the new plans from three look they could match/beat flex??
follow the link:
http://www.mobiletoday.co.uk/content...sp?men=0&sub=1
I had my training and the info and it does look to be an amazing offer of plans and handsets from next month
Talk3G Super Mod
I need to see that in 3-print
I'd say that 3 are making inroads to the territory exclusively occupied by T-Mobile's Flext. But that is at best. The Jury's out until the package arrives on the doorstep.
From what I can read on the link it looks it. im glad I waited a month.
For me living in Northern Ireland three has the best 3G coverage, home like home rates so if it hit the south of Ireland they are taken from my price plan, on top of that the lowest roaming charges of any network, and x-series. To top it off 3GB FU limit on mobile broadband for £15 quid.
I wanted to get flex and web and walk but t-mobile coverage is crap here in bangor NI, the new plan looks as if I get what I wanted from t-mobile and at cheaper prices to boot.
Im not a fan of three due to a past encounter with them , crap handset poor network, and issues with CS, even so I do have to praise them for makeing some bold steps.
It really looks as if I cant hold back anymore, i can see three getting me
what's the contention ratio?Originally Posted by getti
There is no contention ration for HSDPA, it's not like ADSL.
If there are no other HSDPA users on the cell you're currently using you'll get a nice quick connection. If it's busy then the speeds will be slower.
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