Despite the presence of three advanced HSPA mobile networks and an island-wide public Wi-Fi service, Singapore consumers are still not happy with their mobile broadband. Research released last week by mobile messaging firm, Acision, suggests “quality of experience” is the main issue.
The research conducted for Acision by Toluna unearthed the waning popularity of public Wi-Fi as an alternative to mobile broadband, with the majority of respondents experiencing QoS issues such as slow speeds (61%) and only 6% are willing to take a fully paid subscription for Wireless@SG in 2013, when it is expected the service will be commercialized.
Taking this into account, there is a clear opportunity for operators to differentiate their mobile broadband services based on enhancing the consumer experience.
However, despite the continued popularity of mobile broadband and the opportunity available to operators, 83% of consumers have faced quality issues, including slow speeds (68%), network coverage (42%) and getting connected (38%).
Slow speeds were also identified as the main reason behind subscribers cancelling contracts or switching carriers, with operators potentially facing a churn rate of 31% and missing out on critical opportunities to monetise broadband services and retain loyal subscribers.
There was limited awareness of fair use policies, with 65% of respondents not knowing if their carrier had a policy in place. 63% of those surveyed were unaware that a small number of users could generate over 80% of broadband traffic in many networks - causing slow download speeds and connection problems. When made aware of the fair distribution of bandwidth, 80% of consumers responded positively.