With the end of Telecom tariff War in H2-2012, operators have been continuously reducing benefits on Pre-Paid Mobile STVs / Minutes STD Packs to boost their Revenue Per Minute. In this article I’ll illustrate few examples of how RPM has increased to operators in some cases as much as 100% just within a span of 4 months.
Illustration of Airtel Pre-Paid STV Changing Benefits
- In Oct-2012, benefits were STV of Rs24, tariff validity 30 days, local calls to Airtel no. @ Rs0.10/min, local & STD calls to mobile / landline @ Rs0.012 / 0.015 per sec
- In Jan 2013, the benefits were modified as STV of Rs24, tariff validity 30 days, local calls to own network @ Rs0.10/min [ It is clear that benefit of lower call rates to local & STD (other than on-net withdrawn). Customers will have to buy a separate pack for reduced call rates. ]
- In Feb-2013, the benefits further changed to STV of Rs24, tariff validity 30 days, local calls to own network @ Rs0.20/min
Illustration of Changing benefits to Vodafone Pre-Paid Mobile users
- In Oct-2012, Minutes pack of Rs29 – 97 mins free to local Vodafone no. – validity 15 days
- In Dec-2012, Minutes pack of Rs29 – 97 mins free to local Vodafone no. – validity 14 days
- In Feb-2013, Minutes pack of Rs29 – 97 mins free to local Vodafone no. – validity 7 days [ Reduced the validity to 7 days, implying that the customer will have to recharge more frequently. RPM increases by 100%]
Illustration of increase in RPM to Tata DoCoMo as it hikes benefits to Seconds Pack in Karnataka
- In Oct-2012, Seconds pack of Rs59 – 7000 seconds free to local & STD no. – validity 30 days
- In Jan-2013, the Seconds pack was modified of Rs59 – 7000 seconds free to local & STD no. – validity 10 days
- In Feb-2013, Seconds pack of Rs59 – 7000 seconds free to local & STD no. – validity 7 days [ RPM increase for Tata DoCoMo is f 330% in last 4 months ]
These are just some of the illustrations of incumbents as well a new operator to prove the point that telecom tariff hikes are sustainable at least in the short to medium term.