How operators form tariffs in different countries of the world

Not so long ago, we presented a new flexible line , in which the user himself collects his package of services.



Designer Yota is in many ways not similar to other proposals that exist in the Russian market. Moreover, a similar approach to the formation of a package of services looks unusual even for foreign operators. In Russia, operators used to sell everything “piece by piece”: minutes of voice communication, dozens or hundreds of SMS messages, and so on. Then everyone switched to packages. Other countries have their own “packaging” features.

')

We asked how the tariffs for communication in different countries.



Europe and the European Union







With increasing competition and quality of services in the telecommunications market, the cost of tariff plans decreases, and customers become less tied to their operators. In Europe, this trend is accompanied by strict government regulation.



From June 15, 2017 in the European Union at the intergovernmental level, roaming charges were canceled. Residents can travel in 28 states with the prices of the operator of their home region. At the legislative level, it was found that a minute of mobile communication between EU countries cannot be more expensive than 0.35 euros, and the price of SMS cannot exceed 0.11 euros.



The cost of mobile Internet has also decreased, but there are restrictions on the amount of traffic. So, the German operator O2 allows you to use the absence of roaming within the European Union, but puts a restriction - only 1 GB of mobile traffic is available on a trip, even if you have more available in your home region.



Another way to "circumvent" the law came up in Lycamobile . English virtual operator does not cancel roaming, if you use prepaid packages. And if you decide to connect your "time-based" tariffs (with payment only during calls made), then the standard cost will be quite high.



Great competition and a common legal field led to interesting metamorphosis. There was a huge number of different tariff plans from hundreds of operators. In terms of the number of operating virtual operators, Europe holds the leading position in the world - about 600 telecom operators (59% of the world total). And this number does not even take into account the "subsidiary" companies and brands of the main cellular operators - Telefonica O2, Vodafone and T-Mobile.



The lion's share of all virtual operators is concentrated in five countries: Germany, the UK, the Netherlands, France and Spain have both the biggest competition and the maximum choice of different tariff plans. The main advantage of "virtual" - low price. Virtual operators refuse traditional offices, carrying out maintenance through the site. Here you can order a SIM-card and get it delivered to your home. Virtual operators also offer interesting rates for the day, week or month. After the completion of the tariff, the card will be blocked, and you will not spend extra money.



The share of virtual operators is not as great as it may seem. Virtual operators often operate only in limited locations of the home region and are not very convenient for frequent travelers. Therefore, residents prefer the “big three” - Telefonica O2, Vodafone and T-Mobile, whose tariffs are like three drops of water similar to each other. The choice of the operator that suits you right now depends on specific offers, promotions and discounts.



The most interesting way to save is in choosing a special business tariff (when a user is connected by his employer) or a family tariff (SIM cards are issued to all family members at once), each of which adds low-cost or even free calls for a group (for example, this service has Vivacom ).



Outside the "troika" operators divide the market in two directions. Some (for example, Mtel ) focus on Internet traffic, offering cable TV and home Internet access in the appendix, while others offer packages with free minutes for calls. In all cases, the amount will vary depending on the number of minutes, SMS and gigabytes of traffic specified in the tariff. This approach allows you to actually choose from two things: more gigabytes (you can choose a tariff only with the Internet) or more minutes of voice communication. However, some operators impose restrictions, not allowing you to connect to the Internet at prepaid rates.



There are prepaid tariff plans (for example, Lebara ), specially created for international calls, including to Russia. Other tariffs are designed for active Internet users - Meteor does not take into account the traffic of social networks and instant messengers in separate tariff plans. However, there is a tricky feature here: in messengers for free, you can only exchange messages, but not call through them.



Separately, it should be said about long-term contract (for a year or two) tariff plans. They may have pitfalls - the first six months, the cost will be really lower than normal tariffs, and then it will start to rise (as seen from Tesco Mobile ).



For all the listed tariff plans, only one condition is common: you receive a package formed from several services. You can find a tariff plan compiled specifically for your requirements (for example, without connecting expensive mobile Internet), but even in this case, you will receive an additional “burden” in the form of hundreds of SMS messages or other services from the telecom operator.



USA







As we mentioned in the previous article , communication is very expensive in the United States. On the tariffs for 30-40 dollars you get a traffic limit of 2-4 GB. However, it is possible to connect an unlimited tariff - from T-Mobile for $ 75 per month. This is not the most expensive tariff plan, more expensive are those that are designed for calls around the world. The only way to save money is to choose a package of services for the whole family at once. By connecting several SIM-cards at once, you can earn 10-20 dollars per month.



All major telecom operators - T-Mobile, Verizon, AT & T, Sprint - offer very similar tariffs, the difference lies only in the monthly volume of the mobile Internet. You can additionally connect roaming, international calls, SMS, as well as some unique services to each tariff.



T-Mobile remains one of the most progressive operators in the country. It was he who presented the world's first unlimited internet roaming. The only limitation was speed: the operator forcibly connected subscribers in roaming only to 2G networks.



In 2017, even with limited access to the network, T-Mobile offers the Music Freedom option, which offers free traffic from popular streaming music services.



T-Mobile offers not just tariff plans, but applications in which a tariff is “wrapped up”. So, in the Binge On application streaming video was made from Amazon, YouTube, HBO, Netflix and many other sites. You can have any tariff plan, but by installing one Binge On application, you will receive additional services free of charge within the framework of those already paid. In this case, the operator will be able to broadcast additional advertising to you through the application.



Africa







Africa has become a unique region in many ways. On the continent, the telecommunications and mobile communications market is developing rapidly. In many countries, especially in southern Africa, there is 4G Internet. At the same time, there is not everywhere a developed financial system, which is aggravated by the weakness of national currencies. The lack of ATMs and banks as such has led to the fact that the phone becomes not only a means of communication, but also a wallet. Moreover, cryptocurrencies are actively developing, which in many cases turn out to be more stable than devalued national currencies.



In such conditions, you can not do without a stable connection. South Africa's largest mobile operator Vodacom offers both contract offers and prepaid rates. On the site, you can customize your package individually for each user. In prepaid offers, various options for voice call packages are available to users. As a rule, voice communication is paid by the minute, and there is an opportunity to choose the most convenient tariff for the price. You can also choose the amount of traffic. The user pays for the package of the required megabytes or gigabytes, and the excess traffic is paid additionally. For example, in a package with 0.79 cents (approximately 3.5 rubles) per minute of conversation within the network, each megabyte will cost 20 cents.



An interesting feature is that some operators (for example, Orange Egypt ) have roaming inside the home region. In the Baladna ElGedeed tariff plan, a low price for calls exists only for regions outside Cairo and Alexandria. In the "dangerous" areas, the price will increase by 30%.



South America







Latin America cannot compete with Europe in the number of mobile operators, but there are still a lot of them. In many countries of the region, mobile Internet (as well as all mobile communications) is less developed than in Russia, but still the quality, speed, and coverage are quite tolerable. In Argentina and Brazil, for about $ 13, you can use the Internet for a week to view maps and chat in instant messengers. However, with the contract to use the connection is even cheaper - for a dollar a day.

The peculiarity of the region is the low quality of services. Sometimes operators can connect additional services and not disconnect them on demand (judging by the complaints of Russian tourists).



Other regions







China has two main operators: China Mobile (the largest mobile operator in the world with 833 million subscribers) and China Unicom . China Mobile boasts excellent network coverage even in the most remote villages. Young audience prefers the operator China Unicom, as it relies on the development of the mobile Internet and offers more favorable rates for Internet users.



In Israel, HOT Mobile and Golan Telecom often offer the most advantageous tariff plans only for new customers. However, such offers are valid for a limited period of time.



In India, Airtel , Idea and Vodafone have completely different fares for different regions of the country, which adds problems to travelers. If we compare prices on the operators' websites, we can conclude that it is more profitable to take several SIM-cards of different operators for travel (depending on the cities you are planning to visit).



In Indonesia, Telkomsel’s leading operator has divided Internet traffic and calls / SMS according to different tariff plans. Moreover, the package of Internet traffic is divided into two independent services with different prices: 4G and 3G. And Dialog in Sri Lanka additionally divides traffic into day and night: half you can spend only during the day, and the second half - at night.



In the UAE, the operator DU has included unusual bonuses in some tariff plans - a free trip to Uber, free tickets to entertainment centers, boat rides with dinner and others.