Abstract - Vodafone

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On-net Pricing in Mobile Moving the debate forward • The Policy Paper Series • Number 8 • April 2008
Appendix A:
How the comparisons were made
A.1 Definitions
For the purpose of this report the types of calls are defined as:
On-net Calls within the same mobile service provider’s
network, i.e. the caller and called user both
subscribe to services from the same provider.
Off-net Calls to another mobile service provider’s network,
i.e. the caller and the called user subscribes to
services from different providers. In principle the
two providers may still use the same physical
network if one or both are virtual network operators.
Only national calls originating in a mobile network are
considered in this report. For the purpose of a more detailed
picture the data may also distinguish between peak and
off-peak calls, based on the following definitions:
Peak The most expensive call time during a week,
normally business hours on weekdays.
Off-peak The lowest price available during the week,
normally at weekend times or night times.
A.2 Methodology
As the purpose here is not to compare prices but to
investigate inter-price relationships the price data is shown
relative to off-net calls. The off-net call is normally the
most expensive type of voice call that can be made, making
any reference to prices of other calls (in this case, on-net)
equal or lower than the off-net call price. This simplifies the
comparison results.
The difference between the off-net price and the
corresponding on-net price is calculated as a percentage of
the off-net price. This percentage is presented in the graphs
shown for each operator, for each month.
As there will be several tariff packages with different prices
and price differences the range of all differences is shown for
each operator. This will give the highest and lowest difference
between the off-net and on-net prices. The lowest difference
may be zero, the highest might be -100% if the on-net calls
were free.
The differences are also calculated for the highest and lowest
price over the week, i.e. peak and off-peak times. While it is
possible to show these separately the graphs included in this
report shows them together, as the full range of differences
for all packages and all times.
The tariff data is recorded with the actual valid date or the
earliest available recorded date of validity (i.e. when the tariff
was first recorded in the database). These dates are used to
determine the times of change in between the sampling dates.
For some of the operators, and especially in the earlier
years, the off-net prices were not recorded in the databases.
The tariff information is then compared with earlier and
subsequent updates of the data to determine whether the
off-net prices were equal to the fixed line call prices or not.
Most often these would be the same, but to be on the safe
side this has been checked as far as possible with the
available data.
Appendix B: Results for each operator
The following sections will show the development of
on-net prices relative to the off-net prices for each of the
operators covered. Not all operators could be covered for
the entire period back to 1992, and this will appear as
missing bars in the graphs.
As the difference will vary over time, Teligen is presenting the
results for each month of the period from 1992. The tariff valid
dates have been used for more precise timing of the prices.
Also note that some of the data covered in the first few years
did not distinguish between existing analogue and new GSM
systems, so that prices may in some cases be pre-GSM-launch.
Notes
1 There is a slight uncertainty about the Eircell prices for off-net calls around this
time, but it is assumed to be same as fixed line calls as this was the case later on.
This report is produced by Teligen, Harris Interactive UK Ltd. for the Vodafone Group
based on their scope and objectives. The price data is taken from Teligen’s historical
databases, and is believed to be correct. Teligen will not assume any liability for
decisions and actions taken on the basis of this report or its data.