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The month of May saw significant announcements on service pricing adjustments from Mobile ESPN and Amp’d Mobile (the new data-centric MVNOs in the US). While Mobile ESPN introduced a whole new set of postpaid pricing plans that incorporate more voice minutes and less content at lower prices, Amp’d Mobile has taken it one step further by rolling out prepaid plans starting at as low as US$20. Such adjustments point to a shift in these players’ overall strategy, a shift arguably driven by their weaker-than-anticipated performance so far.
Mobile ESPN’s and Amp’d Mobile’s adjustments prove that voice remains to be the killer app and customers adopt mobile services, first and foremost, for voice. We have previously argued that Mobile ESPN’s pricing plans were not competitive with the other offers in the market, particularly on the voice front. In the US, operator differentiation through network coverage is rapidly giving way to differentiation through the number of minutes included in service plans. With the US ARPU at about US$50, we anticipated that few customers would be willing to pay a premium for voice for the privilege of accessing ESPN content on their mobile phones. Mobile ESPN’s current offers are on-par with the market and, in our view, will dramatically lower the barrier to entry for the ESPN fans. And once they do subscribe to the service, the MVNO will have a better chance to educate them on its data applications. Amp’d Mobile’s prepaid plans will also go towards acquiring more of its target audience, primarily youth with no or bad credit, and giving access to its large portfolio of media services. Indeed, the recent pricing adjustments by the data-centric MVNOs go to prove that mobile subscribers need more education on the data front, but that cannot happen in the absence of voice.
Exhibit 6: Comparison of Mobile ESPN’s Old and New Pricing Plans
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Pricing Plan
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Activation Fee
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Price (per month)
|
Number of Peak Time Minutes
|
Unlimited Nights and Weekends
|
Data Services
|
|
New Plans
|
|
|
|
|
|
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Fan 400
|
Waived
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US$39.99
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400
|
Yes
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Limited*
|
|
Fan 800
|
Waived
|
US$59.99
|
800
|
Yes
|
Limited*
|
|
Fan 1200
|
Waived
|
US$79.99
|
1,200
|
Yes
|
Limited*
|
|
Fan 2000
|
Waived
|
US$99.99
|
2,000
|
Yes
|
Limited*
|
|
Fan 4000
|
Waived
|
US$149.99
|
4,000
|
Yes
|
Limited*
|
|
Fan 6000
|
Waived
|
US$199.99
|
6,000
|
Yes
|
Limited*
|
|
Old Plans
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Pro 100
|
US$35
|
US$34.99
|
100
|
No
|
Yes
|
|
Pro 450
|
Waived
|
US$64.99
|
450
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
|
Pro 900
|
Waived
|
US$84.99
|
900
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
|
Pro 1350
|
Waived
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US$104.99
|
1,350
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
|
Pro 2000
|
Waived
|
US$124.99
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2,000
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
|
Pro 3000
|
Waived
|
US$174.99
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3,000
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
|
Pro 4000
|
Waived
|
US$224.99
|
4,000
|
Yes
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Yes
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*All of the new plans include Mobile ESPN’s sports package, which includes some of ESPN ’s content. For full access, ESPN subscribers have to purchase the total sports package, priced at US$24.99, and available free-of-charge for the first month.
Source: Mobile ESPN.
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