Out with the old, in with the new mobile data plans

Connected Business Research, the new research arm of Connected Planet, has released the results of an exclusive survey exploring mobile operator plans to move beyond unlimited data plan pricing. While usage-based billing, either with or without subscriber contract, is the most popular way mobile operators currently charge for data, a super-majority of operators are definitely, probably or possibly considering changes to data plans next year. For a large number of operators, tiered data plans are the way they would prefer to charge, and a significant but considerably smaller number favors dynamic pricing (e.g. based on network load) or pricing based on the service (e.g. Netflix, YouTube).

Here a few other things the survey found:

• Factors such as network technology or spectrum do not have much impact on operators' desire to change billing plans
• Smaller operators don't lag too far behind big operators in offering multi-device data plans for individuals or families
• When it comes to changing billing plans, technology readiness/cost and regulatory considerations are much less important than market perception and competitive considerations