ABI Research says UK, France and India have among the world’s lowest prices for mobile broadband. In India, where 3G mobile broadband services launched in the middle of 2009, an unlimited download plan costs just over US$17 per month.
“ABI Research expects emerging markets with low Internet penetration to price mobile broadband aggressively to drive usage,” says ABI Research analyst Bhavya Khanna. “However, in developed markets the widespread use of data dongles has created strains on mobile networks; and one could see data plans change to throttle data consumption.”
Operators in countries like the United States limit data to 5 GB, even for their most expensive ($60/month) plans. The exception is Clear’s WiMAX system which offers residential service as low as $30/month with unlimited usage (at 1.5Mbps). Their mobile service is also uncapped at the 6 Mbps ($40/month) service level.
In other news, India’s 3G license auction has entered its second week. There are three pan-India licenses up for grabs, while state-owned operators Bharat Sanchar Nigam (BSNL) and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam (MTNL) share a fourth.
With a total population of 1.2 billion, the reserve price for 3G spectrum translates to price per pop of $1.16 to $1.41. That’s much lower than the global average of $29 per pop, says the Times of India.
The bidding finished Monday evening with a single license to cover the whole country costing Rs. 60.67 billion (US$1.36 billion). There have now been 46 rounds of bidding over eight days. India said Wednesday it is likely to earn up to 10 billion dollars from the auction.
Nine mobile-phone carriers are vying for 3G spectrum in the world’s second-largest wireless market, including Vodafone, the world’s largest, and Bharti Airtel, India’s biggest.
India is divided into multiple operating areas – 3 metros (Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata), five A circles, eight B circles and six C circles. Each circle is roughly similar to a state boundary.
Demand for the licenses seemed to slow slightly after a surge at the end of last week, with most circles showing almost as many bids as there were available licenses. Once the auction has concluded, the operators will be able to launch 3G services beginning this September.
The two state owned operators who have already launched 3G services will be required to pay for their licenses at prices that match the auction valuations.
Two days after the completion of the 3G auction in the 2.1GHz band, a “4G” auction in the 2.3GHz unpaired BWA spectrum band is scheduled. The government plans to auction two 20 MHz unpaired blocks of spectrum in each of the country’s 22 service areas.
Qualcomm announced its intent to bid and deploy a TD-LTE network. Qualcomm plans to bid for one of the slots. The base price for a pan-India spectrum slot is set at $386 million. Under auction rules, Qualcomm must partner with an Indian operator in a joint venture.
WiMAX pilots in India have been conducted by Bharti, Reliance and BSNL, but they have taken place in the 3.3 GHz band. The spectrum being auctioned in the 2.3 GHz band will provide mobile broadband.
The residential market, according to 4GCounts, accounts for 68% of WiMAX subscribers. The average residential and business ARPU generated among operators during Q3 2009 across all regions was US$41 and US$121, respectively.
A Strategy Analytics report predicts that India’s WiMax subscriber base will reach 14 million by 2013 and grow annually at nearly 130 per cent. At this rate of growth, India would be positioned to become the largest WiMAX market in Asia Pacific by 2013.
