BOSTON-Europe’s wireless service market saw consumer prices fall an average of 20 percent this year compared with last year, led by Germany’s 45-percent drop and Denmark’s 38-percent reduction in wireless service prices, according to The Yankee Group’s annual Global Wireless Pricing Summary.
Africa and the Middle East were not so lucky, with average prices climbing 18 percent in those areas, led by Israel’s 28-percent increase in wireless service prices.
Asia saw little change in average prices, dropping 3 percent for the year, with North American prices rising 4 percent and Latin American prices up 3 percent.
Worldwide wireless prices for the year rose 1 percent, compared with a 38-percent decrease in average prices during the past three years. The report attributed the slight increase to industry consolidation in more advanced markets.
La Paz, Bolivia, recorded the year’s least expensive wireless service prices at 8 cents per minute, followed by Shanghai, China, and Jakarta, Indonesia, at an average of 9 cents per minute. Tokyo squeaked by New York and Paris as the most expensive city, with average prices of 54 cents per minute.
The report also analyzed the relationship between wireless prices and average monthly salaries, noting Delhi, India, was the least affordable city in terms of wireless service prices.
Hong Kong, which saw prices drop 33 percent, earned the title as the most affordable, followed by Singapore, Toronto and Copenhagen, Denmark. The report noted a direct relationship between affordability of wireless services in a market and the penetration levels in that market.
The Yankee Group noted global prices operate independently from global penetration, and that carriers are no longer focusing on per-minute pricing and instead are focusing on footprint expansion, bucket minute plans and family plans. Many regions’ wireless carriers may have also discovered what The Yankee Group called the “sweet spot” in terms of per-minute pricing for wireless service, with usage rates increasing in spite of stagnant pricing.
