How far are we from cell phone calls free?

It is reported that Beijing Telecom will face the capital users, the introduction of a 0 threshold, 0月 rental phone cards, called Ifree Card, which does not contain any package monthly fee. Sources said that ifree card users in Beijing, the Beijing Telecom mobile phone number and Beijing Telecom fixed number, will be completely free of charge, local access and caller ID will also be free ...

0 threshold, 0月 rent, relying on traffic and value-added services charges, it seems more like a typical Internet business play. For North China Telecom, which has smaller market users, it is an understandable competition strategy to pull down prices, expand users, and aggressively conduct traffic operations. But in the long run, voice from the amount of charge to the package fee, and then to become an unlimited basic function fee, should be the development direction of the 4G era. And when it can be realized, but also to see when the operator can really believe that traffic can become the main communications business income, to give up voice package revenue, is the flow of the beginning of full maturity of the operation.

So how far are we from cell phone calls free?

In Japan, the traffic accounted for more than 70%, the communication market is very mature. DoCoMo, a market leader, has made a bold breakthrough in 4G tariff design, spurred by the challenger Softbank price wars. Voice Tariff package system using standardized design, derivative voice package is in the standard package fee system discount. DoCoMo on December 24, 2010 Commercial LTE, commercial LTE service has two fee packages: XI data plan Ninen and XI data plan,xi data plan Ninen need to sign two-year contract, XI data plan Ninen Users pay 4935 yen per month to enjoy unlimited packages, Xi Data plan users pay 6405 yen per month also can enjoy unlimited set meal.

June 10, 2014 DoCoMo new "Unlimited Call" package, DoCoMo new tariff program called "Kake-hodai & Pake-aeru", users only pay 2700 yen per month (about 165 yuan) The fixed fee can be unlimited time and frequency of the domestic voice call at random. The package also allows users to share a monthly amount of data traffic with family members or co-workers, allowing users to set the purpose of data traffic. The new package provides users with a 6-file monthly fee, 7-File sharing data flow scheme, enterprise users have 21 files optional.

After DoCoMo launched a "Wireless call" package, SoftBank also adopted a fixed rate package with the same standard as DoCoMo, becoming the second Japanese operator to carry out a fixed rate for voice services after DoCoMo, and KDDI will introduce a similar plan, with Japan's mobile voice tariffs entering a fixed-rate era. At the same time, Verizon and at&t in North America also used fixed-form as a key factor in the flow of packages, introducing an unlimited amount of voice/SMS in the meal.

From the mainstream operators of tariff structure, the international operators of the 4G package is basically the continuation of the structure of 3G packages, the main form of fixed, the flow as a package of the key factors, and gradually introduced in-meal voice/SMS Unlimited. Among them, voice, SMS, traffic is the common main elements of 3/4g package, voice, online SMS or family members within unlimited is the key features of 4G package, traffic from 3G Infinite to 4G Limited, can be shared is a significant trend. At the same time, compared to the 3G service tariffs, the overall LTE business pricing performance of high flow and low price characteristics, and with the increase in traffic, each GB tariff decline.

1, the price war further intensified, the reverse force voice call free.

At the beginning of the reorganization of three operators, the price war was a hit, and the unit price was indeed pulled down a lot. But with the substitution threat from the internet Ott, voice call time and income are shrinking, in this big background, operators are more like holding a group of heating, dare not easily provoke a large-scale price war.

But with the introduction of virtual operators, the market competition more intense, each virtual operator has launched a unique set of packages, the biggest eye-catching place, is low tariffs. If you can have a few virtual operators stand out, have a certain size of the user, and rely on low tariff advantages constantly impact operators have been vulnerable to the nerves, once again ignited the price war frenzy of passion, may be inverted voice call free era of the early arrival.

2, the carrier traffic income rises, finally becomes main income.

Operators are clinging to voice income not put, rely on large particles package, package package outside the stack to retain users, on the one hand is not willing to give up the position of the years, on the one hand, because of the flow of income can take the mantle of voice business, become the main business income doubt. With the popularization of 4G network, user migration, mobile Internet product development, traffic management will usher in the era of blowout. Voice calls will also become part of the flow of operation, at that time, operators will have a more sufficient confidence, the courage to let go of voice business, completely into the flow of the embrace of operation.

3, the user large-scale migration to 3/4g network, flow-oriented package design into the main election.

At present, no matter how hot the Internet thinking, traffic management how much investment, but the reality is that most users are still hosted in the 2G network, traffic-oriented package is the future, but not mainstream, not enough to shake the current voice of the main package status. With the large-scale migration of users, the understanding of the flow value more profound, and even gradually change the communication process of the habit of voice calls, will accelerate the pace of free speech.

4, voice income further decline, narrowing the distance between traditional package and function fee.

Free speech does not mean that the full unlimited use, but gradually become a functional fee class fixed tariffs, different time period consciously guide the user voice calls, can also increase the 2G network leisure utilization. So when the revenue from the traditional voice package, close to the function fee income, the operator will also be happy with the voice of unlimited long free bar. After all, it has great benefits to enhance user perception, counter OTT products and improve user viscosity.

The tariff package will tend to be simple, with flow as the key factor of the package partition. The design direction of the tariff package is tending to unify, and it is no longer a complicated and difficult to distinguish fee system of 2g/3g times. Package with a small number (within dozens of) of the fixed package and block-style packages mainly to flow as the key partition. The system packages complement each other, with limited and clear package options to meet the diverse needs of users.

The fixed tariff structure as the main form, the gradual introduction of voice/SMS unlimited. Among them, voice, SMS, traffic is the common main elements of 3/4g package, voice, online SMS or family members within unlimited is the key features of 4G package, traffic from 3G Infinite to 4G Limited, can be shared is a significant trend. At the same time, relative to the 3G business charges, 4G pricing should be shown as high flow and low price characteristics, with the increase in traffic, the tariff per GB drop.

The flow sharing mechanism is introduced to realize multi terminal sharing. Traffic sharing products, fully meet the home users, multi-user Internet users, enterprises to share the needs of users of the Internet. Multi-terminal traffic sharing can share the flow of mobile account to pad, PC and other mobile phone, customers can not use up the flow, to share with other members of the family, to achieve one-person pay for the whole family to share; Enterprises to the mobile company wholesale ordinary flow or directional flow to form a flow pool, Group internal staff to form a cluster VPN shared traffic pool traffic. Multi-terminal, multi-user traffic sharing not only can improve the flow saturation in the package, but also can inspire users to use more demand, improve the flow scale.