Mobile phone users want greater transparency on data usage
By Rachel Kelly, Channel NewsAsia | Posted: 28 November 2009 0220 hrs

	Photos  of

SINGAPORE : The mobile phone is increasingly being used for a wide variety of applications - from games, to Internet browsing, checking email and personal banking.

According to some estimates, about 60 per cent of all mobile phone users in Singapore do just that.

But some mobile phone users are finding it hard to track their data usage - with many suffering from bill shock when their phone bills are significantly higher than expected.

And market watchers said consumers are starting to fight back.

They want greater transparency, and a survey shows that some 90 per cent of users would like notification when their data limit has been reached.

"I see users getting more control of service,... devices becoming more intelligent,... (and) operators getting more capacity, so eventually we will see prices decline from where they are today as there are more capacity in the network as the devices are more sophisticated. And we will start to see the prices reduced," said Mark Williams, senior VP and GM, Acision.

Market watchers said the bill shock is a factor that could eat into the telcos' bottom lines if not controlled. That's because a consumer's first reaction to bill shock would be to stop using the phone.

"I think there are a couple of things that are happening. One is some operators are trying to launch or give some visibility to the consumer of what is the maximum you would pay if you are roaming. The next thing we see is a mix of pre-paid and post paid, so you might be a post paid subscriber but when you go abroad or use a data package, you could have a pre-paid," said Jayesh Easwaramony, director, ICT Consulting & Head of Telecom, Frost & Sullivan.

They said consumers may turn to other technologies such as video conferencing and online communication alternatives to avoid bill shock. - CNA /ls