Hutchison 3G Tariff's Become Clearer

Hutchison 3G Tariff's Become Clearer

Hutchison 3G, the new mobile operator aiming to launch a 3G service in the UK and Italy next month, is closer to deciding on what tariff plans it will offer consumers in the UK.

Feedback from more than 15,000 consumers at 150 focus groups over the past 18 months indicates strong interest in simple voice call charges across all networks, as well as interest in fixed price "all you can eat" plans.

One insider who attended a recent focus group told the Financial Times that the strongest interest from the group was for a proposed all- inclusive tariff.

At that particular meeting, Hutchison outlined three tariff options to prospective consumers. But a flat fee plan of £65 a month for unlimited voice and video calls to all UK networks and land lines was by far the most popular.

However, there was concern at the level of handset prices. Hutchison outlined two unsubsidised handset prices on this tariff plan, one at £400 and the other at £600.

Its two other tariff plans presented at the meeting included one plan with £120 off each handset price and a monthly tariff of £15. Beyond this, voice calls to other Hutchison phones cost 5p a minute and those to other mobiles 25p a minute. Calls to UK land lines were proposed at 10p a minute.

Hutchison yesterday played down the importance of the tariff plans outlined at the meeting, saying it had run many proposals past focus groups.

It said: "We have made no decision on tariffs yet. We will continue to explore options, but it is unlikely we will go further with any of these specific options."

Hutchison showed users video clips of football goals and asked them whether they would be willing to pay for these clips. It also indicated that it would have 56 per cent population 3G coverage at launch with calls outside this area covered by a "roaming" agreement with mobile operator MMO2.

Danny Williams, senior analyst at Baskerville, the research group, said a fixed fee "would prove attractive for a small number of users in the near term" but was unlikely to prove viable in the long term.

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