Brazilian consumers' frustration costing operators

The majority of Brazilian consumers are willing to pay more for an improved mobile service and operators could be missing out on up to R$40bn (US$17.13bn) per year, according to research published today.

More than 56 per cent of Brazilian mobile users reported losing signal at least three times a month, according to the research which was published by Commprove. The news comes as Brazilian telecoms regulator Anatel continues its clampdown on poor network performance which it began last year. It has warned operators that they risk having their spectrum licences revoked due to poor coverage levels.

The research revealed that 40 per cent of consumers said they would be willing to pay an additional R$5 per month for better coverage, ten per cent would pay R$10 and a further 10 per cent would pay R$15 per month. Surprisingly, 6.3 per cent said they would be willing to up to R$50 per month for better basic radio coverage.

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According to the research, Brazilian subscribers are less attracted to offerings that have proven popular in developed markets, such as text message bundles, and are instead more focused on receiving a high quality of service. While 46 per cent of respondents said that they would switch operator for better service reliability, and 33 per cent for a better phone, only nine per cent would move for a bigger text messaging package.

The 18-24 year old demographic placed the greatest value on their mobile access with 56 per cent claiming unreliable signal was the main reason for looking for new contracts. Overall, however, and despite complaints about the lack of coverage, more than half (53 per cent) of respondents said they would churn to save money.

“Brazil is a complex market with different demographics, it’s not a homogenous market,” Commprove CEO Dr Lars Pederson told telecoms.com. He added that the research proves the majority of theBrazilian subscribers clearly value service and are willing to pay a premium for it.

“With premium pricing models, Brazilian operators have an opportunity to both increase subscriber satisfaction and generate new, long-term revenue opportunities. They should seize that opportunity immediately.”