Slough-based Cellnet Mobile Communications Ltd has proposed a number of initiatives to boost demand for its mobile communications offerings in the UK. The plans include the introduction of a low-cost service for London and the M25 area. The company says the announcement gives a very firm indication of its intentions, but adds that it has to consult with its service providers before committing itself. Our research shows that frequent users who make the majority of their calls within the M25 would benefit from a regional service, it says. Users that sign up for the low-cost M25 option will be able to use their handsets outside of London – but may pay a premium. The proposals being trailed follow Newbury-based rival Vodafone Group Plc’s announcements last month of an urban-based Micro-Cellular Network, MetroDigital, due for launch in October. They also anticipate the arrival of Mercury One-2-One, the Cable & Wireless Plc and US West Inc joint venture Personal Communications Network service, arriving later this summer. Initially, the One-2-One service will be limited to the south east, so the area bounded by the M25 is set to become the focus of competition between the three operators. Despite this, all three reckon that the market is so enormous that there will be no unseemly battle for subscribers. Mercury One-2-One has told Reuter it is not seeking a war with Cellnet or Vodafone and both Cellnet and Vodafone are at pains to deny the importance of One-2-One’s arrival. There is not going to be an urgent scrabble, says Cellnet. There’s lots of room for growth and we are not out to ‘spoil’ One-2-One. There is broad consensus among the suppliers that there will be 6m to 8m subscribers to cellular and Personal Communications Network services by the end of the decade, which, they claim publicly, is market enough for up to four operators. Currently, Cellnet claims a total subscriber base of 713,000 and Vodafone 895,000. Not that this has not stopped the suppliers making provocative pricing claims. The Mercury One-2-One company says that its volume users will pay 30% less for its services than on an analogue cellular system, and that lower volume users will get three times as many minutes as cellular for the same price. Vodafone declares that initial connection charges for MetroDigital will be UKP50, with calls to a number in the same public switched telephone network code charged at 20 pence per minute – falling to 10 pence per minute off-peak. Cellnet has yet to announce a tariffing structure for its London Primetime service, but promises that it will be competitive.
