Wireless Internet Included In ADSL Plan Prices

[ForumAdmin]

We have been looking for ways to provide a wireless 'back up' service with some future ADSL plans - to provide a back up service and/or to provide a second service for when people are away from home.

This extremely difficult to do in terms of current pricing but we 'almost' found a way of doing it this morning before that opportunity eluded us.

Any ideas of what you would be prepared to pay for such a faciity and how you think it could be bundled would be welcome.

[jokiin]

if it's just a SIM it's not so hard I guess, having to come up with something workable for the average consumer that doesn't have a 3G modem already is more challenging I suspect

I like the idea though

[vbap]

This is a good idea.

I already use this fallback option, since my modem (7404vnpx) has 3G for failover. So the $5/month plus usage of 1.5c / MB on my HSPA account is fine although ideally it should probably be $0/month and usage only.

For the majority, I suspect you would need to include either a USB key (OK for single PC households/users) or a pocket-sized wireless 3g router (to share the 3G connection amongst multiple PCs).
For those on naked and using VoIP, another complication gets introduced...

I like the all-in-one solution because it just works. It is seemless to the household when ADSL is down and hspa kicks in (unless it is in the middle of a phone call of course). There is nothing to reconfigure on the computers/phone, no cables to be unplugged/re-plugged somewhere else, etc. But it is relatively expensive and the billions are not user-friendly to set-up. But to maintain high WAF, this is what needs to be done. It will take about 6 months or so of me switching to exetel naked adsl to pay for the modem + USB key.

If you do end up providing this service, it will need to come with a lot of detailed set-up / config FAQ guides or else prepare for more support tickets!

[David R]

"bundled"; "back up"
You could probably add $8 to some future monthly costs to achieve 150MB's-or-so 'back up' data.
but for myself, I would prefer it be a separate (1)gigabyte@$40.00-use for emergencies and renew it every 'up to' six months.

I did ruminate about a Wireless fusion concept last Christmas... but... meh.

[CoreyPlover]

I'm in two minds about this concept.

I can see the benefit in it, because I (and many others) have exactly this setup already: An ADSL2+ connection and a HSPA for backup and travel.

However, Exetel were previously directing things towards standalone services without extras. I really like this as a concept because it means users can mix and match plans and add-ons to suit their needs. To bundle HSPA with ADSL is moving back to a position where there are a multitude of plans for users to choose from. Also, the extra cost (of the 3G modem) and the extra technical steps (especially if it were to be setup in a auto fallover way) and the complaints about being charged HSPA rates in place of ADSL rates (again in the case of auto-fall over) makes me hesitate.

Why not a simple checkbox on signup "Would you like an additional HSPA service with your ADSL2+ service (20% off)" or offer "10% discount for each additional bundled service" like insurance agencies do when you bundled home and car insurance with them?

If it were bundled in any way, I'd suggest the Pay-as-you-go option is the best (absorb the $5 monthly fee into the bundled price and offer 1.5c/MB usage on the HSPA service). I also think (and I think this should occur on all HSPA plans actually) that the disconnection after 2 months of inactivity should be removed.

[nihonjin]

I would like to see 2 types of plans:

sim only plan: 1 off fee ($25) or no fee for sim and then pay for usage only at whatever rates you feel reasonable

usb key/router included: monthly fee to cover costs of hardware and then pay for usage at whatever rates you feel reasonable. Contract would be needed.

[vbap]

CoreyPlover raises some good points.

I too recall initial attraction of Exetel was the simplicity of the plans, PAYU approach.

Customers are already confused between the Desktop vs Mobile HSPA plans. Now add a "backup" HSPA plan option and the combinations might become nightmarish.

[Spectator]

Personally I prefer a pay for what you use model to bundling things in at a higher price. I don't need a back-up wireless account now but if I decided to get one I would be interested in a separate service that has a very low or zero monthly cost and reasonable costs of downloads. A pre-paid wireless account with a very long credit might be another option.

[Ravenous]

I would also prefer the $5 access fee absorbed plus free delivery so long as you have an ADSL account. Opt in at any stage as an exetel member. Perhaps give a sharper per MB rate?

With more and more hardware planned/developed such as laptops, netbooks, tablets etc with an integrated SIM port the demand is only going to increase exponentially.

[oblong]

I'm happy to use my existing WI-A $5/m HSPA for backup, as that also lets me simultaneously use my laptop when I'm out.

However, for a pure backup situation, perhaps it could be arranged that there be a $0/m plan that will work only if the "matching" ADSL connection is off-line. That way it could not be used as a cheap simultaneous wireless service, but as a backup service, as intended. I guess you'd still have to charge the normal 1.5c/MB data rates (but maybe you could do better up to some data download limit?); a $25 setup/SIM/delivery fee would be acceptible (or maybe cheaper if ordered at the same time as an option with the original ADSL service?).

[Munka]

Certainly a good leader concept for business plans.
For residential, maybe absorb all costs and charge 2-5c per MB.

[David R]

Further considering, I think CP's checkbox for a 'combined service discount' would be a most sound(/least disruptive) approach toward merging HSPA & ADSL costings: Exetel may need only discount 5 per cent off the invoice total and 90%-30% of that "$5 access fee" would become dissolved, effectively, by such a generous discount.

For instance, take an average $45.00 ADSL account, you'd tick the $5 HSDPA checkbox and get a 0.95 * $50.00 = to a new monthly cost of only 47.50 for the two services combined. Usage@1.5-1.4cents/MB is probably best left alone until a meaningful reduction from the carrier can be obtained by Exetel.

I also agree the no SIM usage =disconnection (policy should be dispensed of) requires review in Exetel plans.

[gong_guy]

I would like to see 2 types of plans:

sim only plan: 1 off fee ($25) or no fee for sim and then pay for usage only at whatever rates you feel reasonable

ForumAdmin I think a "backup" 3G USB stick would be a fantastic idea, the problem is that it has to be cheaper than your current plans otherwise you haven't done anything new. I also realise how tight your margins are already.

I have few ideas off the top of my head.

1. Two variations of HSPA WI A* post paid plan.

1.a) $30 per year paid UP FRONT, data at 1.5 cents a mb (so you save $30 a year that you would have paid at $5 monthly)

OR

1.b) ZERO COST with $5 a month minimum usage at 1.5 cents a MB (333MB included per month) excess data at 1.5 cents MB

2. A variation of R2000 Pre paid plan

$30 for 2GB with one year expiry or data usage whatever comes first.

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The first would lend itself to people wanting a mobile solution for their laptop as well as a backup for home.

The second would lend itself to being a TRUE backup solution and would not cannibalise your other plans much.

Both plans you pay for hardware at normal cost.

[vk3xem]

I would certainly like such a product.

It would also be nice to have the option to purchase the hardware also that is pre-configured to work correctly.

[zencloud]

Wireless backup really should be an integral part of naked dsl to make up for the shortcomings of being naked with no CSG or direct contact with Telstra. This way the service remains operable when the line is down, albeit more expensive (voip less affected) and online customer support is still accessible so there is no need to resort to long expensive mobile support calls.

The problem is there are no wireless services that are well suited to a backup role. Postpaid have monthly charges, Exetel charge $60/year without any usage. For prepaid, small quantities of credits expire too quickly, buying large amounts that you don't need costs more and still expires after 365 days. So a backup service requires ongoing costs even though it is never used.

When a NakedDSL customer loses sync, they are temporarily deprived of the service they are paying for, so ideally a backup wireless account should be available without any ongoing costs. Whatever is required to make this possible should be considered, higher wireless setup fee, higher wireless data cost and possibly only being active when there is no line sync so as not to compete with existing wireless services.