All three mobile operators in the Netherlands have now raised their mobile data pricing, making the tariffs among the most expensive in Europe.
The pricing changes, first taken by KPN Mobile, are being viewed as the operator community's response to the Dutch parliament passing net neutrality legislation, which has banned operators from charging extra for services like Skype and IM services.
The Dutch market, which is becoming increasingly competitive, saw KPN Mobile, which has just under 50 per cent market share--report second-quarter service revenues down 8.7 per cent year-on-year. The company responded by announcing mobile data price increases starting September 15.
T-Mobile, which shares the remaining market with Vodafone, has followed KPN Mobile by no longer offering unlimited data at no extra cost. Instead, subscribers can pay extra to go above the limit but only at a slower data speed. Vodafone also lowered its data allowances in new tariff plans that became effective last Monday.
In an attempt to soften the impact of these changes, KPN and Vodafone are looking to make their subscribers more aware of their data usage. Both operators plan to provide customers with more data download details on their monthly bills as well as up-to-date usage via the operators' websites.
For more:
- see this Dow Jones Newswire article
- see this Telecom Paper article
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