TeliaSonera, which launched the world's first LTE network in Stockholm and Oslo, Norway, in December, revealed results of a survey that indicates users are hooked on the mobile high-speed data service.
The survey indicates that 54 percent of customers that had used the service for 100 days would never go back to 3G services. However, TeliaSonera has been offering dirt-cheap pricing for a time for early adopters.
Given the limited coverage and the fact that users must also carry a 3G connection devices when out of the LTE coverage area, subscribers in Stockholm are paying the rock-bottom price of 4 Swedish Kroner, or 56 cents per month until June, while TeliaSonera subscribers paid 1 Norwegian Kroner, or 17 cents per month until April 1.
Still the survey said that more than half of subscribers are willing to continue with service even as the price increases to $84 per month in Stockholm and $120 per month in Oslo. Here's some other data points TeliaSonera collected:
- 26 percent said they are working more on a mobile basis
- 23 percent said they are downloading larger files
- 19 percent said they watch online TV/stream movies
- 16 percent said they began surfing the web more
Is this a sign that operators can justify charging a significant premium for LTE services?
For more:
- check out this GigaOm article
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