Between August and October 2013, the MCA commissioned a survey to gauge consumer sentiment on fixed telephony services, in particular their perceptions on the general quality of service and prices.
Here are some of the main findings:
Despite the significant increases in mobile telephony usage, fixed telephony still remains an essential service. Even though 72% of households consider the mobile phone to be a good substitute (61% in 2011), only 3% of households consider terminating their fixed line connection. 36% of households said their preference between using a fixed or mobile phone would depend on whether the call is made to another landline or mobile, on the person being called and the duration of the call.
Of those households preferring the fixed telephone, 49% perceive landline calls to be cheaper, 32% claim the telephone is easier to handle, 16% claimed to not have a mobile phone whilst the rest used the fixed telephone out of habit. Those preferring the mobile phone do so because of mobility, SMS facility, attractive packages and special offers, as well as direct access to the contacts list.
The majority of respondents perceived landline calls to other landlines to be cheap or reasonably priced, however, 59% of households still perceive calls to mobile phones as expensive. 48% of households make international calls, out of which, 81% perceive the rates for these calls to be cheap or reasonable. Interestingly, 18% of households use the Internet to make calls, believing this to be a good substitute to fixed line telephony. Satisfaction levels have been maintained.
View Survey Results