Some prepaid services have achieved strong take-up, such as China Mobile’s 1-Card Multi-Number prepaid service, which targets frequent travelers in Greater China, and its prepaid cards for FDHs. CSL’s prepaid HSPA+ mobile broadband service has also been successful. Hybrid plans are increasingly popular in Hong Kong, especially those with monthly prepaid charges such as SmarTone’s PayGo plan.
Operators are all offering prepaid voice & SMS cards, but there are not many prepaid voice & data cards, and even fewer prepaid high-speed data-only cards or cards that support specific content or value-added services. Operators need to develop more innovative prepaid applications and specific services for targeted segments. Well-selected channels for target segments can also help to develop prepaid business.
Ovum forecasts that the prepaid proportion of total mobile connections in Hong Kong will grow slowly to 48.1% in 2010. It will then decline slowly to 45.6% in 2014. Prepaid connections are expected to increase to almost 6.7 million in 2010.
Considering the maturity and limited size of the Hong Kong mobile market, prepaid connections will still grow but at a lower speed going forward than in 2010. More prepaid mobile broadband services will be available in the market and there will be more high-speed prepaid mobile broadband services as operators upgrade their networks. We also expect the demand for communication services from travelers in Greater China will continue to increase as the economic ties between areas grow.