EE fails to capitalise on its 4G exclusivity

by Mark Tyson on 19 February 2013, 15:15

Tags: Everything Everywhere, PC

Quick Link: HEXUS.net/qabsvf

Add to My Vault: x

EE, the network behind Orange and T-Mobile, turned on its 4G services in November. It’s got more than six months head start on rival networks and has already spent heavily on marketing and advertising (including hiring Kevin Bacon). However its new contract sales figures for Q4 were only very marginally better than in any other quarter of 2012.

PCPro reports that new contracts in Q4 2012 added up to 201,000 which was only 27 per cent of the total number of new customers during the year. The cloud had a silver lining; existing customers choosing to renew their contracts grew 20 per cent in the second half of 2012. So even though the 4G sales and marketing blitz didn’t attract new customers, it helped keep existing customers loyal. In addition EE managed to make “good progress” in up-selling existing Orange and T-Mobile customers onto more expensive 4G EE contracts.

The “solid, early momentum” of 4G adoption in EE's financial report was such a muted statement that an analyst speaking to ZDNet concluded that the rate of EE’s 4G network uptake “has not been spectacular”. He reasoned that any positive results would have been shouted from the rooftops, not buried within a combined 3G and 4G contract sales figure.

By all accounts it seems like EE has failed to capitalise on its first mover advantage, its exclusive six month window of opportunity. The new network brand has been criticised for both its pricing and data allowances. EE’s handset contracts, with a free smartphone, start at a high £31 per month with a paltry 500MB download allowance and the Nokia Lumia 820 as the only option at this price. Stepping up to £36 per month you are still offered 500MB of downloads but a choice of Lumia 820, HTC One SV or Huawei Ascend P1 for free. On this same £36 contract you will have to fork out an extra £100 for a Samsung Galaxy Note II or iPhone 5.

EE’s coverage has continued to grow quite rapidly but in the summer it is expected that all the other UK mobile networks will be offering 4G services. Already we have heard that the smallest UK operator, Three, will not charge any premium or upgrade fee for customers to use 4G data.



HEXUS Forums :: 38 Comments

Login with Forum Account

Don't have an account? Register today!
Well what were they expecting with their rather pathetic 4G tariffs. My Orange contract is up in 4 months time. Will probably move to virgin as what they are offering is rather nice on the data side for existing virginmedia customers.
Good, I'm glad it's poor. This…

start at a high £31 per month with a paltry 500MB download allowance

is pathetic and I like to think that the poor results are because people are wise to the fact this is a ridiculous.
Exactly, they charge you extra money just for the priviledge of burning through a smaller allowance at super high speeds. When 3 are going to offer LTE for no additional cost, to existing 3G users, i cant see why anyone would look towards EE (which so far has been hands down the worst provider i have ever used). The battle for the best value service is yet to come so no need to rush!
500Mb on 4G is almost completely pointless. Its like selling a 200Mph car that only has a fuel tank capable of doing 5 miles. I use up 500Mb on 3g easily. Wake me up when I can get 4g with enough data allowance to steam videos on the move…
It does make you wonder if ee were using this period as a gullibility test bed.