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One-Third Of Aussies Changed Net Plans During Pandemic

Since the start of the pandemic, 33 per cent of Australians have made a change to their home internet service.

This is according to Deloitte’s Digital Consumer Trends 2021 report, which found that 12 per cent of Australians did so to upgrade to faster speeds.

The additional time at home during the pandemic led to many realising their home net speeds weren’t going to cut it.

Happily for providers, of those making the upgrade, the majority (67 per cent) stayed with their existing service provider, but boosted the speed. Whether this suggests, as Deloitte says, “they were happy with the service they were receiving, but simply wanted to boost the speed due to new lockdown usage requirements” or they were stuck on a plan isn’t evident.

For the younger generation, it’s likely to be the former, with 31 per cent of 18-24s playing more online games, 38 per cent streaming more YouTube, and 27 per cent using more TV streaming services since the start of the pandemic.

“Over the coming months, it will be interesting to observe whether these consumers revert back to a lower speed plan now that restrictions are lifting and the demand for at-home entertainment is likely to fall,” Deloitte states.

“Alternatively, we may see service providers offering short-term incentives in an effort to retain these younger customers on higher speed plans.”

8 per cent of Aussies changed solely due to pricing, moving to a lower-cost home internet service. This also skewed towards the younger demographics, with 14 per cent of 18-24s and 13 per cent of 25-34s making this switch.

“This suggests that younger consumers had contrasting relationships with their connectivity providers in the last year,” the report notes.

 

The amount of 5G users has more than doubled in the past year, with 14 per cent of Aussies now on a 5G plan, compared to 6 per cent in the 2020 report.

These are hardly impressive numbers, considering the focus on this technology by providers and device manufacturers alike.

We are in the third year of the national 5G rollout, with coverage reaching 75 per cent of the country.

“Although 14 per cent adoption demonstrates that there is a significant portion of the population who are yet to connect, Australia is still a front runner compared to many international markets,” the report notes.

By comparison, Japan has 10 per cent adoption, with the UK (9%), Italy (5%) and Belgium (3%) also lagging behind.

South Korea, who are a global leader in 5G adoption, has 38 per cent of its citizens using the service.

Many of the major networks are still rolling out their 5G network. “Therefore, some consumers would not yet be covered by 5G while at home and would be unable to take advantage of the benefit provided, even if they have a 5G enabled phone and mobile plan,” the report explains.

Understanding of 5G is also low, with 56 per cent of respondents admitting they don’t know enough about 5G to make a wise decision. In 2020, this figure was at 61 per cent, suggesting that messaging has not at all been successful.

More tellingly, 5G capability ranked just eleventh on the list of features Aussies consider to be most important when shopping for a new smartphone. Just 9 per cent consider it a top priority.

Of course, as this feature becomes standard, and the rollout edges closer to 100 per cent coverage, this is likely to become even less relevant, and more of a baked-in standard that people don’t think hard about.

“As the 5G network roll-out continues, Fixed Wireless Access will become a reality for many and is expected to become an increasingly viable alternative to in-home fixed internet connections, especially in areas with poor nbn performance.”

 



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