ChangeWave Research: Wireless Service Provider Trends
Wireless Service Provider Trends
Consumers Weigh In on Their Wireless Service Providers –
And Initial Reaction to the Verizon "Share Everything" Data Plan
Andy Golub and Paul Carton
Overview: During June, ChangeWave surveyed 4,042 consumers on their opinions and attitudes toward their wireless service providers – including customer satisfaction ratings, loyalty and future demand trends.
We also looked at consumer reaction to Verizon’s new “Share Everything” family data plan.
Recently ChangeWave found that shared family data plans could be a major game changer for the industry. But now that Verizon is actually offering such a plan, the current survey takes a close look at how likely consumers are to sign up.
ChangeWave Research is a service of 451 Research.
Consumer Satisfaction With Their Providers
Among the major U.S. providers, Verizon Wireless continues to maintain a lead in customer satisfaction with 48% of their subscribers saying they’re Very Satisfied with Verizon's service.
Sprint/Nextel (32%) is second followed by T-Mobile (30%) and AT&T (22%).
We note that AT&T has gained 1-pt since March, the fourth consecutive quarter it has shown a 1-pt improvement.
Dropped Calls. When it comes to dropped calls, Verizon is continuing to set the industry standard – with their customers reporting only 1.8% of their calls dropped over the past 90 days. T-Mobile (2.8%) and Sprint (2.8%) are tied for second place, followed by AT&T (3.7%).
Note that while AT&T is in fourth place, it’s shown the biggest improvement of any provider in its dropped call rate over the past 18 months.
Customer Loyalty
In terms of customer retention, 9% of respondents say they’re likely to switch providers in the next 90 days – 1-pt more than previously.
Verizon outperforms in this area with just 6% of their customers saying they plan on switching, followed by Sprint (10%), AT&T (11%) and T-Mobile (12%).
Note that the top reasons for switching given by T-Mobile, AT&T and Sprint subscribers are Poor Reception/Coverage and Cost. But among Verizon customers, the number one reason given for switching is Cost.
Where Are Customers Switching To?
Among the 9% of respondents who plan on switching in the next 90 days, Verizon (41%; up 1-pt) continues to retain a big lead.
* Don’t Know = 23%; Other/NA = 19%
Sprint (7%; up 1-pt) has moved up into second place here, while AT&T (5%; down 2-pts) and T-Mobile (5%; up 2-pts) are tied for third.
Verizon’s New “Share Everything” Data Plan
In June Verizon announced the details surrounding their new “Share Everything” data plan. The plan includes unlimited voice calls and text messages, and a data plan that can be shared by up to 10 devices. The cost starts at $90 for a single smart phone user with 1GB of data, and additional devices can be added for a fee (e.g., $40 per smart phone; $10 per tablet). Extra data can be added in $10 increments.
Current Verizon Customers
Current Verizon subscribers who own a smart phone were provided a description of the “Share Everything” offering and then asked:
How likely are you to sign up for a Verizon "Share Everything" plan?
Better than a quarter of Verizon smart phone owners (27%) say they’re likely to sign up for the plan (10% Very Likely; 17% Somewhat Likely).
Next we asked Verizon smart phone owners what they thought about the Plan’s cost:
Do you think the Verizon "Share Everything" plan would cost you and your family more money than your current plan, less money than your current plan, or about the same amount?
Among Verizon smart phone owners who are likely to sign up for the “Share Everything” plan, 41% think it will cost Less than their current plan while only 15% think it will cost More.
However, among those unlikely to use the plan, just 2% think it will cost Less than their current plan while a huge 60% believe it will cost More. Here’s the comparison:
Verizon CustomersLikely to
Sign up for a
"Share
Everything"
Plan / Verizon Customers
Unlikely to
Sign up for a
"Share
Everything"
Plan
Would Cost Less Than My Current Plan / 41% / 2%
Would Cost More Than My Current Plan / 15% / 60%
About the Same Amount / 21% / 4%
Don’t Know/NA / 23% / 34%
Of course, the “Share Everything” rollout is just getting under way and approximately one-in-three respondents still say they Don’t Know whether it will cost more or less than their current plan.
Other Findings
· Better than half (57%) of those who plan on signing up say they’ll do so within the first three months of its availability. A third (33%) say they’ll sign up when they buy their next mobile device.
· Respondents who are likely to sign up for Verizon’s “Share Everything” plan have a higher number of mobile devices than those who are unlikely (3.3 devices vs. 2.6 devices).
· Likewise, there are more people in households likely to sign up than unlikely to sign up (2.9 people vs. 2.3).
· Apple iPhone owners (30%) are more inclined to sign up, as are Samsung (29%) and Motorola (28%) smart phone owners, as seen in the chart below.
Non-Verizon Customers
Non- Verizon subscribers who own a smart phone were also provided a description of the “Share Everything” offering and then asked if they were likely to switch to Verizon to sign up.
A total of 2% said they're Very Likely and 8% Somewhat Likely to sign up in the future.
(For Those NOT Currently Using Verizon for Wireless Service) How likely are you to switch to Verizon in the future to sign up for a "Share Everything" plan?
AT&T customers (13%) were more likely than T-Mobile customers (8%) to say they’ll switch to Verizon to access the plan. Sprint customers (3%) were least likely to switch to Verizon to access the plan.
But among those non-Verizon customers who said they’re likely to switch to Verizon, the top reason given was Better Coverage and Reliability (33%), with Cost (24%) coming in second.
Bottom Line. It’s early in the game and large numbers of consumers have yet to make up their minds, but the Verizon "Share Everything" plan clearly represents a transformational shift for the wireless industry.
With massive sales of data hungry wireless devices exploding across multiple markets, share everything data plans have the potential to offer cost efficient solutions for households with multiple users and devices.
But at this early stage, wireless providers still need to effectively promote and educate consumers on the benefits of "Share Everything" plans for them to fully take root. Currently, large numbers of Verizon subscribers still remain skeptical that the plan will save their households money. But if the case can be effectively made, the ChangeWave survey results show Verizon has a monster winner on its hands. The rest of the industry should take notice.
Summary of Key Findings
The ChangeWave Research Network is a group of 25,000 highly qualified business, technology, and medical professionals in leading companies of select industries—credentialed professionals who spend their everyday lives working on the frontline of technological change. ChangeWave surveys its Alliance members on a range of business and investment research and intelligence topics, collects feedback from them electronically, and converts the information into proprietary quantitative and qualitative reports.
Table of Contents
Summary of Key Findings 7
Consumer Satisfaction With Their Providers 9
Customer Loyalty 12
Where Are Customers Switching To? 15
Verizon’s New “Share Everything” Data Plan 16
AT&T iPhone 4S Owners vs. Verizon iPhone 4S Owners 27
Corporate Market: Wireless Service Provider Trends 28
ChangeWave Research Methodology 29
About ChangeWave Research 29
About 451 Research 29
The Findings
Introduction: During June, ChangeWave surveyed 4,042 consumers on their opinions and attitudes toward their wireless service providers – including customer satisfaction ratings, loyalty and future demand trends.
We also looked at consumer reaction to Verizon’s new “Share Everything” family data plan.
Recently ChangeWave found that shared family data plans could be a major game changer for the industry. But now that Verizon is actually offering such a plan, the current survey takes a close look at how likely consumers are to sign up.
ChangeWave Research is a service of 451 Research.
Consumer Satisfaction With Their Providers
Among the major U.S. providers, Verizon Wireless continues to maintain a lead in customer satisfaction with 48% of their subscribers saying they’re Very Satisfied with Verizon's service.
Sprint/Nextel (32%) is second followed by T-Mobile (30%) and AT&T (22%).
How satisfied are you with your current wireless service provider?
Total / Verizon / Sprint / T-Mobile / AT&TVery Satisfied / 33% / 48% / 32% / 30% / 22%
Somewhat Satisfied / 52% / 44% / 53% / 52% / 57%
Somewhat Unsatisfied / 11% / 6% / 11% / 15% / 16%
Very Unsatisfied / 3% / 2% / 4% / 3% / 4%
We note that AT&T has gained 1-pt since March, the fourth consecutive quarter it has shown a 1-pt improvement.
Here’s a look at the satisfaction ratings for Sprint and T-Mobile over the same time period.
Dropped Calls. When it comes to dropped calls, Verizon is continuing to set the industry standard – with their customers reporting only 1.8% of their calls dropped over the past 90 days. T-Mobile (2.8%) and Sprint (2.8%) are tied for second place, followed by AT&T (3.7%).
Note that while AT&T is in fourth place, it’s shown the biggest improvement of any provider in its dropped call rate over the past 18 months.
Here’s a look at Sprint and T-Mobile:
Over the past 90 days, how frequently have you experienced a "dropped call" on your cell phone?
CurrentSurvey
Jun ‘12 / Previous
Survey
Mar ‘12 / Previous
Survey
Dec ‘11 / Previous
Survey
Sep ‘11 / Previous
Survey
Jun ‘11
Total / 2.5% / 2.7% / 2.5% / 3.0% / 2.8%
Verizon / 1.8% / 1.5% / 1.5% / 1.8% / 1.9%
Sprint / 2.8% / 3.2% / 2.7% / 3.4% / 2.3%
T-Mobile / 2.8% / 2.5% / 2.8% / 2.5% / 2.6%
AT&T / 3.7% / 4.6% / 4.6% / 4.9% / 4.9%
Customer Loyalty
In terms of customer retention, 9% of respondents say they’re likely to switch providers in the next 90 days – 1-pt more than previously.
How likely is it that you will change wireless service providers within the next 90 days?
CurrentSurvey
Jun ‘12 / Previous Survey Mar ‘12 / Previous Survey Dec ‘11 / Previous Survey
Sep ‘11 / Previous Survey
Jun ‘11
Very Likely / 2% / 2% / 3% / 3% / 3%
Somewhat Likely / 7% / 6% / 6% / 8% / 7%
Unlikely / 87% / 88% / 87% / 85% / 87%
Don't Know / 3% / 3% / 2% / 3% / 3%
Not Applicable / 1% / 1% / 1% / 1% / 1%
Verizon outperforms in this area with just 6% of their customers saying they plan on switching, followed by Sprint (10%), AT&T (11%) and T-Mobile (12%).
The following charts show the churn rates for T-Mobile and AT&T, followed by Verizon and Sprint.
Current Survey (June 2012) - Breakdown of Respondents by Provider
Total / Verizon / Sprint / AT&T / T-MobileVery/Somewhat Likely / 9% / 6% / 10% / 11% / 12%
Unlikely / 87% / 91% / 85% / 85% / 81%
Reasons for Switching. Note that the top reasons for switching given by T-Mobile, AT&T and Sprint subscribers are Poor Reception/Coverage and Cost. But among Verizon customers, the number one reason given for switching is Cost.
What's the most important reason why you're likely to change wireless service providers?
T-Mobile AT&T
Sprint Verizon
Where Are Customers Switching To?
Among the 9% of respondents who plan on switching in the next 90 days, Verizon (41%; up 1-pt) continues to retain a big lead.
For those of you who are likely to change wireless service providers, which company are you most likely to switch to?
* Don’t Know = 23%; Other/NA = 19%
Sprint (7%; up 1-pt) has moved up into second place here, while AT&T (5%; down 2-pts) and T-Mobile (5%; up 2-pts) are tied for third.
Verizon’s New “Share Everything” Data Plan
In June Verizon announced the details surrounding their new “Share Everything” data plan. The plan includes unlimited voice calls and text messages, and a data plan that can be shared by up to 10 devices. The cost starts at $90 for a single smart phone user with 1GB of data, and additional devices can be added for a fee (e.g., $40 per smart phone; $10 per tablet). Extra data can be added in $10 increments.
Current Verizon Customers
Current Verizon subscribers who own a smart phone were provided a description of the “Share Everything” offering and then asked:
How likely are you to sign up for a Verizon "Share Everything" plan?
VerizonSmart Phone Owners
Very Likely / 10%
Somewhat Likely / 17%
Somewhat Unlikely / 16%
Very Unlikely / 29%
Don’t Know / 26%
Better than a quarter of Verizon smart phone owners (27%) say they’re likely to sign up for the plan (10% Very Likely; 17% Somewhat Likely).
Next we asked Verizon smart phone owners what they thought about the Plan’s cost:
Do you think a Verizon "Share Everything" plan would cost you and your family more money than your current plan, less money than your current plan, or about the same amount?