Data-only providers: do they add to mobile competition?

There are several new entrants waiting to enter the mobile markets. Most are using LTE as the new, more spectrally efficient technology, which allows players without legacy to disrupt the market.

• The latest is Swan in Slovakia, with a wonderful unlimited offering of just 5 €/month.
• Others include Ukko Mobile in Finland,
• Midas in Poland,
• Ice in Norway, Net 1 in Sweden & Denmark,
• Digi in Hungary.

This is interesting in two ways:

• How will it affect the market? Will prices drop, as they did in France? How will the incumbent operators respond?
• Do data-only providers (in Finland, Slovakia, Norway, Sweden and Denmark) add to competition, even if they provide no (legacy) voice/SMS services? Are services such as Skype/Skype Out and Viber/Viber Out considered fully-fledged voice services? And how about WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Kik etc. on the texting market?

The latter issue is especially relevant in Norway, where the regulator objects to TeliaSonera and Tele2 merging, even though Ice is launching its mobile data services (the other operator is Telenor). Is this a reduction from 3 to 2 players, or from 4 to 3? Parties have until December 22 to respond.

(In Denmark, TeliaSonera and Telenor are trying to merge, reducing the market from 4 to 3 players (not counting Net 1, only TDC and Hutch 3) or from 5 to 4, depending on your view.)