Firms change tactics to try and tempt users into high-speed mobile voice and data

Orange is trying to simplify its corporate mobile data tariffs by merging charges for international roaming calls, data and text into a single monthly pricing plan. Meanwhile, rival operator 3 has launched its first 3G data card for notebook PCs.

The Orange Business Advance plan contains six different tariffs, ranging from £400 to £10,000 per month. The tariffs can be shared among up to 200 employees on the same contract. The cost of voice calls varies from 5p to 27p per minute but the operator remained vague about data prices.

"This is more to help occasional data users; those using bits of data here and there alongside text and voice," said Catrin Hicks, Orange customer retention manager. "Heavy data users would be better off using our MobileOffice email portfolio."

Although carrier 3 has traditionally spurned the business market, its new data-only Web & Office 3G service gives roaming workers access to the internet and email for as little as 8p per megabyte. The company has also pledged to upgrade its network to use High-Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA) technology this summer.

These moves show how mobile operators are trying to make 3G services more attractive for business users, prompted by growing sales of notebook PCs and by HSDPA's greater bandwidth. HSDPA is expected to boost UK 3G mobile data rates from around 384kbit/s to 1.4Mbit/s this year. Vodafone, O2, T-Mobile and Orange have all promised HSDPA services before 2007.

"Operators were perhaps a little reluctant to go after the business segment with 3G previously; 384kbit/s can't really compete with Wi-Fi," said Thomas Wehmeier of analyst Informa Media Telecoms. "With HSDPA they are more confident they can provide a better user experience."

Wehmeier said that Vodafone and T-Mobile are currently using HSDPA services in Germany, which cost as little as e35 for up to 5GB of data, as a test bed for future tariffs.

"Previous pricing strategies have stifled uptake, largely because bundled data tariffs were very small [10MB to 20MB] and price levels were too high," Wehmeier added.