With the entry of China Radio and Television, many people expect to shake the monopoly of the three companies in the communications industry. However, from the current point of view, it is difficult for Radio and Television to have much impact on the original market.
In recent years, the domestic communication industry has been in a pattern of mobile, China Unicom, and telecommunications. Due to the monopoly and lack of competition, the experience of consumers is declining. Especially this year, the way major operators promote 5G packages is also Consumers have a lot of complaints. 5G tariffs remain high, but 4G low-priced packages have been quietly canceled, and suspected 4G slowdowns have also emerged.
On October 12, China Radio and Television Network Co., Ltd. was officially established, becoming the fourth largest operator, and will provide 5G services to issue Section 192. The addition of China Radio and Television has made consumers have some expectations, expecting Radio and Television to break the current industry pattern. So will China Radio and Television be the dragon slayer we expect?
Broadcasting Power Can’t Bring Cheaper 5G Packages
Taking the 2.6GHz frequency band used by mobile as an example, the data transmission rate of this frequency band is about 1Gbps, but the coverage radius is only 300-500 meters, and the power consumption is huge. The 700MHz frequency band single base station obtained by the radio and television can cover a radius of 5-10 kilometers, and save power. However, the transmission rate of the 700MHz band is far less than that of other high-frequency bands. The rate is around 100Mbps, and the actual use is estimated to be comparable to 4G.
In addition, due to the wide coverage of 700MHz, the number of users in the signal coverage area will increase significantly, and the fiber bandwidth of the access base station is limited. In the case of competition, it may be difficult to reach the peak rate. 700MHz as the main frequency band for 5G use may face speed problems, so it is more suitable for 5G signal coverage in remote rural areas. In areas with high urban population density, higher frequency frequency bands still need to be used. Therefore, some people speculate that the mobile phone of the radio and television department will still use the 2.6GHz or 4.9GHz mobile spectrum to provide 5G services. In places where there is no 2.6GHz or 4.9GHz base station, it may appear that the mobile phone displays 5G signal, but the overall speed is greatly reduced. condition.
Therefore, in terms of operating costs alone, the construction and operation and maintenance costs of base stations in the 700MHz band are indeed relatively low, and the operating costs are reflected in user packages. Coupled with the snatch of users, it is foreseeable that the package tariffs of China Radio and Television will be cheaper in the initial stage. Of course, a major premise for a cheap package is that the signal is stable and the speed cannot be dropped, and the service cannot be too bad. If these are not possible, consumers are unwilling to use the cheap package.
Can radio and television shake the status of Yusan?
First of all, from the perspective of infrastructure construction, China Radio and Television is far behind the three major operators. Even if Radio and Television also attracts Alibaba this time, it will be difficult to reach the base station scale of the three major operators in a short period of time. Therefore, Radio and Television chose to sign a contract with China Mobile, build a base station with China Mobile, share the 700MHz frequency band, and use China Radio and Television’s 5G users, in addition to the 5G base station built by Radio and Television, they will also be able to use China Mobile’s base station, the network used by the two users. The rate is the same.
In addition to infrastructure, the market space of radio and television is also very limited. According to the interim reports of major operators, China Mobile has reached 947 million mobile users as of June 2020, including 760 million 4G users and 70.2 million 5G users; China Telecom has reached 343 million mobile users. The three major operators occupy the vast majority of the market share, and there is not much left for radio and television.
Unless radio and television have strong enough competitiveness, such as better service and cheaper prices, it will be difficult for users to switch operators.
In addition, China Radio and Television itself has great problems. Different from the model of China Telecom, China Mobile and China Unicom, which have a nationwide network, for many years, radio and television networks have been scattered in various provinces and cities, and are divided and governed by regions. Radio and television has always wanted to operate in a unified manner, but there has been no good opportunity.
In recent years, under the impact of the mobile Internet, IPTV and OTT, China Radio and Television’s cable TV users are declining every year, and Shaanxi Radio and Television lost nearly 100 million yuan in 2019. Moreover, with the separation of production and broadcasting, the content production capabilities of the radio and television department are also being challenged by Internet platforms such as iQiyi and Youku.
5G tariffs are high, in large part because of high operating costs. Although 5G has a faster transmission speed, its coverage is also smaller, which means that the construction cost of the base station is higher, so the operating cost is also higher. In fact, 5G technology can also be applied to low-frequency frequency bands, and the 5G frequency band held by China Radio and Television is 700MHz. The advantage of this frequency band compared to other high frequency frequency bands is that the signal penetration is strong and the coverage area is wide.
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