Vodafone: Mobile data ratio climbs at half-speed in Eastern Europe

“At the European level, 80-90 percent of revenues are still coming from voice services. The ratio of data exceeded 20 percent in Western Europe, and is growing by one percentage point annually, while in Eastern Europe the growth is one percentage point, with data exceeding 10 percent of total revenues,” Vodafone Romania’s Consumer Market Manager, Adrian Florea, told Business Standard.

As far as Romania is concerned, it is reacting much faster to changes. “The two-three year gap compared to the West in terms of technology is narrowing, and we are even ahead of some Western operators in certain areas,” Florea said.

Prices for voice services will keep dropping, as data services gain ground, to a “fair price” that will have to cover expenses, “because everyone does business and nobody sells below cost,” he added.

In the third fiscal quarter of 2008 (October-December), the company registered a 1 percent increase in revenues from services. Its main competitors are market leader Orange Romania, Cosmote Romania, RCS&RDS, and Zapp.