Executive Summary:
The current broadband industry is experiencing unprecedented HSD usage growth and this trend is expected to continue for the foreseeable future. This reality presents operators with new challenges, but it also provides a path to monetizing the growth.
The widespread adoption of Over-the-Top (OTT) content along with a significant increase in the number of internet connected devices provides a unique opportunity for broadband providers to both increase revenues and improve customer satisfaction.
In this case study, a Tier One operator implemented a two-pronged plan to track a subscriber’s HSD usage and to communicate directly with the high-consumption subscribers on each speed tier in an effort to upgrade them to a higher bandwidth plan. This implementation boosts the revenue per subscriber and improves the service level based on the subscriber’s individual data usage needs.
The Challenge:
A Tier 1 operator, one of the largest cable operators in the U.S., had approximately 80 percent of their subscriber base on lower bandwidth tiers in 2015. As part of a capital reinvestment project to bring greater speed and services to the smaller markets they serve, the operator was exploring ways to migrate their customers to higher bandwidth plans in order to enhance the overall user experience.
“We are committed to providing the best technology available regardless of demographics. As data demands grow at exponential rates, our expanding customer base has increasingly diverse needs, but every subscriber deserves a quality user experience. Educating our subscribers with information about their usage empowers them to select those services and options that best meet their needs.” Tier 1 Operator CTO
Strategy:
By deploying a cloud-based solution provided by OpenVault, an industry leading data and analytics expert, and a subscriber notification platform supplied by PerfTech, the leading in-browser communication provider, the operator’s subscribers’ data consumption was tracked and customers were notified of usage thresholds. For example, subscribers were alerted when they were approaching specific data thresholds, thereby creating an awareness of usage and a suggestion for a higher bandwidth plan.
In this way, upgrade candidates were easily uncovered, enabling the operator to communicate with and right-size their customers.
“Being able to proactively reach subscribers at precisely the relevant moment enables operators to present action options that are optimal for each subscriber. This non-disruptive outreach proves effective across a variety of messaging needs. In this case, with OpenVault providing our messaging platform with automated usage triggers, the in-browser usage alert drives engagement and self-initiated upgrades that benefit all parties,” stated Jane Christ, SVP of Sales, PerfTech.
Results:
Through proper data collection, deep analytics and a subscriber education and communication strategy executed by the OpenVault and PerfTech integrated solution, the operator has been able to enjoy significant incremental revenue. In fact, 80 percent of the operator’s subscriber base migrated to the higher bandwidth tiers within one year of deployment of the integrated solution. This resulted in an increase in overall revenue per subscriber of nearly 20 percent.
“OpenVault collects network data regarding subscriber HSD usage behavior and provides deep analytics enabling solutions to help manage and monetize this usage. Integrating our solution with the industry leading in-browser notification tools of PerfTech has been a perfect match resulting in significant ROI for our joint broadband operator customers.” Mark Trudeau, CEO of OpenVault.
“The collaboration between OpenVault and PerfTech provided our subscribers with both the information and communication of their data usage to enable the customer to right-size their data plans. In doing so, not only did we see higher revenue per subscriber, but the overall customer satisfaction was also significantly increased.” Tier 1 Operator CTO