Focus Taiwan
Date: 08/20/2020
By: intern Tzeng Yi-ning

Taipei, Aug. 20 (CNA) The majority of Taiwan consumers are not inclined to switch to 5G mobile phone service within the next six months, as most of them are waiting for the cost to drop, according to an online poll released on Thursday.

With the launch of 5G services by Taiwan's three major telecom companies over the past two months, the average cost of a monthly data plan is NT$1,399 (US$47.55), almost twice as much as the average NT$703 most consumers are prepared to pay, the poll found.

The survey, conducted by 1111 Job Bank, found that 52.8 percent of consumers are not considering applying for 5G service in the near future, with 31 percent of them listing cost as the main deterrent.

People are also not motivated to switch to 5G services because they think 4G is adequate for their personal use (24.9 percent), they are concerned that 5G base stations may not have wide enough coverage (21.0 percent), and the devices they have do not support 5G (18.8 percent), according to the poll.   [FULL  STORY]