Pacific Internet releases new broadband plans
The centrepiece of the plans is an AU$70 per month price drop on Pacific's Business 512/512 plan, which goes from AU$219 a month down to only AU$149. However, the plan still still has a download limit of 16GB, and excess is charged at 6c/MB.
Speaking with ZDNet Australia this morning, Pacific product marketing manager Grant Lamont, who came on board the company in November, said that the company needed to enhance its plans to be more competitive, and wanted to attract more customers from the business end of the market.
Asked about the AU$70 price drop on the Business 512/512 kbps plan, Lamont said that the new price will still enable the provider to maintain its profit margins, and that the plan was aimed at attracting certain types of small to medium enterprises (SMEs) such as graphic design and advertising agencies that need to upload and download data in more equal amounts than the average user.
Lamont also commented on the structure of Pacific's new Professional lite plan, which offers 1500/256 kbps speeds. When asked whether Pacific thought that the plan would be competitive given the current proliferation of 1500/256 kbps unlimited plans, Lamont said that the SOHO and small business market that the provider was looking to attract with the plan was not interested in higher download limits, but rather faster speeds. Most users in this market segment, he said, would only download between 3-5GB per month.
Given this information, Pacific wanted to offer a sub-AU$100 plan that would still offer high speeds for a modest price. Users who exceed the 5GB limit will be charged at 6c per megabyte. The provider has also changed the contract conditions of its plans to include free setup if users choose a 24-month plan.
Lamont came on board with Pacific in November last year. He was previously product marketing manager for voice with Telstra, and has also worked for NEC Business Solutions in a similar role. At Pacific he plans to focus on introducing a range of value-added services as well as keeping the business fully competitive in the SME space.