Quickline is an inter-regional cable service provider which operates a number of its own cable infrastructures. Additionally, Quickline services are resold by 23 independent cable service providers. A total of around 400,000 households use a Quickline connection. This connection is generally required for the use of Quickline services.
Now, Quickline is upgrading its pricing. As from April 23, 2018, new broadband, TV and mobile plans are being offered. Following the trend in the telecom sector, Quickline has launched flexible plans which can be combined and customized to match customers’ needs. Sunrise introduced modular plans several years ago, and both Swisscom and UPC have since followed suit.
Customers who use flat-rate mobile plans from Quickline can now use the same flat-rate at home. Likewise, customers who use a broadband plan from Quickline will now either receive a mobile plan with 1 gigabyte of data on a complimentary basis or a get a discount of 10 Swiss francs off other Quickline mobile plans.
Broadband plans
Quickline is offering three new broadband plans. The slowest internet plan, Internet Smart S, now comes with data-transfer speeds of 60 Mbps for downloads and 15 Mbps for uploads at a monthly fee of 35 francs. The mid-range plan, Internet Smart M, delivers speeds of 250 Mbps for downloads and 50 Mbps for uploads and has a 55-franc monthly fee. The fastest broadband connection, Internet Smart L, provides 500 Mbps download bandwidth and 50 Mbps upload bandwidth at a monthly fee of 70 francs. Compared to the previous Quickline plans, the new plans either provide faster Internet access for the same price or identical Internet access at a lower price.
TV plans
All customers with a Quickline connection will continue to receive the basic digital TV plan at no extra charge. But Quickline now offers two new TV packages: TV Smart S and TV Smart M. both TV plans include 190 channels, 90 of which are broadcast in high definition (HD). The lower-range plan includes 30 hours of time-shifting capability and a virtual recorder with 30 hours of recording capacity. The higher-range TV plan supports 7-day time-shifting and includes a virtual recorder with 1200 hours of recording capacity. The plans are priced at 20 francs and 30 francs respectively.
Landline plans
Quickline is now offering two new fixed phone line plans: The Tel Basic landline connection costs 5 francs per month, with a per-minute charge of 20 centimes for calls to Swiss phone numbers; Tel Smart Flat lets you make unlimited calls to all Swiss phone numbers – including mobile numbers – for a 20-franc monthly flat fee (complimentary for Quickline Flat mobile plan customers).
Mobile plans
Quickline is now offering four different mobile plans. Basic plans do not include complimentary calls. Flat plans include unlimited calls in the monthly flat fee. Lower-range plans include 1 gigabyte of data per month, while the higher-range plans include 5 gigabytes of data per month. The plans also include an annual allowance of 500 megabytes or 2 gigabytes of data roaming in Europe, the United States and Canada. Base fees range between 10 and 55 francs per month, depending on the plan. Base fees are discounted by 10 francs for Quicktime broadband plan customers.
Cable connection fee
As before, a recurring fee is charged for the cable connection. In many cases this is charged to renters by landlords as part of supplementary rental charges. The connection fee varies between Quickline cable networks. According to Quickline, the highest cable connection fee charged is 29.90 francs per month.
Quickline compared to other service providers
An overall comparison of mobile, TV, broadband and landline plans conducted by moneyland.ch clearly shows that Quickline is cheaper than Swisscom and UPC, but more expensive than Salt in most cases. Quickline can be cheaper or more expensive than Sunrise, depending on consumer needs and habits. The differences are notable: Taking 36 different possible service combinations into account, Swisscom works out to be 47 percent more expensive than Quickline, on average. UPC is 38 percent more expensive and Sunrise is 18 percent more expensive, on average. Salt, on the other hand, is 25 percent cheaper, on average. In the case of some specific service combinations, other Swiss telecom service providers are twice as expensive as Quickline.
Verdict from telecom expert Ralf Beyeler
Quickline stands out in the mobile plan sector because it follows a different strategy than that used by the “big 3” mobile service providers. Swisscom, Sunrise and Salt all offer unlimited data at flat fees. Quickline’s flagship mobile plan includes just 5 gigabytes of data per month. Once the monthly limit is reached, any further data use is throttled. Customers can purchase additional 2 gigabyte data bundles at 15 francs each if they so choose. “It is surprising that Quickline – in contrast to its key competitors – is not offering unlimited data at flat fees” says Ralf Beyeler. However, it is fair to say that the majority of customers do not use very large amounts of mobile data, and these customers have no need for unlimited data.
Secondly, the 1-gigabytye data allowance which comes with the lower-range plan is somewhat low for current mobile habits. Most of Quickline’s competitors include at least 2 gigabytes in their entry-level plans.
Thirdly, it is surprising that Quickline is focusing on landline telephony. Customers with flat-fee mobile plans also receive unlimited landline plans. But many consumers no longer use landlines, and these consumers will likely react to this offer indifferently.
More on this topic:
Mobile plan comparison
Broadband plan comparison
TV plan comparison
Landline comparison
