Telcos Lead On Consumer Trust When It Comes To Data Protection And Privacy
February 28, 2022
Barcelona, 28 February 2022 – Telecom companies (Telcos) have garnered the most trust among consumers on issues to do with data protection and privacy. This is according to global management consultancy Oliver Wyman’s latest edition of its Telco Survey presented at this year’s Mobile World Congress, which provides an overview into the state of the industry and changing consumer preference towards the likes of connectivity, data privacy and customer support.
With respondents from France, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom, this year also confirms that the Covid-19 pandemic has brought about a number of changes in preferences in those countries, most notably an increase in price sensitivity and a decrease the importance held for service quality.
“Telcos are leading the way in generating more trust to innovate and improve their offering. With GDPR requiring explicit consent for the use of consumer data, trust is essential to enable hyper-personalisation of offers and expand and consolidate new services such as telemedicine, home security and energy, that telcos promote together with other sectors,” said Maarten de Wit, Partner in Oliver Wyman’s Communications, Media & Technology practice.
Telcos set to become the most trusted providers when it comes to data protection and privacy
The telecoms sector gained most ground in terms of trust between 2019 and 2021 and, is now the second most trusted sector in the eyes of consumers when it comes to protecting their privacy, only behind banks.
In particular, 43% of Spaniards said they believe that telecommunications companies protect their privacy and personal data, similar to that recorded in the United Kingdom (47%), Germany (46%) and slightly above France (36%).
Consumer preferences shift as a result of the pandemic
The survey also shows that consumer preferences towards the features from their service providers have changed. Despite service quality remaining the most valued feature across the countries surveyed, pricing has gained ground, followed by unlimited data, which has remained stable.
The quality of service offered by providers—including coverage, speed, and customer service—has lost between 16 and 22 percentage points compared to 2019. Meanwhile price sensitivity has increased, gaining between two to 10 percentage points. Germany is the only outlier, where consumers still put price before quality (38% vs. 27%, respectively).
About the Telco Survey
For more information visit our Telco Survey page.
About Oliver Wyman
Oliver Wyman is a global leader in management consulting. With offices in more than 70 cities across 29 countries, Oliver Wyman combines deep industry knowledge with specialized expertise in strategy, operations, risk management, and organization transformation. The firm has more than 5,000 professionals around the world who work with clients to optimize their business, improve their operations and risk profile, and accelerate their organizational performance to seize the most attractive opportunities. Oliver Wyman is a business of Marsh McLennan [NYSE: MMC]. For more information, visit www.oliverwyman.com. Follow Oliver Wyman on Twitter @OliverWyman