Bundled calculator - model assumptions

This page describes the various assumptions that are used by the bundled services simulator. Assumptions are necessary to perform an accurate calculation.

Assumptions have to be made either because the user does not know the useful data or because the introduction of all the necessary data would render the use of the simulator very cumbersome to use.

The simulator does not currently contain assumptions on the operators' regional market shares as these data are not available for the moment.

In the tabs below you will be able to see in detail the assumptions used for each service:-

Fixed

Fixed Telephony Assumptions

Assumption name Description
Operator Market shares The Operator Market Shares show the percentage taken by every operator on the fixed telephony market.

In general most operators in Malta charge a different rate per minute (or per call) depending upon which operator you are calling. So for example if your subscription is with Operator A and you make a call to a subscriber of Operator B then you will normally be charged more than if you made that same call to a subscriber of Operator A.

For this reason it is important that the simulator knows the percentage of the user's calling time to each operator.

The market shares assumptions are necessary when the user of the simulator cannot spread his calls over the different operators.   On the initial screen of the simulator the user is asked what percentage of calls he makes to a particular operator.  If the user doesn't know the answer to this then distribution has to be performed according to the market shares of the various operators.  

Average Call Durations The Average Call Durations show the average time spent on a call dependent upon whether the call is rated per minute or per call. It is also detailed for each type of call because typically a user will spend longer on a call to fixed lines than the relatively more expensive mobile phone.  

The Average Call Durations are needed because during the calculation process some parts of the costing process need to know the number of calls that were made for the minutes being costed.  To do this the minutes are divided by the average call duration to give the number of calls. An assumption has to be used because it is very rare for a user to know how many calls he made for each particular call type.

Here are the cases where the number of calls made is needed:

  1. Calculating the cost of per call rated minutes - some tariff plans charge by call rather than by minute
  2. Calculating the cost of call set up fees - these are fees that are charged by operators for each call irrespective of how long the call lasts

The average mobile operator call duration is used when the mobile operator has no published average call duration. The Mobile Virtual Network Operators or MVNOs - of which there are many who are providing a service to the Maltese market - are these category of operators.

Call Time Splits Call Time Splits determine on an aggregate basis calls to the different call types as well as to the consumer's network.
Miscellaneous The Miscellaneous assumptions are used in various places when costing a fixed line tariff plan and are in general not really assumptions but global values that are needed.

The Standard Line Rental Charge is the monthly line rental charged by the incumbent fixed line operator i.e. Go. This figure is needed as it is part of the monthly cost to a subscriber even if they subscribe with Go or with another operator. Normally other operators will not enter a line rental charge into their tariff plans because they do not charge line rental - however the user will still normally have to pay line rental fees.

The name of the incumbent operator identifies the incumbent operator in Malta i.e. Go. This is used when costing call minutes to a plan of a 'virtual fixed operator'.  Normally operators in Malta will only have rates to the main or primary operators i.e. Go, Telenet and Tele2. For all other operators the rate of Go will be applied.

Mobile

Mobile Telephony Assumptions

Below is a grid that shows the current assumptions that are used by the mobile simulator on a real-time basis for Malta. After the grid a detailed description of each assumption is provided together with a description of how it is used.

Assumption name Description
Operator Market shares The Operator Market Shares show the percentage taken by every operator on the mobile telephony market in Malta.

In general most mobile operators in Malta charge a different rate per minute (or per call) depending upon which operator you are calling. So for example if your subscription is with Operator A and you make a call to a subscriber of Operator B then you will normally be charged more than if you made that same call to a subscriber of Operator A.

For this reason it is important that the simulator knows the percentage of the user's calling time to each operator and this is based on the market share.

The market shares assumptions are necessary when the user of the simulator cannot spread his calls over the different operators.   On the initial screen of the simulator the user is asked what percentage of calls he makes to a particular operator.  If the user doesn't know the answer to this then distribution has to be performed according to the market shares of the various operators.
Average Call Durations The Average Call Durations show the average time spent on a call dependent upon whether the call is rated per minute or per call. It is also detailed for each type of call because typically a user will spend longer on a call to fixed lines than the relatively more expensive mobile phone.  

The Average Call Durations are needed because during the calculation process some parts of the costing process need to know the number of calls that were made for the minutes being costed.  To do this the minutes are divided by the average call duration to give the number of calls. An assumption has to be used because it is very rare for a user to know how many calls he made for each particular call type.

Here are the cases where the number of calls made is needed:

  1. Calculating the cost of per call rated minutes - some tariff plans charge by call rather than by minute
  2. Calculating the cost of call set up fees - these are fees that are charged by operators for each call irrespective of how long the call lasts
Call Time Splits Call Time Splits determine on an aggregate basis calls to the different call types as well as to the consumer's network.
Miscellaneous The Miscellaneous assumptions are used in various places when costing a mobile tariff plan.

The Percentage of calls below the minimum call charge is used to determine how many calls in general fall below the minimum call charge of an operator. Many operators impose a minimum call charge where by all calls below a certain value are rounded up to that value. This assumption helps the mobile calculator determine the number of calls that fall into that category and cost the tariff correctly.

The percentage of SMS and MMS traffic to international destinations is used because the consumer is not required to specify how many SMS or MMS messages he sends to international locations. These 2 assumptions are therefore used to split the input SMS and MMS text values input by the consumer into national and international amounts so the relevant rates can be applied.

Internet

Below is a grid that shows the current assumptions on a real-time basis for Malta. After the grid a detailed description of each assumption is provided together with a description of how it is used.

Broadband assumptions
Average amount of time spent online 30 hours/month
Average amount of data transferred per month 5 Gb/month
Average number of days spent online per month 15 days/month


Assumption name Description
Average amount of time spent online The average time spent online assumption is used to determine the amount of time spent online by the user when he doesn't know the answer himself Some broadband plans charge based on the amount of time spent connected.
Average data transfer per month The average monthly data transfer volume is used when the consumer is not sure of how much data he transfers on a monthly basis. Some broadband plans have limits on the amount of data transferred and may charge extra for amounts above the specified threshold.
Average number of days spent online per month Some mobile datacard based broadband plans charge a fee for each day the consumer connects to the internet. This assumption is used to calculate the average monthly cost of these types of plans.

Digital TV

There are currently no assumptions necessary to perform the Digital TV portion of the calculation.

Need Help?

For more information about the portal visit our Frequently Asked Questions or contact us by email at customercare@mca.org.mt or by phone at +356 21336840