Australia's already-busy MVNO market just got more crowded with the debut of two new discount MVNOs from Europe:  UK-based Lycamobile and German-based Amaysim.  Lycamobile is offering cheap prepaid international calls over Telstra's 2G network, while Amaysim uses Optus' 3G network for SIM-only mobile data and discount STD calls.  Ovum believes - as do the two new MVNOs - that there is still plenty of room to undercut the Big Three - Telstra, Optus and Vodafone - on pricing.  For its part, Amaysim has culled flagfall on STD calls, and introduced a $0.05 per megabyte data pricing.

 

However, the fact remains that such MVNOs will not pose a huge threat to the incumbents, otherwise Telstra and Optus would not allowed them to use their networks in the first place.  Instead, the big network operators typically support MVNOs that attack the market niches that the big operators find hard to reach.

Stay tuned for more niche MVNO deals in the not so distant future - including from Telstra which has traditionally not been strong in the MVNO space - as the incumbents continue their battle for market share in the saturated market.

Telstra is also open to hosting its first 3G MVNO on its Next G network, but remains cautious about entering into white label MVNO deals with large retailers.  Despite the more concerted move by Telstra towards MVNOs, spinning off a new "targeted brand" aimed at low-end customers is still on the cards for the operator.