The MVNO industry welcomed the government's measures to strengthen MVNO competitiveness. It said the package would help it come up with more reasonably priced plans and focus on service innovation.

The Korea MVNO Association said on Thursday it strongly welcomed the Ministry of Science and ICT's joint announcement with related ministries of a plan titled "New competition and innovation promotion measures for the mobile communications market - MVNO 2.0 leap forward."

The association said the comprehensive package, following the expansion of radio wave usage fee reductions in June, would help MVNOs improve price competitiveness and secure new growth drivers. It said the measures would be a turning point for MVNOs to leap from being low-cost telecom service providers to becoming substantive competitors in the mobile communications market.

It cited cuts to wholesale rates for revenue-sharing (RS) plans and free provision of data safety options as key achievements, which the industry had repeatedly demanded.

A revenue-sharing plan splits subscription revenue collected by an MVNO from customers with a mobile carrier at a set ratio. If wholesale rates fall, the MVNO's share increases, allowing it to launch cheaper plans. The association said the policy would also have a bigger effect in cutting communications bills once implemented.

It also positively assessed the expansion of user protection foundations, including strengthening basic communications rights. It said MVNOs could play a bigger role in creating an environment in which anyone can use communications services without 부담.

It also expressed expectations for policies to invigorate mid- to low-priced unlocked devices and improve the environment for using eSIMs. It forecast that an expanded environment in which people can freely choose devices and communications services would lower barriers to MVNO subscriptions and help energise the market.

The association also attached significance to building an institutional foundation for partial mobile virtual network operators and full MVNOs. "By systematising market entry routes, a foundation has been 마련 to provide differentiated plans and services based on our own facilities and technology," it said.

It also expressed thanks to mobile carriers that cooperated in strengthening MVNO market competitiveness, including wholesale rate cuts and expanded data safety options. It said mobile carriers and MVNOs could grow together to offer lower communications bills and a wider range of services.

The association said it would "actively work to substantially ease the public's burden of communications costs and step up service innovation and expanded investment," adding it would take a responsible approach to user protection and improving service quality to build a trusted MVNO market.