Please see below for a comparison of SMS text messaging prices of different cell phone network operators in Cambodia. Note that this comparison does not take in account free within-network SMSes which some operators give. All the prices are based on prepaid plans and are current at the time of publication of this article (assuming that the prices published on operators’ web sites are correct).
| Operator brand (link to website) |
SMS within network |
SMS accross network | SMS international |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beeline | $0.02 | $0.05 | $0.10 |
| Cellcard / Mobitel | $0.03 | $0.05 | $0.10 |
| Excell (no GSM services) | $0.02 | N/A | N/A |
| Hello | $0.03 | $0.05 | $0.10 |
| MetFone | $0.025 | $0.04 | $0.10 |
| Mfone / Camshin | $0.03 | $0.05 | $0.10 |
| QBMore | included | $0.05 | $0.10 |
| Smart Mobile | $0.01 | $0.05 | $0.10 |
| Star-Cell | $0.02 | $0.05 | $0.10 |
Notes:
- MetFone does not list their international SMS price on their web site. They gave the price in a couple of hours after sending a request by e-mail.
- Smart Mobile does not list any of their SMS prices on their web site. They gave the prices in a couple of hours after sending a request by e-mail.
It is easy to see that there is not much competition in the text messaging market. The current fierce competition amongst telcos seems to be focused on voice call rates only. The majority of subscribers probably does not use text messaging or even know about SMS services. Two obvious reasons for this is the low literacy rate of country and the lack of Khmer writing support in mobile phones.