Conjoint Analysis of Consumer Preferences for Broadband Services in Japan

Abstract

This paper applies conjoint analysis to consumer preferences of Japan's broadband services such as ADSL, CATV Internet, and FTTH. The stated preference method has advantages in analyzing innovative and qualitatively changing services from a long-term point of view. We make two points. First, we find that the actual availability of FTTH has an effect on consumers' stated preferences: consequently, the WTP for 1 Mbps is about ¥32 ($0.29) for users with access to FTTH, while it is about ¥45 ($0.41) for those without access to FTTH. Second, we show that stated preference and revealed preference may vary for a certain population: consequently, the WTP for 1 Mbps is about ¥32 ($0.29) based on the former, while it is about ¥20 ($0.18) based on the latter.