Network service fee changes, user experience urgently needs to be improved

At present, some Internet products and services are gradually free of charge, and the mode of reducing subsidies, partial fees, paid members, etc. has been implemented, entering the "payment era" of the Internet. However, the service quality of some platforms has not been synchronized, and some platforms use the name of paying members to renew and deduct fees without prior notice; Some impose heavy restrictions on the rights purchased by users and play word games; Some focus on price subsidy wars and neglect user experience. Spending money to buy services requires not only settling accounts, but also getting value for money. How to seek the best solution for development between price advantage and service quality, the Internet platform must spend enough time.

Cancelling free bonus services requires optimization

The 0.1% handling fee has increased the repayment fee. "Xiao Jin, who has been working for 3 years after graduation, happened to have a WeChat credit card bill exceeding 20000 yuan last month due to prepaid funds. According to the new regulations, he will pay a repayment handling fee of over 20 yuan," but it is still within an acceptable range, and the repayment operation is convenient and the payment is received in a timely manner

It is reported that since December 1, 2017, WeChat credit card repayment services have started to charge transaction fees. Any amount exceeding 5000 yuan per calendar month will be charged at a rate of 0.1%, while any amount below 5000 yuan will still be free of charge. The Tencent Tenpay team stated that every repayment made by a user through WeChat credit card will incur a payment channel handling fee. Due to the rapid increase in channel handling fees, adjustments have been made to balance costs and sustainable development.

In addition to credit card repayment, today's WeChat, Alipay and other platforms adopt different charging standards for cash withdrawal, transfer and other payment businesses, and introduce preferential measures to reduce service fees. Some people charge, while others charge for free. Taking the UnionPay Cloud QuickPass app as an example, users currently do not need to pay any transaction fees when making transfers, person to person payments, and credit card repayments through the Cloud QuickPass app.

"Internet services are not permanently linked to free services, but Internet platform charges should be differentiated and paid attention to." Tian Li, director of the Internet Development Research Center of Peking University, reminded that for platforms in a dominant market position, their pricing and charging standards should refer to social public products, reflect the social responsibility of the platform, and avoid obtaining monopoly economic benefits by taking advantage of market position.

Whether it's paid or free, providing excellent service is the key. At present, some payment platforms are launching new services to improve the payment experience, such as WeChat credit card repayment business cooperating with 69 banks to provide users with services such as fast deposit and scheduled repayment; On the basis of the delayed arrival function, Alipay platform can temporarily freeze transfer funds according to the alarm voucher uploaded by users to protect users' rights and interests; Cloud QuickPass not only waives transaction fees for most payment and transfer services, but also expands its service scope to the public payment field. Currently, it has access to over 1500 payment types such as water, electricity, and gas, covering more than 300 cities across the country.

When payment platforms cooperate with bank payment channels, they need to pay a certain handling fee, and related business expansion also involves necessary costs. From the perspective of enterprise operation, it is not inappropriate to share the handling fee and other costs among users. "Li Min, a special researcher at the E-commerce Research Center, said that the existence of payment consideration has led platforms to adopt a fee system, which may become a trend in the future. However, as long as the charging scope is appropriate, the charging rules are clear, and the fee increase and service optimization are synchronized, it will help promote platform development and improve user experience.

The terms are not clear enough, and discounts are limited layer by layer

Last year, Xiaoyue from Tianjin subscribed to a magazine's electronic app for a monthly membership package of 6 yuan, thinking that the membership would automatically expire after one month. It was not until she accidentally checked her email that she discovered that her membership package had been continuously renewed for the past year. After flipping through several pages, I finally saw the hidden renewal instructions layer by layer. Experts remind users that when purchasing membership services such as video websites, they should browse and check if it is an automatic renewal. If the platform does not provide a prompt, it constitutes fraudulent consumer behavior.

According to the 2017 China "Member Economy" Data Report released by Penguin Zhiku, among the users who have purchased or are willing to purchase Internet members, video members occupy the first place with more than 60%. "When users subscribe to members and value-added services, the platform should make users' payment behavior worthwhile." Liu Junhai, a professor of Renmin University of China Law School, pointed out that whether the renewal or refund is blocked by default, it is a "hegemonic clause" in the Internet environment, which not only violates the spirit of the contract, but also infringes consumers' rights and interests in fair trade and the right to know.

Open the exclusive privileges introduction page of a certain e-commerce platform and become a member to receive the exclusive benefit of a "100 yuan coupon per month". Click to view, only to find that the so-called 100 yuan coupon is actually the "cumulative number" of several coupons such as "50 off for orders over 1200" and "20 off for orders over 500". The platform also stipulates that coupons are valid for 24 hours and are limited to daily distribution. Many netizens roast that the amount is not large and there are many rules.

Data shows that about 66.8% of users indicate that the motivation for membership is based on "saving money and offering cheap membership prices". However, many users have expressed that 'spending money to buy memberships actually costs more money'. Seemingly tempting discounts are actually hidden tricks: some coupons have tempting amounts but are labeled in smaller font as "limited to specified products only"; Some use the gimmick of "get free when the recharge is full", and users are only informed after completing the recharge that there is a time limit for the use of the recharge amount, which expires immediately; Some have tampered with pricing, with so-called coupon discounts being higher than prices on third-party websites.

"Although member services and promotional promotions that are not worthy of the name can earn temporary popularity, they are essentially harmful to the legitimate rights and interests of consumers, and are not conducive to the credibility and long-term development of the platform." Dong Yizhi, a lawyer from Shanghai Yida Law Firm, analyzed that some Internet platforms have adopted the method of "informing before restricting" to attract members to pay, which seems to fulfill the legal obligation of informing, but actually prevents consumers from exercising their right of choice. The platform's obsession with 'self-interest first' mentality, ignoring the actual needs and user experience of consumers, ultimately makes it difficult to be widely recognized by the market

Focusing on economies of scale with limited supply capacity

Accustomed to the 2-yuan monthly card, it suddenly rose to 20 yuan, and I really felt that I couldn't afford it for a while. After this year's Spring Festival, many users found that shared bicycles such as Mobike and Xiaohuangche had "increased in price". Taking Mobike as an example, the previously launched 2-yuan monthly card is currently on sale at a price of 20 yuan. It is free for the first 2 hours of each trip and charged normally after 2 hours.

"The core logic of the Internet platform's money burning subsidy war is to expand the market share in a way that is lower than the cost price. After occupying a dominant market position, some platforms will reduce the subsidy intensity, and there is also a precedent that the preferential intensity and service quality will shrink together." Liu Junhai said, "The Internet platform competition is a price war, but also a service war. Only by giving consideration to quality service and affordable price can we create a consumer friendly platform experience." (Reporter Qian Yibin Zhou Xiaoyuan)

Subsidies are certainly tempting, but services still need to be improved. In April this year, Didi Chuxing launched a trial operation in Wuxi, Jiangsu. The discounts such as "18 yuan off for afternoon tea over 20 yuan" and "20 yuan off for new users' first order" earned a lot of hype, and there were even tempting discounts such as "1 yuan milk tea" and "2 yuan chicken cutlet rice". According to statistics, on the first day of its official launch in Wuxi on April 9th, Didi Waimai received 334000 orders. The fierce subsidy battle has attracted popularity, but also complaints: some online stores lack the ability to provide meals, resulting in extremely crowded stores and affecting normal business operations; Some businesses are required by food delivery platforms to "choose sides and stand", and are not allowed to accept orders on multiple platforms at the same time, which affects sales; The user experience has also started to be "discounted", with some users complaining, "The 4-kilometer journey took 2 hours but was not delivered

"The business logic of Internet products focuses on economies of scale, and under the current circumstances, the mode of seizing the market by means of high subsidies will not be completely overturned." Tian Li mentioned that user scale means benefits to the platform, and the platform should also take more responsibility, taking users' choice as a driving force to improve products and services rather than a chip for profit.

"From taxi trips to the sharing economy, from taking out food orders to group buying orders, the subsidy burning money model is no longer new. At the same time, it may also make consumers have free or low-cost awareness of Internet products and services." Zhao Ping, director of the International Trade Research Department of the Research Institute of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, believes that for the platform side, how to continue to provide consumers with sufficient and value-added service experience after the abolition of subsidies or charges still needs careful consideration; In the face of the low price trap, consumers should enhance their awareness of rights protection, and should gradually form a rational view of Internet consumption, reasonably evaluate from the dual dimensions of price and service, and avoid impulsive consumption.