While there can be significant benefits for consumers who take broadband bundles, the complexity of communication offers and bundles has made it increasingly difficult to understand and compare service prices and characteristics.

Bundling can provide both benefits and drawbacks to broadband customers. In general, bundled services are less expensive when purchased together and consumer surplus from one good in the bundle can help “subsidise” another less-valued element. Bundling also allows the integration of products in a way that benefits consumers.

In other cases bundles can lead to situations where customers are worse off. Consumers may be required to purchase a bundle which contains one product they value and others they do not. Bundling also raises some significant concerns regarding transparency and consumer “lock in”. Bundles may make it difficult or impossible for subscribers to switch providers of certain bundled services and not others.

An OECD data collection of over 2 000 offers of stand-alone and bundled services from 90 firms across 30 OECD countries reveals that broadband services in the OECD are overwhelmingly sold as mixed bundles, allowing users to choose among stand-alone offers or bundled services.