“So Many Benefits, and You Still Haven’t Used Them?” Mobile Carriers Step Up Membership Perks

The 3 major mobile carriers are expanding how customers can use membership benefits, moving beyond existing discounts on dining and cultural activities. While each carrier is taking a different approach, the common theme is to offer both everyday savings and special experiences, such as perks tied to family outings and expanded access to overseas travel destinations. Beyond partner brands and discount rates, the timing, location, and usefulness of benefits are emerging as competitive factors.

SK Telecom planned its October T Membership benefits using its in-house, built 'marketing AI agent,' and unveiled the October T Membership benefits on the 1st. Photo courtesy of SK Telecom. SK Telecom planned the benefits by reflecting customer usage data and consumption trends, and it also applied AI-based analysis of customer interests. KT focused on designing a structure that allows dining and outing benefits to be used in combination.

LG Uplus operates a long-term customer invitation program that offers special events for loyal customers. It has also expanded the scope of its membership through global partnerships so that customers can use it at overseas travel destinations. As a result, the 3 mobile carriers are broadening the practical convenience and usable range of their memberships in different ways, rather than simply offering discounts.

On the 1st, SK Telecom unveiled its October T Membership benefits using its in-house, built 'marketing AI agent.' This rollout was built by first using AI to analyze customer data and trends, then deriving the direction of the benefits and candidate partners based on that analysis.

'Marketing AI agent' analyzed customer age and gender, benefit usage by membership tier, app traffic and logs, and search and consumption trends. Based on that, it proposed benefit concepts and suggested candidate partner brands by category.

The main concepts proposed by AI this time were 'autumn festivals,' 'reading,' and 'running.' It also identified suggested benefit categories based on customer characteristics and interests, including dining and cafes, delivery apps, bakeries, and AI tools.

SK Telecom reviewed partnership feasibility based on AI suggestions and then finalized the benefits. The company reflected customer segment usage patterns and interests in its monthly benefit planning, and this case is notable for expanding the use of AI beyond benefit announcements to the process of deciding what benefits to offer.

SK Telecom will run T day 'Special Week' as 'AI Week' from the 12th to the 16th. During this period, Gong Cha will offer VIP customers a 50% discount on 6 popular drinks and Gold and Silver customers a 30% discount on 6 popular drinks. The discount limit at Gong Cha is KRW 6,000 for VIP customers and KRW 5,000 for Gold and Silver customers. On Baemin, customers who order bhc Chicken for more than KRW 18,000 will receive a KRW 8,000 discount for VIP customers and a KRW 6,000 discount for Gold and Silver customers. A combined admission ticket to Lotte World Adventure Seoul and Busan will be discounted by up to 55% for up to 4 people, including the buyer. It will also offer a 1-month free subscription to Millie’s Library e-book service, a 60-day free pass to Yes24 Crema Club, and a 1-month free pass to Polaris Office AI.

SK Telecom also prepared benefits by age and usage time. The 'Young Week' for customers aged 13 to 34 will run from the 5th to the 9th. Benefits for 'Young Week' include a free serving of Mirang Hotdog and a KRW 1,000 purchase coupon for a Baekdabang iced Americano. Some benefits are subject to first-come, first-served and lottery conditions.

The 'Happy Hour' for VIP customers will run throughout October from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Benefits include discounts on Baekmidang drinks and Shake Shack burgers. Separate from 'AI Week,' SK Telecom organized 'Young Week' and 'Happy Hour' to divide benefits by target group and time of use.

KT announced its October 'Dal.Dal.Benefit' lineup timed for the fall holiday period. KT prepared benefits spanning dining and theme parks to match holiday demand in October, including National Foundation Day and Hangul Day.

Dining benefits are offered as a choice. Customers can pick 1 of 2 dining benefits, with options including a 50% discount on Domino's Pizza takeout and up to 40% off specific Lotte Ria one-person or two-person meal sets.

Theme park discounts are operated as special benefits separate from the optional Dal.Dal.Benefit lineup. As a result, the theme park perks are not limited to a one-location choice, and customers who choose the dining benefit can still use the theme park discounts separately.

KT set up the benefits so that customers can use offers for Lotte World Adventure, Everland, and Seoul Land individually. The Lotte World Adventure discount is 50% for the buyer and 30% for 3 accompanying guests, while the Everland discount is 45% for the buyer and 30% for 3 accompanying guests. The Seoul Land discount is 50% for the buyer and 40% for 2 accompanying guests.

KT said the benefit package is designed so customers can use multiple benefits according to their family or friends outing schedules.

For cultural activities, KT is offering up to 50% discounts on the musicals 'Hells Kitchen' and 'The Choir of Man,' as well as on the exhibitions 'Brad Walls Photo Exhibition' and 'Bonjour, Jean-Jacques Sempé.' KT is also running an invitation event for the '2026 KT Voyage Festival,' which will be held on the 24th at Bundang Central Park. Applications are open until the 5th, and VVIP and VIP customers, long-term customers, and Y customers are the priority lottery candidates.

KT is strengthening links between its own services and membership program. At stores using KT Hiorder tablets, scanning a QR code provides a KRW 5,000 discount coupon for 'Shopping Lounge,' a commerce service exclusively for membership customers. The small-business service 'Sajaeji' also offers an additional KRW 5,000 discount coupon for the Shopping Lounge small-business-only section.

LG Uplus has expanded its special experience program for long-term customers. On the 19th, LG Uplus held an event at Hwadam Forest in Gwangju, Gyeonggi Province, inviting 5,000 customers. Eligible applicants were members in the VVIP tier and customers who have used LG Uplus for more than 10 years, and the application deadline was the 18th of last month.

Winners will receive 1 to 4 admission tickets to Hwadam Forest per person. LG Uplus planned the event so customers could enjoy Hwadam Forest exclusively with family or friends and take in the autumn scenery.

LG Uplus is expanding its long-term customer program. The company is moving to strengthen rewards for long-time users by offering special experiences according to subscription period and membership tier. Expanded examples include musical performances, a Legoland marathon, a waterpool party, and invitations to Hwadam Forest.

At the same time, LG Uplus is also pursuing a global membership that can be used overseas. In August, LG Uplus announced its membership in the 'Wanderjoy Travel Alliance' (Travel Alliance). The Travel Alliance is a partnership that shares membership benefits owned by telecommunications carriers in each country.

LG Uplus also released the results of its pilot program in Japan and plans to launch the official service within this year. The service will provide shopping, sightseeing, and transportation benefits by using local carrier partnership networks such as Japan's KDDI, Singapore's Singtel, and Taiwan's Taiwan Mobile. Through this, it expands the use of domestic membership benefits during overseas travel.

In Japan, LG Uplus ran a pilot service from June through the end of August for applicants among roaming pass subscribers. During that period, it offered discounts at Don Quijote and Lawson, discounts on GoTaxi, and a one-day Mt. Fuji tour benefit. More than 10,000 coupons were downloaded over 3 months. The company said 90% of customers who downloaded the coupons actually used the Don Quijote and Lawson discounts.

However, the pilot program identified coupon delivery as a challenge. Customers said coupons received by text message were difficult to find again at the moment of use. LG Uplus concluded that app-based services are more effective than individual text messages for improving the constant visibility of benefits and convenience of use. The company plans to reflect usage data and customer feedback in the official service.

At the same time, the focus of membership competition is expanding from benefit categories and discount rates to actual customer usage. Factors such as reflecting preferred brands and benefits aligned with consumption timing, and making it easy to search for and use coupons when needed, are becoming more important.

A telecom industry official said the industry is choosing to first identify customers' brand preferences and the benefit areas they want, rather than simply increasing discounts for a single brand, and is focusing on expanding membership benefits that reflect consumption trends instead of concentrating only on raising discount rates for specific brands.

Source: IT DAILY · Lee Jae-young
Original: https://www.itdaily.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=241942

References

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