1

CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION







2

1.1 INTRODUCTION
India has emerged as one of the best performing economies of the world during the last 5
years or so. The growth rate of India economy is at historic peak. The growth rate has averaged
closed to 9% and we are expecting a growth rate of 10% in the coming five year plans. The size
of the middle class has trebled; per capita income in terms of purchasing power has increased to
nearly three times. Economic theory suggests that there is a positive correlation between
infrastructure and economic development. Telecommunication is one of the most important
infrastructures. In most of the developing countries, mobile penetration is strongly correlated
with economic growth and social benefit. India had low telephone penetration but now has
become one the high volume, high growth telecommunication services market in the world.
There has been tremendous contribution of the telecom sector to the rapid growth of the Indian
economy. The growth of cellular mobile services is leading the telecom revolution in India and
other services are following.
In 1991, less than 1% of the total population of the world had a mobile phone. The
proportion has grown to the vicinity of one phone per every six people by the end of 2001. It is
interesting to observe that China has surpassed USA to become the largest mobile market of the
world while India has emerged as the second largest mobile market after China. India has
achieved significant distinction in having the worlds lowest call rates, the fastest sale of million
mobile phones (in a week), the worlds cheapest mobile handsets and worlds most affordable
color phone.
The Indian telecommunication market has grown manifold in the last 6 years and the total
subscriber base had crossed 764 million at the end of November 2010, of which 95% or 729
million were mobile subscribers. It has played an important role in bridging the gap between
urban and rural India. In the early days, the telecom in India was owned, managed and controlled
by the government. BSNL was the first telephone operator. After the entry of the private players
in the telecom sector in the 1990s, service providers like Bharti, Essar (now Vodafone),
Reliance, BPL, Idea, TATA, Aircel have become major players of the telecom sector.
After Liberalization, reforms were brought about in the telecom sector. In 1985, the first
non-commercial mobile telephone service was started in Delhi and on commercial basis in 1995.
3

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) was constituted in 1997 to regulate the
telecom sector. India is the 4
th
largest telecom market in Asia after China, Japan and South
Korea. India is the 5
th
largest telecom market in the world and 2
nd
largest among the emerging
economies of Asia.
The policy of allowing new operators to enter in to the mobile phone market has
increased competition. As a results so many tariff plans, group plans, life long plans, value-added
services and top-ups have come up. The mobile call tariffs in India are lowest. The tariffs
dwindled from Rs. 16/minute to Re. 0.50/minute. The Indian cellular market is flooded with
offers and schemes and the customer is overwhelmed with competing choices. Customer
retention has become a challenge for mobile operators with increasing competition. TRAI has
recently launched MNP (Mobile Number Portability) which allows the customer to switch to
different cellular service provider retaining his mobile number.

TELECOM SECTOR:
Some Milestones
The postal and telecom sector started by British Government in India in 1850.
In 1985, Cellular telephone service started by in Delhi on non-commercial basis.
In 1992, Private sector was allowed participation I telecommunication sector.
In 1994, Government announced National Telecom Policy. License for providing
cellular mobile service was granted by the government for the Metropolitan cities of
Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai. Cellular mobile service to be duopoly i.e. not more
than two cellular mobile service operator could be licensed in each telecom sector, under
a fixed license fee regime for 10 years.
Cellular services were commercially launched in August, 1995. Other 19 telecom circles
were given license. The Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) was constituted
in 1995, as a registered, non-profit, non-governmental society dedicated to the
4

advancement of communication, particularly modern communication through Cellular
Mobile Telephone Services.
In 1997, Telecom Regulatory Authority (TRAI) was set up to control telecom companies.
In 1999, a New Telecom Policy was announced which allowed FDI in telecom sector.
In 2003, Internet and GPRS services were allowed through cellular service providers.
In January 2004, the government reduced the import duties on the cellular sector e.g.
Aerials and Antenna from 32.7% to 21.8%, Cellular phones from 14.4% to 5%, Cellular
infrastructure for operators from 21.8% to 16%.
In July, Regulation on Quality of service of Basic and Cellular mobile phones service
introduced.
In Budget 2005-2006, FDI ceiling limit increased to 74% from the earlier 49%. 100%
FDI was permitted in the area of telecom equipment manufacturing IT enabled services.











5

1.2 OBJECTIVES
The objectives of the study are:
1. To study the choice of customers between prepaid and postpaid connection.
2. To analyze the factors affecting the switching behavior among customers as far as mobile
connection are concerned.
3. To ascertain the level of satisfaction in context of cellular services customers are using.
4. To study the cellular services as a whole along with its major players in the Telecom
industry.

1.3 Scope of the study
The current study discloses the consumers choice in opting for suitable cellular option-
prepaid or postpaid and the various aspects of demography and other factors which help in
determining and their switching behavior.
The study begins with detailed information about the telecommunication industry.
Further it covers Literature review, data collection tools used and research methodology used for
the project. Further it gives detailed analysis of the data collected to reach the conclusion. The
project took nearly 3 months to complete and the survey was conducted in the selected areas of
Delhi region.
The study has been carefully designed in order to know the responses of the consumers
and to determine their choices. The study is confined to cellular service providers in Delhi only.
The study can be put to use by researchers under the study on the related topics and to
study the customers behavior towards cellular services.




6

1.4 Research Limitations
The current study is not free of limitations.
1. The study was limited to Delhi region only, thus it is not a very comprehensive study to
represent the whole of the economy. Besides the sample chosen is also limited.
2. Time constraint also put a limitation on the number of respondents surveyed so the sample
may not be sufficient enough to generalize the study.
3. Due to reluctant nature of the respondents, it was not easy to collect the relevant information
from them.
4. It may be possible that the respondents may not have provided true information.
5. The time constraints faced in the project might have affected the comprehensiveness of its
findings.
6. The data taken from the secondary source like internet, newspaper, books may lack some
proper explanation or may be not correctly interpreted.
7. There can be many interpretations and explanation to the data collected. This is an empirical
study and the research provides the explanation as understood by the researcher only.









7



CHAPTER 2
REVIEW OF
LITERATURE







8

Aamir Mohammed, Ikram Wasim and Zaman Khalid (2010), Customers
Switching in Mobile Phone Service Providers in Pakistan, ((Int.J .Buss.Mgt.Eco.Res., Vol.
1(1), 2010, pages 34-40) in their study pointed that customer loyalty leads to long run
profitability of an organization, which is the basis for retaining the loyal customers. Customer
satisfaction ultimately results to customer retention. Companies are seeking loyal and potential
customers for which different tactics like lowering prices, offering incentives and the concept of
experiential marketing are being used. Element of trust is the major determinant for building
loyalty and satisfaction in the mobile phone service providers. All the companies should
concentrate on the customers and try to find out the variables that build up the level of trust.
Certain factors like access, clarity, innovation, reliability and trustworthiness are the ideal
characteristics for determining customer loyalty. Certain companies have evolved the element of
customer relationship management (CRM), because the importance of customers acquisition,
maintenance and retention has been realized. This is because of the growing competition day-by-
day. But the most important factor is the availability of CRM to the customers.


Chaterjee Debarati and Chaudhary Ishita (2010), A study on Market share and
factors affecting the Choice of cellular service provider among young age group of
Kolkatta, (The IUP J ournal of Marketing, Vol. 9, No. 3, 2010, pages 41-55) in their study
pointed that 84% of the young users use prepaid services and good network coverage and family,
friends using the same network connection are much more important factors which motivate the
customers to get associated to a particular service provider as they offer to make calls and send
messages at lower rates within the same network. Thus, a cellular service provider should
primarily focus on providing good and wide network coverage to its subscribers to retain their
customers as well as to increase their market.

Dhandha Dr. Neelam and Goel Dr. Pooja (2010), What impinges the choice of Cell
phone connection?, (Indian J ournal Of Marketing, Volume 40, Number 9, September 2010
pages 20-25) in their study pointed that prepaid connections are more popular among females
while postpaid connections are more frequently used by the male subscribers. People using
prepaid connections generally were young age group i.e. less than 20 years and the old age group
9

i.e. more than 60 years due to their limited usage and professionals, retired and dependants.
While more of working force and customers having monthly incomes of more than Rs.50000
prefer to use postpaid connections. According to the study, the service class and business class
prefers postpaid connection.

Iqbal Amjad, Zia Mubashar Hasan, Bashir Sajid, Shahzad Khurram and Aslam
Mohammed Waqas, Antecedents and Outcomes of Customer Satisfaction in using prepaid
cellular service in Pakistan, in their study pointed that perceived quality, perceived value and
perceived expectations are leading variables for customer satisfaction: while repurchase
likelihood, customer complaints and price tolerance are dependent on actual satisfaction.
Findings suggest that customers have high expectations that are fulfilled by the cellular service
providers to some extent. This study reveals the perceptions of Pakistani prepaid cellular service
users in context of value, quality and overall expectation and at the same time the effectiveness
of customer satisfaction on price tolerance, customer complaints and repurchases likelihood.
Communication Service Providers (CSP) can be benefited with this study to realize the
perceptions and satisfaction level that leads to high customer loyalty.

Jawaria Fatima Ali, Ali Imran, Rehman Kashif Ur, Yilmaz Ayse, Kucuk Safwan,
Nadeem and Afzal Hasan (2010), Determinants of consumer retention in cellular industry
in Pakistan, (African J ournal of Business Management Vol. 4(12), 18 September, 2010
pages 2402-2408) in their study showed a significant relationship between price reasonability
and consumer satisfaction. It was shown fairness of price is the strongest determinant of
consumer satisfaction and the competitive advantage to retain consumers for longer period of
time. The consumer can even switch if he/she finds more reasonable prices with some other
cellular service provider. So the service providers are bound to reduce their prices over a period
of time. Call clarity is also found to be having significant relationship with customer satisfaction
and consumer retention. This is an important aspect to retain consumers because if initially
consumer chooses any company due to its low prices but does not offer clear voice
communication, ultimately the consumer will switch to some other network. Significant and
strong relationship was observed among customer satisfaction and consumer retention. This also
confirms that the higher the customer satisfaction, the higher will be the consumer retention.
10

Jing-yi Liu Wen-hua Shi and Wu Zhou (2010), Analysis of the influencing factors
of users' switching intention in the context of one-way mobile number portability, (The
J ournal of China Universities of Posts and Telecommunications, Volume 17, Supplement 1,
July 2010, Pages 112-117), studied the influencing factors of users' switching intention in the
context of the one-way MNP policy survey data from 400 China Mobile users in Tianjin (pilot
city).The study briefly describes the implementation of one-way MNP, particularly the lag
system MNP and its implementation effect in Korea, with which country China has an analogy
under the MNP policy. The study disclosed that customer satisfaction (including call quality,
mobile device and customer complement), switching costs and attractiveness of alternatives have
significant effects on users' switching intention. Among these factors, customer satisfaction and
switching costs are the most important to China mobile users. In comparison, the attractiveness
of alternatives (China Telecom, China Unicom) is not a considerable factor of switching
intention to China mobile users, in the context of one-way MNP.

Mallikarjuna Dr. V. and Mohan Dr. G. Krishna (2010), Customer switching
behavior- An evaluation of factors affecting mobile users, (Indian J ournal of Marketing,
Volume 40, Number 3, March 2010 pages 42-49) in their study pointed that 22.3% were likely
to change their operator whereas 18.5% were unlikely to change their operator in future.
Majority of customers could not decide. The people are active information seekers and always
search for better price bargains from competitors and are not loyal to a particular brand. Low
switching cost helps them to take advantage of the newer price effective offers from different
operators. Core service failures also led to necessitated switching. Satisfied customers do not
prefer to switch. Service providers need to build relationship with the customers to understand
their changing needs and design appropriate strategies to meet the changing needs. There is an
imminent need to concentrate on customer loyalty as mobile number portability is round the
corner.

Saeed Ayesha, Hussain Nazi and Riaz Adnan (2011), Factors affecting customers
switching intentions, (European J ournal of Social Sciences Volume 19, Number 1) in
their study stated that to know the switching intentions of different mobile users following
parameters were taken: outcome quality, price, perceived commitment and anger incident.
11

Findings of the study reveal that though all other factors have influence on the customers
switching intentions, the overriding factor remained the cost effectiveness. The critical role of
this factor is because of the different socio/economic conditions of a developing country like
Pakistan where buying power of a common man is low as compared to rich and developed
countries. Various companies have invested in telecom sector in anticipation of long-term
growth. They are duly concerned about retaining old customers in addition to look for new. This
study validate and confirm the significant role of fair prices, prompt customer services,
commitment with customers and anger free services in order to control switching intentions.
Although we cant ignore the role of outcome quality and anger incident but the core factors
identified by the customers remained as fair price and perceptual commitment of mobile service
provider with customer.
Silva K. A. and Yapa S. T. W. S. (2009), Customer Retention: with Special
Reference to Telecommunication Industry in Sri Lanka, (a paper presented at
International Conference on Business and Information, July 2009, Kuala Lumpur,
Malaysia) in their study revealed that the most important factor determining the customer
loyalty was the ability of the service provider to add value to customers business process,
contrary to the common belief that the low price keeps the customer with the same provider.
However, it was found that relative importance of the factors is not the same between two
different groups, i.e. IT personnel and Non-IT personnel. Therefore, the findings of this research
provide a guideline for service providers in designing customer loyalty programmes. The most
important factor in continuing an existing service provider was the ability of the service provider
to add value to users business value delivery. This was followed by assurance and
responsiveness. The least important factors were tangibility, legal undertakings and payment
terms. The results indicate that service providers should invest more on developing skills of
people in increasing the customer retention.





12




CHAPTER 3
RESEARCH
METHODOLOGY






13

Research is the movement of knowledge from known to unknown, from the available
place to the required place. Research refers to search for knowledge. Research is an art of
scientific investigation. According to Clifford Woody, Research comprises defining and
redefining problems, formulating hypothesis or suggested solutions; collecting, organizing and
evaluating data; making deductions and reaching conclusions; and at last carefully testing the
conclusions to determine whether they fit the formulating hypothesis.
The purpose of research is to find the solution to the problem which has not been
discovered by anybody and to discover answers to questions through the application of scientific
procedures. The main aim of research is to find out the truth which is hidden and which has not
been discovered as yet.
3.1 Universe
All items in any field of enquiry constitute a Universe or Population. A complete
enumeration of all items in the population is known as a census enquiry. The universe selected
for study was cell phone users specifically in the Delhi region.
3.2 Sample size and sampling technique
The number of items selected from the universe to represent the universe is called size of
the sample. The size of the sample neither be excessively too large, nor too small. It should be
optimum. For this study, a total of 117 respondents were approached out of which 100
respondents correctly filled in the given questionnaire. The remaining 17 were, therefore,
rejected due to non-response or incomplete information. Hence, the sample size of 100
respondents was taken for the current study. The sampling technique used for the study is
convenience sampling, wherein the population elements are selected for inclusion in the sample
based on the ease of access.
3.3 Data collection
The task of data collection begins after a research problem has been defined and research
design plan chalked out. While deciding about the method of collection of collection of data to
be used for the study, two types of data should be kept in mind viz, primary and secondary.
14

The method used for collection of data in this study is both primary as well as secondary.
The primary data has been collected with the help of a structured questionnaire designed for the
study. The questionnaire consisted of a number of questions based on demographics and other
factors which would play a key role in determining the customers choice among prepaid and
postpaid connection and also their switching behavior among different service providers. The
secondary data has been collected from the website of TRAI, The Times of India newspaper to
know the current status of the mobile phone service providers and their market share.
3.4 Tools of presentation
For the current study, different Statistical tools were used for presentation of the relevant
information. The following tools were used for analysis:
Bar Chart
Pie Chart
Table Diagram










15






CHAPTER 4
Industry Profile









16

4.1 Cellular Telephony Industry in India
For the developing countries (like India), in particular, cellular services are becoming a
very significant proportion of the overall telecom infrastructure. Indian telecom sector had
witnessed a very slow growth during the last century it was the era of landline connections under
the monopoly of the department of telecommunications, Government of India. It started picking
up only after 1995 when the first competitive regime was opened with the participation of private
operators in the field of cellular mobile telephony. It witnessed a tremendous growth (50 percent)
in the year 2006. During 2006, India exceeded 100 million GSM mobile subscribers target and
became the fifth nation to have achieved this benchmark after China, Japan, the US, and Russia.
Continuous reductions in tariffs and improved affordability of handsets and services have also
contributed to the rapid growth in the number of mobile subscribers. However, the reduction in
tariffs has brought down the Average Revenue per User (ARPU) of the cellular operators; as
reported by different sources (TRAI, Voice and Data, other market research agencies) making
the control of churn and holding on to the satisfied customers very important.
Initially the Department of Telecommunication (DoT) enjoyed the monopoly in the
telecommunication sector. Under the policy of Liberalization, privatization and globalization, the
Government of India allowed the private sector to enter the telecom sector. In 1992, the
government of India liberalized the telecommunication to bridge the gap between rural and urban
India through government spending.
In 1993, the telecom industry got an annual foreign investment of Rs 20.6million. In
1994 license for providing cellular mobile services was granted by the Government of India for
the Metropolitan cites of Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai. Initially Cellular mobile services
were duopoly (i.e. not more than two cellular mobile operators could be licensed in each telecom
circle), under a fixed license fee. In 1995, government opened up 19 more telecom circles and
issued mobile licenses. The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) was constituted in
1997 as an independent regulator in this sector. Competition was also introduced in national long
distance (NLD) and international long distance (ILD) telephony at the start of the current decade.
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) was constituted in 1997 as an independent
17

regulator in this sector. Competition was also introduced in national long distance (NLD) and
international long distance (ILD) telephony at the start of the current decade.
Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI)
The Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) was constituted in 1995 as a
registered, non-profit, non-governmental society dedicated to the advancement of
communication, particularly modern communication through Cellular Mobile Telephone
Services. With a vision to establish and sustain a world-class cellular infrastructure and facilitate
affordable mobile communication services in India, COAI's main objectives are to protect the
common & collective interests of its members.
With a vision to establish and sustain a world-class cellular infrastructure and facilitate
affordable mobile communication services in India. Keeping the mandate given to it, COAI is
the official voice for the Indian Cellular industry and on its behalf it interacts with the policy
maker, the licensor, the regulator, the spectrum management agency, the industry (telecom /non-
telecom) associations.
TRAI
Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) is an independent regulator established
by Government of India to regulate the Telecommunication business in India. TRAIs mission is
to create and nurture conditions for growth of telecommunication in the country in a manner and
at a pace which will enable India to play a leading role in emerging global information society.
One of the main objectives of TRAI is to provide a fair and transparent policy environment
which promotes a level playing field and facilitates fair competition.





18

4.2 Major Service providers in India
Two different types of technologies are used by mobile operators in India namely CDMA and
GSM.
Bharti Airtel (GSM) Operates PAN India. Has investments from Singapore Telecom
Reliance Communications (GSM + CDMA) Crippled by the CDMA handset
limitations, the company has recently expanded its GSM services to all India.
Vodafone-Essar (GSM) Formerly Hutchison, Vodafone bought controlling stake and has
since then re-branded the company.
BSNL + MTNL (GSM + CDMA) Government Owned. PAN India and the first to launch
3G operations.
Idea Cellular- GSM PAN India barring few circles. Took over Spice Communications
which had operations in Karnataka and Punjab. Managed by Kumar Birla and has
Telekom Malaysia a foreign investor.
Tata Indicom / Teleservices Operates on CDMA with PAN India network. Will launch
GSM services this year across India. NTT Do Como of Japan is the strategic investor.
Aircel GSM. Rolling out countrywide operations. Maxis of Malaysia is a big investor
Loop Telecom GSM Backed by BPL, has operations in Mumbai in battle with
Vodafone Essar. Has now secured All India License.
Datacom Only has UASL License for GSM, backed by Videocon group [No
Operations]
Unitech a Real Estate company made windfall profits selling out stake to Telenor. Has
PAN India GSM license [No Operations]
Swan Telecom Has UASL GSM License. Sold 45% stake to Etisalat [No Operations]
Shyam CDMA Pan India License. Sistema of Russia is the JV Partner, Operational in 2
circles.
Virgin Mobile is a Franchisee of Tata Indicom and is likely to convert itself as a MVNO.


19

Bharti Airtel
Bharti Airtel usually referred to as Airtel, is an Indian Telecommunication company
that operates in 19 countries across South Asia, Africa and Channel Islands. It operates a
GSM network in all the countries, providing 2G and 3G services depending upon the channel of
operation. Airtel is the fifth largest in the world with over 207.8 million subscribers across 19
countries at the end of 2010. It is the largest cellular service provider in India, with over 199.610
million subscribers at the end of 2010 having a market share of 20.27%.
. In 1986, Sunil Bharti Mittal incorporated Bharti Telecom Limited (BTL) and his
company became the first in India to offer push-button telephones, establishing the basis of
Bharti Enterprises. By the early 1990s, Sunil Mittal had also launched the country's first fax
machines and its first cordless telephones. In 2009, Airtel launched its first international mobile
network in Sri Lanka. In 2010, Airtel began operating in Bangladesh and 16 African countries.
Founded July 7, 1995
Founders Sunil Bharti Mittal
Headquarters New Delhi
Key People Sunil Bharti Mittal (Chairman and MD)
Products Mobile Network, Wireless, Telephones, Internet, Satellite
Television
Employees 30,000 (at the end of 2010)
Parent Bharti Enterprises (63.45%), SingTel (32.15%), Vodafone (4.4%)





20

Reliance Communication
Reliance Communication, formerly known as Reliance Infocomm along with Reliance
Telecom and Flag Telecom, is a part of Reliance Communication Ventures. Reliance
Communication Limited founded by Dhirubhai H. Ambani (1932-2002), is the flagship company
of the Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group. It ranks among top 5 telecommunication
companies in the world by number of customers in a single country. It had a customer base of
125,652,127 subscribers at the end of 2010 with a market share of 16.7%.
Founded 2004
Founders Dhirubhai Ambani
Head Quarters Navi Mumbai
Key People Anil Ambani (Chairman)
Satish Seth (MD)
Products Wireless, Telephone, Internet, Television, Data Cards, Recharge
Vouchers
Employees 31,884 (at the end of 2009)
Parent Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group








21

Vodafone
Vodafone Essar Usually referred to as Vodafone covers 23 telecom circles in India. It
was formerly known as Hutchison Essar. Vodafone Essar is the Indian subsidiary of Vodafone
group (67%) and Essar Group (33%). It is based in Mumbai. It is the second largest mobile
phone operator in terms of revenue after Bharti Airtel and third largest in terms of customers.
Initially, around 1995, the company services were branded Max Touch renamed to Orange in
2000. In December 2006, Hutchison Essar re-launched the "Hutch" brand nationwide,
consolidating its services under a single identity. The total number of Vodafone Essar
Subscribers at the end of 2010 was 127,364,342 with a market share of 16.52%.
Founded 1994
Founders Hutchison Whampoa
Head Quarters Mumbai
Owners Vodafone group (67%)
Essar group (33%)
Products Mobile Network, Telecom services, etc.
Employees 10,000 (at the end of March 2009)









22

BSNL
Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (abbreviated as BSNL) is a stare owned
telecommunication company headquartered in New Delhi. BSNL is one of the largest cellular
service providers, with over 86,709,537 subscribers as on December, 2010 with a market share
of 11.53%. BSNL is the oldest and the largest Communication service Provider. It has footprints
throughout India except for the metropolitan cities of Mumbai and New Delhi, which is managed
by Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited. On the 20th of March, 2009, BSNL advertised the
launch of BlackBerry services across its Telecom circles in India. The corporation has also
launched 3G services in select cities across the country. Presently, BSNL and MTNL are the
only players to provide 3G services, as the Government of India has completed auction of 3G
services for private players.
Founded 19
th
Century, Incorporated 2000
Head Quarters New Delhi
Key People Gopal Das (CMD)
Products Wireless, Telephone, Internet, Television
Employees 299,840 (at the end of March 2009)









23

TATA TELESERVICES
Tata Teleservices Limited is a subsidiary of TATA group headquartered at Navi Mumbai.
It operates under the brand name Tata Indicom in various telecom circles of India. In 2008,
Japanese telecom giant NTT Docomo picked up 26% stake in Tata teleservices. Tata
Teleservices was the first to launch CDMA mobile services in India with the Andhra Pradesh
circle. The company acquired Hughes Telecom (India) Limited [now renamed Tata Teleservices
(Maharashtra) Limited] in December 2002. It had a customer base of 84,233,398 with 11.20%
market share at the end of December, 2010.
Founded Incorporated 1996
Headquarters Navi Mumbai
Key People Ratan N. Tata (Chairman)
Anil Kumar Sardana (MD)
Products Mobile Network, Wireless, Telephones, Internet, Satellite
Television
Employees 350,000 (at the end of 2010)
Parent Tata Group
Divisions Tata Indicom (CDMA)
Tata DoCoMo (GSM)
Virgin Mobile India (CDMA/GSM)






24

!dea Cellular
Idea Cellular, usually referred to as !dea, is the 3
rd
largest GSM company in India. It is
based in Mumbai and operates in 22 telecom circles. In 2000, Birla and TATAs cellular
company AT&T, operating in Andhra Pradesh, merged to form Batata, which was later branded
as !dea. The company has its retail outlets under the "My Idea" banner. The company has also
been the first to offer flexible tariff plans for prepaid customers. The total number of Idea
subscribers at the end of December, 2010 was 81,778,655 with a market share of 10.87%.
Founded 1995
Headquarters Santa Cruz, East Mumbai
Key People Kumar Mangalam Birla (Chairman)
Sanjeev Aga (MD)
Rajat Mukherjee (VP Corporate Affairs)
Products Mobile Network, Wireless
Parent Idea Birla Group (49.05%), Axiata Group Berhad (15%),
Providence Equity (10.6%)









25

Aircel
Aircel limited is a joint venture between Maxis Communication of Malaysia and Apollo
hospital Enterprise Ltd. of India. It offers both prepaid and postpaid cellular phone coverage
throughout the country. It is Indias fifth largest GSM mobile service provider in India with the
total number of subscribers of 50,168,811 having a market share of 6.67% at the end of
December, 2010. USTB has 74% stake in Aircel and remaining 26% is with Apollo Hospital.
Aircel is undisputed market leader in Tamil Nadu, Chennai, Assam and North-East Circles.
Founded 1999
Headquarters Chennai
Key People Sandeep Das (CEO)
Gurdeep Singh (COO)
Products Mobile Network, Telecommunication operator
Parent Maxis Communication (74%), Apollo Hospital (26%).











26

Uninor
Uninor started mobile services in India at the end of 2009, focusing on GSM technology.
Norway based telecom giant Telenor, which is the 6
th
largest telecom operator in the world,
holds 67.25% stake in Uninor and the remaining 32.75% is held by Unitech Wireless, a
telecom venture of Indias 2
nd
largest real state company, Unitech Group. Uninor comes with a
new plan called Dynamic Pricing aka Badalta Plan. This was the first time in India that such a
scheme was launched. As the name itself suggests, its pricing on LOCAL & STD calls changes
from time to time. Initially the customer is in a basic plan of 50p/min. Then, as per the Dynamic
Pricing (DP) plan, the customer will get a Discount on the calls in different areas of the same
city. i.e.; If your city has 10 Uninor Towers and you are covered in 1st Tower, you will get one
discount plan, the person in the 2nd tower will get a different discount plan. The discount ranges
from 5% to 60% on the call charges. The Discount value varies from Time to Time based on
network traffic. The Discount information is displayed on your Mobile Screen. Where you
actually get tower location info, you simply need to switch ON your Cell Info in your mobile
settings.
So, when you get a "60% OFF on DP" on your screen it means: You will be charged 60%
less of 50p i.e20p/min (60% * 0.50=0.30 => 0.50-0.30= 0.20) at that time. This company also
implemented Dynamic Pricing on Seconds pulse too.
The company had 18,510,049 subscribers at the end of December, 2010 with a market share of
2.46%.
Founded 2009
Headquarters Gurgaon
Key People Sigye Breke (CEO)
Sanjay Chandra (Chairman)
Products Wireless, Telephones, Internet
Employees 2000 (at the end of 2010)
Parent Telenor (67.25%), Unitech (32.75%)
27

Services offered by cellular operators
Cellular service providers also offer many exciting features to increase their customer base like
hello tunes, ringtones, mms, GPRS, call forwarding, call waiting, missed call alerts, etc. in order
to achieve standards comparable to the international facilities the sub sector of value-added
services was opened up to private investment in these services. Consumers are expecting more
convenient services from service providers. Hence these companies are updating as per
customers needs and providing innovative services to their customers as follows:
Prepaid Service
Postpaid Service
Life time Validity plans
Short messaging service (SMS)
E-mail services
Multimedia messaging service (MMS)
Ringtones download facility
Hello tunes facility
Roaming facility
Internet and Mobile net facilities
Games as per demand
Call divert facility
Call barring facility
Voice mail service
Video Conferencing




28

4.3 Technology Used
Two different types of technologies are used in India in respect of cellular services. They
are GSM and CDMA.
GSM
GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications: originally known as Groupe Spcial
Mobile) is the worlds most popular standard for mobile telephony systems. GSM is used by over
1.5 billion people across more than 212 countries and territories. In GSM technology, both
signaling and speech channels are digital and thus it is considered a second generation (2G)
mobile phone system. It also facilitates widespread implementation of data communication
application into the system. GSM standard has been an advantage to both consumers, who may
benefit from the ability to roam and switch service providers without replacing phones, and also
to network operators who can choose equipment from many GSM equipment vendors. GSM also
pioneered low cost implementation of the short message service (SMS) also called text message
which has since been supported on other mobile phone standards as well. GSM is a cellular
network, which means that mobile phones connect to it by searching for cells in the immediate
area.
In 1982, the European Conference of Postal and Telecommunications Administrations
(CEPT) created the Group Special Mobile (GSM) to develop a standard for a mobile telephone
system that could be used across Europe. In 1987, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed
by 13 countries to develop a common cellular telephone system across Europe. In 1989, the
responsibility of GSM was transferred to the European Telecommunications Standards
Institute (ETSI) and phase I of the GSM specifications were published in 1990. The first GSM
network was launched in 1991 by Radiolinja in Finland with joint technical infrastructure
maintenance from Ericsson. By the end of 1993, over a million subscribers were using GSM
phone networks being operated by 70 carriers across 48 countries.
CDMA
Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) is a channel access method used by various
radio communication technologies. It was originally known as IS-95. There are now different
variations, but the original CDMA is now known as CDMA-One. CDMA, originally developed
29

by Qualcomm and enhanced by Ericsson, is characterized by high capacity and small cell
radius, employing spread spectrum technology and a special coding scheme. CDMA was
adopted by the Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA) in 1993. In September 1998,
only three years after the first commercial deployment, there were 16 million subscribers
on CDMA-One systems worldwide. By May 2001, there were 35 million subscribers
on CDMA-One systems worldwide and there are over 475 million.
India has become only the second country in the world to have more than 100 million CDMA-
based (code division multiple access) mobile phone subscribers after the US, which has 157
million CDMA users, according to an industry body.
While India overtook China to become the second-largest CDMA market, the country's leading
service provider Reliance Communications (RCOM) has become the second-largest CDMA
service provider behind the USA's Verizon Wireless, the CDMA Development Group (CDG)
said here on Thursday. Tata Teleservices is ranked fourth in the list of top global players, behind
China Telecom.
4.4 Types of Mobile Connection
Two types of Mobile Connections are available:
Prepaid
In case of a prepaid connection, a customer has to recharge/refill his mobile phone with a
certain recharge amount and can use the amount, as and when required, up to the validity. A
prepaid mobile phone(commonly known as pay-as-you-go, pay-as-you-talk, pay and go)is a
mobile phone for which credit is purchased in advance of service use. Prepaid connection is the
best way to avoid long term commitment with a cell phone service provider. The best thing about
having a pre-paid cell phone is that you don't need to pay cancellation charges, in case you plan
to switch. A prepaid cell phone is best suited for those people who don't use too much everyday
and for those who have a limited budget available.
Advantages of using a prepaid cell phone:
No credit check required
30

No deposit required
No monthly rental fee
No termination fee if you decide not to use your phone again
No service fee
Always in control of call costs
Instant activation
Easy switching
Pre-activated STD and ISD facility
Less documentation
Postpaid
A postpaid connection (commonly known mobile phone contractor Billing method)
refers to connection where a user enters into a long term billing arrangement with a mobile
service provider.
Advantages of using a postpaid cell phone:
Ensures greater security
No need to worry about account balance
Low call charges
No tension of timely recharge









31

4.5 Mobile Subscriber Statistics
The total cellular connection has crossed 729 million at the end of November, 2010
which is 95% of the total number of telecom subscribers which stood at 764 million.
TABLE 4.1
Operator Circles Subscribers
(in millions)
Market Share (%)
Bharti Pan India 149 20.5
Reliance Pan India 122 16.8
Vodafone Pan India 121 16.6
BSNL 20 circles 83 11.5
Tata Pan India 82 11.3
Idea Pan India 78 10.8
Aircel Pan India 48 6.7
MTNL Delhi, Mumbai 5 0.7
Uninor Pan India 16 2.2
Sistema Pan India 7 1.1
Videocon Pan India 6 0.9
Loop Pan India 3 0.4
STel 6 circles 2 0.3
Etisalat 15 circles 0.1 0.02
Source: TRAI

Telecom Subscription Data as on 31st December 2010
Total Telephone subscriber base reaches to 787.28 Million in Dec- 2010 from 764.76 Million in
Nov-2010
Wireless subscription reaches to 752.19Million in Dec- 2010 from 729.57 Million in
Nov-2010
Wireline subscription declines to 35.09 Million in Dec- 2010 from 35.19 Million in Nov-
2010
22.62 Million new additions in wireless
Active wireless subscribers in VLR in Dec-2010 is 529.22 Million
Overall Tele-density reaches to 66.16 in Dec-2010 from 64.34 in Nov-2010 with overall
urban and rural teledensities being 147.88 & 31.18 respectively
32

Wireless Tele-density reaches to 63.22 with urban and rural teledensities being 140.53 &
30.11 respectively
Wire line Tele-density declines to 2.95 with urban and rural teledensities being 7.35 &
1.07 respectively
Broadband subscription reaches to 10.92 Million in Dec-2010 from 10.71 Million in
Nov-2010.
The number of telephone subscribers in India increased to 787.28 Million at the end of
December 2010 from 764.76 Million in November-2010, there by registering a growth rate of
2.95%. With this, the overall Tele-density in India reaches 66.16.
Wireless Segment (GSM, CDMA & FWP)
Wireless subscriber base increased from 729.57 Million in November-2010 to 752.19 Million at
the end of December-2010 registering a growth of 3.10%. Wireless Tele-density stands at
63.22.
Wireless Service:
A. Service Providers share in net additions during the month of December-2010
FIGURE 4.1

Source: TRAI
33

4.6 Customer Switching Behavior - Mobile Number Portability
(MNP)
The growing competition in the global market has made it increasingly important for the
companies to retain their existing customers. The companies are using various strategies and
offering their customers so many offers to retain their customers. Switching process results in
relationship dissolution. When firms lose a customer, they are not only losing their future
earnings but also incurring the cost of finding new customers. Overtime customers become less
price-sensitive therefore, losing loyal customers means giving up high margins. Due to
technological advancement and easy access to new technology to every individual, customers are
becoming intolerant and they can dissolve the relationship as soon as possible. This is the reason
customer retention is the core concern of every organization.
MNP is a new development in mobile communication technology. MNP or Mobile
Number Portability is a service in which the mobile users can switch to other service providers
without changing their mobile number. Both prepaid and postpaid users can avail the facility to
switch to other favorable service provider. Once a customer changes his/her service provider &
retains the same mobile number they are expected to hold their number with a given provider for
at least 90 days, before they decide to move to another service provider. This restriction is set in
place to keep a check on exploitation of MNP services provided by the service providers.
In India, MNP is operational from January 20, 2011. The MNP scheme was launched
first in Haryana in Nov 2010 and now all set to be implemented in all around the nation.
MNP Facts

1) So far, MNP is only for porting of mobile numbers within the same circle. Porting of
landline numbers is not possible.

2) To exercise MNP, the user will have to obtain a Unique Porting Code (UPC) by sending
an SMS - PORT <Mobile number> to 1900. An 8 digit UPC will be sent via SMS to the
subscriber by the DONOR operator i.e. the existing operator. This code, along with filled
forms and valid identity proof documents, need to be submitted to the new operator.

34


3) User will receive an SMS from the new operator when the porting starts. The number
may remain inactive for 2-3 hours.

4) On availing MNP facility, the balance amount in a prepaid number would not get carried
forward to the new operator.

5) After porting, if the mobile number remains disconnected for 90 days, it will be reversed
back to the original operator.

6) Under MNP, RNO = Recipient Network Operator or the Operator which has gained the
ported number. DNO = Donor Network Operator or the Operator which has lost the
ported number.

7) While porting your number, you also need to change your SIM. Apart from number
retention, everything is the same as getting a new connection.

8) Post-paid subscribers, who wish to avail MNP, need to clear their billing dues before
applying for number porting. Failing this, the porting request may be rejected.

9) You can port a number from CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access) to GSM (Global
System for Mobile Communications) phones or GSM to CDMA.

10) With MNP, the process of transferring a mobile number from one operator to another
would involve a temporary break in service when the number is detached from one
provider and added to another. As per TRAI, this period should not be more than two
hours.




35

4.7 SWOT Analysis
SWOT Analysis stands for analyzing the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and
Threats of a certain Industry or company.
STRENGTHS
Exponential growth
Skilled human resource at reasonable cost
Favorable policies (to some extent) and regulator
Strong International Brand names.
Huge customer potential
Allowed FDI limit ranging 74% to 100%

WEAKNESSES
Most competitive market
Poor telecommunication infrastructure
Late adoption of new technology
Strongly regulated by government
Customer retention
No Research and Development

OPPORTUNITIES
Huge market size
Local handset manufacturing
Removal of international trade barriers
More quality services
Value added services


36

THREATS
Declining Average Revenue Per User
Telecommunication policies
Inconsistent decisions from regulatory authority
Partiality on the part of the government

















37




CHAPTER 5
Analysis and
Findings






38

Findings
5.1 General Findings
There is a tough competition in the cellular market in the Delhi Region with Mahanagar
Telephone Nigam Ltd., Airtel, Idea Cellular, Reliance Communications, Vodafone, Tata
Teleservices, Aircel operating in Delhi.
Bharti Airtel has the maximum market share followed by Reliance Communication, Vodafone,
Tata Teleservices, Idea Cellular, Virgin Mobile, MTS, MTNL and Aircel. Airtel, Vodafone, Idea
Cellular, MTNL and Aircel deal in GSM network while Tata Teleservices, Virgin Mobile and
MTS deal in CDMA network. Reliance Communication Deals in both CDMA and GSM
network.
Most of the mobile phone subscribers in the Delhi region are prepaid customers as the services
offered by the cellular services providers are very competitive and various offers are provided to
customers from time to time. There is instant activation, no monthly commitment, better control
over cost, easy switching and so on.
The most widely used services besides calling are SMS, Internet and Value Added Services.
SMS is the most widely used service among the youngsters. Internet is the most preferred service
after voice calling and SMS service.
The pay per second plan is the most widely used plan in this region which allows the customers
to call at the rate of Re. 1 per second or sometimes even lower.
Reduced Call rates and Better Network Coverage are the most prominent reasons for choosing a
particular service provider among other reasons such as Validity, Roaming Charges and Internet
charges.
Most of the Customers seem to be satisfied with their service providers. But some of the
customers are not satisfied with the services. Now switching to some other service provider and
network has become easy with the introduction of Mobile Number Portability (MNP). MNP
ensures easy switching to some other service provider while retaining the mobile phone number.

39

5.2 Findings on the basis of Questionnaire
Following are the demographic details of the respondents:
1. Age details of the respondents
TABLE 5.1
Age Number of Respondents Percentage
17-25 yrs 36 36%
25-35 yrs 43 43%
35-45 yrs 14 14%
More than 45 yrs 7 7%
Total 100 100%

FIGURE 5.1



Analysis
The above detailed pie graph clearly shows that majority of respondents belonged to the age
group of 25-35years which forms 43%of the total number of respondents. Only 7% of the
respondents were in the age group of >45 years. The age group of 17-25 years has the second
highest number of respondents, which usually represents the students, forming 36% of the total
respondents. 14 % of the respondents belonged to the age group of 35-45 years. The use of
mobile phone is more popular among the age group of belonging to 17-35 years. This age group
is either college goers or the working population and the need of cell phone is high in this
category.
17-25 yrs
36%
25-35 yrs
43%
35-45 yrs
14%
More than 45
yrs
7%
Age
40

2. Gender
TABLE 5.2
Gender Number of Respondents Percentage
Male 66 66%
Female 34 34%
Total 100 100%

FIGURE 5.2




Analysis

Gender wise classification indicates that 66% of the respondents are male and 34% of the
respondents are female. Thus, it seems that male members have more mobile phones in
comparison to their female counterparts. This may be due to reason that either male members
have their self income but majority of the women are still dependent on their male counterparts
or the female respondents were less in number.





Male
66%
Female
34%
Gender
41

3. Occupation
TABLE 5.3
Occupation Number of Respondents Percentage
Student 32 32%
Salaried 36 36%
Business 21 21%
Others 11 11%
Total 100 100%

FIGURE 5.3


Analysis
The occupation wise classification indicates that students and salaried put together constitute the
majority of the total respondents i.e. 68%. 21% respondents were businessmen while other
group comprising of professionals, homemakers, etc forms only 11%.




Student
32%
Salaried
36%
Business
21%
Others
11%
Occupation
42

4. Monthly Income
TABLE 5.4
Monthly Income Number of Respondents Percentage
Less the Rs.5000 32 32%
Rs. 5000-15000 14 14%
Rs. 15000-40000 43 43%
More than Rs. 40000 11 11%
Total 100 100%

FIGURE 5.4


Analysis
The diagram above shows that the maximum number of respondents belong to the income
bracket of Rs. 15000-40000, which represents 43% of the total respondents. Only 11% of the
respondents have the income more than Rs. 40000 per month.32% of the respondents have the
income less than Rs. 5000 and only 14% fall in the income bracket of Rs. 5000-15000.




< Rs.5000
32%
Rs.5000-
Rs.15000
14%
Rs.15000-
Rs.40000
43%
> Rs.40000
11%
Monthly Income
43

BASED ON CELLULAR OPTIONS:

5. Connection of different service providers owned by customers.
TABLE 5.5
Service provider Number of Respondents Percentage
Vodafone 19 19%
Airtel 16 16%
Reliance 14 14%
MTNL 11 11%
Tata Indicom 10 10%
Virgin Mobile 10 10%
Idea 9 9%
Aicel 7 7%
MTS 4 4%
Total 100 100%
FIGURE 5.5


Analysis

The Figure drawn above with the help of the data collected shows that Vodafone and Airtel are
the top choice of the respondents, Vodafone forming 19% and Airtel forming 16% of all the
service providers. Reliance accounted for 14% of the respondents and is the third preferred
choice of the respondents. The state-owned MTNL occupies 4
th
position with 11% of the
respondents choosing it. Tata Indicom and Virgin Mobile share the 5
th
position with 10% each.
Idea, Aircel and MTS account for least number of subscribers with 9%, 7% and 4%
respectively.
Aircel
7%
Airtel
16%
MTNL
11%
Vodafone
19%
Idea
9%
Virgin Mobile
10%
Reliance
14%
MTS
4%
Tata Indicom
10%
Service provider
44

6. Kind of Mobile Network
TABLE 5.6
Kind of Mobile Network Number of Respondents Percentage
GSM 68 68%
CDMA 32 32%
Total 100 100%

FIGURE 5.6



Analysis

It is revealed that most of the respondents have opted for GSM network, with 68% of the
respondents going for it. Only 32% of the respondents have been using the CDMA network
which accounts for Tata Indicom, Virgin mobile, Reliance and MTS. The reason for higher
number of GSM user may be that there is more number of GSM service providers and switching
from one GSM service provider to another is easy as compared to switching from a CDMA
service provider to another CDMA service provider or GSM service provider.




CDMA
32%
GSM
68%
Mobile network
45

7. Scheme used by the customer

TABLE 5.7
Schemes used by the
customer
Number of Respondents Percentage
Lifetime 23 23%
Student Pack 4 4%
All India pay per second 61 61%
Monthly rental plan 12 12%
Total 100 100%

FIGURE 5.7



Analysis

Customers choice about the schemes used reveals that All India pay per second plan remains
the favorite of most of the customers with 61% of all the respondents using this plan. Lifetime
Plan having a flat rate of calling per minute is the favorite of 23% of the respondents. Monthly
Rental Plan generally referring to the postpaid plan is used by 12% respondents. Student pack
is only offered by MTNL. Usually the students opt for this plan which covers only 4% of the
total respondents in the current study.
Lifetime
23%
Student
pack
4%
All IndiaPay per
second
61%
Monthly rental
Plan
12%
Schemes used
46

8. Length of duration of availing the services of current service provider.

TABLE 5.8
Time duration of using the
current service provider
Number of Respondents Percentage
Up to 1 yr 56 56%
2 yrs 32 32%
3yrs 8 8%
4yrs or more 4 4%
Total 100 100%

FIGURE 5.8



Analysis

It is clear from the study that most of the respondents have been using their current sim and the
service provider for last 2 years or so with majority having sim cards not older than 2 years.
88% of the total respondents have been using their current sim cards for the last 2 years of
which 56% have been using for last1 year. Only 8% of the respondents have been using their
current sim card for last 3 years. The group of 4 years or more forms the smallest group with
only 4% respondents falling under it.


<1 yr
56%
2 yrs
32%
3yrs
8%
4 yrs and more
4%
Time duration of current service provider
47

9. If the customer is using more than 1 SIM.

TABLE 5.9
If the customer is using more
than 1 SIM
Number of respondents Percentage
Yes, of same provider 39 39%
Yes, of different provider 33 33%
No 28 28%
Total 100 100%

FIGURE 5.9



Analysis

Of all the respondents 39% are using more than one sim card but of the same service provider.
33% are using the sim cards of different service provider and 28% do not use extra sim cards.
This shows that 72% of the respondents are using more than 1 sim card at a time. The reason for
using more than 1 sim, probably, is different schemes offered by different service providers.






Yes, of same
provider
39%
Yes, of
different
provider
33%
No
28%
More than 1 sim used
48

\10. Factors Important for choosing the current service provider.

TABLE 5.10
Important Factors for
choosing current service
provider
Number of respondents Percentage
Customer Service 84 84%
Advertisement 42 42%
Network coverage 91 91%
Brand image 66 66%
Tariff 93 93%
Total 376 376%

FIGURE 5.10



Analysis

Among the various reasons for choosing the current service provider, respondents preferred to
have Better Customer Service, Better Network Coverage and Tariff Plans. 93% give Tariff
plans as an important factor of choosing the service provider. 91% prefer to have better
network coverage. 84% respondents want good customer service. Brand image also play an
important role and 66% respondents preferred this factor as important for choosing a service
provider. Advertisement was the least preferred reason with only 42% respondents favoring it.
The respondents had the option of choosing multiple reasons for choosing a service provider.
Tariff
Brand Image
Network Coverage
Advertisement
Customer Service
93
66
91
42
84
Factors important for choosing
current service provider
Percentage
49


11. Monthly Expenses on Mobile Phone.

TABLE 5.11
Monthly Expenses Number of Respondents Percentage
Rs.100-250 31 31%
Rs. 250-400 46 46%
Rs. 400-750 14 14%
More than Rs. 750 9 9%
Total 100 100%

FIGURE 5.11



Analysis

If we consider the monthly expenditure on mobile phone by the respondents, we find that most
of them spend Rs. 100 to Rs. 400 i.e. 77% of the respondents. Of these 46% respondents spend
Rs. 250-400 per month on mobile phones and 31% spend Rs.100-250 per month.14% of the
respondents spend Rs. 400-750 per month and only 9% spend more than Rs.750 towards their
mobile phones.



Rs.100-Rs.250
31%
Rs.250-Rs.400
46%
Rs.400-Rs.750
14%
> Rs.750
9%
Monthly Expenses
50

12. Minutes spent on phone per day

TABLE 5.12
Minutes spent per day on
mobile phone
Number of respondents Percentage
1-30 8 8%
30-60 12 12%
60-120 57 57%
More than 120 23 23%
Total 100 100%

FIGURE 5.12



Analysis

Regarding the time spent everyday on mobile phone, most of the respondents were found to
spend quite a good time on cell phone. 80% respondents were found to spend more than 1 hour
daily on cell phones. Only 8% respondents were found to spend less than 30 minutes on phone
per day and 12% spend 30-60 minutes on mobile phones. 57% spend more than 1 hour up to 2
hours and 23% spend more than 2 hours on mobile phone daily.





1-30
minutes
8%
30-60 minutes
12%
60-120 minutes
57%
> 120 miutes
23%
Minutes Spent per day
51

13. SMS sent per day.

TABLE 5.13
SMS sent per day Number of respondents Percentage
0-25 12 12%
25-75 58 58%
75-150 24 24%
More than 6 6%
Total 100 100%

FIGURE 5.13



Analysis

One of the most widely used mobile phone services is Short Messaging Service. It is very
popular among the youngsters. Considering the number of SMS sent per day, most of the
respondents agreed that they send 25-75 SMS per day forming a group of 58% of the total
number of respondents. The least number of messages is sent by 12% of the respondents i.e. 0-
25 SMS per day.24% respondents were found to send 75-125 SMS per day. Only 6%
respondents send more than 150 SMS per day.




0-25
12%
25-75
58%
75-150
24%
> 150
6%
SMS sent per day
52

14. Services used in mobile phone (other than voice calls and SMS)

FIGURE 5.14
Services used other than
voice call and SMS
Number of respondents Percentage
MMS 21 21%
Internet 74 74%
Video call 11 11%
VAS 69 69%
Total 175 175%

FIGURE 5.14


Analysis

There are various services provided by the cellular service providers besides voice call and SMS.
While doing the survey it came to knowledge that 21% of the respondents use MMS services.
Most of the respondents preferred Internet service on their mobile phone i.e. 74%. The second
preferred choice among the respondents was Value Added Services (VAS) with 69%
respondents going for it. The least preferred choice is Video call with only 11% respondents
probably because it is a new service available with 3G only which has not yet penetrated well
among the customers.



0
20
40
60
80
MMS Internet Video call Value
Added
Services
Percentage 21 74 11 69
Services used other than voice call
and SMS
53

15. Services Preferred for a new connection.

TABLE 5.15
Services preferred for a new
connection
Number of respondents Percentage
Call rates 93 93%
SMS rates 86 86%
Value Added Services 14 14%
Internet Charges 63 63%
Validity 89 89%
Sim Cost 21 21%
Roaming Charges 68 68%
Network Coverage 91 91%
Total 525 525%

FIGURE 5.15



Analysis

On getting the responses from the respondents regarding the services they would prefer for anew
connection, the result obtained shows that Call rates, Network coverage and Validity are the
most important factors for choosing a new connection. Value Added Services and Sim cost are
the least important factors with just 14% and 21% respondents favoring respectively. 93%
respondents choose Call rates as an important factor. According to 91% respondents, Network
Coverage is important while 89% say Validity is important factor. Roaming and Internet
Charges are also an important factor with 68% going in favor of Roaming Charges and 63%
going in favor of Internet Charges.
93
86
14
63
89
21
68
91
Services preferred for a new
connection
Percentage
54

16. From where do the customers get the information about new offers?

TABLE 5.16
Information about new offers Number of respondents Percentage
TV 21 21%
Newspaper 11 11%
Magazines 3 3%
Internet 32 32%
Hoarding 7 7%
Words of mouth 26 26%
Total 100 100%

FIGURE 5.16



Analysis

Proper information is a crucial factor for making any choice. Most of the respondents suggest
getting information about new offers from Internet which stands at 32% of the total
respondents. The second most prominent source of information was the Words of Mouth which
accounts for 26% of all the respondents. 21% respondents gain information from TV.
Newspaper accounts for 11% of all the respondents. Hoarding and Magazines were the least
important sources which accounted for 7% and 3% respectively.

TV
21%
Newspaper
11%
Magazines
3%
Internet
32% Hoarding
7%
Words of
mouth
26%
Information about new offers
55

17. Impact of celebrity on customers purchase decision.

TABLE 5.17
Does celebrity impact
purchase decision
Number of respondents Percentage
Yes 12 12%
No 88 88%
Total 100 100%

FIGURE 5.17



Analysis

On asking if the celebrity endorsement affects their purchase decision, the respondents state that
most of them were ignorant of the celebrity endorsement and has the least impact on their
purchase decision. Only 12% agree that they may purchase the cell phone or the services of a
particular service provider, following the celebrity. 88% respondents do not feel that celebrities
have any impact on their purchase decision.




Yes
12%
No
88%
Impact of Celebrity on purchase
decision
56

18. Offers most liked by the customers.

TABLE 5.18
Offers most liked by the
customers
Number of customers Percentage
Free unlimited local calls to one
number (same service provider)
11 11%
Free SMS pack 21 21%
Free Internet 12 12%
Reduced Roaming charges 8 8%
Reduced STD charges 21 21%
Reduced Calling charges 27 27%

FIGURE 5.18



Analysis

Different offers by different service providers play a vital role in attractingthe customers.
Through this study, it can be seen that customers are more interested in Reduced Call charges as
well as Reduced STD charges. 27% say that they like Reduced Calling charges while 21%
prefer Reduced STD charges. Free SMS pack is another preferred choice of the respondents
which is again liked by 21% respondents. Free unlimited locals calls to one number (same
service provider is preferred by 11% while Free Internet pack is liked by 12% respondents. The
least preferred choice is reduced roaming charges with on 8% respondents favoring it.
Free unlimited
local calls to
one
number(same
provider)
11%
Free SMS pack
21%
Free Internet
Pack
12%
Reduced
roaming
charges
8%
Reduced STD
charges
21%
Reduced calling
charges
27%
Offers most liked by the
customers
57

19. Type of Mobile connection used by customer (prepaid or postpaid).

TABLE 5.19
Prepaid or Postpaid Number of respondents Percentage
Prepaid 87 87%
Postpaid 13 13%
Total 100 100%

FIGURE 5.19



Analysis

Of the total respondents 87% are found to be prepaid customers and the remaining 13% as
postpaid customers. Postpaid connection is more popular among the users because of large
number of offers available to the prepaid users. It also relieves the users of so many formalities
and documentation which are found in a postpaid connection. Moreover, it ensures instant
activation, better control over expenses, no monthly rentals and easy switching.








Prepaid
87%
Postpaid
13%
Type of connection
58

BASED ON CHOICE OF PREPAID AND POSTPAID CONNECTION:

20. If prepaid, reasons for choosing it.

TABLE 5.20
Reasons for choosing prepaid
connection
Number of respondents Percentage
Instant Activation 65 65%
No Monthly Commitment/Rent 73 73%
Better control over expenses 70 70%
Easy switching 64 64%
Large number of offers 58 58%
No credit checks 25 25%
Carry more than one sim at zero
extra cost
33 33%
Pre-activated STD and ISD facility 42 42%
Top up options available 47 47%
No security deposit 37 37%
Less documentation 44 44%
Total 558 558%

FIGURE 5.20


Analysis

Prepaid connection was the most preferred among the respondents. According to the respondents
No Monthly Rentals and Better Control over Expenses and Instant Activation are the most
65
73 70
64
58
25
33
42
47
37
44
Reasons for choosing prepaid
connection
Number of respondents
59

prominent reasons for opting for the prepaid connection. 65 respondents prefer prepaid
connection because it ensures instant activation and do not have to wait for hours or days for
activation. 73 choose No monthly commitment or rental as an important factor for choosing
prepaid connection. 70 respondents preferred it because of Better Control over expenses. 64
say it ensures easy switching from one service provider to another. 58 choose it because it offers
a large number of Offers and choice can be made among them. 25 respondents mentioned that
choosing prepaid connection if suitable because there is No Credit Checks as in case of
postpaid. 33 agreed that keeping more than one Sim at a time at no extra cost is easier with
prepaid connection. 42 like it because prepaid connection offers pre-activated STD and ISD
facilities and they can stay connected with their friends and relatives. 47 respondents feel that
easy top-up options are available for prepaid mobile phones and can be recharged according to
the need. 37 find the prepaid connection convenient because no security deposit is involved 44
prefer it because less documentation is involved in prepaid connection.
























60

21. If postpaid, reasons for choosing it.

TABLE 5.21
Reasons for choosing
Postpaid connection
Number of Respondents Percentage
Better Network 8 8%
No tension of time-to-time
recharge
10 10%
Cheap Call rates 11 11%
Value Added Services 6 6%
Total 35 35%

FIGURE 5.21



Analysis

According to the current study, only 13% of the respondents opt for postpaid connection. Thus,
is clear that it is not much preferred among the respondents. Of the 13 respondents, 8 preferred
postpaid connection because of the Better Network it offers. 10 were of the opinion that there is
No tension of getting time-to-time recharge, so it is a better option. 11 respondents prefer
postpaid connection because of the Cheap Call rates it offers to same service providers
connection as well as to different service providers connection. Value Added service is also an
important reason for postpaid connection according to 6 respondents.

Better
Network
No tension of
getting time-
to-time
recharge
Cheap call
rates
Value Added
services
8
10
11
6
Reasons for choosing postpaid
connection
No of respondents
61

22. Is the customer satisfied with current prepaid/postpaid connection?

TABLE 5.22
Satisfied with Current
Prepaid/Postpaid connection
Number of Respondents Percentage
Yes 69 69%
No 22 22%
Cant say 9 9%
Total 100 100%

FIGURE 5.22



Analysis

Of all the respondents, 69% are satisfied with their connection type and do not wish to change
them. 22% respondents are found to be unsatisfied with their present connection type. 9%
respondents are found to be unsure to decide whether they are satisfied with their connection
type or not.





Yes
69%
No
22%
Can't say
9%
Satisfied with current
prepaid/postpaid connection
62

23. If the customer wants to switch the current connection to another type
(prepaid/postpaid).

TABLE 5.23
Switch from current
connection type
Number of respondents Percentage
Yes 16 16%
No 72 72%
Cant Say 12 12%
Total 100 100%

FIGURE 5.23



Analysis

Among the unsatisfied respondents, 16 respondents are sure of changing their current connection
type. Of all the respondents, 72 do not want to change their connection type. There are also 12
respondents who cannot decide whether to change their connection type or not. Thus, it is found
that most of the respondents are satisfied with their current connection type.






Yes No Can't Say
16
72
12
If the customer wants to switch
Number of respondents
63

24. Is the customer satisfied with the current service provider?

TABLE 5.24
Satisfied with current service
provider
Number of Respondents Percentage
Yes 61 61%
No 28 28%
Cant Say 11 11%
Total 100 100%

FIGURE 5.24



Analysis

Customer Satisfaction is the yardstick for any service provider. The current study reveals that
most of the respondents are satisfied with their service providers and their services. 61%
respondents feel satisfied with their current service providers. 28% feel unsatisfied with their
current service provider. 11% cant decide whether they are satisfied or not with the services of
their service providers.




Yes
61%
No
28%
Can't Say
11%
Satisfied with current service provider
64

BASED ON SWITCHING BEHAVIOR

25. If the customer would prefer to switch from the current service provider.

TABLE 5.25
Change of service provider Number of Respondents Percentage
Yes 25 25%
No 58 58%
Cant Say 17 17%
Total 100 100%

FIGURE 5.25



Analysis

Among the unsatisfied respondents, 25 respondents prefer to switch and change their current
service provider. 58% respondents are happy and satisfied with their service provider and do not
wish to switch. 17% were not sure whether they want to switch or not.







Yes
25%
No
58%
Can't Say
17%
Would the customer change the
service provider
65

26. Preference of new service provider (of the 25 respondents).

TABLE 5.26
Choice of new service
providers
Number of Respondents Percentage
Vodafone 8 32%
Airtel 6 24%
Idea 4 16%
Others 7 28%
Total 25 100%

FIGURE 5.26



Analysis

It is found that 25 respondents prefer to switch and Vodafone remains the most preferred choice
for the respondents to switch with 32% respondents opting for Vodafone for switching. Airtel
happens to be the second preferred choice of the respondents with 24% opting for it to switch.
Idea gets the third preference among the service providers to switch with 16% respondents going
for it. 28% opted for other service provider like Reliance, Aircel, TATA Indicom, etc. to switch.





Vodafone
32%
Airtel
24%
Idea
16%
Others
28%
Choice of new service provider
66

27. Reasons for switching.

TABLE 5.27
Reasons for switching Number of Responses Percentage
Poor network connectivity 23 92%
Frequent network disruptions 22 88%
High call tariffs 20 80%
Frequent changes in plans 19 76%
Impolite response from
Customer care
executive/Retailer
5 20%
Unsolicited calls, messages 7 28%
Network congestion on special
occasions
2 8%
Better offers from competitors 20 80%
Better service from
competitors
21 84%
Low switching cost 2 8%
Influence of friend and family 19 76%
Group plans 6 24%
Low roaming charges 4 16%
Presence in more number of
circles
3 12%
Better Value Added Services
(VAS)
8 32%
Promotional factors 9 36%
Corporate connection 12 48%
Bill Payment 5 20%
Service kiosks are close by 7 28%
Customers grievance
handling procedure.
4 16%
Advertisement 8 32%
Total 226 904%











67

FIGURE 5.27

Analysis
Various reasons have been analyzed for the switching intentions of the respondents. Among the
various stated reasons, poor network connectivity, frequent network disruptions, better services
from competitors, better offers and high call tariffs are the most prominent reasons that can be
considered for switching from the current service provider. Low switching cost, network
congestion on special occasions, presence in more than one circle, low roaming charges and
customer grievance handling procedure are the least important factor that could affect
respondents to switch.
0 20 40 60 80 100
Poor network connectivity
Frequent network disruptions
High call tariffs
Frequent changes in plans
Impolite response from Customer care
Unsolicited calls, messages
Network congestion on special occasions
Better offers from competitors
Better service from competitors
Low switching cost
Influence of friend and family
Group plans
Low roaming charges
Presence in more number of circles
Better Value Added Services (VAS)
Promotional factors
Corporate connection
Bill Payment
Service kiosks are close by
Customers grievance handling procedure.
Advertisement
92
88
80
76
20
28
8
80
84
8
76
24
16
12
32
36
48
20
28
16
32
Percentage
68





CHAPTER 6
CONCLUSION
AND
SUGGESTIONS







69

6.1 Conclusion
Mobile phones services are becoming popular day by day. The service providers are
offering attractive offers to the customers to attract them and to increase their market share.
There is a tough competition in the cellular market in India and different service providers are
not leaving a single stone unturned and making every effort to increase their revenue and market
share and also to offer satisfaction to their existing customers and to attract new prospect. The
revolution in the telecom industry has made the users/consumers HIGH BAND WIDTH
HUMAN BEINGS who are approachable by anyone, anywhere, anytime. Indias teledensity has
increased tremendously due to advanced technology being used in the mobile service.
The telecom industry, especially the mobile phone industry is growing at a robust rate. In
2003, the mobile phone industry captured 28 million subscribers, which increased to 229
million in 2007. This number has increased to 787.28 million by the end of December 2010.
Therefore, it can be rightly. Therefore, it can be said that in the near future cellular service
providers are going to face intensely tough competition thereby introducing different innovative
marketing strategies to survive and it will be very difficult for the new entrants to create any
place in the market.
Major conclusions that emerged from the study are customer generally prefer to use
prepaid mobile connection over postpaid connection for the reasons of instant activation, no
monthly commitment or rental, better control over cost and large number of offers. Among the
customers preferring postpaid connection, the most preferred reasons were better network, no
tension of getting timely recharge and Cheap Call rates. Vodafone is the most preferred choice
among the customers followed by Airtel and Reliance which were voted as the 2
nd
and 3
rd

preferred choice respectively.
The main reasons for choosing a particular service provider are Tariff charges, network
coverage and customer service. Customers generally prefer to have cheaper call rates. Moreover,
customers have also shown their inclination towards Internet usage on mobile phones and Value
Added services (VAS). Customers are also indifferent towards celebrity endorsement.
The very new concept of MNP, which allows the customers to switch to different service
providers while retaining their current mobile number, has entered the Indian market though it
70

has already been existent in many other parts of the globe. This is really a revolution in the
cellular industry which allows the customers to easily switch to other service provider of their
choice or to opt for a new scheme with some other service provider if they are dissatisfied with
the current service provider. According to the current study, only 25% of the respondents were
willing to switch from the current service provider retaining their previous mobile numbers. Poor
network connectivity, frequent network disruptions, better services and offers from competitors
and high tariff charges are the most important factors influencing the respondents to switch. Due
to tough competition, the mobile operators, at one point of time, decreased the call tariffs
abysmally low and later hiked them indirectly through top-up plans. This compels the customers
to look out for cheaper packages. Frequent juggling of tariff and service charges is not a well
paying proposition for mobile operators.






71

6.2 SUGGESTIONS
With continuous changes taking place and the world becoming more and more dynamic, the
cellular operators need to improve upon their quality of service and render optimized facilities to
the customers to get going. Following are the suggestions for the service providers to improve
and prosper:
Indian mobile operators have to invest in expanding network coverage and providing
technically superior quality services to retain customers. Mobile operators need to
enhance the quality of service at all touch points to ensure loyalty.
Even though all the mobile service providers implement Do Not Disturb (DND) registry
as a mandatory service, it is neither thoroughly popularized nor properly implemented.
Efforts should be made to help penetrate this service among the customer base by the
service providers.
Many times to increase the number of customers, many easy allocations are done without
paper work. The service providers should carryout a proper reference check and then
activate the mobile number of the customers.
Proper connectivity and network availability widely affects the target customers. Service
providers, to increase their customers, should not follow a mad rush to sell connections
which hampers connectivity and increase network disruptions. Either there should be
restrictions on the allocation limit of every network tower or more towers should be
added to ensure better connectivity.
Service providers need to rebuild relationship with the customers to understand their
changing needs and design appropriate strategies to meet changing needs. Data mining
and CRM practices can be implemented to identify the specific requirements of the
customers and customized plans can be delivered to enhance customer satisfaction and
loyalty. Loyalty programme for existing, high volume users are another way to keep
customers.
Mobile operators should lay equal emphasis on retaining customers and finding new
customers.

72




ANNEXURE









73

BIBLIOGRAPHY

BOOKS
Kothari C. R., Research Methodology, 2004, New Age International (P) Ltd, Second
Edition.
Batra Satish K and Kazmi S H H, Consumer Behavior-Text and Cases, 2004, Excel
Books, First Edition.
NEWSPAPERS
The Times of India
Hindustan Times
WEBSITES
www.business.mapsofindia.com/india-industry/telecom.html
www.getidea.co.in/aboutmnp.html
www.en.wikipedia.org
www.trai.gov.in
www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vodafone_Essar
www.cci.in/pdf/surveys_reports/indias_telecom_sector
www.eurojournals.com/EJSS_19_1_06.pdf
www.wbiconpro.com/Marketing/503-Iqbal,A%20&%20Others.pdf
www.trai.gov.in/WriteReadData/trai/upload/PressReleases/798/prerdiv9feb11.pd
www.ihroos.fi/rapporter/Switching%20in%20different%20industries.PDF
www.prepaid-loyalty.com/e-Book-Rafi-Kretchmer.pdf
www.hapinternational.org/pool/files/customer-complaints.pdf
www.prepaid-loyalty.com/e-Book-Rafi-Kretchmer.pd
www.dhanken.shh.fi/dspace/bitstream/10227/269/1/176-978-951-555-977-7.pdf
www.uir.unisa.ac.za/bitstream/handle/10500/717/dissertation.pdf
74

www.bai2009.org/file/Papers/1391.doc
www.sjp.ac.lk/research/pdf/1009-silva-yapa-customerretention.pdf
www.academicjournals.org/ajbm/pdf/pdf2010/18Sept/Ali%20et%20al.pdf
www.hapinternational.org/pool/files/customer-complaints.pdf
www.uninor.in/Pages/home.aspx
www.cellular.co.za/cdma.htm
www.news.oneindia.in/2011/01/20/mobile-number-portability-switch-tele-operator-
aid0101.html
RESEARCH PAPERS
Aamir Mohammed, IkramWasim and Zaman Khalid (2010), Customers Switching in
Mobile Phone Service Providers in Pakistan, ((Int.J.Buss.Mgt.Eco.Res., Vol. 1(1), 2010,
pages 34-40)
ChaterjeeDebarati and ChaudharyIshita (2010), A study on Market share and factors
affecting the Choice of cellular service provider among young age group of Kolkatta,
(The IUP Journal of Marketing, Vol. 9, No. 3, 2010, pages 41-55)
Dhandha Dr. Neelam and Goel Dr. Pooja (2010), What impinges the choice of Cell
phone connection?, (Indian Journal Of Marketing, Volume 40, Number 9, September
2010 pages 20-25)
Iqbal Amjad, Zia Mubashar Hasan, Bashir Sajid, Shahzad Khurram and Aslam
Mohammed Waqas, Antecedents and Outcomes of Customer Satisfaction in using
prepaid cellular service in Pakistan
Jawaria Fatima Ali, Ali Imran, Rehman Kashif Ur, Yilmaz Ayse, Kucuk Safwan,
Nadeem and Afzal Hasan (2010), Determinants of consumer retention in cellular
industry in Pakistan, (African Journal of Business Management, Vol. 4(12), 18
September, 2010 pages 2402-2408)
Mallikarjuna Dr. V. and Mohan Dr. G. Krishna (2010), Customer switching behavior-
An evaluation of factors affecting mobile users, (Indian Journal of marketing, Volume
40, Number 3, March 2010 pages 42-49)
75

Saeed Ayesha, Hussain Nazi and Riaz Adnan (2011), Factors affecting customers
switching intentions, (European Journal of Social Sciences Volume 19, Number 1)
Silva K. A. and Yapa S. T. W. S. (2009), Customer Retention: with Special Reference to
Telecommunication Industry in Sri Lanka, (a paper presented at International
Conference on Business and Information, July 2009, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia)
Wen-hua Shi, Wu Zhou and Jing-yi Liu, Analysis of the influencing factors of users'
switching intention in the context of one-way mobile number portability, (The Journal
of China Universities of Posts and Telecommunications, Volume 17, Supplement 1, July
2010, Pages 112-117)













76


QUESTIONNAIRE
Dear Respondent,

I, a student of New Delhi Institute of Management, pursuing Master of Business Economics and
as a partial requirement of completing my degree, I have undertaken a research project on Study
on Customers Choice among Prepaid and Postpaid Connection and Their Switching Behavior.
Please provide your valuable information to enable me to undertake this project.
NAME:

Demographic Details:

1) Which age group do you belong to?
17-25 25-35 35-45 >45

2) Your Gender?
Male Female

4) Your Occupation?
Student Salaried Business Professional Housewife

5) Your monthly income range?
<5000 5000 - 15000 15000 - 40000 >40000

Questions related to cellular options:

6) Which connection do you presently own?
Aircel Airtel MTNL Vodafone Idea Virgin Mobile

Reliance MTS Tata Indicom

7) Which kind of mobile network do you use?
CDMA GSM

8) Which scheme are you using?
Life time Students pack All India pay per second plan

Normal monthly plan

9) For how long have you been availing the services of your present service provider?
<1 year 2 years 3 years >4 years

77

10) Are you using more than one SIM at a time?
Yes, of different providers Yes, of same provider No

11) Which of the following factors are important for you for choosing a service provider?

Tariff
Brand Image
Network Coverage
Advertisements
Customer Service

12) How much is your monthly expenses on mobile phone?
100-250 250-400 400-750 >750

13) How many minutes do you talk on your mobile phone per day?
1-30 minutes 30-60 minutes 60-120 minutes >120 minutes

14) How many SMS do you send per day?
0-25 25-75 75-150 >150

15) Which services do you use in your mobile phone (other than voice calls and SMS)?
MMS Internet Video call SIM Services Nothing

16) For a new connection, which services will you prefer?
Call rates SMS rates Value Added Services Internet Charges

Validity SIM Cost Roaming Charges Coverage

17) From where are you getting information about new offers?
TV Newspaper Magazine Internet

Hoarding Word of Mouth

18) Is there any impact of celebrities on your purchasing decision?
Yes No Cant say

19) Which offer do you like the most (Tick only ONE)?
Free unlimited local calls to one number (same provider)
Free SMS pack
Free Internet pack
Reduced Roaming charge
Reduced STD charges
Reduced night calling charges



78

Questions based on choice of prepaid and postpaid mobile connection:

20) Which type of mobile connection do you use?
Prepaid Postpaid

21) If prepaid, then Reasons for choosing prepaid connection.
(Tick multiple options)
Instant Activation
No Monthly Commitment/Rental
Better control over expenses
Easy switching
Large number of offers
No credit checks
Carry more than one sim at zero extra cost
Pre-activated STD and ISD facility
Top up options available
No security deposit
Less documentation


22) If postpaid, then reasons for choosing postpaid connection.
(Tick multiple options)
Better network
Tension of getting time-to-time recharge
Cheap call rates
Value Added Services


23) Are you satisfied with your Prepaid/postpaid connection?
Yes No Cant Say

24) Do you want to switch from your current connection type to another (prepaid/postpaid)?
Yes No Cant Say

Questions based on switching behavior:
25) Are you satisfied with the customer service of your present service provider?
Yes No Cant Say

26) Would you like to change your current service provider?
Yes No Cant Say

If yes, please specify the new provider ________________________




79

27) Reasons for switching.
(Tick multiple options)

Poor network connectivity _______________
Frequent network disruptions _______________
High call tariffs _______________
Frequent changes in plans _______________
Impolite response from Customer care executive/Retailer _______________
Unsolicited calls, messages _______________
Network congestion on special occasions _______________
Better offers from competitors _______________
Better service from competitors _______________
Low switching cost _______________
Influence of friend and family _______________
Group plans _______________
Low roaming charges _______________
Presence in more number of circles _______________
Better Value Added Services (VAS) _______________
Promotional factors _______________
Corporate connection _______________
Bill Payment _______________
Service kiosks are close by _______________
Customers grievance handling procedure. _______________
Advertisement _______________