Analysis of Telecom Sector

8/8/2019 Analysis of Telecom Sector

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Project

ON

Market Share analysis of companies in Telecom Sector

IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE

POST GRADUATE DIPLOMA IN MANAGEMENT

SUBMITTED BY

AJAY KUMAR

PGDM/08-10/03

SUBMITTED TO

Mr. SAMARTH SHARMA

FACULTY- IILM-CMS


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INDEX

Objective/ Aim

Project details

Innovativeness & Usefulness

Current Status of Development

Market Potential & Competitive Strategies

Marketing Strategies of telecom companies

Conclusion


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Objective/ Aim

The main objective of this project is to analyze the market share of each

company operating in India.

Project details

Indian Telecom History

1851: The sprawling Posts and Telegraphs Department, for instance,

occupied a small corner of the public works department.1854: A regular, separate department was opened, when telegraph facilitieswere thrown open to the public.

1950: In 1950 the number of Telephone Exchanges absorbed from princelystates was 196.

1981: Prime Minister Indira Gandhi signed contracts with of France to mergewith the state owned Telecom Company (ITI), in an effort to set up 5,000,000

lines per year.

1985: First mobile telephone service started on non-commercial basis in

Delhi.1985: Two separate Departments for the Posts and the Telecommunicationswere created.

1994: First Telecom policy for India was framed.1995: GSM entered in India.1995: GSM entered India. Historic first cell phone-call was made by MobileNet-joint venture between Telstra (Australia) & B.K. Modi group. First call was

made by Jyoti Basu.

1996: Tata Teleservices was the first to launch CDMA mobile services in Indiawith the Andhra Pradesh circle.

1997:TRAI was formed.2004: BROADBAND POLICY2005: Lowest call charges in the world ($ 0.03).2006: India One plan launched. Reliance Communications was the first tolaunch on January 1.

2007: Bharti Airtel became the first India operator to cross 50 million mark.


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2007: DOT opened Universal Service Access License; 575 applications cameas response.

2008: DOT granted 120 new licenses.2008: 3G guidelines declared

Top companies operating in different circles


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Total Subscriber in India in February 2010

Indian Telecom Statistics

Total telephone subscriber base 594.81

Over all Tele-density 51.37%Fixed-line user base 36.76

Wireless user

base (GSM+CDMA+WLL(F))513.05

GSM Subscribers 401.35

CDMA Subscribers 150.73

Monthly additions (Wireline

+ Wireless)13.51

Monthly additions (Wireline) -0.31

Monthly additions (Wireless) 19.90

Broadband subscribers 8.43

Market share of telecom companies in India


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List of top 30 Telecom companies in India

Company Name Market Cap in Crores

Bharti Airtel 108066.23

Reliance Communications

32683.44Idea Cellular 14368.92

Tata Communications 13181.25

Tata Teleservices 4393.06

Spice Communications 4136.13

MTNL 4044.6

GTL 2475.12

GTL Infrastructure 2210.49

OnMobile Global 1403.52

HFCL Infotel 457.73

ITI 413.28

Him.Fut.Comm 386.99

Astra Microwave 241.88

Gemini Communications 125.71

Avaya Global 118.54

Shyam Telecom 64.58

Nelco 63.55

XL Telecom & Energy Limited

55.96Goldstone Infratech Ltd 52.6

Nu Tek 48.16

Kavveri Telecom 26.51

Krone Communications 24.52

Mobile Telecommunications Ltd 17.37

Valiant Communications 16.58

Pun.Communi. 16.19

Nettlinx 12.68

Aishwarya Telecom Ltd 9.86

Interg.Digit 3.15

Vital Communications 2.81
http://www.airtel.in/http://www.airtel.in/http://www.rcom.co.in/http://www.rcom.co.in/http://www.ideacellular.com/http://www.ideacellular.com/http://www.tatacommunications.com/http://www.tatacommunications.com/http://www.tatateleservices.com/http://www.tatateleservices.com/http://www.spiceindia.com/spice/aboutus.asphttp://www.spiceindia.com/spice/aboutus.asphttp://www.mtnl.net.in/http://www.mtnl.net.in/http://www.gtllimited.com/http://www.gtllimited.com/http://www.gtlinfra.com/http://www.gtlinfra.com/http://www.onmobile.com/http://www.onmobile.com/http://www.hfclconnect.com/http://www.hfclconnect.com/http://www.astramwp.com/http://www.astramwp.com/http://www.gcl.in/default.htmhttp://www.gcl.in/default.htmhttp://www.avayaglobalconnect.com/http://www.avayaglobalconnect.com/http://www.shyamtelecom.com:4040/http://www.shyamtelecom.com:4040/http://www.xltelenergy.com/news.htmhttp://www.xltelenergy.com/news.htmhttp://www.goldstonebpo.com/http://www.goldstonebpo.com/http://www.nutek.in/Home/Default.aspxhttp://www.nutek.in/Home/Default.aspxhttp://www.mobileteleindia.com/http://www.mobileteleindia.com/http://www.valiantcom.com/http://www.valiantcom.com/http://puncom.com/http://puncom.com/http://www.nettlinx.com/http://www.nettlinx.com/http://www.aishwaryatelecom.com/http://www.aishwaryatelecom.com/http://www.aishwaryatelecom.com/http://www.nettlinx.com/http://puncom.com/http://www.valiantcom.com/http://www.mobileteleindia.com/http://www.nutek.in/Home/Default.aspxhttp://www.goldstonebpo.com/http://www.xltelenergy.com/news.htmhttp://www.shyamtelecom.com:4040/http://www.avayaglobalconnect.com/http://www.gcl.in/default.htmhttp://www.astramwp.com/http://www.hfclconnect.com/http://www.onmobile.com/http://www.gtlinfra.com/http://www.gtllimited.com/http://www.mtnl.net.in/http://www.spiceindia.com/spice/aboutus.asphttp://www.tatateleservices.com/http://www.tatacommunications.com/http://www.ideacellular.com/http://www.rcom.co.in/http://www.airtel.in/


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organizations, Airtel through its Teleport services would offer content

gathering, distribution services to television channels. This would also include

complete content management services such as playout, archival, collocation

and storage. Besides, Airtel will also offer content producers- an integrated

content delivery and aggregation platform that can repackage content for allformats.

Being both content and access agnostic, Airtels Digital Media Business will

open up the market opportunity for the Indian media and entertainment

industry that is estimated to grow from Rs. 611 bn to Rs.929 bn at 11% CAGR

over 2009-2013.

Innovation

Offers free 2 Mbps speed upgrade for all broadband customers viewing

matches on YouTube. Airtel Broadband has also introduced a social media

game Fastest Fifty to engage with the community on Orkut where

customers will be able to predict outcomes, compete against each other and

win exciting prizes.

Usefulness

The excitement of cricket on YouTube has exploded with 6.9 mn views being

generated in just last 4 days and Airtel Broadband has enabled its entire user

base to experience TV quality videos without buffering on

www.youtube.com/ipl. This association is helping open up a new video

streaming experience for Airtel Broadband customers.

Technology

Airtel has constantly strived to innovate and deliver high quality products toits broadband customers. As the leading private broadband player in the

country, Airtel delivers its broadband service to customers through a fibre

backbone of Carrier Ethernet Network with last mile delivery on copper using

ADSL2+ technology.


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Market Impact

This technology enables ultra high-speed broadband which is scalable and

affordable. Airtel offers its broadband services across 95 cities in the country

with approximately 1.24 million broadband customers as on December 31,

2009.

Innovation

Idea Cellular brings Cricket at fingertips for the experts of the game as well

as novice, men & women, old and the young, and everybody else who uses a

mobile phone.

Usefulness

The new format of the Game will allow millions of mobile users in India to

participate in this unique campaign. Idea Brand Ambassador Abhishek

Bachchan along with other celebrities and cricketers will appear on TV, in

this campaign.

Innovation

Vodafone launches Star of the Match competition for IPL.


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Usefulness

Vodafone provides an opportunity to all its customers to be seen on national

television being honoured by the winning captain during the post match

ceremony. The winner captain will present the star of the match with apersonally autographed match ball.

Since this is a nationwide competition, Vodafone will provide each winner

with a return trip air ticket and hotel accommodation at the city where the

match is played. With the Star of the match contest, company wants to make

this an opportunity for customers to become an integral part of cricketing

history.

Current Status of DevelopmentA Close Look At 3G in India

3G networking is still in its infancy in India and given the sheer geographical

size of the nation it will be difficult to provide universal coverage, ultimately

because doing so would not be financially viable. However, in many areas 3G

is becoming available due to public demand and since India is one of the

fastest growing global markets for mobile internet connectivity, this is no

surprise. Full 3G has only been available for a couple of years, but now it is

possible for new and existing customers within India to pick up a compatibleSIM card and mobile phone from a number of different leading network

providers. Before we look at which providers offer the best 3G connectivity, it

is sensible to explain about 3G technology and how it works.

3G literally stands for the 3rd generation of mobile networking technology

and is defined as such by an international body which regulates global

telecommunications. There are actually many diverse connection types which

fall under the broad definition of `3G`, but in most cases it refers to a

connection that allows for both voice and data information to be transmittedfrom a single device at the same time. 3G speeds vary depending on the

network you choose, the phone you use and the level of 3G coverage in your

area. However, the theoretical maximum download speed for 3G is currently

around 14Mbps using the advanced HSPA technology. In real terms, most

customers will have access to much slower download speeds because of

network limitations and other incalculable factors, but in general 3G


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networking allows for advanced services such as mobile television, video

calling and mobile internet access to be available on a handset.

In order to receive a 3G service you will need a mobile phone coupled with a

3G ready SIM card, both of which should be supplied by a network provider of

your choice. On important thing to bear in mind in relation to 3G is that in

most cases using 3G networks will drain the battery on your phone faster than

if you were using older networking technology. This is because the data

upstream and downstream is faster and the service is higher quality, which

requires a bit more power. You will usually loose a couple of hours in

potential talk time as a result and if you surf the internet regularly you will

run your battery down even quicker, but these are minor sacrifices when you

consider the improvements offered by 3G.

In India, BSNL is one of the leading network providers to offer a 3G service. Itoffers a comprehensive selection of options for people looking to switch over

to 3G, including SIM-only deals which allow you to slot in a new SIM card to

any 3G compatible phone and get connected instantly. They do not charge you

if you want to migrate from your older 2G service, but there may be a cost for

the SIM itself. They offer mobile TV viewing and video streaming, along with

internet access and high quality calling. There are also many

alternative 3Gmobile phones dealsavailable for Indian customers andshopping around for the best deal is advisable since prices change frequently.

Unexpected Benefits from 3G Delay

The continued delay in auctioning 3 G spectrum has not slowed the mobile

subscriber growth in India. The month to month growth rates are amazingly

stable and remain robust. By observing the debates on policy, planning,

finance, legal and general issues of 3 G licenses, and in an environment that

finds ways to delay any policy decisions, it is quite likely there will be a

further delay in the auctions. We have newer reason today than we had a few

weeks ago, or for last several months and years.

Subscriber growth rates being constant simply shows that the existing

operators with the already allocated spectrum have enough capacity to

maintain the robust growth, and the delay in 3 G is not causing any reduction

in loading new mobile subscribers. Its quite a valid observation as to the

value of the existing networks having the ability to continue with the growth

in user base.
http://www.mobiles.co.uk/http://www.mobiles.co.uk/http://www.mobiles.co.uk/http://www.mobiles.co.uk/


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By assuming that at least 2 new entrants will come into the foray with 3 G

licenses, the already operating dozen or so networks in each region will only

get more competition for the same subscribers. The delays pretty much limit

the growth of operators in the short run, and might also allow for some

consolidation in the market place. There is no doubt that we dont need adozen operators in each market. Consolidation will further improve coverage,

network quality along with better usage of spectrum. All of them benefits to

the customer, DOT and also the markets.

MTNL and BSNL have had 3 G airwaves for about a year now, and have not

made any headway in loading up 3 G subscribers. Accept making noises of 3 G

services both these operators have not benefitted by having the spectrum. It is

time to look at why MTNL and BSNL are not attracting 3 G customers, if there

is such a huge demand for the services? While the policy and other issues are

being sorted out by the powers in Delhi, the failure to lure 3 G customers byMTNL and BSNL can be understood to develop the appropriate business and

engineering plans to develop the 3 G customer acceptance. There is a perhaps

simple reason such as services, value addition, cost, handsets, coverage, speed

and the entire regular attributes that a particular customer expects to

purchase the service, and may be at this time they do not exist in the Indian

market, or the customer simply is not ready to upgrade to the next generation

mobile services.

MTNL and BSNL can use the time left as 3 G monopolies to shore up theiradvantages to develop best practices and solutions to attract customers, and

with the already established network and perhaps another year of monopoly

in the 3 G arena, they can make up for the losses in the 2 G and fixed line

networks. The government should allow them to act quickly and decisively

with 3 G planning and execution (unlike the decision making with 2 G

sourcing which is at the speed of a snail) to capture the first in market

advantages that certainly exist in the Indian mobile market.

MTNL and BSNL also will not have to pay the 3 G spectrum fees until such

time the government. This certainly helps in keeping the cash with them andutilizing the resources for another year or so. This helps them with the

balance sheet and also leverage for some more time.

The delays are unwarranted and purely because of poor planning, and too

much tinkering by the policy makers. As of now, the proposed auctions have

so many difficulties and issues, it may be best to just scrap the whole exercise


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and start fresh. The unexpected (perceived) benefits do not support the delay

in 3 G auctions and launching these services. Albeit it illogical not to take

immediate action on 3 G (while the rest of the developed markets might be

looking at 4 G and beyond), there is some truth to the benefits of the delays to

the existing networks, which have yet to recover costs of deployment.

More challenges ahead of fixed-mobile convergence

Research shows that there is currently little integration between the services

available for the different users profiles. Most companies struggle with

separate fixed and mobile devices, independent infrastructures and separate

voice-mail systems. However, these companies want more integration of their

mobility services to support the growing mobile workforce with better

productivity, simplified management and save cost through an integrated

approach.

Enterprises will choose either integrate all the parts of this puzzle themselves

or outsource the challenge by picking a one-stop shop. However, even the

latter option requires that many decisions be made. Furthermore, there is a

wide range of suppliers approaching enterprises with their offerings.

Enterprises can turn to a traditional systems integrator (SI), a vendor, a

network service provider or pick the best-of-breed offering and integrate the

services themselves or even a combination of these. For most enterprises

the migration from legacy telephony technology to an integrated collaborationenvironment will normally occur in several steps. A multi-vendor

environment will initially be the norm, and system integration is a key part of

this transition.

Cost is a key decision factor in any enterprise communication project.

Enterprises with a significant long-term investment in communication

systems will rely as much as possible on their existing infrastructure.

Reutilizing existing components might result in lower entry costs and less

deployment complexity. Furthermore, users will be more familiar with some

of the functionalities, requiring less effort in education and business

customization. We expect that larger enterprises with recent investments in

communication systems will use their existing premise solutions as a basis to

integrate their fixed and mobile services. Established relations with SIs and

UC vendors are likely to be the starting point.


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We believe that enterprises will also start to evaluate their suppliers

approach to cloud capabilities. Telcos are developing next-generation

networks (NGNs) that will support integrated services. The advantage for

enterprises is that the hosted approach can avoid up-front capital investment

and brings the flexibility they need to respond quickly to market pressures.This allows them to pay as they grow or reduce their operations when

business gets tough. However, most of the offerings are still in the early days

and larger enterprises might think its too risky to have their communications

locked in with a single provider and will prefer to retain management and

control a little longer.

The LTE business case: plan now to avoid the rush

As with the affairs of men, there is a tide in the affairs of mobile networks.

More or less once every ten years that tide comes in, bringing with it a newtechnological generation.

Right now the LTE tide is turning to flood, with the technology moving from

definition to implementation. Commercial launches of LTE networks are

expected to start in 2010, with early deployments from NTT DoCoMo, Verizon

and TeliaSonera.

1. No new sources of revenue

The introduction of LTE is provoking sharp feelings of dj vu. Many of the

claims being made for the technology are eerily reminiscent of those made for

3G ten years ago, some of which in particular the suggestion that higher data

speeds will enable new sources of revenue for mobile operators are no more

likely to be true now than they proved to be then.

The issue of rollout strategy also has a certain retro flavor. As with 3G, there

is the question of whether to go for a rapid and wide rollout so that LTE is

quickly co-extensive with the existing network, or to go for a much slower and

more targeted rollout, using LTE to provide increased data capacity in the

locations where it is most needed.

From both marketing and a technical perspective, faster rollout appears to

make most sense. The history of mobile communications from Rabbit to Wi-Fi

shows how hard it is to sell a service which requires user behavior to

overcome limited coverage; and the efficiency gains which LTE promises are


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spectrum acquisition.

Here the only certainties are partial coverage and dual-mode operation for

some years to come, and eventual replacement of the 2G/3G network to

ensure ROI. At the same time, all intermediate steps should factor in theeventual migration to LTE, so that investments and incremental

improvements to the network are LTE-ready.

Market Potential & Competitive Strategies

Strategies for the mobile industry to maximize the rural Indiaopportunity

Low ARPUs and higher costs of providing services to rural users warrant

innovative thinking and a different approach

According to a new report from Ovum, the global analyst and consulting

company, rural India presents significant growth opportunities for the mobile

industry. However, due to low ARPU and the higher cost of providing services

in rural India, operators face the challenging task of serving these areas

profitably.

Due to huge population base, low teledensity and strong socio-economicdevelopments, rural India is becoming an important growth frontier for the

mobile industry, said Amit Gupta, Principal Analyst, based in India. However,

half of the rural population is too poor to afford even the cheapest handset,

and among those who can afford one, a mobile phone is likely to be a family

device as opposed to an individual one. Despite a huge rural population and

low teledensity, the addressable market in the short to medium term is less

than 200 million unique subscribers out of a total population of more than

800 million.

While low spending power of end customers has adverse impact on adoption

and ARPU, limited electrification, a lack of backhaul and the poor state of road

connectivity make deploying and operating a wireless network in rural areas

expensive. Therefore, mobile business case in much of rural India is very

challenging.


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To overcome these challenges, operators need to shift their primary focus

from increasing ARPU and penetration to maximizing total revenue and profit

from the servable rural subscribers. It can be achieved by adopting a

comprehensive rural strategy comprising service & product innovation and

operational excellence; partnering with the government, non-governmentorganizations and non-telecoms players; and employing local entrepreneurs.

These levers are mutually reinforcing and can help industry players to meet

the dual objectives of increasing revenues and reducing costs.

The industrys success in rural India so far can be attributed to efforts in the

areas of service and product innovation, operational excellence, partnering

with non-government organizations, and employing local entrepreneurs.

However, we believe that the industry needs to further explore partnership

opportunities with the government and non-telecom companies.

Operators can circumvent the poverty constraints of rural India to a certain

extent by forming partnerships with the government and non-telecoms

companies to charge them, rather than the poor end customers, for providing

mobile services. The government and non-telecoms companies get a reliable

medium to connect with rural India, and operators get new revenue streams.

Its a win-win solution.

Significant opportunity for mobile content in emerging markets

Telecoms operators in emerging markets must improve their strategy and

execution if they are to ensure sustained success in the mobile content and

applications arena, according to Ovum. The global advisory and consulting

firm believes operators are yet to commit sufficient attention and resources to

what is a small but growing market with significant potential. According to

Ovum, which has recently completed extensive research* on the subject, most

operators have so far been too busy with land grab and expansion to be able

to make the transition from providing basic voice and SMS services.

Significant potential

The content and applications market in emerging markets is currently

immature and represents a very small part of the mobile market.

SMS and mobile Internet aside, content accounts for 57% of most operator


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revenues, and most of this is basic services such as ringtones, logos,

wallpapers, simple games and news/information services.

There are multiple reasons for this state of play. Many operators have yet to

commit significant organizational focus and resources to this area. Users,many of whom have very recently crossed the communications divide, are still

focusing their limited budgets on basic voice and SMS services.

Penetration of more capable mid-range devices and smart phones, which

enable a richer mobile content experience, remains low. 3G coverage also

remains patchy in many markets, contributing to a slow multimedia

experience.

Confidence among operators

Many emerging market operators feel very confident about their current

market position, and few are concerned about device vendors inroads into

content and applications through applications stores or vertically integrated

mid- to low-end services such as Nokia Life Tools.

The low penetration of smart phones and the immature payment

infrastructure (which makes their billing capability that much more valuable)

are the key planks of operator confidence in their market position.

This is the main reason that emerging market operators take a big cut of the

content revenues around 50%, far higher than the prevailing 30% norm in

mature markets.

A strong content ecosystem will be the key market driver

Ovum believes the development of a strong, balanced and effective value chain

will be one of the key factors that will shape the future of mobile content

services in emerging markets.

Mobile operators currently occupy a central role in the value chain, but few

are giving mobile content services the attention required to develop an

attractive service portfolio in order to succeed.

Of course, there are other important factors that will play a major role in


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market developmentThe availability of affordable mid-range devices that

enable a richer content experience is still low, but is set to rapidly improve in

the medium term, although smart phone penetration will remain relatively

low.

Literacy challenges will be a key barrier, particularly in rural areas, and

solutions to overcome this, such as IVR and video, will be few and far between.

Local content and applications tailored for, and in the language of, diverse

local communities are still sparse, although this will improve rapidly in the

medium term.

Hence, while different markets will evolve at different rates, in emerging

markets as a whole we expect all of the above factors to lead to muted market

development in the short term.

Operators need to improve their content strategies

Ovums research indicates thatmany operators strategies need more refined

customer segmentation, stronger marketing (in its broadest sense), more

effective management of the content value chain and a carefully considered

application store strategy. Operator shortcomings are understandable: mobile

content and applications require a very different mindset to selling voice and

SMS.

In particular, operators must use their dominant position in the mobile

content value chain wisely.

This means working effectively with other players in the value chain and,

more importantly, ensuring there are adequate incentives for them.

Key emerging market operators are in a good position to tackle the

challenges of launching an own-brand application store. However, this will

not be the default route for all operators and there are a number of other

application store strategies to explore, including partnering with otheroperators or third-party application stores.

Mobile Social Messaging will drive 2010

Amid signs of economic recovery, 2010 will be the year when mobile

operators worldwide protect their existing revenue channels while exploring


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new ones. Data services will play an even more important role in 2010,

supported by an enlarged mobile messaging landscape that, in addition to

SMS, will also encompass mobile email, mobile social networking, and instant

messaging (IM). Contrary to many analysts' belief, the device platform

landscape will not consolidate, but further diversify as new platforms likeMaemo, LiMo and Android take their market share. As the battle between

operators, device manufacturers, and internet portals for value-added

services (VAS) intensifies, operators will play their strongest card - their

billing relationship with the user.

1. The Battle Between Handset Manufacturers, Portals, and MobileOperators Will Intensify

In 2010, the battle for supremacy in value-added services will intensify in the

triangle between mobile operators, device manufacturers, and internetportals. Over the past few years, operators increasingly have come under

attack in particular from device manufacturers like Apple, RIM, and Nokia

who are massively pushing device-specific services, differentiating their

product offerings, establishing direct relationships with the end-users and

locking them into services hosted by the manufacturers.

Premier examples of device manufacturer-specific and dependent services

are Apple's App Store, MobileMe, iTunes, RIM's BlackBerry Internet Services,

as well as Nokia's OVI. These services are very attractive to the end-user asthey offer a great user experience and unique functionality, but they also

present a threat to mobile operators which are increasingly at risk of

becoming dumb bit pipes. If the mobile operators don't fight back, all they will

be left with is to provide the data transport and their differentiation will be

reduced to price per megabyte and speed of data transmission. Operators

would be sharing the fate of ISPs who have faced the results - dramatic price

wars and increasing churn rates.

Some industry observers have pointed towards Google's Android as the white

horse that would create an equal-level playing field, and some operators areendorsing this allegedly open platform. However, Google, like Apple, really

wants to be the premier value-added service provider, and, not surprisingly,

Android phones by default point to Gmail for email, Google Talk for instant

messaging and (of course) to Google's search engine and application store -

again reducing the role of mobile operators to deliver the bits.


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However, the war is not over yet. Operators can fight back and remain in the

driving seat for value-added services by promoting operator-hosted and

device-neutral value-added services. Their chances of winning are quite good,

in particular in emerging economies where internet services have yet to take

off in the mass market. A trump card of mobile operators is their billingrelationship with the end-user and their ability to control the pricing for

services. For example, operators can ensure success of their own email service

by offering a flat rate for accessing the operator-hosted email while charging

volume-based fees for accessing internet email, using their billing relationship

as an 'unfair' advantage.

2. The Diversification of Mobile Device Platforms Leads to anIncreasingly Heterogeneous Landscape

Just a few years ago, analysts were predicting a radical consolidation amongmobile device platforms with only two or three platforms controlling the

majority of the market. Of course, these analysts were completely wrong, and

the industry has taken an entirely different direction. Now it seems that about

two to three new device platforms are introduced every year, leading to

further diversification and an increasingly heterogeneous device landscape.

Over the past few years, the industry saw the introduction of the Apple

iPhone, the Google Android platform and, more as a side note, the Palm

WebOS. In 2010, we will see a plethora of Android devices from variousmanufacturers and Nokia introducing their first Maemo devices based on the

Linux operating system. Others are expected to also bet on LiMo, including

NEC, Panasonic, and Samsung who introduced the first Vodafone 360 handset

based on this Linux platform. Nokia's Symbian continues to command about

40 percent of the smartphone market, and RIM remains with their closed

proprietary platform. Windows Mobile, which once was supposed to be one of

the few remaining platforms and a main consolidator, seems to be dwarfed,

leaving Microsoft's platform with a single digit market share.

On top of that, the industry continues to use a wide variety of proprietaryoperating systems in their mass market feature phones which, despite

common belief, will continue to represent the vast majority of devices

shipping to market for the next few years.

All of these platforms have a completely different runtime environment,

incompatible with any other platform. This increasingly heterogeneous device


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landscape is presenting a growing problem for developers of messaging

applications, in particular for those which require proprietary client software

to be downloaded and installed on the handset. While these proprietary

solutions can offer impressive functionality due to their end-to-end-integrated

architecture, their developers are facing a Sisyphean task of having to developand maintain clients for an ever increasing number of incompatible platforms.

Once touted as an answer to this problem, Sun's Java (J2ME) does no longer

present a complete solution as it is not supported in many new platforms

(Apple iPhone, Android, WebOS do not support J2ME).

The only viable solution to the issue of heterogeneous platforms seems to be

the use of industry standards for delivery of messaging services. Just like

literally every phone supports SMS and MMS, almost all platforms support

IMAP for email, and the majority supports SyncML for synchronization.

During 2010, messaging solutions which are based on open industrystandards will thrive while proprietary platforms will start to see the limits of

their success.

3. Emerging Markets Will Lead the Mobile Internet Revolution

While most users in Europe, the U.S., and other 'old' markets are using their

mobile devices as a secondary access channel to internet services, and

consequently mobile operators are struggling to defend their walled gardens,

operators in emerging markets are starting to capitalize on a uniqueopportunity. With the PC and fixed-line penetration remaining low, the mobile

phone penetration is soaring in emerging economies. This means that many

users in these regions will have their first contact with internet services via

their mobile phone, creating a unique opportunity for mobile operators to

establish the mobile phone as the primary access device and themselves as

the value-added service provider.

Subscribers in emerging markets are hungry for data services, and if carriers

carefully choose their suppliers, and price the services attractively, they can

see fast take-up rates, generate substantial revenues and prevent churn bybinding users to attractive mass market services like email and instant

messaging.

However, operators in emerging markets must make sure that the services

they select actually can be consumed by the vast majority of their subscribers,

avoid solutions which support only a small number of devices (e.g. require a


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smartphone), and ensure the services are affordable for the average user. If

operators select services that support the entire device landscape, price the

services with affordable flat rates and promote the usage with SMS campaigns,

we will see emerging markets lead the mobile internet revolution with

millions of subscribers - replicating the success of SMS.

4. Mobile Email Will Grow Dramatically in the Consumer Space andMessaging Will Diversify

2010 will see operators diversifying revenue streams beyond what they had

typically considered to be their foremost killer applications - voice and SMS.

Across all markets, developed, as well as emerging, operators will package an

array of mobile messaging services to accommodate the needs of diverse

subscriber segments, but using a device-neutral approach.

Mobile messaging will contribute strongly to the expected data revenue

growth next year. ABI Research projected that within three years, global

revenues from mobile messaging will reach USD 212 billion.

Mobile messaging is generally a valuable and addictive service that holds

mass market appeal with large potential and room for innovation. While

operators have historically relied mainly on SMS, consumer mobile email still

remains a largely untapped service with large potential. 2010 will see mass

market consumer mobile email expand significantly as operators areintroducing affordable push email services supporting mass market devices.

Mobile email, instant messaging, and social networking are providing massive

opportunities for operators to exploit and diversify their revenue streams.

5. Standards-based Instant Messaging Will Have the World Nudging andBuzzing

In what could become the most exciting prospect of 2010, standards-based

mobile instant messaging services are finally becoming more commonplace.

Thanks to standardization, a greater amount of people will be able to accesstheir IM accounts by simply using their current mobile phones.

Highly popular amongst teenagers, 1.6 billion people will use IM services by

2012 according to industry analysts. Mobile IM will emerge as an important

service addition for operators who wish to offer the full spectrum of mobile

messaging options.


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Marketing Strategies of telecom companies

Airtel:-

1. Network Expansion

2. Targeting all segments

3. Wooing the rural areas

4. New advertising Strategies

5. New Technology

Idea:- MARCOM STRATEGY

Marcom (sometimes spelled "marcomm") is an abbreviation for "marketing

communications." Marcom is targeted interaction with customers and

prospects using one or more media, such as direct mail, newspapers and

magazines television, radio, billboards, telemarketing, and the Internet. A

marketing communications campaign may use a single approach, but more

frequently combines several.

Vodafone:-

1. Derive Operational Performance

o Value enhancement

o Cost reduction

2. Pursue growth opportunity in total communication

o Mobile data

o Enterprise


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o Broadband

3. Execute in emerging market

o

Delivery in existing market

o Selective expansion

4. Strengthen capital discipline

o Shareholders returns

o Clear priorities of surplus capital

Reliance communication:-

1. Financial restructuring

2. Expand and strengthen network coverage

3. Network superiority

4.

Channel strength

5. Customer service excellence

BSNL:-

1. Pricing strategies

Market skimming

Market penetration

2. New product development

3. Network connectivity.


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TATA Teleservices:-

1. Value to shareholders

2. Operational efficiency

3. Enterprise planning

4.Rural market penetration

Market positioning of companies

BSNL

Low-cost service provider for common man

Hutch

Niche player mainly operating in urban and semi-urban market

with focus on quality service

Reliance communication

Competing on Value-Added services such as R-World.

Airtel

Best network coverage

New product initiative.

Idea

Congested network

Narrow product line


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Conclusion:-

This is a huge dampener for the eventual roll out for the rural areas who have

been left out of the ambit of telecom revolution for too long. Part of the reason

is the perceived inability to pay and part is the high cost of initial roll out of

infrastructure. In my opinion, instead of taking a short-term view of paying

capacity of rural areas, the telcos should focus on a long-term game. It was

heartening to note that finally the manufacturing arm of the government(C-

Dot) was given the budgetary support. How much it pays out in the long run,

only time would tell.


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There is a lot made out for the 3G services. Expect more lobbying in the

corridors of power for the scarce spectrum. Should 3G services be introduced

in India? Would that serve the purpose? The initial buzz is that 3 G services

would give the always-on connectivity to the mobile owners. That was said so

about the GPRS and much hoopla was raised in the market. Yet, everyone

knows about the pathetic access. The fact is that 3 G networks can carry more

voice calls than the present networks. If it is the voice network, then perhaps

it may be beneficial. How many people, realistically speaking would be

carrying the top of the line blackberrys and laptops to access the network?

The proposed merger ofBSNL and MTNL is consuming a lot of ink. There have

been various suggestions floated in the media about the ways and means the

synergies could be obtained. The purpose is not to get in the awkward

details here. BSNL should concentrate more on rural spread and better

Internet connectivity. MTNL should be divested totally.

Finally Broadband, This is a late non-starter here. In terms of pricing and

download limits, this is pathetic for users who wish to consume bandwidth for

file sharing or extensive web surfing for any reason. According to telcos logic,

they feel that ordinary user should not get more than a few hundred MBs.

This only exposes the socialist mindset, which forces the ordinary citizens for
http://broadbandblog.in/goto/India/168/5http://broadbandblog.in/goto/BSNL_and_MTNL/168/8http://broadbandblog.in/goto/Broadband/168/10http://broadbandblog.in/goto/Broadband/168/10http://broadbandblog.in/goto/BSNL_and_MTNL/168/8http://broadbandblog.in/goto/India/168/5


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looking up to these mai baap bosses. Come what may, the present state of

Internet would take another year to come to decent levels. Meanwhile

Reliance is getting aggressive over corporate customers for giving out

bandwidth for monitoring through video cameras. They have implemented

the same across their web worlds. Next time around in a web world, have a

look. It is possible that you are being looked at! Their broadband services for

home users seem to be in a limbo. Since they are planning to introduce TiVO

like functionality across India, there could be a problem in getting across the

different entertainment channels on board as of now. No surprise, that

Reliance is amassing a huge library of its own. Wireless broadband in terms of

WiFi and WiMax may soon be a reality given the fact that Dishnet has planned

to roll out its services. The grey area of security remains unanswered as of

now.

Documents

Analysis of Telecom Sector