|
Home
> Stats Main
>
Asian
& Australasian Stats 2004-19-Jan KOLKATA: Mobile telephony service providers (both GSM and CDMA operators) across the spectrum have failed to meet the customer satisfaction benchmarks set by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai), according to a private survey done using the same markers. The official Trai survey is due in February. In areas like overall satisfaction, network availability, billing and customer care, mobile subscribers — irrespective of which service they use — are not ready to give even 80 per cent marks, let alone the Trai pass marks of 90-95 per cent for various parameters. The Mobile Users Satisfaction Survey 2003 was done by International Data Corp (IDC) Voice & Data magazine. IDC India, a unit of world leader IDC, conducts its own survey, while Trai has commissioned IMRB for its own surveys. Take the case of billing. According to Trai, billing errors should be 0.1 per cent (per 100 subscribers) per month. But 9 per cent of the sample size (2,217 users) have billing problems with the service provider. The survey said, “This figure is on the extremely higher side. In billing disputes and complaints, Reliance had the highest number of complaints — an average of 24 complaints for every 100 subscribers which is quite alarming.” Beside Reliance, the maximum billing complaints in the top five were for HFCL (19 per cent), Tata Teleservices (13 per cent), Idea Cellular (10 per cent), Aircel (9 per cent). The complaints for Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL), Bharti and Hutch are 7 per cent, 6 per cent and 5 per cent respectively. According to Reliance Infocomm, although the company welcomes feedback provided by surveys, the limited sample size, geography and timeframe of this survey should be considered. Said the Reliance spokesman, “This survey reportedly reflects a timeframe during Reliance Infocomm’s initial phase where in we did face some teething problems, but we have taken a quantum leap on all fronts since then. That we are now India’s largest mobile service operator is a reflection of the trust that our customers have reposed in us on all fronts including technology and network coverage, affordability and customer service. We have also since taken and continue to take several measures that will further enhance customer satisfaction and keep India and our customers at the forefront of international technology.” The survey was conducted across 14 cities in October 2003. The survey covered all the metros, and the A, B, and C circles. Of the respondents, 82 per cent were GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) subscribers and the rest were CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access) users. In the overall satisfaction category, where the Trai benchmark is 95 per cent satisfaction, BPL with 79.8 per cent has topped the GSM category with Idea ranked second (78.9) and Hutch third (78.7). For Bharti and BSNL, the figures are 76.6 and 71.8 per cent respectively. In the WLL/CDMA category, Reliance Infocomm has been ranked No. 3 among the six players in overall satisfaction. Topping the list is Tata Teleservices with 75.3 per cent, followed by BSNL with 72.2 per cent. Mrutyunjay Mishra, assistant manager (telecom) at IDC India Ltd, said: “The biggest conclusion of this survey is that all service providers whether GSM or CDMA were below the Trai QoS (Quality of Service) standards and Indian mobile service companies have a long way to go.” Telecom sector observers said Trai’s QoS results are due in February, when it will be seen whether the results of the two surveys match. One of the areas of concern, the survey pointed out, is the dismal network performance of all the operators. The survey in the GSM category showed that the network of smaller operators like BPL Cellular, Aircel and Idea are better than those of larger operators like Hutch and Airtel. According to the survey, a major section of the respondents (around 55 per cent) faced problems in making and receiving calls and absence of adequate coverage and signal strength. “None of the operators has achieved the Trai benchmark of 95 per cent and even the best operator lags by a huge difference of 15.8 percentage points,” it said. One of the interesting results of the survey is the less-than-satisfactory performance by the country’s two largest mobile service providers — Bharti’s Airtel and Reliance IndiaMobile — and better result from operators with small footprints like BPL and Tata Teleservices. Said a telecom analyst, “Bharti and Reliance Infocomm, by virtue of their presence and subscriber base, are among the top three mobile service providers in the country. It could be that both these companies were busy expanding the network without looking at the quality aspect.” Airtel’s spokesman told The Financial Express that the company has already taken necessary steps in customer relationship areas after carefully looking at its service quality. “We want to be the best customer care company in India. After a detailed study, we are aggressively working towards achieving that goal,” he said.
|
|
|||||||
