This was the update on a write up on The Economist about the telecom networks using “network analysis” which in short meant that one looks for patterns in random activities. Interestingly, they gave the example of Bharti Airtel which I quote,”

“Instead of looking at the call records of a single customer at a time, it looks at customers within the context of their social network. The ability to retain customers is particularly important in hyper-competitive markets, such as India. Bharti Airtel, India’s biggest mobile operator, which handles over 3 billion calls a day, has greatly reduced customer defections by deploying the software, says Amrita Gangotra, the firm’s director for information technology.”

If anyone of you piss crap dip shit idiots is reading this, sorry to say but you are betting on wrong horses. If IBM has sold you expensive software, it has ROYALLY screwed you. Numbers make very good presentations, Airtel. If you are trying to bring in some generalization in the heterogeneous market, you are falling flat on your face.

Airtel, may I remind you that you have not become the “preferred mobile operator” because you are good, but because in most of the cases, people have no REAL choice. If facts speak for themselves, please lay out the exact number of subscribers in your network, your network utilization, the number of actual post paid customers and how you cheat the crap out of people on prepaid networks.

Your Broadband business is best in terms of service but stunted because of POOR REACH and you dumbfucks have not been able to add on ANY value to it. All your marketing muscle has failed. Even when I switched over my circle, your retention team was unable to convince me to stick on to Airtel. It is so bad.

I am a customer; you got to kiss my ass and not other way around. A fancy piece of shit with hired dumbfucks is not going to change the perception. Unfortunately, you tend to ignore the hugely vocal minority spilling out their venom because of your shoddy services while you are busy palming off a huge majority of the dumb fuck retards. Sad, very sad.

What really is required is to shake off the lethargy, spread your broadband network further, cut down on the crapware you’ve bought and kick out those fancy moronic MBA’s who don’t give a shit to your brand. Start listening to your customers. Trust me, you don’t need to look for “computer generated patterns”; but make the existing mode of services to deliver their maximum value.

It would pay off more than you anticipate.

This is a follow up post to the earlier write up.

Whilst it’s difficult to update it on a regular basis, you can follow up on the news. Interestingly, there has been an editorial about the same in Business Standard and this has been followed up with my letter to editor today. Basically I have recapitulated the contents of the blog mentioned yesterday which is repetition but minus any comments on RIM and it’s crapware. The letter has been reproduced here in it’s entirety.

Dear Sir,

I am surprised that there is an opposition to ban on Blackberry. The only gaffe in the entire episode and consequent drama is because this issue has been made public and received widespread publicity which is not warranted.

Agreed that privacy is important for an individual but the moment one connects to the grid, a person can easily be identifiable. The web browsers routinely collect cookies from sites which tracks user behavior and those systems which are infected with trojans or viruses reveal more incriminating details. Worse still. A brand new activated number is leaked out by telecom companies to various telemarketers for unsolicited calls despite Do Not Call lists and registration and SMS spam has assumed alarming proportions. Why the editorials can’t raise that issue as a matter of concern? Whither privacy?

Most of the countries where RIM operates has an explicit understanding that whatever data flows through Blackberries would be available for scrutiny. National security is paramount and if that is the overriding concern for “snooping on public”, so be it. Cellular calls can easily be tracked with equipment available off the shelf and indeed it was the cover story on an English weekly few weeks back. Similarly, a vital telecom infrastructure should be available for scrutiny because of immediate concerns of remote monitoring by foreign powers and the ability to remotely switch it off during national emergencies. We ought to have full control over whatever equipment is installed including the proprietary source codes. It is up to equipment manufacturer to do business with this country based on their needs. If they feel that our demands are too rigorous, they are welcome not to step in this country.

We live in supercharged times where such naiveté is rewarded by loss of life and property. Post Sept 11 attacks, US has passed Patriot Act which gives them unprecedented access to call logs and the like. I would be surprised if RIM or Blackberries are not monitored in US or even Canada where RIM is in active denial mode to the contrary.

This is what I have been driving at. Get the mass of people to gang together and complain en masse. Only then these companies listen.

I am linking to an interesting story from BBC.This is related to the Android update from Vodafone. Any emphasis is mine.

Last week many customers who own HTC Desire smartphones were prompted to download a software update which they believed was an upgrade to Android.Instead it installed irremovable Vodafone-branded apps and bookmarks, including links to dating sites.

It was crapware from the world’s largest company. People got on line to vent their frustration and anger on it’s forums.

“What really really annoys me is that Vodafone think of themselves as one of the biggest mobile company’s in the world…. however they in one day have managed to annoy most of there customers by spoiling a brilliant phone.”, wrote one of the customers on the forums.

Finally as BBC reports,

Initially, Vodafone refused to back down saying that it customised phone software to “optimise customers’ experience”. However, after several days of complaints it has capitulated to its customer’s demands.