There is an interesting post on Read Write Web about the mobile predictions for 2011. Although it depends how much we are willing to extrapolate this “trend” to India.

I don’t see the maturity of the market to choose a handset. Despite so many players in the market, it is difficult to spot trends in a spiked up heterogeneous market. Specially when buying a mobile entails some degree of peer pressure, “looks” and advertising playing a major role in the decision.

I don’t foresee a huge influx of smart phones and it’s apps although if the companies are really interested, they might step up the advertising spend. However, we all know that 3G was required for it’s supposed spectral efficiencies and not for data. Anyone who feels that 3G would revolutionize video calling and data usage is either an asshole or is a danger to society and locked up in a high security mental institution.

They have not been able to provide me the connectivity I deserve. Their complaint resolution sucks. I have emailed them twice in the past 5 days without any reply from their headquarters. So far, they have been taking me for a ride.

I decided to lodge another complaint at their store. Unfortunately, a pretty ass was very blunt in telling me that I can jolly well shift to another operator if I find their service patchy! I am hardly inclined to deal with women on weighty matters like network issues when at best they serve to spice up the showroom with their thrusting bosoms instead of applying their minds to sort out a genuine issue. I think, they are under mistaken impression that a man is DUMB all the times!

Vodafone India has found a very troubling customer for sure. I would not rest unless my case is solved out and I get my money’s worth. Whether it takes an inbuilding solution or setting up a new tower or whatever, I should get my rights. When they advertise that the network follows, I wonder as to what it takes to provide for a customer delight. Anywhere else, the same set of bozos would have their balls fried up on hot coals. They can get away here in India because they are used to deal with dead dimwits. They have just found their waterloo.

As Google indexes these steady stream of write ups, I wonder what their official motto would be. Would they actually eat the crow and do something about their pathetic network?

Verizon has introduced unlimited plans which was matched by rivals within 5 hours of it’s launch. For about $100 greenbucks, it makes no difference whether you call local or across the states.

Reliance had offered “death for distance” but somewhere along the line it has lost it’s pizazz. It ended up in cartelisation of the big telecom companies (with tacit media approval not to expose their claims) because shedding prices hurt everyone in the process. You could drop the prices to zero but then how would you monetise your investments? It flies against the grain of logic (everything did).

I believe, that locked in handsets with compelling price points could be the key to the further growth. There is indeed a huge mass of the population that has not yet been brought in the ambit and it is here that the marketing muscle has failed. There is a crying need to address such price points because thats where the next set of revenues is going to come. Slowly, but surely.

For the same reason, the Broadband initiatives need to focus on the value added services like gaming. Even though, it is fledgling industry as compared to say a market for condoms, still it offers a juicy alternative to plain vanilla voice calls. Broadband opens up a lot of oppurtunities; just that one has to apply himself to this.

Going back to the original argument, unlimted plan pricing would ensure that the networks remain primed to the mass of people talking to each other. However, it would lead to sore congestion across the metros where the networks are already under strain. Telcos can milk a certain subsection of the high paying population to introduce something similar to this. It need not create any hoopla but set up dedicated customer points for high net worth players and offer them incentives of various plans. A guirella tactic would help them play along by word of mouth which is much more effective means of advertising than having a prick like SRK trying to do the job for you as a mascot.