Rajiv Bawa, EVP, Corporate Affairs, Uninor speaks about the company?s plans and strategies with regard to mobile number portability. Excerpts?
Uninor?s strategy with regard to MNP
We are not taking the mass media advertising route. Instead, we will take an approach that is much more targeted and efficient. We will propose our successful dynamic pricing concept of upto 60 per cent location and time-based discounts to customers in innovative and powerful ways and seek trials.
Some operators have started advertising campaigns, but there is a fear that competing ads will neutralize each others? claims on better network or fewer call drops. Ultimately only a serious, unique and tangible new differentiator, like dynamic pricing is for us, will trigger change.
As a young operator in a pre-paid market, we are already working in a high-churn environment from day one. So this isn?t a new challenge. So we are looking at MNP as an opportunity to induce trial through our dynamic pricing concept. MNP may make it easier for number loyal pre-paid customers to get onto dynamic pricing.
Likely impact of MNP
Our research suggests that MNP will not be a game changer. Having said that, it could still result in some interesting new strategies. MNP will definitely have higher relevance in the post-paid segment since these number loyal subscribers haven?t yet had free choice on worries of losing their number identity. However, MNP may force operators to think segmentation in the pre-paid market too. Even within this market, there are customers who are both higher value as well as more loyal to their number identity. That is where we see our opportunity. With dynamic pricing we will be able to invite such subscribers to Uninor with a very unique proposition.
Whether MNP will result in a tariff war
Tariffs are easily copied. In a pre-MNP scenario too, we have seen that vanilla tariff cuts have not endured as long-term differentiators for any operator. In fact, MNP may compel the industry to move towards classic competition, quality of service and servicing, strength of distribution and appeal of the brand. In fact, even more so since MNP?s biggest impact is likely to be on the high value post-paid segment which is typically less price and more quality conscious.
