How significant is the Karnataka circle in the operator’s overall operations?

The TATA DOCOMO Karnataka circle is very important and critical in terms of both revenue and customer market share. The Karnataka circle has significantly contributed towards the company’s business from the early days of its operations. It is a very mature market and there is a lot more scope to experiment and launch innovative products and services for customers. Moreover, TATA DOCOMO has a strong brand presence in the state and has been accepted by the customers in Karnataka.

What is TTSL’s market share in Karnataka and what steps is the company taking to enhance its presence in the circle?

Though the wireless space is the main growth vehicle for the country’s telecom space at present, value added services (VAS) and enterprise are expected to contribute significantly in the coming years. To meet this requirement, we are focusing on these segments and are investing heavily in technologies and networks. We have grown at a significant rate in 2011-12 over 2010-11 and are aiming at double digit growth in 2012-13.

What is your product portfolio in Karnataka? Are there going to be any new service launches in the circle?

TATA DOCOMO has launched innovative products in categories like voice, data and 3G. In particular, our VAS-based products such as Traffic Alerts, Facebook on Mobile, Grab A Song, Twittcom, 3G Smart Life Plans, etc, have caught on quite well.

Moreover, our post-paid users can avail of several plans, such as the Unlimited Plan for Rs 899, the Pure Rent Free Plan, etc, while prepaid users can opt for the Truly Unlimited CDMA Plans, the 200 per cent talktime plan, etc. for broadband users, there are exciting offers giving customers the opportunity to double the broadband speed with the newly launched Photon Max in Bangalore.

In Karnataka, TATA DOCOMO has also ventured into the M2M segment where it has successfully introduced the innovative School Bus Tracker Solution. The School Bus Solution aims at providing optimal information to parents and staff managing the operations of school buses through a simple web interface. The Smart Car Tracker and the Smart Home Surveillance Solutions are other M2M products in the pipeline which will be offered to our customers shortly.

What differentiates TTSL in Karnataka over other players?

Continuous innovative offerings, a vast range of value for money products and services and a never before telecom experience with simplicity - these are the few parameter on which we differentiate ourselves from the other players in Karnataka. We have been continuously improving our network strength and investing in better and advanced technologies.

What operational challenges does the company face in the state?

Today, the telecom space is cluttered and the consumer has several operators to choose from. Our primary concern is to break this clutter and to achieve this we keep assessing customer needs and addressing them individually. Our main objective is to offer our customers simple and transparent products.

The biggest challenge is to continue to be relevant and simple when dealing with our customers. Mobile number portability has empowered the consumers to make a choice and change their operator whenever they find the services dissatisfactory. So we are working on areas like customer satisfaction to ensure that a consumer faces no problems with our services. We expect consumers to shift to our network and understand that this is not a quick process, but an ongoing one.

What are the opportunities that you see for expanding your operations and footprint in the state?

TATA DOCOMO has been constantly working towards strengthening its network capabilities and retail outreach to deliver the best and uninterrupted services to its customers. We have extended our network strength and reach by many folds across Karnataka to ensure that customers continue to enjoy services on its seamless network. TATA DOCOMO offers services in more than 11000 towns and villages in Karnataka and will continue to expand in the coming days.

We will use our partnerships with NTT DOCOMO and application providers to bring to India the world’s best services and applications.