Aircel has been aggressively expanding its network and aims to become a pan India operator by 2010. Gurdeep Singh, Chief operating officer, Aircel, has been successfully driving the operator's growth. He talks about the brand's expansion plans, competitive strategies, Dhoni and the company's boy-next-door image...
1. Aircel has been aggressively spreading its footprints across the country. There has also been a lot of innovation in branding and advertisement.What is the underlying driving principle for you?
Our objective is to develop Aircel as a modern, refreshing and respectful brand. We have just started our journey and this exercise will continue for two to three years. We believe that the future of telephony is beyond voice. For a country like India the gap in terms of infrastructure and information can be filled be telecoms. In the coming days millions of Indians will make their first call through mobile phones or even experience the Internet for the first time. One can safely say that mobile phones are potential weapons to drive the growth of mobile broadband and Internet on mobiles. That is the space Aircel want to pioneer as we go forward.
2. How has the response been to your services in the new circles?
The initial response has been good. We have been liked and appreciated for the position that we have taken. Are 30 days enough to gauge the real position? I think not but the responce is beyond our expectations.
3. You have recently launched your services in saturated markets like Delhi and Mumbai. How do you plan to differentiate your services from the rest?
It's true that these markets are 90 percent saturated but as per our calculations, unique users are not above 65-65 per cent in terms if penetration which is green farming. Secondly, customers are evolving to new platforms in mobile usage because they have been using cellphones for quite some time now.
They know that now prices will always remain competitive and are clearly asking what next? Today. the issue is how one can make the life of a mobile user simpler, easier and better. That's nothing but a service oriented model that goes beyond voice to data applications. Thus in cites like Delhi and Mumbai we have introduced segment-based tariffs for migrants, dependants, SMEs (small and Medioum Enterprises) and the youth. We have also introduced pocket Internet, which is accessing the Internet through the click of a button.
4. Apart from rolling out your network across india, what other innovations have you incorporated into your strategy?
We have just started a journey and if we stop now. it will not be enough. We have consciously chosen the platform of 'explore our world of possibilities'. As we go along we will be launching a number of services and applications that will be very customer oriented in both urban and rural areas. They will be far more simplified in terms of tariff, packaging and navigation.
We truly believe that though VAS is 10 percent or less of operator's revenue, it will see a lot of excitement in the coming days.Content providers have also understood that they need to make content more democratic as it will be price the future. Today handset usage is limited and there's a lot more one can do with it. We feel that mobile users will be delighted if we navigate them into the future of telephony, which is beyond voice..
We have a specialized data cell center that automatically detects whether the phone is data compatible or not, Calls are diverted to experts on data services who educate consumers about their phones' capability.
5. Rural is today's mantra of expansion.What is your strategy to reach the country's remote areas?
Well, I can't spell out everything but one objective is clear that we want to add everyone who uses VAS and data on their phones. This is irrespective of whether they know how to read, write or type. People can use our services as long as they can speak.
6. Expansion is great but how do you plan to provide better quality networks and service to your subscribers?
Providing a good network is at the core of our national strategy. At Aircell we believe that the best way to provide is is by augmenting the network and not utilizing it more than 65 per cent. We also aim to provide home-like ambiance at our retail stores and call centers. Our aim is to largely design products based on local insights. We are an Indian company with local connect and this has given us a boy-next-door image which we never want to give up.
7. How do you plan to expand your footprint in the retail segment?
Our strategy is to develop a right mix of exclusive Aircel stores and traditional distributor networks. Currently, We have 750 stores across India and plan to take it to 1,100 by the end of 2009 and to 2,000 bye the end of 2010.
8. How do you see the mobile telephony segment getting affected with 3G?
3G delivers three things- Video conferencing, video calling and higher bandwidth. Across the world the first two have never clicked, so higher speed is real advantage of 3G. We fell that higher bandwidth can play a very crucial role in education and health care.
9. You have launched a number of data hungry services for your subscribers. How do you ensure speed for giving the desired experience?
There's a technology called EDGE. Which is the maximum speed that one can reach in a 2.5G network. The problem is that most operators can't even offer what EDGE can do. The issue is that you need to make your networks dedicated to deliver EDGE. In all our new circles two time slots are dedicated to EDGE. while the third one is dynamic. So when there is less voice traffic, the channel services EDGE so that customers can actually experience what it can deliver.
10. You have chosen M.S Dhoni as your brand ambassador. What underlying commonality do you see between the two?
Our core values are simplicity, creativity and trust worthiness and Dhoni stands for all of theme. Quite like him, we are a regional player aiming for the national level. Both Aircel and Dhoni have a boy-next-door image so he was an obvious choice. It's important to understand that about 60 per cent of India's population is young and Dhoni is an icon for them in the true sense.
11. What are your targets in terms of subscribers? How do you expect the mobile industry to evolve in the future?
In December 2008, we closed at 16 million subscribers and aim to take it to 30 million by the end of 2009. I think number portability will finally be implemented and 3G will be launched by more operators in the country. There would be a larger thrust on VAS and data play. Convergence will also come up but only after two-three years.