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CHAPTER 1 Introduction

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1.1. The Background


Introduction to Telecom Industry
The Indian Telecommunications network is the third largest in the world and the second largest among the emerging economies of Asia. Today, it is the fastest growing market in the world. The telecommunication sector continued to register significant success during the year and has emerged as one of the key sectors responsible for Indias resurgent Indias economic growth.

During FY11, a number of things were carried out. The government finally implemented Mobile Number Portability (MNP). The 3G spectrum was allotted to the operators who had been successful in the bidding process. The telecom scam was unearthed that highlighted the need for the new telecom policy. The MNP was not as big a game changer as it was made out to be. As reported by TRAI, only 1% of the total subscriber base has opted for MNP. The other key development during the year was the rollout of the 3G Services. Most operators have rolled out services in the circles for which they were granted the spectrum and license. And most of them are either in the process of or have already signed roaming agreements with other operators to provide 3G services in the circles for which they do not have the license. While it is still very early to judge the impact of 3G services, nevertheless, operators expect it to be the game changer in the future.

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3G Spectrums
3G stands for third generation wireless. It is based on an International Telecommunication Union (ITU) initiative for a single global wireless standard called International Mobile Telecommunications-2000 (IMT-2000). This concept of a single standard evolved into a family of five 3G wireless standards; and in late 2007, sixth 3G standards was included. Of those six, the most widely adopted are CDMA2000 and WCDMA (UMTS). According to the ITU, a wireless standard must meet minimum speed requirements to be considered 3G. And 3G technologies must provide highspeed Internet broadband data access comparable to a Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) and/or a cable modem in a mobile setting. 3G or 3rd generation mobile telecommunications is a generation of standards for mobile phones and mobile telecommunication services fulfilling the International Mobile Telecommunications-2000 (IMT-2000)

specifications by the International Telecommunication Union. Application services include wide-area wireless voice telephone, mobile Internet access, video calls and mobile TV, all in a mobile environment. Several telecommunications companies market wireless mobile Internet services as 3G, indicating that the advertised service is provided over a 3G wireless network. Services advertised as 3G are required to meet IMT-2000 technical standards, including standards for reliability and speed (data transfer rates). To meet the IMT-2000 standards, a system is required to provide peak data rates of at least 200 kbit/s (about 0.2 Mbit/s). However, many services advertised as 3G provide higher speed than the minimum technical
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requirements for a 3G service. Recent 3G releases, often denoted 3.5G and 3.75G, also provide mobile broadband access of several Mbit/s to smartphones and mobile modems in laptop computers. A new generation of cellular standards has appeared approximately every tenth year since 1G systems were introduced in 1981/1982. Each generation is characterized by new frequency bands, higher data rates and nonbackwards compatible transmission technology. The first release of the 3GPP Long Term Evolution (LTE) standard does not completely fulfill the ITU 4G requirements called IMT-Advanced. First release LTE is not backwards compatible with 3G, but is a pre-4G or 3.9G technology, however sometimes branded "4G" by the service providers. Its evolution LTE Advanced is a 4G technology. WiMAX is another technology verging on or marketed as 4G. The First Generation (1G) began in the early 80's with commercial deployment of Advanced Mobile Phone Service (AMPS) cellular networks. Early AMPS networks used Frequency Division Multiplexing Access (FDMA) to carry analog voice over channels in the 800 MHz frequency band. The Second Generation (2G) emerged in the 90's when mobile operators deployed two competing digital voice standards. In North America, some operators adopted IS-95, which used Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) to multiplex up to 64 calls per channel in the 800 MHz band. Across the world, many operators adopted the Global System for Mobile communication (GSM) standard, which used Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) to multiplex up to 8 calls per channel in the 900 and 1800 MHz bands. The International Telecommunications Union (ITU) defined the third generation (3G) of mobile telephony standards IMT-2000 to facilitate growth, increase bandwidth, and support more diverse applications. For example, GSM could deliver not only voice, but also circuit-switched data at speeds up to 14.4 Kbps.

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Two distinct 3G families: 3GPP and 3GPP2 The 3rd Generation


Partnership Project (3GPP) was formed in 1998 to foster deployment of 3G networks that descended from GSM. 3GPP technologies evolved as follows: General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) offered speeds up to 114 Kbps. Enhanced Data Rates for Global Evolution (EDGE) reached up to 384 Kbps. UMTS Wideband CDMA (WCDMA) offered downlink speeds up to 1.92 Mbps. High Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA) boosted the downlink to 14Mbps. LTE Evolved UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA) is aiming for 100 Mbps. GPRS deployments began in 2000, followed by EDGE in 2003. While these technologies are defined by IMT-2000, they are sometimes called "2.5G" because they did not offer multi-megabit data rates. EDGE has now been super-ceded by HSDPA (and its uplink partner HSUPA). According to the 3GPP, there were 166 HSDPA networks in 75 countries at the end of 2007. The next step for GSM operators: LTE completed in late 2008. A second organization, the 3rd Generation Partnership Project 2 (3GPP2) - was formed to help North American and Asian operators using CDMA2000 transition to 3G. 3GPP2 technologies evolved as follows. One Times Radio Transmission Technology (1xRTT) offered speeds up to 144 Kbps. Evolution Data Optimized (EV-DO) increased downlink speeds up to 2.4 Mbps. EV-DO Rev. A boosted downlink peak speed to 3.1 Mbps and reduced latency.
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E-UTRA, based on specifications

EV-DO Rev. B can use 2 to 15 channels, with each downlink peaking at 4.9 Mbps. Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB) was slated to reach 288 Mbps on the downlink. 1xRTT became available in 2002, followed by commercial EV-DO Rev. 0 in 2004. Here again, 1xRTT is referred to as "2.5G" because it served as a transitional step to EV-DO. EV-DO standards were extended twice Revision A services emerged in 2006 and are now being succeeded by products that use Revision B to increase data rates by transmitting over multiple channels. The 3GPP2's next-generation technology, UMB, may not catch on, as many CDMA operators are now planning to evolve to LTE instead. In fact, LTE and UMB are often called 4G (fourth generation) technologies.

The Benefits of 3G are Global


3G has revolutionized the landscape of wireless communications by providing mobile voice and high-speed data connectivity and accelerating the convergence of mobile communication devices with consumer electronics. Mobile devices are no longer simply phones they are powerful and efficient tools for mobile communication, computing and gathering information. 3G offers the world more than mobile devices with digital cameras and MP3 music players. 3G enables countries and their governments to transcend the social and economic challenges they face today or may face tomorrow providing solutions for improved education, entrepreneurship, health care, public safety and the environment. The Wireless Reach projects discussed in the preceding pages are only a sample of what is possible with 3G. What future 3G solutions and applications emerge is limited only by our imaginations.

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3G: Why does it Matter?


3G whether in a mobile phone, fixed wireless phone, wireless modem or data card is important because it is an affordable way to provide voice and data access, especially in rural areas where landline access is limited or doesnt exist. For governments, this may mean that 3G is a fundamental way of increasing their countries teledensity and Internet penetration rates and bridging the digital technology gap. For citizens, 3G may represent their primary way of making a phone call or how they are able to connect to the Internet and its resources. 3G is also important because it provides new avenues to address issues of public importance such as Internet connectivity, education, public safety, health care, governance and environmental conservation in a sustainable, efficient and cost effective manner. Wireless Reach projects take advantage of the ever increasing capabilities of 3G, to provide high-quality digital communications including high-speed wireless broadband access. Only after the thrill of picking out your new smart phone is over--after youve marveled at all the stylish new gadgetry and features, signed a service contract and finally laid your money down--do you finally get a feel for the speed and reliability of the wireless service that connects your new phone. That wireless service--so often an afterthought to smart phone buyers--is hugely important: it connects your new phone to all the fun and useful apps and services that made you lust after a smart phone in the first place. The truth is, the 3G wireless networks of today are not perfect (they are, collectively, a work in progress), and they are not all created equal.

History
The first pre-commercial 3G network was launched by NTT DoCoMo in Japan, branded as FOMA. It was first available in May 2001 as a pre-release (test) of W-CDMA technology. The first commercial launch of 3G was also by NTT DoCoMo in Japan on 1 October 2001, although it was initially somewhat limited in scope; broader availability of the system was delayed by apparent concerns over its reliability.
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The first European pre-commercial network was an UMTS network on the Isle of Man by Manx Telecom, the operator then owned by British Telecom and the first commercial network (also UMTS based W-CDMA) in Europe was opened for business by Telenor in December 2001 with no commercial handsets and thus no paying customers. The first commercial United States 3G network was by Monet Mobile Networks, on CDMA2000 1x EV-DO technology, but this network provider later shut down operations. The second 3G network operator in the USA was Verizon Wireless in July 2002 also on CDMA2000 1x EV-DO. AT&T Mobility is also a true 3G UMTS network, having completed its upgrade of the 3G network to HSUPA. The first pre-commercial demonstration network in the southern hemisphere was built in Adelaide, South Australia by m.Net Corporation in February 2002 using UMTS on 2100 MHz This was a demonstration network for the 2002 IT World Congress. The first commercial 3G network was launched by Hutchison Telecommunications branded as Three or "3" in J June 2003. Emtel Launched the first 3G network in Africa. By June 2007, the 200 millionth 3G subscriber had been connected. Out of 3 billion mobile phone subscriptions worldwide this is only 6.7%. In the countries where 3G was launched first Japan and South Korea 3G penetration is over 70%. In Europe the leading country is Italy with a third of its subscribers migrated to 3G. Other leading countries by 3G migrations include UK, Austria, Australia and Singapore at the 20% migration level. A confusing statistic is counting CDMA2000 1x RTT customers as if they were 3G customers. If using this definition, then the total 3G subscriber base would be 475 million at June 2007 and 15.8% of all subscribers worldwide.

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Adoption
3G was relatively slow to be adopted globally. In some instances, 3G networks do not use the same radio frequencies as 2G so mobile operators must build entirely new networks and license entirely new frequencies, especially so to achieve high-end data transmission rates. Other delays were due to the expenses of upgrading transmission hardware, especially for UMTS, whose deployment required the replacement of most broadcast towers. Due to these issues and difficulties with deployment, many carriers were not able to or delayed acquisition of these updated capabilities. In December 2007, 190 3G networks were operating in 40 countries and 154 HSDPA networks were operating in 71 countries, according to the Global Mobile Suppliers Association (GSA). In Asia, Europe, Canada and the USA, telecommunication companies use W-CDMA technology with the support of around 100 terminal designs to operate 3G mobile networks.

India
11 December 2008, India entered the 3G arena with the launch of 3G enabled Mobile and Data services by Government owned Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd (MTNL) in Delhi and later in Mumbai. MTNL becomes the first 3G Mobile service provider in India. After MTNL, another state operator Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) launched 3G services on 22 Feb 2009 in Chennai and later launched 3G as Nationwide. The auction of 3G wireless spectrum was announced in April 2010 and 3G Spectrum allocated to all private operators on 1 September 2010. The first Private-sector service provider that launched 3G services is Tata DoCoMo, on November 5, 2010. And the second is by Reliance Communications, December 13, 2010. Vodafone Launched their 3G by mid of March, 2011. Then, Bharti Airtel launched their 3G services on 24 January 2011 in Bangalore and also launched in Delhi & Jaipur on March 4, 2011(not

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GSM but only USB e-stick). Aircel also launched 3G in Kolkata in the month of February. Idea also launched its 3G services in mid-April. Other providers like Virgin are expected to launch 3G services by Q1 2011. All the operators provide 3G services on the 2100 MHz band. As of now, the Government owned BSNL is the most successful company with the subscribers of 3G service. It has more than 3 million subscribers of its 3G service. It also has the widest coverage with around 826 cities across the country. The private operators like IDEA and Reliance are increasing their 3G coverage as well as the number of subscribers.

Features:
Data rates ITU has not provided a clear definition of the data rate users can expect from 3G equipment or providers. Thus users sold 3G service may not be able to point to a standard and say that the rates it specifies are not being met. While stating in commentary that "it is expected that IMT-2000 will provide higher transmission rates: a minimum data rate of 2 Mbit/s for stationary or walking users, and 384 kbit/s in a moving vehicle," the ITU does not actually clearly specify minimum or average rates or what modes of the interfaces qualify as 3G, so various rates are sold as 3G intended to meet customers expectations of broadband data. Security 3G networks offer greater security than their 2G predecessors. By allowing the UE (User Equipment) to authenticate the network it is attaching to, the user can be sure the network is the intended one and not an impersonator. 3G networks use the KASUMI block crypto instead of the older A5/1 stream cipher. However, a number of serious weaknesses in the KASUMI cipher have been identified.

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In addition to the 3G network infrastructure security, end-to-end security is offered when application frameworks such as IMS are accessed, although this is not strictly a 3G property.

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1.2. The Rationale of the Study


Technology changes very fast. It also happens to mobile communications technology. It has evolved over time, moving from one generation to another generation. And now, India is in pre-commercial stage of the third generation (3G) of mobile communications technology (EMC World Cellular Database & UMTS Forum, December 2004). For those who never miss following the evolution of wireless technology, 3G is not a new term for them. The research to be conducted under the Study of 3G Services Awareness and Preference in Gandhinagar has been chosen for the following reasons:

3G Services are proved to be better than the previously provided 2G Services in many aspects.

The propensity of 3G users is growing but at a slow rate so, to know the reason behind this growth the topic has been selected.

The users of the 2G Services are switching to the use of 3G Services.

Even the Indian Telecom Operators of the Telecommunication Industry are fighting hard to get into 3G race and expand their 3G coverage and customers all over India.

Hence, to know the reasons behind all the above in specifically in the city of Gandhinagar, Gujarat the study will be conducted and hence the topic has been chosen.

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1.3. Objectives of the Study


The objectives of this study are:

To Study about the Level of Awareness about 3G Services amongst the respondents in Gandhinagar.

To Study about the Factors Influencing the Selection of Particular Operator of Service Provider in 3G Services.

To Make a Customer Satisfaction Survey about the 3G Services being Provided to Them i.e. to Know Whether the Operators Promises are Fulfilled or Not.

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1.4. Data Source and Methodology


The research approach for this study was conclusive research. Conclusive researches are designed to help executives to choose among various possible alternatives to make a viable business decision. Further this research was of descriptive type, which is an offshoot of conclusive research. The problem for this research was non-operating in nature. The data both primary and secondary data, the source was one hundred twenty respondents for primary data. For the proper analysis of data simple statistical techniques such as percentage were use. It helped in making more accurate generalization from the data available.

SAMPLING TECHNIQUE:
The method used for sample technique was random sampling method. This method was used because it was not known previously as to whether a particular person will be asked to fill the questionnaire.

SIZE OF SAMPLE:
The population of the sample would be 120 respondents.

DATA COLLECTION:
Source of Data for this project are primary & secondary data only. In reference to the theoretical concept as well as for information are collected through secondary sources from paper published material i.e. newspaper, journal and magazine &from printed electronic media i.e. internet websites. The primary data was collected through questionnaire filled from the respondents.

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TOOLS OF ANALYSIS:
To know the response, we have used the questionnaire method in sample survey. If one wishes to find what people think or know, the logical procedure is to ask them. This has led marketing researchers to use the questionnaire technique for collecting data more than any other method. In this method questionnaire were distributed to the respondents and they were asked to answer questions in the questionnaire. The questionnaires were structured non-disguised questionnaire because the questions, which the questionnaire contained, were arranged in a specific order besides every question asked was logical for the study; no question can be termed as irrelevant. The questionnaire, were non-disguised because the questionnaire were

constructed so that the objective is clear to the respondent. The respondents were aware of the objective. They knew why they were asked to fill the questionnaire.

OBJECTIVE OF RESEARCH:
The purpose of research is to discover answers to questions through the application of scientific procedures. The main aim of research is to find out the truth which is hidden and which has not been discovered as yet. The survey was carried out with the help of a structured questionnaire, which helps in accomplishing the research objectives. The respondents by means of personal interview administer this structured ended questionnaire. Though each research study has its own specific purpose, we may think of research objective as falling into a number of following broad groupings:

To gain familiarity with a phenomenon or to achieve new insight into it. To test a hypothesis of a causal relationship between variables.

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RESEARCH DESIGN:
Marketing research is often concerned with the behaviors of the consumer in the respect marketing research have drawn heavily on the behavioral. Sciences such a psychology and sociology in fact the contribution of this science to marketing research have been very significant especially with regard to two aspect.

1. The research technique used by psychology and they have amply used sociologists being of considerable relevance to marketing researchers. 2. The concept and the theories of these behavioral sciences are also proved to be relevant to market researcher.

SAMPLE DESIGN:

POPULATION:
Population for this research is set of customers those who are using the services of 3G in Gandhinagar city.

SAMPLE SIZE:
The number of samples collected for the research is 120 customers.

SAMPLING PROCEDURE/SAMPLING METHOD:


The sampling method used for this study is non-probability convenience sampling, which is selected according to the easy and convenience of the researchers.

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1.5. Organization of the Study

The study has been bifurcated into the following chapters:

CHAPTER 1 contains The Introduction of the study i.e. the background of the topic, the reasons for the selection the topic, the objective of the study, the source of data, data collection method, sampling size, sampling procedure and the limitation of the study.

CHAPTER 2 is related with first objective of the study i.e. studying about the level of awareness amongst the target customer. Hence, it will contain literature review relating to the objective of the study, the primary data in the form of questionnaire analysis relating to the objective and lastly the conclusion from the findings of awareness of 3G surveys.

CHAPTER 3 is related to the second objective of the study i.e. studying the factors affecting the customers decision in selection of a particular 3G Service provider. Hence, it would contain the information related to the studies made earlier in context with the current objective, the data collected through survey and the analysis of that data with conclusion arrived from this study.

CHAPTER 4 is related to the third objective of the study i.e. studying the level of customer satisfaction for the services being provide to them by their 3G service provider and to know whether the promises made by the operator in relation to 3G service are fulfilled or not. Hence, it will show the information related to it i.e. the secondary data, the

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primary data, its analysis and conclusion thereby made from the analysis.

CHAPTER 5 is the final chapter of this report. It consists of conclusion of this research project. It is a chapter where the data gathered is being analyzed and presented in more meaningful manner. This chapter also will show whether the objectives of this research are met or not.

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1.6. Limitation of the Study


While pursuing the research, there were several limitations that come across that limited the efforts of looking for the required information. The limitations are as listed below: Limited source of information:

Lack of previous research and limited source of information, make it difficult for researcher especially to do literature review. Besides, these limited sources also difficult to be accessed. This is because almost all of the information about 3G is published by other countries. Therefore, researcher has to purchase that articles or journals in order to obtain valuable information for this research paper. Time constraint:

The research has to be done in a very limited time. The researcher has only been given three months to complete the whole task; find a topic, do literature review, make data collection, analyze data and write a report. It is quite difficult for a basic researcher to do all these things within time given since there are other subjects taken by the researcher. Limited Target Area & Population:

The target area of our research is Gandhinagar City and hence, our primary data collection done through filling of questionnaire is very limited. The target population hence is also limited and may not be true representative of the population in Gandhinagar and for the research.

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Narrow Study:

The topic of this research is very specific and the objectives of the study are also very specific and narrow. Hence the whole study is limited with objectives set for the study. So, the whole scenario relating to the topic cannot be understood well with this limited piece of work.

Secondary Data, the Major Source of Information:

Being beginners in the field of research, our major source of data collection other than primary data was the use of secondary data and that too majorly internet and hence the information collected may not be reliable, accurate and authenticate. The Technical Aspects relating to the 3G Service have been omitted for our study due to lack of knowledge, time and information.

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CHAPTER 2 Study of Awareness about 3G Services


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2.1. Introduction
Awareness:
Awareness is the state or ability to perceive, to feel, or to be conscious of events, objects or sensory patterns. In this level of consciousness, sense data can be confirmed by an observer without necessarily implying understanding. More broadly, it is the state or quality of being aware of something. In biological psychology, awareness is defined as a human's or an animal's perception and cognitive reaction to a condition or event.

2.2. Earlier Studies in Context to 3G Awareness

NIELSEN Study:
Telecom Operators build Consumer Awareness of 3G through advertising but consumer intent to adopt stays the same. The heavy advertising by telecom operators in the Indian media have succeeded in increasing consumer awareness about 3G mobile services in the country, according to a study conducted by Nielsen. The study shows that awareness levels in 3G service have risen from 64 percent in November 2010 to 80 percent in July 2011. Telecom operators who won 3G spectrum have spent considerable sums and bombarded all available media platforms to increase awareness about the new service. Most advertising has focused on video calling and faster connectivity and as we can see, this push seems to have worked, at least in terms of building awareness about these services, said Farshad Family, Managing Director - Media, Nielsen.

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While awareness of 3G services might have risen, the Nielsen study shows that telecom advertising has not been as successful in building appeal or improving perception for the 3G service

For the time period that the study was conducted, appeal of the 3G service between November 2010 and July 2011 went up marginally from 41 percent to 43 percent, while perceived relevance of the service went up to 45 percent in July 2011 from 38 percent in November 2010.

While there is high awareness of 3G among Indias urban consumers

3G Awareness (% of respondents)

Unaware about 3G 32% Aware about 3G 68%

Youth, Prosumers and Smartphone owners demonstrate higher awareness and familiarity levels

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3G Familiarity (% of respondents)
Extremely Familiar 6%

Somewhat Familiar 37%

Very Familiar 17%

Familiar 40%

Faster internet speeds (40%), video calling (26%) and mobile TV (11%) drive 3G familiarity Only a small segment is likely to adopt it initially

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A large mass of urban populace show low relevance and intention to adopt 3G.

While the utilitarian segment might drive initial 3G adoption, the challenge will be to drive adoption among a broader set of customers.

Only one in five of Indias urban, mobile subscribers will adopt 3G services in the short term, a new study by The Nielsen Company has found. Released at Nielsens flagship Consumer 360 conference in Delhi, the study found that nearly 70 percent of urban mobile subscribers are aware of 3G services and 63 percent had familiarity with it as a concept. The most eager group ready to adopt 3G was power users largely made up of working professionals and internet-savvy youth. They told Nielsen they were eager to embrace higher speeds to access the internet and download large attachments.

A third (36%) of these consumers indicated a strong disposition towards 3G adoption. Other, less tech reliant groups, was less enthusiastic about the next wave of mobile services. To drive mass adoption, handset bundling will need to be implemented. Even with an enhanced user experience on a 3G network, driving migration to 3G devices will be a challenge. The study found that bundling 3G services with new handsets will be the most effective course of action for telecom carriers.

Thirty five percent of subscribers said they would leave their current carrier if they failed to provide 3G services. In contrast, only six percent of those less inclined to purchase 3G services said they would change carrier if 3G was not made available.

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The study also identified an area of particular attention for carriers: reducing pricing to drive 3G adoption may not necessarily grow their businesses. It will come down to the user experience and relevance of services. The demand for 3G will dictate the future of smart phones and the competitive landscape amongst service providers. Simply making 3G services affordable will not offer an easy answer to accelerating adoption as we move into an era of more unpredictable handset replacement cycles and the polarization of 3G users within the subscriber base towards operators who offer a better 3G experience said Arjun Urs, Director Client Solutions India, The Nielsen Company. 3Gs success in the Indian market will depend on three key strategies, according to The Nielsen Company:

(1) Creating a compelling user experience through services and handset upgrades will be necessary for wider adoption amongst Indian consumers: Over the last half decade the combination of a better user experience and the widespread use of superior handsets bundled with services have led to a seamless migration to 3G in the U.S.

(2) Creating a strong brand association with 3G and demonstrating the relevance of services that 3G can deliver will be the key to consumer acceptance in India. Japan for instance has achieved near universal 3G penetration over the last decade through innovative data plans and highly relevant services for its consumers. In contrast, 3G penetration in China has been sluggish due to the challenges of setting up 3G infrastructure and low consumer education on the facets of 3G. (3) Merely positioning 3G as faster and making it affordable will not drive adoption in India. The Korean market, despite achieving nearly 90 percent 3G penetrations with the help of government impetus, has not managed to register high data usage. Data usage has remained restricted to downloads like ringtones, graphics and games. Operators
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have now begun to create services that are more relevant to consumers to increase revenues from data.

Intention to Adopt 3G Will definitely adopt 3G Will probably adopt 3G May or may not adopt 3G Will probably not adopt 3G Will definitely not adopt 3G

All 19% 43% 25% 7% 5%

Power User 36% 34% 15% 7% 7%

Imitator 20% 65% 12% 1% 1%

Ambivale nt 10% 31% 31% 17% 13%

Uninvolved 7% 41% 45% 5% 2%

Intention to Upgrade to 3G Handset Will definitely adopt 3G handset Will probably adopt 3G handset May or may not adopt 3G handset Will probably not adopt 3G handset Will definitely not adopt 3G handset

Disposed towards 3G 63% 24% 10% 3% 0%

Not disposed towards 3G 12% 24% 36% 20% 8%

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According to a website, goBroadband (linking diversity!), the research provides the following result in relation to the level of awareness of 3G Services in India: There are over 558 MN 2G Wireless SIMs out in India and not everybody is aware of neither what 3G is nor the demand for it. Here is a finding of a survey by RBS: 48% of respondents are aware of 3G services, of which 65% are postpaid. None willing to pay extra for better voice quality on 3G above the existing rates Half of the respondents not interested in Video Calling and those who are interested are unwilling to pay more than Rs 2 / minute. 33% have monthly usage below Rs500, 22% between Rs500 and 1,000 and 33% between Rs1,000 and 2,000 A whopping 71% of respondents are looking for high speed data download but they have their monthly billing below Rs 500. Salaried Employees, Students followed by Self Employed classes in the Indian stratum are the ones seeking 3G services [Better Voice, Video Call and High Speed Data] while Housewives and Professionals just want better Voice and Video without any inclination towards Data. Folks in the Lower Income Group need none of the above.

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Unaware of 3G 52%

Aware of 3G 48%

Nielsen, an international marketing and advertising research firm, has conducted a survey on 3G awareness among the public and reports that

Only one in five of the urban mobile subscribers are ready to embrace the 3G services.

70 percent of the urban mobile subscribers are aware of these services.

It indicates that it will take a long time for the private operators to acquire 3G subscribers in large numbers. In the meantime Vodafone has started promoting mobile broadband device, its 3G-enabled broadband USB device, priced at Rs 1,600 for PCs and laptops. This is much lower than MTNLs price of Rs 1799. But the customer will have to pay much higher charges for surfing, as compared to MTNL.

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According to a National Newspaper, THE HINDU, Andhra Pradesh, An awareness drive on 3G wireless applications was conducted by Idea 3G in association with The Hindu on Tuesday on the occasion of World Telecommunication Day'. Idea 3G, at its five designated experience zones in the city, organized

demonstrations by its experts and provided information free of cost for the benefit of customers. A campaign was organized at Dwarakanagar in which Idea 3G brochures along with The Hindu were distributed to general public. Zonal Head of Idea Cellular Limited Arun Jayath and ASM Shankar were present during the awareness drive.

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2.3. Various Service Providers of 3G Services in India


Vodafone 3G services
Vodafone Essar Limited, the Indian subsidiary of Vodafone Group Plc., is reportedly planning to pick a non-Chinese vendor for its 3G portfolio. The company is eyeing contracts with Nokia Siemens

Networks and Ericsson for 3G equipment in India. Vodafone will provide 3G services in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Maharashtra,

Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh (East) and West Bengal circles.

Reliance makes its 3G moves


RCom has also established a 3G Innovation Lab with at Reliance ADA Groups headquarters in Ambani Knowledge City, The Lab is based on the Open is expected Platforms to bring product platforms near Dhirubhai Mumbai. of

concept

architecture and together content innovators, enablers, device equipment

developers, technology

manufactures and original

manufacturers from India and abroad to create 3G products and applications. RCom bagged 13 3G circles Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Punjab, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, Himachal Pradesh, Bihar, Orissa, Assam, North East and Jammu & Kashmir.

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Reliance

Communications

(RCom)

has

inked

deal

with

global

telecommunications solutions provider ZTE to deploy the new 3G-UMTS/GSM network for Reliance Mobile. ZTE will manufacture and supply 3G-UMTS equipment for eight out of 13 telecoms circles bagged by Reliance Mobile. The network to be deployed by ZTE is based on the standard SDR platform, which can currently support 2G and 3G modes in a single base-station and can be easily upgraded to support a 4G network in the future.

Airtels 3G
The highest bidder in the 3G auction (Rs. 12,295.46 crore), Bharti Airtel, reported that it has tied up with Ericsson India, Nokia Siemens Networks (NSN) and Huawei Technologies for its 3G infrastructure. Networks in seven out of Airtels 13 circles will be

managed by Ericsson India, whereas NSN and Huawei will take care of three circles each. Each vendor will plan, design, deploy and maintain 3G-HSPA networks in its allotted circles. Airtels circles include Delhi, Mumbai, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh (W), Rajasthan, West Bengal, Himachal Pradesh, Bihar, North East, Jammu & Kashmir and Assam.

Idea readying 3G service


The next telecoms operator to get its hands on 3G bandwidth was the Aditya Birla Group-owned Idea Cellular, which won licenses for 11 circles Maharashtra, Haryana, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Punjab, Pradesh, Kashmir. Idea plans to launch its 3G services in the last Kerala, Uttar Pradesh (W), Madhya &

Himachal

Pradesh

and

Jammu

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quarter of this year but is likely to face delays in Punjab as it is awaiting certain regulatory clearances in the area, following its merger with Spice Communications last year. In related news, there have been rumors of Idea evaluating stake-sale proposals. The chief of Emirates Telecommunication Corp recently mentioned that the Middle East-based company might consider an investment in Idea Cellular.

BSNL 3G
In anticipation of the flood of 3G services from private telecom operators, BSNL, which already offers 3G services across the country, slashed rates of its existing 3G data packages by up to 45 percent last week. The tariff for an unlimited data plan for post-paid customers has been cut from Rs. 2,499 to Rs. 1,359. Recharge vouchers for pre-paid customers will also be cheaper at Rs. 1,499 (earlier available for Rs. 2,756). The public sector undertaking has also launched new shortterm validity vouchers. A voucher of Rs. 10 offers 20MB worth of data download for a day, a voucher for Rs. 25 gets you 25MB for three days and a Rs. 50 voucher offers 100MB worth of data download for seven days. Currently, BSNLs 3G services are available in more than 500 cities in India.

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2.4. Primary Data of Study

Demographic Information:
Gender Male Female Total 85 35 120

Gender

29%

Male
Female
71%

OBSERVATION: Of the total sample size of 120, 71% of the sample was Male and 29% of the sample was Female i.e. 85 of the respondent are MALE and 35 respondents are FEMALE.

ANALYSIS: From the above chart. It can be seen that the number of MALE respondents are in majority whereas the number of FEMALE respondents are in minority.

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Age 18-25 Years 25-35 Years Over 35 Years Total 70 38 12 120

Age
10%

18-25 Years
32%

25-35 Years
58%

Over 35 Years

OBSERVATION: Of the total sample of 120, 58% belonged to 18-25 age groups i.e. 70 respondents are of 18-25 age groups. 32% belonged to 25-35 age groups i.e. 38 respondents are from 25-25 age group & 10% of the total sample was over 35 years age i.e. 10 respondents are above the age of 35 years.

ANALYSIS: from the above Pie-Chart, it can be stated that majority of the respondents are youth (between 18-25 years of age group) i.e. youngsters, students, freshers, etc. whereas only 38 respondents are the people who are under the category of working class i.e. Professionals, Businessmen, Employees, etc. (between 25-35 years of age group). The other remaining respondents i.e. 12 are over the age group of 35 years.

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Profession Employed Self-Employed Student Other Total 41 19 56 4 120

Profession
3% 34% 47%

Employed Self-Employed

16%

Student Other

OBSERVATION: Of the total sample (120-sample size) 47% of sample were student, 34% were employed, 16% were self-employed and mere 3% belonged to other professions.

ANALYSIS: It can be understood from the above graph that majority of the respondents i.e. 56 respondents are students from different colleges and various streams whereas 41 respondents are employee of various government office and provide service to people. 19 respondents are the people who have their own business i.e. are Self-Employed and 4 respondents pursue some other profession i.e. could be housewives or any other profession.
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Awareness of 3G Information:
Awareness of 3G Services Yes Somewhat No Total 107 11 2 120

Awareness of 3G Services
120

100
80 60 40 20

107

Awareness of 3G Services

11

2 No

0
Yes Somewhat

OBSERVATION: On the X-axis lies the Level of Awareness amongst the respondents of 3G Services whereas on the Y-axis lies the Number of Respondents surveyed. Out of total sample surveyed i.e. 120, 107 respondents are aware 3G Services, 11 respondents are somewhat aware about the services and only 2 respondents are such who are not aware of 3G Services.

ANALYSIS: From the above graph it is seen that majority of the respondents are aware about the 3G Services who are mostly the youngsters of the age group 18-25 years, as this is the segment which are much affected by the new innovations in technology for the betterment in services whereas there are few people who have not even heard about this new innovation in telephone technology.
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T.V. Newspaper Magazines E-Mail Leaflet/Pamphlet Local Outlet Friends or Colleagues Other Total

Source of Information 62 24 11 10 7 11 31 0 156

Source of Information
0% 20% 40% 7% 5% 6% 7% 15%
T.V. Newspaper Magzines E-Mail Leaflet/Pamphlet Local Outlet Friends or Colleagues Other

OBSERVATION: Of total population surveyed, 40% of the sample units found the information on 3G services from TELEVISION, 20% came to know about 3G services from their FRIENDS OR COLLEAGUES, 15% got to know about it from NEWSPAPERS, 7% of the sample units knew from MAGZINES & LOCAL OUTLET respectively, 6% got E-MAILs about various 3G Services and 5% got the information through LEAFLET/PAMPHLET.

ANALYSIS: It can be understood that the major source of information about 3G Service for the majority of the respondent is TELEVISION & FRIENDS/COLLEAGUES. Whereas, the source of information that affects the least to the respondents are the LEAFLET/PAMPHLET that are distributed On Road, In Local Shop or in the Malls.

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Current User Yes No Total 87 33 120

Current User

28%

Yes No
72%

OBSERVATION: Of the total sample surveyed, 72% i.e. 87 respondents are existing user of 3G SERVICES whereas 28% i.e. 33 respondents are nonuser of any of the 3G SERVICES.

ANALYSIS: Of the majority respondents i.e. youngsters, students, etc. majority respondents are the current user of 3G Services being provided to them by various service provider.

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Service Provider For 3G Services Airtel Vodafone Reliance Idea Aircel BSNL MTNL Other Total 13 21 17 15 1 8 10 2 87

Service Provider For 3G Services


Service Provider For 3G Services 21 17 15 13 10 8

OBSERVATION:

On the X-axis lies the various Service Provider of 3G

Services and on the Y-axis lays the Number of Respondents or the Service User of 3G Service. Vodafone 3G Service having 21 users, Reliance having 17 users, Idea having 15 users, Airtel having 13 users, MTNL having 10 users, BSNL having 8 users, other service providers having 2 users and Aircel having 1 user out of the total 87 users of 3G Service.

ANALYSIS: It is clear from the above graph that the leading operator in providing 3G services is VODAFONE and the next being RELIANCE; standing 3rd is IDEA, AIRTEL standing 4th and the least preferred being AIRCEL by the majority users of 3G Service.

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Shift To 3G Services In Near Future For Non-User Yes No Can't Say Total 16 2 15 33

Shift To 3G Services In Near Future For Non-User


45%

49%

Yes No Can't Say

6%

OBSERVATION: Of the total 28% (33 respondents) non-users of 3G Services, 49% (16 respondents) are planning to shift to 3G Services in near future, 45% (15 respondents) of the non-users are still confused for the use of 3G Services and 6% (2 respondents) are not intended to shift to 3G services in near future.

ANALYSIS: From the observation it is clear that majority of the respondents who are non-user of 3G service are planning to shift to 3G in near future to avail its benefit being affected by the advertisement and the growing popularity of the phenomenon whereas only few are not interested in the use of 3G service even in near future.

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Reason For Non-Use Of 3G Services High Cost Poor Network Not Interested High Data Charges Lack Of Information Other Total 16 2 8 3 3 1 33

Reason For Non-Use Of 3G Services


9% 9% Poor Network 49% Not Interested 24% High Data Charges 3% High Cost

6%

OBSERVATION: Of the total non-users of 3G services i.e. 28%, 49% of the sample do not use 3G services due to its HIGH COST, whereas 24% of the sample are NOT INTERESTED in 3G services, 9% of the sample find the DATA CHARGES HIGH & another 9% of the sample do NOT HAVE SUFFICIENT KNOWLEGDE about the 3G service. The remaining 6% of the sample had a PROBLEM WITH NETWORK COVERAGE of 3G services & the remaining 3% had some OTHER reasons.

ANALYSIS: It can be stated that the major reason affecting the non-use of 3G service by 33 non-users is the HIGH COST of the basic device or the Sim i.e. most of the people cannot afford to buy the basic instrument for operating the 3G services being provided. Some other reasons such as NO INEREST in the use of 3G Service, HIGH DATA CHARGES & LACK OF INFORMATION about the 3G Plans and Services also becomes a barrier in using the service by many other respondents.

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Choice Of 3G Service Provider In Future Airtel Vodafone Reliance Idea Aircel BSNL MTNL Other Total 5 8 5 8 1 6 0 0 33

Choice Of 3G Service Provider In Future


8 5

Choice Of 3G Service Provider In Future


8 6 5

1 0 0

OBSERVATION: Of the total non-users of 3G services, 8 sample units would choose VODAFONE and IDEA in future for the use of 3G services respectively. 6 sample units would go for BSNL 3G Services, 5 sample units will choose AIRTEL & RELIANCE respectively, only 1 sample units would choose for AIRCEL 3G Service in future, whereas there are no users for MTNL or any OTHER 3G Services in future.

ANALYSIS: It is clear from the above observation that the total non-user of 3G Services i.e. 33 respondents, majority would prefer to use VODAFONE & IDEA in near future if they would shift to use of 3G service whereas MTNL or any Other are amongst those service provider which none of the respondent would like to choose as their operator if they switch to the use of 3G Service in future. Standing 2nd is AIRTEL & RELIANCE service provider for the use 3G Services.

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Mode Of Use On Cell Phone Net Setter Both Total 32 20 35 87

Mode Of Use

40%

37%

On Cell Phone Net Setter Both

23%

OBSERVATON: Of the total users of 3G Services i.e.72%, 40% of the sample are using 3G Services on BOTH, i.e., On Cell Phone as well as On Net Setter, 37% of the sample user their services ON CELL PHONE & 23% use it through 3G Dongle(Net Setter).

ANALYSIS: From the Above Pie-Chart it is seen that the majority of the total users of 3G Services prefer their mode of use to be from DONGLE & CELL PHONE both. In todays generation most of the youngsters own their personal laptops or an 3G enabled cell phone so, they prefer to use the 3G Services through both the mode hence, both being the most preferred mode of use. Whereas, some use it only through CELL PHONE and other use it only through DONGLE or NET SETTERs.

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2.5. Conclusion
From the above analyzed primary data collected in relation to the Awareness of 3G Services in the city of Gandhinagar, the findings from our research in relation to our objective can be concluded as follows: According to the Demographic Information collected it is seen that, the majority of the respondents out of 120 are MALE in the number of 85 (71%) and the rest 35 (29%) respondents are FEMALE; The age groups in which the respondents fall are leaded by the 18-25 years with a majority of 70 (58%) respondents falling in the age group, the rest are in the age group of 25-35 years with 38 (32%) respondents, and over the age of 35 years are 12 (10%) respondents. Majority of the respondents surveyed belong to the profession of Student with 56 (47%) respondents, 41 (34%) respondents are Employed, 19 (16%) respondents are Self-Employed and 4 (3%) belong to other profession. Out of the total 120 respondents, 107 (89%) respondents are aware of 3G services of the majority respondents, 11 (9%) respondents are somewhat familiar with the concept of 3G and 2 (2%) respondents have never heard of anything like 3G. The major source of information about 3G Services for majority of the respondents is TELEVISION, 62 (40%) of the respondents found the information respondents respondents on from from 3G services from OR TELEVISION, 31 24 (20%) (15%) from

FRIENDS

COLLEAGUES, 11 (7%)

NEWSPAPERS,

respondents

MAGZINES & LOCAL OUTLET respectively, 10 (6%) respondents got E-MAILs about various 3G Services and 7 (5%) respondents got the information through LEAFLET/PAMPHLET.

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Of the total sample surveyed, 72% i.e. 87 respondents are existing user of 3G SERVICES whereas 28% i.e. 33 respondents are nonuser of any of the 3G SERVICES. Majority of the service provider that the customer are opting is Vodafone 3G Service having 21 (24%) users, Reliance having 17 (19%) users, Idea having 15 (17%) users, Airtel having 13 (15%) users, MTNL having 10 (11%) users, BSNL having 8 (9%) users, other service providers having 2 (2%) users and Aircel having 1(1%) user out of the total 87 users of 3G Service. Of 28% (33 respondents) non-users of 3G Services, majority i.e. 49% (16 respondents) are planning to shift to 3G Services in near future whereas 45% (15 respondents) of the non-users are still confused for the use of 3G Services and 6% (2 respondents) are not intended to shift to 3G services in near future. Of the total non-users of 3G services i.e. 28%, majority of the respondents i.e. 49% of the sample do not use 3G services due to its HIGH COST, whereas 24% of the sample are NOT INTERESTED in 3G services, 9% of the sample find the DATA CHARGES HIGH & another 9% of the sample do NOT HAVE SUFFICIENT KNOWLEGDE about the 3G service. The remaining 6% of the sample had a PROBLEM WITH NETWORK COVERAGE of 3G services & the remaining 3% had some OTHER reasons. Of the total non-users of 3G services, 8 (24%) sample units would choose VODAFONE and IDEA in future for the use of 3G services respectively. 6 (18%) sample units would go for BSNL 3G Services, 5 (15%) sample units will choose AIRTEL & RELIANCE respectively, only 1 (3%) sample units would choose for AIRCEL 3G Service in future, whereas there are no users for MTNL or any OTHER 3G Services in future.

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Of the total users of 3G Services i.e.72%, 40% of the sample are using 3G Services on BOTH, i.e., On Cell Phone as well as On Net Setter, 37% of the sample user their services ON CELL PHONE & 23% use it through 3G Dongle(Net Setter).

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CHAPTER 3 Study of Factors Affecting the Selection of Service Provider


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3.1. Introduction
Consumer Behavior

1. PRODUCT:
Services are products, even though intangible, they are service marketers must always remember that consumers do not buy any product; they but attributes that are converted into benefits. Legal services, medical care, hair styling, or brokerage services are more likely to be specialty services and for these customers may be willing to go to considerable lengths to acquire the special attributes or benefits they deem essential for full and complete satisfaction. Many services are custom designed products. Services are intangible and heterogeneous and cannot easily be separated from their producers. Neither intangible dominants products like services cannot be stored nor can they are transported. It is difficult to brand.

2. PRICE:
Most services marketers follow competitive price policies, pricing their services either at the market price or slightly below. Pricing about the market price is generally employed by larger services firms or by all firms who wish to use price as a means of rationing the supply of their service offerings. The market for tangible dominant products may actually consist of three or four separate segment which is price sensitive & responsive. Flexible pricing seems much more prevalent in the marketing way vary, but typically the pricing goal of market is to maximize profits of goals of marketers are to increase sales volume.

In summary, pricing in service-oriented enterprises is usually demand oriented with many sellers charging what the traffic bear. But in general pricing in particular may be their weakest and least developed marketing skill.
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3. PROMOTION:
Promotion is an important part of the marketing mix for many marketers. The key to successful promotion, whether it is advertising or personal selling is benefiting the product. Intangible dominant products such as services offer a challenge to the promotion manager. To successfully promote such as service, they are often personalized. To successfully promote service, they must be made to have a favorable positive image constructed to project attributes of the service. Promoting the service marketers image is a bit like Selling the sizzles & not the steak. Sellers are often expected to be knowledgeable professionals can give needed advice & counseling market oriented sporting events. No service marketer would overlook the opportunity to positively affect public opinion through its news releases or its staged activity design in past to alter public perception on other wise modify behaviors.

4. PLACE:
Channels for instant dominant product such as services are generally limited to the buyer and seller channels of distribution for services are direct and short, this is from market direct to ultimate consumers. In a service oriented product however, it may be more fitting to consider that any extra corporate entity between the producer of service and prospective users which is utilized to make the service available and or more convenient is a marketers should perhaps take a fresh look at the channels of distribution for service as distinct from the channel concepts employed for goods.

5. PEOPLE:
The people factor in the service marketing mix is perhaps the least they can rely on its getting their marketing mix right and the most important. One they have to get right. Service personnel are present at two levels within the
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organization. Contact personnel and support personnel are those individuals whom the customer sees such as waiters or receptionists and whom the customer judge the service upon when they search for tangible clues as to the quality of service. The value they attribute to the service relies a great deal on the conduct of the contact personnel. Employees need to become ambassadors for the organization as the quality of the service and the quality of the service providers are inseparable.

6. PROCESS:
The process element of the service marketing mix is concerned with way in which the service is delivered to the customer. The inseparability characteristics of service has an important implication for how the service company personnel deliver the service to the customer and how the customer participates in the service delivery process. The auxiliary aspect of the service that is the added value of the service, become an important competitive weapon in differentiating the service from competitors when the service is experienced by the customer. Therefore, the overall effectiveness of the service process fundamentally depends on how the consumers use the service which have been defined as acts rather than things and this casts some light on the concept of process many benefits from service occur not so much as a result of what is offered, as in the way of which it is offered.

7. PHYSICAL EVIDENCE:
Since a service is intangible, it is important for the company to search for tangible or physical clues which enable them to evaluate the opportunities. Service firms must be in Gandhinagar and Ahmadabad was that every aspect of the company will affect the consumer when he comes into contact with the service.

There are two types of Physical evidence:

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Peripheral Evidence: It is usually possessed as part of the purchase

of a service but it has little or no independent value.

Essential Evidence:

Unlike peripheral evidence it cannot be

possessed by the consumer. However, essential evidence may be so dominant in its impact on service purchase and use that it must be considered virtually an element in its own right.

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3.2. Factors Affecting Consumer Behavior

Consumer behavior refers to the selection, purchase and consumption of goods and services for the satisfaction of their wants. There are different processes involved in the consumer behavior. Initially the consumer tries to find what commodities he would like to consume, then he selects only those commodities that promise greater utility. After selecting the commodities, the consumer makes an estimate of the available money which he can spend. Lastly, the consumer analyzes the prevailing prices of commodities and takes the decision about the commodities he should consume. Meanwhile, there are various other factors influencing the purchases of consumer such as social, cultural, personal and psychological. The explanation of these factors is given below:

1.

Cultural Factors

Consumer behavior is deeply influenced by cultural factors such as: buyer culture, subculture, and social class.

Culture

Basically, culture is the part of every society and is the important cause of person wants and behavior. The influence of culture on buying behavior varies from country to country therefore marketers have to be very careful in analyzing the culture of different groups, regions or even countries.

Subculture

Each culture contains different subcultures such as religions, nationalities, geographic regions, racial groups etc. Marketers can use these groups by segmenting the market into various small portions. For example marketers can design products according to the needs of a particular geographic group.

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Social Class

Every society possesses some form of social class which is important to the marketers because the buying behavior of people in a given social class is similar. In this way marketing activities could be tailored according to different social classes. Here we should note that social class is not only determined by income but there are various other factors as well such as: wealth, education, occupation etc.

2. Social Factors
Social factors also impact the buying behavior of consumers. The important social factors are: reference groups, family, role and status.

Reference Groups

Reference groups have potential in forming a person attitude or behavior. The impact of reference groups varies across products and brands. For example if the product is visible such as dress, shoes, car etc. then the influence of reference groups will be high. Reference groups also include opinion leader.

Family

Buyer behavior is strongly influenced by the member of a family. Therefore marketers are trying to find the roles and influence of the husband, wife and children. If the buying decision of a particular product is influenced by wife then the marketers will try to target the women in their advertisement. Here we should note that buying roles change with change in consumer lifestyles.

Roles and Status

Each person possesses different roles and status in the society depending upon the groups, clubs, family, organization etc. to which he belongs. For
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example a woman is working in an organization as finance manager. Now she is playing two roles, one of finance manager and other of mother. Therefore her buying decisions will be influenced by her role and status.

3. Personal Factors
Personal factors can also affect the consumer behavior. Some of the important personal factors that influence the buying behavior are: lifestyle, economic situation, occupation, age, personality and self-concept.

Age

Age and life-cycle have potential impact on the consumer buying behavior. It is obvious that the consumers change the purchase of goods and services with the passage of time. Family life-cycle consists of different stages such young singles, married couples, unmarried couples etc. which help marketers to develop appropriate products for each stage.

Occupation

The occupation of a person has significant impact on his buying behavior. For example a marketing manager of an organization will try to purchase business suits, whereas a low level worker in the same organization will purchase rugged work clothes.

Economic Situation

Consumer economic situation has great influence on his buying behavior. If the income and savings of a customer is high then he will purchase more expensive products. On the other hand, a person with low income and savings will purchase inexpensive products.

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Lifestyle

Lifestyle of customers is another import factor affecting the consumer buying behavior. Lifestyle refers to the way a person lives in a society and is expressed by the things in his/her surroundings. It is determined by customer interests, opinions, activities etc. and shapes his whole pattern of acting and interacting in the world.

Personality

Personality changes from person to person, time to time and place to place. Therefore it can greatly influence the buying behavior of customers. Actually, Personality is not what one wears; rather it is the totality of behavior of a man in different circumstances. It has different characteristics such as: dominance, aggressiveness, self-confidence etc. which can be useful to determine the consumer behavior for particular product or service.

4. Psychological Factors
There are four important psychological factors affecting the consumer buying behavior. These are: perception, motivation, learning, beliefs and attitudes.

Motivation

The level of motivation also affects the buying behavior of customers. Every person has different needs such as physiological needs, biological needs, social needs etc. The nature of the needs is that, some of them are most pressing while others are least pressing. Therefore a need becomes a motive when it is more pressing to direct the person to seek satisfaction.

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Perception

Selecting, organizing and interpreting information in a way to produce a meaningful experience of the world is called perception. There are three different perceptual processes which are selective attention, selective distortion and selective retention. In case of selective attention, marketers try to attract the customer attention.

Whereas, in case of selective distortion, customers try to interpret the information in a way that will support what the customers already believe. Similarly, in case of selective retention, marketers try to retain information that supports their beliefs.

Beliefs and Attitudes

Customer possesses specific belief and attitude towards various products. Since such beliefs and attitudes make up brand image and affect consumer buying behavior therefore marketers are interested in them. Marketers can change the beliefs and attitudes of customers by launching special campaigns in this regard.

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3.3. Secondary Data


Nielsen Study:

Despite significant spends on advertising, consumer perception on two key aspects of the newly introduced 3G service appeal and relevance has not improved. And this lack of positive perception is reflected in the likelihood of adoption. The study clearly shows that likelihood of adoption has remained flat since operators rolled out their advertising campaign. While the proportion is still at nearly 20 percent, consumers need marketers to more persuasively demonstrate relevance, says Family.

Upgrade Opportunity
An opportunity for telecom operators is the mobile handset upgrade cycle. The Nielsen study shows that Indian consumers who hope to buy a phone in the next three months plan on spending 50 percent more on their next mobile handset, willing to spend Rs 7200 for their next phone compared to Rs 4600 they spent on their last one, suggesting that smartphones will be within reach for wider segment of Indian consumers.

The upgrade in mobile handset for Indian consumers is largely driven by them seeking more advanced features on their phones. A camera is still the most sought after feature for 49 percent of respondents. An FM radio and the Internet rank second and third respectively, and 15 percent of the respondents also seek 3G services on their next phone. The Indian consumers quest for a new phone is almost entirely feature driven and while the camera and FM radio remain favorites, the Indian consumer is also increasingly seeking Internet connectivity via their mobile phone, hoping to finally connect to the growing online community and services. These points to the fact that the telecom market retains its robust

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demand of going forward and the Indian consumers aspiration to upgrade will continue to be a strong driver, observes Family. According to an article published in the daily nationals, The Times of India, under the article: 3G

fails to impress subscribers,

it provided with

the following information:

Kataria, who is on Rs 899 data plan for BlackBerry, says he sees no reason
for additional payments for 3G data. Avin Chhangani, a law student in Gandhinagar, Gujarat, took up 3G as his hostel did not allow TVs. "I used to spend Rs 800 a week trying to watch live TV on my handset. After five months, I've given up - the speeds are pathetic and I can't afford it," he said. Close to a year after its launch, subscribers are nowhere close to saying three cheers to this technology platform that was slated to revolutionize mobile experience through high-speed internet, interactive gaming, video-calls and mobile TV. While 3G has been positioned as a 'faster' and 'superior' service, most customers feel that Telcos have failed to demonstrate the relevance for this platform. A Nielsen survey has found that despite the advertising blitz, only 19% customers say they plan to use 3G services, the same as last year's figure. The percentage of actual users is much lower with about 10-12 million of the 860-million cellphone connections in the country availing 3G services. Chennai-based mobile blogger Varun Krishnan, who has experimented with the 3G plans of all Telcos, says that speeds have fallen by a fifth over the last couple of months. "Initial speeds were 4-5 mbps, be it Vodafone, Idea or BSNL. Now, it is down to 1-2 mbps and therefore there is a big disconnect between what is promised in the ads to the real world experience," he says. Krishnan is of the view that improving user experience is the key to faster penetration of 3G.

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Dismal speeds and patchy connectivity top the list of reasons why 3G has failed to gather speed in India. A significant majority of customer complaints relate to 3G experience being similar to EDGE and GPRS on 2G networks forcing consumers who have activated this facility to exit.

According to Bharti Airtel CEO Sanjay Kapoor, the Telco had about seven million 3G users, but only a quarter of them used the services regularly. Asked on consumers' response to 3G, Kapoor said that it was only 'months since the launch' and pointed out that it had taken several years for western world to move consumers to this platform.

During Idea Cellular's earnings conference call, its MD Himanshi Kapania said that the company had offered 3G facilities to over 2.5 million of its existing users but only about 750,000 had availed these services as of September end. Vodafone executives said the company has about 850,000 3G customers.

A top executive from one of the GSM biggies said that three factors were behind the slow adoption towards 3G: The price of 3G devices, The absence of apps that are specific to Indian consumers The resistance and discomfort with the pricing. While customers complain about pricing, Telcos say their options are limited as they need to recover the billions they spend in buying the 3G spectrums and setting up the infrastructure for this platform.

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In a bid to encourage 3G usage, Idea Cellular recently launched promotional offers valid until the year-end, where customers can enjoy double the data allowed under their plan.

Experts and operators say the technical glitches will soon be ironed out. "These are relatively new networks and it takes several months for mobile phone companies to optimize, fine-tune and plug the gaps. It did take some time before all the gaps in 2G networks were plugged and the experience became consistent," explained Mahesh Uppal, director of consulting firm Com First.

Endorsing this view, an executive heading operations of a mid-sized operator said traditionally Telcos spend six to eight months stabilizing networks before they launch commercial services, but competitive pressures may have forced mobile phone companies to launch 3G services and improve network quality on the go. "The technical issues are being addressed, but we are missing the bigger picture that we don't have content and optimally priced devices for mass adoption," he said.

This executive further pointed out that 3G usages in mature markets were driven by apps. "It is not random browsing, but customers use apps for all specific functions and this phenomenon is yet to take off in India," this executive added. After spending billions, operators have every incentive to get rid of the technical bottlenecks. They are not foolish to waste scarce spectrum," added Uppal.

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According to the latest report by Cellular Operators Association of

India (COAI), the Indian GSM subscriber base rose to 580.66 million in
April representing an 11m increase on the previous month. This ties in our previous report of India having 500 million subscribers, not 800m as was widely believed before. Airtel which has been adding features such as data less access to Facebook accounts and plans to bring the iPhone 4 to India this month, has maintained pole position among Indian mobile operators by adding 2.41 million users in April, increasing its total user base to 164.6 million customers with a market share of 28.35%. Trailing by 5% in terms of market share, Vodafone comes in second with 2.4 million customer additions and a user base of 136.9 million. In other news, India now has 9 million 3G customers, in spite of expensive pricing and poor speeds across all operators. According to Business Line, Airtel leads the pack yet again, with 3 million subscribers followed by Tata Docomo with 1.5 million users and Idea Cellular, Vodafone, BSNL each having a million customers apiece. Mr. Shireesh Joshi, Chief Marketing Officer of Mobile Services, Bharti Airtel said: The initial response from customers has been overwhelming but we believe the revolution has just begun. The game changing differentiator for 3G in India will be content and services and not price points. According to the latest report by telecom watchdog Telecom Regulatory

Authority of India (TRAI), India has 346.67 million active Mobile


Internet Subscribers (GPRS/2G/3G/CDMA-Data) as on June 2011. India has total 851.70 million wireless/mobile (GSM + CDMA) subscribers at the end of Jun-11 and 40.70% of total wireless subscribers base are capable

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of Accessing GPRS (2G/3G) Data Services/CDMA Internet at the end of June, 2011. Indias largest mobile service provider Bharti Airtel has maintained pole position among Indian mobile operators with 131.38 million active data subscribers (2G/3G). While National Telecom Backbone and state run telecom operator, Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) comes in second with 69.27 million and Vodafone has 3rd position with 63.69 million mobile Internet subscribers. Here are the mobile service operator-wise details: 2011 Bharti Airtel Reliance Comms BSNL Vodafone Essar Tata Teleservices IDEA Cellular Aircel MTS MTNL S-Tel 3% 39% 10% 2% 30% 2% 2% 10% 1% 1% 100%

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3.4. Primary Data Study


Purpose of 3G Service Entertainment Communication Internet Other Total 15 16 56 0 87

Purpose of 3G Service

17%

Entertainment Communication 19%

Internet
Other

64%

OBSERVATION: Of the total population surveyed, 64% of the sample size use 3G Service for INTERNET purpose, 19% use 3G services for COMMUNICATION i.e. Voice Call/Video Call, 17% of the sample size use 3G for ENTERTAINMENT Purpose.

ANALYSIS: The basic purpose for the use of 3G Services by the total users of 3G Services is the access of INTERNET SERVICE being preferred by most of the respondents for either personal use or any other specific use of internet. The 2nd most preferred service being used by 3G Service being COMMUNICATION be it as VOICE/VIDEO CALLING.

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RANK 1 (LOWEST PREFERENCE) Rank 1 (Lowest Preference) Video Calling Live TV Online Gaming Video, Movies, & Songs Download Surfing Total 13 59 31 6 11 120

Rank 1 (Lowest Preference)


5% Video Calling 9% 11% Live TV 26% 49% Online Gaming Video, Movies, & Songs Download Surfing

OBSERVATION: According to the above pie-chart it is observed that, LIVE TV is least preferred by 47% of the user respondents, Online Gaming being the 2nd least preferred with 25%, VIDEO CALLING being the 3 rd least preferred with 13%, SURFING being the 4th least preferred with 9%, and VIDEO, MOVIES, & SONGS DOWNLOAD being the 5th least preferred with 6%.

ANALYSIS: From the above observation, it is seen that the LEAST PREFERRED 3G Service by the user respondents is LIVE TV. It may be because of the reason of unawareness about the Live TV service being offered by 3G Service Providers at high speed without any interruption.

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RANK 2 (LOW PREFERENCE) Rank 2 ( Low Preference) Video Calling Live TV Online Gaming Video, Movies, & Songs Downloading Surfing Total 25 36 34 18 7 120

Rank 2 ( Low Preference)


6% 15% 21% Live TV Online Gaming Video, Movies, & Songs Downloading Surfing Video Calling

28%

30%

OBSERVATION: According to the above Pie-Chart, it is observed that LIVE TV has got low preference and is standing on 1st with 30%, ONLINE GAMING has got 2nd low preference with 28%, VIDEO CALLING has got 3rd low preference with 21%, VIDEO, MOVIES & SONGS DOWNLOADING has got 4th low preference with 15% and least with low preference is SURFING with 6%.

ANALYSIS: From the above observation, it is seen that the LOW PREFERRED 3G Service by the user respondents is LIVE TV i.e. respondents do not the use of Live TV with 3G Services being provided to them.

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RANK 3 (AVERAGE PREFERENCE) Rank 3 (Average Preference) Video Calling Live TV Online Gaming Video, Movies, & Songs Downloading Surfing Total 29 9 34 25 23 120

Rank 3 (Average Preference)


19% Video Calling 24% Live TV Online Gaming 21% 8% Video, Movies, & Songs Downloading Surfing

28%

OBSERVATION: From the above Pie-Chart it is seen that, ONLINE GAMING is standing 1st as AVERAGE PREFERENCE with 28%, standing 2nd is VIDEO CALLING with 24%, VIDEO, MOVIES & SONGS DOWNLOADING is standing 3rd with 21%, SURFING is at 4th with 19% and the least average preferred 3G Service is LIVE TV with 8%.

ANALYSIS: It is seen from the above observation that the most AVERAGE PREFERRED 3G SERVICE by the user respondents is ONLINE GAMING, this is due to the reason that the majority of the respondents in our survey are youngsters i.e. students and that too male respondents are in majority so they might have preferred Gaming as the average preferred 3G Service.
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RANK 4 (MORE PREFERENCE) Rank 4 (More Preference) Video Calling Live TV Online Gaming Video, Movies & Songs Downloading Surfing Total 18 14 14 40 34 120

Rank 4 (More Preference)


15% 28% 12% Video Calling Live TV Online Gaming

12% 33%

Video, Movies & Songs Downloading Surfing

OBSERVATION: From the above Pie-Chart it can be observed that the user respondents in our survey MORE PREFERRED the use of 3G Service in DOWNLOADING MOVIES, VIDEOS, & SONGS with 33%, secondly stood SURFING with 28%, VIDEO CALLING stood 3rd with 15% and LIVE TV & ONLINE GAMING stood together as the least in more Preferred with only 12% each.

ANALYSIS: From the observation made above it is seen that the majority of user respondents of 3G Services choose VIDEO, MOVIES & SONGS DOWNLOADING as the MORE PREFERRED use of 3G Service giving it a rating of 4. This is due to the reason that, in our survey majority of the respondents are between the age group of 18-25 years i.e. students and majorly male respondents who are more interested with songs, movies and videos downloading.
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RANK 5 (MOST PREFERRED) Rank 5 (Most Preferred) Video Calling Live TV Online Gaming Video, Movies & Songs Downloading Surfing Total 32 6 8 27 47 120

Rank 5 (Most Preferred)


Video Calling 27% 39% 5% 7% 22% Live TV Online Gaming Video, Movies & Songs Downlaoding Surfing

OBSERVATION: It is observed above that SURFING is the MOST PREFERRED 3G Service by the user respondents with 39%, standing next is VIDEO CALLING with 27%, 3rd is VIDEO,
th

MOVIES

&

SONGS

DOWNLOADING with 22%, the next i.e. 4

most Preferred is ONLINE

GAMING with 7% & last most preferred 3G Service is LIVE TV with mere 5%.

ANALYSIS: It is clear from the above observation that the MOST PREFERRED use of 3G Service by our respondents is the use of SURFING via 3G Services. Our majority of respondents between the age group of 18-25 years and students use their 3G Service for the purpose of Internet Access i.e. Surfing.

**Hence, it is clear that the MOST PREFERRED 3G Service is SURFING, 2nd - VIDEO CALLING, 3rd - VIDEO, MOVIES & SONGS DOWNLOADING, 4th - ONLINE GAMING and the 5th - LIVE TV. **

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Brand Name Speed of Connection Cost of Device/Sim Data Charges Advertisement On Reference Total

Basis Of Selection for Current Service Provider of 3G Service 22 28 8 4 18 7 87

30 25 20 15 10 5 0 22

Basis Of Selection for Current Serivce Provider of 3G Service


28

18

Basis Of Selection for Current Serivce Provider of 3G Service

8 4

OBSERVATION: Out of the total sample surveyed, 28 sample units chose their 3G Service on the basis of SPEED OF CONNECTION/TRANSFER of its service provider. 22 sample units chose on basis of BRAND NAME of their service provider, 18 sample units chose their service provider by getting affected through its ADVERTISEMENT, 8 sample units chose their service provider on the basis of the BASIC COST OF DEVICE/SIM, 7 sample units chose their service provider ON REFERENCE & 4 sample units chose their service provider on the basis of the data charges being charged to them by the service provider. ANALYSIS: From the above observation it is seen that the basic reason for the selection of their current 3G Service provider for our user respondents of 3G Services is the SPEED OF CONNECTION/DATA TRANSFER that is being provided to them by their particular Service Provider and hence, as Vodafone is the leading in the users of 3G Services it means that the Speed of Connection or Data Transfer is Best Provided By Vodafone.

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3.5. Conclusion
Of the total population surveyed, 64% of the sample size use 3G Service for INTERNET purpose, 19% use 3G services for COMMUNICATION i.e. Voice Call/Video Call, 17% of the sample size use 3G for ENTERTAINMENT Purpose. The basic purpose for the majority of respondents i.e. students and that too male, is the use of 3G Services for the access of INTERNET SERVICE for either personal use or any other specific use of internet. It can be concluded that SURFING is the MOST PREFERRED 3G Service by the user respondents with 39%. It is clear from the findings of the study that the standing 2nd (27%) - VIDEO CALLING, 3rd (22%) VIDEO, MOVIES & SONGS DOWNLOADING, 4th (7%) - ONLINE GAMING and the 5th (5%) - LIVE TV. LIVE TV is least preferred 3G Service by 47% of the user respondents, Online Gaming being the 2nd least preferred with 25%, VIDEO CALLING being the 3rd least preferred with 13%, SURFING being the 4th least preferred with 9%, and VIDEO, MOVIES, & SONGS DOWNLOAD being the 5th least preferred with 6%. Out of the total sample surveyed, 28(32%) sample units chose their 3G Service on the basis of SPEED OF CONNECTION/TRANSFER of its service provider. 22 (25%) sample units chose on basis of BRAND NAME of their service provider, 18 (21%) sample units chose their service provider by getting affected through its

ADVERTISEMENT, 8 (9%) sample units chose their service provider on the basis of the BASIC COST OF DEVICE/SIM, 7 (8%) sample units chose their service provider ON REFERENCE & 4 (4%) sample units chose their service provider on the basis of the data charges being charged to them by the service provider.

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CHAPTER 4 Study of Customer Satisfaction from 3G Services

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4.1. Introduction
Customer Satisfaction
After studying about the factors of selection of a particular 3G Service, it is very important to know about the level of customer satisfaction as both the concepts are inter-related with each other. For any firm or service provider it is very necessary to keep their customers satisfied with their services and to frequently know about their needs. If the customers are not satisfied it can happen that the number of customers would dip and there be decreasing profitability.

Definition of Customer Satisfaction:


Customer satisfaction, according to Richard L. Oliver: Satisfaction is a customers fulfillment response. It is a judgment that a product or service feature, or the product or service itself, provides a pleasurable level of consumption related fulfillment. Customer satisfaction, according to Philip Kotler: Satisfaction is a persons feeling of pleasure or disappointment resulting from comparing a products perceived performance (or outcome) in relation to his experience.

As this definition makes clear, satisfaction is a function of perceived performance and expectations. If the performance falls short of expectations, the customer is dissatisfied. If the performance matches the expectations, the customer is satisfied. If the performance exceeds expectations, the customer is delighted.

The recent times have seen the paradigm shift from customer satisfaction to customer delight or even customer ecstasy!

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Why to Measure Customer Satisfaction?


In todays competitive environment, every organization is trying to attract the customers by assuring highest degree of satisfaction. Satisfied customers are the main determinants of success or failure of the business of an organization. Customer satisfaction is measured in subjective as well as objective terms, to know that up to what extent the organizations business processes and products are able to satisfy the customers.

Customer satisfaction measurement helps the organization to know:


How well are the products and services able to meet customer needs and expectations? How well is the business process working? Where to make the changes to improve the performance of product or process? What is the effect of the changes made for improvements?

Customers, who are satisfied, come and continue to buy the products and services of the organization. They also recommend the products to other buyers. Acute measurement of customer satisfaction helps in identification of the gap between the customer expectations and real performance of the product supplied by the organization.

If the customers are not satisfied with the products and services of the organization, the reasons for dissatisfaction are identified and timely corrective and preventive action is taken to meet the customer expectations. The purpose of customer satisfaction measurement is to provide actionable information that will facilitate the organization to manage and improve product quality as well as to measurement it accurately.

It is seen as a key performance indicator within business and is often part of a Balanced Scorecard. In a competitive marketplace where businesses compete for customers, customer satisfaction is seen as a key
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differentiator and increasingly has become a key element of business strategy.

"Within organizations, customer satisfaction ratings can have powerful effects. They focus employees on the importance of fulfilling customers expectations. Furthermore, when these ratings dip, they warn of problems that can affect sales and profitability. . . .

These metrics quantify an important dynamic. When a brand has loyal customers, it gains positive word-of-mouth marketing, which is both free and highly effective." Therefore, it is essential for businesses to effectively manage customer satisfaction. To be able do this, firms need reliable and representative measures of satisfaction.

"In researching satisfaction, firms generally ask customers whether their product or service has met or exceeded expectations. Thus, expectations are a key factor behind satisfaction. When customers have high expectations and the reality falls short, they will be disappointed and will likely rate their experience as less than satisfying. For this reason, a luxury resort, for example, might receive a lower satisfaction rating than a budget motel even though its facilities and service would be deemed superior in 'absolute' terms."

There are at least three levels of customer expectations about quality:


Level 1: Expectations are very simple and take the form of assumptions, must have, or take it for granted. For example, I expect the airline to be able to take off, fly to my destination, and land safely. I expect to get the correct blood for my blood transfusion. And I expect the bank to deposit my money to my account and to keep a correct tally for me.

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Level 2: Expectations are a step higher than that of level 1 and they require some form of satisfaction through meeting the requirements and/or specifications. For example, I expect to be treated courteously by all airline personnel. I went to the hospital expecting to have my hernia repaired, to be in some pain after it was done, to be out on the same day, and to receive a correct bill. And I went to the bank expecting the bank teller to be friendly, informative, and helpful with my transactions.

Level 3: Expectations are much higher than for levels 1 and 2. Level 3 requires some kind of delightfulness or a service that is so good that it attracts me to it. For example, an airline gives passengers traveling coach class the same superior food service that other airlines provide only for first-class passengers. In fact, I once took a flight where the flight attendants actually baked cookies for us right there on the plane. When I went to the hospital, I expected staff to treat me with respect and they carefully explained things to me. But I was surprised when they called me at home the next day to find out how I was doing. And at my house closing, the bank officer, representing the bank holding my mortgage, not only treated me with respect and answered all my questions about my new mortgage, but just before we shook hands to close the deal, he gave me a housewarming gift.

The importance of customer satisfaction diminishes when a firm has increased bargaining power. For example, cell phone plan providers, such as BSNL and Vodafone, participate in an industry that is an oligopoly, where only a few suppliers of a certain product or service exist. As such, many cell phone plan contracts have a lot of fine print with provisions that they would never get away if there were, say, a hundred cell phone plan providers, because customer satisfaction would be way too low, and customers would easily have the option of leaving for a better contract offer.

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Customer satisfaction provides a leading indicator of consumer purchase intentions and loyalty. Customer satisfaction data are among the most frequently collected indicators of market perceptions. Their principal use is two-fold:

Within organizations, the collection, analysis and dissemination of these data send a message about the importance of tending to customers and ensuring that they have a positive experience with the companys goods and services.

Although sales or market share can indicate how well a firm is performing currently, satisfaction is perhaps the best indicator of how likely it is that the firms customers will make further purchases in the future. Much research has focused on the relationship between customer satisfaction and retention. Studies indicate that the ramifications of satisfaction are most strongly realized at the extremes. On a five-point scale, individuals who rate their satisfaction level as '5' are likely to become return customers and might even evangelize for the firm. Individuals who rate their satisfaction level as '1,' by contrast, are unlikely to return. Further, they can hurt the firm by making negative comments about it to prospective customers. Willingness to recommend is a key metric relating to customer satisfaction.

Construction:
Organizations need to retain existing customers while targeting noncustomers. Measuring customer satisfaction provides an indication of how successful the organization is at providing products and/or services to the marketplace.

Customer satisfaction is measured at the individual level, but it is almost always reported at an aggregate level. It can be, and often is, measured along various dimensions.

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As research on consumption experiences grows, evidence suggests that consumers purchase goods and services for a combination of two types of benefits: hedonic and utilitarian. Hedonic benefits are associated with the sensory and experiential attributes of the product. Utilitarian benefits of a product are associated with the more instrumental and functional attributes of the product (Batra and Athola 1990).

Customer satisfaction is an ambiguous and abstract concept and the actual manifestation of the state of satisfaction will vary from person to person and product/service to product/service. The state of satisfaction depends on a number of both psychological and physical variables which correlate with satisfaction behaviors such as return and recommend rate. The level of satisfaction can also vary depending on other options the customer may

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have and other products against which the customer can compare the organization's products.

The usual measures of customer satisfaction involve a survey with a set of statements using a Likert Technique or Scale. The customer is asked to evaluate each statement and in term of their perception and expectation of performance of the organization being measured. Their satisfaction is generally measured on a 5-point scale.

Customer satisfaction data can also be collected on a 10-point scale. Regardless of the scale used, the objective is to measure customers perceived satisfaction with their experience of a firms offerings. It is essential for firms to effectively manage customer satisfaction. To be able do this, we need accurate measurement of satisfaction.

Good quality measures need to have high satisfaction loadings, good reliability, and low error variances.

It seems that dependent on a trade-off between length of the questionnaire and quality of satisfaction measure, these scales seem to be good options for measuring customer satisfaction in academic and applied studies research alike. All other measures tested consistently performed worse than the top three measures, and/or their performance varied significantly across the two service contexts in their study. These results suggest that more careful pretesting would be prudent should these measures be used.

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4.2. Primary Data


Best Feature of Current 3G Service Network Coverage Security Speed Of Connection Customer Care Service Data Charges User-Friendliness Total 19 4 44 7 8 5 87

Best Feature of Current 3G Service


9% 8% 5% 6%

22%
Network Coverage Security Speed Of Connection Customer Care Service

50%

Data Charges User-Friendliness

OBSERVATION: From the above Pie-Chart it is observed that SPEED OF CONNECTION/DATA TRANSFER is chose as the best feature of the 3G Service being provided with 50% of respondents selecting it. NETWORK COVERAGE being the 2nd best feature with 22%, DATA CHARGES being 3 rd with 9%, CUSTOMER CARE SERVICES standing 4th with 8%, the USERFRIENDLINESS being 5th with 6% and the feature that least affected the respondents is the SECURITY being provided by the 3G Service Providers with 5%.

ANALYSIS: From the observation made above it can be stated that the BEST FEATURE being chose by the majority of the 3G Service user respondents is its SPEED OF CONNECTION that is being provided to their customers by their service provider. The feature that lacked in the race is SECURITY that is being provided by the service provider.

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Strongly Satisfied Satisfied Neutral Dissatisfied Strongly Dissatisfied Total

Satisfaction From 3G Service 36 35 13 3 0 87

Satisfaction From 3G Service


4% 15% Strongly Satisfied 41% Satisfied Neutral Dissatisfied 40% Strongly Dissatisfied

OBSERVATION: From the above Pie-Chart it is observed that the LEVEL OF SATISFACTION amongst the user respondents of 3G Services is: 41% of the respondents are STRONGLY SATISFIED with the services being provided to them whereas 40% of the respondents are just SATISFIED with the services being provided by their operators. 15% respondents are NEUTRAL towards the service being provided to them whereas 4% of the respondents are DISSATISFIED with the services being provided to them.

ANALYSIS: From the above observation made, it can be clearly said that the majority of the respondents that are using their 3G services are STONGLY SATISFIED with the services provided to them whereas only few are such who are not satisfied with the service that is being provided to them by their service provider.

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Fulfillment Of Promises Yes No Somewhat Total 74 3 10 87

Fullfilment Of Promises

12% 3% Yes

No

85%

Somewhat

OBSERVATION: From the above Pie-chart it is observed that the majority of respondents i.e. 85% accept that the promises that were being made to them by their service provider are FULFILLED whereas 12% of the respondents think that the promises that were being made to them are PARTIALLY FULFILLED by their service provider and 3% of the respondents agree that the promises that were being made to them are NOT FULFILLED.

ANALYSIS: From the above observation being made it can be stated that the majority of the respondents agree that the promises made to them are totally FULFILLED.

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4.3. Conclusion
It can be concluded from the above analysis that SPEED OF CONNECTION/DATA TRANSFER is chose as the best feature of the 3G Service being provided with 50% of respondents selecting it. NETWORK COVERAGE being the 2nd best feature with 22%, DATA CHARGES being 3rd with 9%, CUSTOMER CARE SERVICES standing 4th with 8%, the USER-FRIENDLINESS being 5th with 6% and the feature that least affected the respondents is the SECURITY being provided by the 3G Service Providers with 5%. It can be concluded from the above analysis of customer satisfaction that the LEVEL OF SATISFACTION amongst the user respondents of 3G Services is: 41% of the respondents are STRONGLY SATISFIED with the services being provided to them whereas 40% of the respondents are just SATISFIED with the services being provided by their operators. 15% respondents are NEUTRAL towards the service being provided to them whereas 4% of the respondents are DISSATISFIED with the services being provided to them. It can be concluded that the majority of respondents i.e. 85% accept that the promises that were being made to them by their service provider are FULFILLED whereas 12% of the respondents think that the promises that were being made to them are PARTIALLY FULFILLED by their service provider and 3% of the respondents agree that the promises that were being made to them are NOT FULFILLED.

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CHAPTER 5 Conclusion

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5.1. Conclusion
The Study about the Awareness and Preference of 3G Services in Gandhinagar City can be concluded on the basis of the survey and its analysis thereto which follows hereby: The number of MALE respondents is in majority (71%) whereas the number of FEMALE respondents is in minority (29%). It can be stated that majority of the respondents are YOUTH (between 18-25 years of age group) (58%) i.e. youngsters, students, freshers, etc. Majority of the respondents i.e. 56 (49%) respondents are STUDENTS from different colleges and various streams. Majority of the respondents i.e. 107 (89%) RESPONDENTS OUT OF 120 ARE AWARE ABOUT THE 3G SERVICES who are mostly the youngsters of the age group 18-25 years, as this is the segment which are much affected by the new innovations in technology for the betterment in services.

The major source of information about 3G Service for the majority of the respondent is TELEVISION i.e. of total population surveyed, 40% OF THE SAMPLE UNITS FOUND THE INFORMATION ON 3G SERVICES FROM TELEVISION. Of the total sample surveyed, 72% i.e. 87 RESPONDENTS ARE EXISTING USER OF 3G SERVICES. Youngsters, students, etc. are those majority respondents that currently use 3G Services.

The LEADING OPERATOR IN PROVIDING 3G SERVICES IS VODAFONE 3G with 21 users out of the total 87 users of 3G Service. The next being RELIANCE; standing 3rd is IDEA and AIRTEL standing 4th.
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Out of the total users of 3G Services i.e.72%, 40% of the sample are using 3G Services on BOTH, i.e., ON CELL PHONE AS WELL AS ON NET SETTER. In todays generation most of the youngsters own their personal laptops or an 3G enabled cell phone so, they prefer to use the 3G Services through both the mode hence, both being the most preferred mode of use. Of the total population surveyed, 64% OF THE SAMPLE SIZE USES 3G SERVICE FOR INTERNET PURPOSE. The 2nd most preferred service being used by 3G Service being COMMUNICATION be it as VOICE/VIDEO CALLING. The MOST PREFERRED 3G SERVICE IS SURFING, 2nd - VIDEO CALLING, 3rd - VIDEO, MOVIES & SONGS DOWNLOADING, 4th ONLINE GAMING and the 5th - LIVE TV. The basic reason for the selection of their current 3G Service provider for our user respondents of 3G Services is the SPEED OF CONNECTION/DATA TRANSFER that is being provided to them by their particular Service Provider and hence, as Vodafone is the leading in the users of 3G Services it means that the SPEED OF CONNECTION OR DATA TRANSFER RATE IS BEST PROVIDED BY VODAFONE. The BEST FEATURE being chosen by the majority of the 3G Service user respondents is its SPEED OF CONNECTION that is being provided to their customers by their service provider. The feature that lacked in the race is SECURITY that is being provided by the service provider.

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The MAJORITY OF THE RESPONDENTS THAT ARE USING THEIR 3G SERVICES ARE STONGLY SATISFIED with the services provided to them whereas only few are such who are not satisfied with the service that is being provided to them by their service provider. The majority of respondents i.e. 85% ACCEPT THAT THE PROMISES THAT WERE BEING MADE TO THEM BY THEIR SERVICE PROVIDER ARE FULFILLED.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

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BOOKS:
Kothari, D. C. (2004). Research Methodology: Methods and Techniques. New Age International; 2nd Edition. Kotler, P., & Keller, K. L. (January 1, 2006). Marketing Management. Prentice Hall; 12th Edition. Kotler, P., Keller, K. L., Abraham, K., & Jha, M. (May, 2008). Marketing Management: A South Asian Perspective. Pearson Prentice Hall, 13th Edition.

MAGAZINES:
Business World Business Outlook

NEWS PAPERS:
Times of India Business Standard The Hindu

INTERNET:
Search Engines: www.google.com www.yahoo.com Websites/Portals: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/3G www.timesofindia.com www.telecomtalk.in http://www.dciexpo.com/3g/development-from-2g-to-3g.php www.themobileindian.in

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ANNEXURE

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GROUP No. 16

*Note: This survey is purely researched based and would not be used for any secondary purpose.
Tick your opinion in the boxes provided.

A STUDY ON AWARENESS AND PREFRENCE OF 3G SERVICES IN GANDHINAGAR Questionnaire


Q.1. Name: ____________________________________________________________________ Q.2. Gender: Male Q.3. Age: A) Between 18-25 years B) Between 25-35 years Q.4. Profession: A) Employed B) Self-Employed Female

C) Over 35

C) Student D) Other

Q.5. Are you aware about 3G services? A) Yes C) No B) Somewhat Q.6. How do you find out information about 3G SERVICES A) TV E) Leaflets/Pamphlet B) Newspapers F) In local outlet C) Magazines G) From friends or colleagues D) E-mail H) Other (PLEASE WRITE IN) _________________________________ Q.7. Are you current user of 3G services? A) Yes B) No
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Q.8. If YES, then which service provider you are using? A) Airtel E) Aircel B) Vodafone F) BSNL C) Reliance G) MTNL D) Idea H) Other

H )

Q.9. If NO, then are you planning to shift to 3G in near future?O A) Yes C) Cant Say t B) No h Q.10. If NO, then why is that so? Due to its: A) High cost B) Poor network C) Not interested e r D) High data charges E) Lack of information F) Other (Specify) ____________________________

Q.11. If you do not use any of the 3G service, then which one would you prefer in future? A) Airtel E) Aircel B) Vodafone F) BSNL C) Reliance G) MTNL H D) Idea H) Other ) Q.12. How do you use the 3G service? A) On Cell Phone B) Through Data Stick (Net Setter) O C) Both t h e r Q.13. For what purpose do you want to use 3G services? A) Entertainment B) Communication (voice/video call) C) Internet Access D) Other, specify ____________________

Q.14. Rate the following 3G services according to your preference: (1 for lowest & 5 for highest): Video calling Live TV Online gaming Video, Movies and songs downloading Surfing

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Q.15. On what basis did you choose your current service provider for 3G service? (Rank the factor that affected the most, from 1 to 6) A) Brand Name D) Data Charges B) Speed of Data Connection/Transfer E) Advertisement C) Basic Cost of Device/Sim F) On Reference Q.16. Which is the best feature of your current service provider in 3G Service? A) Network Coverage D) Customer Care Services B) Security E) Data Charges C) Speed of Data Connection/Transfer F) Usage (User-Friendliness) Q.17. Are you satisfied with the services being provided to you? A) Strongly Satisfied B) Satisfied C) Neutral D) Dissatisfied E) Strongly Dissatisfied

Q.18. Are the promises made by the service provider fulfilled of your 3G Service? A) Yes B) No C) Somewhat

*THANKS FOR YOUR TIME AND ASSISTANCE IN TAKING PART IN THIS REPORT*

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