Our wish list for the telecom industry

From being a luxury to a necessity. From waiting for close to a decade for a telephone connection a few years ago to 900 million subscribers now - or at least this is the number being currently quoted. Even if this figure is not accurate we as a nation have certainly more than arrived in terms of telecom penetration and usage.

The past few years have been phenomenal for all stakeholders of the telecom ecosystem. The Telecom industry had been the poster boy industry for a very long time. There were no signs of trouble in this space when all industries were seriously struggling during the 2008 global economic crisis. In fact it was an industry that would get quoted all the time through that slowdown.

However, the situation in the past few quarters has been far from encouraging. Every industry person speaks of uncertain and troubled times. By the way, users too continue to complain all the time. They complain about telecom service providers and they in turn complain about the government. The favorite flogging horse seems to be government and the regulator.

The industry believes the government has a magic wand. And yes, whilst some of this might be true and the government can make changes in its policy and norms for spectrum allocation and they must, let me take a contrarian view. Is this all a blame game? Aren't there things that we can do to bring about some changes? The issues that one hears from the industry are essentially around finances and cash flow issues.

Let me therefore ask whether it was the government that drove us to be one of the cheapest telecom nations in the world? From close to a miniscule base to 900 million seems to be the hard and smart work of a lot of smart people that run this industry. Who compelled them to operate at low tariffs? Didn't it ever strike these people that we most humans, at least Indians, would spend on speaking over eating and though consumer would complain a little bit, they would easily absorb a reasonable tariff?

From Rs.16 per minute to 60 paise per minute and in some cases even lower. What percentage reduction is this? Please calculate it yourself. I am not for a second saying that the all time high tariff should have been maintained but it is clear that the market share game was the primary motivator for the unrealistic downslide in tariff. Who did this hurt? The operator and to my mind the consumer too. Had the operators maintained decent margins to reinvest in infrastructure, the consumer wouldn't be left complaining.

Are there lessons from other industries that the telecom industry can learn? Sure, there are! They need to closely study the yesteryears of the Software outsourcing industry - the time when it wasn't even termed an industry. We at CyberMedia witnessed and enabled the industry getting together (despite being competitors) to give the overall industry a sound foundation and the result shows. This industry besides becoming a force to reckon with is also responsible for putting our nation on the world map and for making us proud in developed countries who thought poorly of this (at that time) third world nation. This was achieved by a set of mature and ambitious individuals and organisations that agreed and diligently worked on common objectives and put aside their interests when speaking to the government and their customers.

Let's come back to 900 million connections. Even if it is not this number, our subscriber base is at least twice the population of the USA. Isn't it then time that we as an industry set global norms and best practices in terms of technology, infrastructure and customer service instead of frequently referring to the western world and other developed countries for what they have done for decades?

This year and the next few are going to be critical, in fact very critical, for this industry. The growth of this industry is not just important for the industry itself but for the growth of this country. From voice to data dominance - From 2G to 3G to 4G.

If India has to grow the Telecom infrastructure needs to be in absolutely the best shape. Even some of the country readiness scores now include the level of telecom in a country. The industry needs to be healthy and needs to be able to provide the highest service levels to its customers. Currently it seems to be far from here and needs the immediate and positive attention and inputs from all key stakeholders.

 

Here's our wish list for 2013.

FOR THE INDUSTRY

1. When you say something, mean it. Deliver what you have committed. If you are selling 3G then you need to ensure you are delivering full 3G as per that commitment. If your selling is based on a zero error network, the consumer needs to feel the advantages of that network.

2. Transparency is paramount. It is unfair and unethical that better tariffs exist for plans and that too better plans than what a subscriber originally opted for.

3. Work as industry. It is obvious that each individual and organization is likely to have its own agenda. But when you approach the government, be prepared and stand together. Remember the proverb United we Stand, Divided we ........ . At the recent Telecom Leadership Forum, an industry veteran mentioned that the industry does not appear united in its approach and demands.

FOR THE GOVERNMENT

1. Fair and transparent spectrum auctions please. The 2G auction has made this nation the laughing stock. And the uncertainty has made global investors across sectors nervous about India. Also when one speaks of fairness here, it means fairness not across players but also fairness to the industry. This industry has done a great job over the past decade and deserves to have healthy margins which could be deployed not just in better customer service but also in development areas that could make us global telecom leaders. Wouldn't all of us be excited if more domestic players expand their footprint across the world?

2. How about the active inclusion of a few select people from the industry in the policy and key decision making for this industry. I reiterate active - not advisory role.

3. Take the state operators to different heights. One constantly hears wonderful stories about BSNL and MTNL. Give them the absolute independence and autonomy to operate. How about ensuring that they can hire the best talent from the industry and operate in the most professional manner. Why can't they be taken to the same level as SingTel? This would benefit not just the government but also the consumers and the industry itself.

Hoshie Ghaswalla is CEO, CyberMedia (India) Limited