Research Methodology Term Paper

8/12/2019 Research Methodology Term Paper

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Objectives

To understand improvement and customer preference in Broadband sector To study the broadband service providers and their service quality To study customer satisfaction and the current market scenario

Literature survey

Broadband connectivity(Government of India, 2004)

Keeping in view the present status, Broadband connectivity is defined at present as an

always-on data connection that is able to support interactive services including Internet

access and has the capability of the minimum download speed of 256 kilo bits per second

(kbps) to an individual subscriber from the Point Of Presence (POP) of the service provider

intending to provide Broadband service where multiple such individual Broadband

connections are aggregated and the subscriber is able to access these interactive services

including the Internet through this POP. The interactive services will exclude any services

for which a separate licence is specifically required, for example, real-time voice

transmission, except to the extent that it is presently permitted under ISP licence with Internet

Telephony.

Technology Options for Broadband Services

The Broadband Policy Framework visualises creation of infrastructure through various access

technologies which can contribute to growth and can mutually coexist. Spread of

infrastructure is a must for healthy competition and therefore it would be the endeavour of the

Government that the telecommunication infrastructure growth in the country is not

compromised in any manner.

Various access technologies, inter-alia, are:

(a) Optical Fibre Technologies

The fibre optics technology can provide nearly unlimited bandwidth potential and is steadily

replacing copper network especially in intra-city backbone networks. This is being deployed

in commercial buildings and complexes and some metros / big cities having high-densitypotential broadband subscribers. Hybrid Fibre Coaxial (HFC), Fibre to the Curb (FTTC) and

Fibre to the Home (FTTH) networks make use of fibre cabling into the last mile. The fibre

based models are future proof as they are able to provide huge amounts of bandwidth in the

last mile as well as provide a true IP and converged network that can deliver high quality

voice, data and video.

There are more than 4.5 lakh route kms. of optical fibre laid by BSNL / MTNL and more than

1 lakh route kms laid by private operators. The spread of the networks of private service

providers have to play an important role in bringing the fibre to homes as well as the rural

areas and they are expected to focus on it.


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With the increase in commercial availability of fibre technologies, the cost of fibre rollout is

approaching the cost of other wired networks. Spread of optical fibre networks shall be

emphasised keeping in view the long-term perspective.

(b) Digital Subscriber Lines (DSL) on copper loop :

DSL has proved to be an important technology for provisioning of Broadband services

through the copper loop. The owners of copper loop have to be given a high priority because

their role is critical as key drivers in the Broadband service market using DSL.

Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL)

as well as other access providers are expected to aggressively use their copper loop

infrastructure for providing Broadband services through this technology.

Recognising that last mile copper loop is not a bottleneck facility for broadband services,

access providers shall be free to enter into mutually agreed commercial arrangements forutilization of available copper loop for expansion of broadband services. The owner of local

loop shall be free to decide the areas in which investment is to be made to upgrade the

infrastructure for Broadband services. The information regarding the areas in which

Broadband services are being offered by a service provider shall be available in the public

domain.

Further, use of brand-name being treated as a part of the value shall be permitted in such

commercial arrangements.

There are more than 40 million copper loops in the country available with BSNL and MTNLout of which 14 million loops are in rural areas. Copper cable network of these operators is a

combination of old and new cable and this makes provisioning of Broadband on all the

available copper loop technically unfit. Therefore, around 25-30% of the remaining 26

million loops, i.e. approximately 7 million loops can be leveraged for broadband service by

BSNL and MTNL taking into account the condition / life of copper cable and demand

potential.

The corporate / work plans of these PSUs have been drawn up for this purpose. Thereafter,

annual plan for expansion of Broadband services by BSNL and MTNL will be determined in

consultation with them. A quarterly review of their performance by the Government in theDepartment of Telecommunications (DoT) shall be undertaken to evaluate the achievement

and redefine the future roadmap, if necessary.

It is hoped that other access service providers would also provide broadband connections

using their copper in a targeted manner. A constructive review of their performance shall

also be undertaken.

(c) Cable TV Network

It is noted that cable TV connection as last mile infrastructure reaches more people than even

the telephone copper infrastructure and can be leveraged in providing cable operators a new


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business model while giving a stimulus to Broadband penetration. Therefore, Cable TV

network can be used as franchisee network of the service provider for provisioning

Broadband services. However, all responsibilities for ensuring compliance of terms &

conditions of the licence shall vest with the Licensee. The terms of franchise agreement

between Licensee and his franchisee shall be settled mutually by negotiation between the twoparties involved.

(d) Satellite Media

Very Small Aperture Terminals (VSAT) and Direct-to-Home (DTH) services would be

encouraged for penetration of Broadband and Internet services with the added advantage to

serve remote and inaccessible areas.

It is the intention of the Government to make available transponder capacity for VSAT

services at competitive rates after taking into consideration the security requirements.

Department of Space is already interacting with VSAT service providers. Department ofTelecommunications, in consultation with the concerned Ministries, will soon propose

measures in the direction of Open Sky Policy for VSAT operators. The role of Department of

Space is critical in such an endeavour.

VSAT service providers are permitted to transmit data up to 2Mbps instead of earlier limit of

512 kbps in a Closed User Group domestic VSAT network. The increased data rate allows

new applications like bulk data transfer for software industry, high-speed backhaul links, in-

house training using audio-visual etc. Reduction in antenna size enables easy installation,

lower space occupancy, lower cost of hardware etc. Accordingly, the antenna size has been

reduced to 1.2 metres and 2.4 metres for star network and mesh network respectively in

extended C-band. In Ku-band also, 1 metre diameter antenna in star network has been

permitted. To keep pace with technological advances, this shall be periodically reviewed.

Commercial VSAT service providers having ISP licence shall be permitted use of same hub

station and remote station to provide Internet service directly to the subscribers. Further, this

remote station shall be permitted to be used as a distribution point to provide Internet services

to multiple independent subscribers. Necessary amendments in the licence agreement shall

be carried out immediately.

DTH service providers shall be permitted to provide Receive Only Internet Service after

obtaining ISP licence from Department of Telecommunications. Further, ISP licensees shall

be permitted to allow customers for downloading data through DTH after obtaining necessary

permission from the competent authority. DTH Service providers will also be permitted to

provide bidirectional Internet services after obtaining VSAT and ISP licence from DoT.

(e) Terrestrial Wireless

Recognising that terrestrial wireless is another upcoming technology platform for

Broadband, it has been decided in principle to de-licence 2.40-2.48 GHz band for low-power

outdoor use on non-protection, non-interference and non-exclusive basis. Necessary

notification shall be issued. Further, notification regarding delicensing 2.40-2.4835 MHz


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band for low power indoor permitting use of all technologies, which inter-alia include those

based on IEEE 802.11b and 802.11g standards, has been issued.

To accelerate penetration of Broadband and Internet, the 5.15-5.35 GHz band shall be de-

licensed for the indoor use of low power Wi-Fi systems. For outdoor use, the band 5.25-5.35

GHz shall be de-licensed in consultation with DoS and delicensing in the band 5.15-5.25

GHz would be considered after the process of vacation. Alternative spectrum bands which

are not in high usage and could be deployed for Broadband services shall also be explored

and identified.

(f) Future Technologies

In the changing technology scenario, there is a possibility of new options being used for

provisioning of Broadband services. These technologies can also be utilised for provisioning

of such services within the licensing framework of the service provider and the spectrum

management policy of DoT.

Trends in the Industry (Thakkar)

Rise in Cloud Computing: As improved broadband capacity helps to overcome network

bottlenecks, cloud-based offerings from telecom operators and ICT providers will continue to

grow.

One Nation, One License Policy: With this, there is no difference between Local and other

states internet users. This also means that there is no roaming ch arges while in India.

Digitization of Cable TV: This will help the government to pursue India's broadband goals

and thereby help to boost economic growth.

Smart devices and Digital content: As 3G will be stabilized by 2012 end which will fuel 4G,

smart devices like tablet, smart phone, smart TV will become a media for video and digital

content consumption. Bharti recently set the trend by launching 4G services in India.

The growth of Indian telecommunication sector is highly driven by supportive government

policies, emerging new technologies and changing consumer behavior. The fact that the

industry has made stupendous growth in recent times is reflected in the statistics below:

Key Statistics (Thakkar)

Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has revealed that the country's mobilesubscriber base has increased from 893.84 million in December 2011 to 903.73

million in January 2012.

Telecom operators added 9.88 million mobile subscribers in January 2012. The overall tele-density reached 77.57 per cent. Broadband subscriber base increased from 13.30 million at the end of December 2011

to 13.42 million at the end of January 2012.


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BROADBAND SUBSCRIBERS IN INDIA : (Saxena, 2012)

Sate/Telecom Circle Sep 11 % of total

Maharashtra(including Mumbai & Goa) 2244933 17.65

Tamil Nadu(including Chennai) 1525073 11.99

Karnataka 1295493 10.19

Andhra Pradesh 1262379 9.93

Delhi/NCR 1012080 7.96

Kerala 876728 6.89

Gujarat 781781 6.15

Uttar Pradesh(incl Uttarakhand) 671571 5.28

Punjab 636454 5.00

West Bengal(incl Kolkata) 568139 4.47

Madhya Pradesh(incl Chhattisgarh) 490146 3.85

Rajasthan 405490 3.19

Haryana 2090328 2.28

Orissa 208386 1.64

Bihar 179243 1.41

Assam 81865 0.64


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Himachal Pradesh 73236 0.58

Jammu & Kashmir 59128 0.46

North East 49337 0.39

Andaman & Nicobar 5814 0.05

Not Segmented 404 0.00

Total Broadband Users 12718008

Top 5 fixed broadband service providers in India based on user base on July 12: (Lead)

The state-run telecom operator BSNL continues to lead Indian fixed broadband market with

63.7 percent share in July 2012.

Top five ISPs in terms of market share based on subscriber base include: BSNL (9.36

million), Bharti Airtel (1.37 million), MTNL (1.08 million), You Broadband (0.66 million)

and Hathway (0.37 million).

According to TRAI,Indias broadband subscriber base has increased to 14.68 million in July

2012 from from 14.50 million in June 2012, up 1.2 percent.


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Broadband Subscribers Share (Technology wise) (Indiamart)

Active Wireless Connections : (Medianama)

The mobile connection base increased to 929.36 Million in May as compared to 921.01

Million in April, an increase of 0.91%, but on a comparatively larger base. 74.17% of mobile

connections are active a total of 689.31 million connections, but this includes multi-SIM

users, so the total mobile user base is likely to be smaller.

51%

12%

4%

0%

3%0%

30%

0%

Broadband Subscriber Share

DSL

Radio (Wirelss)

Cable Modem

Leased Line

Ethernet LAN

Fibre

Dialup

Others


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Quality of Service (QoS)

As per TRAI Act, 1997, TRAI has to prescribe QoS parameters. Government recognises that

QoS parameters are extremely important and have an impact on investment and roll-out

decisions of operators.

The QoSparameters: (TRAI, 2012)

Service activation/ provisioning:

This refers to the activation of services after activation of the SIM. This involves

programming the various databases with the customer's information and any gateways to

standard Internet chat or mail services or any data services. The service provider typically

sends these settings to the subscriber's handset using SMS or WAP.

Successful data transmissions download attempts:

The successful data download attempts is defined as the ratio of successful data downloads to

the total number of data download attempts in a specified time period. A data transmission is

successful if a test file is downloaded completely and with no errors.

Successful data transmission upload attempts:

The successful data upload attempts is defined as the ratio of successful data uploads to the

total number of data upload attempts in a specified time period. A data upload is successful if

a test file is uploaded completely and with no errors.

Minimum download speed:

The download speed is defined as the data transmission rate that is achieved for downloading

a test file from a test server to a test device.

Measurement: The minimum download speed should be calculated from test calls made

according to the measurement set-up. Test calls are to be made to weigh the results according

to the patterns of real traffic. Minimum download speed shall be average of the lower 10% of

all such test calls.

Average Throughput for Packet data:

It is defined as the rate at which packets are transmitted in a network. In a mobile network the

download speed varies depending on the number of users in a particular location. Even

though a service provider may be advertising certain speed, the actual speed may vary as per

the number of users in the network and there could be customer dissatisfaction on account of

relatively slow speed. Hence, there is a need to prescribe an average throughput to protect the

interest of consumers. The service providers need to constantly upgrade their network to meet

average throughput benchmark.

The service provider will advertise the throughput being offered to its customers as per theircategory or plan and it should be meted out as per their commitment.


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Latency:

Latency is the amount of time taken by a packet to reach the receiving endpoint after being

transmitted from the sending point. This time period is termed the "end-to-end delay"

occurring along the transmission path. Latency generally refers to network conditions, such

as congestion, that may affect the overall time required for transit.

PDP Context Activation Success Rate

A Packet Data Protocol (PDP) context specifies access to an external packet-switching

network. The data associated with the PDP context contains information such as the type of

packet-switching network, the Mobile Station PDP (MS PDP) address that is the IP address,

the reference of Gateway GPRS Support Node (GGSN), and the requested QoS.

Drop Rate:

It measures the inability of Network to maintain a connection and is defined as the ratio of

abnormal disconnects w.r.t. all disconnects (both normal and abnormal). An abnormal

disconnect may happen because of Radio Link Failures, Uplink (UL) or Downlink (DL)

interference, bad coverage, unsuccessful handovers or any other reason. The drop rate is to be

measured for all generations of the technologies separately.

Simplification of SACFA / WPC clearance

The VSAT operators shall be allowed to start the installation process for VSAT terminals

after a period of one month of submitting all relevant documents to WPC for SACFA / WPC

clearance wherever the total height of such installation is less than 5 meters above the rooftop

of an authorised building.

In the case of Receive Only VSAT terminals and DTH with Receive Only Internet, no

SACFA / WPC clearance will be required wherever the total height of such installation is less

than 5 meters above the rooftop of an authorised building.

Government have decided that the reference to WLL in IND49 of NFAP-2002 shall be

deleted to promote use of indigenously developed technologies. This would enable service

providers, other than basic service operators, to use the 1880-1900 MHz band for provision of

various services under their licence.

A transparent scheme is being outlined separately for time-bound frequency allocation, siting

clearance and wireless licensing by removing the cumbersome procedures, computerisation

and by setting predetermined standards.

Other Issues

Bandwidth availability including international bandwidth is a major driver for broadband

services. In a competitive environment, service providers are expected to take appropriate

steps for making required bandwidth available in a time bound manner within their licenceframework. Cost of bandwidth constitutes a major cost component for Broadband services.


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3) Articles4) Magazines/Project reports5) Newspapers

Research Objectives

To understand improvement and customer preference in Broadband sector To study the broadband service providers and their service quality To study customer satisfaction and the current market scenario

Samples

Sample size : 60 Sample frame : Ahmedabad city Sampling method : Simple random sampling Constraints : Time, number of respondents Survey : Questionnaire

Observations and Findings

1. Age group :a. Above 15

b.

15- 25

c. 25- 45d. Above 45

0

40

15

5

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

Below 15 15-25 25-45 >45

Age Group

No.(out 0f 60)


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2. Gender :a. male

b. female

3. Whose service are you rendering now?

Through above analysis, we can easily find out that majority of the people still prefer

BSNL more. BSNL is clear winner with 40% and other side all other service provider

are in tough competition.

4. Which technology do you prefer?As per data, it can be analyzed that in spite of tough competition between DSL and Mobile

broadband service providers, DSL has earned a huge market with 50%. There are only 10%

people who use cable technology. Only 25% people use Mobile broadband which is very less

compared to the level of competition and DSLs market share.

80

20

Gender

Male

Female

40

1020

10

10

10

Service Providers

BSNL

Reliance

Airtel

Tata

Tikona

Others


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5. How long have you been using this connection of your service provider?From the below analysis, it can be found that 45% of the people have kept their

connection for 1-3 years, whereas only 5% of the total people prefer to keep the

existing connection for more than 5 years.

6. Rate your satisfaction level of your service provider.Customers satisfaction plays a crucial role for service providers. In the survey, 55%

people are satisfied with their service providers. Though there are people who are not

satisfied or average satisfied.

50

10

25

15

Prefered Technology

DSL

Cable

Mobile

USB

15

45

35

5

0

10

20

30

40

50

5 years

Time Period

%


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7. What kind of expectation do you have from your service provider?

As per the survey, 50% people are inclined towards speed of their connectionfollowed by consistent network of their service. Whereas only few people are

concerned about schemes provided by their service providers. Here, price and

schemes are comparatively lower.

5

30

5

55

5

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Not satisfied Average

Satisfaction

Neutral Satisfactory Extremely

Satisfied

Satisfaction Level

%

50

40

20

10

0 10 20 30 40 50 60

Speed

Consistent N/W

Price

Schemes

Percentage

Factors

Expectations

%


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8. How much do you spend per month on your broadband connection?

Spending pattern is also another criterion which is crucial for any broadband service

providers. Customers spending habits ultimately help in deciding their loyalty

towards the product. For example if a customer frequently spends money on the same

product then it shows that he prefers to buy that product than other products which

ultimately lead to his loyalty toward that brand. Maximum spending is less than

Rs.500 per month which is 45% of the total people surveyed. None of the respondent

spend more than Rs.2000 per month.

9. How do you find the behaviour of customer care executives of your service provider?

Acceptance or rejection of any product is largely depends on the services provided by

the customer care which is also known as after sales service or Customer Relationship

Management (CRM). If the company provides better service to the customer by

solving their queries, it can be successful to retain them. Similarly, in case of the

broadband service providers play a major role to retain customers by solving their

problems.

0

10

20

30

40

50

2000

45

35

20

0

Spending(monthly)

%

10

50

30

10

Customer care satisfaction

Professional & Prompt

Warm & Helpful

Not responding

Lazy & Slow


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As per the survey, it was found that 50% of the respondent find the executives are

professional and prompt in their approach only 10% customers feel that they are lazy

and slow 10% customers are not happy with the service which means customer care

executives are not responding them properly.

10.What do you think about the competition in the market?

There is a huge competition in the market in todays scenario. Many companies try to

gain many customers as they can by providing them different schemes and try to

retain the existing customers with the same. So competition is important factor and

plays an important role to earn more market share.

As per survey, it was found in survey that there are only 5% who do not have any

choice to choose their service providers and change them if they are not satisfied with

their services and facilities. But 45% customers said that they have some choice and

25% customers said that they have enough choice for the same. But 20% customers

were in dilemma and 5% were not aware of the competition.

11.Given a choice with same number, which service provider will you select?As per the findings, it can be seen that there is tough competition among Airtel, Tata

and other service providers. Tata is preferred by 30% and Airtel and other service

providers are preferred by 25% customers. BSNL is preferred by 15% people

followed by Reliance with 5%. So Tata is proffered more by customers if they are

given a choice with same number.

5

45

25

20

5

Competition

No choice

Some choices

Enough choices

Cant say

No idea


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12.Are you aware of 3G technology?There are new inventions and technologies come up in the market to enhance the

competition and make the usage much faster and also useful as well as easy to use. 3G

technology is one of those technologies. In the survey, it was asked to the customers

whether they are aware of new 3G technology or not.

The result is mentioned in the above chart. Everyone was aware with 3G technology.

15

5

3025

25

Alternate Choice

BSNL

Reliance

Tata

Airtel

Others

3G awareness

Yes

No


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13.Rate the following attributes of your service provider1. Network:

As per the findings on the basis of this attribute, it was found that 40% customers gets good

coverage followed by very good and average coverage of network with 30% and 20%

respectively. While only 5% customers get bad network and 5% customers get very bad

network.

2. Schemes:

As the graph shows, 50% customers feel that they get good schemes from their service

providers. 35% customers feel that they get average schemes from their service providers.

None of the customers finds their schemes very bad. Only 10% customers find they get bad

schemes from their service providers.

30

40

20

5 5

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

Very Good Good Average Bad Very Bad

Network Rating

%

5

50

35

10

00

10

20

30

40

50

60


Schemes

%


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3. Billing:

As the above graph shows, the billing system is good with 55% customers followed by 25%

customers feel billing system average. While very few people find their billing system is bad.

4. Customer care:As per the survey conducted and its findings, it was conducted that 35% customers find

customer care of their service provider is good and 35% customers find it as average.

So, this is the primary information which was collected through the survey from ahmedabad

city.

15

55

25

50

0

10

20

30

40

50

60


Billing

%

5

35 35

15

10

0

10

20

30

40


Customer Care

%


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Questionnaires

1. Age group :e. Above 15f. 15- 25g. 25- 45h. Above 45

2. Gender :c. maled. female

3. Whose service are you rendering now?a. BSNL

b. b. RELIANCEc. AIRTELd. TATA PHOTONe.

TIKONA

f. Others (Specify)4. Which technology do you prefer?

a. DSLb. CABLEc. Mobile phoned. USB modem

5. How long have you been using this connection of your service provider?a. less than 1 year

b. 1-3 yearsc. 3-5 yearsd. More than 5 years


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6. Rate your satisfaction level of your service provider.a. Not satisfied

b. Average satisfactionc. Neutrald. Satisfactorye. Extremely satisfied

7. What kind of expectation do you have from your service provider?a. Speed

b. Consistent networkc. Priced. Schemes

8. How much do you spend per month on your broadband connection?a. Less than 500

b. 500-1000c.

1000-2000

d. More than 20009. How do you find the behaviour of customer care executives of your service provider?

a. Very goodb. Goodc. Moderated. Bade. Very bad

10.What do you think about the competition in the market?a. No choice

b. Some choicec. Enough choiced. Cant say


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e. No idea11.Given a choice with same number, which service provider will you select?

a. BSNLb. RELIANCEc. TATAd. AIRTELe. OTHERS (Specify)

12.Are you aware of 3G technology?a. YES

b. Noc. Cant say

13.Rate the following attributes of your service providerVery Good Good Average Bad Very Bad

Network

Schemes

Billing System

Customer care


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Works CitedGovernment of India. (2004, December 13). Broadband Policy.Retrieved October 24, 2012, from

www.dot.gov.in: http://www.dot.gov.in/ntp/broadbandpolicy2004.htm

Indiamart. (n.d.). Indiamart. Retrieved 1 17, 2013, from Indiamart: http://www.indiamart.com/isp-

association-india/services.html

Lead, T. (n.d.). Telecome Lead. Retrieved December 19, 2012, from Telecome Lead:

http://www.telecomlead.com/telecom-services/top-5-fixed-broadband-service-providers-in-india-

based-on-user-base-in-july-2012/

Medianama. (n.d.). May 2012: India has 14.31M Broadband Connections. Retrieved December 18,

2012, from medi4nama: http://www.medianama.com/2012/07/223-may-2012-india-has-689-31m-

active-mobile-connections-14-31m-broadband/

Saxena, A. (2012, July 10). Statewise Broadband Subscribers in India. Retrieved December 19, 2012,

from Medi4nama: http://www.medianama.com/2012/07/223-statewise-broadband-subscribers-in-india-september-2011/

Thakkar, P. (n.d.). Technology. Retrieved December 18, 2012, from Business Review India:

http://www.businessreviewindia.in/technology/software/-telecom-industry--indias-success-story

TRAI. (2012). TRAI.New Delhi: December.

Research Methodology Term Paper

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