Performance of Grameenphone in Telecommunication Sector of Bangladesh A Comparative Study +8801924122222

1. SOUTHEAST UNIVERSITY
Department of Law Justice
Course Title: Telecommunication Law
Course Code: LLMF 3231
Assignment On:
“Performance of Grameenphone in Telecommunication Sector
of Bangladesh: A Comparative Study”
Prepared For:
Dr. Md. Jakerul Abedin
Deputy Secretary
Legislative and Parliamentary Affairs Division
Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs,
Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh
&
Guest Faculty of
Southeast University
Prepared By:
Sayef Amin
Batch 26th , Section: A
LLM(Final)- Program
Date of Submission: December 16th, 2013
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2. Letter of Transmittal
Date: 16th December, 2013
To
Dr. Md. Jakerul Abedin
Deputy Secretary
Legislative and Parliamentary Affairs Division
Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs,
Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh
And Guest Faculty of Dept. of Law & Justice
Southeast University,
Subject: Submission of an Assignment
Honorable Sir,
With due respect, I am submitting an Assignment on the topic titled Performance of
Grameenphone in Telecommunication Sector of Bangladesh: A Comparative
Study” as a partial fulfillment of my LLM (Final) Program.
I took a great pleasure in preparing the Assignment. According to your guidelines I have
been able to effectively and enthusiastically accomplish the assignment. This Assignment
attempts to describe my observation, learning and recommendations based on general
reasoning and empirical evidence. I have tried my level best to put meticulous effort for
the preparation of this Assignment. Any shortcomings or fault may arise as my
unintentional or clerical mistakes. I will wholeheartedly welcome any clarification and
suggestion for any review and conception Disseminated through this assignment. Your
active supervision and crafted guidance made it possible for me to prepare this
Assignment successfully. I remain available at your convenience to clarify any quarries if
necessary.
Therefore I sincerely hope that you will appreciate my effort and I shall be grateful if my
Assignment is accepted for the appropriate purpose.
Thanking you
Sincerely yours
Sayef Amin
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3. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
At first, I would like to thanks Almighty Allah for his kindness on me in accomplishing
this Assignment. The author is immensely grateful to all of them who have given
guidance, help and co-operation during the tenure of the study. I would like to express
my deep sense of gratitude to my respected and distinguished supervisor Dr. Md.
Jakerul Abedin Deputy Secretary, Guest Faculty, Department of Law & Justice,
Southeast University for his individual suggestions, valuable time, important information
and guidance during the study period that greatly inspired me in preparing this
Assignment successfully. Of course there are some very special names that cannot be
forgotten. I am also grateful to the Department of Law, Prime University for providing
me such an opportunity to come closer to real situation. Finally, I want to express my
deep gratitude to my family members to all well wishers whose enormous helps assisted
me to complete this Assignment.
………………………..
Sayef Amin
Program: LL.M. (Final)
Batch No: 26th, Section: A
Department of Law & Justice
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4. Table of Content:
SL.
Subject
01
Introduction
02
History
03
Ownership Structure
04
Management Body of Structure
05
Supplier conduct
06
Brand and Product
07
Mission , Vision and Values
08
Sponsorship Policy:- Sponsorship focus areas, Sponsorship Activities
09
Products and Services
10
Using Network and Coverage
11
Products offered
12
Other services
13
GP Special offer for Customer
14
Corporate social responsibility
15
Mobile Service and Activities
16
Internet Service
17
International Roaming Service
18
Reason of choosing customer satisfaction of GP
19
Advantage and Disadvantage of GP
4

5. 20
GP High Speed 3G for better telecommunication Service
21
Financial Service
22
Own Opinion
23
Recommendations
24
Conclusion
25
Bibliography
Introduction:
The idea of providing universal mobile phone access throughout Bangladesh, including
its rural areas, was originally conceived by Iqbal Quadir, who is currently the founder and
director of the Legatum Center for Development and Entrepreneurship at MIT.He was
inspired by the Grameen Bank microcredit model and envisioned a business model where
a cell phone can serve as a source of income. After leaving his job as an investment
banker in the United States, Quadir traveled back to Bangladesh, after meeting and
successfully raising money from New York based investor and philanthropist Joshua
Mailman, and worked for three years gaining support from various organizations
including Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus of Grameen Bank and the
Norwegian telephone company, Telenor.He was finally successful in forming a
consortium with Telenor and Grameen Bank to establish Grameenphone. Quadir
remained a shareholder of Grameenphone until 2004.
Grameenphone received a license for cellular phone operation in Bangladesh from the
Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications on November 28, 1996. Grameenphone
started operations on March 26, 1997, the Independence Day in Bangladesh.
Grameenphone originally offered a mobile-to-mobile connectivity (widely known as GPGP connection), which created a lot of enthusiasm among the users. It became the first
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6. operator to reach the million subscriber milestone as well as ten million subscriber
milestones in Bangladesh.
History:
Grameenphone widely known as GP, is the leading telecommunications service provider
in Bangladesh. With more than 46.04 million subscribers (as of September 2013),
Grameenphone is the largest mobile phone operator in the country. It is a joint venture
enterprise between Telenor and Grameen Telecom Corporation, a non-profit sister
concern of the internationally acclaimed microfinance organization and community
development bank Grameen Bank. Telenor, the largest telecommunications company in
Norway, owns 55.8% shares of Grameenphone, Grameen Telecom owns 34.2% and the
remaining 10% is publicly held. Grameenphone was the first company to introduce GSM
technology in Bangladesh.It also established the first 24-hour Call Center to support its
subscribers. With the slogan Go Beyond, Grameenphone promises its customers to bring
the best of communication technologies so that they can Go Beyond.♣
Ownership Structure:
The shareholders of Grameenphone contribute their unique, in-depth experience in both
telecommunications and development. It is a joint venture enterprise between Telenor
(55.8%), the largest telecommunications service provider in Norway with mobile phone
operations in 12 other countries, and Grameen Telecom Corporation (34.2% ), a nonprofit organization of Bangladesh. The other 10% shares belong to general retail and
institutional investors. The technological know-how and managerial expertise of Telenor
has been instrumental in setting up such an international standard mobile phone operation
in Bangladesh. Being one of the pioneers in developing the GSM
service in Europe, Telenor has also helped to transfer this
knowledge to the local employees over the years.
The international shareholder brings technological and business
management expertise while the local shareholder provides a
presence throughout Bangladesh and a deep understanding of its
economy. Both are dedicated to Bangladesh and its struggle for
economic progress and have a deep commitment to Grameenphone and its mission to
provide affordable telephony to the entire population of Bangladesh.
Grameen Telecom, which owns 34.20% of the shares of Grameenphone, is a not-forprofit company in Bangladesh established by Professor Muhammad Yunus, winner of the

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grameenphone#Network.5B12.5D
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7. Nobel Peace Prize 2006. GTC’s mandate is to provide easy access to GSM cellular
services in rural Bangladesh and create new opportunities for income generation through
self-employment by providing villagers, mostly to the poor rural women with access to
modern information and communication-based technologies.
Grameen Telecom, with its field network, administers the Village Phone Program,
through which Grameenphone provides its services to the fast growing rural customers,
Grameen Telecom trains the operators and handles all service-related issues. GTC has
been acclaimed for the innovative Village Phone Program. GTC & its Chairman Nobel
Peace prize laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus have received several awards which
include; First ITU World information Society Award in 2005; Petersburg Prize for Use of
the IT to improve Poor People’s Lives” in 2004; GSM Association Award for “GSM in
Community Service” in 2000.
Grameen Phone Organization Structure♣ Management Body:

http://www.grameenphone.com/
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8. Supplier conduct:
The Supplier Conduct Principles (SCP) have been approved by Telenor's Board of
Directors and is a document that defines what Telenor, or Telenor-affiliated companies
such as Grameenphone, expect from its business partners.
The SCP attached specifies conduct requirements to our business partners, in this case
"Suppliers". It should be noted that "Suppliers" in this context is a much wider term than
the traditional upstream suppliers typical in a procurement setting. Suppliers, in the
context of the SCP, are defined as "any person and/or entity that has a direct contractual
relationship with Telenor and offering products and/or services to Telenor. This includes
any manufacturer, vendor, contractor, consultant, middleman, service or facilities
provider, dealer, distributor or other partner that is directly cooperating with Telenor,
however, excluding customers.
Our Brand:
The right and contemporary use of technology is the key to the progress of a nation.
Keeping this in mind, Grameenphone always brings the future proof technology in order
to facilitate your progress.The possibilities in this new world are immense and someone
as bright as you should not be behind in anyway. At the end of the day, all the individual
progresses accumulate to the progress of the beloved motherland. Grameenphone
promises you to bring the best of communication technologies so that you can Go
Beyond.♣
Our Mission:
Leading the industry and exceed customer expectations by providing the best wireless
services, making life and business easier
Our Vision:
We exist to help our customers get the full benefit of communications services in their
daily lives. We want to make it easy for customers to get what they want, when they want
it. We're here to help.
Our Values:
•
•

Make It Easy
Keep Promises
http://www.grameenphone.com/
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9. • Be Inspiring
• Be Respectful
Make it Easy We’re practical. We don't over complicate things. Everything we produce
should be easy to understand and use. No waste. No jargon. Because we never forget
we're trying to make customers' lives easier.
Keep Promises Everything we set out to do should work, or if you don't get it, we're here
to help. We're about delivery, not over promising ‐ actions not words.
Be Inspiring We are creative. We strive to bring energy into the things we do.
Everything we produce should look good, modern and fresh. We are passionate about our
business and customers.
Be Respectful We acknowledge and respect local cultures. We do not impose one
formula worldwide. We want to be a part of local communities wherever we operate. We
believe loyalty has to be earned.
Sponsorship Policy:
Grameenphone engages in sponsorship to deliver its brand promise and to create mutual
benefits for its partners. Grameenphone has been relentlessly supporting different
organizations through sponsorships to preserve and glorify our national heritage and
patronize the potential developing sectors of Bangladesh.The basic drive of our
sponsorship decision comes from patriotism and the understanding of societal
development in different potential sectors. We believe that there is still a large scope to
work together and stay close.
1. Sponsorship focus areas:
•
•
•
•
•
Sports
Art-Culture
Social Welfare
National Days
ICT Development Partner
2. Sponsorship Activities:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Partnered with Bangladesh Cricket Board and sponsored National team from 2003
to 2011
Grameenphone- the proud partner of Sports, Art-culture, social welfare national
days
Sponsored National Cricket Academy from 2007 to 2012
Sponsor of National Football Team
Golf
Tennis
Weight Lifting
National Art Exhibition
Zainul-Quamrul International Children's Painting Competition
Rabindro Utshob
National Poet's Birth Anniversary
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10. •
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Tree Plantation Movement
Police Week
Acid Survivors Welfare
Anti Drug Movement
Major events in Independence Day
Victory Day
International Mother Language Day
Bengali New Year
Inspiring to strengthen the nationalism
Products and Services:
Grameenphone has been providing cellular telecom services in Bangladesh since 1997
and now enjoys the position of telecommunications market leader in the country.
Grameenphone has already established more than 11,000 base stations all over the
country to maintain its premium quality network and meet the ever-growing
subscribers’ demand. The company is also continuously upgrading its base stations
from 900 MHz to 1800 MHz, thus ensuring sound adherence to customer
satisfaction. On top of all, the regulatory authority discourages indiscriminate
proliferation of base stations all over the country and has already circulated a
guideline for infrastructure sharing among the service providers. In respect to the
regulator’s guideline, GP has undertaken a comprehensive study to explore various
avenues of sharing its infrastructures as being the owner of most number of base
stations.
Wholesale Business Call Center (24/7) provides an array of way for you- one stop
solution provider for all Wholesale Products of Grameenphone. Our mission is to provide
highest level of customer service by reducing operational cost, improving satisfaction and
enabling flexible staffing. Our service delivery allows the valued customers to focus on
their core business and manage workload efficiently. In every case, our customers benefit
from both a measurable increase in customer contentment and the enhanced revenue that
goes hand in hand. Your satisfaction as a ‘Wholesale Business Service Line’ customer is
the best measure of success for us. As such, we value any feedback regarding our
products and services.
Using Network and Coverage:
According to Grameenphone, it has so far invested more than BDT 107 billion (USD 1.6
billion) to build the network infrastructure since 1997. It has invested over BDT 31
billion (USD 450 million) during the first three quarters of 2007 while BDT 2,100 crore
(USD 310 million) was invested in 2006 alone. Grameenphone has built the largest
cellular network in the country with over 10,000 base stations in more than 5700
locations. Presently, nearly 98 percent of the country's population is within the coverage
area of the Grameenphone network.♣

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grameenphone#Network.5B12.5D
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11. The entire Grameenphone network is also GPRS/EDGE enabled, allowing access to dialup quality speed Internet and data services from anywhere within the coverage area.
There are currently nearly 3 million GPRS/EDGE users in the Grameenphone network.
Also has 3G network at most of the urban and sub-urban area.
Products offered:
Grameenphone was the first operator to introduce the pre-paid mobile phone service in
Bangladesh in September 1999. It offers the pre-paid subscription under the name Easy
Prepaid which is currently called "Nishchinto, Amontron, Shohoj, Bondhu, Aapon,
Smile, Spondon, Business Solution prepaid". Besides Nishchinto, Amontron, Shohoj,
Bondhu, Aapon, Smile, Spondon, Business Solution, Grameenphone also offers a youth
based mobile to mobile connectivity within Bangladesh named djuice'.Grameenphone
also offers postpaid mobile service. Xplore Postpaid is the name of its post paid service.
Other services:
•
Internet : Grameenphone provides internet service in its coverage area. As it has
EDGE/GPRS enabled network, any subscriber can access to internet through this
network. Grameenphone was the first mobile operator in Bangladesh to offer
EDGE services to its subscribers.
•
BillPay : A service to enable users to pay their utility bills Electricity/Gas through
mobile.
•
CellBazaar : A service to enable users sell or buy products through mobile or
internet.
•
Various other services like Stock Information, Instant Messaging, SMS Based
Alerts/Services, Voice-based Services, Downloads, Music, Cricket Updates, Web
SMS, Mobile Backup etc.
•
MobiCash - Dreams without Boundaries: rameenphone has always been a
forerunner in satisfying customer needs in the best way possible and has
introduced new products and services in its channel. One such initiative is our
MobiCash outlets, where subscribers can avail a range of convenient and
innovative services such as:
1. Mobile Banking services of different partner banks such as; Dutch Bangla
Bank Mobile Banking Service, and One Bank OK Mobile Banking
Service
2. Customer registration and opening a mobile banking account from partner
banks Cash-in (deposit cash into your mobile banking account)
3. Cash-out (withdraw cash from your mobile banking account)
4. BillPay service for utility bill payment such as Electricity, Gas and WASA
(applicable in approved locations)
5. Flexiload
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12. GP Special offer for Customer:
Grameenphone has always strived for bringing the very best offers for its subscribers that
will suit their telecommunication needs. Based on individual subscriber’s interests
and mobile behavior we are now designing attractive and customized offers as well.
As it is obvious that people will have different preferences, likings and disliking, a
generalized offer cannot fulfill individual needs completely.
A lot of efforts are put in place to find out the best possible offer that suits best for
subscribers’ usage pattern. These offers are sent to subscribers’ mobile phone through
a specific SMS, which is called “GP Offer”. We have been sending the “GP offer”
SMS to our valued subscribers for quite some time with attractive offers. Subscribers
need to follow the instructions of the “GP offer” SMS to avail the offer. The offers
can be of different types; Voice, VAS or Data. There are no eligibility criteria to have
GP offer. Any active GP subscriber based on current usage can get attractive offers
from GP offer masking. So, if you see any SMS in your SMS inbox under the name
“GP offer”, there might be an attractive offer waiting for you. For any additional
support subscribers can call 121 (hotline) also.
Corporate social responsibility:
Grameenphone has several projects related to social responsibility. These include:
• Safe Motherhood & Infant Care Project- More than 1.7 million free primary
healthcare services to underprivileged pregnant mothers & their infants.
• Free eye care support for around 28,780 people- 3,458 eye sights restored so far.
• Awareness building on varied national issues- AIDS, National Immunization Day.
• Information boats with digitized livelihood contents and internal access for
remote riverine communities.
• Economic freedom for more than 400,000 Village Phone Operators.
• More than 500 Community Information Centers- connecting life and learning.
• Proud sponsor of Bangladesh Special Olympics team.
• Proud sponsor of Bangladesh National Cricket team.
• Employment opportunity to acid survivors.
• Scholarship for underprivileged meritorious students.
• Blood donation camps for underprivileged Thalassaemia patients.
• Establishment of Blood Bank at Bogra for underprivileged patients.
• Emergency relief effort in natural calamities.
Mobile Service and Activities:
1. Call Block Service enables subscribers to easily block unwanted calls to
their mobile phones anytime, anywhere through its Blacklist feature.
Recently, Grameenphone has also introduced the Whitelist feature to
allow only certain numbers to be able to call the subscriber, keeping all
other callers blocked.
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13. 2. The friends and Family feature comes with lower tariff so that you can
call and always stay in touch with your near and dear ones.The procedure
of F&F activation, change, addition for Prepaid and Post paid as per the
below table: Applicable product: GP Prepaid, djuice, Ekota, BS Prepaid,
Xplore and BS postpaid.
3. Missed Call Alert service provides the facility to the subscribers to get
notified about the calls that they missed due to keeping the phone switched
off or being out of network.Subscribers will be notified for Missed Call
Alert through SMS.
4. Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS) is an exciting way to share
special moments with your dear ones. You can customize your messages
with texts, pictures, animations, music, video clips (Up to 100 KB).You
can even send pictures and video clips to e-mail addresses.
5. International SMS is a very useful service that allows you to exchange
SMS with your friends, family members in foreign countries.
Currently, Grameenphone covers 188 countries, 542 operators around the
world.Grameenphone continuously helps subscribers to stay close. This
effort is to maintain that promise to subscribers.
Internet Service:
When-ever, where-ever you want to get online to access the internet, Grameenphone has
got the coverage & right solutions that will suit you. Whether you are searching for
information or looking for entertainment & social networking on your phone or a
laptop/personal computer we have the right packages & devices to cater to your needs.
Internet is the most convenient medium of information, through which people can
enhance their knowledge, spread the same from one corner of the globe to whichever
place they wish with a single click. Communication solutions developed by
Grameenphone across all the media have always focused one single thing – to help
people stay close to their dear ones and to enlighten their lives through free and flawless
access to information. Grameenphone internet is another step towards fulfilling this goal.
With this step, Grameenphone so far brought Internet to people in the following ways:
1. 1) Desktop and Laptop browsing: by using the mobile as modem or by internet
modem
2. 2) Mobile screen browsing: WAP/internet browsing on the mobile
Grameenphone is looking to expand further into the digital world by expanding its
internet platforms and developing more internet related products, thus becoming the
biggest Internet Service Provider of Bangladesh.
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14. Internet SIM:
Internet SIM is a SIM card that allows you to use internet and avail data services. Using
this SIM you can send or receive SMS and also can avail voice service from I-SIM
(Prepaid) only but voice service is barred in I SIM (Post-paid)
Feature:
•
•
•
•
You need an EDGE/GPRS modem of any brand to use this SIM.
If you use this SIM with Grameenphone Internet Modem, there will be no hassle
as it is pre-configured.
Grameenphone Internet SIM prepaid users will be able to make call from their
Internet SIM as well. The voice features and tariff of call made will be similar to
Shohoj package; migration from I-SIM (prepaid ) to any other package will not be
possible right now.
Subscriber need to use BDT 600 within one year after purchase in order to do the
balance transfer
Internet Modem:
Grameenphone has introduced a new generation high-speed Internet modem capable of
supporting GPRS/EDGE/UMTS/HSDPA. This is a multi-mode wireless terminal with
which you can browse Internet, send/receive messages/emails and use voice services
without requiring wired connections. The new Grameenphone Internet Modem is a faster,
reliable and easy to use device. A lanyard attaches the modem to its cap, eliminating any
chance of losing the modem cap.
International Roaming Service:
1. Going Abroad: Stay connected with your nearest and dearest one s with
Grameenphone International Roaming service while you are abroad. GP
International Roaming service allows you to use your own GP number while
traveling outside the country by using foreign operators’ networks. You can enjoy
Voice, SMS and Data services with Grameenphone international roaming across
the world.
2. Visiting Bangladesh: Always stay connected with nearest and dearest one while
you're visiting Bangladesh by Selecting Grameenphone Network, the widest and
strongest coverage over the country.
3. Grameenphone TravelSure: Monitor and Control your roaming expense by
availing Grameenphone TravelSure features.Grameenphone TravelSure brings
attractive offer for you all through the year. So please check before travel what
are the exciting TravelSure offers waiting for you! Also Grameenphone
TravelSure brings effective monitoring & notification features including real time
data monitoring for you so that you can have a complete picture of your roaming
consumption and control the expense as per own plan.
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15. Packages of International Roaming:
1. Standard roaming:
Standard roaming is only for postpaid customer with voice, SMS and data connectivity
while in roaming.
2. Basic Roaming:
Basic roaming is for both Postpaid and Prepaid customers with voice and SMS services
only. Specially designed for the customers who are not willing to use data service while
‘roaming’.
3. Data Roaming:
Data roaming is for postpaid customers only with data and SMS services.
4. SMS Roaming:
SMS roaming is for both postpaid and prepaid customers with SMS service. This is the
most economic roaming package.
GP High Speed 3G Service for better telecommunication Service:
Grameenphone 3G is an all-new way to experience the fast paced, truly mobile lifestyle.
Enjoy seamless upgrade to 3G on your existing GP SIM (Pre-paid or Post-paid) and
explore the world class Grameenphone 3G network for optimum speed experience &
full mobility. We are committed to ensure uninterrupted, high speed internet experience
even on the move. Even as you go beyond our 3G footprint, we will still have you
seamlessly connected over our nationwide 2G network. When launched, Grameenphone
3G services can be used in all types of devices (Smart phone, tablet & modem) as long as
the device itself is 3G enabled.
Reason of choosing customer satisfaction of GP:
GrameenPhone is a leading market in mobile telecommunication sector with its
customers perhaps not fully satisfied with company’s performance and services. If GP
does not care of these dissatisfactions for ultimate solutions, other companies might
penetrate into the market with similar or better offers. Then, it would be difficult on the
part of the GrameenPhone to keep up the current market share.
GrameenPhone is a highly growing company. It tripled its subscriber base in the year
2000. In this high growth situation, it might be very difficult to keep customers satisfied.
They are using GP’s service because of it has a large number of customer to contact. So,
if a big player from another industry can capture a sizeable number of customers, it may
appear as treat to GP.
It is therefore imperative for GP to analyze the customer’s opinion in regard to its
services an take care of the dissatisfaction, if any, to keep up the market share. This study
is aimed at reviewing the prevailing situation to assist GP so that it can take appropriate
measures for its improvement if needed.
Disadvantage of GP:
•
Culture Gap: In GrameenPhone management, employees from different country
are existed. Suppose, The Managing director is a Norwegian, Director from
15

16. •
•
•
•
•
•
technical is Indian and many more employees come from different country. That’s
why; some times there may be lack of understanding due to cultural gap.
Complicated Pricing Structure: GrameenPhone has lots of products. The
pricing of these products and their billing policies are different which also
difficult for a user to understand.
Incomplete Messages through Promotional Activities – Most of the time the
advertisement of GrameenPhone do no clear the appropriate messages. Not only
that, most of them are also so confusing to understand. As a result subscribers get
the wrong meaning of what has been said to them.
Problem Contained Offers – Recently all most all of the new offers of
GrameenPhone are having some technical problems. Either they are not working
at all or part of the services of those offers is disabled. Not only that,
GrameenPhone is also delaying to solve those problems which is only raising the
dissatisfaction level of its subscribers.
Harmful radiation network
Call rate high etc
Different Departments are not Working Together : The interconnection of the
department is little bit weak. The reason behind this, there is no exchange
program for employees to work between departments.
Advantage:
•
•
•
•
•
Economic Growth of Bangladesh: The economic growth of the country will
increase the expansion of telecommunication industry. From 1995 to 2006, there
is a huge change in telecommunication sector.
New and Better Interconnect Agreement: GrameenPhone is going to have
agreement with T&T to have better connection from land phone. The organization
has agreement with other operators like AKTEL, City Cell or Bangla Link to have
better internal connectivity.
Huge Demand for Telecom Services: The market of telecommunication is
expanding. So, this is easy for GrameenPhone to achieve the major portion of
expanded market because of its leading position.
Increased Intentional Activities in Bangladesh: As international activities
increased in the country, people need the connectivity not only in the country, but
also out side of the country. So, the market for outside of the country is also
expanding.
Declining Prices for Handsets: Few years ago the people of low income could
not effort mobile phone services due to the high price of handsets. Now the price
of handset has decreased and the low income people want to get connected
through mobile phone.
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17. •
•
New International Gateway: As BTTB has established new gateway to connect
internationally, this is easy for mobile phone companies to provide services of
ISD call and international roaming.
Flexibility of Mobile Phone: Communication through mobile phone is popular
because the land phone connection between inter city is costly. Mobile phones are
also easier to carry and because of its lower cost and portability, people are
getting more dependent on mobile phones than land phones. So there is a chance
to achieve more subscribers and more market share.
Customer Satisfaction:
•
The Customers are in the mainstream of sales oriented services. The success of
such companies largely depends on the satisfaction of the customers .The buyers
are happy if the product and/or the services meet their expectations. If their
requirements do not meet the expectations the buyers become discontented, they
are delighted when the performance fulfils their requirements.
• Customers’ past buying experiences, the opinion of friends, associates, marketer,
competitor information and promises lead to the expectations. Marketer must be
careful to set the right level of expectations. If they set expectations too low, they
may satisfy those who buy but fail to attract enough buyers. In contrast, if they
raise expectations too high, buyers are likely to be disappointed. Dissatisfaction
can arise either from a decrease in product and service quality or from an increase
in customer expectations. In either case, it presents an opportunity for companies
that can deliver superior customer value and satisfaction.
• Today most successful companies have taken the strategy of are raising
expectations and delivering performance to match. Such companies track their
customers’ expectations, perceived company performance, and customer
satisfaction. Highly satisfied customers produce several benefits for the company.
Satisfied customers are fewer prices sensitive remain customers for a longer
period and talk favorably to others about the company and its products and
services.
• Although the customer centered firm seeks to deliver high customer satisfaction
relative to its competitors, it does not attempt to maximize customer satisfaction.
A company can always increase customer satisfaction by lowering its price and
increasing its services, but it may result in lower profits. Thus, the purpose of
marketing is to generate customer value profitably.
Now, we have a very good idea regarding the importance of customer satisfaction. So, it
is also important for the company to know about the satisfaction level of the customers.
When any problem is identified, it becomes easier to solve the problem.
Grameenphone 3G Speed:
3G services will run on best in class 3.9G network technology – HSPA+ to deliver you
the optimum speed experience & seamless mobility. Experience the true difference of
Faster-net with Grameenphone 3G compared, to basic Internet.
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18. Average likely download speeds experienced with Grameenphone 3G will also depend
on the following:
•
•
The device capability as different devices support different speeds
Other factors such as location of user, distance from BTS, time of usage,
site/application being used, network traffic and number of users on the service at
that particular hour etc.
As 3G is still a wireless technology data speeds can never be guaranteed. However
Grameenphone is committed to deliver a truly great experience. Discover the exciting &
fast paced world of 3G on your Smartphone & tablets, with the number one mobile
operator. Grameenphone 3G is an all-new way to experience life on the go!
Full mobility:
We are committed to bring you the widest 3G network across Bangladesh. Even if you
move out of our 3G footprint you will seamlessly fall back on EDGE without any
interruption to your service experience.
Unparallel Internet Experience:
Say good bye to basic internet that was not able to meet your speed expectations. Change
from internet to “Fasternet” with Grameenphone 3G, now stay in touch with all your
friends in real time - whether on Facebook, Google+, Twitter anytime anywhere.
Seamless Experience:
Our 3G services will run on best in class 3.9G network technology – HSPA+, to deliver
you the optimum speed experience & seamless mobility. We have tied up with the
world's best technology providers like Google and Akamai (FB) to cache the content you
love the most. This means that we store the most popular videos or information locally,
near to you, to avoid any delay. As a result, your pages will load quicker, YouTube
videos are streamed faster and what you get is an enriching overall experience.
Richer Communications:
With GP 3G don't just make a traditional voice call, but also see your family and friends
live as they speak to you, from miles away. Don’t just stop at emoticons. Say more, show
more and do more Grameenphone 3G on the go.
Richer Entertainment:
Watch live videos and listen your favorite music when you want to, wherever you want
to! Get Videos-on-demand and live TV on your mobile. Turn your mobile into a
complete mobile entertainment & lifestyle zone that you can carry around in your pocket.
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19. Special Call Rate:
Grameenphone is offering special call rate for Customers to make customers’ life more
easy and worry free. Under this offer, customers will enjoy local voice tariff of
11paisa/ 10 seconds in the country’s strongest network for 24 hours to any operator
with 30 days validity if the customers recharge BDT 70 or more at a time.
Condition:
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Nishchinto Customers will enjoy local voice tariff of 11paisa/ 10 seconds for 24
hours to any operator with 30 days validity if the customers recharge BDT 70 or
more at one go
Other prepaid customers can migrate to Nishcninto package (if eligible) and
enjoy this offer by ensuing the mentioned amount of recharge
This tariff will be applicable for 30 days from the day of recharge
If customers opt for MyZone, they will enjoy MyZone tariff in On-net calls. For
GP-other operator calls this call rate will be applicable
If the customers opt for whole sale recharge offer (Recharge BDT 25 or higher
and enjoy 7paisa/10 sec offer), they will enjoy 7paisa/10sec call rate during
12:00am-4:00pm in GP-GP calls
Bonus talk-time will be consumed first
Customer who will enjoy this offer will not get instant money back offer
Churn back offer availing customers will not enjoy this offer
Customers will be able to check the offer validity by dialing *566*35#
10 Seconds pulse will be applicable
This offer will continue until further notice
15% VAT Applicable
Financial Service:
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Insufficient/Zero Balance in account? Don’t worry!! Grameenphone introduces a
brand new feature called Emergency Balance for all its prepaid customers from
September 2, 2013. Through this feature customers will be able to initiate a new
call after reaching zero/insufficient balance for emergency need with a validity of
30 days.
•
Grameenphone has always been a forerunner in satisfying customer needs in the
best way possible and has introduced new products and services in its channel.
One such initiative is our MobiCash outlets, where subscribers can avail a range
of convenient and innovative services such as:
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Mobile Banking services of different partner banks such as; Dutch Bangla Bank
Mobile Banking Service, and One Bank OK Mobile Banking Service
Customer registration and opening a mobile banking account from partner banks
Cash-in (deposit cash into your mobile banking account)
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20. •
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Cash-out (withdraw cash from your mobile banking account)
BillPay service for utility bill payment such as Electricity, Gas and WASA
(applicable in approved locations)
Flexiload
Own Opinion:
GrameenPhone Ltd (GP) is a fast growing mobile telecommunication. Considering the
importance of customer satisfaction, this project was designed to assess the satisfaction
level of GP’s subscribers. It is generally recognized that, although GrameenPhone is
leading the market of mobile telecommunication industry, its customer’s are not fully
satisfied with their services. If GP does not take care of these dissatisfactions and other
company enters the market with similar offers, it will be difficult for GrameenPhone to
keep current market share intact. A survey was thus conducted focusing on different
customer satisfaction factors of GrameenPhone.
GrameenPhone has been successful to build a superior image in comparison to the other
operators. In other words, GP has a clear advantage over the competitors. GrameenPhone
has some additional features in comparison to its competitors. It is playing a vital role to
increase the subscribers of GrameenPhone. Another important thing is that GP users are
mostly satisfied with the initial price of GP connections and handsets. Because, before
GP’s introduction to the market, mobile phones were totally out of reach to the major part
of the current market. Moreover, GrameenPhone subscribers are happy with the country
wide network. In spite of this, GP users are not satisfied with service of the company.
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21. Many important factors are acting behind this overall dissatisfaction. Significant
dissatisfactions were observed in the factors like quality of air time and network
availability, service of helpline, service of info centers, high billing rate, and so on.
Customer satisfaction was observed in the areas like initial price, wide network etc. Most
importantly, a significant portion of the GP subscribers were found not fully loyal toward
the company. GrameenPhone connections are always available. This is especially true
for the pre paid service. The findings of this survey has recently has reduced this problem
to a limited extent. Sometimes, the subscribers need to pay extra money to get this
service.
Conclusion:
Most of the subscribers are not happy with the billing rate of GrameenPhone. They think
it is too high in the context of Bangladesh. But they are still using the service as they do
not have any alternative to switch to. If others come up with lower price, GP might face
challenge. If any other company comes up with same sort of services, the GP subscribers
might switch to that company.
Following those recommendations, GrameenPhone can eliminate the dissatisfactions and
thus earn a sustainable distinct competitive advantage to continue their market leadership
• GP should earn flexibility to be able to reduce the bill. Currently it should take
into account that others are offering lower price packages.
• Capacity of the helpline should be increased in the peak hours.
• The customers should be made aware of the waiting charges they are to pay to be
in queue in getting the services from the call center.
• To improve the load on the network, the existing capacity should be improve to
fulfill the need of the customers.
• The customers face difficulties in payment of bill on bank holidays. It would be
convent for them to introduce payments card.
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The customers are made happy if they receive greetings message on special
occasions.
Network development should be steady; GP should never sell connections in
excess to its capacity.
Capacity of the GrameenPhone Center (GPC) should be increased to reduce the
stress of the subscribers.
Different programs should be taken to educate the subscribers regarding different
essential features of mobile phone.
GrameenPhone should take extensive program to build a positive image among
their users. In this process they should try to eliminate the misconceptions of the
users regarding GP.
To improve the load on the network, the existing capacity should be improve to
fulfill the need of the customers.
Recommendations:
From the Questionnaire analysis we see that customers overall satisfaction will decrease
if Cost of waiting time increase day by that means when customer call their respective
operator’s hotline number that time they reach the customer manager after waiting long
time. For example if the customer call their particular operator’s hotline number in any
time except mid night then they have to wait 3 to 4 minutes to reach the customer
manager. So Grameenphone should increase the manpower of call center and introduce
new technology and upgrade software which may reduce the call waiting time and
customer reach the customer manager right after they call.®
One more important point is, from my analysis I identify that most of the subscriber of
Grameenphone think that the Call rate for hotline number is not suitable. They think this
is very much costly for them when they call their customer care number. Because GP
charges for calling their hotline number per minute 1 taka. And in addition they have to
wait more than 3-4 minutes to reach the customer manager. Which create a negative
impact on customer mind? Because for solve a single problem they have to spend 6 to 7
taka. So Grameenphone suppose to reduce their call rate for their hotline or customer
service number. But they have to reduce it up to an optimum level. Because if they
reduce the call rate at minimum level then ultimately the call pressure increase
dynamically. Then also Cost of waiting time increase substantially.
Another reason of customer overall satisfaction decrease is take long time to solve the
problem. That means when the customer give the complain about their line and other
value added service, the mobile operator company take long time to solve their problem.
For example overcharging, friends and family number correction, missed call alert
problem.Then the companies take 72 hours from customer to solve that particular
problem. To achieve the higher customer rate they need to reduce the time gap. And this
can be possible when they use high technological software which has higher analytical
capability.
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http://www.lawyersnjurists.com/articles-Assignments-journals/telecommunication/case-study-grameenphoneservice-satisfaction-analysis
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23. It’s also mentionable that one more things there are some other factors which are directly
involved with customer satisfaction rate. These points are Service attitude of Customer
Manager and The solution or outcome of the conversation bring some positive result. The
service quality also depends on the key person who deals with the customer over the
phone. So the companies need to trained their employees such a way that they serve each
customer as their first customer. And try to increase their analytical power so they can
understand the customer problem within a very short time.
And other important factor like length of the conversation, understanding capability of
Customer Manager, positive behavior from Customer Manager end are acting as a vital
role to maintain the company’s overall customer satisfaction rate. So companies must
create more efficiency to maintain the customer satisfaction.
Bibliography:
www.Grameenphone.com.bd
dspace.bracu.ac.bd/.../Internship%20Assignment%20on%20Grameen
%20pho
• www.lawyersnjurists.com/.../case-study-grameenphone-servicesatisfactio
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