A STUDY ON MOBILE PHONE SERVICES USAGE IN SRIVILLIPUTTUR TOWN

INTRODUCTION

Japan was the first country to introduce the cellular phones in Asia. In today’s

fast moving generation Cellular phones have become one of the most important

systems for communication. Unlike landline telephones it uses radio frequency

instead of fixed cable for communication hence making it convenient to carry with

growing demand for cellular phones and with many new cellular service providers

trying to enter the market. There is growing competition all service providers are

trying to innovate new ways and means to satisfy its customers by introducing extra

features and additional facilities.

If one service provides offers a new facility immediately its competitor also

offers the same facility or introduces another one to retain its customers. Thus for any

business in the cellular world retaining its customers is more difficult and costlier than

gaining new customers. It is estimated that the cost of retaining a customers is 5

times more than the cost of attracting a new customer it requires a great deal of effort

to induce and convince customers not to switch away from their current service. Thus

customers are given to priority in today’s competitive world. Customers using various

service providers also must be totally aware of its features and advantages they must

choose the service considering its image and services offered by it. So every company

must try and create a positive brand image in the market as well as in the minds of the

customers to be able to face the tough competition. The service sector is a challenging

and growing sector. It plays a vital role in the economy of a nation because it shapes

its future.

In modern days, service sector is becoming the primary source of wealth, trade

and growth throughout the developed world. In olden days, the perception of service

was confined to work and advice only with service motto. Today the service have

been commercialized which is due to the emergence of a materialistic age in which

financial health of organization and economic status of an individual proved to be an

important base for evaluating sound ness, perfection an excellence.

Services have become a necessity for business houses. Even in developing

countries like India, a service sector is gaining momentum. Now-a-days, qualify is

questioned in the competitive market. In the service marketing, sky is the limit for

quality. “In India, the contribution of service sector has touched only 45% of GDP

(Gross Domestic Product) whereas it is 87% in U.S.A; 79% in Canada, and 75% in

U.K”. Deregulation of services and application of new technologies are presenting

considerable challenges to service sector companies such Bank, Insurance

Companies, Airlines, Tourism, Education, Health Care, Telecommunication and so

on.

The present study is related to mobile phone services and the mobile phone

service providers are in the prompt line. This service sector is creating more

employment opportunities. The service expectations of the users of the mobile phone

services are very high and are relative in character. Still the sector has potentiality and

should lay up to the raising expectation of the users. Now, the present year, the

mobile phone service provider has paid attention to the issue of user’s satisfaction and

quality of service. This study on mobile phone service has tried to analyze the service

characters, and the brand preference of mobile phone users.1

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Mobile phone occupies a predominant position in the modern life because

mobile phones are used by all levels of people. A day may come, when the number of

Mobile phone users may be greater than the number of telephone users. It helps one to

send and receive information anytime and anywhere. The effective and efficient usage

of Mobile phones and growth of mobile phone sector depends on the Mobile phone

service providers. Mobile phone users meet many problems. Problems arising from

the buying a mobile phone, choosing the mobile phone service provider. Tower

problem, variety of terms and conditions, recharge coupons and roaming charges the

optimum use of Mobile phone facilities is an the vital issue of the mobile phone users.

Growth of the mobile phone sector very much depends on the mobile phone

service providers. They also meet many problems in their day to day activities.

Choices of technology providing better service to the user, competing with other

1 www.buzzle.com/ Information -the-mobile-phones-in-the-indian-society.html

service providers are the, major problems for the mobile phone operators. In Order to

ascertain the problems and prospectus of the mobile phone companies and the service

providers in the study are, this research was undertaken.

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

Review of literature is essential for every research to carry on investigation

successfully. Hence, the study is based on the following review.

Mayank Vinodbhai Bhatt, in his article titled “A Study of Mobile Phone

Usage among the Post Graduate Students” says that the usage of mobile phone has

increased among the students in the recent time. Rapid growth and competition

among the mobile handset companies and mobile service provider companies have

decreased the rates for mobile handsets as well as mobile services. This has resulted

in the increase of customer base. Now a day we can find a mobile phone with every

student. Thus it is of significant interest to assess the student’s view on usage,

necessity and spending on mobile phones. However, to the best of our knowledge,

there has not been any survey that exclusively compares the student’s perspective on

the different mobile handset companies and mobile service providers.2

SCOPE OF THE STUDY

This study has been comprehensive and analytical. The main focus of this

study is to understand the opinion of the mobile phone users with regard to the service

extended by the mobile phone service providers. This study gives a detailed analysis

on the origin and growth of mobile phone, various mobile phone service providers in

srivilliputtur and preference of mobile phone user for using the mobile phone service.

The present study is undertaken to understand the problems faced by the mobile

phone users. Further the study will cover the preference of mobile phone subscribers

in Srivilliputtur.

2 Mayank Vinodbhai, A Study of Mobile Phone Usage among the Post Graduate Students, Indian Journal of Marketing, Vol. XXXVIII, No. 4, April 2008, pp.13-21.

OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

The study has the following objectives,

1. To analyze the nature of mobile phone service providers to their subscribers.

2. To find out the attitude towards the selection of mobile phones and service

providers by the subscribers.

3. To identify the problems faced by the mobile phone users regarding to service

providers and mobile phones.

4. To give the proper suggestions to the mobile phone service providers and

mobile phone companies.

HYPOTHESES

Hypothesis is a tentative proportion formulated for empirical testing. It is a

declarative statement combining concepts. In order to achieve the objective of the

present study the researcher has formulated the following hypotheses.

There is no relationship between the educational qualification of the

respondents and the mode of purchasing of mobile phone.

There is no relationship between the occupation of the respondents and the

number of years of using mobile phones.

There is no relationship between the usage of GSM mobile phone and the

GSM service providers.

PROFILE OF THE STUDY AREA

Srivilliputhur (srivilliputtur or thiruvilliputtur) is one of the temple towns in

Tamilnadu. It is located in Viruthunagar district, Tamilnadu. This town is well

connected by road and rail with all major towns in the state. The nearest airport is in

Madurai, 75km away from the town.

Major Industries

Weaving & farming are the primary occupation for most of the people in this

town. Srivilliputtur Palkova, a sweet made up of milk and sugar, is prepared and

distributed by area businesses and it’s popular all over the Tamil Nadu. The

uniqueness of this sweet is the taste and quality. This town also encompasses

jewellery makers and lawyers in particular. It has 10 courts including a district court

even though it is not the district headquarters. One cannot ignore agriculture, there are

lots of small villages within 3 km Radius, and agriculture is the main occupation,

during draught people take up part time work in Match Box (or) in the Textile

Industry.

PopulationAccording to the 2010 census, the taluk of Srivilliputhur had a population of

269,317 with 134,051 males and 135,266 females. There were thousand nine women

for every thousand men. The taluk had a literacy rate of 71.15. The total number of

households was 70,369.3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Research Methodology is an essential aspect of any research or investigation.

It enables the investigator to look at the problem in a systematic, meaningful and

orderly way. This study is based on descriptive research. It explores the existing

phenomena of responses given by the customers towards the brand preference of

mobile phone.

Primary Data

Primary data is the first hand information, which has been collected through

direct personal interview with the help of a structured interview schedule from the

mobile phone users in Srivilliputtur.

3 http://en.wikipedia.org/virudhunagar district/srivilliputtur

Secondary Data

The secondary data is an integral part of any research study or a dissertation

report as it provides information on key variables, which play a major part in the

actual research. The sources of secondary collected include: Standard text books,

Journals, Magazines, News papers and the Websites.

Sampling Design

Having considered the indefinite universe and the time at the disposal of the

researcher, it is decided to adopt a convenient sampling technique. The researcher

selected a sample of only 150 mobile phone users for this study.

Tools of Analysis

In order to analyse the objectives of this study, the tools used were Graphs,

Diagrams and charts are used to analyse the opinion of the respondents, weighted

mean score, weighted arithmetic mean is used and, Chi- square test was used to judge

the significance.

LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

This study has the following limitations

Mobile phone is a global concept, but the present study covers only

srivilliputtur.

The study was depending on the sampling and due to the limited period, the

entire population is not taken into account.

The Research study was fully focused preference of mobile phone and service

providers only. It does not with mobile number portability, because MNP

scheme was start after Jan 20th.

ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATIONS OF MOBILE PHONE AND

SERVICE PROVIDERS

Table No.1: The Details Regarding General Profile of the Mobile Phone Users

Factors Classification No. of Respondents Percentage

GenderMaleFemale

8466

56.0044.00

Age base Usage

15-25 Years25-35 Years35-45 Years45-55 YearsAbove 55

1838572017

12.0025.3438.0013.3311.33

Education

Up to Higher SecondaryUnder GraduatePost GraduateProfessional

18387717

12.0025.3451.3311.33

Occupation

BusinessProfessionalEmployeeHome makerStudent

3012501543

20.008.0033.3310.0026.67

Monthly Income

Less than `5000` 5000 to ` 10,000`10,000to ` 15,000Above ` 15,000

35453337

23.3330.0022.0024.67

Source: Primary Data

Inference: Regarding personal profile of the mobile phone users, the table no.1 shows

that 56 per cent respondents are male, 38 per cent respondents are starting the age

group of 35-45 years, and the maximum respondents are Post Graduates (51.33 per

cent), the majority of the respondents is employee (33.33 per cent) and in case of

monthly income the earnings (30 per cent) under the income group of ` 5000 to

`10,000.

Table No.2: Usage of the Mobile Phones by the respondents

Mobile Phones Number of Respondents Percentage

Brand Mobiles 79 52.67China Mobile 43 28.67

CDMA Mobiles 28 18.66

Total 150 100.00 Source: Primary Data

Inference: The above table reveals that out of 150 respondents, 79 respondents are

using Brand Mobiles (52.67 per cent), 43 respondents are using China Mobiles (28.67

per cent), and the remaining 28 respondents are using CDMA Mobiles (18.66 per

cent). It is inferred that among 150 respondents majority of the respondents are using

Brand Mobiles (52.67 per cent).

Table No.3: Using Brand Mobile Phone by the respondents

Mobile Phones Number of Respondents PercentageNokia 30 37.97

Samsung 18 22.78Motorola 12 15.19Videocon 4 5.06

Sony Ericsson 15 19.00Total 79 100.00

Source: Primary Data

Inference: It is Obvious to state that 30 respondents prefer Nokia Mobile

(37.97 per cent), 18 respondents prefer Samsung Mobile (22.78 per cent), 12

respondents prefer Motorola Mobile (15.19 per cent), 4 respondents prefer Videocon

Mobiles (5.06 per cent), and the remaining 15 respondents prefer Sony Ericsson

Mobile (19.00 per cent).

It is clear that among 79 respondents majority of them are prefer the Nokia

Mobile phone (37.97 per cent), in the study area.

Table No.4: Using China Mobiles by the respondentsChina Mobiles Number of Respondents Percentage

G’Five 28 65.12

Fly 6 13.95

Orion 5 11.63Karbonn 4 9.30

Total 43 100.00Source: Primary Data

Inference: It is oblivious from the above table that 28 respondents prefer G’Five

Mobile (65.12 per cent), 6 respondents prefer Fly Mobile (13.95 per cent), 5

respondents prefer Orion Mobile (11.63 per cent), and the remaining 4 respondents

prefer Karbonn Mobile (9.30 per cent).

From the above table it is clear that among the china mobiles users the

majority of them are prefer the G’Five Mobiles (65.12 per cent).

Table No.5: Mode of Mobile Phone Purchased by the respondents

Mode of Purchase Number of Respondents Percentage

Installment System 30 20.00

Ready Cash 120 80.00

Total 150 100.00

Source: Primary data

Inference: Out of 150 respondents, 120 (80 per cent) of the respondents purchase

mobile phone by ready cash; and the remaining 30 (20.00 per cent) respondents

purchase their mobile phone by installment system. It is understood that most of the

respondents purchase their mobile phone only for cash.

For finding out the relationship between educational qualification of the respondents

and mode of purchasing mobile phone the researcher used chi-square test.

Ho: There is no significant relationship between educational qualification of the

respondents and mode of purchasing mobile phone.

H1: There is significant relationship between educational qualification of the

respondents and mode of purchasing mobile phone.

The x2 for table value 3 degrees of freedom at 5 per cent level of significance

7.815. The calculated x2 value is (30.85) higher than the table value (7.815) at 5

per cent level of significance level. The null hypothesis is rejected. Hence, there is an

association between educational qualification of the respondents and mode of

purchasing mobile phone.

Table No.6: Reasons for having Mobile Phone by the respondentsReasons Number of Respondents Percentage

Convenience 72 48.00Easily accessible 37 24.67

Easy to Communicate 28 18.67

Economy 13 8.66Total 150 100.00

Source: Primary Data

Inference: The above table shows that out of 150 respondents, 72 (48 per cent)

respondents are purchasing the mobile phone for their convenience, 37 respondents

are purchasing the mobile phone for the easy accessible (24.67 per cent), 28

respondents are purchasing the mobile phone for the easy to communicate (18.67 per

cent) and the remaining 13 respondents are purchasing the mobile for Economy (8.66

per cent). It reveals that the majority of the respondents are purchasing the mobile

phone for their convenience (48 per cent).

Table No.7: Mobile Phone Usage Period of the respondentsYears of Using cell phone Number of Respondents Percentage

Less than 2 years 43 28.673 – 5 Years 75 50.006 – 8 Years 26 17.33

Above 8 Years 6 4.00Total 150 100.00

Source: Primary Data

Inference: It is apparent from the above table that 75 respondents are using mobile

phone 3-5 years (50 per cent); 43 respondents are using mobile phone less than 2

years (28.67 per cent); 26 respondents are using mobile phone 6-8 years(17.33 per

cent) and the remaining 6 respondents are using mobile phone above 8 years. It is

inferred that a majority of the respondents 3 to 5 years use mobile phone.

For the finding out the relationship between Occupation of the respondents

and number of years of using mobile phone the researcher used chi-square test.

Ho: There is no significant relationship between Occupation of the respondents and

number of years of using mobile phone.

H1: There is significant relationship between Occupation of the respondents and

number of years of using mobile phone.

The x2 for table value12 degrees of freedom at 5 per cent level of significance

21.026. The calculated x2 value is (22.91159) higher than the table value (21.026) at

5 per cent level of significance level. The null hypothesis is rejected. Hence, there is

an association between Occupation of the respondents and number of years of using

mobile phone.

Table No.8: Nature of Using Mobile Phone by the respondentsPurpose of Using Mobiles Number of Respondents Percentage

Incoming Only 5 3.33

Outgoing Only 23 15.33

Incoming & Outgoing 32 21.33

SMS Only 18 12.00

Incoming & Outgoing and SMS 72 48.00

Total 150 100.00

Source: Primary data

Inference: Out of 150 respondents 5 (3.33 per cent) respondents are mostly attend the

incoming calls only; 23(15.33 per cent) respondents dial outgoing calls only; 32

respondents (21.33 per cent) are using both incoming as well as outgoing calls; 18

respondents (12 per cent) are using only for SMS services out of these category of

respondents all of them comes under students category and the remaining 72

respondents (48 per cent) prefer Incoming and Outgoing as well as SMS services. It is

understood that most of the respondents are using mobile phone for Incoming and

Outgoing as well as SMS services (48 per cent).

Table No.9: Usage of Mobile Phone Service Providers by the respondents

Service Providers Number of Respondents Percentage

GSM 122 81.33CDMA 28 18.67

Total 150 100.00

Source: Primary Data

Inference: It is observed from the above table that among 150 respondents, 122

respondents are use GSM service providers (81.33 per cent) and the remaining 28

respondents are use CDMA service providers (18.67 per cent). It is inferred that

majority of the respondents use GSM service providers.

Table No.10: Usage of GSM Service Providers of the respondents

GSM Service Providers Number of Respondents Percentage

Airtel 45 36.89

Aircel 18 14.75

Uninor 16 13.11

BSNL 6 4.92

Vodafone 22 18.03

Tata Docomo 12 9.84

Idea 3 2.46

Total 122 100.00

Source: Primary Data

Inference: It is obvious from the above table that 45 respondents prefer Airtel (36.89

per cent), 18 respondents prefer Aircel (14.75 per cent), 16 respondents prefer Uninor

(13.11 per cent), 6 respondents are prefer Bsnl (4.92 per cent), 22 respondents prefers

Vodafone (18.03 per cent), 12 respondents prefer Tata Docomo (9.84 per cent) and

the remaining 3 respondents prefer Idea (2.46 per cent). From the above table it is

clear that among 122 respondents majority of them prefer Airtel service.

For finding out the relationship between usage of GSM mobile phone and

GSM service providers the researcher used Chi-square test.

Ho: There is no significant relationship between usage of GSM mobile phone and

GSM service providers.

H1: There is significant relationship between usage of GSM mobile phone and GSM

service providers.

The x2 for table value 48 degrees of freedom at 5 per cent level of significance

64.885. The calculated x2 value is (89.5707) higher than the table value (64.885) at 5

per cent level of significance level.

The null hypothesis is rejected. Hence, there is an association between usage

of GSM mobile phone and GSM service providers.

Table No.11: Usage of CDMA Service Providers of the respondentsCDMA Service Providers Number of Respondents Percentage

Tata Indicom 7 25.00

Reliance 8 28.57

MTS 13 46.43

Total 28 100.00

Source: Primary Data

Inference: It is obvious from the table (No.11) that 7 respondents are prefer Tata

Indicom (25 per cent), 8 respondents prefer Reliance (28.57 per cent) and the

remaining 13 respondents are prefer MTS (46.43 per cent). Most of the respondents

prefer MTS service provider.

Table No.12: Type of Card Holders of the respondents

Card Holders Number of Respondents Percentage

Prepaid 128 85.33Post Paid 22 14.67

Total 150 100.00 Source: Primary Data

Inference: Out of 150 respondents 128 (85.33 per cent) respondents prefer prepaid

card and the remaining 22 (14.67 per cent) respondents prefer post paid card. It is

inferred that majority of the respondents prefer prepaid card.

Table No.13: Attitude towards Cellular Service Providers of the respondents

STATEMENTSStrongly

AgreeAgree

No Opinion

DisagreeStrongly Disagree

TotalWeighted

Mean Score

Rank

Network Coverage is Excellent 68 47 28 4 3 150 4.15 1

Value Added Services are plenty 38 27 57 16 12 150 3.42 5

Plan Options are More Convenient 47 32 36 28 7 150 3.56 4

Call Charges are Moderate 56 37 23 22 12 150 3.69 3

Activation Formalities are Simple 64 37 26 18 5 150 3.91 2

Source: Primary Data

Inference: It is observed that, out of the 5 statements, network coverage ranks that the

first place with weighted mean score of 4.15. The second rank goes to activation

formalities. The third rank goes to call charges. The fourth rank goes to plan options.

The fifth rank goes to value added services. It is concluded that network coverage is

excellent most of respondents told that strongly agree weighted mean score 4.15.

Table No.14: Benefits of mobile phone service providers by the respondents

BENEFITSI II III IV V

TotalWeighted

Mean Score Rank

Fast Communication 85 30 22 8 5 150 4.21 1

Security 10 18 37 58 27 150 2.51 4

Wide coverage with low cost 30 56 49 8 7 150 3.63 2

Privacy 10 8 8 58 66 150 1.92 5

Entertainment 18 27 22 45 38 150 2.61 3

Source: Primary Data

Inference: From the following table it is observed that, out of the 5 benefits, fast

communication ranks that the first place with weighted mean score of 4.21. The

second rank goes to wide coverage with low cost. The third rank goes to

entertainment. The fourth rank goes to security. The fifth rank goes to privacy. It is

inferred that most of the respondents are rank the benefits of mobile phone service

providers is fast communication weighted mean score 4.21.

FINDINGS OF THE STUDY

The major findings of the study are as follows:

From the gender wise classification of the users, it is clear that 56 per cent of

the respondents who use mobile phone are male.

The researcher finds that opinions of mobile phone users about usage of

mobile phone 52.67 per cent of the respondents are using brand mobiles.

The researcher finds that 37.97 per cent of the respondents prefer the Nokia

mobile phone.

The researcher has also finds that 65.12 per cent of the respondents are prefer

the G’Five mobiles.

The analysis of the mode of purchase of the users indicates that 80 per cent of

the respondents are purchasing the mobile phone by ready cash.

It is found that there is relationship between educational qualification of the

respondents and mode of purchasing mobile phone.

Maximum of 48 per cent of the respondents are purchasing the mobile phone

for their convenience.

The researcher has also investigated the number of years of using the mobile

phone. It reveals that, 50 per cent of the respondents are using mobile phone 3-

5 years.

It is found that there is relationship between occupation of the respondents and

number of years of using mobile phone.

The researcher investigated the nature of using mobile phone 48 per cent of

the respondents are using mobile phone for incoming and outgoing as well as

SMS services.

Majority of 81.33 per cent of the respondents are using GSM service

providers.

The researcher finds that 36.89 per cent of the respondents are using Airtel

service.

It is found that there is a relationship between usage of GSM mobile phone

and GSM service provider.

The researcher finds that 46.43 per cent of the respondents are prefer the MTS

service provider.

The researcher has made an attempt to know the type of card holders. 85.33

per cent of the respondents prefer prepaid card.

Out of five statements attitude towards mobile phone service providers, most

of the respondents are told that network coverage is excellent with weighted

mean score of 4.15

Out of five benefits of mobile phone service provider, most of the respondents

are rank the benefits of mobile phone service provider is fast communication

with weighted mean score of 4.21

SUGGESTIONS

Nokia has got its own brand image, but as the video and audio is concerned

there are lots of complaints from the customers regarding every brand. The

mobile phone companies should take special efforts to overcome these

complaints in future.

There is close relationship between gender of users and choice of mobile

phone service providers. Majority of mobile phone service users under this

study are males. Therefore, the mobile phone service providers should

follow sales promotion techniques to attract more females.

Prepaid cards are highly preferred by the customers. When the customers

use prepaid cards they will limit their talk. When they are induced to use

postpaid cards, limitless talk could be possible without fear of empty

balance. Hence, the companies and dealers should concentrate more on

postpaid business and create awareness about the usage of postpaid service

and expand the postpaid business to the level of prepaid business.

CONCLUSION

The results of the survey show that ‘convenience’ is the most influencing

factor for mobile subscribers. Any rise or fall in tariffs directly affects mobile phone

usage. A better and customer friendly tariff and a problem free service provider can

hope to tap the customer resources and top in market share. In addition, multiple

usages of mobile phone and better service are other factors influencing customers. It

can be concluded that the existing customers are satisfied with the mobile phone

services. By creating more awareness, better coverage, connectivity and new schemes

the prospective consumer can be generated.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Donald R. Cooper, Pamel S Schindler, Business Research Methods, The Mc

Graw Hill Companies, 2006.

Kothari, C. R. Research Methodology Methods and Techniques, New Age

International Pvt. Ltd, New Delhi, 2005.

JOURNAL REFERENCES

Mayank Vinodbhai, A Study of Mobile Phone Usage among the Post Graduate

Students, Indian Journal of Marketing, Vol. XXXVIII, No. 4, April 2008, pp.13-21.

WEBSITE REFERENCES

http:/www.buzzle.com/ Information -the-mobile-phones-in-the-indian-

society.html

http://en.wikipedia.org